Winter in Canada is a strange and frustrating thing. The weather (and weather forecasters) toy with our emotions all year long, and 30 degree temperature swings over a period of one – to – two days isn’t all that uncommon. I just looked back at the blog I posted last week and it was -34 degrees while I was writing it. Now it’s 8 degrees and sunny and everything is melting! It’s spring! We’re saved!
Nah, I’m not that naive. It is nice to allow yourself to get swept up in the excitement of a beautiful day though. Even though we probably still have quite a few below-zero days and snow storms coming our way before summer, winter is definitely on its way out and it’s days like this that make you feel like things are really starting to take a turn for the better.
Speaking of taking a turn for the better, the back problems I whined about last week are also subsiding and I managed to get a total of five decent runs in last week. Included in those workouts were 2 x 1 mile at 5k pace, and a track workout that consisted of three sets of 2 x 400m and 1 x 150m. I love 400′s (massive sarcasm)! Really though, track workouts make my lungs hurt. But it’s the kind of hurt that I know is going to pay off later this summer when I’m killing my PB’s! I also managed to get out for a short run with Kimberly. We don’t run together all that often, but it is nice when we’re able to go out and keep each other company on a beautiful spring-ish day.
This week I’m going to try to keep the consistency up, and get a speed workout and a hill workout in before taking on the St. Patrick’s Day 5k in Calgary next Sunday. I had originally set my sights on a sub-20 minute run but the closer it gets the more I’m thinking that might be a bit too ambitious for this time of year. Regardless, I’m going to give’er and see what happens.
Another benefit of spring-like weather is that it means it’s time to dust off the barbecue! Last night we had some friends over and tried a chicken skewer recipe from Whitewater Cooks (one of our favourite series of cookbooks), that included three different dipping sauces – chipotle honey, tzaziki, and charmoula. Tonight, we also dipped into the Whitewater books for an Indian Chicken Burger recipe, made with ground chicken, garam masala, curry powder, garlic, eggs and bread crumbs, and topped with mango chutney, raita sauce, sliced cucumbers and tomatoes. Damn – I’ll be making this one again! Can’t say enough good things about the Whitewater series of cookbooks. So many of their recipes are in our regular rotation! Check them out for sure.
Well, one more week and we’ll be half-way through March. It’s kind of hard to believe that summer will be here soon. The winter in Edmonton has been so harsh this year – and probably has been in most other parts of Canada as well (unless you live in the Okanagan or Vancouver area…). The nice weather has lifted my spirits and I would like to wish everybody a great start to their outdoor running season! Wish me luck for my 5k next week – it’s short, but it’s going to be tough!