Today I made a choice to not do my tempo run outside. It is just too hot and after Sunday’s long run I just couldn’t bear the thought of heading outside for a 6 km run.

Instead I went downstairs and hit up my treadmill. Before I began had to figure out how many miles 6 km were before I began! Why does the treadmill in my building have to be in miles? If you are mathematically challenged like me 6 km is around 3.76 miles (I hope!).

I also treated myself to a few new songs for my iPod which helped keep me motivated. By the last mile I was clocking a 9:14 mile which is pretty good for me

I highly recommend these two songs:

• Love the way you lie – Eminem (feat. Rihanna)
• Teenage Dream – Katy Perry

I then headed upstairs to try out some butternut squash…

I give you my butternut squash fajitas. Roasted in the oven with some olive oil, salt’n'pepper and cumin they were the perfect way to beef up a veggie fajita.

Perfect post-run meal!

Now off to catch up on some Weeds!

This week I’m back to running. My twisted ankle seems to feel o.k. and it is time to get back into the swing of training. No more procrastination!

Tonight’s hill training workout certainly kicked my behind. 4 hill repeats plus a run to the hill and back. I then came home and did Jillian Michaels’ 30 Day Shred. I’m a crazy person

For some reason I have found it more difficult than usual to get into the swing of my marathon training – not sure if it has been the hot weather, the humidity, the twisted ankle incident or something else. My heart is just not in the training these days. With only 66 days to go until “the marathon” I need to get motivated.

The silver lining in all of my less than perfect training runs is that I have  to mentally and physically push myself through runs. This may sound crazy, but in its own way these types of runs may actually help me on marathon day especially when I hit the dreaded wall…

In other news, I am in love with these babies.

I am a tomato addict these days. Last night I just chopped up the heirloom tomatoes I got in my CSA, sprinkled them with salt and pepper, added some olive oil and served. They were yummy!  One of the things that I have learned this summer is that the veggies I get in my CSA are often best served simply. The veggies are so tasty on their own and really don’t need a lot of “extras”.

This past week was a bit of a whirlwind. Lots to do at home and at work. I’m hoping that this week goes by just as fast because I can’t wait to get to the long weekend part! Don’t you just love long weekends?

Since I have been extremely relaxed with my blogging over the past week (a.k.a. not posting!) I thought it may just be easier to do a few of my week’s loves and hates.

The “loves”:

• Making it through a tough 10km tempo run. I may not have loved this run while actually running it, but I was mighty proud that I made it through.
• Going to a boot camp class with a colleague. It was a fun way to pass an hour and to also incorporate some form of strength training into my life again!
• Checking out two Toronto restaurants which were participating in Summerlicious
• Making this smoked salmon concoction with wild rice:

• Getting to eat some delicious corn:

The “hates”:

• The two blisters on the sides of my big toes -I was a bit lazy with replacing my running shoes this time round and now am having an ongoing battle with blisters Does anyone have any suggestions on how to make blisters heal faster?
• Not having a favourite Pilates teacher around anymore – I have taken a membership at a studio which I love. Part of the reason I love it though was because of a certain teacher. Now she’s gone and I have lost some motivation to sign-up for classes there. Sigh. Sometimes I hate change.
• The fact that summer is coming to close in a month. Why does summer ever have to end?

After running 13km this a.m. I have started to feel that I am turning a corner. Life is looking a bit more happy again. Things will work out somehow. Am hoping my positive attitude extends to Monday, though. As cliche as this  sounds – I really don’t like Mondays. I personally feel that weekends should be at least three days long. Don’t you?

In an effort to make Monday a bit more enjoyable I have made myself a treat -

First I took some blueberries and mixed them with some sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon. I brought this mixture to a boil and then simmered for 10-15 minutes.

I now have a jarful (excuse the fuzziness of the photo!) of delicious blueberry compote to drizzle over my morning toast. Much easier to make than real jam and just as satisfying.

Before I go I have a bit of a rant. My target?

The Amazon Kindle.

I really do love this device and think that it is one of the handiest gifts I have ever received. That said I am really getting fed up with not being able to buy any of the books I want. Sometimes the Kindle version is not available at all and other times (my personal pet peeve) it is the fact that I can’t have the Kindle version because “this title is not available in Canada”. Aghhhhh! So frustrating and irritating.

1. I’m officially a crazy person, but not the only one: I went running outside Tuesday and Wednesday evening. It was hot. Even too hot for me and after Wednesday’s run I decided I was crazy. That said there were other runners out, so at least I have company in my craziness

2. The running skort I wore on Tuesday night is the devil. I’ve only worn it a couple of times before and thought it was o.k. I was wrong. This piece of clothing has chafed the hell out of my inner thighs.

3. Running earlier in the day may be the best solution. Just came back from doing my long run of the week and was a much more pleasant run.

4. I’m officially in love with this new top I bought – not too sure about the colour. Thanks to The Little Honey Bee for helping me discover this!

5. I much prefer Hollywood gelato over Il Gelatiere.

6. Born to Run is a good read. I highly recommend it. It definitely makes you think about your own running technique. One of the best parts of this book, though, was this part:

“Forget yoga. Every runner I know who does yoga gets hurt.”

What do you think?