Month: February 2023

Tuesday Topics: February 2023 Review

This week’s Tuesday Topic is a FREE topic.  Feel free to post any running-related blog post.  Remember to link up with Kim and Zenaida!  Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier!  Remember to come back for later linkers!

Yay February is over!  It has been a mild Winter with not too much snow but some windy days.  It has rained a couple of times but overall still a great Winter.

Just like not all runs will be great, the same thing for days/weeks/months.  February was an OK month for me but I survived.

I can now add myself to the list of Covid victims.  Yep, I finally got it.  It was very mild with a lot of coughing.  I stayed in bed for 5 days, resting and reading.  I finished one book in two days!  But after 5 days of being home, I was ready to return to work.

Let me tell you about how February went for me:

Mileage:  It was a very low mileage for me with 18.78 running miles and .98 walking miles.  I hope this is the only low month this year.  It is warming up and that motivates me to keep on running.  But that means then I will be complaining that it is too hot.  😆 😆 

Current Book:  I have finished reading 5 books and am currently reading “The Paper Place”.  My goal is to read 12 books and I am almost halfway done.

Current Shoes: Still running in the Brooks Ghost.  These are perfect because they’re NYC-themed!

2023 Running Goal:  My goal this year is to run 800 miles.  It is about 67 miles per month.  I ran way less this month but I know I can make it up in the upcoming months.  As long as I stay healthy and injury free, I am confident I will reach my goal.

Injuries: None but sometimes my hip hurts because I do not stretch as I should.  Sometimes I do wonder if it is something else.

Blog: I fell off the wagon with posting on Sundays.  That is OK because I still want to post on Tuesday and Friday consistently.    

School:  I have my good days and my bad days like everyone else.  We have 3 months left of this school year.  Next year we will have a new Reading Curriculum and I am actually looking forward to it.  Something new.  But that also means more work with this new curriculum.  I am not complaining about the curriculum.  My complaint is that not enough time is given to us to learn and implement it.

Health:  I have no complaints about my health.  I have noticed that now I am getting more hot flashes during the day and at night.  I wonder if this is because of Covid or premenopause or both.

February was OK.  Hopefully, March is better.  I am signed up for two races and am excited about them.  I will admit that I am NOT ready for my race in NYC next month.  I haven’t been training like I wanted to.  But I don’t care.  I am still going because I know I won’t have another chance to run the half marathon.  My goal isn’t to PR anyway.  I want to run the race and finish it.  

The topic for next week Tomorrow is International Women’s Day.  Who are the female athletes you admire?  Feel free to write about this or any running-related topic.  We hope you’ll link up with us!

Tuesday Topics

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Tuesday Topics: My six favorites of 2022

This week’s Tuesday Topic:  My six favorites of 2022.  You can write about this or post any running-related blog post.  Remember to link up with Kim and Zenaida!  Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier!  Remember to come back for later linkers! 

2022 was quite a year!  It meant back to the classroom with students and going to work in a new school.  There were also some wonderful things that took place.  Here are some of my favorites.

⭐ Favorite Day:  My birthday!  I turned 50 and am still fifty and fabulous.  😊 I wasn’t going to do anything to celebrate but then I decided why not.  I will not turn 50 again.

⭐ Favorite race atmosphere:  I didn’t run the Chicago Marathon but I had so much fun being a spectator.  Ha, it is much more fun than running it.

⭐ Favorite Cat Photo:  Between my two cats, I don’t have a favorite.  I love them both.  Lola is definitely more cuddly and follows me around like a kid.  Mateo is the one in the picture.  It was sometime last year that he began sleeping next to me.  This was during one of my naps and he got comfortable with me.  ❤️ ❤️

⭐ Favorite Race:  I ran two races, Shamrock Shuffle 8k and 4 on the 4th of July, and I loved both of them.  I hadn’t run a race since February 2020.

⭐ Favorite Purchase:  My Noxgear lamp!  It is bright and I love it.  The left photo is high, the middle is low, and the right is no light.

⭐ Favorite Book:  I didn’t keep track of all of the books I read but “Mary Jane” is one of my favorites.  It is funny and somehow gave me a good feeling while reading it.  I loved Mary Jane but loved Izzy even more.  She is an adorable little girl.  Now I am using Goodreads to keep track of the books I read.

Next week is a FREE topic.  Feel free to write about any running-related topic.  We hope you’ll link up with us!

Tuesday Topics

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Fit Five Friday: 5 self-care ways to show love for yourself

This week’s Fit Five Friday topic: 5 self-care ways to show love for yourself.  You can write about this topic or any fitness-related post.  We’ve got FIVE incredible co-hosts My First 5K and MoreRunning With AttitudeRun Laugh Eat PieRuns with Pugs, and Zenaida so be sure to link up with us. 

We all love self-care right?  What it is and how we do it is different for each one of us.  Let me tell you what I do.

💟 Exercise.  I run and sometimes I walk.  I know, I know, I need to do more.  My Peloton misses me.

💟 Watch what I eat.  It may not be perfect but I do what I can.  However, there are days when I get too stressed and I go for what I want to eat.  Hello Big Mac and french fries!

💟 Get enough sleep.  I am usually in bed by 9 pm and wake up between 4-5 am.  Sometimes I do OK and other times I wake up in the middle of the night and it takes me a while to go back to sleepMelatonin does make me sleepy but I need it to last longer.  

💟 Do things I enjoy. To me, that is either watching TV or reading a book.  On Monday I finished reading my 4th book this year.  I also like to meet up with friends for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

💟 Drink less coffee and drink more water.  As much as I love coffee, I have cut down on it.  I drink one cup in the morning and that’s it.   Sometimes, I will stop for coffee at Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts, but I don’t do it as often as I used to. I bought a Brita pitcher to have in my room and fill it up in the morning.  My goal is to finish it at school.

The topic for next week – It is Runfessions with Marcia!  We hope you will link up. 

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Tuesday Topics: My love for running

This week’s Tuesday Topic:  It’s Valentine’s Day. Share why you love running.  You can write about this topic or post any running-related blog post.  Remember to link up with Kim and Zenaida!  Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier!  Remember to come back for later linkers! 

Happy Valentine’s Day!  While I won’t be out there celebrating with a significant other, I will spend it at home with my cats whom I love very much and they both love me too.

Now let’s talk about running.  What’s not to love about running?  Let me tell you what I love about running.

❤️ The gear.  I have lots of tops and bottoms to run in all 4 seasons.  Let’s not forget the running shoes.  I went through a phase in which I had boxes and boxes of shoes but now I have calmed down. 

❤️ Meeting up with friends.  I run alone in the morning but I love seeing and meeting up with friends at races.

❤️ Traveling.  I’ve traveled to over 40 states to run a half marathon.  I still need to travel to South Carolina, Kansas, Wyoming, South Dakota, North Dakota, Idaho, New Mexico, and Hawaii.  The two states I’ve traveled the most to are Florida and California because of the RunDisney races.  In November, I would like to run again in Florida for the Wine and Dine Half Marathon.  When I ran it a few years ago, it rained the WHOLE time and I was miserable.

❤️ Feels good.  Sometimes I do get tired from running but many times it feels good.  I love running in the morning because I know I am doing something good for myself and my body. 

❤️ Support and encouragement.  As I’ve mentioned before, I do run alone.  But that doesn’t mean that I don’t have any running friends.  We may not all live in the same state, but we are there for each other.  They’re the best! 

Topic for next week – Your six favorites of 2022. Feel free to write about this or any running-related topic.  We hope you’ll link up with us!

Tuesday Topics

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Tuesday Topics: Things I saw on my last run

This week’s Tuesday Topic:  Things I saw on my last run.  You can write about this topic or post any running-related blog post.  Remember to link up with Kim and Zenaida!  Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier!  Remember to come back for later linkers! 

I didn’t run last week because of the weather.  I didn’t want to deal with it.  So this post is based on a run and walk I did this morning.  I ran for 20 minutes (walked more towards the end) and then walked for 13 minutes.  Below is what I saw.

I live very close to Midway Airport.  Every time I see an airplane, I wonder where it is coming from or where it is traveling to.  Makes me more excited about my trips this year.

I am not religious but I know many Mexicans love the Virgin Mary.  The statue is inside a glass cage with color-changing lights.

The stillness of the morning.  I love being outside and alone during this time.  Sometimes I think and sometimes I enjoy listening to Matty.  The photo includes the train (Orange Line) which goes downtown and then goes around a loop to go to the airport.

I love how festive they get for each holiday.  It is hard to see but they have red and white lights/arches for Valentine’s Day.

I didn’t see Mateo outside but I saw him as soon as I came home.  It looks like I interrupted his sleep.

Not very exciting right?  🤣 🤣

Topic for next week – It’s Valentine’s Day. Share why you love running. Feel free to write about this or any running-related topic.  We hope you’ll link up with us!

Tuesday Topics

 

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