Road to Joy

OK.  I love my God, my husband, my kids and St. George, UT.  We're here vacationing for the week and I can't stop praising the place.  I'm out in the sun on the back porch listening to my little boy laughing in the swimming pool playing with his Dad.  Does life get any better?????  I can look up and see Green Valley Gap, snow covered mountains and red rock.  No, life does not get any better.  I'm ready to go home, load up the moving van and set up house down here.  It is SOOOOO wonderful.  If only the place came with a running babysitter I think I'd spend the rest of the year my husband will be away right here in this bastion of warmness.

I'm going to have to figure out some running routes though.  This morning I kind of wove here and there trying to find something I liked but it was either roads that were too busy so I felt like I was eating exhaust or dirt roads that led into a remoteness that I don't do anymore now that I'm married and have kids.  I have to keep living and all...can't afford to be kidnapped....who would get the kids their chocolate milk?  I'll try to do some good looking around today - I'll try hard to avoid the temptation of using the treadmill to do my mile repeats tomorrow.

1 1/4 mile warm-up, 1 1/4 mile cool-down

6x1 mile with 1/4 mile in between

 odd miles down-hill, even miles up-hill

6:44, 6:55, 6:35, 7:01, 6:37, 7:00

Not as consistent as I'd like even with the up-hill/down-hill factored in.  But it was a speed work-out not on the treadmill.  I feel good about that.

Just an easy run.  The final half-mile to our condo is pretty doggone steep and my legs felt it after getting worn-out yesterday.

Here is another thing I love about St. George - all the folks I see out biking, running and walking.  This town is motivated and it seems like they appreciate their scenery.  If a place like this is going to exist and I don't get to live here, at least I can know there are people treating it like it should be treated.

1 mile warm-up, 1 mile cool-down

1, 2, 3, 4, 4, 3, 2, 1 minutes hard with 1 minute easy in-between.

6:31, 6:24, 6:40, 6:37, 6:49, 6:41, 6:34, 6:16

Again, it was the final hill up to the condo that really kicked my trash.  I didn't feel very excited this morning about moving, but after the first interval, things got better.

I had fun watching my little boy climbing up and over rocks with a big smile on his face - although I really had to work against the Mom in me that kept saying, "be careful," "careful, ok?"  I know I didn't work hard enough against it though because my daughter parroted me on most of our hike today.

8:02 avg.  My legs felt good but I was surprised to see my pace stay up as I went along.  It felt slower to me than it was, but I'll take it.