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For most of last week I was living a mile high in Denver, Colorado and it was amazing! The altitude kicked my butt, as expected, but there was something great about running 10 minute miles and gasping for air.

Just kidding.

There was something great about almost every other aspect of the trip, especially getting to run with friends I had never met, coffees and lunches with my bestie, who just happened to be out there too, and uninterrupted time with my husband.

I’m still high…

RUNNING

I was so excited to run with two people I had only previously known online before heading to Denver. It was infinitely better to run with locals and chat about running while I tried to keep up and talk at altitude!

On my run with Tony, who I used to do freelance work with and who now owns Up Early Designs and is responsible for refurbishing this blog, there were prairie dogs surrounding us! It was crazy and I wish I had gotten a photo but I actually didn’t bring my phone. #badblogger

Not the case when I met up with Amanda from Run To The Finish! We ran a good pace (meaning I was getting more acclimated) along the most beautiful river, surrounded by mountains and chatted the entire time. It was fantastic.

Tuesday – run with Tony then strength training | 4.64 miles | 47:55 | 10:20 avg pace < – – ALTITUDE!

Wednesday – 30 min indoor ride then run with Amanda | 5.06 miles | 50:25 | 9:50 avg pace < – – better but whoa!

Thursday – 30 min hill intervals on the treadmill | I was “comfortable” at 8:45, and then of course, we came home

Saturday – easy run with plenty of air | 6.46 miles | 8:15 avg pace

Total = 21.16 miles mostly done at altitude

CYCLING

I have to say, I really missed my bike while in Colorado and I could not wait to get a ride in when I got back home. However, with the kids out of school and then spending Saturday night in NYC, I had only one ride last week. So sad. But so worth it for everything else I was doing!

FISHING

Instead of swimming in water last week, I went fly fishing in it while in Colorado. It was an experience I never thought I would have and it was fantastic!

One of my husband’s business partners is an avid fly fisherman and luckily he set up the whole trip so all we had to do was show up.

A river runs through it.

Off we went, not three hours after our plane landed, waders and all into the gorgeous river. Our Captain, Chris Wells, is a 21 year veteran angler who just came home from three months of leading charters in Key West for Tarpon fish. The way this guy tied our rigs (that’s fly fishing lingo for putting weights, flies and bobbers on our rods) was amazing. He had giant man hands and handled what I later learned was 5 pound fishing line, tying knots I would have trouble with, in mere seconds. He taught us so much in just three hours and everyone caught at least one fish.

Mike and Capt. Wells

Don’t worry – it was all catch in release in Colorado and we made sure the fish could breathe properly before we set them free!

My husband and I cannot wait to take our new skills to Vermont! Watch out Orvis, we’re coming with our credit card.

Can you tell I’m laughing hysterically?

THINGS I LOVE

Obviously traveling and being in Colorado but also that my best friend was unexpectedly traveling there at the same time and staying in the same hotel! It was great to have a cup of coffee with her in the morning and just chat and, of course, we all went out for an amazing dinner.

If you find yourself in the Denver area, I highly recommend Rioja on Larimer Street. Another fantastic spot was Avanti which is an amazing concept. The two story building has both indoor and outdoor seating (with a view of the Colorado Rockies baseball stadium!) and has two huge bars and then sort of an upscale food court. You give one credit card and can then chose from Italian, Japanese, Mediterranean and American cuisine in a food court style while moving from floor to floor. It was a fantastic experience and I never sampled so much delicious food in one place.

THINGS I DON’T LOVE AS MUCH

A hail storm.

Even though I have lived in New England for most of my life I have never seen hail like I did when in Colorado last week. It was insane! It was sunny one minute and the next it was hailing like crazy. Obviously I was not dressed for the weather.

I don’t suggest wearing a maxi dress and sandals in a hail storm.

The following day we heard a bunch of radio ads for hail damaged new cars at bargain prices. It was pretty funny but most of our Uber drivers did not agree.

I’m pretty sure if my cursed car was in that hail storm it would have instantly shattered into pieces when the first hail stone hit. #CursedClaire

Everyone in the hotel was outside taking video and pictures. Natch.

READING

I’ve been on a tear with my reading since I’ve had so much travel and downtime. Let’s start with Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn. If the name seems familiar it’s because she is also the author of Gone Girl which was made into a movie and, oddly enough, Sharp Objects will be a miniseries starring Amy Adams on HBO.

I should have known to proceed with caution on this one since I was wishing death upon both main characters of Gone Girl and truly hated the ending. The one word I can use to describe Sharp Objects is disturbing. Very disturbing. And on so many levels. You know I don’t shy away easily but this one left me feeling afraid and uneasy. It was a very engrossing read and I wanted to find out what happened, but it was tough getting though a lot of it.

Of course I will definitely watch the miniseries because Amy Adams.

The last book I finished and which was highly recommended was The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen. It was a good enough read and kept my attention but some of it was downright corny. Let’s just say it probably won’t be made into a miniseries any time soon.

RANDOM PHOTO OF THE WEEK

We kind of got lost in the RiNo district in Denver. RiNo stands for “river north” and is an artsy, trendy sort of up and coming hipster place. You know the neighborhood – it used to be filled with homeless people and now there are apartments renting for more than a yacht.

We were pleasantly surprised to happen upon The Blue Moon Brewing Co! I’m a huge fan of Blue Moon and had no clue it was brewed in Colorado. Lucky us.

I hope you are all riding high this week but can breathe easy!

[Tweet “The Rundown was a Mile High last week gasping for air while running and fly fishing! #MileHigh #Train4life”]

Have you ever been to high altitude? Could you breathe?

Ever been fly fishing? Ok, have you just seen “A River Runs Though It?”

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