Well played, Momma N...Runfessions for February

Well played, Momma N. Well played.

The weather has been rather undesirable in recent weeks (like, the past six weeks, but who's counting?) Seriously, winter was pretty mild up until mid-January. We hadn't really had much for snow. The temps were cold (this is the Midwest, and it is the winter season, after all), but nothing extreme.

Once the temps plummeted, though, they pretty much elected to set up camp and stay awhile. The Polar Vortex of 2019 came barreling in the following week, and it's been a continuous onslaught of single digit (and colder) feels-like temps, more than average amounts of snowfall, and unrelenting ice.

And it's been a serious battle for this glass-half-full gal to keep her steaming mug(s) of chai latte' from running out. None the less, Momma N is not gonna win this battle. I have a few runfessions in my arsenal, and airing said runfessions makes everything better, even the weather conditions.


First of all, shall we discuss what happens when it's too cold/windy/icy/dangerous to run outside? Most runners choose to run inside (some more reluctantly than others). Would you believe, since January 19th, this year-round outdoor runner has had to run inside, on the dreaded treadmill,  12 times (for a whopping 48 miles...not that I've been counting those either)? Let me runfess, although it hasn't been as bad as I would have anticipated, I think I am ever-so-close to maxing out my Milly tolerance. Ugh.

The extreme cold caused one of my races to be canceled (at the end of January), but last weekend's Freezefest 5K went off without a hitch. Granted the temps were still cold (6F feels-like), but  the wind was minimal and there was ample sunshine. As much as it begrudges me to runfess it, I think all of my Milly time may have been a factor in how well the race went for me (yes, you heard it here first). Not only have a lot of my Milly runs involved progressive miles (gradually increasing my pace throughout the runs), but some have also had 200-400 meter surges (towards the end of each mile). These "get-the-run-done" tactics were kind of like mini speed drills in disguise, though I didn't realize it at the time. This race was not easy, but it didn't feel like I was over-exerting myself either (I had to run it "by feel" because I'd forgotten my Garmin). In fact, much to my surprise, I wound up running my fastest 5K since April 2015. Stranger things have happened. Enough said.

Even though I have been forced to stay inside more than usual, I haven't been sitting idle. In fact, I'll runfess it here and now, I kind of embrace the challenge of coming up with new and different workouts. There's been some HIIT, elliptical time, and a whole lotta stair-climbing. The fasted cardio (early morning) routine continues to be my jam.

I have been a fan of the Brooks Adrenaline GTS shoe for awhile. My high-maintenance feet need stability, and the Adrenalines have been my go-to shoe (especially for distance running) since I first tried on the Adrenaline 15's (late summer, 2015). Spring is when the new models come out, which means last season's shoes have been on sale for a few months now. I got the blue 18's back in April, when they were pretty new on the market. I bought the hot pink ones right before my marathon (October) when they first went on sale. Some of the shoes were still available near Christmas time, so I bought the red/black ones (still on sale!). I gotta runfess...even though the two most recent pairs are still in excellent condition, I bought a fourth pair (this time in grey) because they were marked down further. Never have I had FOUR pairs of the same  model of a shoe, with two of them barely worn.  I should be set for most of 2019.

Finally, just this week, two of my upcoming races revealed their medals. I'm running the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10-Mile on April 7th (Washington, DC) and the Drake Relays Road Races Half Marathon on April 20th (Des Moines, IA). Although it's exciting to see what's in store (at the finish line, that is), I runfess I kind of like not knowing what the finisher medal will look like until it's placed around my neck. That said...aren't these two little pieces of hardware pretty?

So, there you have it. Another round of runfessions have been revealed, and I feel like a new person. I have a lot of exciting stuff in the works...now if winter would just ease up a bit and play nice, things would be even better. I'm ever-so-eager to get back outside!!!

Do you have anything to runfess? Are you enjoying the cooler weather of winter, or are you ready to move on to warmer temps? Have you ever hoarded several pairs of shoes of a particular model? Medal reveals...yay or nay?

I'm linking this with Marcia for the monthly Runfessions link-up.

I'm also linking this with Meranda and Lacey for the Friday with Fairytales and Fitness link-up. 

Are you following me on social media?

Let's connect : Facebook Instagram  Pinterest Twitter