This is week 5 of an 18-week training plan that will hopefully get me to the marathon start line ready to have an amazing race, and maybe hopefully PR!
monday, november 25
Today my mom and I went to the Churchill War Rooms. It was very interesting and I highly recommend seeing this. Afterwards, we went to Borough Market. It was much less crowded than when Lior and I visited during the weekend, and therefore I enjoyed it much more. In addition to the giant oysters below, we had apple brandy, small duck confit sandwiches, calamari, and we purchased some cheese for later.
Yummy!
We then went to a pub for a little, before returning home to buy supplies for a pumpkin pie that we’re making tomorrow.
On the way home, I also picked up my Aftershokz Aeropex headphones! These headphones use bone conduction to transmit the music, meaning that I can run and still hear ambient noise outside. This is a safer alternative to headphones. The battery lasts 8 hours, so I will have no problems with the marathon. They are also water resistant, so unless there is a torrential downpour (tfu tfu tfu), they will be fine.
tuesday, november 26
Today was a very low-key day, mostly spent at home. I had the joy of fighting with my building management to get them to change some lightbulbs. I’m giving them until the end of tomorrow before seeking out an electrician myself (because one of the lights is strobing/flickering, so it’s a bit more complicated).
Today, with my mom’s encouragement (I was going stir crazy), I went out for a run, and ran 5.2 miles. Although it was a bit rainy (what else is new), it was warm enough outside that I could wear a t-shirt and shorts! I tested out my new Aftershokz Aeropex. Overall I really like them! At one point I did need to stop and adjust them because the curve of the headphone bothered the top of my ear. But they stayed in place for the entire run and I was pleased with the sound quality. Money well spent–especially if I can resell the older version that I received as a freebie.
In the evening, my mom and I went to see Everybody’s Talking About Jamie on the West End. It was fantastic, and if you ever have the opportunity to see it, go!
wednesday, november 27
After having breakfast, I accompanied my mom to the tube and we said our goodbyes. I also made progress with fixing the apartment lights! The management company was much more responsive via Instagram messages…leading me to believe it’s a different team entirely who handles cases through there. They booked a technician to visit the apartment for the same day.
I then spent some time doing laundry, checking out additional races for my calendar, and relaxing. I completed my weekly speed workout during the afternoon: 2 mile warm-up 4 * 1200m @ 5K-10K pace; 400m rest 2 mile cool down
The workout was 8 miles in total, and the cool down miles were slightly faster than normal because the technician called during my workout and said he would arrive 30 minutes early…right when I was supposed to finish. I arrived home a few minutes before the technician arrived. I am now the happy renter of a well-lit living room and a strobe light-free bathroom!
Yay for turkey emojified strava runs!
In the evening, Lior and I went to the O2 arena to see The Lumineers! Lior really wanted to go–I admit to only knowing the popular songs (and not knowing who performed them prior to the concert). It was fun to see them perform live, and we left at the beginning of the encore, meaning that we didn’t have to do battle with a stadium-sized group of people to get a spot on the tube heading home!
thursday, november 28
This morning I dragged myself to yoga. It was again the male teacher who rarely demonstrates any of the positions…which then makes it frustrating when he corrects me, because I don’t know what it’s supposed to look like! I’ll continue to go because I like the guided stretching, but I don’t think he’s a good teacher. Still, the stretching was nice and I did hear my shoulder crack in a good way during one of the poses…
After class, I ran 7 miles. I’m dividing up my long run between the early afternoon and an evening We Are Runners meetup. I’m still on my quest to run 26.2 miles with the group by December 19, to earn a free pair of lululemon leggings. I’m almost halfway there, and I do feel a bit guilty about missing last week’s run (and not being able to change my RSVP because it was too late). Originally, I wasn’t planning to attend any runs this week because the two closest that count toward the challenge are on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, and I already had plans (see above). However, my anal retentiveness was bothered by the lack of progress, so I decided to attend a Thursday workout…in Richmond. Google maps says it’s a 36 minute journey on the tube…at least I don’t need to make any transfers?
It took awhile to get to the meetup location, but I arrived early…only to have the group leave 15 minutes late and spend almost the entire time chasing after the core group of three people…not so fun. Still, we ran 4.2 miles, I felt good, and now I’ve completed 4 of the 7 workouts I need in order to get the leggings!
In the evening, I did another load of laundry (preparing the bedding for Lior’s parents’ visit…it’s not for two more weeks, but I do not like being rushed and doing busywork chores at the last minute. We then had a nice, relaxed dinner together.
friday, november 29
I woke up with stiff legs (what else is new), and went to spin class today. I left the class drenched in sweat, so mission accomplished! I took advantage of the post-workout adrenaline and went grocery shopping–we finished our gin last night, so this was absolutely necessary! (I also picked up food for weekend meals and weekday lunch prep…)
In the afternoon, I went for a 7 mile run, and when I came home, I made pie crust for a pumpkin pie. Thanksgiving was yesterday, but I had more free time today, so there we go. My mom brought me a can of pumpkin and a can of evaporated milk because we weren’t sure we’d find it here (I couldn’t find it in Israel…). Last year I used a recipe with condensed milk, and it just wasn’t as good.
The pie baking was a bit of a saga. I didn’t roll the pie crust out thin enough, so I had to put the pie back in the oven a few times, to make sure the bottom was baked enough. In the end, the pie came out great! Lesson learned–and to be honest, I’m pleasantly surprised the pie came out so great, since I have no measuring cups and eyeballed all of the measurements, using the evaporated milk can as a measuring cup.
saturday, november 30
Today we had a relaxing morning before cooking Thanksgiving lunch! We had chicken, brussel sprouts with jalapenos, mashed potatoes, and pumpkin pie. Lior also had sticky toffee pudding, but I wasn’t a fan.
In the afternoon, we went on a Hidden London tour of the disused underground tunnels at Euston station. The tour was cool (but a bit dusty). Lior and I had fun, but agreed we probably wouldn’t do another tour. At a bit over 40 pounds per person, it wasn’t exactly cheap.
After the tour, we went to a gin and tonic festival that I’d purchased tickets for. We got our own gin glasses and metal straws, and had the option of sampling a variety of gin flavors (we tried one and then decided to stop), and purchased some gin and tonics with different flavored gins. It was a fun evening!
We’ll definitely be getting more use out of these glasses!
sunday, december 1
I ran the Regent’s Park 10K, put on by the Mornington Chasers. Click for the race recap! This was a successful development in Project 10K, with a new PR of 52:23!
After that, Lior worked and I hung out. In the evening, we went to the Hyde Park Winter Wonderland. It was way bigger than I expected! Lior doesn’t like the carnival rides I enjoy that hurl you around and might make you hurl), so instead we played some carnival games, ate some carnival food, and walked around. The carnival closes on January 5, and we have some guests coming before then, so we will definitely be back!
total distance: 40.4 miles, 1 yoga class, 1 spin class
This was an insanely full week. I can’t believe my mom left on Wednesday, it already feels like ages ago. Even with only five days of running, I hit my highest mileage week since April, and I’m looking forward to continuing to add on the distance, while hopefully also building a bit of speed and continuing to improve my 10K times.
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