Weeks in Review (November 17 - November 30)

I need to never ever try to do two weeks at a time again. This was really hard to remember and reconstruct.

Tuesday (23,101 steps) - Upper body video. This one is ok, but the overhand reps are super awkward and I'm not sure they do me much good. And in preparation for a huge blizzard, my work instituted a late start. The storm ended up being minimal up north where I live, so A still had school on time. I dropped her off, went straight to work (in practically zero traffic) and ran 6 miles in my new INKnBURN holiday skirt! What a great way to start the day.

Wednesday (16,418 steps) - Cardio video. Not super crazy about these "cardio" videos - but it's part of the #FB30, so I did it anyway. We skipped run club because A had a "nature night" at her school. There were tables set up in the hallways for the state parks, the bird sanctuary, Butterfly Pavilion and more. There were tons of activities to interact with different aspects of nature, including bird watching:

and archery(?):

There was also free pizza and giveaways (A did not win anything). It was a pretty cool event.
Thursday (18,721 steps) - Yoga/Pilates video. Blah. I don't know, I find these videos kinda boring. But stretching always feels good. The weather was pretty nice so I decided to do my run outside. Ran all the way to the pavilion in City Park and got in 4 pretty good miles.

Friday (17,267 steps) - Today was technically a day for an "assessment" of my progress over the last 8 weeks from my last #F30 program. I didn't do the first day, or this one either. I did, however, do another set of super awesome pictures.

The best part about the day was it being the start of THE WEEK OF NOTHING. I took off the entire week of Thanksgiving, and we planned on doing (basically) nothing all week. When we got home we made another new dessert - Thin Mint cheesecake cupcakes! (And before you ask, YES, I still have some in the freezer from February).

Saturday (18,156 steps) - Up early for the Pumpkin Pie 5k.

Immediately after leaving we stopped at Sbux (and changed clothes in the bathroom) on our way to Children's Hospital. We met up with A's Girl Scout troop to prepare "Kits for Kids" - bags of medical supplies that get sent all over the world for children/families that don't have the money or resources for items as simple as combs or toothpaste.

After finishing up with the Scouts we drove to our friend Heather's house in the mountains for our Gingerbread house party. Have you ever made a gingerbread house? I hadn't, and I found it infuriating. The frosting was not holding the house together and every time I took my hands of the walls it fell apart. After a lot of cursing and anger, we finally got our house and train (yes, they are Halloween themed) built. Great evening with great friends.

Sunday (18,341 steps) - Up early AGAIN. This time for the "Donut 5k" in Fort Collins. A had her heart set on running this, even though it wasn't a "real" race. I can't blame her, donuts are pretty great. Although it was sunny, it was pretty chilly. Our Roost teammate and fellow INB ambassador, Lisa, also drove up from the metro area.

Me, A, and a random INB fan

The trick to this race was that it was a prediction race, so we weren't allowed to wear a watch or carry anything to time ourselves. The prizes were turkeys, so I'm kinda glad we didn't win, because then I would have felt obligated to cook it.

I struggled through this one (and my skirt kept riding up), but A had a great kick at the end. (I'm not sharing my pic, I look sad and pathetic).

Stuck around waiting for awards. Turns out I ran a 33:17 (which was a minute slower than I predicted). The winner was DEAD ON. How does that even happen? We went grocery shopping on the way home so I could make "pepper jack" meatloaf. Which is exactly what it sounds like. Meatloaf stuffed with pepper jack cheese. It was delicious - A loved it too. 

We played some Mario Kart on the Wii U and started a game of Monopoly. I hate Monopoly.
Monday (18,908 steps) - I decided to take the week off from doing cross training. I tried to sleep in, but failed. Apparently 8:00 is an unreachable goal. I went for a quick run over to the lake - it was GORGEOUS outside.

A wanted to use her birthday money to get another controller and some games for her Wii U. Thankfully, Target was running a 10% off sale on electronics, so we didn't have to risk waiting until Black Friday to pick up some bargains. After lunch we met up with Rose, Madi and Chloe at the skating rink. Free skating during the week of Thanksgiving!

AND THEN MORE MONOPOLY.
Tuesday (21,634 steps) - Still unable to sleep in. I knew a cold front was coming in so I wanted to get in another run outside. I went on the trail behind my house to see where it went, and to the east, it basically ends. (Not really, but I don't want to run on (or have to cross) any major intersections. Heading east, I ended up in the middle of the lake, so I just finished out my run there. WINDY WINDY WINDY, but tee shirt and skirt weather!

After lunch we went for a walk around the lake (we had been hoping to go the the wildlife refuge, but it was closed) and nearly got killed by swarms of geese. (Not really, but there were TONS OF THEM).

We stopped at the library on the way home (it had been so long since I went last that my card expired??) And then? The next baking project. A way more in depth cheesecake for Thanksgiving! It made a TON, so we ended up making little cupcakes too!

We drove up north to pick up our packets for our turkey trot - stopping at Old Navy afterwards. I manged to pick up some super cute running gear for A for incredibly low prices. The running vest she got is super cute.
Wednesday (14,490 steps) - With the cold front definitely headed in, we went on a very short run to the lake. Already hat and glove weather...

Another trip to the skating rink (free, remember?)

We ran home to grab some cheesecake cupcakes and then drove down to Denver for run club. It was cold and windy and we just socialized. No running. Stopped at Heather's house for some pizza and then went home.
Thursday (15,562 steps) - For the first time ever, I think, the weather was awful for the turkey trot. For at least the last 4-5 years I've worn a tank top and skirt. This time I was wearing tights, 2 shirts and a jacket. And I was still cold. We met up with Heather and Dan around 8:00. Sat in the car until about 2 minutes until the start. I ran with Heather and A ran with Dan. My legs sucked, I had calf cramping that I haven't had in a while and had to walk a lot. At least we looked adorable. (Full recap to come - I'm incredibly behind).

Headed home to shower and get pretty for all the Thanksgiving festivities! First we took our cheesecake over to Jessa's where we sat around and chatted for a few hours - then we drove down to Denver (in awful weather) to The Oxford Hotel. Heather had been kind enough to get us reservations at McCormick's for Thanksgiving lunch (which was soooo good) AND a night's stay at the hotel!

A had a fun time coloring everyone's hair, we played many games of Apples to Apples and in general had a fantastic time. Probably the best Thanksgiving we have ever had!

Friday (13,422 steps) - We awoke to MORE snow...

We walked to Union Station and hit up Snooze for breakfast. Which, by the way, was the most delicious EVER. A tried to eat a burrito the size of her head (and failed), and I had an incredible pumpkin pancake with bourbon syrup.

A few more games (including Jenga, which of course, A won) before we had to check out.

We went home to shower and feed the cats, and then we made a run to Target. Not my best idea ever, Black Friday is the worst. Only thing we bought was a copy of Jurassic World. Not many deals out there unless you are shopping for a giant TV?
Saturday (21,595 steps) - I wanted to get a longer run in, so we went to the gym. I hadn't been there in almost three weeks! We were on a bit of a time crunch, so I only got about 7.5 miles in. A had gotten a gift card to the movie theater for her birthday, so we went to see the Peanuts movie. She thought it was ok, I thought it was boring... I honestly cannot remember what we did the rest of the day, other than finally finishing that terrible game of Monopoly, which A won.

Sunday (17,681 steps) - Hemmed and hawed forever about going out to run. It was hovering around 20 degrees and it was overcast. As the temperature continued to drop I decided I better go out. Since it was still pretty icy out, I ran on the road on the south side of the lake. Pleasantly surprised with my pace, considering I took numerous walk breaks.

After I got home I showered, we had a quick lunch, and then we went skating. Yes, again. Then we met up at Hu Hot with my friend from high school. Two hours just FLEW by. And just like that, I'm sitting there watching the Walking Dead and wondering how on earth the Week of Nothing was over.
Monday (16,554 steps) - It had snowed a bit Sunday night. Not that much. It was a light fluffy snow. AND YET, it was the worst commute I can remember in ages. It took me an hour and a half to get to work - which is less than 10 miles away. And about twice as long as a normal drive. After I picked up A at Scouts we went to the gym, but I was tired and not in the mood for running so we left. Stopped at Tokyo Joe's on the way home and watched "Planes, Trains and Automobiles." I love that movie.

Stats

• 130,912 steps (week one) and 120,938 steps (week two)
• 21.9 miles run (week one) and 24.1 miles run (week two)
• 24 minutes of cross training (week one) and nada week two
• 63 minutes of strength/stretching (week one) and nada week two

Everything Else

• Not sure that I have ever taken a "staycation" - but I think I'll do it again. For planning NOTHING, we were incredibly busy all week long.
• As I write this, it is December 1. Where did this year go? The year seriously has flown by.

Pumpkin Pie 5k (Race Recap)

Saturday, November 21
Denver, CO

We signed up for this race last minute - like the day before. We found a coupon code and it was less than $50 for both of us to run. SCORE!

Literally within minutes of hitting the registration button, the sky became dark and scary and the polar vortex rolled in. And the snow started falling. After having gorgeous weather most of the week it looked like I was in for a race similar to last year. But at least this time I was ONLY doing the 5k.

Knowing that the parking is a bit sketchy at City Park for these events, we hoped to park on a side street by 8:00 so we could pick up our bibs, use the bathroom and still have time to sit in the car until the race started. We were able to find a teeny tiny spot pretty close to the start. IT WAS COLD. I think my car said it was 18 degrees.

I guess it doesn't LOOK cold. But it was.

We picked up our packets without any issues, used the indoor bathroom, then ran back to the car. As a result of the snow the night before it was DAMN ICY, especially crossing 17th to get into the park. We accidentally lined up way too far in the back and in the first mile spent a lot of time barricaded behind walkers. We did, however, run into Maureen and her dog Colfax right at the start so we all ran together.

The course was incredibly icy, so we took it easy. Last thing I want is to get injured running such a short event. My hands were cold, but the rest of me felt fine.

Official Time - 32:04
Overall Place - 496/1757
Gender Place - 257/1205
Division Place - 42/176
Garmin Time - 32:04
Garmin Distance - 3.11 miles
Garmin Pace - 10:19
Mile 1 - 11:08
Mile 2 - 10:31
Mile 3 - 9:31
Mile 3.11 - 8:29

HEY LOOK AT THAT. NEGATIVE SPLITS FOR REAL!!

After we finished we collected our medals and then spent some time at the Roost tent waiting for Heather - she was going to be running the 10k. We spent just a little bit too long outside and I was nearly frozen by the time we got back to the car.

I think the only people with bare legs were on the team :D

Thoughts:

• This is a fun race. It's a decent size race and it's very well organized.
• The shirt is cute (kind of a faded orange) - but I registered too late to get a size I can wear, so it will get donated.
• The medal is super cute. Love a smiling piece of pie!
• There is one aid station on the course, it was well stocked and the volunteers were super friendly.
• The course, two years in a row, has been scary icy. Maybe next year will be better? With that said, I will probably run again. Maybe the 10k next time.

Week in Review (November 10 - November 16)

Tuesday (18,321 steps) - Ridiculously long warm up, shoulders, and cool down. After work we went to the gym and ran 3ish miles. I've been having a weird niggle in my right groin area (started around the time of Denver RnR). It feels fine when I'm running, but hurts a bit when I'm walking. Sure hope that goes away soon...
Wednesday ( steps) - HIIT/cardio warm up, total body HIIT and abs (which, to be fair, was WAY more HIIT than abs), and cool down. Overnight we got the first real snow of the season. Luckily, temperatures have been pretty warm, so it wasn't super icy. However, Colorado drivers cannot be trusted, so we left early for school/work. Maybe it was the premonition of snow, or maybe it was because of Veteran's Day, but traffic was extremely light and I actually got to work in about half the time as a normal work day. Went to the gym during lunch and ran a few miles since I planned on skipping the gym and run club. After we got home, we made cookies! Four dozen cookies to be exact. Peanut butter chocolate chip for the Friday the 13th party at Heather's and for A to take to school for her birthday.

Thursday ( steps) - Alternating dumbbell upper body video. I have done this one once before, and WOW, it is not easy! Did a 4 mile run during lunch because A and I were heading down to Runner's Roost for Ladies Night and the Nike fashion show! A great evening of light shopping, food and friends.

New Roost beanies!

When we got home there was MORE baking to do. This time we made the Oreo cheesecake cupcakes for A to take to her "real" birthday party on Saturday morning.

Friday ( steps) - One of the longer videos of this program, a lower body strength video. 3ish mile run on the treadmill during lunch.

A dressed up fancy for her last day of being 9

After work I picked up A and we headed up to Heather's house for a gathering of friends. Delicious food and great company.

Crazy eyes.

Saturday ( steps) - A'S TENTH BIRTHDAY!!! We had a FULL day planned. I gave A her presents first thing upon waking up. (Since she doesn't do Christmas with me, this is the closest thing to that for us). We enjoyed hot chocolate (for her) and coffee (for me) and tested out her new Wii U.

That thing is pretty high tech! We changed into our running clothes for a short birthday run to the lake.

Had a few minutes to get ready before going to IHOP for her birthday breakfast and then it was on to Skate City for her party.

Two hours of skating and then it was time for seeing Jurassic World with Jessa. As in previous years, A wanted to go to Country Buffet (yuck) for her birthday lunch. The rest of the evening was spent watching TV and playing Mario Kart. We ordered a pizza for a late night snack. We took selfies with the cats using her new "cat selfie kit". A said it was the best birthday ever. LOL.

Sunday ( steps) - Went to Target to get our grocery shopping done and after lunch we headed up to Boulder for birthday part 2. We met up with my older sister and my nephew Adam and went to the Valmont bike park for some mountain biking. All was going well until I (stupidly) decided to ride up a ramp. I didn't go up straight, panicked, braked and flew over the handle bars (off the 5' ramp) onto my head). Thankfully I didn't break anything, but holy crap, that hurt.

We left shortly afterwards and went to Sweet Cow for some delicious ice cream. THEN we went to the climbing gym. I didn't freak out as much this time and had 4 successful climbs. My arms/wrists just kind of gave out on the last one (not surprising since I for real almost died a few hours earlier on the bike).

A went with my sister and nephew to my parent's house for dinner. I did a quick 2 mile run to the lake and then picked up some Tokyo Joe's for dinner. After dinner I watched the Walking Dead (and I'm still really irritated that I don't know what's happening with Glenn).
Monday ( steps) - HIIT and lower body strength. I had to modify some of the moves because my wrists (left wrist especially) was hurting a bit. Hard to say if it was from the biking accident or the climbing. 3 miles on the treadmill during lunch as we had a blizzard warning and I wanted to go home and stay home. We picked up Tokyo Joe's on the way home (again). The snow started falling around 8 and I got the notification from my work around 10 pm that we would be having a two hour delayed start. (Hooray!)

Stats

• 119,870 steps
• 19.2 miles run
• 60 minutes of cross training videos, plus about an hour on the mountain bike and an hour at the climbing gym
• 97 minutes of strength/stretching.

Everything Else 

• Winter is here. And I hate it. That's all.

Week in Review (November 3 - November 9)

Tuesday ( steps) - Upper body video. This was a video with NO equipment. So basically it was a billion different types of push ups. THIS WAS HARD. After work we went to the gym where I had one of the best runs I've had in ages. Got 5 miles in at a sub 11 pace, which for me, is really fast.
Wednesday ( steps) - HIIT Cardio. For the first time in ages I could NOT get through this video. The moves were EXTREMELY difficult and the intervals were 1 minute long, with random "drops" or "jumps" - depending on the exercise. I thought I was going to die. I will NEVER do this one again if I can help it. Goodness. A and I went to run club. It was cold, dark and rainy. And we were 20 minutes late because the highway was at a standstill. WOMP.

Thursday ( steps) - Upper body strength and yoga. This was a pretty decent workout for me. And a nice, welcome break from all the lower body and cardio. After work I ran 3ish miles at the gym - it was a pretty decent workout.
Friday ( steps) - Lower body strength. A really good video - lots of different types of reps. I actually added this one to my list of favorite videos. Grocery shopping so that we could make the oreo cheesecake for the Roost team party on Sunday.

Saturday ( steps) - Backcountry Wilderness half marathon.

After we left the race, we met up with Heather for delicious Thai food. Headed over to the Roost to pick up our bibs for The Great Candy Run, and then we went to Heather's house to decorate shirts for the race. Didn't get home until it was dark... early-ish to bed again.
Sunday ( steps) - Out the door by 8:15 to meet Heather at her house so we could carpool to the race. I haven't done a "big" 5k in a long time, and WOW, was this one big, crowded race. Heather is a GOTR coach and we had a bit of a hard time finding her school. After getting some pictures, we got into the bathroom line before getting in the corrals. A didn't want to start with us "old and slow" people, so she started in the third corral and we were in the last corral with her girls. We chatted and I tried to NOT walk. My legs were DEAD after running the half the day before. I was pretty pleased to end up finishing in just over 32 minutes. We found A and Dan at the finish, got a picture, and then headed back to her house to get ready for the Roost team party. We got to the Copper Kettle Brewery for the party at noon (oreo cheesecake in hand). Had a wonderful time hanging out with friends and teammates.

Left there around 4, got back to Heather's house, grabbed our stuff, and drove home so A could take a shower before going over to Jessa's for a "Walking Dead pizza party." The company and food was great, the episode was ok. Didn't get home until 9. What a long day.
Monday ( steps) - Almost turned off my alarm instead of getting up and doing my video. Cardio warm up, HIIT, lower body and cool down did not sound appealing, but it actually felt pretty good to get it done.

Stats

• 146,609 steps
• 24.6 miles run
• 59 minutes of cross training (HIIT/cardio)
• 79 minutes of strength/stretching

Everything Else 

• The most exciting part of the week was finding out I am back on the Runners Roost racing team for another year! I had so much fun running and socializing with my teammates. I love being an ambassador for the best running store in Colorado and the sport of running. GO ROOST!!!
  
  
  

The Great Candy Run (Race Recap)

Sunday, November 8
Denver, CO
Weather - Sunny and warm

I decided to sign up to be a "Running Buddy" for Girls on the Run at the The Great Candy Run. I signed up to run with Heather's school. A and I left the house early enough to meet Heather at her house and ride over to Wash Park with her and Dan. Thankfully, since I didn't realize this was pretty much the biggest 5k ever.

Took us a bit to park, and then we walked over to where her girls were. Turns out they all had buddies to run with, so I would just be running with Heather and A.

Heather with A and her GOTR

Me, A and Heather

We headed to the bathrooms and then got into the corrals. A decided at the last minute that she didn't want to run with us because we are "too old and slow." I managed to get back into the last corral with Heather. We didn't end up crossing the start line for almost 20 minutes! Apparently there were about 6,000 people running, according to the race director.

Somewhere WAY up there is the starting line

I was actually a bit sore from running the trail half the day before (and the lower body video the day before THAT), so I was happy that Heather wanted to run "just for fun." Which is what we did. For ME, I actually pushed the pace a bit and actually ran fast (again, for me).

I couldn't believe how warm and sunny it was during the race, I actually got pretty hot, even though I was only wearing a skirt and tee. We had arranged with A and Dan to meet up at the bouncy castles at the finish, and we found each other without any issues.

My times are fairly unimpressive.

Garmin time - 32:07 (seriously, I haven't run this pace in a while)
Garmin distance - 3.15 miles
Garmin pace - 10:11 (practically sprinting)
Mile 1 - 10:44
Mile 2 - 10:00
Mile 3 - 9:55
Mile 3.15 - 9:29

What WAS really impressive was A's performance! She told me she knew she was running fast because she must have passed two thousand people. She could have!

Thoughts:

• Wow, this would have been the most fun race EVER for a first time 5k! There were almost as many spectators as there were runners! The course starts on the road and then runs parallel to Wash park, with a loop inside the park. It was estimated that there were over 3,000 spectators. What a boost for these girls!!
• For a race this size it was extremely well organized. We picked up our packets the day before, but I could see exactly where I would have picked them up race day.
• Plenty of bathrooms. Even with around 10,000 people out for the event we only waited maybe 10 minutes.
• There was one aid station on the course with water and it was well stocked with friendly volunteers.
• There was a nice long sleeve tech tee (A is wearing it in the start picture). 
• And according to Heather, this was the first year the race gave out medals. And we all know how much I love medals.
• This was a really fun race, I would probably run again if I had the chance to be a "real" running buddy!

Backcountry Wilderness Half Marathon (Race Recap)

Saturday, November 7
Highlands Ranch, CO
Half Marathon #141
Weather - chilly and windy at the start, perfect by the finish

I have run the Backcountry Wilderness half marathon two other times - once in 2014 and the first time, in 2012. I registered for this one early - wanting to get a race on the trails before the end of the year. The weather looked on/off sketchy, but we lucked out with blue sky and sunshine the morning of the race.

With a 9:00 start time, we didn't leave the house until about 7:15. We were supposed to meet Heather and Dan at the start, Heather and I were going to run and Dan was going to hang out with A.

We arrived just after 8:00 (I remembered the parking was a little sketchy), and we walked to pick up packets and use the bathroom. We were chatting with Phil at the Runners Roost tent when Heather called to say that she wasn't going to be able to come. A and I talked and I told her as long as we were there that we should see if they needed any volunteers. We met back up with Phil and he insisted that I should still raced and that A could hang out with him. After many assurances that he was perfectly fine with watching her, we hurried back to the car so I could get my bib and cycled through the bathroom line one more time.

I headed down to the start right as the last wave was starting. The goal was to not have it hurt. I have had so many races this season where everything hurt and I was miserable. I didn't want that! I started out slow and vowed to NOT look at my watch and obsess over pace. The first mile is one sidewalk and road, I walked a bit up the hill heading towards the trails. Then we got onto the dirt road and I was feeling really good. I was running steady and walking when I felt like I needed to but it wasn't because I was hurting.

I was slowly passing people and honestly, I was having fun. I was also getting REALLY HOT. It was in the upper 30's when the race started and I was cooking in my long sleeve top. After the second aid station, around mile 7, I was still feeling really great. I headed onto the single track section and ended up in the conga line - which honestly was probably a good thing. It helped me hold back where I might not have otherwise and I think I was running really strong.

For some reason there was someone dressed up as Chewbacca giving high fives around mile 8. The long climb around mile 9 was the slowest mile of the day gave me a chance to take off my long sleeve shirt, and for the first time ever, I think, ran in my sports bra. Grabbed some water at the last aid station, mile 11, and LOVED the last 2 miles downhill. Of course I remembered the nasty hill up to the finish, but I was PUMPED to see that my time was way faster than last year. (Like 12 minutes faster!)

Garmin time - 2:17:00
Garmin distance - 12.99 miles
Garmin pace - 11:19 (SO FAST)
Mile 1- 11:31
Mile 2 - 11:20
Mile 3 - 10:43
Mile 4 - 12:59
Mile 5 - 11:45
Mile 6 - 11:32
Mile 7 - 10:10
Mile 8 - 10:31
Mile 9 - 10:56
Mile 10 - 13:58
Mile 11 - 12:00
Mile 12 - 10:06
Mile 13 - 9:40

I grabbed a water and then met up with Phil, who said A had been perfectly fine and he had a great time hanging out with her. I had to run back to my car to get my ID for the Grist beer. A had a giant plate of pancakes from Flappin' Flapjacks, but I wasn't hungry.

Pancakes? What pancakes?

Thoughts:

• I will run this again. Funny how views change over time. I didn't enjoy myself the first year I ran this, and this year I definitely did.
• Lots of swag - a cool coffee mug, long sleeve tech tee and a nice medal.
• LOTS of "stuff" at the start/finish area. Grist Brewery was there with their delicious craft beer, and of course Flappin' Flapjacks is always a hit.
• The parking is a bit of a headache so definitely allow more time than you think you need.
• My only complaint is the lack of bathrooms at the start. Pretty sure they added more this year, bu the line still took a really long time to get through.

Week in Review (October 27 - November 2)

Tuesday (22,801 steps) - High/low cardio intervals. This was an interesting video - it was a "low" impact interval followed by a higher cardio level. Not terrible. After work went to the gym for 3ish miles. The remainder of the evening was spent making Halloween candy bark and red velvet brownies for my work bake sale.

Matchy Matchy!

Wednesday (16,707 steps) - Kickboxing/HIIT. Essentially a waste of time as no one except Daniel can actually accomplish all these moves in a way that makes sense. I fling/flang around a lot trying to do these moves. After work - RUN CLUB!! Very excited about the Halloween/pumpkin theme for this one. Ran around the school track with Lisa, Heather, Dan and A. I don't have a chance to have a lot of one on one conversations with Lisa, so that was nice. I didn't binge too much on the "pumpkin everything" - but had a few delicious pieces of "Nothing Bundt Cakes." Yum.

"Twinning is Winning"

Thursday (19,079 steps) - Cardio video. I already can't remember this video. I don't remember if I liked it or not, so it must not have been awful. After work I went with A to her "Boo at the School" where she played some carnival games and sampled chili. 3.5 miles at the gym afterwards.

A got some face/hand painting done

Friday (21,178 steps) - Warm up, kettle ball, cool down. I don't have a kettle bell so these were all done with a barbell. I really enjoy strength training, this was a nice change. After work we met up with Jessa and Jackson in Olde Town Arvada for a trick or treat street. We went to dinner at 3 Margaritas. Then A went over to Jessa's for a sleepover. I tried to suffer through a few episodes of American Horror Season - this season is terrible.
Saturday (35,764 steps) - Up early to go down to Stapleton to run with Runner's Edge. It was PERFECT running weather. I was wearing long sleeves, thinking I would get hot, but I never did. Ran a few miles with Carol and Sheila until Heather caught up. Ended up with 10 great miles. BEAUTIFUL fall colors!!

Me and Lisa in INKnBURN

Picked up A and then went to the mall to exchange the jeans I just bought her that didn't fit, bought her this year's holiday dress. Went to Sweet Tomatoes for lunch, went home and showered and then watched tv until it was time to go over to Jessa's for trick or treating. Ended up hanging out until about 9 - then finally home. LONG DAY.

Sunday (17,884) - Actually slept in until about 8. Which because of daylight savings meant I actually got like 10 hours of sleep. We went grocery shopping and then made omelettes and pancakes for breakfast. Almost the entire day was spent in front of the tv (I did laundry in between) - but I did go out for a short jog in the afternoon. I finally went west on the trail behind my house - can't wait to go out for longer next time.

Monday (16,850) - I do like that the sun is up earlier... I didn't have as much trouble getting out of bed. HIIT/Cardio - which wasn't actually too bad. There were short intervals of strength in between the HIIT intervals so it gave me some time to actually rest. Rushed home to meet the HVAC guy - who ended up fixing my furnace for free because of the missed appointment. I offered him money more than once because I felt bad, but he wouldn't take it. A and I went to Tokyo Joe's for dinner and we vegged on the couch. With heat.

Stats

• 150,263 steps
• 23.5 miles run
• 83 minutes of cross training (HIIT/cardio)
• 55 minutes of strength/stretching

Everything Else 

• Heather and I had a "heart to heart" and we are going to defer CIM. Thankfully this was decided BEFORE my long run on Saturday, so I only ran 10 instead of 20. Phew.
• A found out that she was voted into Student Council! She is super pumped about "making a difference" at her school. Very proud of this girl!