Wrapping Up April

I expected to start off today...this week...May, with a run but my feet got a little (ok a lot) sunburned during SUP yesterday. I spared myself the pain of putting on my running shoes.

Instead I double-dosed the sunblock and took advantage of the cloudy morning to do an hour of SUP with mrC. Once we had our boards in the water, we paddled out and back three times for today's workout.

Funny story - yesterday mrC fell off his board and lost his sunglasses. He used my goggles to try to find them but no luck. Today, he walked the beach where we had been hanging out yesterday and there they were! The tide washed them up and left them on the beach a little banged up, but good to go after he cleaned them (after I took the photo).

Our post workout snack was another yummy smoothie. I'm absolutely loving our new blender and I'm warning you now that I might be saying that a lot for awhile. Smoothies make me happy ;)

Here's my weekly workout recap (Linking up with Tricia and Holly):

Monday - Bodystep - our instructor is off to Australia for a few weeks, so I will be searching for a calorie burning replacement until she returns.

Tuesday - Ran errands in Central which tallied over 19,000+ steps for the day!

Wednesday - Ugh and a fashion show.

Thursday - Ugh again.

Friday - Run!

Saturday - Pier volunteering for USS Sterett and shoe shopping in Central.

Sunday - SUP with the Discovery Bay Ladies SUP group

The end of the week also marks the end of April, so I'm tallying my monthly miles as well today.

8 runs for 32.76 miles. That's 5.58 more miles than March, but the same number of runs! My knee is getting stronger and I can't wait to see how May goes.


Has a sunburn ever kept you from your workout?
How many miles did you run in April?

5 Lessons from SUP and Pier Volunteering

Today was all about sunshine, the beach and stand up paddle boarding! First I got to meet two more ladies from the Discovery Bay Ladies SUP Group. This was the first time the sun was actually shining during SUP and it was absolutely perfect.

I'm still working on my SUP skills and with the help of my fellow group members, I learned a few things out on the water today.

1. Keep your paddle in the water - this is like having an extra leg down for balance and was a game changer for my confidence.

2. Face the wake head on - the wake is affected by the ferries coming and going, the wind, and the normal sea vessel traffic out in the bay. Turning into the waves makes a huge difference.

3. Bend your knees for stability - The slight bend relaxes my legs making it easier to go with the flow of the water under my board.

4. Straighten arms and paddle with your core - I can paddle so much faster when I use the proper form and my arms stopped getting tired.

5. Reapply sunscreen to your feet - so no one actually told me this (I should've known myself), but I learned the hard way today after my feet and toes got sunburned.

After the SUP group time ended, mrC and I continued paddling together (I'm so glad he has an iSUP board now too). We went out and back a few times with rests on the beach in between. Our friends joined us a little later and we enjoyed the sunshine and good conversation until lunch time.

Today was just as good as yesterday. It was pier volunteer time for another US naval ship that came into Hong Kong for some liberty. This ship was much smaller and able to be pierside which allowed us to see things up close.

Just like the last time, our job was to support the sailors by handing out maps, providing information on leisure activities, shopping, dining and helping to get them on their way in the right direction.

mrC was in town this time and volunteered too.

After our shift, we had lunch at Little Creatures in Kennedy Town. We patronize them because they give us loads of free beer coupons to give to the troops. And, the food is really good. Their pizza sauce reminds me of home.

We also took advantage of being in Central to do a bit of shopping. mrC picked out some tennis rackets and I picked out some new Skechers - mrC's first pair (Equalizer - Coast to Coast), my second (Go Walk Sport Rush Walking).

Do you have any SUP skills I should know about?
Ever been on a naval ship?
Are you a Skechers fan?

Fri-nally, a Run and a Night of Glamour

My big plans to get out early for a run on Wednesday were delayed until today.

The weather has been uncooperative and so has my body. So besides literally raining for days, my period left me feeling like I had been run over (sorry guys, if this is TMI). Usually I can sail through my cycle, but I woke up Wednesday feeling like mud. My head felt like I had a hangover and I had zero energy. I pretty much felt the big blah.

Somehow, I rallied enough energy to attend the American Women's Association's Conscious Couture Fashion Show at The American Club in Tai Tam. All of the models were AWA members and all of the fashion was designed with sustainable manufacturing processes and materials in mind. In addition to being able to "shop the runway," there was also a live auction of one-off pieces donated by the designers.

It was definitely an evening for the ladies loaded with all things glamour and beauty. There were canapés and drinks to welcome us to the club, live performances from Jolie Chan and everyone went home with a goodie bag filled with amazing swag (I LOVE the scarf). I'm so happy that I didn't have to miss it.

This morning the weather was perfect. Just like the morning of my last run, the rainy weather left cooler, dryer air behind. These kind of mornings are perfect for doing the two hills route that goes right by the beach.

I am still running 2:1 minute intervals and feeling good about things. Today the best part of my run was coming up the final hill. Instead of walking for one minute recovery, I kept running and made it nearly to the top of the hill. I walked for maybe 30 seconds and then finished the hill all the way to our apartment. It felt awesome.

I had a couple of my running essentials with me on today's run. Even though mrC ran with me, I also wore my Wearsafe tag. This was more about making it a habit to wear it since it's still a new piece of equipment to me. I love how lightweight it is. I don't even feel that it's clipped to my tank. FYI ---> you can use my discount code RUNNINGESCAPADES for 15% off Wearsafe annual service.

Mizunos have been a running essential for me for a long time now. My legs (which really means my bad knee) are loving my Wave Horizons. I really think switching to a support shoe was what my knee was needing. I'm really glad mrC likes Mizunos, too. Now when we run together we become Team Mizuno.

We cooled down after our run with a breakfast smoothie. I'm still getting the hang of my new blender, so sometimes my smoothies are a little on the small size. It's ok, we had eggs and left over pancakes too.

Ever attended a fashion show or other big fundraising event?
What are your running essentials?

Life Between the Workouts

Yesterday, I started off the week by burning a ton of calories at Bodystep. This was my last class for a few weeks because our instructor is off to Australia (her home) and she is the only one who does Bodystep. I'm going to miss this class while she is gone.

Today, my workout of the day was foam rolling. It still hurts, but I do think I'm making progress. My foam roller is the flat kind. I don't know how anyone uses the type that looks like a torture device.

Here's a look at the rest of my day.

I had a meeting in Central, so I took the ferry over a little early to do some shopping. This is the ferry arriving at the terminal.

Victoria Harbour is full of amphibious traffic of all shapes and sizes. Today I saw a large ship pier-side, several other ferries from the mainland and outlying islands like ours, and a small fishing boat.

Spring weather lately - rainy

I had three items on my shopping list: a dress, a pair of walking shoes, and a blender. I was looking for a new dress to wear to an event tomorrow night. I have a dress, but just thought I would see what was out there. I found this really cute dress at Reiss, but I couldn't convince myself to splurge that much. No new dress for me.

I had just enough time to stop in ECCO before my meeting. I slipped on a pair of the Osans and a few minutes later I walked out wearing them. They are super comfortable.

Work meetings in public places. This is a very normal thing for a lot of people, but in my previous non-expat life, I was confined to my classroom and high school building most days ---> meaning (not counting days I might have slipped outside at lunch for a walk or run) 184 days in the building. This meeting is not for my job, but for a volunteer coordinator position that I am taking over within the American Women's Association to provide support to visiting US Naval Ships.

mrC met me after my meeting and we went to see the chiropractor together. We both needed an adjustment and I've been having a little trouble with my shoulder. The chiropractor thinks I've injured my rotator cuff.

Lulu, the chiropractor's dog likes to keep patients company

After our visit with the chiropractor, we popped into Wing On, a Hong Kong department store, shopped the blenders and found a winner. We've had our current single serve low-power blender for two years and it was time to upgrade. 

On our way to catch the ferry back to Discovery Bay, we grabbed a few things from City Super for a late lunch ---> which we ate on the ferry. I love their crab cakes.

Unpacking at the apartment, I found this spoon taped to a bag of chips. The cashier at City Super must have thought I'd need it for the yogurt I bought. Wasn't that sweet?

For dinner, I made smoothies with the new blender! Wow what a difference a few hundred watts makes. 

In the morning I'm hoping the rain has moved on so that I can get out for a run and meet a friend for some SUP.

Do you ever have work meetings in public places?

Smoothies for dinner? Yes or no?

My Workout Recap, But First

Today I took a well-deserved rest day. I had a good workout week, so today was all about giving my body a break. I'm linking up with Tricia and Holly again for the Weekly Wrap, but first...

First, I want to tell you about the food we had today.

Hello, gluten free pancakes! mrC and I watched playoff hockey and then had brunch. These Bob's Red Mill pancakes were so good. Even though I would love to eat just carbs, we did have eggs too.

mrC had to run to the airport for a bit, and while he was gone I hit up the foam roller. I've been working this into my daily routine and focusing on rolling slowly to make it count. The slower I roll, the more tight spots I find compared to when I roll too fast. There may have been a few shrieks during today's session.

For linner (or whatever you call late lunch/ early dinner), we made homemade pizza. I found Udi's gluten free pizza crust on my last grocery trip and we still had some LaRosa's pizza sauce left over from my BFF's surprise birthday box. In about 10 minutes we had two personal sized yummy cheese pizzas. I like just cheese, but mrC is already planning the toppings on his next pizza ---> pineapple, mushroom and onion.

If you came for the weekly wrap, here you go:

Monday - I'm going to call this an active rest day. I walked to the plaza for groceries and I cleaned and conditioned our wood floors ---> it felt like a full body workout.

Tuesday - Ran a 5K with longer intervals

Wednesday - Po Toi Island tour with the American Women's Association to celebrate a very important birthday.

Thursday - Core strength workout that you might have seen on Instagram and running errands in the rain.

Friday - Burned off a ton of calories in Bodystep class. It was hot. It was tough, I loved it.

Saturday - A double workout with some hills and a little time on the water.

Sunday - rest day


What toppings do you like on your pizza?
How do you spend your rest days?