Daily Miles in Mexico..And an Unplanned Rant (oops!)

I really enjoy running elsewhere. Seeing new places, being in different climates, working up a sweat before a prolonged happy hour and dinner....so much more enjoyable than trying to squeeze in a workout in an otherwise overstuffed day which is what every day seems to be in Chicago. Too busy. Yes, this is partially a comparison of normal daily life and life on vacation, but for me in the midst of another ridiculously hard year, I'm getting weary of 60++ hour weeks. It shouldn't be hard to squeeze in a 10 minutes of exercise, let alone an hour which is what I really want to do.

There are many days when I get home from work and it's a race to eat, get work done, run, get to bed. The whole evening becomes a panicked rush. Some people may like to be that busy all the time; I don't. We've completely eliminated TV from our lives, we have few outside responsibilities besides work. But our (Adam's and my) work is TOO MUCH.

I know I just have to get through 4 more months. After that I can expect 4 two day weekends most months. I can start to work more of a 8-5 type schedule. Of course, I'll do some work at home- there is no way to be a professional in 2012 without doing some work at home, but maybe my grand-total hours of working including home work will be closer to 60 rather than 60 hours at the hospital plus whatever else I need to do at home.

Enough ranting, let's focus on some of the great parts of my daily runs in Mexico.


Sara and I both found sand running to be hard. Very hard. Finally, on the last day I tried barefoot sand running. SO MUCH EASIER. What was I doing wearing shoes that whole time??

Running on the sand was easier, more tactile, more relaxing, more free. (Don't get me wrong, I'll keep on wearing shoes here in the real world.) I ran right on the water's edge where the sand was more firm and the water intermittently washed up over my feet. By the time I turned around to run back, some of my path was already washed away by waves:

One morning, I was graced with a beautiful sunrise. Just incredible. So glad I always run with my camera when I'm on vacay.

Our first night, Sara and I saw this AMAZING sunset. Just stunning.

The last day of my trip I stayed at Sara's great pad in San Fran and did a hilly, hilly run. I swear my heart rate hit 200. SO HARD. I ran a 12:30 min mile, 3-4 minutes slower than my usual pace but not for lack of trying:)

But now I'm back in Chi-town. Did a treadmill run today (boo!), but a swim afterwards so overall that was good. My swimming has greatly improved. However, I've decided it's time to suck it up and find a new gym. The free in one in our basement just ain't going to cut it. One of the fun things Sara and I did in Mexico was yoga on the beach and I realized that I would benefit from more consistent yoga and other work-out classes. Maybe get back into spinning as well.

In addition to the mildest hint of a tan (come on- I have to preserve the skin for my older years!), I returned from Mexico with 3 goals:

1. Get into yoga.
2. Join a gym.
3. Secret (what- I don't have to share everything do I?)

It was a great trip and I'm thankful for a great friend to travel with and a great husband willing to support my girl-only trips:)