Nourished.

During our previous two clinics, we've traditionally run our first 20K run at Elk and Beaver Lakes; it's a beautiful 10K loop and we run it twice. 


Yesterday we broke with tradition and ran our one-hour recovery-week run (the first official recovery week of this new clinic) at the Lakes. It was awesome.

With sixteen runners (three guys!) and four strollers holding five kids, we were an impressive group. Of course, smaller groups quickly formed and everyone found someone to run with (for a large portion of their run at least), which always makes me happy.  


There's just something about running at the Lakes. I've run there hundreds of times, but I never tire of it; I would gladly run that loop every week. Simply put, I think it's a place that's good for my soul.

And we couldn't have asked for better running weather: overcast, but not cold, windy or raining. I know a lot of folks have complained about our lacklustre summer, but it's hard to deny that it's been fabulous running weather!

After the run, most of us met up at the lovely restaurant Nourish, at Glendale Gardens. An impressive group on the trails equals an imposing group at a tiny restaurant... Good thing they knew ahead of time that we were coming!

Thanks to all of you for yet another wonderful run. It was amazing to be able to spend the time together afterward as well; we'll have to do that again soon. :)

Two clinics in one.

My last post was the week after the Oak Bay Half Marathon and I remember after I wrote it, I was pretty sure I needed a break. In the preceding months, I had taken hundreds of photos and filmed portions of all our runs. I made several videos and was diligent in posting regularly. I think the end of the last clinic was my chance to take advantage of the maintenance phase of our training cycle and I have to say I was ready to step back. I was burnt out!

Three weeks after the Oak Bay Half came the 1st annual Goddess Run (Half Marathon, 10K and 5K) in Langford. We had several women running; at least one in each event.


I ran the Half, as did Renee, and I don't mind saying that was the toughest Half I've ever run. Yes, the route is challenging, but I knew from the start that my legs didn't have it; it wasn't my day. Even so, my result was nothing to sneeze at and the entire experience lit a fire in me that will only grow until I face that race head on next year. I don't even care all that much if I improve my time (well, of course I do); I have never felt so pummelled by a race and if I finish next year feeling good, it will be a victory.

Our newest batch of Half-Marathon trainees began the clinic June 13th. These photos are from our very first long run together. It's so great to see the majority of our last clinic (aside from our pregnant Moms!) come back for this clinic; it feels like a very big compliment. It's also wonderful to welcome some new faces to the group! It's shaping up to be a fantastic clinic.

Running Moms has also started a 10K clinic! They began June 27th and both clinics (Half and 10K) joined up today for our first long run together. The Half-Marathon clinic ran an extra half-hour; we left first and met up with the 10K clinic for the last forty-five minutes. We had fifteen people including Christy and me. Awesome.


It's an interesting exercise to accommodate two clinics with runners of so many varying abilities. I came ready this morning with a bunch of different route options to ensure everyone was able to run at their own pace and still finish the run within the allotted time. It worked well, thank goodness.


Looking forward to the coming weeks, Ladies! Just keep running!

Our "two-clinic" group this morning.