Gretch Runs

We are officially in the final stretch before my last race of the year! I'm so excited to see how I do compared to last year. This was a week of transition- I'm back in the office now so that's definitely changing how my workouts went and how I could squeeze them in again. I'll figure it out but for now it's been a little rough! Here's how the week went-  Monday 1 hour yoga Yoga was very much needed today- I had my first day back in the office this morning (after 3.5 years away!). It was a long and stressful day so it felt great to end my day with some stretching and easy movement. Tuesday 30 min run Very sticky and warm run today at lunchtime- I headed to a park that I haven't been to in a while and it was great to have a change of scenery! Wednesday 1 hour bootcamp Today's class was so hard! Our first three stations were all wall sits- one regular one with a weight overhead, and then holding a weight and just using one leg in the hold. It was really ch

We are getting closer and closer to my next (and possibly last?) race of the year! It was a great week of training- minus doing some road biking because my bike was in the shop getting a tune up for the race. Otherwise, things are clicking in place and I'm excited to see if I have any improvements from the race last year! Here's how the week went- Monday 1000 yard swim I did a straight swim today- no sets or warmups, just swim nonstop. I felt good on this and could have kept going which is always a good thing! 4.5 mile hike Since it was a holiday, I decided to go out to my favorite park for a hike. I was also planning on kayaking afterwards but it seemed like that was everyone's plan and it was super crowded! So, I just ended my kayak and headed home to relax the rest of the day. Tuesday 40 min run If you can tell by our expressions, it was a toasty one this morning! I joined Erica for a run around the Art Museum, and we took it easy with some walks up the hills.  Wednesday

I had another up and down month of books! On one hand, I had what might be my favorite book of the year so far, and on the other I had some duds and one that I gave up on. Let's see what I read- and please leave suggestions on some fun fall books I can read the next few months!  Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros There was a lot of hype around this book- I saw it everywhere on Instagram and Tik Tok, and the wait at the library was months long. I wasn't sure what to expect, but as soon as I started I was pulled into this incredible world. This book takes place in a world that's like Harry Potter meets Hunger Games, with more dragons thrown in. There's a lot of action, as well as sweet moments and some romance as well. I loved this so much, and definitely think it's one of my favorite books so far this year. My Rating - 5/5 obviously! Mean Baby by Selma Blair You should already know that I love celebrity memoirs, and I also love Selma Blair as a person (from what I've

August was such a fun month! It definitely felt like it was the height of summer fun, with lots of outdoor activities with friends, outdoor festivals and concerts, birthday celebrations, and races. It was a good time! There were a lot of highlights for me, but the top one was probably something I've been looking forward to for months (and honestly years)- seeing the musical Wicked! I love musicals and any kind of live performance, so I was really excited when a friend was willing to go with me and we had an amazing time. The show definitely lived up to my expectations and I absolutely loved it! Here's a look at how my annual goals are going- we're getting down to the end of the year which is crazy to think about! Annual Goals Korean Vegan Cookbook I tried out the noodle chapter in the book, which I was pretty intimidated by! I've never made noodles before, so I decided on the knife cut noodle soup recipe which the author says is the easiest to make. I liked how the soup

Another great week in the books! This one was a little lighter on official workouts, but I got in some fun cross training (if you can call it that...) as well as another sprint tri during the weekend! I'm still a few weeks away from my goal race for the year, so I'm using all of the races I've done so far as practice for the main event. Here's how the week (and race) went- Monday 30 min frisbee golf Finally went out to play frisbee golf- our first time in a while! It was brutally hot and sunny out, but in the shade it felt much better. We went at lunchtime so only had time for about half of the course but it was so fun to get out there. Tuesday 1500 yard swim This morning's swim felt amazing! I started with a warmup, then the main set was 4x200 repeats. By the time I was done, I was close to 1500 so I extended my cool down a bit to hit that number! This was one of those days I could have kept swimming forever and got in a good groove. Wednesday 20 min run Short and

I'm finally back to continue recapping our amazing Europe trip today! It's been nice to break it up so much because it feels like I'm reliving the trip every time I get to talk about it. We left off in part 2 in Bovec with some incredible excursions and mountain views, and are heading to Lake Bled. If you've ever seen an image of Slovenia (or if you Google it right now), this is the place that you'll see. This lake sits right by the border of Austria and is a quick bus ride from the capital city of Ljubliana, so it's a very popular day trip. We decided to stay here for a few days though, and I'm really glad that we did! We stayed at the Penzion Berc, which had a great location and was the most charming place we stayed in during this entire trip. This is a family-owned B&B, which started out as a farm and developed into the amazing place that it is today. We had the best hospitality here, along with a delicious breakfast every morning! The location was g

July was a great month of reads! I got through a lot of books (lots sitting by the pool or while kayaking!) I also crossed off two more books from the Goodreads Winners of 2022 which is always exciting for me. Here are all the books I read this month- Heartstopper by Alice Oseman I read the first two books in this series because it won the Goodreads award last year, and I really enjoyed it! The books follow a British high school boy who's gay, and trying to figure out his friendships and relationships. It really captures the experience of being in school and not really knowing who you are or who you can trust, and finding yourself. I found out this is also a Netflix series so I want to check that out and keep reading the series as well! My rating - 4.5/5 Sea of Tranquility by Emily St John Mandel I probably would not have chosen this book on my own, but it also won a Goodreads award (for best Science Fiction). In the end, I'm glad that I did read it! This follows a few differen

This was definitely a week of highs and lows. I had some rough workouts but also had amazing ones as well- it seems like running is hard right now but everything else is feeling great! I'll just blame the weather and hope it feels easier once it gets cooler (and less humid). Here's a look at my week- Monday Rest Day! Tuesday 3 mile run I met up with my early birds group for my run this morning, and as soon as we started I felt off. I donated blood on Sunday evening and thought that I would feel better by now but my body let me know it didn't! I hung in the back and did a run/walk, but was still happy to have people to start with at least! 2 hour SUP I was feeling much better by the end of the day and it was gorgeous out, so I headed to Harris Lake for a little paddling. The water was pretty calm so I took it easy going around and also took lots of rest! It was the perfect end to the day. Wednesday 1 hour bike I went out for a lunchtime ride and added in two intervals of 3 m

July was such a fun and busy month! I didn't really have much free time, which is exactly how I prefer my months. I had family come and visit for a week, then went to Cleveland and Put-in-Bay to visit with some friends. Add in some craziness at work, a renovation on our primary bathroom, and lots of time with friends- it was very hectic without much free time. But, I did spare some time to literally smell the flowers and enjoy the bloom of the sunflower field in Dix Park! Let's get into the goals! Annual Goals Korean Vegan Cookbook The next chapter in my cookbook that I tried out was the Soups and Stews- which probably wasn't the best for the hot weather we've been having but ended up being amazing! It was a fennel and tofu stew with doenjang broth. Super light and tasty and I loved the char of the tofu with it. It tasted like something from a restaurant- really good and easy dish. Temperature blanket I'm done with month 7 of the temperature blanket. This was the fi