Sunday soup and Monday miles

The head cold is officially over!
And I'm back on the wagon running-wise.

I hid away all weekend, drinking tea and eating spicy soup. (More on that later...)
Aside from cooking soup and sipping tea, I did absolutely nothing.

Peanut demonstrating how I spent my weekend.

I skipped the symphony. I postponed Sunday's long run (though I did shuffle through a couple of miles, just to make sure my legs still worked).

But the long run cannot be skipped just for sniffles. So I laced up my shoes and did a 90-minute run this morning before work. (This was one of those run for time, not miles, kind of days.)

Post-run I feel fantastic. And because I have to work, I have no guilt about sitting around resting my legs all day. I wonder if maybe I should do long runs on Monday mornings from now on?

Then again, maybe my high energy level is just the week-long rest talking? Or maybe last night's dinner was good running fuel?


I made a big batch of one of my all-time favorite soups: Black-Eyed-Pea, Greens & Ham (from Food and Wine). This is a recipe I make on a regular basis, but it's even better when I'm not feeling well. (It's at least as good as chicken noodle, plus it's spicy. I don't know about the rest of you, but I crave spicy foods when I'm sick. The hotter, the better.)

The best thing about this soup: it works with any bean, green, protein combo. I've used spicy andouile instead of ham (soy sausage might even work for my vegetarian friends). Collards, turnip greens, or spinach instead of chard. Black beans instead of black-eyed peas. Success each time.

Hands-down, this soup is my favorite cold-curing home remedy.

Do you ever run for time, rather than for distance?
What's your favorite cold-curing home remedy?