Zenaida Arroyo

01
Dec
2019

Weekly Run Down: End of the month and 335 miles

categories: Brooks Running, DWTraining, Oiselle, Peloton Bike, Running, Weekly Recap, Weekly Run Down

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Happy Sunday! I hope you had a great week with your family. I had a great time and ate so much these past couple of days. It was all yummy but not good for my waist. 🙁

How is it that we are in December? November did go by fast and I am sure December will too. I will be in school 3 weeks and then will have Winter Break.

I did not run a lot in November.

November 2019 Mileage.jpg

For some reason I did not feel good this week. I was sneezing a lot. For sure I thought I would get sick but I didn’t. Could it be allergies? I remember my doctor telling me that as one gets older, they can get allergies.

Monday morning I ran 3 miles. I forgot to delete my records last week but remembered to do it on Monday. Happy with my fast mile.

I did not run on Tuesday but saw a beautiful sunrise.

My coach moved a few workouts because I did not feel good. I was exhausted Tuesday and Wednesday. Due to the changes I ended up running on Thanksgiving. It was a fun workout. It was 3 miles warmup and 6×1 minute intervals with 1 minute recovery, then another mile or so to end with 5 miles. I got 2 badges!

Another record for me. Boy, I have a lot of work to do. 🙂

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Something happened with my left foot. The top left side began to bother me. I was supposed to run 6 miles on Saturday but didn’t because of my foot. Plus it was raining and I did not want to run in the rain. 😜

It felt somewhat better on Sunday but I didn’t make it to one mile. It hurt! I went back home and sent a text to my couch. He said it was probably due to a tight calf and tendon. I thought it was my shoes and decided to retire my Brooks Ghost 11 with 335 miles. I was hoping to make it to 400 miles. How cute are my new Oiselle tights?

My coach had me do 60 minutes (20 minutes easy followed by 4 x 5 minutes fast, 5 minutes easy). That is the longest I have been on the bike! I thought it would be bored but I wasn’t. 😜 I biked through several cities by the sea and watched TV.

Do you have allergies? Did you have them as a kid or “recently”?

Linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down.

Weekly Run Down.jpg

28
Nov
2019

Random Thoughts Thursday 100

categories: Random Thoughts Thursday

Random Thoughts Thursday

Holy cow! 100th post? Thank you for reading along these random thoughts. 🙂

• I hope you have a great day today with your family!

• What is up with the contaminated food? It is either fruit, lettuce, kale, etc., but never pizza, bread, or coffee. 🙂

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• Anyone knew this? I didn’t until I saw this. No need to have measuring cups because all you need this this red cup.

• How cool is this? I remember when I was a kid going to the neighborhood grocery store just because of this game. If I had room, I would buy it.

• It’s been 3 years since the “Gilmore Girls Revival”. Come on! I want to see more episodes!! I want to know who is the father of Rory’s baby.

Girlmore Girls ending-1

26
Nov
2019

Tuesday Topics: Why I am thankful for running

categories: Tuesday Topics

Thank you everyone for the birthday wishes! Also, thanks to everyone that entered my birthday giveaway. The winner is: Marcia Kadens.

This week’s Tuesday Topic: Tell us why you’re thankful for running? You can write about this topic or feel free to post any running related blog post. Remember to Link-up with Kim and Zenaida! Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier! Remember to come back for later linkers!

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Thanksgiving is around the corner. I am not one to “just” be thankful on that day. I like to be thankful every single day for everything that I have. After my mom’s stroke in March, I am even more thankful for so many things.

√ I am thankful that it was a mild stroke. She was in 3 different places (hospital and rehab) and came home on May 5th.

√ I am thankful that she is comes home with me on the weekends (she lives with my younger sister) and we get to watch TV and spend time together.

√ I am thankful for the stories she tells me of when she lived in Mexico. Life wasn’t easy but she did the best she could. My dad was living in the US and my mom was in Mexico. There were times in which she was here working while the kids were in Mexico being taken care of by family members or a neighbor.

√ I am thankful for the sacrifices she and my dad made to give us a better life. We emigrated to Chicago in 1978. I was 5 years old and I still remember that day. It was July 4th and I remember seeing the Sears Tower.

√ I am thankful she didn’t give up after my dad died. At 47 years old she became a widow with 7 kids. I am 47 years old. I put myself in her shoes and I haven’t done 1/4 of the stuff she had already done when she was 47.

I know I went a little off topic so now let me talk about why I am thankful for running. 🙂 Running is my ME time. Running helps me cope with the challenges life brings me. Things are so much better with my mother, but still it is tough being an adult. Haha, I think we can all relate to that. Work stresses me out and I am constantly looking for ways to help my students. While I run I am in my zone, staring ahead while listening to music. Sometimes I think about the different things that need to be done once I get to work.

And last but not least, I am thankful for this blog, this linkup and ALL OF YOU. I love the support and encouragement I get from my virtual friends. Some of you I’ve met and if I haven’t, I hope I get to meet you soon. With each post I get inspired and I smile. We never judge. It makes me happy to read and see how we lift and encourage one another whether it is from dealing with an injury or from being nervous with running a marathon or another race. I hope you all have a Happy Thanksgiving!

24
Nov
2019

Weekly Run Down: A new running coach and another trip around the sun

categories: DWTraining, Running, Weekly Recap, Weekly Run Down

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Thank you to everyone that commented about the blog Facebook page. I decided to just post running stuff on that page. I may post a few things on my personal page about some of my running adventures, like my 50 states goal, but that’s it. 🙂

This week was my first week training with DWRunning. Last week I filled out a questionnaire and then had a conference call with my coach, Dan. We talked about my goals and expectations, injuries, schedule, etc. I told him that I would like to complete my 50 states goal and to PR in the various distances. Maybe not all in one year but at least a few of them.

So far my first week went well. Something very new to me is doing dynamic warm ups before each run. As you know, I never do any kind of warmup but now I have to. 🙂 I also have a flexibility & mobility workout and a strength workout after each run. Again, something new to me. I’ve been able to do the warm ups but then run out of time for the other workouts. I was told that maybe I can do one during my lunch break and then the other one in the evening. Regardless, they’re all important for my training and they have to be done.

These are the dynamic warm ups I need to do:
⇒ Joint circles
⇒ A Walks & B Walks
⇒ A Skips & B Skips
⇒ Lunge Matrix
⇒ Monster Walks

Monday was 2 miles at an “easy” pace. Did that then went to the doctor for a breast bilateral ultrasound. I got a mammogram back in September and because I have very dense breast, it was recommended that I go for an ultrasound. I had to wait and make sure my insurance would pay for it (they would) and then I had to wait a few weeks for availability. The test was about 45 minutes and the technician was very nice and she made me feel very comfortable. I already got my results and it is all good.

Tuesday was movie night at school. We showed “The Lion King”. We had a lot of family show up but I was disappointed with how many people were talking. Also, there were kids running around. I mean, is that what they do in the movie theatres?

Wednesday morning was my birthday run. I ran 4.7 miles. So much fun doing this. I think I started doing this about 3 or 4 years ago?

My 2nd grade team ordered lunch and got me a birthday cake. They also gave me gift cards from Amazon and Starbucks. My students made cards for me too. It was a great birthday!

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Lola was shy but I did get a “kiss” from Mateo.

Friday was 2 miles and Saturday was 5 miles. I am testing a new pair of Turtle Gloves and so far I like them. They’re a little big but they keep my hands warm. I will have a review sometime next month.

I had a great week with it being my birthday and some great runs. I am very excited about this opportunity with a new coach. I already have my plan for this coming week and I know I will be running 4 days for a total of 16 miles. Now I need to figure out how and when to do the other required workouts. 🙂

Linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down.

Weekly Run Down.jpg

21
Nov
2019

Random Thoughts Thursday 99

categories: Random Thoughts Thursday

Random Thoughts Thursday

• I am at this point right now. I’ve had a rough few days with my students. I cannot wait till Thanksgiving Break next week. I will be at work for 2 days and then home the rest of the week. My mom will also be home with us so I am excited about it.

• I was not selected for the NYC Half Marathon. I am kind of bummed about it. I know things happen for a reason so I am trying to be positive about it. Maybe I will be selected for the NYC Marathon? 🙂

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• Anyone have the BURST Sonic Toothbrush? I am tempted to get one for me. It has charcoal bristles to remove stains, 33,000 sonic vibrations per minute, and a 2 minute timer. There is also a subscription plan where you get a replacement head every 3 months for $7. Pretty good, huh?

• Has anyone seen the new “Harriet Tubman” movie? Looks good!

• My birthday was yesterday and I have a giveaway going on right now. Have you entered? Check out this post to enter to win a $47 gift card.

Happy Birthday Giveaway