Nice, comfortable spin to get my legs loose. They feel terrific, all things considered, which is really encouraging.

I have to work a full week this week- this will be my first 5 day week in over a month!  Ugh, I think it will be a long one!  I'm just really excited I finally don't have to travel for a weekend, and can relax for a bit before my Colorado trip.  I don't know how people that travel for a living can handle it- it's exhausting!

Happy Monday! 

Distance and time are total estimates because this was one hell of a botched run.

Grrr....Here is my laundry list of everything that went wrong with this run:

-Drank a lot more than I intended to last night, and alcohol and long runs don't mix well

-Didn't have enough time to successfully get all 20 miles in because of my stupid interview obligations

-SNOW SNOW SNOW!! It snowed at least 1 foot over night, and Minnesota is NOT as good as Rochester, NY at getting rid of snow, and so most of the roads weren't well plowed, and the sidewalks were super slick. Everyone else that was out and about was cross country skiing on the same parts of the road/sidewalk I was on. I swear, I went backwards more than forwards.

-I had really awful stomach cramps because I had to eat breakfast immediately before I ran. My stitches were so bad that they are still bothering me when I was walking around the airport.

-I ended up running the last 4 miles of the run on the treadmill because I had to be at the hotel to get my stuff ready and catch my shuttle, so that screwed things up too. I had to stop a bunch of times on the treadmill to make sure I didn't miss the shuttle, than I didn't even have time to shower before catching my flight (eewww!!)

Ok, I'll stop bitching now. It was an OK run overall, I was just really frustrated that I couldn't keep my pace up because I had absolutely zero footing. My legs felt amazing the entire time, and after I had gone back to the hotel and run on the treadmill, I held my pace for 7:10min/miles for the last 4 miles to try and make up for my lack of time. The fact that I could pull off that pace at the end was a good sign. Anyways, I guess I just get moody if things don't go off perfectly, especially since the breakfast that I had to go to in the morning was super lame. At least next week I'll run 22 to make up for the missed mile! :)

Overall, the trip to Minnesota was just OK. The absolute BEST part of the whole weekend was meeting Bridget because she friggin ROCKS! She braved the snowy, cold, and terrible conditions to drive to a bar all the way across town just to see ME! How cool is that!? I had a ton of fun hanging out with her and her friends. I'm sure pictures will follow soon :)

Temp. isn't too bad in MN. Great run along the Mississippi. Neg. splits on the run- 1st 6mi 48:43, last 6mi 47:43.

Update:

The interviews went really well today, and I'm about to take a nap so I can get back to my peppy self for dinner tonight. I had a hard time falling asleep in yet another new place last night, so the 4.5 hours if sleep I managed were shitty at best. Also, since I was accepted into Michigan and have an interview at Boulder, it's hard for me to be excited about Minnesota, just because I highly doubt I'll come here. I'm giving it my best effort, but this is my 4th interview, and it really is exhausting talking about yourself all day- even for someone like me ;)

Oh- and to clear things up about the 'trainer incident'- my BIKE fell out of the trainer- I did not fall off of my bike. I have no idea how the bike got loosened up in the mount, but it did, so one side slipped out and tipped me over onto the side of the couch. It was not just me being a dumbass, but that will probably happen in the future, I'm sure. I'll wear a helmet now just to make you wise-asses happy ;)

Here's the storm prediction:

STORM TOTAL ACCUMULATIONS SHOULD RANGE FROM 9 TO 12 INCHES IN MOST LOCATIONS...WITH AS MUCH AS 15 TO 18 INCHES POSSIBLE ALONG THE INTERSTATE 35 CORRIDOR AND THE SAINT CROIX RIVER VALLEY.

RESIDENTS AND TRAVELERS IN THIS AREA SHOULD KEEP CLOSE WATCH OVER THE WEATHER CONDITIONS THIS WEEKEND...AND CONSIDER POSTPONING OR CHANGING TRAVEL PLANS. IF MUST VENTURE OUTSIDE THIS WEEKEND... ENSURE THAT YOU HAVE TAKEN APPROPRIATE PRECAUTIONS...INCLUDING PACKING A WINTER SAFETY KIT AND NOTIFYING OTHERS OF YOUR TRAVEL PLANS.

Looks like I'll be stuck in Minnesota!  Ha! 

I hope everyone has an awesome weekend! Train hard.

Interviewing is tiring. I want to be home in bed. And then I want to go for a nice long bike ride on a saturday. Soon....

Trainer ride. Would've been longer if my bike hadn't fallen off the trainer. Luckily there's a couch nearby. Stupid trainer.

I got accepted to University of Michigan!!  Woo-hoo!  Now I just have to see how CU Boulder is, and it will most likely be between those two programs. 

Off to  Minnesota later for yet another interview.  Hopefully I'll get to meet Bridget! 

2mi wu: 7:57min/mi
3.5mi 1/2 mary pace (almost): 7:17min/mi
1mi break: 8:03m/m
3.5mi 1/2mary pace: 7:17m/m
2mi cd: 8:02m/m

My legs felt heavy the whole run, but I was able to maintain almost the correct pace the whole time. The best part of this run was the 2 times I stopped to pet a giant golden retriever who 'sang' when you pet him, and a 10 week old white lab puppy. They were adorable!!

wu: 200pull, 200 easy
main: 12x100 RI:15sec. (avg. 1:33/100)
cd: 200pull

I made it to the pool AGAIN! WOW- twice this week! That's a record :)
My shoulders were a bit sore from yoga yesterday, but overall, good swim.

The training plan I'm following for Boston has the highest mileage of all the previous training plans that I've followed. So far, it seems to be working really well, because I've already increased my speed a lot in just 1 month. The disadvantage is that I cannot possibly eat enough food to keep my body satisfied. I have to eat ice cream right before bed just so I don't wake up in the middle of the night completely famished. Oh, the pains of a marathoner :)

FEED ME!

Did some big ring work. My trainer is squeaking like crazy unless I have it at a super high resistance. I can't get the thing to shut up! Legs felt a bit of the fatigue from yesterday's run, but overall, not bad!

BRICK
6x100meter strides. I didn't get any of the rubbery feeling, just some fatigue from the long run. Great pace, though, so I must not be too tired!

My body was too tired to hold any poses. I really, really suck at yoga.

I've got another 2 day work week! Off to another tundra, otherwise known as Minnesota for yet another interview. Good thing I like to talk, or else this would be really tedious by now! It looks like I'll be in CO from March 6-8th, which I'm really looking forward to. When the time comes, this is going to be a really tough decision!

This week:

• Wed: AM:12mi w/7mi @1/2 mary pace (maybe slower) PM: swim?
• Thurs: AM swim, bike 1 hr, leave for MN
• Fri: 12mi *depending on how tired I am, might move this to Sat and ditch the 5mi run
• Sat: 5mi *
• Sun: 20mi (in the cold, snowy tundra :) )