The Week In Photos

Serious question: how do bloggers take so many photos of every inane second of their lives? Don't you feel self-conscious and a little silly? Granted, I've never been a big photo taker, but it wasn't until I started reading blogs that I realized just how many pictures other people take.

Long story short... if I only have ~4 pictures of my boyfriend and I (and we've been together for almost 3 years), you probably won't see many original photos on this blog.

That being said, here's a weekly recap with photos stolen from around the web:

1. I got to run on the AlterG Anti-Gravity Treadmill at Finish Line PT. It was my first run back since November 10th, and it felt great. I had been feeling lingering pain for the past few weeks, and I was worried that I had fractured my pelvis again. When I talked to the physical therapist at Finish Line, he assured me that it was very unlikely I had another fracture, and that it was probably a mix of muscular + injury phantom pain. We went through some stretches and he analyzed my gait, which is horrible, and I've been feeling much better ever since. Now to find extra money so I can pay out of pocket for MORE physical therapy sessions...

2.  I turned 28. I was oddly unexcited about this birthday, and hadn't planned anything. I told my boyfriend that I wanted to be surprised, but hinted that I really wanted to see the Hunger Games... which happened to open on my birthday. He's a smart boy and listened, so I found myself at an IMAX theater drinking 'juice box' wine on Friday night. And on Saturday, he surprised me by rounding up my closest girlfriends for a birthday brunch. Perfect birthday.

3. Friendsgiving. This is our 3rd year doing friendsgiving, and each year gets better and better. Everyone really upped their game this year when it came to food- and it's so interesting to hear what other people grew up eating at Thanksgiving! For example, I think my family is the only family in America not to have mac and cheese on Thanksgiving. I stuck with a staple: sweet potatoes. But since I like my sweet potatoes on the savory side (and pass on the marshmellow sweet stuff), I made these: Whipped Bourbon Bacon Sweet Potatoes. Definitely a winner.

via

4. For the first time since last Christmas, I'm headed home! Although I've seen my family several times over the past year in my home state (Myrtle Beach 1/2 Marathon +  a summer beach week), I haven't been to my actual home since last Christmas. Crazy, right? So excited to sit by the fireplace, hang out with the puppies, and enjoy Thanksgiving!

Wrong holiday, but an Allie original. Can't wait to see this pup! 

5. My 'long' run this week was 2.2 miles. I was determined to go for a run on my birthday. It was raining out, and I was slow as dirt, but I made it pain free. One lap around the reservoir + 1/2 a mile home... a perfect start to 28!

A Rough Start

My sweet boy gave me the most wonderful birthday present....

A GARMIN! And not just any Garmin, but the best one they make- the Forerunner 610. It's a touchscreen and probably fancier than my computer. Which made little Garmy and I get off to a rough start. It wouldn't pick up a signal, and was saying I was running an insane pace (like slower than walking). I think it had something to do with being in midtown Manhattan and the cloudy weather, because once I got into Central Park it worked like a charm. I poked around on some blogs, and it looks like I need to update some software... which is terrifying to me since I'm always afraid I'm going to mess something up! Fingers crossed it works. Eeek!

What's really cool about the Garmin is all the stats it gives you:

Mile 1 and half of mile 2 were in midtown Manhattan, as was Mile 8. Fishy, right? But in the park I was cruising ;)

Now off to tackle the software update....

Run stats: Saturday: Central Park, 9.04 miles, 1:25:36/9:28 pace; Run on Thursday: 5.64 miles, 52:47/9:22 pace

Give Thanks

This is what old looks like...

27 candles. Yikes! My birthday fell on Thanksgiving this year, so lots to be thankful for on November 22nd! The only thing that was missing was my (twin) sister, who is currently working in Australia- and will be for the next year! (secret- I want to be just like her when I grow up)

Birthday/Thanksgiving was a relaxed day- Mom and I went on a 2 mile run, we sat in front of the fire all day, and drank/ate ourselves silly on Turkey, stuffing, and pecan pie. Plus, Jason was here so I got to introduce him to all of my family traditions!

And today my Dad and brother introduced Jason to another tradition- skeet shooting. Girls weren't allowed, so Mom and I headed to the gym to sweat off some of Thanksgiving Dinner. My hamstring is giving me a little bit of trouble, so I decided to walk on the treadmill and just run 1 mile to see how it felt. Yowza. Lots of ice and stretching followed. I'm going to keep taking it easy with running, and my brother got me yoga classes for my birthday, so I'm going to go on Sunday in the hopes of stretching it out.

I signed up for Jack Rabbit's 'Not Someday... Today!' program this morning. You fill out your long term goal for 2013 (NYC Marathon), and then a short term goal month by month, starting with January. My short term goals for January is to run 20 miles a week and attend at least one group run, by Jack Rabbit or Lululemon. 

What are your 2013 goals?

Run Stats: November 22nd, 2 miles in 19:54; November 23rd: 40 minutes at 4.0 on the treadmill, various intervals, 1 mile run at 9:45 pace.