Man, the drive from Charlotte to Currituck is looooong. 7 hours.
When we got there I was so happy to see the house all decorated for Christmas.
When Brad and his brother were little, they used to ask their mom why her name was on the pillows. 🙂
I was also very happy to see this…
Beer bread, sweet potato with butta, pork tenderloin, and roasted broccoli
I brought the wine. It was from Montelpulciano, which Brad and I visited while we took a tour of Tuscany on our honeymoon. Delicious. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not a tee-totaler the night before a big run…unless it’s a race…and sometimes when it is. 😉
Upon Brad’s request, Joy made her lemon poundcake. I had small sliver and then went back for another half piece. Sooooo good.
I was up this morning after almost 10 hours of sleep and ready for this breakfast of oatmeal made with water and topped with PB, raspberry preserves, and dried blueberries.
I haven’t been able to sleep like this since I was a teenager. Since I started marathon training, I can clock 10 hours of sleep at least one night per week. It’s amazing how your body knows what it needs.
Around 10 am, Brad and I geared up for running. Crazy Hair McGee wanted to run 13 miles this morning and I had my last 20 miler to run, after ditching it 9 miles short last Saturday.
The first 6.33 miles were great. We ran all the way down the main road until we reached a McDonalds where I stopped for water and a bathroom break. I also ate my second Chocolate Coconut Date Truffle, which is great for running fuel.
Note: I make these smaller for running than I do in the recipe post; about 1 inch balls.
The wind was brutal when we turned around to run south. The temperature was just over freezing and the wind was around 30 mph. I ended up having to leave Brad and finished 13.07 miles at his parents’ house to use the bathroom again, have my fourth truffle, and gulp some water.
When I left their house this time, I headed in the opposite direction and against the wind. This time I was running directly beside the water and the wind was brutal. I turned around at the end of the road and at mile 16 I realized that I forgot my Z bar. I was starting to putter out so I called Brad. He met me at mile 17 and I wolfed down the bar, plus plenty of more water. I ran passed the turn for his house again to run another 1 1/2 miles then turn around to return.
The wind on the way back made running so difficult. I felt like a giant hand was pushing me back from reaching the end of my run. At 19.1 miles, I got my 16th wind. 😉 No kidding. I breezed past the house to get in the last 0.15 of a mile, then walked back when I reached the 20.0 mark on my Garmin.
I have never been so glad to see those two numbers. 2 – 0. Done and done. I immediately laid on the living room floor and ate tortilla chips to replenish my sodium. 🙂
Poor Brad froze during our run. I was oh so comfortable thanks to some recent purchases: The North Face Momentum Fleece Jacket in black and Under Armour Cold Gear Tights.
Seriously folks, if you are into cold weather running or you want to get into it, you need these two items. They come in men’s sizes too. Amazing is all I can say. The force of the wind bothered me, but the chill of the wind did not penetrate these two items of clothes.
I wore a long sleeved water wicking shirt, cheap cotton gloves, and a fleece head wrap and that was it. No other layers needed.
Now I’m off to eat and rest…the best part of a 20 mile run. 🙂
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While I was out running, my father-in-law went and got the brussel sprouts for me to make for Christmas dinner and took a few shots of the brussels before he cut them off the stalk.
Have you ever seen such huge leaves on brussel sprouts? I haven’t. I’m curious to see what we can do with the leaves. I foresee an experiment in my future.