100th Post and 5 Milestones I'm Celebrating this September

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I've officially hit my 100th post for the blog, so it is officially a reason to celebrate! I think it's important to celebrate milestones- big or small. So here are five milestones I'm celebrating this September: 

1. We are officially in the 70's (at least this week) in Houston. I'm not a morning runner, but I sure wished I was able to get up and out for a quick run this morning. I'm so hoping all of our training in the heat and humidity will make us stronger runners in this cooler weather. Oh yeah, and cooler weather means that our fall decorations are finally legitimate. I stocked up on a few more decorations this weekend, and I'll be sharing some more of our fall decor over the next couple of weeks. 

2. Upping our marathon mileage: We are officially increasing the mileage week by week in preparation for the Chevron Houston Marathon. We are at a solid 8 miles and going for 10 this weekend. I'm struggling with headaches after my longer runs (nothing new), which has a lot to do with some fueling issues I need to fix, as well as hydration issues.

Bright colors make me happy during long runs!

• Note: my go-to fuel for long races are the GU Chomps (like little fruit snacks) I swear by the apple-cranberry flavor because they aren't too sweet. They are easy to eat and run at the same time. When I eat these - typically around mile 8 or 9 during a race, I feel much better during recovery and it cuts my headaches down dramatically.  I'll have to do another post on other types of fuel I have experimented with during my runs.

 

3. Pedicures to keep my running toenails under control: You're probably wondering why I'm considering a pedicure as one of my milestones.... Well, you see, my second toenail on each foot, have both been running casualties over the years. I'm sad to say I lost both of them this past December. Sad Days. It really is the strangest thing- it's just those two problem toes. Gross, I know- probably a bit of TMI. I have actually been able to maintain my toenails this time around. Go team! It is almost impossible as a runner to have pretty feet- which is slightly embarrassing, given the fact that I do enjoy wearing my peep-toed heels to work. This time, I was determined to keep my toenails around. They do this really gross thing where they will actually start growing a second toenail underneath, turn completely black and then pop off. (I'm embarrassed I'm even sharing this). My trick this time around? A proper pedicure. Aaron and I have both been getting them- and I've found that by constantly maintaining your toenails has been a huge help at keeping them healthy. They haven't turned black yet! In all honesty, I'm not a huge fan of pedicures, because I feel like they are too time consuming, but this time around-they are worth it. 

 Any other toe-nail-less runners out there? Any tricks you've used that work?

4. A Promotion:

I've always said "work hard, play hard." I am in the school of thought that you need to work hard- like really hard- to get what you want. When it comes to my career, I work as hard as I can- because why wouldn't you? I'm happy to be surrounded by others who share the same philosophy! I had an email pop across my window from my boss a few weeks ago- a meeting invite. Strange. He doesn't normally do formal meeting invites. I thought he wanted to talk about October. Because October- October is busy. Remember that ebb and the flow? Well, right now, I'm feeling like I'm caught in a riptide. And as for the 2x2? There's not a whole lot more that can fit. I thought our discussion would revolve around the logistics of October. But then, people surprise you. He called me in to let me know that he appreciated my work and that I was receiving a promotion. I get to do the same thing, with a little more selectiveness on some of the other activities that take up some of my time and I can focus more of my attention on expanding our content (digital and written) as necessary!

If you're interested, you can see some of my articles on the Huffington Post! (another item on my bucket list)!

Now, it's still kind of on the hush hush, but I'll be official soon. :)

Now that deserves an adult beverage:

Remember this? We finally tried our Dancing Bee Winery wine, and it was pretty delish! This was the driest of the options, and we have one more Raspberry Melomel to try. You can definitely taste the honey (60%). Such a neat concept!

     

5.  I feel physically stronger than I have ever been. I have tweaked my diet a bit, by adding in more protein than I have before, as well as incorporating raw fruits and veggies every day, starting with my morning smoothie. I've seen a huge difference in my performance, as well as in my recovery after a long run. The yoga has really helped with my flexibility and my endurance is improving thanks to stronger muscles from bootcamp. I am looking forward to hopefully achieving that PR during the 1/2 marathon in Dallas in December. My energy levels are fantastic and I feel ready to tackle every day (after my cup of coffee). And as always, my mind is going like 50 miles per hour, that I could probably work a bit on quieting the mind!   

Workouts this week: A fast 5k Monday evening, yoga Tuesday evening, bike-ride Wednesday evening and bootcamp tonight!

Happy Thursday!