Ok, well, I've been meaning to post this for a week now but other things in life have taken precedence but regardless, here is my August month in review, finally!!!
SO, August 2013. Amazing right? I had a great month running and getting into the heart of my Detroit training plan this past month.
The big life accomplishment that I mentioned in one of my posts before I left for Detroit was just this-- if check out my stats above, you can see my total mileage for August was 100.37 miles! IN ONE MONTH!!! This is huge for me since I haven't completed a 100 miles/month since November 2010 (of course that was when life was all cupcakes and rainbows). I'm feeling great and I love running again like I did before the whole craziness of June 2011-July 2012 debacle in life. It just makes me happy that things are falling into place again!
The first full week of August was my second week of my training plan and I basically have been running 60 minutes 2x a week and a longer run on the weekends. This first full week was a bit crazy for me but I was able to get my long run in the following Monday so even though I wasn't able to stick with my set dates, I was able to get my long run in at some point in the week!
The second full week was pretty good week and I started working on speed some here. I didn't really track my distances when I did speed work this week but I think it has definitely helped doing 400m repeats (even on the treadmill if you can believe that). I noticed my pace getting faster after this week and so I know this is ultimately going to help me once I get to Detroit in October!
The third full week was intense for me! 29.9 miles done and I felt amazing! I had four great runs in this week and I felt strong and not super sore like I had been previously in the month! I spent a lot of time focusing on how I was actually running during this week. I thought abut my breathing, posture, the way my feet hit the ground, and making sure I had a rhythm going rather than just running without thinking, which always leads me to run so fast to begin a race and I am worn out before ⅔ done. I felt great about this week, especially since I had been dropping the lbs like whoa and I had a fabulous sari I needed to wear when I was in Detroit the last weekend of the month!
The last full week was crazy! I was so busy with work and then packing and making sure I had everything I needed for my long weekend in Detroit! I got my 2 "short" runs in during the week and then I even managed to get a slow, easy 5 miles done in Detroit. I was up super early since we had family coming into Detroit at all hours so I took advantage of that and went for an early morning run and then was able to spend time with my family and still feel OK about all the rich (and delicious) Indian food I consumed all weekend haha!
Here's how my weeks broke down:
Week 1: 20.4 miles
Week 2: 24.2 miles
Week 3: 29.9 miles
Week 4: 19 miles
All in all, it was a great month for me! I feel really good with my training for Detroit (currently in week 7 of 12) and am feeling more and more confident about being able to make it over the Ambassador Bridge come October 20th!
the Ambassador Bridge, that I will run on to get into Canada in the Detroit International Half Marathon!
I am pretty obsessed with this red nail polish--An Affair in Red Square from OPI's Russia collection a few years back. Red is my favorite color and there's just something about this polish that just makes me feel so good! OPI's website calls it a "romantic shimmering red" but I just think it's gorgeous in the bottle and on my nails! I've had it on for the past couple weeks especially since we had this really intense trial the past few weeks at work. Whenever I need an extra boost of confidence or a pick-me-up, red is my go-to and I love how this color looks (without looking too unprofessional)! I know red is appreciated by many special people too so that is an added plus! Definitely try this red polish- it is definitely a color that will look great on all skin tones/people!
I am pretty obsessed with coffee these days too. Again, this trial/prep the last month was so consuming that I would literally wake up at 3AM every night/morning thinking about that case, write out my thoughts and notes, then go back to 'sleep' until my alarm went off at 5:30am. SO, needless to say, this espresso has been my savior this last month! This is my FAVORITE espresso that I've been drinking since I was in law school. It tastes perfect and I can never leave home in the mornings after at least one cup of my daily espresso! It literally gives me life on some days haha!
Ok, call me old lady or whatever you want but this is the one beauty habit I got from my mom years ago that I know I will live by the rest of my life. When I was little, I remember watching my mom use this moisturizer everyday and I was always so fascinated by that tiny little bottle and eventually, I started using it when I was in high school. I am obsessed with this moisturizer. I generally use it on my face (mixed in with my tinted moisturizer for light coverage) and then on my neck and arms. I don't really wear that much makeup but I can't put anything on until I've used this moisturizer. I love that it includes sunscreen and smells delightful! It is very lightweight and not greasy at all. I usually keep it with me at all times whenever I am away form my house, no matter where I go. It is without a doubt a staple in my daily beauty regimen.
So I haven't really kept up with much outside of work and my Detroit training the past few weeks but I try to check in with my celebrity gossip every day. This website is totally hilarious and I share a lot of the same humor as some of the bloggers/writers on that gossip site so it makes it that much more enjoyable. They blog about all celebrities, some royal families (also an obsession of mine), and generally things that you would find on Us Weekly or People but with some sarcasm and humor. This is definitely a website that helps me forget all the craziness and stress of the day and gives me a good laugh!
