Chapter three, career wise, began today. To be honest, it seemed quite similar to my NYC agency life...which should make the transition quite easy. But like any day of doing new things, I was pretty exhausted when returning home. I think I have to dig real deep to find that sweet, innocent, acceptable "Corre" when meeting 150+ new people. I have never loved that side.

So when I got home, I was determined to get outside & get into a new routine. But today wasn't my day. Missing speed workouts, missing friends, missing my old routine life just overwhelmed me & brought me to a walking pace while trying to take on a few hills.

I wouldn't say I am sad, just struggling a bit I guess.

Distance: maybe 3 miles
State of Mind: I know things will change, I know.

Try & try again, at least that is what has worked for me. So with my body still feeling pretty awful & the memory of yesterday fresh in my mind, I decided to give it another go & head out for the Holly Hills loop. Surprisingly, I felt a 100 times better today, so strange how your body can literally heal itself overnight.

Distance: 4.5 miles
State of Mind: Goodbye freedom, hello corporate world.

Man, that half took a lot out of me. Although my time was nothing to be proud of, my effort was sure there. At least from what I can tell from my energy level today.

With my "vacation time" extremely limited, I decided that I needed to get the most out of my remaining freedom & get outside to enjoy the sun.

I have to say that today was one of the hardest runs I have done in a long time. My body had nothing to give & no matter how much I pushed...I just kept feeling worse & worse.

Distance: 6.3 miles
State of Mind: Not what I was expecting...

Ran the Mountains to Sound relay race today, it was so much fun. But more importantly, it was a great test to see where my endurance is. My team consisted of 4 project management-type construction guys from the Seattle area, all very nice & kind hearted. The race started in Snoqualmie Pass & ended in downtown Seattle near Golden Gardens Park. I was the fourth of five legs, with my entire run being on the Burke-Gilman Trail which offers amazing views of Lake Washington & all the cute neighborhoods that surround it.

As far as my leg went, I felt in control for about the first 7 miles. After mile 7, my body broke down a bit & I felt my lack of training since leaving NYC. Using my experience from Phoenix, when I took down any fluids or gu, I took it easy running for a few hundred meters to let everything settle in...which really helped my stomach keep the fuel down. At about mile 11 though, I threw up a bit in my mouth. Nothing unusual for me, but surprised me as I was actually feeling relatively good.

Since my team was so fast, we started my leg in 5th place. I was passed three times (gulp) during my leg, all by super fit men in their early 30's. My that was hard, knowing I was letting my team down. Thankfully, the last leg was ran by a super fast guy that made up 2 spots...leaving us in 6th overall at the end of the race. Not bad, if I say so myself.

Now to take it easy until after the 4th of July when I will start training hard for the Bellingham Bay Half Marathon. So very excited to run in my old college town. It should be a good time to reflect the last decade on the last decade of my life.

Distance: 13.1 miles in about 1:41 or 1:42 (bad results)
State of Mind: My body needs a lot of work.

As a blunt new way to make running-type friends in the Seattle area, I volunteered myself to participate in the running leg of a major Washington relay this weekend called Mountains to Sound. As a very nice surprise, a group of guys from a local major construction company (think Experience Music Project, Seattle Library) asked me to join their team, to run the half marathon leg this Sunday.

Only issue is they want me to go fast. I mean real fast. Faster than I have ever gone in that distance, as they are hoping to get top 10 & possibly place in the top 3.

So, instead of running hard toward the end of this week, I am recovering. Resting. Feeding myself a lot of food. So today, I did a simple track run. Just loop after loop, treating myself to a slow pace.

Distance: 4 miles
State of Mind: What ever have I gotten myself into.

Feeling pretty recovered from the trail run yesterday, I opted to keep my NYC routine & get in some healing yoga. Although I am not practicing with a teacher, I found myself focusing all my attention on my form & thought...trying to keep the balance that I have been working on for oh so long. Plus, I practiced outdoors, with gardens & sun surrounding me.

Distance: n/a
State of Mind: Variety feels so good, but I need some hard miles.

To celebrate N's birthday, we decided to head out of town for the afternoon & hit up the North Cascades. The beauty in Washington is pretty incredible, something I forgot about & something I am trying to absorb each day. It is all very similar, tons of old-growth forest & more than enough room to get lost in your head.

We decided to do a trail near Arlington called Boulder River. We followed a trail alongside the river, passing multiple waterfalls, beautiful river sightings & a ton of tiny wildlife. I purposely chose a trail that didn't have a tough elevation climb as I wanted us to be able to trail run most of the route...which is exactly what we did.

Distance: 8 miles
State of Mind: Running trails is going to take time to get good at.