Monday, November 7, 2016

Oct 24-Nov 6 training, saying hello to my alma mater

Happy Monday, my friends!

Thank goodness for Daylight Saving Time ending yesterday. I've been feeling a little run down, so the extra hour couldn't have come at a better time. Currently I'm also fighting a headache that started yesterday afternoon and is stubbornly lingering today. Blugh!

I am linking up with HoHo and Tricia for the Weekly Wrap.
I never got around to recapping the week before last, so here are my workouts from the last two weeks:

Oct 24-30
MONDAY - Yoga class, 45 minutes strength training
TUESDAY - 35 minutes stationary biking
WEDNESDAY - Run 3.1 miles in Alaska
THURSDAY - Run 10 miles in Alaska
FRIDAY - Rest
SATURDAY - Rest (sightseeing in Alaska, read about one part here)
SUNDAY - Rest

Oct 31-Nov 6
MONDAY - Yoga video
TUESDAY - 10 minutes stationary cycling, 50 minutes strength-training
WEDNESDAY - Mobility 101 class, run 3 miles on treadmill
THURSDAY - Strength Max class
FRIDAY - Yoga class
SATURDAY - Rest
SUNDAY - Rest

I intended to do an 11-miler yesterday morning, but due to other commitments I didn't have enough time. My Plan B is to run 11 tonight after work. At this very moment my head is not in any mental or physical condition to do a long run, so I'm hoping the headache dissipates by then. If not, then I'll be looking at doing the Rock N Roll Las Vegas Half Marathon on a single 10-mile training run 2.5 weeks ago. Real smart, eh?
Let's switch gears now to talk about a MUCH more pleasant topic!

Last Saturday, I went to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with Adam and my brother-in-law, Marc, to visit my nephew Reid for Dad's Day Weekend. Yay!!!

As I have mentioned many times before, I am a proud Illinois alum. It's a huge treat any time the opportunity arises to visit my dear alma mater.
As part of the Dad's Day Weekend festivities, we went to the Illinois-MSU football game. It was awesome to be surrounded by the orange and blue again! I was home. =)

Up until just a few years ago, I didn't understand football at all. I went to games in college having no understanding of what was happening on the field. Thanks to watching so much football with Adam since then, now I know how to follow the strategies. It was great! Not to mention that the weather was unseasonably warm and beautiful. It added even more atmosphere to an already very exciting game.

Here are a few pictures:
As you can see, Adam (who is a Penn State alum) dressed "neutrally" for the game ;-)
In game snapshot!
From L to R: Marc, Reid, Adam, and me
Both teams gathered on their sidelines just prior to the end of the second quarter:
If anyone has ever seen the movie Coming to America, there's a funny moment when Akeem proclaims halftime as his favorite part of the game. All joking aside, I absolutely love the Marching Illini performances during halftime of Illinois football games. My favorite is the famous 3-in-1 (Pride of the Illini, March of the Illini, and Hail to the Orange). This isn't the actual performance from Saturday, but here's a video of what it looks like:
I get tears in my eyes every time I hear/see the 3-in-1!

Illinois dads doing the biggest and most hilarious Rockette-style kickline you've ever seen:
Coming back out onto the field to start the second half:
Post-game celebration:
Victory tradition:
Everyone links arms to sing the Illinois alma mater
As we were leaving the stadium area, we passed Snyder Hall. I lived in Snyder during my freshman and sophomore years, and I have so many good memories from my time there. A picture was absolutely necessary:
We headed back to Reid's fraternity house where we got some food, toured the house, saw Reid's room, and hung out for a bit. It was so much fun to be chilling on campus again amongst all the students!

Later, we went to the Illini Union Bookstore where I fulfilled my critical mission to load up on Illinois gear. (At one point, I showed Adam two Illinois shirts and asked which one he thought was better. He didn't even blink before saying, "Get them both." Now that is when you know it's all about piling it on! LOL.)

Another critical mission was to get pictures at the Illinois alma mater. What a wonderful surprise to run into my old friends Jennifer, Faye, and Tina there! I can't even remember the last time I saw each of them. It was so appropriate for the four of us to get a reunion photo with the statue:
From L to R: Faye, Jennifer, Alma Mater, Tina, and me
As I'd mentioned here, my friend Nhan, who is an MSU alum, also journeyed down to campus to watch the Illinois-MSU game. As luck would have it, he happened to pass by at that very moment. Perfect timing to get a photo with Nhan, too!
I took Adam around campus to reminisce about some of my old stomping grounds. I have long been inspired by Wendy and Ana's yoga pose pictures, so I decided to do my own version on the quad:
Tree pose with Foellinger Auditorium in the background!
We went back to Reid's fraternity house where they were hosting a whiskey tasting (!!!). I didn't try any, but lots of families were there enjoying themselves. Later, Marc, Adam, Reid, and I went out and had a very nice dinner. Really fun times! Afterwards, it was time to (reluctantly) head back.

I'm already looking forward to my next opportunity to visit campus again. Many thanks to Marc and Reid for allowing Adam and me to tag along for the festivities!

Go Illini!!!

20 comments:

  1. What a perfect Yoga Pose Emily! and that background!! amazing!

    I'm sure your running legs will kick in for the Vegas Half Marathon, and you will do great!

    I love that Adam went neutral! very smart of him!

    I always found half time show to be the best part of the entire game, and the junk food of course!

    What a super fun day for you!! I'm jealous now... makes me want to go visit my PSU.

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    1. Also, I hope your headache goes away soon! coffee or tea maybe?

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    2. Thank you so much, Ana! You and Wendy both inspire me with your awesome poses. Appreciate the confidence in me for RnR Las Vegas! Adam was saying the same thing about how visiting UIUC made him want to go back and visit his PSU. We were listening to the PSU fight songs last night and Adam started singing along. Yay for half time and the yummy junk food! Tea sounds good for the headache, especially since my office is always freezing cold. BRRRRRRRR!

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  2. I'm the opposite: I grew up watching football, and now I don't watch it. The only time I watch it is Army/Navy.

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    1. Why did you stop watching football now after watching it while growing up? Any reason in particular or just lost interest?

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  3. I love your Illini tree pose! I think you need to strike more poses! I went to Marquette and there was no football team--I've always had a little FOMO. We had B-Ball and that was our thing.

    No worries about your training! RnRLV is just for fun.

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    1. Thank you so much, Wendy! You always have the best yoga poses!!! I am excited to be able to emulate you. =) Marquette is a really great basketball school!!! I've got several friends who went there and really enjoyed themselves. Thanks on RnR Las Vegas!!!

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  4. You seem to have a very serious workout schedule, Emily. Maybe I should follow your example. I love the Yoga pose.

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    1. Thanks Anda! The workout gets more serious when I'm signed up for a race and it is looming in the near vicinity, LOL. Thanks again!

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  5. As high school band geeks, my husband and I feel like we're usually one of the few who gets super excited during half time! ha And yay, go Illini! :)

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    1. All hail to high school band geeks - I was one too!!! Glad to know we all have that in common, it's such a wonderful binding thread. =) Go Illini!!!

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  6. ILL-INI! I haven't been back to U of I since graduating (5 years....whaaaaat?!?!) and seeing all your photos is making me so nostalgic! Classes at Foellinger, passing by the Alma Mater daily, a sea of orange and blue on game days <3 I'm so jealous of your trip back! GO ILLINI!!

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    1. ILL-INI!!! It's crazy how much the campus has changed over the past few years. If you get a chance, I'd highly recommend taking a trip back to campus - I think you would have the time of your life!!! BTW - I hear you are moving out of NYC, are you coming back to Chicago!?!?!?

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  7. Sounds like a fun weekend! The Alma Mater clearly was the place to be last Saturday! I haven't been back to my college...really at all since I graduated. I went back for an event the fall after I graduated, but it was off campus, and I don't think I spent any time on campus itself. Maybe one of these days I'll get back there.

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    1. Hail Alma Mater, indeed!!! If you get a chance, I'd definitely recommend going back to your alma mater. It's such a wonderful walk down memory lane, and it's always fun to see how much things have changed AND stayed the same. Not to mention how young the students look - it was hard for me to believe I once looked that young, LOL.

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  8. How fun. College football is very serious down here in Mississippi. Course I wouldn't' have it any other way! Game day is amazing win or lose!

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    1. Goodness - from everything I've heard, college football is like religion in the American southeast!!! It must be the most incredible atmosphere!!!

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  9. You won't believe how I learned the game of football. (I had brothers but they didn't play or watch it.) There was a handheld Atari (?) football game. I learned on that. LOL. I love watching college football, but not really into the NFL for some reason. As a band nerd, halftime is the best part! Thanks for linking, Emily!

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    1. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA - that is a great way to learn football! Atari used to be the bomb back in the day. =) I can understand why some folks would gravitate to college football over pro football, there's a different atmosphere and different mentality to watch amateurs versus highly-paid professionals. Band nerds of the world, unite!!! =D

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  10. Thank you so much, Karen! I try to be a cool aunt while still being true to my adult role. =) Yes, being down at campus made me realize how much the college experience is so much about sharing it with friends and family. =)

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