What a difference a week makes!
I’m super not fancy, but I do think it’s fun that last week I was running in Florida along the Gulf…
And today I was in SoCal along the Pacific…
I have said it 99 times, but I’ll say it again – I LOVE Long Beach. What what.
I used to drive out to the LBC every weekend when I lived in Pico and run the bike path here.
Ran by the Queen Mary.
I asked some guy to take this picture of me and ended up getting into a long conversation with him.
Unfortunately, that meant I lost my running partner and headed back solo. That is probably for the best, because I was not doing well today. My IT Band is pulling on my knee and it hurts. I was going to do another run tomorrow for a b2b, but I’m going to rest instead.
A bunch of people have been asking me what my next race is, so I really want to pin that down. I need to check and see if my IT band is good to go for a LR next weekend and then I’ll sign up for something!
When I was done and stumbling to the restroom these two new friends came up to me and asked if I was that RER girl. Yep, guilty as charged.
Ian and Donna are training for the Long Beach Full Marathon – it’ll be their first 26.2! Fun fun!!
Steve totally ditched me today on the run. He was flying with sub 8s!! I could not hang.
So, Mr. Steve ditched me 
But Leann shared watermelon 
Obviously, I’ve decided to leave Leann my cat if I die and Steve the litter box.
Then, I finally enjoyed a donut in honor of National Donut Day! (Remember I was at the airport and couldn’t find one on Friday. How tragic.) And all was right with the world.
See ya later!
Question: What are you doing this weekend?
You should do the pasadena half on June 30!
I was in Rochester NY (WAYYYY upstate NY) chillening with my family at their house on the lake. It was a great way to spend fathers day!
Was in Bali for the Bali Marathon – best weekend getaway ever!
Fun! Lucky 🙂
Take it easy on the IT band. Ice, foam roll with that killer looking one you got in Colorado, and stretch. 🙂
By the way, which app did you use for your first two pictures in this post?
They were from instagram.
Nice run, and gorgeous scenery! This weekend was all about beach, family and cookouts!
Nice one Monica. Looks like you had fun! I love long beach – it’s a great environment down there. In fact you’ve just inspired me to head over there next weekend!
I’m actually working this weekend which sucks. I love SoCal, especially San Diego, I lived there for 13 years but I now live in hot Georgia. I was just out visiting in SD and ran along the beach and it was breath taking; I’m ready to sell my house and move back. I’m wishing I was there now.
Sorry to ditch you. I had one of those great days and wanted to push it. Next time you’ll have to run wearing a mustache so you don’t get stopped so much. Thanks for coming out and running with us today.
This morning (Saturday) my husband & I volunteered at the local Sprint Distance Triathlon. We were body markers. It was fun. And for a brief moment, I wanted to do another triathlon but then I remembered that I truly am NOT good at any of those three disciplines so I’ll just stick to half marathons.
Hello Monica! It was awesome finally meeting you in person (we actually saw you at the Long Beach expo last year but we were too shy to say hi). My husband and I love reading your blog and you actually inspired us to sign up for our first marathon. Thanks for being so nice! Hope to see you around! 🙂
Great to meet you too! Thanks for saying ‘hi’! Let me know if you have any questions about training or Long Beach. See ya there!
IT band issues suck! I’m dealing with them too. I actually got a ‘sports massage’ on just my left leg two days ago and it was totally worth the money. The therapist did deep tissue massage with some stretching and some flexibility work. I am thinking I need to do it every month!
You’re such a celeb! I’ve been having shin problems but after days of RICE we will head out for a long run tomorrow 🙂 fingers crossed!
Shi problems – UGH! 🙁
Good luck. Hope they are better.
Oopsie – “SHIN”
I just got the same sneakers as you 🙂
I LOVE long beach!I stayed at a hotel right near the Queen Mary after my cruise (Hotel Maya) and never wanted to leave.
I will be at home all weekend with my dog reading and catching up on my shows.
I took a break from races for a bit but I’m ready to sign up for another one. I’m hoping that I get picked for the Nike Women’s 1/2 but if not, I’m thinking I’ll do Rock ‘n Roll LA again.
I’m not a doctor, but I went to see the best PT around for IT band issues, and after spending thousands of dollars to rehabilitate my jank leg, my takeaway was that if you stretch, foam roll, and ice really well 3 times a day, your IT band will get better. To ice well, you should use crushed ice wrapped like a package in a towel (wet ice is more effective than anything (I don’t have an efficient ice maker, so I usually use a giant bag of crushed ice so I can save the ice for the next round and it seems to work)), wrap the ice package around the outside of your knee (try to get it most of the way around) and secure it with one of those flesh-colored first aid wrap thingies (not a doctor, obv.). The 20-minute ice-compression should turn that part of your knee/IT band insertion area BRIGHT RED and it should be numb. The key is to get the numbness. This is officially the longest comment I’ve ever left. IT band issues are no bueno. Good luck!