This Week's 17

In a happy turn, I actually managed to get the week's running in--including two (little) lifts, and one day of cross-training--the first time I've been able to do so since we got our charming little mongrel.

Sunday's 3 miles, the day after 20 with the team, was a slow, screeching affair--as those loosening runs post-long run tend to be. I slugged it out on the treadmill on Sunday night, forcing myself the bare minimum distance before calling it a day and hitting the shower.

Tuesday was scheduled for 6-8, and with a stiff knee, the shorter distance seemed the better part of valor. With no group run scheduled for the weekend, Jared planned to run some longer miles with me--14-16 scheduled, and the farthest he would ever have gone--so he was also more inclined to run some shorter miles. Again, I spent some quality time on the "dreadmill", this time due to the snow drifts and salty streets left from Monday's 10-12 inches of snow. We settled into a decent clip for 6, chatting all the while. Post-run, an abbreviated lift proved just the thing, though my body had noticed the lack of the past weeks, knees screaming gently at the pull of lunging.

Thursday rolled around, with scheduled mileage of 8-12, and again, we opted for the shorter distance of the range. With the weather warming slowly to a brisk but relatively warm 35+ degrees, we shambled our way the 4+ miles to the gym, where we enjoyed another lift, and some "nutritionally balanced for women" (sorry, Jared) pomegranate and watermelon Luna chews, before heading the 4+ miles home to throw a pizza in the oven.

With 17 miles in the bank for the week, I was a happy camper. "Cross-training" on Friday was a couple friendly games of pickup hoops--maybe not great for the training runner's body, but good for her soul all the same, and much more inviting than 30 minutes on a machine...