Not a good day to be a pig in egypt...in light of the swine flu outbreak, Egypt's government has ordered a cull on all pigs in the country today. The fact that the flu is more likely to be brought from someone getting off a plane than from the pigs doesn't seem to have been considered. It seems awfully convenient in light of the fact that the q'aran bans the consumption of pork.
I have been feeling really low energy this week- not sure if I have swine flu, or it's just because it's starting to warm up and we're all getting a little burnt out from all this running. 20 miles tomorrow and then we start to taper, the marathon is in 24 days and I fly to copenhagen in 22!
Hope you're all having a good day,
xoxo C
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Monday, April 27, 2009
A night at the track..
A few pictures from tonight at the track with Mohsen and Julie. None of us felt much like running apparently (but we did-- for a bit).
Wadi run
"Wadi" means valley in Arabic- here are some pictures of a recent run at the wadi near Cairo. It's nice as the air is cleaner, but you have to watch your feet- lots of rocks and uneven ground. And wild dogs.
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Friday, April 24, 2009
Vacation over :(
So I got back from Crete on Wednesday and I have to say, I'm not very happy to be back- as a family we have gone on some pretty memorable and amazing holidays (Grand Canyon, Calgary Stampede, camping through Europe, Italy etc) but I have to say, this was probably my favourite one in recent years. It's hard to put my finger on why it was so great- certainly the company had a lot to do with it- Amanda and Kate were great vacation partners and we had a great time together, another reason is that Crete is so diverse- the landscape changes completely from 
one side of the island to another. We had days where we were hiking through a mountain Gorge in the morning and were swimming in the ocean and suntanning (with carefully applied sunscreen) in the afternoon- we also happened to be there during Greek Orthodox Easter, which was really cool as we got to partake in some local traditions. I'm going to attempt to post a video here that will be more descriptive, but in the meantime here are a few pictures. (*UPDATE: video is now posted on FB, but isn't posting here for some reason, I'll keep trying)Since I've been back it's been right back into the marathon training as today is exactly a month from the race!! I was a bit worried as I took a
complete week off running when I was away- week before I left I had run every single day and I think my body just needed a break- but it seems to have paid off- today we ran 14 miles and I felt really strong and comfortable the whole time. I'll just have to work on adding another 14 miles on top of that :$In other news, Jen and Brent are going to have a baby any day now so we are all waiting "with breath that is baited" to meet *our* little girl. Also, I have had Tegan's blog posted on my links list wrong all this time!!! Please visit it and have a look
at her amazing photography!! Sorry Teeg!Hope you're all doing well! xoxo C
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Week in review..
I realize my last few posts haven't been very descriptive- mostly because lately my life has been fairly repetitive- work, run, sleep, repeat X 6. I usually find training blogs sort of boring (apologies to my bf Simon), but as the hotel doesn't seem to be close to opening at the moment, running's probably the most exciting thing that's going on...
At home I usually swim at least 3 times a week, but here it seems to be really difficult to get pool time so I have been adding extra run workouts. This week was pretty similar to last week:
Sun: 50 min easy at the track
Mon: Stairs- 14 laps of the track, with a set of stairs during each one
Tues: Speedwork- in partners- sprint till you catch your partner who is walking, then walk and they sprint- x 6
Wed: 50 min steady run at the track- negative split
Thus: rest
Fri: 14 miles- average 10 min miles, but with a negative split
Today:1 hour easy in the desert- not my favourite running location- uneven ground and too many loose rocks, hills and wild dogs- cleaner air though.
A stock tip for you: buy shares in sports drinks- our group is drinking gatorade like it's going out of style- it's not really hot yet (still under 30C), but on the long runs it's still warm enough that you're defintely sweating and can get into serious trouble if you're not hydrating constantly- I drank 2 of the 590ml bottles on the run and one immediately after on friday. (Then washed it down with some waffles with REAL maple syrup at brunch. Myself and another runner from Quebec had to tell some of our egyptian friends what it was and how to make it- they looked sort of grossed out when we told them it came out of a tree..).
Last night (as you can see from the previous post) we had an early easter dinner- Ryan cooked and it was fabulous as usual- rack of lamb and a minted pea mash. Claire and I made the adorable bunny cake pictured here- she makes the cake every year with her Grandma but she's in Virginia, so I got the honour of filling in- we decided that her Grandma would have approved!
I have two more days of work before I fly late on Monday night to Crete to meet Kate and Amanda. I am REALLY looking forward to a holiday- I really need a break. The only drawback is that I'm supposed to do 22 miles during the time I'm away-- somehow I'm not sure if that will happen! The running shoes are getting packed so we'll see!
Okay I have to get some sleep- some of us have to work tomorrow! Enjoy your LONG weekend, lucky ducks!
xoxo C
At home I usually swim at least 3 times a week, but here it seems to be really difficult to get pool time so I have been adding extra run workouts. This week was pretty similar to last week:
Sun: 50 min easy at the track
Mon: Stairs- 14 laps of the track, with a set of stairs during each one
Tues: Speedwork- in partners- sprint till you catch your partner who is walking, then walk and they sprint- x 6
Wed: 50 min steady run at the track- negative split
Thus: rest
Fri: 14 miles- average 10 min miles, but with a negative split
Today:1 hour easy in the desert- not my favourite running location- uneven ground and too many loose rocks, hills and wild dogs- cleaner air though.
A stock tip for you: buy shares in sports drinks- our group is drinking gatorade like it's going out of style- it's not really hot yet (still under 30C), but on the long runs it's still warm enough that you're defintely sweating and can get into serious trouble if you're not hydrating constantly- I drank 2 of the 590ml bottles on the run and one immediately after on friday. (Then washed it down with some waffles with REAL maple syrup at brunch. Myself and another runner from Quebec had to tell some of our egyptian friends what it was and how to make it- they looked sort of grossed out when we told them it came out of a tree..).
Last night (as you can see from the previous post) we had an early easter dinner- Ryan cooked and it was fabulous as usual- rack of lamb and a minted pea mash. Claire and I made the adorable bunny cake pictured here- she makes the cake every year with her Grandma but she's in Virginia, so I got the honour of filling in- we decided that her Grandma would have approved!
I have two more days of work before I fly late on Monday night to Crete to meet Kate and Amanda. I am REALLY looking forward to a holiday- I really need a break. The only drawback is that I'm supposed to do 22 miles during the time I'm away-- somehow I'm not sure if that will happen! The running shoes are getting packed so we'll see!
Okay I have to get some sleep- some of us have to work tomorrow! Enjoy your LONG weekend, lucky ducks!
xoxo C
Hoppy Easter!!
A few of us got together for an early easter dinner! Hope you're all enjoying the long weekend!
xoxo C
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Which interview is more awkward?? I think it's a tie..
Apparently this happened in Feb, but I missed it...
And this was just yesterday.....
And this was just yesterday.....
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Pyramids and s'mores
Yesterday was a busy d
ay- first, about the run! I was pretty annoyed about not being able to complete last week's 17 miles because of some "GI issues" so I googled it and apparently it's pretty common in long distance running (all the blood goes to your muscles and not to digesting) so this week I followed all the rules -Thursday I had pasta for lunch, and drank tons and tons of water and was in bed at 9:30 and I had oatmeal (easily digested carbs) for breakfast Friday AM- thankfully it paid off because I had a great run! Sometimes it really makes me laugh the things we do to get a good run in here- the area we were running in (Sakkara- home to the 2nd most famous pyramids in Egypt) was a bit more rural, so we didn't have many cars, but lots and lots of donkey carts taking loads of onions, bananas, carrots etc to the markets and fruit stands in Cairo- it would seem that donkeys do not have a great turning radius. Also, I got to close to a water buffalo and got whacked by it's huge, poo-encrusted tail. Gross. No matter how you slice it, 20 miles/32KM is a long way, and the heat didn't help, but I felt strong during the run and was pretty proud of myself when we got to the pyramid at the end. When we were done we took a bus back to Michael's and had some brunch and a few games of foosball. Although a marathon is 26 miles, some training programs argue that you shouldn't do more than 20 miles in training as the strain on your body is too much- others say to do 22 and others have you run the 26 at least once. I think I'll do 22 at least, but I feel more comfortable now that I have 2o under my belt. I was waiting to make sure I could do it before I signed up for the marathon.
After the run, I really wanted to take a nap and sleep for the rest of the day, but instead, I thought I'd go camping in the desert with 20 brownies. We had a fun night, I got to dust off some of my favourite campfire songs from Narnia and the girls had a great time roasting wieners and marshmallows over the fire. As I work with mostly egyptians, it was strange for me to be around all english speakers again- eating north American food singing familiar songs- even though we were in the desert, it felt like we could have been in Anytown USA.
Here are a few pictures from the run and camping.
Special congratulations today to my beautiful cousin Tabitha, and Nate who are getting married today!! I'm so sorry I couldn't be there with you, but I hope you have a great day and I'm crossing my fingers it doesn't snow! Lots of love xoxo C
ay- first, about the run! I was pretty annoyed about not being able to complete last week's 17 miles because of some "GI issues" so I googled it and apparently it's pretty common in long distance running (all the blood goes to your muscles and not to digesting) so this week I followed all the rules -Thursday I had pasta for lunch, and drank tons and tons of water and was in bed at 9:30 and I had oatmeal (easily digested carbs) for breakfast Friday AM- thankfully it paid off because I had a great run! Sometimes it really makes me laugh the things we do to get a good run in here- the area we were running in (Sakkara- home to the 2nd most famous pyramids in Egypt) was a bit more rural, so we didn't have many cars, but lots and lots of donkey carts taking loads of onions, bananas, carrots etc to the markets and fruit stands in Cairo- it would seem that donkeys do not have a great turning radius. Also, I got to close to a water buffalo and got whacked by it's huge, poo-encrusted tail. Gross. No matter how you slice it, 20 miles/32KM is a long way, and the heat didn't help, but I felt strong during the run and was pretty proud of myself when we got to the pyramid at the end. When we were done we took a bus back to Michael's and had some brunch and a few games of foosball. Although a marathon is 26 miles, some training programs argue that you shouldn't do more than 20 miles in training as the strain on your body is too much- others say to do 22 and others have you run the 26 at least once. I think I'll do 22 at least, but I feel more comfortable now that I have 2o under my belt. I was waiting to make sure I could do it before I signed up for the marathon.After the run, I really wanted to take a nap and sleep for the rest of the day, but instead, I thought I'd go camping in the desert with 20 brownies. We had a fun night, I got to dust off some of my favourite campfire songs from Narnia and the girls had a great time roasting wieners and marshmallows over the fire. As I work with mostly egyptians, it was strange for me to be around all english speakers again- eating north American food singing familiar songs- even though we were in the desert, it felt like we could have been in Anytown USA.
Here are a few pictures from the run and camping.
Special congratulations today to my beautiful cousin Tabitha, and Nate who are getting married today!! I'm so sorry I couldn't be there with you, but I hope you have a great day and I'm crossing my fingers it doesn't snow! Lots of love xoxo C
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Week so far..
So there is one upside to not having many friends here- I have no excuses to stop me from working out!
Saturday I rested to recover from whatever was bugging my stomach on Thus and Fri, but since then I have worked out every evening: Sun night: 50min easy around the track; Mon: 12 loops with a fast 5-story staircase in each one; Last night: Speedwork- a pyramid- 1 fast, one walk, 2 fast, one walk, 3 fast, one walk, 2 fast one walk, 3 fast one walk, 2 fast one walk, 1 fast one walk- it sounds like a lot of walking but it's pretty hard actually. Tonight is another 50 min steady track workout then 20 miles (32K) on Friday AM- I hope I can do it. It's good though- the runners are fun people and there are definitely worse ways I could be spending my time here!
I still have to download pictures from earth hour so I'll post those soon. 13 days till Crete. I'm camping with Girl Scouts in the desert this weekend- Claire's troop needed some extra adults to go so I said why not! I'm trying to rememer all my good campfire songs..
Hope you're all doing well!
xoxo C
Saturday I rested to recover from whatever was bugging my stomach on Thus and Fri, but since then I have worked out every evening: Sun night: 50min easy around the track; Mon: 12 loops with a fast 5-story staircase in each one; Last night: Speedwork- a pyramid- 1 fast, one walk, 2 fast, one walk, 3 fast, one walk, 2 fast one walk, 3 fast one walk, 2 fast one walk, 1 fast one walk- it sounds like a lot of walking but it's pretty hard actually. Tonight is another 50 min steady track workout then 20 miles (32K) on Friday AM- I hope I can do it. It's good though- the runners are fun people and there are definitely worse ways I could be spending my time here!
I still have to download pictures from earth hour so I'll post those soon. 13 days till Crete. I'm camping with Girl Scouts in the desert this weekend- Claire's troop needed some extra adults to go so I said why not! I'm trying to rememer all my good campfire songs..
Hope you're all doing well!
xoxo C
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