Hi!
I survived the Hollywood Half marathon yesterday! This was the main achievement of my weekend, and I had a lovely time running the race. I did have a terrible period after the race where I was short of breath and having heart palpitations (for like 40 minutes!) but thankfully did not require any kind of medical intervention.
Oops. I guess this is what getting old and not training very well means 🙂 I’m still glad I did it!!
I stuck with the guy above until mile 9.5 or so, and then went slightly faster. I’m glad I did because had I gone out any faster, I don’t know if I would have finished very happily! I enjoyed taking this pic at mile 12:
Josh gets hero of the day, because not only was he a fantastic spectator, but he also took the kids for basically the rest of the day while I got some glorious rest (a shower, a nap, many pages of Station Eleven).
I ran the race in ~2:03 which was not my fastest time (actually was my slowest in many years) but — it was reasonable given my very low-mileage training. I used to train 25-30 miles/week and there were many weeks during this training cycle where I ran . . . 15, total. Or even less if I missed a long run. So, I felt I ran the time I deserved! On the up-side, I did more strength work than I ever used to do as a young (faster) runner. So there’s that.
I also interviewed 2 weekend babysitter candidates (found via Care.com). We had two come (and were excellent!) and two no-shows. This is mostly going to be for short stints on weekend mornings so that I can exercise NOT at the crack of dawn and so that I can take Viva to MyGym (her fave) while Josh gets a little work in.
It’s Monday and I am THISCLOSE to Inbox Zero which was very long overdue. THANK YOU, new year energy!
Rest of weekend featured:
- A date night (for carb loading purposes!) at Cappriccio’s
- MyGym
- A bday party (hadn’t been to one in a while!)
- That’s about it
It was low-key and nice.
18 Comments
i just finished station eleven a couple days ago! what did you think? i have concluded that i need to stop trying to make sci-fi work for me.
i read 3 science fictiony books last year (counting station eleven, since i started it in 2019) and although they were all “good”, i did not really enjoy reading any one all that much and found myself often drawn to non-reading activities over reading time (which is a red flag for me).
congrats on a pretty good race!!
I am actually very drawn to reading this particular book BUT I find it too upsetting.
Congratulations on finishing the half so strong and healthy! I love that Josh also made sure you got some much needed post-race care as well, as I’ve found that to be just as important as pre-race prep.
Congratulations on the race, so impressive!
Do you have any guilt about leaving the big kids with a babysitter? Not at all implying that you should but it’s something I struggle with when the kids only get like 2 quality hours in the evening during the week with me.
For 2 hours so I can work out and then spend the rest of the day w them? Or to take G to MyGym? Nope, no guilt.
Look at those even splits! You could have run faster. 😉
A bit concerned about the palpitations and SOB. What do you think that was about?
Def don’t read The Road if you find Station Eleven too upsetting — it had me crying by page 4. Perhaps perplexingly, I think I like books that do that to me. It’s nice to feel something from time to time.
I was (am) a little concerned too. My heart was irregular and I couldn’t breathe right for a solid 40 minutes though I was fine during the race! I will mention to my pcp when I go at some point.
And yeah dystopian scenarios kill me. Too close to real anxiety for me.
I LOVE your word of the year! I recently started The Power of Now by Ekhart Tolle and it is absolutely blowing my mind. I think you would love it if you have not already read it!
I haven’t but I am game to read it! Perhaps it will be my Q2 nonfiction 🙂
That’s a great race time based on your training. I loved Station Eleven, but it kept me up at night talking with Dan about where we would move in the event of an apocolypse!
I loved station 11. There is something about a Shakespeare troop in a post apocalyptic setting that is heartbreaking and gorgeous. But I do love dystopian novels. I find it annoying when babysitting candidates no show but then I tell myself I’d rather have them flake on the interview than when I need them
I really liked Station Eleven but I have to put in a plug for Emily St John Mandel’s other books which I liked even more. And they are very different from Station Eleven (i.e. not dystopian!). She’s a beautiful writer and after reading Station Eleven I worked my way through her backlist last year. I especially loved the Lola Quartet and the Singer’s Gun.
Yes, Mandels other books are all fabulous!!
okay good to know! I love her writing and the book, and the characters. I just . . . can’t really handle the post apocalyptic genre.
Congrats on the race! It sounds like you had a lovely weekend. 🙂
Awesome job! You encouraged me to sign up for a race again too.
Sarah!!!!! So awesome!!! You are a metronome my friend. I love the splits, it shows you were well prepared and paced yourself perfectly! You should be proud! When is the next one??