Some Statistics & A Chest Infection

Statistics are to-date and come from the whiny Courtney Robert Inc.

Days sick: 15
Days spent coughing: 11
Cups of soup: 5
Bottles of cough syrup: 3
Hot tea consumed: Too much
Containers of Vapor Rub: 1
Packages of Halls: 3
Days off of work: 1
Episodes of Grey's Anatomy watched: 26 (all of season 12 and the first two of season 13)
Complaints made to boyfriend, mother, co-workers, random people on the street: 1,000,000
Times exercised: 1 (big mistake)
Time spent in Urgent Care: 1.5 hours.
Diagnosis: Infection in lower, left lung.
Medications: Antibiotics and a puffer.

What started with a flu after the Army Run progressed into a cold I just couldn't shake. I was coughing so hard that I would dry heavy and break out into the clammiest sweat, and it had been a while since I slept through the night. I finally went to Urgent Care and was diagnosed with a chest infection. Today I'm taking my second dose of antibiotics but I already feel so much better. I toyed with the idea of going to the gym today but I think rest is still important. Maybe tomorrow.

Unfortunately, I'm signed up for a 5K in less than two weeks and I really don't think I'm going to be able to run. Even if my cough is gone by then I've lost a lot of endurance the last couple of weeks. I was supposed to run it with my sister, and funny enough it seems like she might also have a chest infection and won't be running either. Something is going around because I haven't seen her in six weeks so I'm fairly certain I didn't infect her.

I have a recap I started writing on the Army Run but I've felt so awful that I can't muster up the energy to go back and edit it..

So hello and goodbye. I'll see you when I'm feeling better.

I'm a Blonde + Other Thoughts

First off, last Thursday I made a drastic change by dyeing my hair and chopping off quite a few inches. I'm blonder than I expected to be but I love it. I'm also super happy I got rid of the length because it's so much lighter, easier and faster to style, and I feel like I actually look like an adult, now. I'm just having some phantom-hair issues and can't seem to grasp that I need way less product than before.

This weekend might have been my laziest in existence. Besides a little shopping I did a lot of sleeping, eating, and catching up on my huge Netflix list. I really felt like I needed it because even today I feel like I'm coming down with something. However, the highlight of my weekend was ordering these fish tacos when Michael and I went to lunch on Sunday.

I started taking an iron supplement last week and I have to admit I did not do enough research into taking iron because I was caught off guard by the symptoms I was experiencing. The worst of it was being so bloated it hurt - I even woke up bloated! After complaining on Twitter someone suggested I eat an orange with the supplement because the vitamin C and fibre helps. I don't know if it was placebo or science, but it seems to have worked. The only downfall is that you are supposed to take it on an empty stomach to ensure it gets fully absorbed in your intestines.

Last night I think I might have sleep walked. I woke up at 3 in the morning, my television off (I always fall asleep with it on - bad habit), my computer had been put away (I was using it as a charging station because I ran out of plugs), and half of my clothes were off. I have no idea what happened but I have zero recollection of doing any of these things.


What are you looking forward to this week? 
Do you have any funny tricks, like oranges and iron supplements? 

Getting Rear-Ended AKA My Recent Excuse for Skipping the Gym

I had the most wonderful long weekend. Michael works a lot of hours so we finally got to spend a large chunk of time together. We barbequed, watched the entire second of Scream, ate 1.25 pies, and even took a road trip to pick up a beer being released for my favourite brewery's - Sawdust City - birthday. AND I fit in an 18K training run.

I thought I was setting myself up for a happy, short week but that came crashing down Tuesday afternoon when I was rear-ended. The details of what happened are not as important as that I've learned a lot about people, my insurance company found me not-at-fault so it won't cost me anything, and that even though things don't cost money you can still stress and spend a lot of time doing things which is almost just as aggravating.

My experience with my insurance company was luckily very positive. After taking all the details they assured me that my deductible is waved, my insurance costs won't go up, and that they take care of a lot of little details - they sent my information to a local shop and to a rental car company so both could expect me and will bill my insurance directly.

However, like I mentioned I still have to spend my time and energy organizing everything. A major accident happened yesterday on the highway and it down for a few hours. This affected me trying to get to the repair shop before it closed even though my boss let me leave early. I managed to make it there right when it was closing but thankfully the staff was extremely nice and spoke to me, took pictures of my vehicle, pulled off my bumper panel that had been hanging, and booked me an appointment to come in next week. I also had to contact the rental car company to let them know about the details of my appointment so they can get a car to me. All positive things - just time consuming.

I'm also a little sore. Nothing major - just a little muscle pain and headaches I'm dealing with. Plus the stress of the week is taking a lot out of me. The last two nights I've been in bed before 9PM and I'm sleeping until 6:30AM, the latest I get up for work. This week has me worried because I carefully constructed my outline to lead up to my next race, and now I'm less than a week and a half out and my schedule has been thrown upside down. Basically, I know I'll finish the race but I have zero confidence in what my time will look like. I'm trying to look on the bright side - all my costs for my car are taken care of, I'm safe, healthy, and relatively uninjured, and I still have a race planned for March that I can focus on if this one goes badly.

Life is funny.


Have you ever been in an accident? 
Any fall races on the agenda? 

September Goals

Happy September 1st!

As much as it's a little scary how fast this year is flying by, I'm excited we're into September. October is probably my favourite month but the lead-up is nice, too. Last month I did better with achieving my goals so I thought hard about what I wanted to accomplish for September. A lot of great things happened to me professionally and mentally last month so it's not a surprise that a lot of my goals are fitness related.

1) Finish strong.
The Canada Army Run is on September 18th. I want to finish my training plan strong and run a solid race. I already know it's unlikely for me to PR but I want to enjoy the run, especially since I'll be in my favourite city in the world - Ottawa.

2) Buy a new foam roller.
I mentioned in my August recap that it became difficult to foam roll because it's getting out of shape. I've already started doing some research and I hope to pick up a new roller before race day.

3) Decide on my fall/winter goals and make a plan.
I don't have another race until March, meaning I don't start my next training cycle until Christmas Day (yes, I already mapped it out). That gives me three months to decide what I want to focus on. Strength? Flexibility? Endurance? I think I'm leaning toward strength but we'll see how I feel after race day.

4) Become a morning person - again.
Before my scheduled changed I loved being an early riser. I'm slowly getting back into it and my goal is to start going to the gym in the morning like I used to. I love getting a workout in first thing and having a gym all to myself at 5AM. This means I need to start getting myself to bed at a decent hour.


What are your September goals? 
Do you goals usually follow a theme?

Training & A Mini Getaway

Happy Tuesday! It's been a crazy couple of weeks and I can feel it when I train. I physically feel heavier than usual so I'm going to try my best to clean up my diet leading up to my race. To be fair, eating Pizza Pops before speed training is never a good idea. I used a Snapchat filter to hide the pain.

It's been a while since I took my speed training outside and I forgot how much I love it. I like to go to this bare-bones outdoor track not far from where I live because I can see the lake from where I'm running.

Michael's birthday is today so on the weekend I took him to Kingston to visit one of his favourite breweries - Stone City Ales. I wish I had taken more pictures but I promise you the beer and food was amazing.

We went back to the hotel room with the intention of napping and instead just enjoyed being away. It was fun to be snuggled into a king-sized bed and watch cable TV (neither of us have it at home anymore so we live off of Netflix).

This week I'm into the green smoothies. Frozen mango chunks, banana, almond milk, and spinach to start the day. I'm only on Day Two of eating better and I already have the worst sugar cravings so I really think I'm going to look forward to my morning smoothies.

What's your favourite Snapchat filter?
What's the best smoothie ingredient?

August Goals Recap

How is it possible August is almost over? I think because I had so much going on this month it felt like it flew by even faster than usual. Let's look at what I accomplished in August:


1) Half marathon training

Yes - kind of. I gained a lot of mileage this month. I could have went on more runs but I'm happy with where I'm sitting. 

2) More stretching. More foam rolling. More yoga.

I did OK but I halfway through the month I realized I need a new foam roller. The shape isn't bouncing back like it used to so I think I need to invest in a more durable roller. 

3) Throw an amazing party for my mom

Definitely. It went extremely well and my mom was really happy. All the planning, time, and effort was so worth it. 

4) Hydrate

I'm not drinking at much as I used to but I feel like I'm drinking the right amount for me. I never feel thirsty or dehydrated anymore, but I also never feel like I'm bloated with water. 

5) Finish two books

I only managed to finish one but I did start a second!


How did your August goals come along? 

Too Busy for the Gym + That's OK

Have you ever had a week where you wrote a post, got too busy to publish it, tried again the next day, and the next day, and the next? It was one of those weeks. Tomorrow my sister and I are throwing a party for our mom's 50th birthday so I've been running around like crazy all week. I haven't even had half an hour to make it to the gym. Usually I would be guilting myself but I want tomorrow to be perfect and this is how my priorities are listed this week.

Here are some highlights from this week:

The weather has been cooler (above 20 degrees but not higher than 30's - before humidity). We even had some rain on Tuesday. I had my first hot cup of coffee this summer and something about the coffee with the falling rain just felt magical.

Despite usually being the Queen of Sunscreen I allowed myself to get extremely burnt at the beer festival last weekend. I finally stopped feeling pain around Wednesday and I did a pretty good job of hydrating and moisturizing my skin so I have minimal itching and peeling.

Last Sunday I spent the morning on the couch watching the women's Olympic marathon. There were no words to describe how inspiring it was to watch the race go down and get the updates for my Canadian heroes.

My sister was going through our photo albums to create a collage of my mom and she Snapchat'd me this gem:

How was your week? 
What priorities do you put before exercise? I hate when people say, "no excuses," because I think there are a million valid reasons to skip the gym.