It was a good running week all around! Every run this week had something lovely about it in terms of beautiful weather or just fast legs. Unfortunately, as I type this, I am forced to hold my neck at an uncomfortably stiff, still position due to one of those neck-cricks you get from “sleeping wrong” (or however the hell they get started). So, you know, I’m not feeling like much of a graceful athlete this morning. (Also, I’ve got a speed workout on this books for this evening — let’s hope I don’t make it worse.)

Monday: 4.5 Miles – Hill Repeats. Six reps up and down the hill in the cold, grey, misty near-dark. I hit the fastest paces uphill so far — and felt great! Banner run.

Tuesday: PT. Lateral leg raises, bridges, clam shells, tabletops, hip openers, plank (2:03).

Wednesday: 4 Miles. Had a gorgeous sunset run. It was bright and crisp out when I started, and by the time I finished I came home to see the most dramatic sunset (the picture above does it no justice, really). I alternated slower and faster miles and felt pretty good. I might be getting just a smidge of speed back…

Thursday: Rest. I normally do yoga on Thursdays and I have no idea why I didn’t this week. I think I wound up grading all day and missed the class.

Friday: PT. Basic hip openers. Kind of slacked off a bit.

Saturday: 7.5 Miles. There were a few light snowflakes in the air while I was out there, which really didn’t count for much in terms of real snow, but it sure added some fun for me. Snow is my favorite weather and we almost never see a single flake here. The run was nice over all — I wound up running in a different part of town because I had to run a quick errand in the morning, so the change of scene added a little interest, too. I felt strong the whole time and I’m loving that I am back to running more than just 2-3 miles.

Sunday: Rest.

Looking back, I didn’t do very well with my hip strengthening PT exercises this week — I’ll make it a goal for next week to do better. I’ve also got to plan my long run around a weekend trip, so I hope that I can fit everything in!