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Another Snowy Day Means Treadmill Run & Working From Home

Conquering the Dreadmill
Well today started off chilly and misty then turned into chilly and snowy. We were supposed to be doing my boss' birthday lunch, but I actually thought ahead just in case the weather caused us to have to cancel it and brought along some Amy's Organic Split Pea Soup. Very glad I brought the soup as the lunch was indeed postponed.

The snow was thick and wet, coming down sideways. It was so heavy that from our 10th floor windows it actually looked more like fog. Probably about 15 minutes after I had finished my soup, the bosses said that we could go home as we needed and just use personal time or work from home. Well, in all my planning, I brought along my gym bag. The plan was to get in my training run at the gym because I knew the weather would likely prevent an outdoor run. I figured I needed to wait at least 30 minutes before leaving so as not to hurl split pea soup all over the treadmill.

I finally decided to leave work around 12:20 and get the run over with. The half marathon training pla was calling for 4 miles, 4 x 1:00 minute incline athletic intervals, 5-6 gentle pickups. Um, yes, ass-load of intervals there friends. I was prepared to at least do 2 miles then the intervals. The gym was empty when I got there, so I had my treadmill picked out (the one with the only fan near it). I got cornered by one of the spin instructors though and by the time I got out there, someone was on that treadmill, with the fan. Drats. I get sooooooo hot and sweaty when I'm working out and that's part of why I hate hate hate the treadmill at the gym.

Anyway, I walked at a 6 incline to warm up then got to it. The first mile actually felt fairly painless. I tried to maintain a slower pace (9:13 mile) at a 1.5 incline. Everything was going smoothly until I started getting hot. At mile 2 I ended up asking the owner if there was another freaking fan. He ended up adjusting the one so that the other runner and I both had air circulation. All in all, I did 5.5 miles. Because I wasn't sure how to really do the gentle pickups on the treadmill, here's how it all went down:

4 miles at 9:13 pace at 1.5 incline
4x1:00 athletic intervals: 2 at 8:06 pace and 2 at 7:53 pace all at a 4 incline
6 gentle pickups: starting at 9:13 pace increasing to 7:53 for 30 seconds then recover 30 seconds and repeat.

I did about 10 minutes of ab work using weights and the stability ball. I stretched briefly then headed out to stretch more at home. I got home and hit the TriggerPoint Therapy Kit hard and stretched for a while longer as well. But so far, IT band is holding up.

These intervals are wiping me out I must admit. So while my IT band seems to be doing ok, I am feeling super fatigued from this training plan. What gets me is that I'm not even really hitting any big mileage. Also, these runs are leaving me STARVED. I never feel this famished with long runs, but 5-8 miles...and intervals....wow. Anyone else experience this?


Working from Home Perks
After cleaning up and having a quick snack, I decided it'd be smart to get some work done rather than take personal time. I had some articles to work on. But, since I was home, I was also able to get some Chikn' Seitan made. I've been trying to play around with the recipe a bit to get the texture that I (and Jason) prefer.

I did end up going with a simple dinner, well, simple because part of it was already made and waiting in the freezer. Remember the Chipotle Lentil Loaf I made at Christmas? Well, it made a lot. So, I froze half of it and decided to pull that out for dinner tonight. Sauteed some kale with apples and onions (with orange juice, balsamic vinegar, apple cider vinegar, agave, salt, pepper) and roasted some sweet potatoes seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic, rosemary, and parsley.
 
 

It looks like a time-consuming meal. But lucky for me, I keep stashing things in the freezer ;-)

I have a favor to ask. My sister has to finally have gallbladder surgery tomorrow morning. It is an outpatient procedure, but I'm worried of course. If you're religious, please say a prayer; if you're not religious, please send positive vibes.

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