This weekend was my company's 3rd annual work retreat to Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz, NY. It's always a fun weekend...there are 85 miles of hiking trails on the grounds, the resort is gorgeous, the staff is amazing, the food is delicious, and the beds feel like clouds!

I'd been looking forward to this weekend because last year, while training for the Brooklyn half, I ran about 11 miles on the mountain here. It felt so good because it can be tough to find very hilly routes when you train mostly in Manhattan! Plus, 11 miles in the mountains? I felt invincible! Unfortunately, my ankles have been really bothering me lately, and it's gotten to the point where even short, 5-6 mile runs leave my ankles feeling really sore and I definitely notice it more after hills. I have a hard time giving myself a break due to injury (not a tough time giving myself a break due to tiredness!) but I decided to be smart since this is marathon year and give my ankles a break.

I still ended up getting a couple of decent workouts-a hike on Saturday and a really fun but tough 45 minute rock scramble on Sunday. That one used a lot of upper body and glute strength! It's called The Labyrinth, with sections of it named the Lemon Squeeze and Fat Man's Misery. I don't mind heights (see me over there, a few hundred feet above the ground!--->) but am not a fan of small spaces. However, I was mostly ok in these tight spaces because I could still feel that I was outside, above ground, even with 10 tons of boulder just inches above me!

Also, we saw a giant Peep in New Paltz...

I've had this blogger account forever, but (apparently) never posted anything...and since my other long neglected blog is exclusively about baking, I've decided to take this one up again. I'm not even publishing this one yet, because I'm not entirely sure what it will be about...running, working on my master's degree, and trying to have fun in general? We'll see! This would have been a lot more fun last year, when I traveled to 5 different countries and had an "awesome things to do in 2011" list. But alas...

Running...well, I've been accepted and have registered for the NYC marathon. I remember the very first time I watched the marathon. I was staying on the same block as the halfway point in Queens, just as the runners come out of Brooklyn. I just went down the street to get coffee and couldn't cross the street. I think I ended up standing out there for at least an hour, just yelling and cheering for people-I thought it was so cool! I said to my (at the time) boyfriend that I really wanted to run it...but umm, I think I could run two miles, tops! It wasn't until a few years later that I decided "I want to be a runner," made a $100 bet with a friend (please note, he never did pay my winnings), signed up for the Brooklyn half-marathon, and the rest is history (with various injuries thrown in). This is my year :)

Post Brooklyn Half 2011 (funnel cake and pina colada for recovery!)

                      Three hours post Brooklyn Half 2011

More to come, as I figure out how to entertain via blog posts!