you win some...

You can't win 'em all, right?

You win some, you lose some.

Not that I was even close to winning. And there are no losers.

You can not always set a PR.

There, that's better.

I came no where near setting a PR at the Twin Cities Marathon last Sunday, and was even further from hitting my goal of qualifying for Boston.

3:58:21.

Twas an ugly race.

I cried.

I walked.

I couldn't catch my breath.

I finished. And that is more than I thought I would do.

I've run four marathons in the past 11 months, and three since the end of May. No, I am not making up excuses (if I were, I would have told you I caught a cold last week), rather, I am looking on the bright side and celebrating what I have done in the past year.

Four marathons.

That is something to be proud of.

I am still chasing the BQ.

But in the meantime, over the next few months, I am going to give my legs a well deserved break.

And maybe eat some Swedish Fish while I dream of my next BQ attempt...

{source}

More in depth race recap will hopefully be coming soon. Although I won't promise anything as I have been a very lazy blogger of late.

today is the day

Today is the day that totally snuck up on me.

Today is the day two years ago when I ran my first marathon.

Today is the day that I hope to crush my first marathon time by well over an hour.

Today is the day that I chase down that Boston qualifying time.

Today is the day for the Twin Cities Marathon.

Today is the day.

oatmeal apple cider pancakes {vegan}

There is nothing better than digging into a stack of hearty pancakes on a cold, dreary, {nearly} fall morning. And after hitting snooze a few dozen times (thus postponing my early morning run), that is exactly what I did.

After cleaning up some of the mess that was left behind after 9 solid hours in the kitchen yesterday.

These pancakes were very good. Like, hey - if you are planning on running 16 miles at some point today, go ahead and eat the.entire.batch.

Self control I have not.

These were especially tasty topped with a smear of freshly homemade pumpkin butter and a drizzle of syrup.



Oatmeal Apple Cider Pancakes
adapted from Mark Bittman's "Oatmeal Griddle Cakes", Food Matters, pg. 284



If you are looking for a light and fluffy pancake, these are not for you. If you are looking more for a stick-to-your-ribs type of short stack to warm up with on a chilly fall morning, these are for you. Serve with a mug of steamy hot apple cider and this is basically Fall on a plate!

In the mix:

• 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 t baking powder
• 1/2 t cinnamon
• pinch salt
• 1 flax egg (1 tablespoon ground flax mixed with 3 tablespoons warm water)
• 1/2 cup apple cider
• 1/2 t vanilla
• 1 cup cooked oatmeal (I used scottish oats, old fashioned oats would work as well)

To prepare:

Heat a griddle to 350*

In a small bowl, make your flax egg. Stir together ground flax and warm water. Set aside.  In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Set aside. 

Stir together the flax egg with the apple cider and vanilla. Gently mix in oatmeal. Add oatmeal mixture to flour and stir until just combined.

Test the griddle, it is ready when a few drops of water dance across its surface. Lightly grease with coconut  (or other) oil.

Pour batter onto the griddle. Cook until bubbles form on the top (about 2-3 minutes) and then flip and cook a few minutes more.

Serve topped with pumpkin butter (or apple butter) and warm syrup. 

This batch made 6 pancakes, which I promptly gobbled up, all the while reminding myself that I was going to run them off later.

I love this time of year mostly because I can walk into any grocery store and a huge display of apple cider is glowing, calling my name, begging me to take home a gallon. I was excited to see this local brand at New Pioneer yesterday. It is good, as you can see. I've already polished off about half of this container myself!

I suppose I should knock out this 16 mile run before I finish up my weekend cooking marathon!

Speaking of marathons...since when is October 2nd only two (TWO!) weeks away? 14 days until I attempt to qualify for Boston at the Twin Cities Marathon. I am shaking in my boots running shoes!

{and running} in iowa

This blog is about my life here in Iowa.

My life as a wife.

My life as a full-time work horse.

My life as a wanna be chef.

My life as a runner.

Too bad it doesn't seem that I've shared much about my running on this little old blog lately, considering it takes up about 50% of my life.

So here's a quick little update about where I am at with my running as of late:

• I am training for the Twin Cities Marathon
• I am hoping to qualify for Boston at the Twin Cities Marathon
• The Twin Cities Marathon is less than 7 weeks away
• I have yet to put a plan on paper for the Twin Cities Marathon

Sure, I've been running, but not following an "official" plan for a race that I am hoping to qualify for Boston at, is kind of making me nervous. I shared this thought with my mom the other week and she quite bluntly reminded me that I've been training since at least 8-weeks before the Fargo Marathon (which was in May).

Mom's are always right.

But alas, I haven't really been keeping track of how many miles per week I've been running (except on DailyMile when I actually log-in. Hey - be my friend on DailyMile!), nor do I have days set aside to do specific runs (tempos, speed, etc).

With all of that being said, my last few runs have given me a little boost of confidence that, yes, I will be able to maintain an 8:15 mile pace for 26.2 miles on Sunday, October 2.

Monday, August 15th - 17.01 miles at 9:31 pace (including an extended stop at home without stopping my watch)
Sunday, August 14th - 8.05 miles with 6 miles are marathon pace (whoops, those 6 miles clocked in at 8:03, 7:56, 7:55, 7:52, 8:00, and 7:59), 8:19 pace overall
Saturday, August 13th - rest
Friday, August 12th - 6 miles at 7:20 pace (whoopsies again! This was supposed to be an easy 4 with a few 100-meter pickups).
Thursday, August 11th - rest
Wednesday, August 10th - 11 miles at 8:10 pace
Tuesday, August 9th - 8.5 miles with 5 x 600 meters at 10K pace (technology free run, no splits)
Monday, August 8th - taught Spin class + 4.2 mile run at 7:51 pace
Sunday, August 7th - rest
Saturday, August 6th - rest
Friday, August 5th - 20.01 miles at 8:55 pace

I really really hope I am on track to qualify. If I don't do it at Twin Cities, I need to find another marathon to run in November sometime.

Hmmm....maybe I could find one in England??!

good timing

Today is my first official day of training for the Twin Cities Marathon.

Of course I don't have a plan put together yet, that would be just too smart.

But there are only 11 weeks to go, so I figured I'd better get my rear in gear.

On tap for today, a nice and easy long run of 13-15 miles.

I am dreading it just a little.

Why?



Because at 7:00AM it is already 82 degrees, but feels like 89 degrees.

And the week is only going to get worse.

Cheers! To marathon training...