Good morning from London! I am spending a long weekend here catching up with some girlfriends. Today I’ll be working from Casey’s flat but once 5pm comes around the weekend will begin!
Yesterday I took advantage of our bank holiday in Geneva to enjoy the perfect weather and workouts before heading to London.
Bo and I had full intention of sleeping in but around 6am we both found ourselves wide awake. Instead of fighting the urge to wakeup we spent an hour in bed sipping coffee and just chatting. It was so nice to spend this time together as we’ll be apart for the next few days. While I’m in London he’s in the United States for a friend’s wedding in Savannah followed by a few days in New York City. While I’m sad I couldn’t make the trip back it just wasn’t financially smart and would have been difficult with work.
After a relaxing few hours around the house he headed to the airport and I headed out the door for a trail run. Yesterday’s weather in Geneva was absolutely incredible – 65 degrees and sunny. I ran along the Rhone River trail which was busier than normal due to yesterday’s holiday and the beautiful weather.
After finishing the trail portions I stopped at a ramp where I did 4 hill repeats. Renaud and I did this ramp last week 3 times and while it definitely wasn’t easier it felt good to be able to push for four sprints up the zig zag ramp. You can’t really tell from this picture but the ramp is super steep and therefore is a great place to practice running on the balls of my feet, leaning forward and engaging my glutes. 
An hour after finishing my run I headed to InnerCityoga to meet Katie for a rare mid-day treat of a 90 minute yoga class. The yoga flow class was described as a class for all levels but the sun salutation set and multiple plank portions definitely left me sweating. I took advantage of the studio’s showers and saved myself a trip back home by showering there before heading to the airport for my flight to London. There is a delicious health food spot in the train station where I was able to refuel with an Indian salad including curry chicken, pineapple, cucumber, nuts, and lettuce. So fresh and delicious!
The flight to London was smooth and before I knew it I was enjoying the late evening sunshine in Regents Park as Casey and I took their adorable dog, Lady, on an 1.5 walk through the parks and along the canals. I didn’t bring my camera but it was perfect weather! 
We spent the rest of the evening at their favorite neighborhood restaurant, Lahore Kebab House. A Pakistani restaurant located in Marylebone, everything we ate was delicious though a few dishes definitely left me drinking water and craving the cool, cucumber sauce. I am not an expert on Indian or Pakistani cuisine but many of the flavors seemed similar though I noticed more meat dishes on this menu than I feel like I’ve seen at most Indian restaurants. If you’re a London local I highly recommend this spot as the prices are very reasonable and the flavors will leave you thinking about it a day later. 
Do you take advantage of holidays to squeeze in extra workouts or do you relax? Have you ever had Pakistani food?
That Pakistani food looks delicious! Since Pakistan and India were the same country until 1947, the food is generally quite similar. North Indian food, particularly Punjabi, is much more meat-heavy. South Indian food is generally vegetarian since most South Indians don’t eat meat. Quite a few “Indian” dishes we eat in the west (chicken tikka masala, for one) didn’t exist in India until Indians living abroad brought them back, and now they’ve become popular there.
London has such great South Asian food… we had an amazing unlimited kebab and curry meal when we visited. Clearly I need to plan another trip!
It was SO delicious Jen!
I typically use holidays to relax instead of have extra workouts. I guess it depends on what is scheduled. Usually holidays are so busy, though, that I don’t even have time for normal workouts.
Shelly that makes sense for sure! This is the first holiday in ages that I’ve had time. 🙂