Gretch Runs

Hello from Pittsburgh! I'm actually back in my hometown for a quick work trip - it's my first time being back since we moved. I'm sure I'll have more to share in my post next week, but for now here's how last week went. Things were a bit hectic because my family came down to visit for our housewarming, which unfortunately had to be cancelled when Dan got Covid. Luckily I've tested negative (a whopping 6 times) but it definitely changed our plans a lot!  Monday 800 yard swim This week we started doing workouts in our swim, which was a big challenge for me! Today the plan was a 200 yard warmup, then 2 x 100 yard pushing the pace and a 200 yard cool down. It's so hard to try to go faster while swimming, because you lose your breath a lot faster and seems like you can never catch it. It was definitely a good practice for me though and I'm kind of excited to see how this helps my overall pace on easier swims. 45 min standing yoga After the swim I made it in t

This was a great week of tri training! Things are definitely starting to click- maybe not as much with running but definitely with swimming and biking. I'm mentally trying to prepare more for those since I'm not as comfortable, and I know that I can make it through a 5k. So- things are going just as I want them to! Here's how week three of training went- Monday 1000 yard swim Hit a big milestone for me today! I went in not knowing how I would feel on the swim and by the time I started everything clicked and I felt like I could have kept going forever. Lately when I've been swimming I've done 250 yards at a time, then rested. Today my goal was to keep moving and switch to backstroke to recover, to simulate being tired during the open water swim and not being able to stop. It went so well and I'm thrilled! 20 min morning yoga I'm trying to get back in the groove of doing cross training, so this week I scheduled out Peloton classes to join live. Today I did a q

Finished up another week of triathlon training. This one felt like a bit of a cutback week- the weather was really stormy and humid and I didn't really want to be outside much, and I was also busy with work and doing projects around the house. I still managed to get in my 2 swims, 3 runs, and 2 bikes that I wanted, so I'll still call this week a success. I even managed to squeeze in two rest days! Here's the week of workouts- Monday Rest Day! Dan and I dog-sat for a friend and then went to a cookout, so I had no energy for any kind of exercise today. We took it easy and rested after an eventful weekend. Tuesday 800 yard swim My goal for this swim was to do 400 yards, but I felt really good so just kept going! I tried to make it 250 yards without taking a break and that helped to make the swim feel more manageable. Getting closer to the race distance which makes me happy! Wednesday 30 min walk + run I went to a local band's show the night before and ended up getting back

Welcome to the second half of the year! 2022 has been flying by and has already been such a busy year, filled with lots of highs and lows. The same goes for June- I had two really fun weekend trips (to the beach and to a Getaway House in the middle of the woods), but also had a car break down on the beach trip (which is still down there unfortunately) and have been mentally processing the overturn of Roe v. Wade and even more shootings in the country with expanded gun rights. It's been a lot and I'm trying to deal with it in the ways that make me feel better- donating to causes I think will help, talking with people to get more perspectives, and prepping to vote! On a positive note before getting to my goals- my highlight of the month was visiting Bald Head Island for the day while we were at the beach. I had so much fun biking around the island and it was the escape that I needed! I definitely want to go back and maybe stay on the island for a day or two. It was perfection!  N

This week was the "official" start of my triathlon training! I found a random beginner plan online and will be adapting it for myself, but my basic goal is to run, bike, and swim at least 2 days a week each. Hopefully will be adding in more distance and speed intervals as the weeks go on, but I'm excited to get started! Here's how the week went- Monday 2 mile hike We spent Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday morning at a Getaway cabin in Asheboro, and decided to go on a nearby hike this morning. The entire trip was so much fun- the cabins are like tiny homes but have a mini kitchen and full bathroom with running water! The beds are super comfortable, there's AC, and the views are beautiful. Highly recommend if you want a weekend away or just to "getaway" for a bit. The hike itself started at the NC Zoo and was very pretty and a bit challenging! The rest of the day we relaxed while we got stormed on - provided for a very cozy day where we played card games, drank

Happy July! This was a pretty busy and fun month for me, and I definitely used reading as a stress relief. Since we moved I was able to try out a new library (luckily in the same system so I didn't have to get a new card) and I'm definitely on a role with new books! Here's a look at what I read and listened to this month, as well as a recap of my favorites so far for the year! Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe Note: this won Goodread's 2021 Best History and Biography The Sackler name adorns the walls of many storied institutions: Harvard, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Oxford, the Louvre. They are one of the richest families in the world, known for their lavish donations to the arts and sciences. The source of the family fortune was vague, however, until it emerged that the Sacklers were responsible for making and marketing OxyContin, a blockbuster painkiller that was a catalyst for the opioid crisis. Empire of Pain is a