Another trip where I didn't run

I want to run when traveling, I really do. It just never happens.

I prepare: I pack my beautiful Brooks shoes and all the necessary running clothes and accessories. I even pack my Garmin. But, it's just wasting space in my suitcase.

As good as my intentions are, it rarely happens. This makes me a little nervous for my half marathon on Sunday ...

But, the good news is I had a fabulous trip. 

It started with fabulous barbecue in Kansas City (and a few pickles).

Next up ...

This lead to these being purchased.

Holy crap! These are good. Trader Joe's calls them inside-out carrot cake cookies, but they are more like an icing sandwich. Yum. 

It also lead to a healthier photo op.

My dad thinks the Brussels sprouts on the stalk are cool. I do, too. 

Later that evening, we went to my brother and sister-in-law's house for dinner. After dinner, Rodeo took inappropriate photos with my brother.

The next day was the main event: Kansas State Wildcats vs. Texas Longhorns.

Tailgating (and many "horns down") ensued.

Eric only brought dress pants.

We had fun coloring our hair purple.

The results were fairly awesome.

And the game was fairly awesome, too (and required more "horns down").

Since the Wildcats won and are Big 12 Champions, after the game was pretty sweet, too.

So, I didn't run. But, I had fun. And I ran Tuesday night, and I'll run Thursday night. And my half marathon on Sunday will go fabulously ... I think.

Do you run when traveling? If so, how do you do it? Have you been to Trader Joe's? Are you a fan? Ever storm a college football field?

This week in running: week 3

I knew that week 3 of half marathon training would be a challenge because I'd be traveling (for two of the three runs). I'm not great about running while traveling. Plus I really like my training group, so missing two days with them didn't sound all that fabulous (but a vacation did).

Tuesday

This run started off great. My running buddy and I were moving along at a great pace, and things felt right ... except for the fact that we felt like something was about to go wrong. We were right.

The wind that pushed us along in the first half of our run fought against us during the second half. This wind was the remnants of Hurricane Isaac, so it was rather beastly. And rude. Stupid wind kept pushing us off the path.

The water is pretty, but it added to the wind problem.

All of the fighting against the wind caused a few walk breaks, but really, I'm still pretty happy with the run considering the conditions. We finished in 1:02.  

Distance: 5 miles

Thursday  

This run is brought to you by the great state of Texas. My boyfriend is doing contract work in Ft. Worth, so I went to visit for a few days before we both headed to Kansas to visit family. 

He was working all day Thursday, so I had the day to myself and could decide when I wanted to run. I decided to sleep most of the morning away, so morning was out (as was running outside ... it's toasty in Texas). 

I hit up the treadmill for an early afternoon run, and it was extremely miserable. I'm not sure what was up, but I felt horrible (and nauseous when I was done). All I can say is that I did it; I ran for the 45 minutes on the schedule. That's the only positive.

Distance: 3.6 miles

Sunday

This was going to be my triumphant run in the third state this week. Notice: going to be. Sadly, it didn't happen.

Due to allergies (and asthma) and family activities, I did not run on Sunday. We had a jam-packed family day, and I wouldn't have traded any of it for running (as much as I love running).

I flew back to Florida on Monday, and I thought I'd run on Monday night. No dice. I was exhausted (and still wheezing from allergies). 

Distance: 0 miles (should be 5 miles)

I need help. Do I make up the run at this point? Or do I just skip it? If I have time on Friday, should I squeeze in some extra miles? Do you make up missed runs? I'm usually good about it, but I feel like I let this one go too long.

Road trips: you're not my favorite

I'm currently packing and cleaning and getting ready to start driving to South Carolina. I'm not excited about it. I hate long car rides, and this one is double-digit hours. So while trying to avoid the inevitable, I decided to be random.

• Yay for Jessica Simpson and her baby girl, Maxwell Drew, being on the cover of People! I'm getting it to take on my road trip. Oh, wait ... I guess I should focus on driving. I probably can't be trusted with it in the car.

I love them! (source)

• Speaking of road trips, I loathe them. (Did I mention this? Well, it's worth mentioning again and again.) I'd fly everywhere if I could. Chloe appreciates me driving, though.

• I want to like road trips. They sound like they could be fun. Maybe with the right people, music, snacks and destination? I don't know. I think I'll still find sitting in a car for hours and hours and hours tedious.
• If you're asking yourself, "Didn't Jina just return from a trip?", you'd be correct. I did. I wouldn't plan it like this, but you can't schedule graduations when you want. 
•  I struggle with running while traveling. I prepare. I pack my running clothes. I schedule when I'll run, and then ... nothing. I know most people love exploring a city by running. That scares me. I like knowing where I am and how I can get back to where I started (the safe way).
• Back to Jessica Simpson (I find myself saying that constantly), as predicted she joined forces with Weight Watchers to lose the baby weight. She is so darn smart, even if she thinks buffalo wings are from buffaloes.