I apologize for going MIA on you all last night.
Zach and I had a great time celebrating his birthday at a very hip and fancy new-to-us resturant that I can’t wait to tell you all about.
Unfortunately I didn’t upload all of the pictures from last night, only one, albeit important, picture. So the recap will be up later 🙂
The pistachio cake that I got Zach for his birthday. Oh sweet lord the icing on this cake. Probably the best I’ve ever had. Thank you Whole Foods.
This Morning
Since our dinner sport didn’t even have reservations available until 815 (hip, I’m telling you!), Zach and I weren’t home eating that cake until well after 11. Meaning we weren’t in bed until a little after midnight. Well past this girls bedtime.
When the alarm went off just before six this morning, I was VERY tempted to stay in my warm bed and postpone any work out until the afternoon. But Zach had been up since before 5 (poor boy had meetings), and I figured if the birthday boy can do it, so could I. So, I crawled out of bed, made it to the gym for a quick and fairly easy workout.
Workout of the Day: 4 miles easy pace (925ish pace)
I wanted needed this workout to be mindless, so I put the treadmill on pace and just rolled with it. No speed work, no nothing.
I did have negative splits, increasing the speed by .1 every few songs, but I ended with the treadmill being at 6.7, so I was never going overly fast (for me).
I was surprised how EASY this run was. Especially after my tough work out yesterday. But I think I have been doing a few things very well lately:
- speed work: while I have been doing fewer miles…they have included speed repeats consistently.
- hydrating: I’ve been working on constantly sipping on h20 through out the day. I can never drink much at once with my stomach, but very intentionally drinking it through out the day is definitely making a difference
- strength training: I am loving weight training right now…and I have a feeling it isn’t hurting my running. Let’s just put it that way.
I’ll be back later for a recap of Zach and I’s birthday celebration tonight! But this afternoon, you have a caramel and chocolate coffee cake recipe to look forward to this afternoon.
Question of the Morning: Has there every been anything that you have found REALLY affects your running/workout of choice?
For me, hydration DEFINITELY affects me.
Chocolate Covered Race Medals 
Sleep. Makes all the difference in the world.
Amen to that!
partly sleep, and partly whether or not it is Thursday…Thursdays are tricky!
thursdays are actually my late days so I get an even later start, which works well for me 😉
😀 maybe I should try Thursday morning instead of Thursday evening, it might work better… 🙂
Hydration is huge for me. And I really REALLY know if I’ve had too much to drink the night before. One glass of wine and I’m usually ok, but anything more than that and 6 a.m. is a whole different ball game.
I hear you there! Absolutely…
Eating cake so late at night…YOLO!
As for me, I find that my workouts after a cheat meal day aren’t always that great.
Oh for sure…fueling is HUGE for me. Let’s just say my stomach was not cooperating like my legs were this morning…COULD have been the midnight birthday cake?
Sleep, definitely. There has been a lot of research lately saying that it’s better to get 7-8 hours of sleep than to cut sleep short and get a workout in. I’m still working on this for sure!
I think a LOT of people struggle with that one!
I think stretching makes a world of difference for my runs.
That is something I also need to work on! And My foam roller!
What affects my running/workouts – is the amount of sleep I get/don’t get. Sometimes I wonder how I can function at night after the girls are off to bed and going to sleep sounds WAY better than working out + showering. I think if I had more sleep I’d be able to workout better/more consistently.
I’m sure baby H will sleep through the night consistently soon 😉
A lot of people are saying sleep!
CAKE!!!!!! 🙂 And if I ate a lot of it, that affects my workout choice. haha
LOL I can relate to that one.
I’m excited to see that caramel chocolate coffee cake recipe! I’m definitely less motivated to workout if I’m mentally or physically tired.
It’s coming up now!
I totally agree about hydration. This is especially true for running. It is so much less painful to run when you are properly hydrated. 🙂
Couldn’t agree more.
Sleep for sure. I always try to do mornings but for some reasons runs don’t really wake me up, I always feel like I could nap after so I tend to do them at night. hahah I know this is the complete opposite of everything everyone says.
Most runs do wake me up, but I have noticed when I push it too hard in the morning without fueling before/after, I DRAG
That’s awesome you’re able to do strength training and it’s not messing with your running. I have found I can’t lift but so heavy (which I love too) or it makes my legs like dead weight when I try to run the next day. It’s like I loose speed. I’m still trying to find a balance. But awesome job on the speed work! I tend to avoid it sometimes but I know it helps.
I definitely haven’t PUSHED it on the weights, specifically for my lower body. A lot of body weight exercises actually, squats and lunges. Because like you said, I don’t want lead legs!
OMG that cake. Twin, you’re making me look bad at work. I’m fairly certain drooling isn’t office appropriate.
And GOOD for you! I know exactly how you feel when you just don’t want to get up, but that’s awesome that you stayed committed!
I may or may not have needed to sweat out a cocktail from last night as well…but we’re not talking about that.
Pahaha!
To answer your question, I would have to say what I eat/what I drink. Mostly what I drink the night before…. staying hydrated is helpful! And if I’m doing a morning run I stick to a piece of toast with PB and a cup of coffee and that’s it. Anything else makes me sick. too much to eat before a workout makes me cramp.
That cake looks great!
I have a quasi sensitive stomach and the same thing happens to me! If I eat too much before, I am guaranteed to cramp up.