The Make-up Race

It was race week and I was ready! I had some great runs leading up to Saturday but I didn't push myself too hard. I wanted to keep my legs fresh. I did notice an area of concern--my left glute is not firing. I noticed it on Sunday. My right glute was really sore after my run and while I was running, I felt like it was doing all the work. At my race on Saturday, I stumbled way more than I should have--catching my left toe and nearly falling multiple times. I didn't fall, thankfully--that would have been tragic on this trail, as it's really rocky and rooty. But it reinforced that I need to get back to basics with some posterior chain work, focusing on that side.

This week I learned that I received a complimentary entry to the Indianapolis Monumental Half Marathon from Brooks! The race is November 9. I've always wanted to run this one and November is a good time of year for a long distance race. A couple other teammates will be joining me.  I keep saying I'm done with long distance road racing, but here I go again.  People who've done it say it's a 'fast course'. We'll see about that!

Don't Worry, Run Happy!

The family drama I wrote about last week spilled into this week. I keep wishing it would go away, but I don't think that is going to happen. Thank goodness for running and my workouts. I was able to sweat out a lot of my stress again. We had beautiful weather for most of the week, and I fully enjoyed my trail runs. There's just something about being in nature that makes me so happy!

Sweating it Out

Once again, running and my workouts were there to help me get through a stressful week. This week, my parents were the main source. My dad has been having some minor health issues but made them into everyone's problem. I won't go into details, but I did get a glimpse of what the future looks like for my sisters and me. It's not going to be pretty. 

On the plus side, Cocoa has completely recovered from her surgery! I bought her some new tennis balls this week and we've been busy chasing them around the backyard. She also chased a big opossum out of our yard. Yeeeesh....

Running was my salvation. So was CrossFit. There's nothing better to relieve stress than to sweat it out. As always, I am grateful that my body still lets me push it.

Mini Book Reviews: April 2023

Disclaimer: I received ARCs of The Limits, Backyard Bird Chronicles, Lucky, and Love is a Burning Thing from NetGalley and the publishers in exchange for my reviews.

Continuing with my unofficial theme this month of ups and downs, some of the books I read this month were great and some were not-so-great. My favorite book of the month, hands down, was Wolf At the Table. I also enjoyed Piglet, The Backyard Bird Chronicles, and Love is a Burning Thing. While some readers enjoyed Worry, Lucky, and The Limits, my advice is to take a pass.

Ups and Downs

This was a tumultuous week! Weather aside, I had a lot of ups and downs. I've been feeling unsettled since Cocoa had her surgery, and life threw some curve balls my way this week. Did you see the full moon this week? It was HUGE and I'm blaming everything on that. Oh, and Mercury has been in retrograde if you believe that stuff. Normally, I don't, but I needed some explanation for all the chaos of the past couple of weeks! Thankfully that's all behind us and the week did end on a high note. 

My trail friend whose race recap let me know that I missed my race, reached out with an opportunity to redeem myself after my unintentional DNS.  She told me about an upcoming trail race on May 18 on the Blue Springs Segment of the IAT. The distance is listed as 'about 12 miles', which is perfect for me. It sounds really laid back and there's locally brewed beer at the finish line! After triple-checking the date,  I put the race on my calendar. I'm looking forward to it!

An Unintentional DNS

Remember that trail race I recently signed up for? Run From the Taxman? Apparently, I put the race on the calendar for the wrong Saturday. I thought the race was taking place on the 20th, but it was last Saturday the 13th. When I saw one of my trail friends sharing her results on Facebook last Saturday, I had the strangest feeling of disbelief come over me. How could this have happened? That I mixed up the date on such an important event really bothered me and the unease was hard to shake.

This whole week was unsettling and it wasn't just the DNS that threw me off. I was home all week to care for Cocoa. She wouldn't leave my side the whole time. She also wouldn't eat or drink for the first couple of days. She was on quite a few medications when I brought her home and I wondered if they were causing her nausea. They also gave her a nausea medication but it didn't seem to make a difference. On Tuesday, I removed the fentanyl patch, thinking maybe that was causing some side effects. That helped a lot--she started behaving more like herself, wanting to chase her ball, and eventually eating more food.

Meanwhile, I tackled a lot of little household projects that needed to be done. Like washing the baseboards and the china cabinet. Organizing the closets. Gathering items for Goodwill. The interesting thing, at least to me, is that when you don't clean your own house (I have a cleaning lady every month), you don't notice what isn't being cleaned--until it becomes really gross. It felt good to get that stuff done! I also pulled weeds and old plants in my perennial garden and am trying to decide what I want to plant there.

It Was A Good Week

Truly, it was a good week. Most importantly, I got all my workouts in. It was a good thing because I needed it! Cocoa had her ear ablation surgery on Friday. If you know me at all, you know that I was really nervous for her. The funny thing is that when we got in the car to go to Madison on Thursday, she acted as if it was no big deal and slept most of the way. But when we got to the UW Veterinary Clinic, she started to shake. I felt bad leaving her there, but fortunately, the surgery went well. As you read this on Sunday, we are bringing her home.

It's amazing how much these little furballs mean to us, isn't it? When my hubs balked at the idea of another surgery, I reminded him that she was part of the family. We couldn't not do this. Thank goodness for the availability of good veterinary care. I am thrilled with the care she received.