August, I Like You!

So far, so good.  August has been alright!  I know I have many more days, but I can't complain.  Fingers crossed it continues in a positive mode. 


First thing:  I ran today.  Yippee!! It wasn't pretty, and it wasn't far, and it involved walk breaks, but I did run for the first time since June.  The leg felt pretty good but started to hurt after 2 miles so I stopped.  I know this will be a long road, but I've got nothing but time the rest of the year to improve slow and steady.  I have to admit not having any races lined up has taken pressure off of me that I wasn't aware of until it was gone.  Yes, it's important to have goals, and races usually are a great way to get me moving and motivated.  But sometimes this can create a stress for me to do better and better--which, let's face it--isn't going to happen.  I've been running for almost 10 years and I'm slower, rather than faster than I used to be.  If I worked really hard and let running be my main focus, I probably could improve quite a bit.  But do I want to?  I don't know.  I just want to be able to run and enjoy it.  So, today was day one!  I am going to start keeping track of my running again.  This is something I did not do very well in the past year and I can certainly say it really is critical to the mental game.  Re-reading past entries reinforces the improvements you feel in your body.  So I'm pulling out the running journal and starting with today's run.  It also helps that the YMCA is starting their 2012-2013 work-out  tracking system today.  I didn't do it at all last year, so this year I'm determined to keep adding to it every week--either running or biking.  


I have had the past week off--tomorrow it's back to work.  I did go bike riding and enjoyed it--except for the near crash on Saturday.  I wasn't paying attention.  Sorry man on the bike I almost ran into.  I promise to be aware next time.    It's still hot here, but I managed to get in a few rides before it got oppressive.  Compared to the temps we had a few weeks ago, it is not so bad.  But it does require air conditioning.  I've come to accept that my air will be running for the next few weeks.  This has been the hottest summer we've had for quite awhile, and the drought just makes it worse.  It's terrible to drive past the corn fields and see the corn all yellow and brown.  Hard to miss here--corn is everywhere!


The garden.  Oh, the garden.  I did find a hollyhock blooming this morning:

Other than that, plants are waving the white flag.  I've begun cutting hostas  and all my lily plants down.  It's a bit early, but they're dead or nearly there.  I guess this means I'll be able to spend more time this Fall riding my bike or running since the yard work will already be done.  Fingers crossed perennials will pop back up next year.  


So what can I expect from August?  
* A steady diet of running 3 times a week
* Bike riding 
*More ice cream recipes to make.  I'm loving the strawberry/banana frozen yogurt I made earlier this week.
*Reading enough books to hit 100 (as of today I have 10 to go!)
*Bombarding Bud with more new recipes.  Poor guy.
*House cleaning projects I ignored while on vacation this week.
*Alcohol consumption.  This happens every month week.  Not too much and not every day.  Iced tea is still the beverage of choice!