Stretching.

Life is good. Right now I am:
1) Elongating my muscles.
2) Expanding my horizons.

Number 1 involves some foam rolling! Remember way back when, when I bought a roller to cure all my running ills? I promised photos, and I will now deliver. After spending a significant amount of time reading the instructions (some of the poses require a balancing sort of dexterity that eludes me), I have been getting to know my foam roller.

After a 3k in my Vibrams, I decided to

give my legs a little love.

This is the stuff. IT band rollin'.

Grimace and furrow produced by IT band

rollin'!

A little known fact: the roller doubles as 

a foot-rest when you are exhausted from

punishing your IT bands.

My IT bands are tight. However, I'm starting to be able to feel the benefits of rolling, and feeling when I really need to roll too. I was really concentrating on my left leg (formerly the injured leg), but I recently found that my right ITB has become tight, so I'm taking a more balanced approach to rolling now. I'm also rolling my feet with a tennis ball. The latter is not only supposed to be as good for you as foam rolling, but it is also significantly less painful, which, as you might imagine, means I do that more often.

***

Number 2 is about my upcoming adventure! I will be Seoul searching in about ten days. It's finally real, and really exciting!! I said a sad farewell to the bookstore over the weekend, and will be working my last shift there this Thursday. Then I hit up the consulate for my visa. And with those two official steps behind me, I'm ready. I can hardly wait to experience a new culture, run my first international half marathon (July!) and meet up with both new and old friends there. Even just getting ready for my journey has been great - I've met several super sweet & helpful people, reconnected with two friends from school and have gone through a legit process with a fab recruiter. I can only imagine how much more awesome is waiting to be had when I finally arrive!