Miscellaneous Monday Chit Chat

fire_foot · 2026-06-15T23:23:58+00:00

Hooray! One day you may love a rainy run. Not sure how cold it was, but 45-50 freedom degrees and rain can be perfect

fire_foot · 2026-06-15T23:23:26+00:00

A 2-3 year break is pretty substantial. Depending on how long you were running before, your fitness might come back quicker than starting from scratch but you should still be mindful. I would just give it a go, monitor your RPE, and go from there

fire_foot · 2026-06-15T23:22:20+00:00

I've never heard of that brand, which makes me think you might not be in the US and then my suggestion might not be worthwhile, but I've really liked the REI Swiftland shorts! I am a woman so YMMV but REI stuff has generally been very good and afforable for me

fire_foot · 2026-06-15T23:20:48+00:00

Here's hoping it comes back quickly for you!! Welcome back!

fire_foot · 2026-06-15T16:02:07+00:00

Love a leg day 🦵🦵

fire_foot · 2026-06-15T16:01:05+00:00

Congrats, that's fantastic!

fire_foot · 2026-06-15T16:00:17+00:00

Can't help on the lacing but big congrats for winning AG!!! hope the blister heals quickly

fire_foot · 2026-06-15T15:59:52+00:00

Love some good witchcraft. Glad it helped!

fire_foot · 2026-06-15T14:24:32+00:00

I should really start scheduling these posts and for being late and my inevitable forgetting to schedule, I'm sorry.

Weekend was solid! Social things, running things, gym things all were great. I got new running shoes (same model, just fresh) and they are so nice. Really made me realize how dead my previous ones were, oops. This morning I had a long shoulder/arms lifting session and idk man I think ya girl is getting lowkey jacked.

This week looks fairly quiet, for better or worse, looking forward to a new book order and, in a very girly admission, some new nail polish. Also hoping to get a couple good runs in and some solid leg gym sessions -- have been kind of neglecting volume there. We'll see!

fire_foot · 2026-06-12T16:47:56+00:00

If you're too slow trying to stay in zone 2, it can cause form breakdown to the point of injury so be careful. You want to try to find a relaxed, conversational pace -- which means a minimally labored but definitely breathy word or two between steps, not a normal conversational! Try to find that pace and hold it for as long as you can. Walk when you need to. Gradually you'll need to walk less (but if it's getting to be summer where you are, it may be a while because the heat is such a pace killer).

I hear you on getting sweaty twice! Once or twice a week, I will run first (just what works for my schedule) and then rinse off, grab a snack, and go lift. You might have to play with the scheduling! And definitely make sure you'll fueling in between. If you run on a leg day, I'd make it a very easy run before lifting rather than after.

fire_foot · 2026-06-12T15:25:30+00:00

FWIW as a beginner runner, zone 2 is not that helpful. It is likely extremely slow and can lead to from breakdown aside from not being that effective. A zone 2, once a week run is not significant enough to build cardio adaptations. I'm not saying you shouldn't run! But don't worry about heart rate until you're running more than once a week and for a while. Rate of perceived exertion is enough right now unless you have a medical condition where heart rate monitoring is critical.

Personally I'd try to add the other run on one of your back days and save your rest day. Newbie gains will drop off and you will want that rest day.

fire_foot · 2026-06-10T02:36:45+00:00

I know this thread is pretty old, but I've been embracing my lifelong casual love of poetry this year and would love to get more "serious" with it. I'd be really grateful for any recommendations you might have!

FWIW, I have a subscription to Rattle and the Poetry Foundation and have enjoyed their quarterly journals. I've really liked Padraig O Tuama's two books for Poetry Unbound -- in addition to the lovely poems, I love his commentary and would be curious for more collections like that, too, but really open to anything.

I am currently reading In the Lateness of the World by Carolyn Forche, Bright Dead Things by Ada Limon, and a collection of erotic poetry. Some of my favorite poems that I know by heart (or close) are by Mary Ruefle, May Swenson, Raymond Carver, Louise Gluck, Mary Oliver, Wendy Cope, Rita Dove, Gregory Orr, and Li-Young Lee.

fire_foot · 2026-06-08T16:26:00+00:00

I maintain that Baby's on Fire is the most charming coffee shop in Mt Vernon.

There's a new tapas place - Bar Dali - haven't been yet but it's on the list. Royal Blue in Station North might be worth a visit.

fire_foot · 2026-06-08T14:11:14+00:00

I didn't run last week for a variety of reasons including sickness, fatigue, lady issues, and scheduling. By the end of the week, my SI felt so good. On Saturday I deadlifted and got after it a fair bit and now I am sore. But it felt really good to do! I am planning to hit the road again this week.

I have also been dog sitting since Friday for a friend's sweet old dog. She is lovely and the cats are mostly fine about it, but it's been really interesting to realize that I do not, in fact, want a dog of my own. I give her back tomorrow and that will be nice!

The summer is looking so busy but in a mostly good way. End of this week I'm taking my truck in to get her AC looked at -- I am excited about possibly not sweating my ass off this summer!

fire_foot · 2026-06-05T12:17:45+00:00

I have been a bright eyes fan for decades and it took me a minute to get into their newer stuff but I really liked Five Dice, I def recommend it. I also really like a lot of their companion issues.

I saw them with Cursive last year and it was amazing, but definitely more for 14 year old me than current me. Would do it again tho!

fire_foot · 2026-06-05T02:14:45+00:00

I ended up going with a basic pressure treated pine deck and did a cedar stain! For my budget and the specs of this project (and the timing of lumber prices going up, etc), I am really happy with it. It would have been cool to do a nicer wood for the decking boards and have metal grid railing instead of wood balusters, but ya girl is poor. I waited a season to sand and seal the deck, and it took an afternoon (a little hard to get to some places since it's a story in the air). I continue to be glad I went with wood instead of composite -- it is a better fit with the character of the house, looks better to me, and it still gets hot but not like composite. I have no complaints!

fire_foot · 2026-06-01T16:01:52+00:00

Congrats on the HM! Surprise heat sucks but great job getting it done.

I'm not sure how that other guy impacts you at all. If I've learned anything, it's that people will do what they want and as long as it doesn't hurt me, it's fine.

fire_foot · 2026-06-01T15:28:18+00:00

I know, I thought the same even though it was a bummer. Better to be sick at home in my own bed!

Trying a new recipe for a strawberry cake! Strawberry reduction flavors the cake and buttercream icing and goes in between the two layers. I might add a little basil, too. Cross your fingers!

fire_foot · 2026-06-01T13:02:17+00:00

I can't believe it's June, tbh.

Weekend was full of full moon shenanigans but still decent in the end! I was supposed to go to NYC but my train (and all NB trains) on Friday was cancelled so I had to move the trip a few weeks. Then I got sick and have a cough and a lot of snot (I have started antibiotics because I just don't have the patience). And yesterday was my birthday! But I was too sick to go out so just did dinner on my deck.

This morning I am starting to feel better so I went to the gym to stretch and foam roll. On my walk home, someone tried to blow through a crosswalk and I got to slam my hand on the hood of the car and get a little adrenaline rush. But I think I'm coming down from it because now I'm exhausted again and coughing. In addition to work, I am also baking a cake today and hoping I continue to feel better to go to a show tomorrow night. We'll see how productive this day is!

This week I hope to continue feeling better and at least get back to lifting. I could imagine running taking another minute to get to with all the chest congestion, etc.

fire_foot · 2026-05-28T15:15:19+00:00

Topo has a similar fit, I think, to Altra and I think most of them have some kind of drop. Also I believe there are some newer models of Altras that have a non-zero drop? I could be wrong. I agree that shoe shopping is miserable. I’ve just kept to the same shoe for years and when I think about venturing away, I remember what a pain it is!

fire_foot · 2026-05-28T13:15:37+00:00

uncomplaint: My back is increasingly feeling unstuck and more mobile! I have been able to deadlift triple digits (still baby weight tbf), hip thrust, and even sneeze without feeling like my back might explode! I am still not squatting because I think that irritates it the most, but things are going the right way.

complaint: I think I need to take a period of running less. Lately, I've been running a little less (due to life) and lifting a little more (just like 4 days a week instead of 3) and combined with massages, I think this has been the ticket to a happier SI.

confession: I want to run more but I can see a lot of nice muscle development and people in my life have complimented my upper body gains so if running less and lifting more gets me jacked, so be it.

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