And just like that, December is here! And I’m not mad about it. I love this time of year and all the festive activities that come with it. In terms of running, I don’t typically like winter, but at least last week we didn’t have any snow so I was happy about that.

November’s running was pretty good. Here are some of the highlights:

• I got in almost 125 miles for the month, which was better than October.
• I did one race, slower than my last 5K, but it was a Turkey Trot and I had a good time running in Connecticut before seeing my family for Thanksgiving
• I got in my DR exercises most weeks. I’ve been trying to be better about making it a priority. I am hoping that when I go to the doctor in January, I’ll find out how far my ab gap really is and if I’ve made progress.  

Here’s how last week specifically looked:

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Is it still fall or did winter come early?

I know winter technically starts next month, but in Cleveland, it feels like it has come already. We had snow several days last week, and while it thankfully (so far) hasn’t stayed, I am not ready for it! I’ve tried to contain my disappointment and dismay though, since my kids love the snow and were so excited by the first snowfall we had on Sunday, I can’t help but try to feel their excitement. I don’t want my feelings to wear off on them yet! 

With the first snow, came the first few treadmill runs of the season. It was time to (quite literally) dust off my dear old friend and get back on for.a few miles. Here’s how the week looked:

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This week was pretty uneventful running-wise. I ran 4-5 miles most days, did my diastasis recti abdominal exercises and enjoyed the still good weather. BUT there was one exciting piece of news — I am excited to announce that I am going to be an ambassador for the 2023 Cleveland Marathon!

This means that I get to run the race for free, get a 15% discount and get to host a giveaway. Right now I have my eye set on the Challenge Series, running a 5K and half marathon, Saturday and Sunday of race weekend. But I still have some time to decide! If you’re interested in signing up for any of the events, you can use my discount code: MELCARNSAVE15

And now, onto my week! Here’s how it went:

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I can’t believe we’re already in November — what happened to summer?

In terms of running, October was alright. It had its ups and downs, including:

• It was one of my lower mileage months this year, and I finished with around 115 miles run.
• I did do one race, a 5K, with a time at 25:30 that I was proud of – it was fast for me right now. AND it was a family race, so it was fun to have the kids do the 1 mile with B.
• I got in my diastasis recti exercises several times most weeks – yay! And I prioritized it, thus some of the fewer miles.
• For the most part, we had GREAT weather and some beautiful day with gorgeous leaves.  
• It was DARK. Dark on most of my runs, which made getting out of bed extra hard. Again, thus some of the fewer miles.

And now, onto November! Here’s how the week looked:

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Hello, darkness! What a dark, dark week for running for me. Daylight is quickly shortening here in Northeast America so I had quite a few dark runs this week. I also came down with whatever crud is going through our house (FW has had a cough on and off for a few weeks, GM has an ear infection, etc.) so between that and the darkness, the week overall has felt very blah to me. I’ve tried to keep up with my workouts because after running I feel a little more awake and a little less cruddy, but I haven’t been sleeping well, so it has been hard to get out of bed!  

Knowing that, here’s how the week looked: 

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Another week in October is done, and it really started to feel like fall this week. We had some beautiful fall weather (on Sunday), some cruddy rainy and cool fall weather (Monday through Wednesday), and some warm weather (on Saturday).   

And this week, I somehow managed to get out every day, despite the rain (luckily it was mostly a drizzle), and cool that I’m not ready for. Running on Tuesday and Wednesday reminded me of this meme:

This week, I also tried to focus on my core and getting in my diastasis recti exercises. My gap is still a few fingers wide, and I’d love to close it and get stronger as much as I can. So, instead of getting in a full 5 miles most mornings, I spent 10 minutes or so doing my ab exercises and cut my run a little short.

Knowing that, here’s how the week looked: 

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I’ve said this before, but I don’t love fall. I’m not one of those girls who counts down until this season – instead, I love summer and spring. BUT I will admit that lately I’ve been enjoying a few things about October in Cleveland:

• The weather has been pretty great so far (it’s been 50s-70s!)
• The leaves changing are gorgeous
• The Halloween decor is amazing

Do I miss the warm and long days of summer? Yes, of course. But I can’t hate everything about fall so far because it’s been pretty good. 

Here’s how the week looked: 

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