It was twenty-eight degrees when I met Ashley for our run tonight. We wanted to do speed work, but the track had about an inch of snow on it, so laps around the high school it had to be. We chatted as normal, but our conversation quickly turned to the cold weather and vitamin C.

And then I remembered this fall I read an article about the importance of Vitamin C for cold-weather runners. A little Google-action led me to the article at Naturally Engineered. (Great blog. If you don’t read it, you should.) There are a number of other results relating to the cold weather/running/vitamin C connection, but this is the original article that I read a few months ago.

Basically, runners who spend a lot of time in the cold need extra vitamin C for two reasons:

1. The obvious boost in immunity. Cold weather lowers the body’s defense to germs which increases the chance of infection. Vitamin C supports the immune system.
2. Vitamin C is critical in the anti-inflammatory response the body performs after intense exercise to heal the muscles.

So it’s one thing to take vitamin C because it’s cold outside, but our vitamin C intake needs to increase dramatically because, as runners, we need twice as much! And the good news is that vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin, so you can essentially take enough to make your pee turn orange. You obviously don’t NEED that much if you’re peeing it out, but the point is that and excess of vitamin C won’t harm you.

So whenever I came home, i added a packet of raspberry Emergen-C to a cup of green tea. Deeeelicious! And good for my cold, sore legs.

Drink up!

What are some ways you get vitamin C in your diet?

It’s January 1st and time to write that obligatory “new year’s resolution post.” But I don’t really want to.

I’m not exactly big on the new year’s resolution fad and I also know and accept that I never finish anything I start, so even if I made it my 2012 resolution to finish what I start, I know I’m just setting myself up for failure and who wants to start a new year off like that?

Exactly.

But in 2011 I had an unspoken resolution to not step foot on a treadmill, which I’m happy to report I was successful at completing. AND I trained for a marathon during the harsh winter months in Pittsburgh. Spring marathons rock. So does running in the snow. I suggest you try it this year.

I feel like I write the same thing every new year. So this time, I think I’ll just write down some things that I’m looking forward to in 2012 and maybe some things that can help me as I work towards them.

1) Run the DC Rock ‘n’ Roll Half marathon with my college roommates Amanda and Amanda on March 17th. Since my “Back on {the} track” challenge I have worked my weekly mileage up to about 20 miles, which is still really low for me AND for training. I want to run this race as fast as my little legs can carry me (I don’t have a specific time goal right now), but I do know that to optimize my speed, I need to do two things:

1. Run A LOT. The more familiar my body is running, the easier it gets and the faster it goes. I want to build my weekly mileage while training to about 40ish miles. I will be writing a specific training plan this week so I’ll let you know as I know more.
2. Hit the track. Speed work sucks, but I have found that it is both effective AND entertaining. I’ve never had a 9 mile run fly so quickly as when I’m running intervals around the track. It doesn’t make sense, but trust me. It works.

2) Go the Rome! The trip is booked (just a few days after the half mary!). Not much to do except justify all clothing purchases with the phrase, “It’s for my trip!” It’s amazing how those four little words can so easily soothe my conscience. They have yet to prove effective on my husband.

Those are my only two big plans for 2012 at this point. I may run some other races around the half marathon distance and I at this point I have not committed to the Pittsburgh marathon, but I haven’t ruled it out completely either. I know I have a sub 4 hour marathon in me, I just am looking for the impetus at this point.

Or just a really flat course.

My other plans are to focus much more on the eternal. Reading my Bible more, praying more, serving more, and reading more books that will help me to better understand God and His word. These things aren’t and never have been the focus of this blog so I don’t know how much of that adventure will end up here. Mainly because I think a lot of that is personal and I don’t want it on the inter webs. But I want you all to know the REAL Abby. I hope that if you ever met me in real life, you would say, “she’s just like how she is on her blog.”

Which brings to another thing:

This blog.

I don’t know where it will go in 2012. I don’t know what I want Abby Normally to be. I love to write and I love all of you, but I’m in awkward growing stage and don’t know where I want to go. I don’t want to write just to write, but at the same time, I love to write just to write. But above all, I want to be genuine. So I’ll be working on that this year too.

And now I’m blabbing. Maybe I’ll try to quit rambling in 2012. But like the resolution to finish what I start, I’m just setting myself up for failure.

Did you see that? I brought this blog post full circle. It’s like I actually finished it as one complete and coherent (no comment please) writing. Who am I?

The 2012 Abby. That’s who.

Look at me. Finishing things.

What are your 2012 plans?

It’s National Bacon Day.

So I just had a bite of bacon. I think that’s my first bite of red meat in about 6 years. And it wasn’t too bad.

That is all.

Bye-bye.

There are so many reasons why I love my Christmas break.

1) I don’t have to work.

2) I get paid for it.

Amazing, right? But really, there are other reasons. Last year, Dave and I spent the week between Christmas and New Years working on our new house, but this year we’re settled and Dave’s been working some so I have almost unlimited time to myself. It’s the best time to recharge. Let’s look at it:

• Family time! Because of the time off this year, my family celebrated Christmas on the 26th. This left the 25th for the in-laws/ grandparents and then we all enjoyed a Cruse Family Christmas the morning of the 26th and didn’t have to rush to get to our other Christmases. My parents also come out on New Years Day for a pork and sauerkraut meal. This year, I may even eat some pork!
  
  
  
  
    
• Running. Not only did I get a bunch of winter running clothes (and money towards a spring race!), but this week is the best time I have to get out there and focus on getting lots of miles in. I don’t even always wear my Garmin because I don’t care about time, just distance. Slow and steady and beautiful scenery–and if I’m lucky, some snow!
• Reading! Reading is one of my favorite pastimes but I don’t have a lot of time for it. But this week is the best time to catch up on the books that I want to read and finish. This morning I woke up and finished a book with a cup of coffee. It was glorious! Can I start every morning like that? Answer: Yes. If I want to wake up at 5 am everyday.
• Catching up! Lunch with Susan and I have a date with a few other friends on Saturday. I may live in Pittsburgh, but I work 40 minutes away and so my free time disappears quickly when I’m working. But a 3-hour lunch with Susan was overdue and I’m thankful to have the time to spend with such a wonderful person!
    
• Odds and Ends. You know those random tasks that you have to do but have a hard time squeezing it in? Like returning things and doing crafts and cleaning some things that are often neglected? I get to do all of those. I even got crafty and made these prints for our dining room and go with our new tablecloth.
    
  (next I will get rid of that ugly light fixture)

Hope you are all enjoying your week–whether or not you have off!

Well, it’s time to get ready for the Pens v. Flyers game! If you’re a Pens fan and not excited about this game, you don’t get it. LET’S GO PENS!

P.S. I updated my photography blog a couple of days ago.

2007:

2008:

2009:

2010:

And now…

2011:

We can call this photo series “The Evolution of Abby’s Hair.”

Merry Christmas! Round #2 in the morning!