Filling up the hours everyday!

I love spring time in Minnesota! The weather in incredible and everyone is ecstatic to get outside and enjoy the warmer weather (especially this year when there was a record 30+ days below zero!). As Brian packed up and jetted off to his home state of Washington I decided to hunker down and NOT TRAVEL for a couple of weeks! The decision was hard as I knew I was going to miss Brian and our adventures together but I knew I would benefit greatly from some much needed consistency! Brian went off and has been giving talks and presentations galore to his (our) huge support network in the Pacific Northwest! This was our presentation in North Western Iowa!!!

So for the past few weeks I have been holding down the fort (our home) and watching Lahti (our husky). I am desperately trying to d the things that responsible home owners do (especially ones who are not away for 9 months of the year) like grow grass where there is dirt (this prevents the dirt from flowing into our neighbors year every time it rains), raking the leaves out of the existing grass and then staying up on mowing the grass! So far so good, our lawn looks good even if there are a few dandelions that pop up (I refuse to use weed-killer!).

I have also been getting into see the kids at the Boys and Girls Club quite a bit! Our Run Club numbers are growing and we are quickly approaching the need for another sheet which means we are almost at 50 and it's not even June yet. Unfortunately the weather hasn't been cooperating everyday I have been up to the club so we sometimes have to improvise with different activities. I have been taking Crossfit so I used the concept of a workout of the day to try and get in some indoor exercise. Sit-ups, push-ups, burpees, lunges, and balance drills have been keeping the kids' blood pumping when the rain is pouring. We have also had a few days of goal setting, where we talk about short and long term goals and write them down to share on the Run Club board. The goals do not have to be about health and fitness only and I encourage more than one goal as well.

On the days we do get outside the kids have been logging the miles! We have a 2 mile minimum to join this year and with almost 50 kids signed up...we are way over 100 miles total! Just like last year our friend Everett Myers at Fruitshare has been extremely generous and has been donating Organic Fruit for the kids as post-workout snacks!

I have also been spending a lot of time with local training groups throughout the Twin Cities and have participated in a number of locally sponsored events and races. I have said this many times before, but I am sure I could find a different group or person to go training with everyday I am home throughout the summer! This is why I love living here and why I am excited to spend a little more time closer to home this spring and summer! With World Championships at Sea Level I am pretty excited to maximize my training and minimize my travel before then!

My own training continues to go well and my focus is pretty high with World Cup Starts this fall! I am making another big training push this year with a huge focus on technique and strength! I have been nursing a hamstring injury for the past couple of years and this year I have access to great care and support from the USOC doctors because of Brian's Olympic debut :) My "team" includes strength coaches, PT's, Surgeons, Massage Therapists and Chiropractors! This is way beyond any type of support I have ever received and I am extremely excited to see where this rehab can get me!

On Friday I leave to join Brian and the rest of Team Gregg at the annual Ski to Sea race held in Bellingham, WA. Brian and I consider this race to be the first race of the new season! So 2015 is about to start :) I am very stoked about our new partnership with In-the-Arena and LLBean. Our LLBean merchandise just came in and I cannot wait to put them to use this weekend. Two way radios (for splits, general communication at events), A four person rugged tent (for camping at events and training locations), amazing Rain Jackets (very handy for the Ski to Sea race!!!), a Team Gregg Door Mat (so you know who lives at our house!) and tons of great clothes for training and casual wear from the LLBean Signature line! Of course no LLBean experience would be complete without the famous LLBean Tote Bag! Brian and I each got one with the ITA logo and I have been using it almost everyday! They are so cute but totally functional as a heavy duty
carry-all!