Category Archives: Jog stroller runs

Words From Little Mouths

Posted on by

My daughter, Currie, woke at 5:45am today so I didn’t run in the morning. Instead we met a friend at a coffee shop then went to a playground. We hit up the tennis courts where Currie proclaimed “I can do a burpee by myself”! It’s funny because I don’t think I talk about burpees often, especially since I know them as “squat thrusts” from high school. Apparently, I’ve brought them up a few times…

squat thrust and burpee

She went on to do a pretty good version of a burpee for a 2-year-old.

Then she showed me some more tricks she had up her sleeve, including:

toddler yoga move

toddler yoga

I think I’ve done both of those moves in yoga class!

I want my daughter to have an active lifestyle, but I don’t care if she ever decides to run. I think she’s likely to be a runner because my husband and I both love running, but it’s a decision she will have to make for herself someday. For now, I get a kick out of hearing her proudly say things like “Mommy, I’m a runner!” Or witnessing her amazement with the Olympic gymnastics coverage and saying, “whoa, I want to learn that someday!” when a young lady completes an impressive vault.

I started thinking how words from little mouths explain a lot about ourselves. Things I do around the home really influence Currie. I’m very fitness focused, and it shows through our daughter’s words, actions and interests. I notice my own words and actions more as she grows. I never really counted a plank here or some dips on the park bench as actual exercise until I saw her imitating and realized it really all adds up. I’m not a perfect parent, but I’m glad I can see some positives in my life rubbing off on Currie.

With that said, I finally got my run in the afternoon. We desperately needed groceries and we don’t have a rental car now so I stroller ran the long way to the Trader Joes and packed the bottom of the stroller full of breads and produce then ran the shorter way home. I’m hoping to catch some Olympics coverage tonight!

Do you sneak exercises into your daily life? Any cute stories of toddlers imitating? I love a cute toddler story!

 

 

My Friday Run

Posted on by

I had the running stroller and I was on the Bridle Trails. Here is what I saw:

bridle trail, steep sign

First this...

downhill at bridle trail

then this...

Can you tell how steep the hill was by this picture? No way. If a sign is needed to tell you there’s a steep hill ahead, it’s probably not the best idea to bring a jog stroller on it. Thankfully, we came out alive. My daughter sure does see a lot of adventure in her life (especially for a 2 year old)! Thanks for another adventure, Seattle!

A Big Week Ahead

Posted on by

Today is an exciting and somewhat stressful day as I complete my packing and house preparation so I can live across the country for the next 2 months! The trip starts with me flying solo to Eugene to watch the track & field Olympic Trials and walk the RUNway at the Oiselle fashion show.  After the Trials, I’m headed to Seattle to meet my daughter and husband at the condo where we will be living for the next few months, thanks to a summer position my husband secured a few weeks ago. I’ve been feeling really blessed lately and thankful for all the opportunities my family has been given. I am so excited for the next few months!

As far as running goes, after the Airport 5k on Saturday my husband and I did a 3.5 mile shakeout pushing our daughter in the stroller and ending at the grocery store. We didn’t get a cooldown in the morning after racing so we figured we should get a little running in that evening. The next morning we decided to attempt another run together – a 10 mile run with the jog stroller. I was excited because I love running with my husband. I was less than excited about how our daughter would react for 10 miles since 6 miles is usually her absolute limit. I thought about a great blog post I read on Salty Running on the rules of jog stroller running, especially tip #3 and I decided we were going to make it 10 miles. We really deserved 80 minutes of run time together! It ended up being my favorite stroller run ever. Our daughter sang to us and entertained us and the other people on the trails for the first 9 miles! She fell asleep the last mile or so and perfectly transferred down for her nap after the run. So glad we did that run together. It was awesome family bonding and gave me confidence for longer stroller runs in Seattle!

On Monday my in-laws came into town to watch our daughter because Jeff was headed to Boston Tuesday morning and I’m headed to Eugene on Thursday and we needed someone to watch our daughter on Thursday while we were both out of town. Since the in-laws are here, Jeff and I ran together both mornings. The weather was perfect – cool and sunny and we got our 10k-a-day done both days, nice and easy.

There’s the week so far! Can’t wait to report on my trip to the Trials! Hoping to get some pics of fast runners to share!

racing prize money

Just found another awkward post-race photo from a few weeks ago

What are you excited about this week?

Old Seattle Favorites

Posted on by

Whenever we come back to Seattle for a visit, I try to run all my favorite routes. I never get to run everything because Seattle is filled with gorgeous runs and even a week isn’t enough time to see it all. Although my neighborhood route doesn’t showcase all of Seattle’s running beauty, it’s the one route I make sure to do each time I’m back. Ah… memories!

Yesterday we were dealing with a steady, heavy rain most of the day in Seattle. I forgot to pack the weather shield for the BOB stroller (how did I forget this for Seattle?!) so I knew I would have to wait out the rain. Around 3pm I spotted a break in the clouds and immediately threw on my running gear and ran out the door.

We ran from the University District to Green Lake via our “green belt”. I love this grassy stretch that runs between 2 lanes of NE Ravenna Blvd. I used to run it every day and never grew tired of it.

grass running in seattle

Area we would call "green belt" where we could run from our apartment near Green Lake to Cowen Park, completely on grass.

baby in jogging stroller at greenlake

Picture of the little lady along Green Lake

kid of playground at green lake

Super excited about being stopped at the playground!

kid of playground at green lake

The playground is even more fun when you've been waiting for the rain to stop all day!

kid playing at greenlake

After stopping at playground number #1 at Green Lake, we ran to Ravenna/Cowen Park where we found playground number #2 and played a short while. Normally, I wouldn’t stop at a playground until the end, but this was just supposed to be an easy, possibly pre-race run so I figured we could make a few fun stops. The little lady wanted to run so I pushed the empty stroller and she ran beside me the whole distance of the Ravenna/Cowen Park trail! We went back to the hotel on the Burke-Gilman trail and I started to realize I underestimated the length of the run in my head. I was feeling pretty tired and looked at my phone to see we were gone for 2 hours (playing, running, last half mile walking).

Running through cowen park

Ravenna/Cowen Park

cowen park

Ravenna/Cowen Park

It looks like I’m going to race the Fremont 5k today! Should be fun. I’m excited both to race, and have it be a race in Seattle!

Are you racing this weekend? Do you run with a stroller and let your kid(s) get out and enjoy some playtime mid-run? Do you love running in cities where you used to live?

 

Mother’s Day Run

Posted on by

I love being married to a runner, but it definitely makes my training harder. Every Sunday is a challenge as my husband usually sleeps in after working late and I hang out with our daughter. When he gets up, he usually does something fun with our daughter while I clock some miles solo or he does a run with his running group Roadkill Racing and I wait to run when they’ve finished. If we both do long runs, it’s hard to fit everything in because we always have full schedules on the weekends.

On Mother’s Day, I planned to run long-ish, maybe 10-12 miles solo, but the day had other things in store. We had a wedding and family stuff scheduled all day and my only opportunity to run ended up being with my little lady in the jog stroller. We left straight from my house, which takes us on some pretty rugged terrain. We only made it 6.54 miles due to my little girl’s desire to be done, but I’d say we could count it as about 10 miles, right?!

2 year old in jogging stroller, reading a musical book

Check out the trail! It uses every muscle in my upper body to keep the stroller on the trail and out of the weeds!

I was happy to get the 6.5 miles in on such a hectic day. The great thing about post-collegiate running is I can make my own schedule and move workouts to days that fit better with my life. Gonna do about 12 miles tomorrow.

mom and daughter with jogging stroller

Happy mommy and daughter after Mother's Day run

Do you struggle with balancing life and running? Are you okay moving workouts to another day of the week so they fit your life better? Do you want to come to Rochester and help me push my daughter on these trails? :)