Throwback Thursday: Rite of Passage for NYC Runners

I found this draft from April 2012. I went running in Central Park with the Professor. We were running the east side of the loop up from Columbus Circle when someone's obnoxious and poorly behaved child ran out in the road and a horse carriage moved to get out of the way and then a cyclist cut into the running lane and another cyclist cut in around him. That cyclist proceeded to ride his bike right up my leg and over my body. He ended up crying, the Professor threatened him, the cyclist's friend tried to say something about peace, love, and happiness, and I was laughing on the ground saying that they all needed to shut the fuck up.

On Saturday I, as many NYC runners before me, was hit by a cyclist while running the Central Park loop. Straight up run over. Before you start crying, I'm fine.

I came home Saturday morning (I slept over the new boyfriend's place and went to bed at a very reasonable 11PM - I am so lame now) and ate a bagel while watching tv. The Professor asked to move our run up by a few hours, which was fine until I realized I hid my Garmin while I was drunkenly cleaning and I still don't know where it is. How I managed to lose something in my studio apartment is beyond me. Then I couldn't find my other Balega sock and was forced to wear regular socks for a long run. Eff.

I told myself that these were not bad omens and to suck it up. I ran to our meeting point and was super excited to see Mrs. Professor ready to run outside.

That boyfriend and I broke up soon after this when he started ignoring me. Then I woke up next to a coworker after the big gala and insisted that the sort of ex-boyfriend come and collect the things he left at my apartment. I found my Garmin in my gym bag. I still use it today.

Scales

My Blade Digital Pocket Scale has arrived! I feel like I have bought myself the freedom to eat things on the go because now I can measure out the serving that fits my macros. I'm an all or nothing kind of person. I either weigh and track everything and refuse to eat outside of my home, or I go hog wild and I'm ordering six sides to go with my hungry man breakfast. I'm hoping this pocket scale helps to keep me balanced.

UPDATE: My lovely coworkers brought Tasty China leftovers into the office and I was able to do some finangling with my planned macros and enjoy a delicious Chinese treat because of my pocket scale. I gave myself 2 ounces of white rice and an ounce of each dish, got to taste all the flavors, and I'm not in a food coma. Pocket scale for the win!

I was reading the Food+City Challenge Prize handbook at work (because I wrote the entry that made Piggy Bank an official finalist) and they referenced the SITU scale. How have I not heard of this scale?

Throwback Thursday AND Sunday Funday

I found this old Oly Sunday draft from February 10, 2014. Oly Sundays were my absolute favorite thing about CrossFit and I wish I still got to spend Sunday mornings with Coach Chad. He's killing it over at CrossFit Dix Hills now and he has a gorgeous pit puppy named Marley.

I think I max out my front squat somewhere around 165# these days. I can power snatch at least 75# because I did that during the 2015 Open. I also knocked out 30 power snatches at 55# on Tuesday. I did sets of 5 and one set of 10, so booyah. I'm dying over here about the 75# as heavy as possible power clean and two jerks. I'm pretty confident I could hit that at 115# and may have to test it soon.

I had these boots shipped from New York recently (thanks Mom!) and will be pumping my gas in this same outfit in Atlanta this winter!

Costumes and Confidence

“Halloween is the one night a year when girls can dress like a total slut and no other girls can say anything about it.” ~ Cady Heron “Mean Girls”

I find that quotation particularly funny this year because my Halloween costume was basically what I wear every day to CrossFit plus a pair of glitter stripper heels and red lipstick. I am considering adding the red lipstick to my regular routine.

A Spooky Tale for Halloween

Happy almost Halloween y'all! Something very spooky is happening at Melrose Place my apartment complex.

So as you might know, I have been dating my neighbor since August. He's lovely and I enjoy the proximity of my apartment to his. I left my spare set of keys with him back when I left for San Francisco in September. He placed them on his key rack by the door and when I came home 11 days later, they were gone. I was annoyed but I wasn't overly concerned. He had invited a group of his coworkers over after a Braves game and he thought that maybe one of them took my keys home accidentally and was too embarrassed to admit it. Since his coworkers haven't met me and don't know where I live, it's not like they'd be able to break into my place.

But then this past weekend, the key thief struck again. Jeremy's roommate has two vehicles - his van and his car. He keeps his keys on one carabiner and hangs it on the key rack. Someone took the van and the car keys from the carabiner but put the carabiner back on the hook between Friday and Sunday. Yesterday he saw that his van had been tossed but it was locked and there was no damage indicating entry without a key.

And the plot thickens.

Pure Barre

I tried Pure Barre this summer and liked it so much that I bought some class packs and continue to go. I think it complements CrossFit training and has improved my core strength immensely. There's also just some days where I'm looking for low-impact and a lower heart rate, and Pure Barre fits that bill.

My family came down to visit me for my birthday in August. My mom, sister, and I celebrated with a class at Pure Barre together. Recently one of the instructors commented on how good they were so clearly they left an impression.

I don't know how she gets up on her toes like that, but I am impressed.

I took this photo last summer back before I was allowed to go to Pure Barre with them, mostly because they were afraid I might embarrass them. That's why I practiced very hard. I still refuse to wear long sleeves and bootcut jazz pants though, no matter if it's a requirement of their club.

My mom and I went to Pure Barre Huntington together when I was back in New York. These are her special 100 Club socks that she received for completing her 100th class. I really want a pair.

Remember Pure Barre Bingo?

And this is a photo of my sister and me at Kevin Rathbun Steak for my birthday dinner.

Austin's Lady Bird Lake

It was definitely hard to find time to workout on tour - mainly because I had to ask permission to do anything. The more I travel for work, the more I realize that traveling for work isn't really my thing. This coming from a person who has been traveling for work since 2012...

The good thing about traveling for work when you manage to carve out an hour to do something without your colleagues is finding local running routes. The Driskill Hotel had these nifty little running maps of Lady Bird Lake. I got lost getting to the lake so I ran about an extra mile.

Sunday Run

Frank and I flew back to Atlanta yesterday and got home a little before 2 PM. It was good to be back home and we spent some quality time on the couch. I knew I wasn't going to hit my step goal by lying on the couch and was facing a $10 fee for my Pact app if I didn't get moving, so I went for a quick run on the Beltline at 6 PM. The nice thing about living this far west is that the sun still sets at 7 PM this late into the fall.

Atlanta, I love you.

Trevor

The world lost a truly beautiful person last week. My friend Trevor passed away and I am heartbroken. Trevor taught me so much about friendship. His love for others was genuine, and he had an almost incredible ability to read and connect with people. I attended his funeral on Friday. Five hundred people showed up, and hundreds more expressed their desire to be there in person. If you knew Trevor, you'd easily understand why so many people came to celebrate his life.

River North CrossFit and HeritageBBQ Chicago

I flew to Chicago last Wednesday for stop 3 on the HeritageBBQ by COCHON555 tour. (Fun fact, we're supposed to write Cochon555 when it's found in the middle of a sentence, but I think it looks better always capitalized and since this is my blog, I'm going to be a rebel and do what I want.) I overslept and had to take a later flight, but it worked out for the best because I got on the same flight with two of my coworkers. We had so much luggage because we had to bring a bunch of stuff from Toronto and it really helped to have all three of us. We landed at ORD and then took a shuttle to the rental car place. I was able to put my functional fitness to use by throwing a 79# bag of pop-up banners on my back and dragging it to the shuttle stop. The driver made some cute comment about how I must workout and then tried to take the bag from me. His tone changed after that.

By the grace of God, my schedule permitted me to drop in at River North CrossFit for the 8 AM class on Friday. I felt like such shit from San Francisco and Toronto - exhausted, hungry, bloated, dehydrated, and just plain frustrated. Getting an hour to myself to do what I love made all the difference. My only complaint about tour is not really having the space to recharge - both in time and physical space.