41 miles down . . . . 49 left to run!

Things have been going pretty well. I have been getting decent sleep, I have very little stress in my life, so my energy has been good but my legs are a little fatigued. The 10K race combined with a 14 mile long run on Saturday did me in and has left my legs sore and not too spingy.  I haven’t taken any days off, so of course my legs haven’t had a chance to heal. I know I should take a day off, but frankly I don’t want to and don’t think I’m at risk for injurying myself. I’ve been taking ice baths, foam rolling, and getting massage therapy, so I’m hoping that will be enough to pull me through. Next week I plan to back off on my mileage and give my legs a little break.

So far, here’s what my training has been looking like. . . . .

Monday

AM – 9 miles/1:14

I was still very sore from Saturday, so I took it nice and slow.

PM – 5 miles/40:34

This was a good run, but I still felt sore. (I took an ice bath after this run.)

Tuesday

13 miles/1:43

I ran in the glorious sunshine and “heat” at noon on Tuesday. It was 65*, sunny, and absolutely wonderful. I think I got a little color (tan)?? It may have been the first day I’ve gotten any sort of color this summer in Alaska. It is pretty sad. While most of the U.S. has been having a warmer than average summer, Alaska has been experiencing a cooler than average summer. . . . .go figure!

Wednesday

AM- 9 miles/1:13

I felt pretty decent. I did a nice hill workout and pushed the pace up the hills.

PM – 5 miles/39:51

Good run, but I thought my overall pace would be faster.

I submitted the above picture to Runner’s World magazine for their contest looking for runners to appear in an upcoming issue of Runner’s World. How awesome would that be to be in their magazine!! It would be a dream come true!!

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Alright, now onto the job news. . . .

If you’ve been following along for a while, you know I resigned from teaching this spring. Since April, I have been feverishly applying for jobs. Ninety percent of the jobs I have applied for have been out of state in either Minnesota or Oregon since I have no desire to live in Alaska—and haven’t for 4 years. I knew my chances of securing a job out of state were slim, but I had to try! I know I applied for 50+ jobs—maybe even close to 75. I asked family members and friends to keep their eyes out for something that I could do because fortunately/unfortunately it often comes down to who you know.

As the months went by—and no one was calling me to do an interview—I knew my chances of getting hired out of state were dwindling, so I felt obligated to apply for jobs here in Anchorage. Within less than a week of submitting my application for a particular job in Anchorage, I had a phone interview, an in-person interview, and a job offer. It felt too good to pass up, so I accepted and am officially on a new career path! I will be working at a bank in the credit/loan department. It is completely different from teaching but exactly what I needed. I am excited for where this job will take me because I feel like there is a lot of room for me to move up!

I’m still really bummed I wasn’t able to move out of Alaska because living here has been a HUGE stressor for me. A while back, my husband and I had talked about leaving this summer but like so many people up here, you find more reasons to stay. Sigh. I know it will be good financially for us and good for me because I will be able to get some decent job experience, but it is still really, REALLY hard living here. (And you can’t comprehend it until you’ve spent more than just a week or two of your summer vacation here!!) I miss my family and friend terribly, but I’m hoping that one day I can be closer to them.

And with all that, I know I’m going to have to give up my blog for the most part. I might be able to post once a week, but I know I’m not going to have time to keep up with regular posts or reading other blogs, so I apologize.