Confidence when running and a recipe fail.

First of all: I loved this article that I found today through Hungry Runner Girl. It's all about having confidence about your running.  The article talks all about the mentality of running--the importance in having a positive attitude about what you set your mind to. This applies to running, but also "real life" in general! The article goes over strategies to be more positive about your running (or your life) such as not comparing yourself to other runners (it's not fair or practical; everyone has different goals) and setting goals one at a time. Sometimes, running is really the best metaphor for life.

Second of all: remember this???

I ended up baking this beautiful No-Bake Chocolate eclair, and it did NOT work! Instead of custardy filling I ended up with...soup! the top is thicker and is good with the chocolatey graham crackers... but the rest is just like sugary soup. I rarely have such trouble with recipes...I've made bread and cream puffs before without a problem but this simple recipe bamboozled me! I wonder if I'd have been more successful just doing the normal, baked version! 

Tomorrow will be the Fourth of July...I'm trying to decide what kind of run to go on! It'll definitely be hot but I'll likely have time to head out in the morning (I've been doing evenings after work this week). I'm debating more speedwork or a longer tempo run... not sure what I'll decide on!

Relaxing run and BACKWARDS.

Today my run was a nice relaxing 5-miler at recovery pace. I didn't have any aches or pains, discomforts, or anything... I just ran. Kept a nice pacing throughout and found a new way to do a 5-mile route and stay close to the area that I'm most comfortable running in.

I like running because I can be alone with my thoughts...yet for the most part I stop thinking; or at least I don't think in the way that I normally would. I can lose myself for a few miles which feels really nice. I don't have my phone...don't have to worry about the computer...can't check emails...certainly can't be reached by my boss! All my worries go away and it's just me and the road. The longer I'm out there, the better...an hour...two hours...all the better to remove me from the world. That's probably part of why I love running.

This evening I did something fun...I watched Backwards while eating watermelon! Backwards is a movie about rowing and follows the story of an Olympic hopeful who, by the age of 30, decides it's time to pursue other dreams and becomes a coach.

The film features Sarah Megan Thomas and James Van Der Beek and is actually really cute! I liked it a lot...mostly because of all the rowing footage and familiar apparel from US Rowing... I love that the main characters coach high school girls...my high school girls team was the best! Plus, Sarah Megan Thomas was a real rower in high school and college, and she wrote, produced, and starred in the film--so you know it's legit! The storyline illustrates what's really important in life after awhile...the "dream" or your ultimate overall happiness with your life? It made me remember why I love rowing and I definitely recommend it to all rowers AND non-rowers!

Chocolate Waffles and speedPLAY.

Today I did my first ever day of SPEEDWORK with running, but I like to call it speedplay because it's FUN. I thought it was much more interesting than normal running and it kept me occupied! I think I could make quite a habit of this and it seems like it could help me a lot...reminds me of how much I can actually push myself! Considering my legs might've been a little heavy from yesterday's ride/run, I decided to just try it easy and do a mini-speed workout. I ran almost a mile to the track as a warmup, and then did 1200 at 5k pace, took a rest by running slowly through the grass, and then did 800 at 5k pace. It went really well! During the warmup I felt like "gahhh I am slowww" but I sped right up to my normal 5k pace as soon as it was go time! I ran home nice and easy for my cooldown. The speedwork was definitely challenging, but felt great and satisfying to push myself like that! I definitely will be incorporating this into my running more often!

I also wanted to mention the Honey Stinger chocolate waffle I tried during my bike ride yesterday. After 10 miles,  I decided to try this power waffle made by the same company as those Honey Stingers I wrote about.

Ultimately, I really liked this waffle and it tasted good and seemed to help me for the second 10 miles of the ride. I didn't feel that "flop" that I felt the last time I did this ride but I think that also could have to do with the lack of sun/heat that I had to deal with the last time as well. The fact that Lance Armstrong endorses it sort of adds to the debatable-ness of it's effectiveness, I guess! If I had to choose, I would probably use it again (but might experiment with other power-bar type things first). The only complaint I had was that it's "fragile" and broke easily in my pack, and the waffle, which would otherwise have been a cinch to eat, was crumbly and I lost some. Otherwise, it was great!