Week’s End

Every graduate student’s Weimaraner needs to get out and play after a busy week. After all, long hours snoozing on the bed are tough on a pup. As are late-night music analysis projects.

“Play now, study later.”

Our weekday semester running schedule consists of short neighborhood runs, snuck in between endless academic to-dos — just enough to keep us both happy and healthy. But we anticipate the weekend with special delight. Saturday sunrise is ours for the taking, come rain or shine.

I’m a Florida girl, born and raised, so lakeside beauty is a salve for the pangs of homesickness.

White Rock Lake is one of the few lakes in the DFW area. The trail is a nine-mile loop, surrounded by lovely neighborhoods, with easy access to White Rock Creek Trail and the Santa Fe Trail for additional mileage. We are lucky enough to live nearby this gem!

I think Brooklyn agrees.

Is there a more adorable running buddy?!

Weekend stats:

• Distance: 8 miles, followed by a one-mile cool down
• Time: 1:06:45 (running)
• Pace: 8:20/mile

And of course, refueling and resting are an important part of our post-run weekend, too.

A tired Weimaraner is a good Weimaraner.

Homemade nachos: organic blue corn tortilla chips, rotisserie chicken, fresh salsa, cheddar cheese, homemade guac, red onion, and cilantro

Blogging Buddy

Looking forward to increasing our mileage next weekend, as we prepare for the Michelob 13.1 in October!

What do you do to detox after a long week?

Do you have a favorite running spot?

Does your running partner have four legs?

Running Season

Can it be? Has the summer weather released its furious grip and given in to the breezes of fall?

Last weekend, Brooklyn and I hit up our weekend spot, White Rock Lake, for our usual 9-mile loop. It was one of the hardest runs we’d had in a long time. She was exhausted (which never happens), and I was pretty beat, too! The humidity level had spiked, and it felt like the middle of July!

There’s a reason running season begins in the fall and avoids summer altogether. And if you have a four-legged running partner, you have to be extra cautious about the heat index, the pavement temps, and the risk of dehydration in the hot months.

This weekend, however, was a different story! We began just before sunrise, and the weather was a crisp 65 degrees! I was almost cold! Cold weather energizes Brooklyn (she loves freezing temps!), so she was giddy and goofy and ready to go! You could say “cold running weather” ranks mighty highly on her list of “favorite things.”

Cheesin’!

“Sunrise run” comes close to the top of mine. Is there a more peaceful time of day? Or a better way to enjoy the scenery? Or better company than the World’s Best Weimaraner?

Worth the early wake-up call any day!

Saturday Stats!

Yeah, I don’t think so, either. Looking forward to many great (and hopefully cool!) runs this season! Half marathon number six is just around the corner, and Coach Brooklyn is ready to hit the trails with me!

Mile 1

Greetings! Thanks for stopping by!

Thus begin the running adventures of Brooklyn the Weimaraner. Or at least the official blog. You could call this mile one. Endless terrain lies ahead, and we’ll take it one step at a time.

I’m an average girl who enjoys running for commonplace reasons like fitness, the great outdoors, competition, de-stressing, etc. But Brooklyn? She runs for the pure joy of the sport. Breakfast and dinner excepting, nothing excites Brooklyn more than the thrill of lacing up and leashing up to hit the pavement for one or thirteen-point-one miles. Her athleticism is the talk of the town when we’re out and about. I guess you could say that I’m just along for the ride, er, run. 

Our running adventures began long before we brought home an eight-week, blue-eyed Brook — at least conceptually. I researched long and hard what breed would best suit my family’s lifestyle. If you know anything about Weimaraners, you know they are incredibly active, accustomed to long days hunting in the field. Because of this, they make wonderful long-distance running partners once full-grown.

Due to the fragility of the skeletal and muscular systems of a pup, it is important to delay any regular running until a dog is full grown. Brooklyn began running with me when she was a year and a half old, and I trained her gradually, just like you or I would train.

We’ve never looked back, and since summer 2014, Brooklyn has run three half marathons with me. Or should I say I ran them with her? Because she was pacing us  the whole time, as every passerby would testify.

If you enjoy running, Dallas, the great outdoors, and the goofiest/craziest/cutest Weimaraner in the whole metroplex, stick around. There’s more where all that came from.

– Jess

Running at our favorite local spot: White Rock Lake Park!

All smiles post-run!

Brooklyn and my Brooks — we run happy together!

Brooklyn greeting me at the halfway point of the 2015 Mt. Sneffels Marathon!

Family at the finish of the 2015 Dallas Rock and Roll half marathon!