Training Day

I am in week ten of my marathon training. My running homework for yesterday was to cover, and I quote, an "Easy 15-16 miles." Is that possible? This is having put in 90 minutes of cross training one day, two days of 8 miles of speed or hill work, and another "easy 5 miles" day. I am following The Rookie Marathon Training Plan and all I can think is, What the hell plan are the seasoned runners consulting?

My friends and I chose a beautiful but hilly and strenuous run up an old and winding road out to Lake Hennessy. The course is an all-time favorite of my sister's and mine, though we first experienced it in 28-degree weather. I suited up with the necessary fuel belt. I am loving the Helium 2 pink fuel belt. It is really comfortable and what is more important than comfort is that it's ridiculously cute. I tried the black cherry Clif shot bloks at mile 8 and they are really quite good.

So the weather was perfect. And as far as the challenge, I have discovered the best way to tackle the steep hills is to imagine my rear end in a bikini. Truly a motivation for pushing through the pain.

And with every long run I do, something special awaits completion. My friend and I celebrated her birthday at Bistro Jeanty- one of my favorite local restaurants. We kicked off the celebration with a glass of Allimant Laugner Brut Rose, which was nothing spectacular but refreshing and pink. I particularly love their appetizers so we shared the duck foie gras pate, some mussels steamed in red wine, frites, a butter lettuce salad, and calamari, along with a bottle of Andre Vatan Sancerre. It was a delightful lunch that came to a close with a lemon meringue tart the size of my head, served with an over-the-top orange candied sauce. An unseasonably warm day for January, we spent about trois heures out on the patio. A perfect afternoon.

Most women would take the opportunity of running 16 miles to get ahead in terms of caloric intake versus burn. I, however, chose to break even.