I seriously anticipated running my 20 miles all at once today, but unfortunately my run was overtaken by unforeseen rain. Luckily, this was the part of my run where I was out of the woods. Between my friend’s house completely unannounced or a coffee shop, I opted to run into the coffee shop! The down pour made both options seem very enticing. It was so embarassing to be drenched from the rain, but I was so grateful for hot tea and shelter from the down pour!😄 Nevertheless, I will finish all of my mileage. 🌧🌦🌥🌤☔

On my run today, I thought about how if nothing else came from this year career milestone wise, atleast all us mask designers created a new market/ industry that was not as big before which is very profound! When else in my career would I contribute to creating a whole new market? Mask making should count towards my MBA or PhD some way, I should make a connection between the math and business of mask production or sales for graduate credit.😂 This is bigger than the four credit fashion internship from back in the day for sure. Being a mask designer was pretty cool and fulfilling. I know all these masks would have helped me when I was sick in high school. Most importantly I love to help others going through what I did with health obstacles to be happy, healthy and alive. All us mask designers seriously became the backbone of an industry by creating a biggger and better market, and helped save lives! It is all about prospective.

In terms of an actual workout, I did an easy five miles. Friday is my rest day before my big weekend mileage that will hopefully all work out. 😊 You cannot run your fastest or longest every day, it is important to have that day a week which is calming and relaxing all while being fulfilling. 🌲🏞

If you want to run fast just train faster, unless it is 99.999% humidity like today here in Syracuse. Oh wow, it was a tough one out there today inching towards 15 miles and landing a little over a half marathon distance of 14 miles. Though there was not mile split action going on, I am very pleased with surviving upper mileage and recovering within a half hour to have a lovely visit with my grandmother. It was funny running my laps around the golf course, with just a few brave enough to be out actually golfing a round in the crazy humidity. I think by the weekend, I will be ready to do my weekend mileage all at once, and not break it up with ten in the morning and ten at night which is a very big milestone for me on the rebound. 😊

Do ten strides count towards mileage? I like to do my strides on a path in the woods near my house, unless I’m near a beach. 😉

Another humid sweltering day made me happy that I can always run on my treadmill or do stationary bike. Nevertheless, I did my mammoth hills and melted in the humidity. I love being hot when I run, probably from all my training in Florida, but humidity makes me hit a wall for sure.☀☀☀ I think if I am in shape and show up to a race where there is a pack trying to run baisically the same time as me, it’ll all work out this fall. 😂 There is always a pack in MDI, maybe I’ll just do MDI and Philly like the fall before this covid nonsense, there is always a group of guys to run with too. Who else likes having a pacer in their marathons and half-marathons and 15k's? 🙈

The Marathon is so great, because there are so many of them! If I run the time I am striding towards in the fall and spring, I will not care about missing out during covid. This girl is on the rebound. The difference between being 18 and being 26 in the Marathon for me is that I feel more matured fit being a full grown adult woman now, have better endurance for such a long event, I know how to race it better than when I was jumping up from the 5k or cross-country to 26.2 miles, plus it is more normal to do it now! Perhaps all of this anticipation will be the way I really run all the times I have been dreaming of for almost ten years of my sport. 😉

On my humid run today, I was thinking about how silly I may look hustling up one of my mammoth sized hills and walking down the hill. However, there is a secret to hills which would be walk down them in practice so you do not put too much stress on your knees. There was a time when my coach taught me how to race going on the downhill, then evolved a period of training where downhills are for special practices and actual races. I recommend saving your knees and walking or slowing down for downhills on the regular, because knees are like brake-pads, as cartilage never grows back. All those times you save them in practice pay off during a race. Nevertheless, there is a form and technique to racing down hills everyone needs to acquire, running up hills is the more important thing in training for me.