Jiggle Jiggle



That's right, I'm fist pumping as I crossed the finish line at the Turkey Trot!    This course was an out and back so it was super fun to cheer on the faster runners that were lapping me by fist pumping.  I'm telling you, it's exhilarating and you must try it.  I'm still working on ways to incorporate it into an everyday run by myself...

Look at me! 

 Yesterday was a telework day and was lucky enough to go out and run 5.34 miles.  I wore both the Garmin and my Nike + and the total distance was very different.  Garmin said 5.34 miles and Nike + said 4.94 miles.  What the? 

Overall, I'm pretty satisfied with my performance.  I have been eating a ton of sweets lately and have gained five pounds or so.  I swear to you, I could feel every pound of those sweets jiggling on my booty while I ran.  It was so weird.  Note to self:  eat less sweets and run more.  I will be a happy camper if I can lose the five pounds by Christmas, therefore not adding insult to injury ;)

It's only a couple days until the 15k and I have only recently began to think about how I will maintain energy throughout the race and what I will wear.  I have run this distance before and I'm pretty sure I just used the Power Gel blasts every couple of miles or so to maintain energy.   I can't compare them to anything else since these are the only things I have tried.  As for what I will wear, my new gloves and smartwool socks  are at the top of the list.  I have some random moisture-wicking tights that I will wear but they are intended as a layering piece and not necessarily for running.  I'm still trying to decide if I should wear one long sleeved shirt or two....hmmm...

What do you use to stay energized during long runs?

Is your booty jiggling after too much pumpkin pie?

Hot BAM

I did it!  I finally did it!  I actually went to HOT YOGA.  It only took me a few months but I have now attended class one of four that I purchased through Groupon.  I have three classes left and they expire on December 6th so it looks like I will be doing a lot of hot yoga in the future!  At first, I didn't think the room was that hot but the heat seemed to build over time so by the end of class it was almost unbearable.  The absolute best part of the class was the chilled, lavendar-scented washcloth they handed out at the end of the class.  It was the best feeling in the entire world.  Although I enjoyed the class and only found some of the poses to be challenging, it begins my list of things you shouldn't do before a race.

Things NOT to do before a race:

1. Try a new fitness class the day before (Hot Yoga will help you find muscles you didn't know you had)
2. Go out for dancing and drinks the night before (Magner's is full of carbs, right?)
3. Dance like a crazy person for three hours (droppin' it low is a great pre-race stretch)
4. Go to bed at 2:30am
5. Have a pre-race breakfast of a cup of coffee and an expired Power Bar gel
6. Arrive to race approximately two minutes before start time, use the port-o-potty (because it's a non-negotiable) and run directly from the potty onto the course because the race has already started

Needless to say, this race was not my most shining moment.  The cherry on top of my poor decisions prior to the race was the race course itself.  Holy Hills.  My quads have never been so sad :(  At about halfway through the 10k, my legs felt like they were made of lead and I was contemplating just telling my dad to leave me for dead and walking the rest of the way.  He refused and continuously told me that he was just out to have fun.  I'm not sure what "fun" he was having because I was not experiencing the same. 

While running this race, I got a side cramp.  It was very similar to the cramp that I got while wearing the heart rate monitor last week except for the fact that I wasn't wearing the heart rate monitor.  I stopped to walk for a minute and then began running again.  I tried to really focus on my breathing and it ended up going away after a while.  I'm really confused as to what that is all about.  I used to get cramps all the time when I was younger but have been totally fine until recently. Any ideas?

Here's the good news:  I finished!

Not only did I finish but I was third in my age division!  This truly speaks for the size of the race, haha!  I was third out of four girls in the twenty-somethings age group.  My overall time was 60:36 3/4.  Like I said, I was running from the POP onto the course so the Garmin actually had me completing it at 59:13 (-1:14 from official).  My goal for this race was 1:08:21 and I beat it!  This is also a 10K PR (personal record) for me.  Woo!

I'm so thankful for goals.  It's very exciting to accomplish them :)  I'm also very thankful for my dad because I would have wimped out and run much slower if I was running by myself.  I'm also thankful for those people that didn't sign up for the Turkey Trot, which enabled me to come in third place in my age division!  I'm also thankful for giveaways!

What mistakes have you made before a race?

BAM it! :(

Yesterday's 10pm bedtime was an intentional fail.  I forgot about this growing addiction on Wednesday nights...

So let's just call today a rest day too because I didn't get up and run either.  No BAM today.  I love that tomorrow is Friday though!  It means I can go to work in jeans and sweatshirt.  That also means that it will take me half the time than it usually does because it will require NO ironing.

So the plan is to get up and run five miles on the treadmill.  Boring but necessary to keep in training for the Hot Chocolate 15k and the Lake Ridge RidgeRunner 10k Turkey Trot.  I'm getting pretty excited about the Turkey Trot race on Sunday :)  It's nothing compared to Kara's JFK 50 miler but let's face it, 10k is going to take a lot less time and won't make me nearly as sore.  Those are two things that I am very grateful for!   I updated my races page with a couple more runs.  My time for my first half marathon was added to it and it was AWFUL!  I need to sign up for a half marathon and redeem myself...immediately!

I have mentioned before that when I was training for my half marathon, I got some leg injury that no one could help me with.  I did physical therapy and saw an orthopedic surgeon and still had no diagnosis.  I ended up resting all of August and September (as in NO running) and ran the half marathon cold turkey in October.  It's no small wonder that I was doing a 14 minute mile. 

Do you know of an awesome half marathon that I should redeem myself at?

Do you have a TV show that wins over sleep?

When you lack motivation, buy new toys!

Today's thankfulness was delivered by the postman!  If you recall, I don't have the necessary winter running gear and I will definitely need some as I continue to train and run the Hot Chocolate 15k (Dec 3rd!).  I pay myself $1 for every 15 minutes that I exercise and then use that money to treat myself.  I decided to use some of the money that I earned to buy some new running toys:

Moisture-wicking lightweight gloves

Smart Wool socks -- Thanks Laurie!

Amphipod water bottle

I am pretty excited to get out there and test them out!!  I am signing up for the Lake Ridge RidgeRunners 10k on November 20th so hopefully these will come in handy.   The last 10k that I kept track of was the Ukrops Monument 10k (not sure which year) and I completed it in 1:09:46, which is about a 11:13 mile.  I am hoping to get under an 11 minute mile overall for this 10k so I am shooting for under 1:08:21.

I'm also very thankful that I got home before the sun set!




What race are you training for?

How do you reward your fitness efforts?

A Month of Thanks

Good Afternoon!  Halloween is always a fun holiday for me but not only for the dressing up and candy.  I love Halloween because it is the official kick-off for the holiday season!  I really love Thanksgiving and Christmas.  I have previously mentioned that one of my favorite Thanksgiving traditions is participating in Turkey Trots.  I also have another tradition that I write three things that I am thankful for each day in November. 

I really love the opportunity to refocus on the great things in life because it is all too easy to complain about what's not right, fair or good.  I'm going to share these on my blog (lucky you!).

Today I am thankful for my treadmill, Japanese peanuts and microwavable meals.  First of all, without my treadmill I wouldn't be as physically fit as I am.  I love my treadmill.  I actually got up this morning at 4:30am and got a tiny three mile run in before getting ready for work.  I have said it too many times to count but if I don't exercise in the morning, it probably isn't happening.  I will not run outside by myself in the dark.  Not happening.  That really limits the window of opportunity to go out for a run during the winter time when you work a full-time on top of being a mommy.

Secondly, I am thankful for Japanese peanuts.  A coworker from Arizona brought these to our office on a visit and I was instantly hooked.  These suckers are good.  They have a hard candy-like shell on them so they are super crunchy and they have the perfect balance of sweet, salty and spicy.  They are definitely one of my favorite snacks after working out!

That's right, Japanese peanuts made in Mexico

Lastly, I'm thankful for microwavable meals.  I would spend hundreds of dollars and gain millions of pounds without them.  It makes life so much easier to just grab one out of the freezer and head off to work.  These meals are already pretty affordable PLUS you can always find coupons for them and they go on sale frequently too.  They are a complete lifesaver for the busy, single mom on a budget!

What are you thankful for?