Snow day

I love the snow I really do, just not in April when I am trying to train for races. It is beautiful and makes everything look beautiful for a few minutes, but it takes away the road shoulders and makes it scary for runners. I hate having to run around snow bankings, cars are not really looking out for runners, more often they are looking at their phones and you being in the road are now a target...people just do not pay attention to runners. Please if you are in New England and are running make sure your are running aware that no one is looking out for you, be vigilant as to where the cars are...especially Dunkin Donut drivethrus..they tend to be so excited about their coffees that they forget to look both ways before leadfooting it out of line.

Ragnar

I will be running my 7th Ragnar in 7 weeks with my running partner Holly, this will be her first!
I love the 12 runners, 2 vans, 24 hours 200ish miles ...Run Sleep Repeat!!!
I have had great and miserable Ragnar experiences. I loved my first team they were all from Utah and then there was me and my friend...we are both named Monique..we were known as M&M..we loved the race. I ran a few more and they were ok...I ran Ragnar Ultra in 2015...6 runners, 200 miles 1 van 24 hours...it was EPIC and the very best Ragnar experience ever... I also met my Sole Sister at this race...AMANDA..the one and only girl who could talk me into running DOPEY 5K,10K, 13.1, 26.2 in four days!!!!
I ran Reach the Beach 2015 and it was the most miserable experience of my life, the van let alone Team did not get along at all...I vowed never to run this race again, while it had the Ragnar name it was NOT a Ragnar race at all, at least not like any Ragnars I had run before. Last year on Aug 17th Amanda called and asked me to run Ragnar Reach the Beach with her for free...I immediately agreed ONLY because Amanda was asking and would be in my van. We had a blast and it was everything I remembered Ragnar to be .....even the 9.6 mile run ALL UPHILL!!!!!

UPdates

UPDATE!!!

I SIGNED UP FOR MY FIRST MARATHON!

I'm doing it DOPEY style!!!

  Thursday 5K

Friday 10K

                                     Saturday Half Marathon 13.1 miles

                                         Sunday Full Marathon 26.2 miles       

I'm nervous and extremely excited at the same time.

I have 2 friends or as I call them 2 crazy ass running chicks that I train with, usually 4/5 days a week.

We get out and run 5 miles every time we head out.

Hoping to up that over the next few weeks to

 5 miles on Monday

7 miles on Wednesday

 and 

8 miles on Friday 

or 

10 miles on Saturday

 if its not a race weekend! 

I have quite a few races coming up in the next few months...

one being tomorrow3/12/17 with an old friend...

just a 5K but a fun race none the less.

I'll just use it as a training run.

Icy snowy sleeping run

Above us...sleet,mist, hail, and pouring rain...below us...ice crusted snow, black ice, slush,and puddles,needless to say it was an interesting 4 mile run. It was fun,sometimes painful with the hail but glad I get in 4 miles. Any run is better than no run...and slipping and sliding count as running strides. Thanks Holly for being completely as crazy as I am...
we earned our miles!!

Infection

Ugh, this has not been a good week, Last Thursday I developed swelling in my foot of unknown origin, I preceded to walk on it all day and all night with the pups, while the pain was intense I figured something was just not sitting right as min my sock...at the time I did not know my foot was swelling as I was on my feet all day and after a typical Thursday my feet always hurt and my kicks feel tight so I literally thought nothing of it. Friday morning my foot was so swollen and sore I couldn't bend my toes or put pressure on my foot at all as in NO WEIGHT BEARING!!! This sucked as I can't walk let alone run and I have my two 1 year old rambunctious pups for the weekend. FInally by Saturday night I couldn't handle the pain any longer and went to urgent care to have it looked at...they decided it was an infection and put me on antibiotics and told me no running for 10 days.Tuesday it wasn't any better so I made an appointment with my primary care physician who diagnosed it as wat she believed was gout. She prescribed meds and within 24 hours I was feeling much relief, the swelling was going down and the pain was subsiding. I will try and get a few miles in on Monday morning...I have a race on Super Bowl Sunday after all!!!

Holding myself accountable

Got in a 3 mile run after work