Foot, Meet Pavement

Workout: 5 miles, 10:47 average

And they're off! The mushers, I mean.

And me. Off my rocker. What else is new?

We were able to skip the crowds downtown in favor of my second home.  This is where I school, work, and run every single day of the week. It was a gorgeous bluebird day here in Anchorage and the temperature was perfect for standing around outside. Not sure what full-length parka lady on the right up there was thinking. I'd be sweating my nonexistent balls off.

Watching the mushers was super fun for about forty-five minutes, but then I needed a hot dog. Costco polish sausage for the mega win! And then I went running.

I ran along the road to school and even made a stop at my old high school. I'm fortunate I brought my sunglasses. Otherwise, I'm pretty sure my retinas would have burnt off within seconds. It was bright out today. Or is that just my vampire eyes waking up?

Running's fun when you get to look at mountains.

I wore the new shoes again. So much for rotation! There were a few hilarious moments where I ran on bare pavement (something I haven't done in months), and I literally felt like I didn't know how to run. I kept waiting for my foot to shift on top of the snow, which obviously didn't happen, and it totally threw me for a loop. Somehow I think it'll all come back to me once pavement becomes a thing again.

I was slightly faster than my 10:52 goal, but I felt pretty relaxed. Even got a bit of elevation in there the first mile. I actually ran this section of road a few months ago and remember vividly thinking I was going to puke at the end, so I'd say I've made some progress.

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Wanna know a silly secret? One of my favorite things ever is finishing a run and writing it on my calendar.

Love this calendar.

Today, I finished February and had to stand back for a minute and admire it. My mileage was much lower than January (54 and 96, respectively) due to iron issues and starting a new training plan, but once I got back into it, my runs were consistent and I felt strong. I'm excited for some high numbers (for me) in the months to come!

Happy Saturday, dudes. Tell me what's happening:

• Do you have any silly traditions like mine?
• Do you ever run on unfamiliar surfaces? Does it freak you out as much as it did me?
• Costco hot dogs/Polish sausage/pizza/free samples/everything: pretty awesome, right?
• Have you had any runs recently that made you realize you're stronger than you were?