Welcome to the start of a new week! I hope you had a great weekend – I had a 3 day weekend and it was just what I needed to catch up and get some needed relaxation! I also kept very busy with another week of training for the New Jersey Marathon with my highest week of mileage thus far!
I’m joining HoHo and Wendy for the Weekly Wrap – it’s always great to see what my fellow running/fitness friends are up to! I’m also joining Courtney for her Weekly Training Recap linkup and Marcia, Patty, and Erika for Tuesdays on the Run!
Weekly Wrap: Flower Show and March Madness
On Friday, Bret and I kicked off the weekend by going to the Philadelphia Flower Show. It was my first time going and this year they featured “the Wonders of Water”, naturally one of my favorite subjects! Unfortunately, the lighting in the Convention Center was awful so taking pictures was pretty much a waste of time but believe me, there were lots of beautiful plants and flowers on display! While I don’t have a green thumb, I can appreciate the beauty! We also walked through the vendor station and got a few free samples. The highlight of the Flower Show, however, is the wine and spirits tasting, haha!! We had all different kinds of gins, whiskeys, wines, and even moonshine…too good! And we ended up buying 3 different bottles of spirits for the house! Who knew the Flower Show could be so fun? Lol! (For some reason the picture I did upload won’t show on the blog…sorry!)
Flower Show 2018How about some college basketball?? I’m a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania (aka Penn) and this weekend was the Ivy League tournament. This was actually the first time I watched since they switched to this format, and I’m glad I did because they were all really fun games to watch! I may have mentioned that back in college, I played in the pep band, so I went to all of the games. The Penn Quakers have had 11 long years of mediocrity but have finally made their way back to the NCAA tourney by beating Harvard! Unfortunately, they were given a #16 seed (ridiculous) and will be playing #1 Kansas…in Wichita, KS. Regardless, I’m so proud of this team!
I’m going to work on my brackets and hopefully make some cash this year! I can always root for Villanova, but I don’t know…I think they have some real competition this year. Either way, it’s going to be a fun few weeks!
Workouts for the Week:
Monday 3/5: I could only make a half hour of yoga due to (dreaded) meetings, but I’m glad that I made it. The focus in class was side body lengthening. We also did some great stretches of the wrists that my body needed.
Tuesday 3/6: Tempo Tuesday! I was visiting my sister in Fairmount and able to knock out my 5 mile run. It was the day before our second snowstorm in March so I had to take advantage of the mild weather! The workout was to do 3 miles at an easy pace, then have a progression run the last 2 miles up to half marathon pace. This run went really well, maybe a little too fast – but I felt great! I had both knees taped for this run.
Wednesday 3/7: The day of the storm – I originally planned to go to yoga/barre fusion class but it was canceled. I actually got out of work early and we spent most of the evening in the local bar with some neighbors, lol.
Thursday 3/8: During the day I stretched my calves at my desk. Ugh, they are perpetually tight. In the evening I went for 5 miles on the treadmill. Not my favorite thing to do but I had a friend’s going away happy hour to attend so it worked well. My arches and ankles were grumpy on this run, but that usually happens when I’m on the treadmill.
Friday 3/9: Rest day! But I did plenty of walking at the Flower Show!
Saturday 3/10: Long run day! Thankfully this time I was mentally prepared to run. I also used KT tape on my shoulder, which was very difficult to put on even with Bret’s assistance. Unfortunately, it didn’t make a difference and my shoulder hurt pretty much the entire run. Both knees were taped but my right knee (with older tape) didn’t hold up as well this time. Still, my paces were really strong and I didn’t need to take as many walk breaks. I saw a couple friends on the trail so that definitely gave me a boost!
Sunday 3/11: I always dread the 2-a-day’s but I finally made it to barre class with a solid workout (though killer for my calves) and then went out for a 4 mile recovery run in the evening. I am GLAD Daylight Savings is back – the sun didn’t set until after 7 pm, that’s more like it! This run went well though my left arch and right shin made themselves known early on before quieting down.
Week 10 Training Recap:
Total Miles for the Week: 32.0
Total Training Miles for NJ Marathon: 243.04
I am very proud of this past week of training!! I was able to make it to barre and yoga and all of my runs were completed. The feeling of burnout is starting to subside and I’m reinvigorated when it comes to this marathon training plan! Now, I am definitely focusing on loosening my calves and I just crossed the 300-mile mark with my running shoes this week, so it’s time to do some shoe shopping! I think that will definitely help with my foot issues, though I do want to try using KT tape on my left foot and see what happens.
Fingers crossed that I can get in a doctor’s appointment this month or at least get someone to look at this shoulder issue. And the knees…always the knees, lol. In any event, I’m giving Week 10 of training an A! I’m grateful that next week is a lighter load!
Are you making a bracket for March Madness? How is the weather where you live?
Boo to the shoulder pain! What do you think it’s from? I hope you get some relief.
The flower show sounds fun! I love events like that, especially this time of year when we are so burned out on winter!
Have a great week!
I love that the Flower Show had a liquor tasting, lol! Have you heard of the Hobby Lobby challenge? Basically people take ‘model-type’ photos with the fake flowers in Hobby Lobby. It’s hilarious!
So sorry to hear about your shoulder pain and that the KT tape didn’t work 🙁 Would you consider seeing a chiropractor? Maybe you might need an adjustment to get everything back in place. That has helped a little bit with my back issues. It’s amazing how out of alignment we can get between working out and sitting at our desks all day.
You sounds like my Dad now. He is forever betting and making brackets for whatever the sport is during that season. Great job getting that 18 miles in by yourself. I always seem to do longer runs myself as well, but it is always nice to see people you know along the way.
Girl. Get thee to a PT / doc stat! Get that fixed up so you can be good to go for your race. Good week but I don’t want to see your small injuries grow into a bigger thing (speaking from experience!!) 🙂
I hope your shoulder gets better. I would second Kim’s suggestion, and see a chiropractor. Mine does Graston when my shoulders have knots in them.
Im so glad you had a better week! Hopefully you can get in to see someone about the shoulder (and anything else that is continuing to bother you!). The Flower Show sounds like fun!
Well done on your 18 miles – that distance on your own cannot be easy!! I am dreading a 10 mile long run that I may have to do on my own this Sunday! I will channel your energy and focus! A well deserved A this week! Like others have said though be sure to check those knees and shoulder out. Just to make sure you are okay when race day comes round.
Great week Janelle and congrats on the 18 miler! I’ve found that KT tape works great on my ankles but I never could get it to work well on other issues.
Ugh to the tight calves …I feel your pain there. Mine are perpetually tight!
A flower show with wine, liquor, beer …oh my! Sounds like my kind of flower show! Lol
Unfortunately I’m with you on the knees, although this is the first time it was runner’s knee; usually it’s IT issues. I am crossing fingers for that dr’s appt for you (and planning to make a chiro appt for myself).
Wow, you did an awful lot this week — both in training & in fun. So a nice balance there! Have a great week!
Great week of training for you! My shoulder has been a jerk lately as well. But I’m in denial about that cuz all attention is on my cranky knee. Oy. I can’t believe the weather your guys have on the East Coast. We’re tame in comparison here in Chicago
I’m happy to hear you had a better week and the flower show sounds fun — especially with the moonshine. Honestly, I’ve never had much success with KT tape and can’t imagine getting it to stick on my shoulder. You must have mad skillz! Congrats on your 18 miler. That’s definitely a great confidence booster. Thanks for linking!
Awesome week of running! I am so glad to hear you aren’t feeling the burnout anymore! I never make a bracket anymore for March Madness – I sort of get bummed about it each year since my alma mater for undergrad (Valparaiso University) isn’t doing as well as they used to – it’s been about two years since they were in it!