Christmas Gift Guide for Mother Runners

December 22, 2016

Christmas is right around the corner! And you are still trying to find the perfect gift for the mother runner in your family. Well, do not stress! I have the perfect last minute gift guide list. Let’s go shopping!

1. BOB Revolution Pro (Find it at REI store.)

$559.99

If your mother runner has a infant or toddler, but doesn’t have a running stroller yet, or maybe she does, but needs an upgrade… this is the stroller!!

Here is why…

WHEEL

It has a swivel front wheel that you can adjust to a fixed wheel for running, or swivel for everyday use.

BREAK

It also has a hand break on the hand bar so you have more control on down hills.

SEAT

Adjustable seat for comfort for baby. Lay baby/toddler, all the way down for a nap, or prop the seat straight up so baby/toddler can see the world on all your adventures!

CANOPY

Extra large canopy that shades your baby/toddler from the sun with SPF 50!

STORAGE

Huge oversized storage compartment, so you can bring whatever you and your child needs.

For more details read my review on my top three running strollers.

So your mother runner already has the stroller. Well what about some awesome accessories to make her running experience better and more comfortable.

2. Snack Tray ($29.99) and/or Weather Shield (Find it at REI)

As your baby becomes a toddler the Snack Tray is a must!

The Weather Shield is a protective shield for bad weather days. That way you don’t have to worry about your child staying dry or warm, and you still can get your run done.

3. Skip Hop Grab & Go Stroller Organizer $22.99 ( Find it at Nordstrom or Buy Buy Baby)

This item is my favorite stroller organizer. It holds water bottle, and all important items right up front with you.

4. L.L. Bean : Ultra Plush Snow Bunting $89.95 (Find it at L.L. Bean)

This is a must have for winter running. It is the ultimate piece of gear to keep your child warm and cozy on winter runs. It’s basically a sleeping bag for the stroller. Every mother runner needs it!

For more details read my review on the Ultra Plush Snow Bunting.

5. Another Mother Runner Books (Find them at Barnes and Nobel or online at Amazon.) Download the audio on iTunes.

Run like a Mother, Train like a Mother, and Tales from Another Mother Runner, are must reads for a BAMR. If the mother runner in your family doesn’t have time to read, give her the audio option. This allows her to listen while she runs.

6. Newton ($120-175)

(These are hard to find. The website might be the only option.)

Newton running came out with the black series. It isn’t a typical neon bright color, but the black is totally badass for a BAMR! It is a limited edition so grab a pair while you can.

For more information on Newton Running read my review.

7. Every Mother Counts at Oiselle

(Find these at Oiselle)

Every Mother Counts is an organization founded by Christy Turlington Burns, that supports maternal health. There are a lot of great Tshirts and sweatshirts on sale over at oiselle and 40% of the proceeds goes to Every Mother Counts organization. Want to support the organization 100% go to the actual website!

8. Garmin

The Garmin Fenix 3 Sapphire in Rose Gold and White. ($449.99)

(Find it at your local Running Store)

This watch is absolutely the prettiest fitness tracking watch. Again, I say fitness (not running) because it is a multi sport fitness tracking watch. Although, it does track your runs, you can also track other forms of fitness, including swim. It’s great for the tri athlete as well as the runner in your family.

I personally own the Garmin 620 and it is great too!

Below are some quick ideas if you don’t have time to go shopping!

9. Race Swag
This year at the Marine Corps Marathon Expo I had my 14 month daughter with me. There was so many awesome finisher swag, shirts, jackets, etc. but there was no way I was going to wait in a long line with my little one. So I skipped it and went straight to shopping the other vendors.

If this same thing happened to the mother runner in your family, then going to the race website and seeing if they still have some finisher swag to purchase would be an awesome Christmas present.

10. Race Entry Fee

Another great idea is figuring out which race is the next up, and cover the registration fee.

I hope that helps complete your shopping! Your mother runner will be so happy with these gifts!!

Happy Holidays!!

What is on your wishlist?

Stroller miles, Mother RUNNER, Marathon Training

July 18, 2016

Hey lovelies,

I forgot to tell you, I am registered for the Marine Corps Marathon!

I have just finished week 3 of my marathon training. And, although this will be my 4th time training and running the Marine Corps Marathon, things are very very different this time around.

My running buddy is Zoe, my 10 month old daughter. And because we are inseperatable, we do everything together… It is not all about me anymore. This has made training a little bit more challenging, but also way more fun!

WEEK Day Training with the stroller.

During the week, I have been doing my shorter runs pushing Zoe in the running stroller. Pushing the stroller is definitely harder than running solo. (For those who are interested, I am running with the BOB revolution, pro. I intend on writing a blog post about the product so stay tuned.) Not only do I have the extra load, the stroller itself weighs 25 lbs, plus Zoe, but my running form is different when I run with the stroller.

If you have been following my running journey for a while now, you may already know, that I’m obsessed with proper running form, especially since I run in a natural barefoot running shoe, with a low heel to toe drop. (Newton)

And although, I have gotten faster running while pushing the stroller, it is impossible for me to pick up my cadence. Which means I must be over striding. When I run solo my cadence is a perfect, 180. But when I run with the stroller, it is low 130-140 spm.

I also usually use my right hand to steer/push the stroller. I need to work on switching arms, so both sides of my body are balanced.

The longest run I have done with Zoe, is an 8 miler. My legs didn’t hurt, but my arms did by mile 6.

Weekend running, long run.

The plan is to run my shorter miles during the week with Zoe, but run my longer runs on the weekend solo. Well, of course the first week of training, I told my husband I was going out for my long run, and he told me he had tons of things to do, and he needed me to take Zoe.

Week 1- long run 8 miles

Because according to my training plan my long run for the week was only an 8 miler, I decided it was doable to bring Zoe along. So off we went for an 8 miler. This was the longest run I have done while pushing the stroller.

It was also late afternoon and 80+ degrees. I knew this was a big mistake. I should have gotten out there earlier, but I had to get the miles in. I chose the shadiest part of the MVT, however, the shadiest part is also the hilliest part.

My plan was to just chug along up and down those hills, stopping briefly to check on Zoe every 2 miles.

1-4 miles went really well. Miles 4-6, I mentally broke down. Miles 6-8 I pulled it together and finished strong. So strong that I thought I could have kept going for another mile or two.

Zoe absolutely loves going on runs with me. It is really nice for her to get fresh air. She loves all the views and the trail gives her lots of trees and water to look at. It is also important for her to see me living an active, healthy lifestyle, enjoying nature.

However, with that being said. It takes me between 1 hour and 25 minutes and 1 hour 35 minutes to run 10 miles.

I will take Zoe out for a 10 miler, but I really don’t want to take her out longer than that. I am very lucky, that she loves her stroller, and like I said above there are some amazing, healthy benefits about stroller miles, but I can’t keep her strapped in a stroller for longer than 10 miles.

Now that she is scooting around and pulling herself up, it is important for her to move, and play. It’s my job as her mama to give her that time and opportunity to play and move, to problem solve and discover. She needs her exercise too.

Week 2- long run 9 miles

Again, I didn’t get out there early enough, however I was excited to see what I could do running solo, (with out pushing a 10 month old in a stroller.)

The heat was killer, a lot of runners were falling apart on the trail. But I had my water, and kept chugging along. Over all it was a fine run, mainly slower because of the heat.

Week 3- long run 6 miles

Once again, I will have more success if I get out there earlier when it is cooler. The heat is definitely taking its toll on me. Getting out there around 9:30 am is just way to late.

The more I practice running in the heat, the more my body will get use to it. However, lately it has been a heat wave and it’s just not healthy to run in, because of the high humidity levels.

I had a really slow 6 miler and thought to myself, goodness, maybe I can’t do this marathon training. If I’m feeling bad doing 6 miles, what am I going to do next week when I have to do an 11 miler.

Although, my 6 miler felt bad during, I felt great after.

Later, that night a fellow mother runner, Lina, asked me to do 4 miles with her. It had just stormed which cooled the 90 degree day to 70 degrees and there was a breeze.

This was my chance to test myself. It was only a 4 miler, but I wanted to see how I would do. Turns out I ran just fine and all of my negative thoughts from earlier were erased. It was just the heat and running in cooler weather made all the difference.

It was also great doing a double, running 6 miles in the morning, and 4 miles at night which gave me a total of 10 miles for the day.

Training PLAN and Apps

The training plan I am following is the Hal Higdon Intermidate training plan. I am interested in heart rate training, and considered following the heart rate marathon training plan by another mother runner. However, for this marathon, I am following Higdon’s plan because I have used his plans in the past and I have always found success. So I’m sticking to what I know works, while throwing a baby into the mix.

Although, I love my Garmin, I am also tracking my mileage using Strava! The Strava app is awesome! I love that I can follow other runners and they can follow me. When training for a marathon alone, it is important to check in with other runners and be inspired by their training and give/receive encouragement and support. I will also be reading more running blogs. I read tons of running blogs two years ago when I trained for my marathon and I didn’t feel so alone.

Another feature that I love about Strava is how it breaks down your running stats. It also records your PRs.

So if you are on Strava please follow me! I’m on there under sweat1xdaily. You can also find me on Instagram @sweat1xdaily.

Well that’s all for now!

Run Happy!
Which marathon are you training for?

Will the Apple Watch replace your Garmin?

September 11, 2014

The newest addition to the Apple family will be the Apple Watch, which will be released early 2015.

They have a couple different models, including a Sports model!

When Apple first announced they were releasing a watch, I thought the idea was stupid. But now that there is a sports addition I am very curious.

It looks really cool, but will it function as good as some of the leading brands?

Some of the Features…

Band is durable and strong. Yet surprisingly light and soft.
Sport models are as light as possible.
Made with strong scratch resistant alumina-silicate glass.
There are a variety of apps that will do things such as monitor your activity through out the day.
Heart rate sensor.
There are reminder features to tell you when your next workout is.
Data sharing.
It is unclear whether the GPS feature to track runs will be used from the iPhone. In this case runners will need to run with your iPhone.

The watch will retail $349.

Being a serious runner, my watch has become my running buddy. I am
pretty loyal to Garmin.

Above are the facts, but it will be interesting to hear reviews once the watch comes out.

Will the Apple Watch replace your Garmin? Which running watch is your favorite?

References:

Tips on how to keep your New Year’s Resolution!

January 6, 2014

Happy New Year!

What is 2014 going to be like for you?

You can’t control everything that happens to you in 2014, but what you do have control over is which goals you choose to set and how you plan on reaching them.

Most people hate New Year’s Resolutions. Most people think they are pointless, and never set them. I guess, I’m not like most people, because I love them. I always set them, and I make a great effort to stick to them.

And although, I make a resolution for the year, I also always have other goals I am trying to reach. After reaching my current goals, I then set new ones.

However, not everyone is constantly making goals, and for some, they dread it. Others set a New Year resolution and by February forget their resolution ever existed.

So here are some fun tips to get you setting a New Year resolution and sticking to it.

Be specific, and well detailed.
Have a game plan.
Be inspired and find support.

The two most common resolutions are…

1) Diet and loose weight.

If this is your new year resolution, the odds are you are going to fail. Why? Because there is no game plan. A couple years ago, my resolution was, “I’m going to eat one unique, exotic, interesting food a week.” This resolution being more specific was totally doable. It got me out of my rut of always throwing the same food into my grocery cart. It also got me exploring health food stores, such as MOM’s Organic Market and Whole Foods. I would literally grab one item I knew nothing about, and throw it into my cart. I would go home research it, learning how to prepare it, and what it went well with. This one small resolution changed my life. I began exploring new food options. I discovered a passion for cooking. I started meal prepping. And with out even realizing it at first, I began to eat healthier and loose body fat.

So this year, instead of focusing on dieting, and counting calories, try focusing on living a healthy lifestyle. Focus on making healthier food choices. This may not be as easy as it seems, because the sad truth is that many people are confused and simply do not know what is healthy. If you fall in this category it is not your fault. Advertisements play so many sneaky tricks on us by calling products fat free, low fat, diet, when the truth is these products are really overly processed, full of sugar and chemicals. Even fat free milk, which sounds healthy, is actually processed. They suck out the fat and replace it with chemicals and 12 grams of added sugar per cup. The average woman should only get an average of 25-30 grams of added sugar a day.

So start to educate yourself… This is important!

It’s time to…

Read labels and avoid chemicals.
Promise yourself that you will choose organic, cold-pressed, raw, unrefined, unprocessed foods.
Eliminate added sugars.
Meal prep.
Cook your own food.
Have fun by researching and trying new foods and recipes.
Become a foodie, and choose high quality foods.
Really make an effort to learn about exactly what you are putting in to your body.
Download apps, get the tools, you need to succeed.

This may be a time commitment and a financial investment, but it is worth it in the long run. You deserve this!

Once you have truly learned about selecting a healthy food choice, and your get on a regular routine of living a healthy lifestyle, it is then that you can take it up a notch. It is then that you can count macros and carb cycle. There are a lot of apps that can help you learn a healthy food choice, and later log your food. My favorite is My Fitness Pal.

2) I’m going to work out more… is another common resolution.

If this is your New Year resolution be prepared to fail. Why? Again there is no game plan. Instead, choose a plan. There are tons of free weightlifting plans on bodybuilding.com.

Weight lifting

In 2013, I decided, along side of my running I was going to incorporate weight lifting, into the mix. I had been running everyday, but wanted to improve my speed, and prevent injury – so it was time to get strong. When training for a full or half marathon I always had been successful while following a disciplined training plan. Because of this, I knew I needed one when it came to weight lifting. That being said, I saw amazing results in the weight room because I followed the Livefit Trainer, by Jamie Eason.

Honestly, the Livefit trainer changed my life. I have never seen such amazing results in my body, and the best part is my running has significantly improved.

“Change your mind set. Stop focusing on getting skinny! Instead focus on getting strong. If you focus on getting strong, the fat will melt right off.”

One way I found success was to record everything. When you write down how heavy you are lifting, next time you lift heavier you will feel more accomplished, by setting a new PR. Also when you record everything, you will be amazed how much you are actually doing. One leg day, after counting all of my reps and sets, I discovered I did 180 squats that day. Pretty amazing!

Running

Maybe you don’t belong to a gym… maybe you would rather choose to run as your source of exercise. Well you are asking the right person, because I am a runner. Running is my thing.

Again you need a game plan and a detailed goal.

Start Racing…

I love racing, so this New Year I would suggest signing up for a race. By signing up for a race, you will have a specific date you must physically be ready to run by. In the summer, in the DC area, there is a 5K every friday in Crystal City. So if you are choosing to run shorter distances such as a 5K, consider signing up for several. Maybe your goal will to be to race once a month.

If you are choosing a longer distance, such as half marathon or full, allow at least 16 weeks for training. There are tons of online training plans. My favorite running plans are written by Hal Higdon. I have trained for all of my full marathons, by using his plans, and I found success.

Log your miles…

Another option is to set a milage goal, for example, maybe you want to run 20 miles a week, or 100 miles a month. (These are all very doable goals.) Maybe you want to do a 30 day consecutive running challenge, where you run at least a mile a day everyday for 30 days.

There are several online running logs, you can use to keep track of your miles. Because I have a Garmin, I use the Garmin Connect center. But if you do not have a Garmin, you can use a free log on runnersworld.com. Another option is Daily Mile. There are also many apps to record your miles, such as, Run Keeper or Map my Run.

Stay Inspired beyond social media…

Although social media sites, such as Instagram, Tumblr and Facebook can be very helpful and inspiring. There are times when you find an inspiring article in a magazine that you want to tear out and keep. In this case, I find it very helpful to create a story board, or inspiration board/wall. This is simply a physical spot on a wall, or a cork board that you can pin inspiration and notes too. This helps you stay organized. Another option is to join Pinterest, the online option for a pin board.

Also if you keep a day planner, don’t forget to write down your daily workouts, and good eats.

To find support…

The people who see the best results in most cases have a workout partner, or a running buddy. Sometimes it is hard to find someone with the same schedule as you. (I have struggled with this.) So in order to find support there is a ton of online fitness community you can join. My favorite is What’s Beautiful by Under Armour. What’s beautiful is free, and by joining you are able to learn new things, be inspired by others, participate in challenges, and get never-ending support.

Instagram is another form of social media, that can make a huge difference in keeping you motivated. People think Instagram is just a personal photo sharing app, but the truth is Instagram has much more to offer.

Instagram is an information source. You can search hashtags that lead you to, personal trainers, running coaches, small businesses, professional athletes, athletes trying to inspire, chefs, nutritionist, foodies, etc.

You can learn new yoga poses, new recipes, new workouts, new equipment, new gear, and so much more. You can follow people who inspire you. You can follow companies. The information and knowledge you can find, is at your fingertips. It comes quickly and is never-ending. You can also hashtag your personal photos, which your followers and others might like or comment on – this support alone may be just the motivation you need.

Another fun thing about Instagram is you can easily join a challenge. There are tons of challenges going on and all you need to do is use the challenge hash tag. There is also daily hash tags, such as #transfomationtuesday used on tuesday or #flexfriday used on friday.

If an online fitness community isn’t enough, try joining a Crossfit gym, yoga studio, running club/group, or local gym.

So there you have it. These are my top tips on how to be successful when it comes to nutritional and fitness goals this new year.

Questions for you…

What’s your New Year Resolution?
What tips do you have to stick to a resolution?
How do you stay inspired?

Articles you may be interested in.

Marathon Training Update: Long runs.

August 24, 2013

“We focus on something external to motivate us, but we need to remember that it’s the process of reaching for the prize, not the prize itself- that can bring us peace and joy.”- Scott Jurek

I believe in the words above.

Because of this, it is hard for me to understand people who, hardly train for races, or hate the training process.

Don’t get me wrong, I love running the race. But I also love having a disciplined training plan to keep me on track. For me, one of the reasons I sign up for a race, is to set a goal, that I need to train for. My training runs, which are sometimes extremely difficult, brings me peace and joy.

The picture above is after I had finished my midweek 7 miler. It was fast and easy. As you can see, the sun was shining and my hair was blowing in the wind. Although, the beginning of the summer was hot and humid, which slowed me down and made me very discouraged, now the weather has cooled down significantly. I love running on beautiful days. Good weather is motivation enough to lace up my running shoes.
LONG RUN: Saturday, 8/17/13

Through out my marathon training, I have been doing my long runs on Friday mornings. I don’t work Friday or Saturday, so by doing my long run on Friday, I am able to get it done and have the rest of my weekend free.

However, last weekend, I did my long run on Saturday morning and I liked it 1 million times better. The trails around my house always have traffic, but on Friday, it is much less crowded. Actually, sometimes I feel very lonely out there – it is so quiet. On Saturday, I didn’t feel alone. Instead, I was surrounded with tons of other runners, running groups, walkers, cyclists. It felt good to be running among other runners that were obviously training for marathons, and in it for the long run, just like me. On Friday, I feel lonely, bored, and really rely on my upbeat music. But on Saturday, I use the other runners on the trail to keep me motivated. The energy is electrifying. My pace was right on target.

Again I was blessed with gorgeous weather, and had an amazing 15 miler.

Today, Friday, 8/23/13

Because I am heading up north tomorrow morning, I decided to squeeze my long run in today. I am on a taper week so my long run was 13 miles. I am happy to say, 13 miles felt pretty comfortable, even in the rain. In the above picture, I tried to capture how wet it was – you can see rain drops on my shoulders.

It started sprinkling three miles into my run. It started pouring at the 6 mile mark. Because of the rain, this Friday, the trail was even more empty than usual, however there were still a few other runners out there – we smiled when we passed each other.

Minus the blister on my toe, because my socks got soaked. I am pretty happy with this run. My pace was right on target, and I was blessed again with cooler weather.

Questions for You..

How is your marathon training going?
Do you enjoy training?
Do you like long runs?

Marathon Training Update: My Garmin has become Running Buddy.

August 12, 2013

I love my Garmin!! This Garmin has been the best present my boyfriend has ever bought me. I have the Forerunner 50 – which is the oldest of all the Garmins. Sooo old that most people have never heard of it. This watch has been with me for all of my training runs and races for the last 5 years. It tracks my pace, distance, cadence, heart rate, and calories burned. But what I find most amazing about using a Garmin watch is that you get to also use the Garmin Connect Calender.

With this feature, I am able to analyze all of my current runs, but I also get to look back on all of the runs I have ever recorded. This has been extremely helpful. The last time I ran the Marine Corps Marathon was in 2010. During this training, when I have felt unsure about my progress, I am able to go back to 2010 with the click of a button and compare my runs.

“It had gotten to hot even for the desert rat, Rick Miller, so Dusty joined me and ran me up the next 10 miles. “You da man, Yeah brotha’, that’s how you do it, Jurker, hell yeah!” the Dust Ball hollered.”

The above quote is from the book Eat and Run, by Scott Jurek. Scott Jurek wouldn’t be the runner he is today, with out his best friend Dusty. The relationship between Dusty and Scott is by far my favorite part of the book. Dusty was there by Scott’s side, through almost all of his ultra runs. And although I wish I had a Dusty, the reality is… I don’t, so my Garmin has become my running buddy.

So far during this marathon training season, I have been running solo. Sometimes when you are running by yourself it is hard to judge if you are running your best, especially considering that last year and up to this point, I have had a running buddy. However, in 2010 I ran every training run by myself, and ended up having a very successful marathon.

I did it then, I can do it now.

Questions for You…

Do you run with a Garmin? If not what do you use to record your runs?
Do you have a running buddy? or do you prefer to run solo?
Have you trained for a race by yourself?

running and photography

January 11, 2013

Let me tell you a little story.

One friday, late last year, I decided to join my mom, and all of her old lady friends for lunch. After we had finished our meals all of my mom’s friends demanded that they updated their contacts. So they all pulled out their phones, and yep you guessed it they all had marvelous smart phones, androids, iphones – you name it. I immediately felt left out and embarrassed to even pull out my phone. I should be the one with the nice iPhone, and they should be the one clueless on how to work theirs. But nope they weren’t. After that- I had, had it. It was time for me to become trendy and get a smart phone.

So in October of 2012, I got an iPhone 5. Finally, I could recycle my old piece of crap phone and upgrade to a smart phone. Yes, I was the only 20 something year old that had not done this yet, but better late than never.

bad picture of me. but great picture of my iPhone 5.

Before I use to never run with my phone. What was the point? But now that I have my iPhone 5, I never run with out it! Although, there are tons of cool running and music apps, my favorite part of my iPhone 5 is the camera. This phone takes amazing pictures. Before, I would go on runs, and sometimes see something really cool, that I wished I could take a photo of, with the iPhone 5 now I can. I have become obsessed with instagram as well- follow me @dorseyml.

Anyway, I don’t take photos on every run, but I took a couple over the past 2 weeks. This is what I have been running by…

Most of these are taken on the south side of MVT.

This photo was taken during my run on January 3rd, 2013. Although, it was cold, look at that sun streaming. Cold, but refreshing, and soaking in that Vitamin D.

This photo was taken on my morning run on January 4th, 2013. Look at those ducks!

This photo was taken during my morning run, on January 10th, 2013. On this day, it was 53 degrees out. It felt amazing running. The sun reflecting on the water almost looks like ice – but its not.

This photo was taken today, January 11th, 2013. It was 50 degrees, but felt colder because it was lightly raining. I was craving a run, so even those it was raining I was ready to hit the trail. Running forces me to get outside, during the winter while most people are cooped up inside. Don’t be scared of bad weather. A light rain even in January, can feel quite refreshing.

I will start up training for longer races in mid February. So all of these runs, were fast, easy runs, between 5k- 5 miles. However, this weekend is suppose to be 65 degrees so I might throw on some shorts and go on a 10 mile run.

I also wanted to let you guys know that I didn’t feel it necessary to set a New Years Resolution for running, because I am always setting running goals. However, the one thing I do want to do, is record/log my miles. I do this anyway. I use to log them on runnersworld.com, but even since I began running with my garmin I log my miles on garmin connect. But I have never evaluated my mileage. What I mean by this is…

If you had asked me, “How many total miles did you run last month?”

I wouldn’t be able to answer that question- because I have no clue. So this year I will continue to record my mileage, but I will actually keep track. I have just become really curious of how many miles I run a year! So lets see how many miles I can run in one whole year. I am really excited about this new goal/challenge.

Questions for You…

Do you run with your phone?
What is your favorite thing about your smart phone?
How many miles do you run in a year?

Speed Work

November 5, 2012

This morning, I woke up at my normal time, 8:00 am, but because it was daylight savings time, the clock went from 8 to 7. If you have been following my blog, you may already know how much I love my mornings, so having an extra hour this morning was a real treat. Unfortunately, I didn’t squeeze in a morning run, so instead I hit up the gym after work.

It is funny how things change. Four years ago, I was a gym rat, spending all my running time on the treadmill. But now, I can’t even remember the last time I set foot in a gym. Honestly, I hate the gym atmosphere and can’t stand the treadmill. However, I wanted to get in a short really fast run. The best place to work on speed is either at the track or on the treadmill, and because it is getting darker earlier, I decided on the treadmill.

So I put on my pink Newton shoes, the Distance U, and headed to the gym.

Time to get faster! Decked out in my favorite Lululemon.

RUN ANALYZE

SUMMERY from my Garmin

Distance: 3.12 miles

Time: 26.19

Average Pace: 8:27 min/mi

Best Pace: 7:42 min/mi

Average Run Cadence 97 spm

Calories: 254 C

TREADMILL DETAILS

I did a brief warm up walk on the t-mill for about 1 minute. Then I ran the first mile at 6.5 taking the speed up to 6.8 the last two minutes of the first mile. This was around a 9 minute mile. Then I ran the second mile at 7.0 which is around an 8:30 minute mile. Then I ran the last mile at 7.5 which is an 8 minute mile or slightly under. I was pretty satisfied with my speedy 5k.

At first, my Newton shoes felt really weird on the treadmill. But after a minute or two, I felt super light and fast, never feeling tired. It felt good to work up a sweat quickly and get those muscles moving.

Questions for you…

Do you prefer to run far or run fast?
Where do you do your speed workouts? Treadmill or track?

Running the A-10. A race in the rain!

August 31, 2012

I have been waiting to write this blog post because it just wouldn’t be as good with out photos. So here it goes…

Races around here fill up so fast. Marine Corps Marathon has a total of 30,000 entries and filled up this year in 2 hours and 45 minutes. Army 10 Miler has a total of 50,000 runners and filled up over night. The Color Run 5K filled up in 2 days. The Cherry Blossom 10 miler is now a lottery entry, just like the NYC Marathon, because it is that popular.

If you really want to run a popular race in the DC area, your best bet is to stay awake until midnight and register the minute the race opens. There is still that frantic feeling that your computer will freeze and the race will sell out. This was the feeling Lina (my running buddy) was having.

It all began in June, while I was on my vacation in Idaho. I received a phone call from my sister saying that Lina had contacted her through Facebook. She told me that Lina was trying to get a hold of me. We had just run the Cherry Blossom 10 miler and The Parkway Classic in April, but Lina was ready to sign up for her next race, and honestly I was too. She was debating between the Spartan Run or the Annapolis 10 Miler. Both of these races fill up fast so she wanted to sign up ASAP. So immediately the three of us got registered, for the A-10.

All summer, Lina and I ran. However, this was the first summer in three years that I was NOT intensely training for a Marathon. So although I did run, I will admit, it was a different type of running. It was shorter runs. It was faster runs. It was running experiments in my Newton shoes. It was runs focused on form.

Well after three months of this type of training it was finally the weekend of the Annapolis 10 miler. On Saturday, August 25th, around 1 pm, my sister and I left DC and headed to Annapolis. Unfortunately, the predicted forecast of Sunshine changed. And although, Hurricane Isaac, was swarming around the Florida Keys, winds and tropical storms were all over the Annapolis Harbor.

The expo was really small, but I accepted that because the race was organized by a local running group. It was also outside under a tent and it started to drizzle so people were getting their bibs and heading on out. My sister and I had to rush on through because we had reservations to go sailing.

Me at the Expo getting my Bib for the A-10. I got a cool hat too!

When my sister and I got down to the Harbor to catch our boat, we both were a little annoyed about the weather. Questions like, Should we go? Should we get our money back? It sucks that it is not sunny. It is horrible weather? But we sucked it up and got on the boat. And I am glad we did.

Sailing in Annapolis.

Me Sailing!

So let me tell you about this boat ride! It felt like we were on an amusement park ride. I felt like I was going to go over board several times. The sail boat tipped to one side and then the sailors would change the sail and it would aggressively tip to the other side. The sailors were loving it. They would yell, “Wohoo! This is the best wind we’ve had in months.” This was definitely not a peaceful boat ride, but it was fun, and actually the best boat ride I have ever been on.

We got off the boat looking like we had just came from Gilligan’s Island. We tried to clean up the best we could in the Marriot Hotel’s bathroom. And then we headed to an Italian restaurant for dinner. The food was amazing. We both ate vegetarian dishes and they were delicious.

After dinner we walked around the harbor and checked out some of the boutiques. I of corse hit up one of the local tea shops, called The Spice and Tea Exchange.

Finally we arrived at the hotel. We prepared our running stuff for the morning and set our alarms for 5:30 am.

My running stuff! Newton shoes and Lululemon!

RACE MORNING

I woke up the morning of the race not to my alarm but rather thunder.

Thunder in the morning!

OMG, I thought the race would be canceled for sure. But we got ready and headed to the start. We were lucky because we had saved our ponchos from sail boat ride we took the day before, and we had umbrellas.

At 7:45 right on time, the race started and we began to run. I was a little disappointed that they didn’t have corrals, because I had seen Lina in the parking lot and told her to meet me at the 8-9 min corral. So we didn’t start together, but I did see her later in the race.

At the start we thought, maybe the rain would stop, but boy were we wrong. It just came down harder and harder. This rain was the type of rain that when you are driving your windshield wipers can’t keep up and you have to pull over to the side because you can’t see.

My sister and I running in the rain!

MY iPOD

At mile 2 my iPod’s volume got really low and then it just shut down because it was that wet. My sister and I actually pulled over to the side of the race because she thought her iPod was dying too. I ended up moving my iPod to the outside of my shirt, in hope that the crazy hurricane like winds would dry it off. This actually worked and at mile 7 my iPod randomly started playing again.

MY GARMIN

All week I had been training without my garmin because it had a full memory and I needed a new USB plug. I purchased a new one on Amazon and received it that week. Well I went through all that trouble for nothing. When I started running, I looked at my garmin and noticed the numbers were all fucked up. It turns out that I am an idiot and didn’t realize until mile nine that my watch was programed for km and not miles. So I basically was clueless the whole race about my pace and milage.

NEWTON SHOES

As you may know from previous posts, I was using this race as the ultimate test for my Newton shoes, and I was expecting to run it super fast, however I did not PR. I do want to say this though, my Newton shoes felt awesome, and in the end, I love them, and will continue training and racing in them. I was also very surprised to see so many others wearing Newton shoes.

No Regrets!

So although, this race was not a PR for me, WOW what a race! Thunder, lightning, torrential downpour, hurricane like winds, iPod dying from being wet, and garmin programmed for km, not miles. I ran across the finish line soaked and muddy in 1:33:23. I have come to the conclusion that you just might not PR in every race and I am totally fine with that. And like the above photo says, “I really regret that run. -Said no one. Ever.” I have no regrets.

Me with my game face on!

Let me hear your stories… Questions for You…

Have you run through bad weather?
Have you had a race when all your electronics died on you?