Can I take a bow?

Oh. My. Gosh.

My sixth marathon (technically, it's my third ultra) is happening in less than a week! Am I scared? (not really) Do I feel prepared? (yes!) Will you allow me to take a bow?

Although it was a substantial scaled-back week (regarding mileage), it still was busy. Here's what went down:

As usual, Monday called for my #nevermissaMonday routine. With my 20-miler a day prior, I spent the majority of Monday in recovery mode, and just did a simple 1-mile run to shake out the legs. I ran after work, and the run felt effortless. Mission accomplished.

Yes, I did wear the compression socks to work (incognito under my pants)

Tuesday, my friend Barb met me for our #5at5AM run (five miles at 5:00). Barb has been meeting up with me for these easy-paced runs for the past several weeks. Although, I'm not afraid doing the miles on my own (in the wee dark hours), it's always great having a friend along with me.

Wednesday, I had a 10K time trial run on the calendar (and an extra mile of warm-up/cool-down). Boy, is this time change messing with my mind. I headed out after work (just after 5:00PM), and lost daylight much sooner than I anticipated. There's a 5K loop that goes right by my house, and I planned to run the loop twice (clockwise, then counter-clockwise). This route includes a county road with very limited lighting and a couple of decent hills....not ideal in the dark. I ran the first 1.5 mile and realized it would be dark by the time I came back around to run it in reverse, so I made the command decision to reroute after that first 5K loop. Problem solved.

Yes, I"m "riding" the taper

Thursday was a day of active recovery. You know, the typical...stretching, PT exercises, and planking.

#planks4thewin

Friday, Barb and I met up at 5:00AM again. I ran an approximate mile (for warm-up) before meeting her, and we knocked out five fairly (dare I say, tempo?) fast miles before I headed back home.

43-degrees, and I left the gloves at home and felt fine without them (???)

And, let's not forget the #Fridayfashion post on Instagram

Saturday. It was my first Saturday with ZERO running on the plan in several months, but I had plenty of cross-training on tap (in the form of yard work). We have several tall pine trees in the back yard, and several tall oaks in the front yard. We raked (and raked) most of the pine needles first, then tackled all the leaves (and millions upon millions) of acorns in the front yard. Lots of core work (twisting with the rake), squatting (lifting the debris from the ground), and (what felt like) several of miles paced back and forth between the flower beds.

Got needles? Leaves? I'm your gal.

Sunday arrived with a mere 10 miles on the plan. I set the alarm for 5:20 (for our tentative 6:00) meet-up, but woke up a good hour early (wouldn't you know?). Halleluah, those 10 miles went oh-so-quick! Isn't it amazing how easy a 10-miler feels when you have spent the past several weeks running much farther?

This week clocked in with a total of 29 miles in the running shoes (and a bonus day of rest and recovery...thanks, Coach Suz!!). Yes, this taper feels oh-so-sweet!

In other news...

It's with a great deal of pride that we celebrated Veteran's Day. My husband, my father, and my late father-in-law all served our country. We owe our vets a great deal more than just a simple "thanks."

with my favorite Lt. Colonel

Oh my gosh! My Iowa Hawks pulled of a last-second field goal and beat #3-ranked Michigan! Holy cow! What a bright spot to their challenging season!

Hawkeye proud!

Yes, I voted.

And, despite my lack of political rhetoric, I tried to make light of the past 18-months of name-calling campaign ugliness.

How was you week? Any races coming up? Are there any vets in your circle of friends and family?

As usual, I'm linking with the lovely ladies, Holly and Tricia for the Weekly Wrap. Do head over, check out their awesome blogs, and see what everyone else has been up to!