Snow! Snow! Snow! (And a little stir crazy with the freezing rain...)

Well, the greater Portland, Or area (along with Vancouver, Wa) has an advisory to stay out of the streets and stay indoors.  I was hoping to get a long run in today... but I watched my husband slip and slide down the sidewalk as he went to check on our elderly neighbors.  I think I'll stay in my warm and safe house (that still has power) and cook.  :)

Thanks to "Running With Harmony" on facebook, I tried her "crêpes" and LOVED them.  They're simple enough that I can cook them!

I'm not an egg fan, but I gave it a try and these are delicious! Give it a try and tell me what variations you try! These are very versatile and can have many different options... 

You will need:

3 eggs

1 tablespoon of pumpkin puree

1 tablespoon of almond meal/flour

1 tablespoon of Gluten Free oats

Combine all ingredients except for the oats in blender, blend until smooth. Stir in oats. I also added a splash of vanilla extract and some cinnamon. 

Pour into hot skillet like you would for regular pancakes and GENTLY flip and cook other side. 

Once cooked, I drizzled mine in cinnamon and honey and ate like a pancake. 

An absolute delicious way to eat eggs! (Next time I'll try a little butter and lemon juice...)

Since we are stuck indoors with the slick ice... I guess today will be cross training on the exercise bike and a bit more cooking.  :)  I'm also going to whip up some of my "Running cookies" and you should be able to pull up the past post with the recipe HERE.

Chia seeds, oats, pumpkin protein powder, coconut flakes, cocoa powder and salt.

Pretty, isn't it?  They are super yummy too, and I hide them in the back of the fridge so that I only enjoy them while on a long run or one post run.

I did get to go out and enjoy some of the snow this week before it turned to ice.  We get small dustings of snow once every year or every other year... but nothing I'd really define as "snow".  This year, we got 8 inches!  Last time it really "snowed" (as I define it, with at least one inch accumulated) was 6 years ago!  I wasn't a runner then... So I did not hesitate to go out there and play in it!

First snow run ever!

Thursday was our first day of snow and we had a couple inches... I went out for what i told my husband would be a "quick half mile" and snuck in another mile on that.  It was glorious!  No one else had been out and no one was driving in it yet.  There was just me and the sound of my feet crunching the new snow.  It was soft and fun to feel the padded ground beneath my shoes.

Friday was a longer run and a lot more slow and slick.

Friday's run had me completely lost at 3.5 miles.

I have been using the Nike+ app to help me keep track of which shoes have how many miles on them... and I earned my "Storm" badge.  Fun little app with badges to help motivate you or competitions you can challenge other friends on the app with. Anyway...

An hour and a half in the snow, I got lost, misjudged where the curb started and ended at least twice (but didn't fall!) and trudged through a field of snow that was knee deep.  The duct tape over my shoes kept my feet dry and it was beautiful and fun to be out there... but as I neared my regular stomping grounds and was at the "one mile" landmark from home, I saw a car accident with police and an ambulance on the way.

Time to high tail it home.

As I got home, I checked the mail and got my valentines' gift for Squeakers and Bugaboo...

I decided to get them the "Love" badge with the heart on it... available for "a limited time" with RoadID.
You can get yours here:  http://RoadID.com/invite/45WZT-TAF7SCZZXBJ
(or send me a private message on my facebook page if you'd like a $1 off coupon).

I'd say it has been a "running focused" weekend of running, even if I didn't get my long run in!


And with that, here's the tune I always get stuck in my head when I think of snow...

Do you run in snow?  Own a treadmill or take the winter off?
Share your secrets!

Starting off the New Year... Doctor Who, Holiday Streak done and the most miles ever.

To kick off the New Year and set the mood for a year of completing any running goals set, I met with some members from my Moms RUN This Town chapter in the afternoon to do some laps around a pretty park.

All of us have different paces and had different goals for distance planned for today, but we all met together and ran with each other for awhile, before we started to spread out and set into our goals.  I think we covered every distance from 5K to just a smidgen more than a half marathon.  What am I saying?  Every step taken after 13 miles is a step taken deliberately and with a lot of determination.

My goal was to end my Holiday Streak (day 52) with 15.2 miles.  This is the most miles I have ever completed.  My sweet husband also gave me an entry into the Doctor Who virtual race for Christmas. 

If you are interested in this virtual race, you can join the Facebook Group "Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Virtual fun run/walk".  Contact the admins to possibly sign up for this race because registration is officially closed, but they are taking a limited number of extra registrations.  

The bib number is the same for everyone, so I "doctored" my bib to be the code for "the vortex manipulator" in the show... or an even cooler double meaning: the time and date that the first episode ever aired (17:16 23rd Nov '63).

I'm disappointed that once again my "Charity Miles" app didn't work again.  If on the "feeding America" campaign, one mile feeds 2 people, I could have fed 30 people on my long run today.  :(  I hope they fix whatever problems they are having with this app. It is so frustrating to end a run and see that no miles were picked up by it. The app constantly updates every time I open it... so I don't understand what the problem is.  If you have a secret to it, please share it.

That aside, I've made it home with my miles well tracked (thank you garmin) and my body feeling it.  I've taken my ice bath, slathered my aching legs with arnica gel and probably going to sleep in my 110% juggler knickers.

As you can see from my garmin above, it took forever to complete the task of 15 miles... but it is done.

2014 will be a year of determination and maybe "slow and steady" will win the race.  :)  It helped to see familiar faces of my sole sisters as we passed each other in the park and I listened to some of the Doctor Who radio dramas featuring "the 8th Doctor".  I was geeking out a bit.  :)  I also wore my "I believe in the blerch" shirt since I didn't have a doctor who tech shirt.  You can totally take that as a hint to get me one, if you want.  ;-)

Happy New Year and happy running!  The year is surely going to be full of lots of adventures.  I hope it is an injury free year for you and would love to hear about some of your goals.  :)  I enjoyed reading your goals on my facebook page.

25 things I've learned in 25 days of running. (My holiday running streak.)

I started my running streak on November 11th and today marks day 25!  I have to admit that I started early as kind of a "practice run" because I hadn't been running at all after my 15K race and was burnt out.  I didn't think I'd keep it up.  So... here's what I'm learning about myself and about running in general on this journey!

25.  I should probably foam roll daily.


24.  A hot shower feels really good after a cold run.

23.  I really have an amazing, supportive husband to watch the kids for me to sneak in those daily runs.

22.  I don't like to run with music anymore.  It's easier to hear my pace or how my feet are shuffling and to focus on what is going on around me. 

21.  I really can do this.  I'm on day 25!!!  I don't have to do a huge training run every time... Just a mile if that's all I have time or energy for.

20.  On day 20 I learned I can run a 10 minute mile!  Well.... 10:03.

19.  I can get into size 10 jeans!  When I started running in January, I was in "22W".  

18.  Those cute metaphors about falling 99 times and getting up 100 times do not explain how hard it really is to get back up after a fall!  I had to chant to myself  "Get up!" as I laid there looking up at the sky trying to figure out what happened to my great run. 

Day 16 of my running streak.  Everything is scabbing over nicely now!

17.  Sometimes you just have to sneak a run in while doing errands.  On day 21, as the family loaded up into the car to go to the Christmas tree lot... I ran ahead 2 miles before they came across me en route and picked me up. 

16.  I can beat my family the 2 miles or about 22 minutes it takes me to run to the grocery store.  It takes my husband that long to load two kids into the car before being able to get the car on the road...

15.  It feels good to get a charity mile in.  Go check out this app if you haven't yet.  It will help your motivation to run for others.  

14.  Wood bridges and docks covered in frost are very slick. Yikes!  I don't think I ever crossed one so early in the morning before this run streak.
13.  Get up early enough and there is an untouched world full of beauty and some wildlife.

Day 15-  3 blue Heron.  One in flight on the bottom, middle picture.

12.  And 7 days later, the same place at the same time can be just a freezing and rained out path.  But at least I got out there... right?

11.  Cat calls leave me on edge.  I really don't like them.  Can't a guy just holler "Good job!"

10.  Running everyday means a lot more laundry.
9.  Your socks don't have to match.
8.  This also made it obvious that I have plenty of running shirts but need more pants.
7.  It is easy to throw on a t-shirt to get a quick mile in, but it is uncomfortable to run in jeans, slacks, or yoga pants that were just "a little too big" when lounging around the house.  Baggy pants are no good.
6.  What feels like a SLOW warm up now, used to be my "full out" fast pace.  I'm improving!

5.  Cold ears hurt like an ice cream headache.

4.  It didn't take long to figure out where a mile landmark is in any direction of my front door.

3.  I'm not drinking nearly enough water in a day.  My goal is 90 oz. minimum.  I think I had a glass of water with my lunch today... maybe.
2.  Snot rockets are just gross.  No thank you.

And #1:
The digital "your speed" sign can register me!  9 MPH baby!  Yeah.  I should probably rely on my Garmin for more accurate pace readings... 

Any surprises or revelations you've come across because of running? 

Review: Map My Run App (for smart phone)

I know someone who has tracked her run distance by driving the route in her car later to determine how many miles it was.  I'm sure there are all sorts of computer programs with satellite maps to do this with too.  I'm a mom with two small kids and don't have a lot of time for all that mumbo jumbo.  I'm lucky to get out of the house some days to get my run in!  I don't want to calculate the route again later, and with today's fancy gizmos, you don't have to.  GPS, baby!

I've uploaded the app Map My Run because it was free.   It takes the pressure off trying to determine pace, miles covered and all the info is given to me with audio alerts.  I'm able to play my music app while it is running.  It quiets my music during the alert and then resumes at the volume I had it set to.

The voice of the announcer isn't the best that I've heard...  my friend Dayna has a super awesome "trainer" on her app.  I guess that's the difference between $0.99 and free.  My person on my app is very robotic and lets me know "Congratulations on your first mile!  Don't give up!  (Insert name of a big-box store) stands behind you!"  This made me laugh out loud the first time.  ...The humor wears off the next run, but it isn't that big of a deal.

There are some settings that I'd don't care to mess with.  I don't want my map published on Facebook for every stalker to see where I like to run.  I'm also already logging my food with weight watchers, so I don't need the food log.   However, that is probably really helpful to see what you are eating and why you might feel a bit "slow" or other issues that could be related to diet.  I already know I need to drink more water.

It would be nice if it offered a timer for intervals.  Maybe it does and I can't figure it out...  but it does have some good bells and whistles for being free.  It won't be the program I stick with in the long run (ha ha), but it works for now.  I really want what it already does but with an interval timer.  Maybe an option to plug in the goal distance of the day's run so that when you are getting close it could chime in and tell you?  I'll be checking out the other GPS apps and see which one is the most user friendly and what options are available.