Despite the weather being a bit cloudier and cooler than I would like, it was a great week. I tried out a new recipe, tried two new DharmaCycle classes, onboarded two new guides for City Running Tours, ran a half marathon (with some minor issues) and went to the cabin for the first time this year!

Read all about it here…….

FOOD:

The food highlights for the week:

• I’m still obsessed with my super food muesli for breakfast. Never gets old.
• Pineapple made its way back into my life. I cut one up and divided it out for my mid-morning snack. This will only get better as summer rolls on.
• The abundance of Mexican food recipes popping up everywhere the last few weeks inspired my lunches this week: kale salad with avocado, red peppers, corn, black beans, and cilantro. Yum.
• Sugar snap peas and hummus tied me over between lunch and dinner.
• These sweet potato chickpea Buddha bowls were my dinner this week and I am obsessed -> Sweet potatoes and chickpeas, I love them. I swoon over anything with tahini. Kale, because kale. Plus, I’ve never purchased or cooked with broccolini before and I have no clue why. I’ll definitely be making these (or some sort of similar version) again very soon.
• I polished off a box of Lucky Charms this week for dessert. I’m in love with cereal, which is the exact reason I never buy it. But when they hand it out at work for free… well, I just can’t say no.
• Friday night before the Fargo Half Marathon my mom and I went to Toasted Frog in Fargo for dinner where we ordered sweet potato fries, pepperoni pizza, and roma-sonoma pizza. Our eyes were bigger than our stomachs and we only ended up eating half of each pizza. This actually worked out great, because we kept the leftovers and ate them after the race!
• I spent Saturday night at the family cabin with my parents. Our neighbors brought over dinner and we had a delicious meal: grilled raspberry-chipotle pork chops, a salad full of veggies, roasted potatoes, and some crusty bread. For dessert we all split a mini chocolate cake and a mini vanilla bean cake that my mom and I picked up from Nichole’s Fine Pastry before we left Fargo. Everything was absolutely amazing – the food and the company.

FITNESS:

• Sunday: DharmaCycle Yoga 2. This was my first time taking a true yoga class at this studio and I really enjoyed it!
• Monday: Strength + easy run. I started out the day with DharmaCycle Prime Yoga (I love this class). Then in the after work I met with a new City Running Tours guide (!!) for a run. We did the Beer Run 5K route and then I added on an additional 2 miles at the end. Total = 5.2 miles.
• Tuesday: Easy run. I met up with another new City Running Tours guide (!!!) for the first 3 miles of my run then ran another 4.5 miles. Total = 7.5 miles; 8:55 min/mile pace (I only tracked the pace of my last 4.5 miles).
• Wednesday: DharmaCycle cycle class. I finally tried out the cycle class at Dharma. I really liked it! I’ve been really impressed with this studio.
• Thursday: Marathon pace workout. Well, this started as a marathon pace workout, but I was kind of going in and out of it. Part of the issue was that I don’t know what I want what my marathon pace to be. Total = 7.0 miles; 9:01 min/mile pace.
• Friday: Rest day. Making sure my legs are well rested for the Fargo Half Marathon!
• Saturday: Fargo Half Marathon. I registered for this half marathon with my mom. She wanted to cross “run a half marathon” off of her bucket list and asked if I wanted to do it too, which I did. The race went ok (more details below). Afterwards I ran two recovery miles back along the course to find my mom, then accompanied her for the last two miles of her race. Total = 13.1 miles; 9:02 min/mile + 4 miles recovery (run/jog/walk)
• Weekly Totals: 1 yoga class, 1 strength training session, 1 cross-training session, 4 runs (36.8 miles), 1 day rest.

RACE RECAP:

I started the race with the 1:55 pace group with the plan to pick up the pace for the last 5K. It was my first time running with a pace group. I have had intentions of running with a pacer in previous races, but could never find/navigate to them in the start line crowds. This time was successful! Usually during a race I spend too much time the first few miles worrying about if I am going too fast or too slow. While running with the pacer I didn’t look at my GPS watch at all and just trusted that he was keeping the steady pace for me, which really helped ease my mind! I really want to run with a pacer during Grandma’s.

But anyways, the run. I felt great for the first 8 miles – time was flying by! Then suddenly just before mile 9 I felt like I was going to pass out. It’s not like I was gasping for breath or running really hard. I just got really faint and dizzy and had to stop to regain composure. Then I slowed way down and concentrated on taking deep breaths and finishing the race. At mile 12 I tried to pick up the pace a little bit, but I got dizzy again at about 12.8, then really just almost lost it at 13.0. As in, I had to stop in my tracks as people were sprinting towards the finish until I could see again. I finished in 1:58, which is fine considering the circumstances, but I was hoping for a stronger race.

(Side note: Has this ever happened to anyone?! Something similar happened when I ran the Hot Dash 10 Mile in March. It’s really annoying and a little bit scary, so if anyone has suggestions on what to do, that would be great!!)

After I crossed the finish line and drank some water, I went back out to the course to find my mom. I ran 2 miles (which was great for recovery) and found her just before mile 11. She was doing awesome! We finished out the race together. I am so extremely proud of her!! This was a stretch goal for her and a huge accomplishment. She’s one truly amazing lady.

Besides the whole issue with almost fainting while running, the Fargo Half Marathon was great and a very well-organized race. I loved how it started and ended inside the Fargodome, especially because it was a chilly morning (but perfect running weather). The course was flat and featured a lot of live bands and DJs. The spectators and volunteers were fantastic. The medals are fun and the shirts are decent. The parking situation during packet pickup was a nightmare (the 5K had just ended in the same spot), but the shuttles before and after the half marathon were a breeze. Overall, I had a great experience would recommend this race!

OTHER FUN THINGS:

• Last Sunday I met up with a couple of friends for drinks on the patio at Tuggs. The weather started out as a gorgeous 80 degrees, then it got really cloudy and dark, and then started hailing. So bizarre. Almost every time (maybe like 67% of the time) I go to Tugg’s there is some sort of extreme weather. But anyways, it was good to catch up with friends – lots of wonderful things are happening!!
• I was able to spend a lot of time with my mom over Friday and Saturday, which was a lot of fun. She is… so funny. A lot of silly things happened, but they would sound dumb if I tried to type them out all, so just trust me. If you’ve ever met my mom I’m sure you can imagine. Again, I’m so incredibly proud of her for finishing the half marathon and I’m glad I got to share the experience with her.
• It was so, so exciting to go to the Jabin (AKA our family’s cabin) for the first time this year and hang out with my parents and our neighbors (Paul and Cynde). I love that place. I am planning on going to the Jabin basically every weekend this summer, so if you want to hang out you’ll have to meet me up north.

Hope your week was great! Don’t forget to tell your mom, “I love you” if you haven’t yet!

This week was a little bit different from my typical, since I was in Toronto for work Wednesday-Friday. I went to meet with the General Mills Canada team and to visit my warehouses and traveled with my friend Kim (who is my counterpart in Transportation). Overall, it was a great trip and super valuable in terms of relationship building. It did throw off my fitness routine a little bit, but sometimes you just gotta roll with it. So I did.

FOOD:

I have this split pre-Toronto and in Toronto.

• Breakfasts: Pre-Toronto = super food muesli. In Toronto = oatmeal with a lot of fruit.
• Lunches: Pre-Toronto = Salad with a bunch of greens, ½ grapefruit, ¼ cup black beans, 3 oz grilled chicken breast and a drizzle of tahini. In Toronto = salads with some sort of protein and various vegetables.
• Dinners: Pre-Toronto = Salmon en papillote with lemon & asparagus and some brown rice. In Toronto = see below.
• Snacks: Pre-Toronto = raspberries in the mornings, baby carrots in the afternoons, and healthy black bean brownies after dinner.
• Saturday Brunch: I made this roasted tomato and zucchini clafoutis with whipped lemon-oregano feta again. So, so good.
• Some fun eats:
  • On Wednesday one of our Canadian co-workers organized a happy hour, so that we could meet some people and talk with them outside of work. We went to the Irish Shebeen because it was close to the office. Everyone was so welcoming and friendly! It made me feel really excited about working with this team.
  • Later that night Kim, Paul (who was also visiting Toronto from Minneapolis) went to Moxie’s for dinner. Some people from the office recommended it to us because it had good food and it was close to our hotel. They also told us it was like a high-class Hooters, which it was. Apparently they only hire model-esque people and do not allow employees to date. Anyways, I have the seared ginger tuna salad and a glass of Malbec. Both were delicious.
  • On Thursday night two of our co-workers took Kim and I out to dinner in Toronto (since the office is actually in a suburb) so that we could actually see the city. We went to Le Select Bistro, an adorable restaurant with a menu full of delicious things. We got a bottle of Sancerre for the table. For food I went with one of the prix fixe menus and got the salade maison, duck confit, and crème brûlée. Everything was amazing. Afterwards we headed to Valdez to meet up with some other co-workers for post-dinner drinks. It was a super fun night.

FITNESS:

As I mentioned, my travel put a wrench in my workouts, but still not a bad week overall.

• Sunday: A tempo workout turned into an easy run + yoga. Since I was travelling for work the back half of the week I wanted to make sure to fit in my tempo runs before I left. I planned to do 2-4x 10-minute tempos with a short rest in between. I tried, but I just couldn’t, which was both annoying and frustrating. I don’t know if there were lingering things from when I wasn’t feeling good Friday and Saturday or if it was mental. Either way, it was a struggle. After attempting two rounds of tempo I just finished out the run at an easy pace. Total = 6.0 miles; 9:25 min/mile pace. Then I took a Core Power Heated Power Yoga class and felt much better.
• Monday: Strength + Intervals. I started out the day with a morning DharmaCycle Prime Yoga class. Then after work I headed to the treadmill for some intervals. I did 4x ½-mile @ 8:00 min/mile pace + 4x ¼-mile @ 7:30 min/mile pace with recovery in between and a little bit of warm up and cool down running. Total = 5.0 miles.
• Tuesday: Easy run. I met up with my friend Lindsey for an easy 6-mile morning run downtown. My legs were sore from Monday’s workout and hers were too, so it was nice to do an easy run and catch up a little bit. It was a gorgeous spring morning and there were so many people out running! Total = 6.0 miles; 9:45 min/mile pace.
• Wednesday: Rest day. I hadn’t planned for this to be a rest day, but I was up at 3:30am to get to the airport and was go go go until I got back to the hotel in Toronto at 10:00pm. I wasn’t thrilled about missing a workout, but whatever. Life happens.
• Thursday: Cross Training. The hotel had a decent gym. I planned to do some sprints on the treadmill and some strength training circuits, but the treadmills (all 2 of them) were being used, so I did the elliptical instead. I did a warm-up then 7x 1-minute intervals at 10 resistance followed by a 1-minute recovery then a couple minutes of cool down. Then I did two sets of the following strength training circuits – 1^st: Romanian dead lifts, biceps curls, triceps extensions, weighted side dips; 2^nd: sumo squats with shoulder press, bent-over rows, chest press, plank knee-to-elbow.
• Friday: Rest day. I was thinking about waking up early to do about 20-minutes on the bike, but after a late night on Thursday I decided it would be best to get more sleep and save my legs for Saturday’s long run.
• Saturday: Long run. This was the longest run of training yet – 18 miles! I finally joined run club for a run and ran it nice and easy with my friend Lindsey. Starting out at a slower pace definitely helped me feel good throughout the run. The last few miles were definitely tough, because I was starting to really feel it in my legs, but overall it felt great considering it was my first 18-mile run in quite some time. Plus, it was an absolutely gorgeous morning! Total = 18.0 miles; 9:35 min/mile pace
• Total: 1 yoga class, 2 strength training sessions, 35 miles.

OTHER FUN THINGS:

• The trip to Toronto was so fantastic. It was hectic and busy and exhausting, but it was so great to finally meet the people I have been talking to on the phone weekly since February. A lot of work can be done remotely, but face-to-face time is also so valuable. We didn’t get to explore too much of the city, but Kim and I decided that the next time we travel there we will definitely need to stay for the weekend.
• Saturday was a beautiful, hot, sunny day, so I met up with some friends in the late afternoon to grab some drinks on patios around Minneapolis – summer is here!!!

I hope you had a great week and got to enjoy the sunshine!

FOOD:

For the most part, this was the menu of the week:

• Breakfasts: Super food muesli. Try it out! It’s so good.
• Morning snacks: A mix of fresh blueberries and raspberries.
• Lunches: A big salad full of greens, banana peppers, kalamata olives, cucumbers, tomatoes, and homemade falafel & tzatziki sauce. This salad made me really happy all week.
• Afternoon snacks: Baby carrots.
• Dinner: Sautéed onions, green peppers, and red peppers with kale and chicken sausage.

But then there was this stuff too:

• Sunday lunch at Wilde Roast with my mom and younger brother. I had the Boise Big TLBT. Normally I would go for the side salad, but it was my birthday weekend so I splurged on the sweet potato waffle fries, because they are AMAZING.
• On Friday night after my run I really wasn’t feeling well, so I went to the store to get my “I’m sick” foods: chicken noodle soup, saltine crackers, and Ben & Jerry’s Chunky Monkey ice cream. I felt better afterwards.
• My friend Julia hosted a BBQ at her apartment on Saturday night. We had burgers (beef, turkey, and veggie options) with cheese & crackers, fruit, veggies, chips & salsa, and cinnamon rolls. I contributed some black bean brownies with raspberries. Lots of delicious food with lots of awesome people!

FITNESS:

The beginning of the week started out pretty strong, but went a little downhill after that.

• Sunday: Core Power Heated Power Yoga.
• Monday: Easy run.This was a really enjoyable run for me. Total = 5.1 miles; 9:01 min/mi pace.
• Tuesday: Hill workout + abs. 2 mile warm-up + 7 hill repeats + 3 mile cool down. Then I followed it up with this plank-less ab workout and a lot of stretching. Throughout the run there was sun, then clouds, a few minutes of rain, some snow pellets, and then sun again. Plus, wind. #ClassicMinnesota. Total = 10.15 miles; 9:04 min/mile pace.
• Wednesday: DharmaCycle Prime Yoga. This studio just opened up a little over a week ago. Since it’s conveniently located ½-mile down the road from me I purchased an intro month to check it out. I took the Prime Yoga class. Here’s how they define the class: “Put the muscular and endurance work of Yoga Sculpt with the fine-tune precision movements of Pilates and Barre together and combine them with the principles of yoga therapy and traditional yoga and you’ve got Prime Yoga.  Prime Yoga is the most comprehensive, updated, full-body.mind.soul group fitness class out there. You’ll use a variety of weights and props as you move safely through exercises that strengthen and sculpt your muscles, challenge balance and work endurance all while staying connected to breath and intention.” There was a lot of focus on core work, so between that and Tuesday’s ab workout I was feeling a little sore, which I love. I enjoyed the class and look forward to checking out the other ones as well!
• Thursday: Easy run with some strides. I knew I was doing run on Friday, but still wanted to get in a short workout, so I decided on a 4-mile run and threw in some strides. I did a 1-mile warm-up + 7 rounds of 30-second strides + 1.25 mile cool down. Total = 4.1 miles; 8:51 min/mile pace.
• Friday: “Long” run. I was planning on running 16 miles; however, this did not happen. About 2 hours before the run I started not to feel great, but since I was meeting a friend for the run I decided to suck it up and go. I started and then really just started to suck it up. Major strugglefest and the wind and rain did not help. I decided that I needed to stop and told my friend to just keep going without me. Then I called my younger brother and asked if he could come pick me up. He did, because he’s the best brother in the world… and then I bought him dinner. Total = 9.25 miles; 9:45 min/mile pace.
• Saturday: Easy runs. I was feeling a little bit better so I wanted to add some extra miles in to try to make up for Friday’s poor performance. I went out for a 3-miler in the morning and then led a City Running Tour Beer Run (with some super fun ladies) later in the afternoon. Total = 3.1 miles; 8:59 min/mile pace + ~3.5 miles; relaxed running tour pace.

FUN:

• My friend Justine and I went to a baking demonstration at Cooks of Crocus Hill on Sunday. We watched Joanne Chang (of Flour Bakery in Boston) make a few things while we snacked on treats and drank coffee. Everyone that went to the demo received her new book, Baking With Less Sugar. I’ve read through all of it and am excited to experiment with some of the recipes! It was super fun and interesting and I would love to go back for another demo and/or class. Anyone interested?!
• On Wednesday I went to the Carlson School of Management and spoke at two of the OMS 3001 Intro to Operations classes about Raw Material Planning at General Mills. It was fun to be back at Carlson. I’m always impressed with the caliber of students and the questions that they have!
• Later on Wednesday I met up with my Alpha Kappa Psi mentee for happy hour at Acadia. It was fun to catch up with him and hear about everything that is going on in the fraternity!

I hope all of you had an awesome week full of good food, lots of fitness, and some fun things too!