Greetings from Silver Spring, Maryland! I am sitting in a hotel in downtown Silver Spring with a gray, rainy day outside the window. I actually changed up my running schedule this week because the weatherman predicted a 90% chance of rain today. I did 5 miles yesterday because I could NOT take doing longer than 3 miles on a treadmill (and I could barely stand that distance earlier this morning). So, yesterday while sitting in bed drinking some coffee, I did a little research on a good running spot in Silver Spring.
{Side note: why, you ask, was I sitting in bed on a random Tuesday morning instead of sneaking in a blog post at work? Because I’m on vacation, that’s why! And why Silver Spring, Md for vaca? Because I’m moving to this area in June for a new job. Now… back to running}
I literally typed in “best running spots in Silver Spring, Md” into Google, and this eventually popped up:
This trail runs from Silver Spring, through Bethesda, and ends in Georgetown. The best part was that it literally starts right outside of my hotel. The funny part was that I spent 30 minutes poring over a Google map trying to figure out where it was in relation to my hotel, then walked outside and almost got smacked in the face by a sign stating “Silver Spring Trail.” Well, it would have smacked me in the face if I was 5 inches taller, but that phrase (“if I was 5 inches taller” not the face smacking part) is a part of my daily vocabulary.
But I digress.
This run was overall beautiful. I will admit, there were some sketch parts that I had to run through, but some of that may just be the fact that I’m a small-town Georgia girl running in the city. And yes, to me, Silver Spring is a city.
I’m starting to hit that part of training when the shorter runs start to feel easier. Overall, I prefer the long runs on the weekend. It’s probably because making myself run 3 days during the week after working all day is tough. As in, I whine to myself the whole time I’m tying my tennis shoes and trying to remember where I put my iPod. Because, let me tell you, I’m not running without my iPod.
I’m also starting to hit that part of training where I think about food all the time. ALL. THE. TIME. After reading Lindsey’s post about food, I immediately identified with her. I am a petite (albeit freakishly strong for my size… this must come from not having any brothers until about age 18) woman, but I have never been able to just eat whatever I want. My best friend and roommate from college used to eat Fritos and drink Coke on a daily basis, and I used to stare at her and wonder where she put it. (and no, by the way, it never caught up with her. She’s that lucky) I never had to wonder where I put it, let me assure you. I try very hard to eat an overall healthy diet and for the most part, I am pretty successful with thinking about what I eat before I put it in my mouth. Yes, I love carrots and hummus and grapes… but I also love French fries and Hershey’s milk chocolate. And peanut butter, oh my god, don’t even get me started on my love for that food. Over the past year or so, I’ve become very interested (read: obsessed with) in a few health/food blogs on the internet and as a result have tried a lot of new foods. I consider myself pretty educated when it comes to knowing how to eat a healthy, balanced diet (and it doesn’t hurt that my roommate is a dietetic intern!). However, I am at a loss when it comes to eating correctly while training for a marathon. I’m not good at all with estimating percentages of fat, carbs, or protein. My method has always been to fill my plate with at least ½ to 2/3 full of veggies and the rest with meat and starch. As a result, I feel like I really need to do some more research on what to eat while training… preferably some sources with pictures and examples!
10 miles this weekend with Lindsey! Other plans for the weekend include new running shoes (my current ones just developed a little hole in the big toe area of my right shoe) and downloading some new running music. I love fall running!
-Heather
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