10 miles - Accomplished!

Holy amazing run! I did my 10 miles this afternoon in 1:50:32. Considering that I ran 8 miles last week in 1:47:28, this is a pretty incredible time for me. My 5K split was 31:38. Really pretty amazing! I think the thing that made the most difference is that IT band strap that I got last week. Honestly, I didn't have any side knee pain during or after the run. Both knees are still a little bit sore, but more the general soreness that comes from pounding on the pavement for two hours! I'm ecstatic. I actually got the chance to push my muscles without worrying about what it would do to my joints.

I'm also glad that I waited until today to do the run. On Friday, I wasn't really feeling it and I felt so rested today. I also didn't have my watch on Friday and it helps a lot for me to know my pace etc. Speaking of pace, my mile splits! (Goodness I love this watch)
1: 10:00
2: 10:06
3: 10:32
4: 10:47
5: 10:59
6: 11:02
7: 10:55
8: 11:23
9: 12:56
10: 11:42

I pretty much had no energy after mile 7. I'm going to try out a couple of things to munch on as I go to see what works for me. My mom tried Luna Sports Energy Chews today on her long run and really liked them so I think that I'll pick up some of these to try out this week.
I think it's time to invest in that fuel belt too as I'd like to have more water and Gatorade on me as I run. My arms also got tired holding the full bottles in the beginning!

I walked a minute after every mile and I think it helped save some of the energy in my legs. I also walked 1/2 mile of mile 9 because I was so exhausted but I pulled it out for the last one. Not bad, not bad at all, in my opinion!!

My muscle pain is also definitely not as severe post-run this week. I downed a banana and some Muscle Milk Light following the run as I was starving but I still felt a little nauseous about an hour or so later. I'm not a huge Muscle Milk fan as I think it tastes like chocolate chalk, but it's a quick way get some nutrients and a lot of protein. After dinner, I felt a little bit better though. Dinner was pretty simple but so delicious. I just mixed a cup of chickpeas, half a chopped tomato, half a chopped cucumber, some red onion, and balsamic vinegar and then devoured. I also had a baked sweet potato with some Greek yogurt mixed in.

Following dinner, and with a much calmer stomach, a friend and I tried out Sweet CeCe's frozen yogurt here in Nashville. I was pretty pleasantly surprised! I had stepped in before when I was in the area and was disappointed because it's self-serve and only one or two of the flavors were listed as low-fat. However, I found out later that all of the flavors are fat-free, unless it says low-fat. Interesting. They need to explain that more clearly at the store because I was ready to write it off pretty quickly!

I tried the pumpkin yogurt (fat-free!). It was very good and tasted like fall to me with pumpkin and cinnamon flavors. It was really sweet though so I'm not too sure of what the sugar content would be. Sweet CeCe's website lists the nutritional info for a bunch of the flavors, but pumpkin didn't make the list. Cookies n' Cream however had 110 calories, no fat, and 17g sugar in a 1/2 cup. The self serve cups are giant and the yogurt comes out really fast though so it was even difficult for me to regulate portions. I added some golden graham cereal and a little crushed malt balls. Final verdict: It was a tasty treat, but probably not one that I will be having all the time. Definitely worth trying out though if you are in Nashville!

Thwarted by the weather

Today was supposed to be my 10 mile run. I didn't get up as early as I would have like but I got dressed and drove to the park. On my drive down, I heard the warning signal on the radio that there were tornado watches and hail warnings. I made it a mile into the run when I decided that the sky looked way too ominous and that I would try again tomorrow. The sky opened up about 30 seconds later so I think that I made a good call. :) I will run through rain but I will not run through hail and high winds. I had a bit of a bad experience with the movie Twister when I was younger, so I have a tiny (read: huge) fear of those ravenous wind tunnels. During the spring in Nashville, the tornado sirens go off almost every afternoon and I usually spend the afternoon hours of 3pm - 6pm terrified. I'm certainly not up for running in it. Plus, I had forgotten my watch at home so I felt totally off kilter without it.

Yoga last night was crazy challenging. However, I suppose that I write that about every Thursday class but it's very true. I loved it though. I think I do need to find a new mat though! Mine becomes way too slippery when I sweat and it's caused me to fall on my face several times. This past class, I was in side crow and my right hand slide out from under me and thump, I was on the ground. Takes all the pride and fun out of doing a really difficult asana! My shoulders are a bit tight this morning but I'm definitely not hurting as bad this time around. My teacher is also a dancer and I like how graceful she makes everything look. All of her asanas have a really amazing flow to them and it is certainly something to look up to and try to emulate. I'm one of the world's most ungraceful beings, but it's still fun to try!

On a rare non-training note, today I bought a couple of pumpkin ales to test out. First up:

Buffalo Bill's Pumpkin Ale

Pretty tasty, smooth, mellow. I can't say that I taste all that much pumpkin in it and it's not as sweet as pumpkin beers can sometimes be. Definitely a delicious beer to just sip on while I did stuff around the apartment, but it's a little steep on calories at around 216. I might buy it again, but I'm going to wait to see what I think about the others. I only have 2 more types to try right now but may be willing to open up my lateral taste test to some more options!!

Off to walk the puppy and hopefully get to bed early so I can try a new yoga class tomorrow. Still working on my getting up early goal but at least I'm going to bed earlier!

Update:
How have I not mentioned the Yankees yet? After tonight's game, I'm ready to propose to Teixiera. I love that team, even if they try to kill me by being down in the 9th. Just saying.

Pumpkin EVERYTHING

Ethiopian food last night was certainly not vegetarian friendly. Oh well, the kitfo was delicious and I'm glad we got to try a new place. Mmm. I can't even begin to explain my love of food. I love to eat it, cook it, smell it, look at pictures of it, read recipes in books and magazines, read about it on blogs.... I associate certain foods with celebration and sadness and family and seasons. I'm very grateful for my somewhat solid metabolism but all this exercise certainly helps too! Now that it's officially fall, I've been wanting to celebrate autumn food with warm, heavier dishes, Unfortunately, it doesn't get crisp here until early November-ish? On days like today, I do miss the northeast and the clear divide between the seasons. In fact, one time that I flew home during the fall, I basically cried during the descent because I was so happy to see the changing leaves on the trees (and unfortunately, I had typed that as dissent at first. ugh.). Here, it's hot April-October and an ambiguous rainy cool for the rest of the year.

As much as I love summer and the beach and the hot hot hot weather, I eagerly anticipate the change over to autumn. Especially after months of being sticky and sweaty in shorts and tanks, I love the comfort and warmth of fall clothing. Cable knits, sweater dresses, riding boots, scarves, leather jackets... delicious. Plus, once I'm all decked out in my northeast best, walking around Manhattan as the breeze gets sharp and leaves are changing just feels like... magic. (Don't worry. I rolled my eyes at myself on that one.) Even more so, I get to go home upstate and it's painfully beautiful there. Have you ever been out for a walk, hopefully with a great dog or friend, late on a fall evening and the cool air burns your face for the first time, your steps crunch, and the air smells faintly of wet leaves and fireplaces? Just the thought of those nights makes me so happy that I'm positively giddy when I actually get to do it. I think I still consider autumn as an opportunity for new beginnings because I associate it with the start of school (and new school supplies! Always a favorite). I usually find myself making changes and decisions and plans.

I also notice that I associate lots of my memories of places and people and things with walking... I think it's the most authentic way to experience a lot of things. Especially when I travel to a new place alone, I will leave my hotel with a map and walking aimlessly through side streets. There is much that isn't in a Fodor's that I've been able to discover just from my serious case of wanderlust. In fact, this summer in Brooklyn, I didn't have all that much to do so I would often wander around by myself for an hour or so and then use my phone to guide my way back. Found some great coffee, met some nice people, bought a cute dress.

Anyway, I ramble. Back to my love of fall foods. I've been craving a pumpkin scone recently, like the ones at Alice's. If I was as good of a baker as I wish I were, I would grab a real pumpkin at Whole Foods (I know they're available already) and make the whole thing from scratch, but I'll probably cheat and use canned crap. Or be really lazy and really cheat and make these: Pumpkin cupcakes. I could settle for my standard Irish soda bread recipe though (and a pot of Barry's) for a lovely Saturday afternoon, if only the darned weather would do as I say! Alas it will not. At least I'll be back in the city exactly three weeks from today. If I don't eat an Ess-a-bagel soon, I may truly expire on the spot.

Goodness, after writing all this, I can't wait to get back to New York for a bit. I never understand how I can love and miss an entire city so much that it's physically painful.

http://www.nycgovparks.org/sub_about/parks_history/foliage.html