Week in Review (March 1 - March 7)

Tuesday (10,387 steps) - Got up early and did strength training before heading into the office for work. It was actually really nice out, so I went for a walk at lunch. Basically right after I got off work I headed over to the school for an orchestra concert. 

She wanted to stick around for band, so it was a relatively late evening. Did a yoga video when I got home.

Wednesday (24,529 steps) - Work in the office. I was pretty excited to go to Green Mountain after work because it was going to be warm enough to run in BARE ARMS. Of course I ended up getting stuck in some awful traffic on the way there and by the time I got there I only got to the top once before needing to put on my jacket (that I thankfully threw in my pack at the last minute). Coach wanted me to get in 3,000' of vert, and for some reason I thought that would be around 7.5 miles. I was mildly annoyed when it was over 9 and I didn't get off the mountain until after 8. Sigh.

Thursday (7,965 steps) - Work from home. Did a full body strength video and took Pika for a walk. Went to Torchy's for a beer and to get take out.

Friday (15,115 steps) - Wash Park and coffee with the gang. As I was getting ready to leave - Ben showed up! He was in the area for work and saw my car so he stopped in. Fun surprise! Upon getting to work I realized my main attorney had already started her vacation, so I headed home at lunch to walk Pika and worked the rest of the day from home. Started pulling out all my crap that I need to get packed for the next race. Ugh. It always seems so overwhelming to pack for out of state events.

Saturday (50,666 steps) - Woke up a bit earlier than I thought I might. A had her track-a-thon in the morning and Ben attended and took pictures since I had my long run to do. This is the first time I've seen her run in a jacket and a hat in a long time.

I had mapped out a few options for a long run - with most of them heading out towards Standley Lake first so I could hit up the bathroom at the trail head before continuing on. Decided on the "sketchiest" of the routes (yes, I knew it wasn't going to be great even when I mapped it out). I had 5 hours on schedule, and estimated I'd be able to meet up with Ben at Woods Boss sometime around 2:00 pm. When I had been getting ready it just looked cold out, it wasn't doing anything else. Basically as soon as I got off the street the light, freezing rain started. I had initially started in a Smartwool top and vest, but within a few miles I was already soaked through and getting colder. Thankfully, I had packed a variety of layers. Three miles in I swapped out the vest for my Salomon rain jacket, which I would end up keeping on the rest of the day. Headed down on Little Dry Creek and it was cold, cold, cold. I saw this spray painted on the sidewalk and thought I'd never seen more applicable graffiti. I even sent it to Ben, haha.

By the time I got to Sheridan, I knew I was entering the "not so desirable" part of the trail system. There were lots of places where there were homeless people with tents set up. Dogs tied to broken down campers. And I've never seen SO.MUCH.LITTER.AND.GARBAGE. in my life. Thankfully, I never actually felt unsafe, but man, this was probably the most visually displeasing run I've ever done. 

From a distance, that tree looks like it is waving! Actually, it's a statue, so I wasn't wrong

The construction that had been going on for years at Twin Lakes was finally completed, and it was probably the nicest section for many miles. That was also the only other guaranteed bathroom on my route, but I didn't need to stop. The rest of the run was just ensuring I made my handful of correct turns- I was glad to have put the route on my watch since the closer I got to Denver, none of the intersections were marked. The only pictures I took were of the street art/graffiti. 

Bridge leaving Clear Creek heading to the Platte River

In addition to not being a visually nice route, it also REALLY smelled. Seriously, I never need to run these paths ever again.

The area around Globeville and Rino was definitely the worst. There were way more unsavory people wandering around, fires on the side of the trail, trash, and dead animals. So disgusting. Finally when I got closer to the city I was on the trails that I actually run/walk a lot during work (more so in the summer) and I knew I was getting close. I couldn't quite remember the intersection for the brewery, so I pulled out my map and had to get off in a weird place - but I like the street art. From there I had only a little over a mile left!

Blue bear at the Convention Center

From here, I had 8-9 block to go, but I had to wait at almost every single intersection. FINALLY got there, and the timing was perfect, as Ben had just arrived. Thankfully, he had brought me a towel to dry off and a change of clothes. I was freezing.

Greg met us for a beer and for fun, Ben bought me a buckle from the brewery to commemorate my obnoxious run, haha. We stopped at Odyssey on the way home - I got a special beer that came with a cookie and it was delicious.

Stopped at Costco on the way home to pick up dinner. 

Sunday (8,990 steps) - Ben's long run day, and since I had to go to Boulder for a Runners Roost team meeting, I suggested that he go with me and run home. He had even worse weather, I think. It was in the low 20's and snowing, and he said that most of the bike path wasn't plowed and that there was inches of snow. Anyway. The meeting went well and I was able to get this years team gear. Ariel had also come with me so that she could get some spikes. I also bribed her with breakfast at the Walnut Cafe, which was delicious.

Ariel and I took Pika for a walk, and I'm pretty sure she was the only one that enjoyed it.

Did an hour long Peloton ride. Nothing else?

Monday (8,121 steps) - Work from home. Took Pika for a walk at lunch and did an easy Peloton ride. 

Stats:

• 125,773 steps
• 33.13 miles run
• 80 minutes of cardio
• 92 minutes of strength training