Sunday Snaps #5 – Summer Streets

IMG_3496.JPGIf you’re in New York in August, Summer Streets is a must-do. For three consecutive Saturdays in August, almost 7 miles of streets are open for people to run, bike, in-line skate, walk, and just enjoy. The route starts on 72nd Street and Park Avenue and heads south to the entrance of the Brooklyn Bridge. There are a lot of activities and even water stops along the way. My favorite stretch of Summer Streets is on Park Avenue South north of Union Square and south of Grand Central. The streets are wide and the restaurants with outdoor seating have the best people watching views.

IMG_3495.JPGOur marathon team has enjoyed Summer Streets each of the 4 years I’ve been on the team. I have memories of getting sick from the heat on my first Summer Streets but that hasn’t stopped me from enjoying it each year since. Yesterday, we kicked off our long run through Summer Streets with a run through Central Park’s lower loop then starting at 72nd Street all the way to the Brooklyn Bridge and back up. We ran over 14 miles yesterday on what was a glorious day with less humid weather in NYC. This was one of my favorite long runs in a while.

IMG_3489.JPGOn our way back, we stopped to Instagram for free juice. While out for a run on Saturday mornings, post a picture to Instagram, tag #juicepress and #willrunforjuice, and stop into one of the Juice Press locations to receive a free juice. In case you were wondering, I picked watermelon juice. It is incredibly refreshing after a run!

Thank you NYC for a wonderful run and summer weekend! Enjoy some of the pictures from our long run – most photos below are credited to my teammate, Tovy.

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Now it’s your turn – share with me your favorite running moment from the weekend!

Friday Favorites #11

I haven’t posted a Friday Favorites in a while and with all these pictures I took on my phone over the last week or two, this is the perfect time to share.

RRCA Coaching CertificationIMG_3476.JPG Course – I signed up for this course over 4 months ago and it finally happened. While I don’t think I would enjoy being a full-time student (I couldn’t even sit still for the 2 days), I really enjoyed the class and everything we learned. Last weekend I took the certification exam and passed! Yay! Now, I am just waiting to hear back from RRCA on being officially certified as a coach.

IMG_3478.JPGMore Plated Meals – We made 2 more meals late last week – Tamarind Beef Wraps and Duck Confit Tacos (yummy!) and ate them both in one sitting. Remember I told you we eat a lot? One of us is training for a marathon and the other one is just really supportive.

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IMG_3480.JPGFavorite Work Activity – I rarely talk about work on the blog, but this time is an exception. (P.S. I work at Stevens Institute of Technology, also my alma mater.) This week, my favorite work activity was going to our bookstore to buy 8 stuffed Attila-the-Duck mascots. I’m surprising my team next week with what I think is something cool and the ducks are a part of the surprise.

IMG_3482.JPGFirst CrossFit Class – I enjoyed a free trial CrossFit class at Brazen Athletics last night. I am ridiculously sore in my upper body today but I really enjoyed the class and can see myself maybe wanting to go on a regular basis. Full review of Brazen Athletics to come soon.

IMG_3483.JPGBanana Oat Greek Yogurt Muffins – When I found the recipe (through Pinterest, I think), I knew I had to make these immediately. I have enjoyed these delicious muffins for breakfast every morning this week. I made 12 on Sunday and have eaten 2 a day since. They are so good!

IMG_3484.JPGThursday Evening 5K – A couple of teammates and I ran NYRR’s inaugural R-U-N 5K last night. The weather was perfect. It was a cool 82 degrees with barely any humidity. The race was supposed to be a sort-of-tempo-run for me and while the pacing did work out that way, it wasn’t well executed. I didn’t get to run as much of a warm-up as I would have liked, spent most of the first 2 miles dodging people, and my body was sore from CrossFit (have I made enough excuses yet?) but I enjoyed the race. I’m still about 40 seconds off of my 5K PR but today made me feel confident that if I had rested legs, a faster race was definitely possible. After the race, we ran a short cool down and enjoyed the beautiful NYC sky over the reservoir. What a gorgeous evening!

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It has been a good week but I am looking forward to my Saturday long run with the team on Summer Streets and spending some time with friends.

What are your plans for the weekend? Especially tell me about your running plans!