Morning, friends, and happy day 1 of the Winter Shape Up! In case you missed it, get your week 1 meal plan here and your week 1 workout videos here. Have fun and don’t forget to comment on those pages to enter the giveaways from this week’s sponsors! :)
And now, for a weekend recap! After work on Friday, Matt and I drove up to Whitetail in Maryland for a ski weekend with friends!
We spent all day Saturday, with some breaks, on the slopes! Here I am in a photo Matt entitled “crushing it” – lol.
As you can tell, I’m a pretty mediocre skier so after a couple runs with Matt I told him to go hit the harder ones with the others – I didn’t mind doing my own thing. That way I could take my time on the easy slopes and not feel bad about holding anyone up!
Lunch break with the others – white chicken chili (topped with onions and cheese) and a big salad, plus some tea.
Back to the slopes!
Afternoon fuel = a Larabar + a Mighty Bar organic jerky. Yum!
Around 4:30 we broke for an interlude and met back up at one of the condos with everyone for some card games and chilling. Around 7, we had dinner – a big pasta with meat sauce feast + some caesar salad.
Around 8:30 we headed back out for some night skiing! It was soooo hard to motivate because we were all warm and cozy, but we’d all left our skis down at the main lodge so we had to go back out. Once we were out there, though, it was fun – nice night for it!
I ended up just doing 2 runs and then calling it because conditions were pretty icy and my legs were tired, but the others stayed out a little longer. When everyone was done, we rounded out the night with some adult beverages and fun games. :)
On Sunday, Matt and I made it back to DC by around noon and hit the grocery store before coming home and having brunch – some unpictured scrambled eggs, bacon, and crackers with guac. Delicious! I relaxed and did some laundry before heading out around 4 for a run. I wasn’t feeling anything intense but I was craving a run – it had been awhile! I was sad I missed my running buddies (who went out that morning), but it was still nice to get out there; I rocked out to some tunes and kept it casual. 3 miles, done!
I’m excited to have re-signed with Brooks as one of their Run Happy blogger ambassadors for another year, and to kick off this year’s partnership they sent me a new pair of the latest edition of my favorite shoes, the Ravenna 8 (affiliate link). My old Ravenna’s saw me through multiple half marathons and the Marine Corps Marathon and were definitely feeling worn, so I’m excited to have a new pair for spring training! They felt great – very similar to the 7’s – springy and streamlined with an updated design to make heel-to-toe transitions even easier.
As for last night, Matt cooked up a feast for me and my mother-in-law, who was in town for a workshop over the weekend. It was nice to get to see her again before she headed out early this morning – and also nice to have her take care of Zara for us while we were gone!
On the menu: grilled pork chops (rubbed with seasoning first) + roasted sweet potatoes + spinach sauteed with garlic and almonds. Delicious! My compliments to the chef. :)
I was in bed early after a weekend of late nights – and because I had plans to meet Chelsea and Kathleen this morning for our workout date of the week! We hit up Urban Athletic Club in Georgetown via ClassPass (<- affiliate link for $30 off), and when I woke up it had snowed! The roads and sidewalks were clear (it was too warm for anything to stick), but the trees looked beautiful. :)
We had a great workout as always! And now, it’s time to tackle my exploding inbox and to do list. Have a fabulous day everyone, and enjoy the shape up for those participating! :)
Are you a fan of skiing?
I am a newish skier too, but I do really like it.i didnt know you could ski in VA. How is it? Does matt has a more advanced skier like it? Is there stuff for him to ski there?
We were skiing in MD, not VA – but it’s only about an half and a half from DC. They have black and double black slopes there so plenty for everyone!
We missed you on the run this weekend – glad you had fun skiing!
Wish I could have joined you guys!
Yay! Glad to see you were out on the slopes again! :) One of these years we need to do another ski trip together!
That would be fun! :) Miss you!! xo
Those slopes do look icy! I used to ski all the time until I went away to college (and moved away from the ski hill). I’d really like to start up again and get my husband out for his first time too! He’s convinced he won’t make through a day without a severe injury though, so dramatic. ;)
Haha I hope he is wrong! :)
I tried skiing for the first time in over 20 years just a month ago. Because it had been so long I took a 1/2 day lesson to reacquaint myself with the basics and like you, I have no problem going at my own slower pace. I let my husband and 9yr old daughter tackle tougher runs while I stick to the greens. I have the Big Sur marathon in my sights so I am trying to save my legs and stave off any injuries for that race.
Love that you just did what worked best for you too! And I totally agree on the running front — skiing is fun but it’s not worth trying to do something too hard and injuring myself and not being able to run! Good luck in Big Sur :)
That’s exciting that you are a Brooks ambassador again. I have ran in Brooks for a long time. I loved the flow and connect but don’t like the changes to the flow now and of course they discontinued the connect😠I tried running in the launch but the heel rubbed do bad. Have you run in anything besides the Ravenna? I would love any suggestions. Thanks!
I’m devastated that they discontinued the Pure Connects — those are my other fave (for track workouts/shorter runs). I actually really like the Launch – have you tried it again recently?
I tried the Launch 3 and thought it might work except it kept rubbing on my right heel. I don’t know if there was a defect with my shoe or what. Maybe the Launch 4 is better, might have to try that. I am a neutral runner and it seems like they don’t have as many neutral shoes anymore. I would love it if they brought the Connect back! Then I could “run happy” again:-)
Yeah try the Launch 4! :) Let me know how you like them!
Good for you for being so adventurous, even if it’s a bit out of your comfort zone! I started skiing when I moved the Denver 5 1/2 years ago and somehow I’ve become a pretty rad ripper. Skiing 30+ days a year will do that! One lesson/year helps too. If you ever come to a Colorado, Copper Mountain is the BEST for all skier types. The mountain is naturally divided into gentler slopes and gets much much steeper as you head west within the resort. Super fun for pushing yourself! Good for you for getting out there chicka!