Week in Review (December 9 - December 15)

Tuesday (11,002 steps) - Peloton. Normally I take a shower and get completely ready to go to work BEFORE I walk Olive, but since it was so windy, I took her out first. That meant I got to see a really pretty sunrise! 

Went to the gym at lunch and did the StairMaster, a strength video and treadmill with incline. 

When I got back it was time to go to the building's "Christmas party." I got a random selection of snacks and ate my lunch and then spent the rest of the afternoon feeling really sick to my stomach. 

I even skipped dinner!! Took Olive for a very short walk, Absentia, and in bed early. 

Wednesday (18,192 steps) - Olive walk before going to work in the office. 

Went to the gym at lunch and walked on the treadmill and did a yoga video. After work I drove up to Broomfield so I could do my running workout - hill repeats. It was WAY more difficult than I thought it would be, but at least I was able to run all the intervals. 

Blah. Dinner and Absentia.

Thursday (11,031 steps) - God up and did a Peloton ride before logging in for work. 

View from the bike, haha

Ariel called me because she was in the neighborhood and I met her at Dutch Bros for a coffee. Somehow when Olive was waiting for her pup cup she got her tag stuck in the grate and it took a good 15 minutes and some ingenuity to get it back. Took Olive for a long walk to the lake at lunch and did a quick rowing session and a strength video. 

After work I did a few deliveries and met Ben at Torchy's for date night. Absentia!

Friday (14,054 steps) - Unfortunately, I woke up just after 3 am because I needed to use the bathroom and couldn't fall back asleep. I finally got up for good just before 5 after tossing and turning. Read some of my book while I waited for my alarm to go off. Olive and I headed to Wash Park for a walk - it was a nice morning and we didn't have any of the horrific wind, thankfully. 

Took Olive for another longer walk at lunch. 

Dropped Olive off at home, did a quick delivery and then met Ben at Parry's for dinner. 

Absentia!

Saturday (37,331 steps) - Woke up before my alarm that I had set so I could get my long run done. I had hoped that I would beat the horrific wind, but sadly, I did not. The new bridge was finally open across Indiana, so I had planned a pretty long run. 

It was awfully miserable, but the trails are nice! Ben met me about 20 minutes from finishing and then we stopped at 4 Noses for a beer (Topo for me). After I showered, took Olive for a long walk to the lake. 

Then it was time to get ready for my work holiday party! 

Apparently we neglected to get pictures of us at the actual party...

We decided to take a Lyft down, which did save a lot of stress with parking. The party was... fine. Probably the least fun of all the ones I have been to, but I do enjoy the food. Bed later than usual.

Sunday (15,777 steps) - Ben picked up Dutch Bros for us. We headed up to Boulder since I had a vert day on schedule. We started at the park near the rec center since I wasn't sure what street parking would be available. It was pretty shocking how dry everything was after all the ice from a week ago. 

Went to Rails End on the way home - I had been confused when the Broncos game was and we were surprised by the place being packed. We had to sit at the bar and it was a little crowded. Got some food and then headed home. 

Zero recollection of the evening. We had a late dinner. Absentia.

Monday (21,045 steps) - Work from home. Ariel and I met at Big O so she could get her brakes done. Stopped at Torchy's on the way home for some breakfast. Took Olive for a walk at lunch, then I went to get my hair cut. 

I had to have FOUR INCHES taken off since it had been so long since I got it cut. Then it was time to take Robin to the vet to get her eye looked at. THEN, had to take Ariel back to Big O to pick up her car. Headed back home to finish workday and change so I could go up to Boulder for my workout. It actually went a tiny bit better than I expected, but I still really suck at hills! 

Ben had picked up pizza for dinner, yay! Couch time and Absentia - we are almost done with the show. Sad.

Stats:

• 128,432 steps
• 28.53 miles run
• 15.37 miles walked
• 65 minutes of cardio
• 40 minutes of strength

Week in Review (December 2 - December 8)

Tuesday (17,005 steps) - Olive walk before going to work in the office. 

If you look close, you can see the hawk in the tree

Dressed nice AGAIN today, kinda fun to have picked up some nicer work clothes again.

Went for my run at lunch, an "easier" speed workout. I realized during the run that the city has apparently removed all the port-o-potties of the season. I had to do a lot of run/walking during my cool down until I made it to Union Station to use the bathroom!

Took Olive for a walk after work. Dinner and Absentia.

Wednesday (11,084 steps) - We got a ton of snow overnight and it was still snowing when we got up. Did a Peloton ride and somehow the morning got away from me and I didn't really have time to take Olive for a regular walk so we just walked around the block, no one had shoveled and we had to walk in the street. I was only a few minutes late for work, and most people actually came in. 

Went to the gym at lunch and did a short StairMaster workout, strength training and a walk on the treadmill with incline. 

Drive home took forever and I took Olive for a walk. 

At least one of us is excited for snow

Dinner and we watched "Black Phone 2."

Thursday (17,452 steps) - Work from home. I waited a bit before heading out for my run so it could warm up. Did some laundry, ran the dishwasher, vacuumed, then finally figured I better go in case my car was going to be done. I wore a fleece-lined pullover and tights and was actually pretty comfortable most of the run. I had planned on running on the trails, but since no one had really been out yet I was not enjoying the deep snow and opted to run up the road. 

I unfortunately ended up on the south side and that was relatively icy. The path was ok, but any time I crossed a road or driveway it was like a death trap. I stopped at the library to use the bathroom, but otherwise it was a pretty good run. Immediately took Olive for a walk when I got home. My car was FINALLY done around 3:30 so I had to drive down to Highlands Ranch to pick her up since the dealership didn't have a valet available. I ABSOLUTELY HATE the drive to/from Schomp. Hate it. Met Ben at Torchy's for dinner. Absentia.

Friday (12,488 steps) - Finally made it to the Wash Park walk! A bit chillier than I expected, but it was good to see people again. 

Took Olive for a shorter walk at lunch. Dropped Olive off at home. After Ben got home we turned right around and headed to RiNo to meet up with Heather! We went to Lefthand - which is relatively new. We had to pay for parking, which was annoying. When we first got there it was basically deserted, but it filled in quite a bit because there was a show (rave?) next door at the Mission Ballroom. 

I guess we didn't take any pictures. Also, these were my first beers in weeks, and I definitely felt it!

Absentia?

Saturday (22,771 steps) - Kristin picked me up and we headed down to south Denver for Runners Edge! I had a few hours on schedule and figured the miles would go by quicker with friends - which it did. We ran on the Highline, which is never overly interesting, and I was really surprised by the amount of snow/ice that was still on the trail. 

We listened to the Western States lottery, and I did not get selected, again. Headed home, took Olive for a walk and then went up to 4 Noses to meet Ben since his truck was getting work done next door. I was starving, Ben ordered Panda for lunch, which was delicious as always.

We went back home when it was still not finished after an hour. We went to pick up the truck and I did a delivery on the way home. Watched Sinister 2 - which how had we not seen this? It's an old movie? I think some Absentia after.

Sunday (25,943 steps) - Dutch Bros to get coffee before going to Runners Roost for the "year end party." Walked with Mo and Colfax. 

After we were done, Ben and I took Olive up on the trails for the "real" activity of the day - getting in a hike with some vert. The trails were INSANELY icy and it was a good reminder that I need to put my spikes in the car. 

We also saw about 30 wild turkeys! I have only seen them one other time in Boulder, so this was pretty special (and thankfully, Olive did not try to chase them).

Stopped at Rails End on the way home. Watched the first half of the Broncos game and got some delicious food from the food truck, but it ended up giving me a stomachache that last the rest of the night. 

More Absentia. 

Monday (18,628 steps) - Work from home. Super windy, so I procrastinated before taking Olive for her walk. Kneejerk reaction was to overdress for my run. It was cold enough that I felt fine for the first half (which was uphill and a headwind), but I definitely warmed up by the time I turned around. Run wasn't bad! After work I went out to do some driving but stopped after one because traffic was a nightmare. Ben got pizza for dinner. Absentia.

Stats:

• 125,371 steps
• 30.89 miles run (wow, big week for me, haha)
• 12.36 miles walked
• 27 minutes of cardio
• 31 minutes of strength

Week in Review (November 25 - December 1)

Tuesday (10,503 steps) - Peloton and Olive walk before going to work in the office. With it being a holiday week, there wasn't that much traffic, which was nice. Gym at lunch - VERY long StairMaster session and some strength training, plus a quick walk on the treadmill since I struggle to get steps in on indoor work days. 

Must have had dinner and watched Absentia.

Wednesday (20,001 steps) - Olive walk before going to work in the office. 

Had to do a picture because I actually dressed professionally for once

We were going to have an early release for Thanksgiving and since I had a hike/run on schedule, Olive went to work with me. Very slow day, walk at lunch. 

Lower lobby of our building

We headed over to Green Mountain after work was out and did a hike up the fire road and then ran down the single track. There were a decent number of bikes, but people were pretty polite. Olive does not seem to want to run on wider/rockier trails, but she did pretty good on narrower trails. 

We finished a bit later than planned, but at least it was still light out. Dropped Olive off at home and then met Ben at Torchy's for dinner since we wouldn't be going on our normal day. Absentia.

Thursday (12,105 steps) - Up early(ish) for the annual Louisville Turkey Trot. With Ben being sick, he wasn't going to be running, but still wanted to socialize and visit the beer tents. I didn't really have any goals for running - other than NOT getting stuck behind a bunch of kids and/or families and possibly running a course PR. It was chilly(ish) but I was glad that I decided last minute to NOT wear my jacket as I did start to warm up. I was a bit sad I had forgotten my gloves, but the shirt I was wearing had thumb holes so my hands didn't completely freeze. I had a pretty good first mile, but knew that the bigger, long hill was coming in mile 2. I had hoped to avoid walking, but meh, walked a minute or two total and then had a pretty strong mile 3 and finish. Faster than last year, but just a tad slower than two years ago. 

I do have to remember that it hadn't even been 2 weeks since finishing Florida! Found Ben, got a NA beer and then moved off to the side. 

Kara and me

Larry found us and then eventually we found Kristin and her dad. I rushed us out just before 11 since I knew we had a lot of cooking and prep to do. Unfortunately, Ariel was going to be working an afternoon shift, so we had to do Thanksgiving as a late lunch. I took Olive for a walk (mostly to stay out of the way). Food was delicious - this year we picked up "ready to go" food from Sprouts, so all we needed to do was heat things up. 

Definitely less dishes and Ben said it was easier. I am sure that we watched tv after Ariel went to work, but I have no recollection of what we watched. We did go to bed early since Ben wasn't feeling well AND he still had to work on Black Friday :(

Friday (22,046 steps) - Planned to be hanging around the house at least until 10 am since someone from Schomp was supposed to be driving the loaner car to the house and bringing Blue-C back for service since there still seems to be some issues with the battery and brakes. At 10 I called them and what a surprise, the "morning got away" and no one was even on their way yet, which means I was still going to be stuck at the house for at least another hour. SO MAD. Ariel and I decided to go to Dutch to get coffee while we were waiting - that ended up being a disaster since they were doing a mystery ornament drop. Even though we were gone until nearly 11, there was no one waiting for us when we got home. Finally, around 11:15, the guy from Schomp shows up - dropping off the biggest Mini ever (seriously, it's a Countryman and seems to be as big as the Jeep I used to own). Olive and I got ready and headed out to White Ranch for the activity of the day. I had mapped out what I thought was going to be just under 7 miles, but I got the routes confused with the upper trail head. 

Our hike/run ended up being 8 miles. I was glad that I had brought Olive's water bowl because the water access was dried up and we stopped twice to hydrate. Dropped Olive off at home and went to 4 Noses to meet up with Ben. We had Ninja Ramen for dinner - the best food truck! 

Watched Bad Guys 2, a pretty silly movie that we both liked. 

Saturday (14,827 steps) - We managed to sleep in until almost 8. That's unheard of for us, especially with the animals. We all took the loaner Mini to get Dutch (no crazy line this time), which was fun. I had a run on schedule and literally spent the entire morning putting it off. It finally seemed a bit warmer around lunch, so I sucked it up and went out. I almost thought I overdressed, but I think I layered perfectly and there were even times that I felt like I could have been wearing MORE. Overall, the run wasn't terrible. As soon as I got home I grabbed Olive and took her for a short walk. Then I took a hot shower and we went to Rails End for treat town. I was starving, so happy to see that the creole food truck we like was there. Tried the NA Stout, and it was ok. Hard to believe how much my beer tastes have changed over the years! 

Back home and read for a bit. Ben went to Costco to pick up a pizza for dinner, even though neither of us was hungry after our big lunch. We watched a movie "Sovereign" - which was ok. Maybe more Absentia?

Sunday (10,744 steps) - Managed to stay in bed relatively late (for us). Tried to start the discussion early on of what our plans were going to be for the first very cold day of the year. Somehow convinced Ben to join me and Olive for a longer walk to the lake - it was very chilly! Ariel showed up at the house right before we got home and we spent some time with her before she went to work. Headed up to Rails End for indoor treat town with Olive for a bit, watching some of the football games that were on. Took Olive for a a walk when we got home and then settled in for the afternoon. Did some reading and then did my yoga video and a quick jog around the block (had to get my steps in!), Ben made dinner and we watched most of the Broncos game before switching over to Absentia. 

Ariel came back after she got off work to use my laptop to work on a paper. Goodbye long weekend!

Monday (10,330 steps) - Work from home. Took Olive for a walk and decided I would move all my workouts around for the week. Instead of doing my run at lunch I rode the Peloton, used the rower and did an upper body video. 

Most updated picture of the basement/workout area

In the afternoon I took Olive for another walk. After work I met Ben at Costco so we could do some much-needed grocery shopping. Cooked dinner, read my book, watched an episode of South Park and started the second season of Absentia.

Stats:

• 100,556 steps
• 20.33 miles run
• 10.97 miles walked
• 101 minutes of cardio
• 60 minutes of strength