Post-Leadville Recovery

After what was an incredibly fun but also incredibly active weekend, I promised myself no running this week. That was not a hard promise to keep as I was exhausted after I arrived home. It didn't help that on Monday night after I got home, Cocoa made friends with a skunk. Ugh. The hubs and I were up late scrubbing her fur with Dawn, baking powder, and peroxide. We were able to avoid most of the stink in the house, fortunately. I had trouble sleeping that night and the next day, had a very challenging day at work. 

As the week went on, I started sleeping better but still felt really fatigued. The hubs noted on Saturday that I told him how tired I was about "10 times". I guess the race and the altitude really took a toll on me. I'm not regretting the race--it was definitely worth it! I feel no guilt about taking time off from running. I'm not sure if I'll run at all next week either, but I will be active. I'm heading to Alabama for a long weekend of waterskiing with Holly! 

To be honest, I haven't missed running at all this week. Sometimes, a little time off is a good thing. Running will be there for me when I get back.

Race Recap: Leadville Silver 15 mile trail race

About 6 months ago, the leader of Trail Sisters Chicago Northwest asked me if I wanted to join her for Leadville Silver. She was planning on running the 50 mile race but told me there was a 15 mile option. Several of the other women were considering it as well. Since I'm writing this recap, you know what I decided. I asked my youngest son if he would be interested in running with me and to my surprise, he said yes! My oldest son and his girlfriend also joined us for a fun weekend in Colorado.

A Bundle of Nerves

It's been a long time since I've had pre-race jitters like I've had this week. I think it's because Leadville is the first destination race I've gone to in a long time. There's so much more to a destination race than just showing up at the start line, which is why I don't do them very often. There's all the travel, the logistics of getting from point A to point B, and wrangling the 4 young adults who have accompanied me on this trip. Not to mention that one of my niggles, toe pain that I didn't mention a few weeks ago, decided to get really angry (see below). As the week went on, the pain lessened, but it didn't completely resolve.

My goal was to finish and I did that! I'll share more in a full recap soon. For most of the race, my foot behaved. As expected, the altitude was my nemesis, but I did better than I hoped. My son crushed his race and made me cry when he met me at the finish line. I was able to celebrate with my Trail Sisters. This was just such a great experience! If you want a sneak peek before I post the recap, check out my IG post, 

Coffee Talk

Let's catch up over coffee! What are you having? Today, I'm sipping on Dunkin! For nurses' week back in May, I was given a gift card to Dunkin' and bought a pound of beans. Only $11! Such a bargain and oh so tasty. Of course, I have the usual scoop of collagen and splash of half and half to top it off. Old habits die hard...

What would you tell me over coffee? 

Mini Book Reviews: June 2023

 Disclaimer: I received an ARC of La Vie, According to Rose from Amazon First Reads. This post contains affiliate links.

After my first book this month, I fell into a slump. Is it just me or are a lot of the new releases lately kind of a slog? After reading several books this month that were highly reviewed and wondering what I was missing, I decided to dig into my TBR and found an absolutely delightful romance story. I ended the month with another backlist book that was recommended by Erica and it was a winner. 

I did have 2 DNFs this month. After making it to the 50% point with both, I called it quits. I just can't waste time reading a book that doesn't draw me in. There are too many books out there for that!

Wrapping Up My Training Cycle

One week to go until the Leadville Silver 15 miler! I wrapped up my training cycle this week, very pleased with how it all went. You might ask when I officially started training. And I would answer that's a good question. While Earth Day wasn't my goal race, I did put in the work for that one too. It could count for training. Realistically, it wasn't until May that I really began to focus on my mileage, building on the work I did for Earth Day. Even more so, I put emphasis on getting lots of elevation. 

So here are the stats for the past 8 weeks:

Total miles: 208 miles

Total elevation: 7285 ft

I am so grateful to have access to those Wisco trails. When I totaled up my vert, the Illinois trails didn't even make a dent. The total elevation at Leadville is 1676 ft. With all my climbing, I am definitely ready for that! What I'm not ready for is the altitude, which at its peak on the course is 10,896 ft. Chicago sits at 597 ft. There's really no way for me to prepare for that. 

I wonder if I can bring portable oxygen in my hydration vest? 

What I have done: I've been 'doping' aka taking iron supplements for the past 3 months with the hopes of getting my hemoglobin higher, which would increase my blood's oxygen-carrying capacity. My son brags that his hemoglobin is 17, so he's hoping for success with that. I've also been taking creatine, along with my usual supplements, hoping to build a little more muscle mass to help me run strong. Research on running at altitude lead me to plan to arrive the day before the race, to allow as little time as possible to let the altitude affect me. 

With no goals but to finish and have fun, I am looking forward to running on some different trails and spending quality time with my boy. What else could a runner ask for?

I Didn't Have an Apocalypse on My Summer Running Bingo Card and Other Runfessions

This is a pretty dramatic title, right?

Just when it became safe to go outside without a mask--thank you Covid--people are donning masks again because the air quality is so poor in areas affected by the Canadian wildfires. That includes the Chicago area, where I live. Earlier this week, our air quality was so poor, it was the worst in the world. A few weeks ago, it was the East Coast that was affected. It's almost apocalyptic, viewing the landscape through a smoky haze. And it feels wrong being stuck inside during the best time of year. 

Life has not been dull these past couple of years, has it? Thank goodness for running.

Ok. it's time to runfess! On the last Friday of the month, Marcia opens up the runfessional and we are all invited to share our running transgressions. You know I always have a few. Let's get right to it, shall we?