Good morning and happy Friday!! Hopping on this little space again for the first time since APRIL of 2019. OMG. I just kinda felt uninspired and had some lofty goals about this space that didn’t take off so I just didn’t write anything…lol…oh well. I’m re-evaluating this space and hope it use it in small doses here and there.

I’m not gonna go into my life story since April, but I will say I completed my 3rd marathon in early December at the Palm Beach marathon and successfully did the damn thing! 😛 4:02:10 and second in age group. With the heat and humidity, I not mad about it. I did have a goal of 3:45 but that didn’t happen with the conditions unfortunately. I don’t know when I will run another marathon, but I do hope to accomplish my goal of 3:45 eventually! I just can’t bear that kind of training right now nor do I want to spend my time doing that. I took about 4 weeks off of running completely because I felt burnt out mentally and physically. It was glorious and would recommend any runner to do that after coming off a long training cycle! Since then, my first run back was on 12/30!

In the meantime, I’ve joined a run group called Running for Brews. It’s a local group with locations all over and they happen to have one in St. Pete. It’s fun, social, and a no pressure type of atmosphere. Its really refreshing to me and a good reminder of WHY I started running in the first place. We do a 5k route and then have a beer after! I’m not a big drinker, but a beer does hit the spot after a run I must say! Best of all, I’ve met new friends. I look forward to going when I can just to mix it up.

I’ve also been focusing on my mental health since November. I took a hard fall (scraped my knee and twisted my ankle) on a training run in October and it really REALLY wrecked me mentally (I was also in my final month of marathon training). I played it off as ‘i’m fine’ but in reality was NOT fine. I went to my doctor because I was concerned about my knee and ankle. I was experienced depression for the weeks following my fall that I’ve never ever had in my life. I asked my doctor about therapy and she was all for it. I’ve worked with my mental health counselor since November and go about every other week! It’s been a great eye-opening experience for me. I can see why mental health is such a thing because it really helped me get over my fall as well as the marathon training too.

Among running, some strength training, and walking on my lunch break, I’ve added yoga to my routine. I LOVE it and how it has helped ground me and get in some much needed stretching. I started this in October after feeling just tight and achy from marathon training. I found a groupon for this studio not far from me, so I bought and have really enjoyed it. I’m not a huge yoga person and I really REALLY have to make an effort to sign up and go but once I’m there, I love it. I bought a membership after my groupon ended because I knew this would continue to improve my mental health and just as a good addition to my workout routine. I really enjoy any slow flow or restorative classes!

Work is good, family is good, running and races are good. Everything is just flowing along! I don’t have anything big planned but just learning and experiencing more in St. Pete and with myself!

What have you been up to lately? Any races or new workouts?? How do you overcome or improve your mental health?