Runner Spotlights #78

Sooo...did everyone enjoy losing that hour of sleep last night??? I will admit that I LOVE this time change since it stays daylight for longer at night...but I hate having to transition to it. I LOVE my sleep and do not like losing that hour! Oh well...I will appreciate it tonight when I look at the clock and it's close to 7:00 and still daylight! :-) Here's to those night runs...not being dark!!!

Now it's time for another runner spotlight...my favorite time of the week! I love reading other runners' stories about their running journey! If you are interested in being spotlighted on my blog please email me at mindy@roadrunnergirl.com! I'd love to spotlight you! You don't have to have a blog to be spotlighted...you just have to be a runner! ;-)

Today I'm spotlighting Angela from Cowgirl Runs! What is really cool is that Angela lives in Canada! And she is a cat lover like me! Keep reading to learn more about Angela and her running journey!

Name: Angela

State: Calgary AB, Canada

When and why did you start running?

I completed my last accountancy exam in 2009 and was looking for a new way to spend my free time and take care of my body (which had fallen off when I was in school). Knowing I'd have some more free time in Spring 2010 I decided to challenge myself by signing up for a half marathon in October 2010. I'd run a few 10k races, but I think the last one was when I was 18, so a half marathon was going to be a new challenge for me. After that race I was hooked! I took a bit of time off, but started up running and racing more seriously in Spring 2013 and it’s going to take a lot to get me to stop. :-)

What is your favorite race and race distance?

So far, running SeaWheeze in Vancouver in August 2013 was my favorite race. The race was extremely well organized (I’d heard a lot about how it was disorganized in 2012) and the cheer stations and spectators were electric!

I absolutely love running my marathon, but I think right now my favorite distance is the half. I’m definitely not a sprinter, so the half caters to the distance side of things while not being quite so time consuming (training-wise) as the full.

What is your race day routine?

I’m not much of a morning person, so I try to wake up as close to start time as possible; I’m not one of those runners who wakes up 2-3 hours before the race to eat a good breakfast (this is something I’m working on!). I always have everything laid out the night before, so I’ll get dressed and then fuel which is usually my Vega Pre-Workout Energizer, Stinger Waffle and 1tbsp of peanut butter (and not the all-natural stuff!). Then I’ll walk/drive to the start line, drop my bag (I get really cold after races, so I always drop a bag with a sweater) and head to my corral.

My persona in the corral completely changes, I don’t like to talk and I’m laser focused. I think this is a throwback to my swimming days when I didn’t like to talk to anyone in the marshalling area because I was focusing on my race. Once the gun goes off, I’m back to my cheerful self.

What is your most favorite piece of running gear?

My Newton runners. I made the switch to these early in 2013 and I’m pretty certain they’ve contributed to my newfound speed and more efficient stride.

My iPhone (for music and RunKeeper) is a close second!

Do you follow any diet or take any specific supplements that complement your running?

I’m not big on “diets” but I do watch what I eat and try to eat healthfully, but I would never deprive myself of beer, pizza or brownies!

Before all of my runs I have a Vega Pre-Workout Energizer, if it’s an AM run I’ll also have some food like a Stinger Waffle or ½ a Larabar and will also add Beta-Alanine to the energizer before a long run or a race. To recover I have Vega Recovery Accelerator or Vega Performance Protein after a workout followed by 1L of water with a Nuun tablet to restore electrolytes. I’m a very salty sweater!

What do you wish you’d known when you first started running?

The amazing friendships and community that would come out of it. I tend to do the majority of my training runs by myself, but even still I’ve made some awesome friends and my love of running has even turned into flying to Florida for a girls race weekend. I never dreamed this would happen when I started.

What is your fondest running memory?

Crossing the finish line for my first half marathon. When I signed up I really didn’t know if I was going to be able to do it, but I did, and I came in under 2 hours. I had tears in my eyes when I crossed because I was so proud of myself for doing it.

What is one thing that most people do not know about you?

Only my mom knows this one: when I was 16 I went to write my learner’s exam and failed it that day. I was heartbroken. The next day I went back, wrote it and passed. I was so embarrassed I didn’t tell any of my friends, and now I’m putting it on the internet. :-)

Here are all the different ways you can connect with Angela!

Blog: http://cowgirlruns.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/cowgirlruns

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cowgirlruns?ref=hl

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/angelaraew/

Instagram: http://instagram.com/cowgirlruns

QOTD: Do you like this time change?

Fitness Friday...March 7th Edition!

I can't believe it's Friday already! Since we were out of school Monday and Tuesday I couldn't keep my days straight this week. Wednesday felt like Monday and yesterday felt like Tuesday! So knowing today is actually Friday is awesome!!! :-)

Thank you soooo much for all your advice concerning my horrible long run last weekend. I really believe I did not eat enough calories the day before to fuel me through those 10 miles. Today I plan to eat more calories (including my normal pizza the night before a long run) in hopes that my long run tomorrow will be great!

This dieting thing is hard when you are a runner! It's hard to find the correct balance between eating to lose weight but also fueling enough for your runs. I'm hoping to find that balance soon!

It's time for Fitness Friday! The weather kept me from one of my runs but I made up for it with a walk with my boys! Here are my runs and planks for the week!

• Saturday- 10 mile run in 1:55:32 average pace 11:33

• Sunday- #plankaday 1:05

• Monday- #plankaday 1:01, 2.15 mile walk 

• Tuesday- #plankaday 1:00

• Wednesday- #plankaday 1:10, 3.11 mile run in 30:35 average pace 9:50

• Thursday- #plankaday 1:05

• Friday- #plankaday 1:00

Weight loss total: 1.2 lbs.

So that was my week! I'm really hoping eating a little more calories today will help me have a fabulous long run tomorrow! I really need it! I'll be running 6 miles solo and the last 5 miles with my Sole2Soul Sisters! I'm hoping for negative splits and a really great run!

Don't forget to enter my giveaway for a Gone For A Run Gift Card!!!

QOTD: What was your best run or workout this week?

Gone For A Run Review and Giveaway!!!

Disclaimer: I received this product free to review. I received no other compensation. All opinions in the above post are mine and mine alone!

I've been eyeing items on the Gone For A Run website for a while now. So when I got the opportunity to review one of their products I was so excited!!! 

What is Gone For A Run? It is an awesome company that sells amazing gifts for runners! They have medal hangers, running jewelry, running clothes, running gear, decals, stickers, magnets, home decor, and drinkware. Pretty much anything a runner would want or imagine....Gone For A Run has it!

I found so many items that I wanted! I could only choose one for my review though. Since I love Disney so much I chose the Magical Miles BibFOLIO!

BibFOLIOS are one of their most popular items. They are a display for your race bibs. I don't know about you but all my race bibs are tucked away in a drawer. Some of them are really pretty....like my runDisney ones...and I've always wanted to display them. The BibFOLIO is the perfect answer!

The BibFOLIO comes with a stand to display it. It also comes with 2 vinyl protector sheets (you can buy more of these online). I definitely plan to get more so I can display all of my bibs. But for now I decided to just display some of my runDisney bibs.

runDisney bibs are larger than most so I ended up having to trim the edges of them so that they would fit in the vinyl protectors. But once inside they looked really nice!

I enjoyed reminiscing as I looked back at each of these runDisney bibs! My first Disney Princess Half Marathon I was in corral A! That has never happened since lol! My Disney Full Marathon bib got signed by Jeff Galloway. And my two bibs from marathon weekend this year are in there too. The 10K bib is pretty special because I learned that the word "inaugural" is misspelled as "inaugurual" (yeah I can't believe Disney made that mistake)!

I love that the BibFOLIO has a display stand! You can display the cover like shown below.

Or you can display a certain bib!

I just love my BibFOLIO and can't wait to get more vinyl protectors so I can add more race bibs to it! It is such a neat way to display all your race bibs instead of hiding them in a drawer.

The BibFOLIO came wrapped in the cutest little bag too! This bag can be used for almost anything including a travel running shoe bag! Can you tell that my running shoes are in there?! :-)

Gone For A Run is such a neat website! I will definitely be referring my husband and family there for those birthday and Christmas gifts! :-)

Gone For A Run has kindly offered to giveaway a $20 gift card to one of my readers!!! Enter below for your chance to win (please follow all the guidelines...I will be checking)!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Why Was That Long Run So Hard?

After last week's amazing 10 mile run...I was ready for another one just the same! But...it just didn't happen this time. Why? Why was this run so hard? This question played through my mind the entire run.

The run started out tough like always. The first 3 miles are always tough for me. But I had my audio book playing in my ears and I was as focused as I could be. But I just wasn't feeling it. I was tired. I felt like I didn't have any energy. I wondered, "Am I getting sick?" I was just counting down the time until I would be meeting my Sole2Soul Sisters...at mile 5.5. It seemed to take me forever to get there but I finally did.

Once I met them I quickly fueled up with some Honey Stinger Chews. I hoped these would help me find my energy. I had 4.5 miles to go...and I was leading the training group so I knew I had to be strong for them.

But the run was still hard. I kept fighting with myself to slow down, to walk, to quit. Quitting is never an option for me. But at mile 7.5 I had to take a walk break. And for the rest of this run...that's what I did. I ran for a bit....and then I would walk for a bit. I just really didn't feel good. I was so tired...and I had zero energy. But I kept fighting. And seeing the number 10 on my Garmin was the most amazing sight!

This horrible run was finally over! But then my tears began. What had happened? Why did I have such an amazing long run the week before and this one was the total opposite?

I quickly dried up my tears so my Sole2Soul Sisters wouldn't see them. I congratulated them on their amazing runs! For most of them it was their first time running 4.5 miles! I was so happy for them!

My friend Donna, who is a seasoned runner, had come out to run with us and support the training group. As she started to leave I walked her to her car. And then I just started crying! I couldn't keep the tears in! I was so devastated over my bad run! Donna was an angel and just listened. And then she took me to Dunkin Donuts for some chocolate milk to recover!

So why was this long run so hard???? There could be several factors:

• It was hot! The temperature was about 10 degrees hotter than last weekend's run. With the heat and the higher humidity....the run could be harder.
• I had started decreasing my calorie consumption earlier that week. Like I mentioned in my Weekly Chase post, I have started watching what I eat and how many calories I consume. Donna and my husband both think I didn't have enough calories to fuel me through such a long run. And I didn't carb like I normally do before a run (no pizza the night before!). 

So...what do you think? Why was my long run so hard?

QOTD: Are you a long distance runner who is also on a low calorie diet? How do you balance it all? What do you eat to fuel your runs?

Hydrate With Reduce WaterWeek!

Disclaimer: I received this product free to review. I received no other compensation. All opinions in the above post are mine and mine alone!

As a runner hydration is very important. I try my best to get in the recommended amount of water each day. As most of you know...if you're not properly hydrated then that run is not going to go too well.

While loving my water, I also love the environment and want to protect this beautiful earth as much as I can. I have never been a big fan of plastic bottles of water. I like to know that I can do my part to help reduce the number of plastic bottles that enter our landfills.

That's where Reduce comes in to play! Reduce is a company that makes "attractive and innovative eco-friendly products that are​ designed to help consumers "turn over a green leaf" everyday." All of their products are BPA free and lead free.

Reduce was kind of enough to send me their WaterWeek Cardigan Bottle Set to review!

These water bottles are amazing! There is no after taste like I've experienced with other bottles. The bottles hold 16 ounces of water. They are dishwasher safe. And they come with a fridge tray so that they stack neatly in your refrigerator! 

These bottles are perfect for me as a teacher. I have to pack my lunch everyday since my preschool doesn't have a cafeteria. These bottles ensure that I will be able to get my water in even while working.

The WaterWeek sets are offered in many different colors and styles. They come in two different sizes...16 oz or 10 oz. I really want a set of the 10 oz ones for my boys to take to school.

They cost $16.99- $19.99. You will be saving tons of money when you stop buying the plastic disposable water bottles!

Be sure to check out Reduce's website! You can also follow them on Twitter and like them on Facebook!

QOTD: How many oz of water do you drink a day?

The Weekly Chase #61...and WINNERS!

Happy Monday! We have the next 2 days off of school due to Mardi Gras! I'm super excited to spend this time with my family!

We had a fun weekend! Saturday we spent time with the hubby's side of the family! The boys flew kites! There were a few games of Frisbee! And the adults had fun just being all together! I'm super blessed to have such wonderful in-laws!

Sunday was another fun day of hanging with the family! I had the yummiest Chicken Caesar Salad from Panera Bread!

And we went to the beach that afternoon! It was of course too cold to swim but we walked about a mile down the beach and the boys found some shells! I love living here on the Gulf Coast!

Now it's time for another Weekly Chase! I'm ready to tell you all about my goals for this week! I hope you will link up your own goals with me too! And feel free to use the badge below in your post too! You can grab the badge HERE! :-)

Here are my goals from last week!

• Goal #1: Run at least 2-3 times this week. Yes! I got in 3 runs this week..2 short ones and a long one!
• Goal #2: Roll and stretch daily. Yes!!!
• Goal #3: Watch my spending this week. Yes! Remember how I said last week that I was worried about paying Sawyer's gymnastics tuition by Thursday? Well our tax refund came in on Wednesday! It's amazing how God takes care of us! :-)
• Goal #4: Watch my food portions and decrease my snacking after dinner. Yes! I downloaded the My Fitness Pal app on my phone this past week and starting logging all my calories. I really cut back this week. :-)

Here's the plan for this week!

Goal #1: Run at least 2-3 times this week. Again I'm hoping to run Tuesday, Thursday, and a long run on the weekend. 

Goal #2: Roll and stretch daily. I've been dealing with a tight quad so I've been rolling and stretching consistently. After Saturday's 10 miles my quad didn't hurt at all!!! Amazing! I'm going to continue this routine to keep any injuries at bay!

Goal #3: Log and stay under all my calories this week. I've really been overeating lately. And my clothes are not fitting as well as they used to. I have a goal to lose some weight. I did Weight Watchers in the past but I'm going to try just counting my calories first. If that doesn't work well for me then I will join WW again. I need a plan...that's the only way I will get this done!

So that's it for the week! Here's to hoping for another successful week!

And...I have winners for the "To Be A Runner" Book Giveaway!!! Congratulations to Rachel Bowser Rerko, Whitney Vestal, and Sabrina Fowler!!! Please email me your mailing address at mindy@roadrunnergirl.com!

And for those that are curious about the survey results for the best running song: "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor got first place, "Lose Yourself" by Eminem got second place, and "The Distance" by Cake was third! Those are some awesome running songs for sure!

Thanks so much Austin for hosting this giveaway!!!

QOTD: What are your goals for this week?

Runner Spotlights #77

Happy Weekend everyone! I'm excited because it's a FOUR day weekend for me! Yes...due to Mardi Gras we get 2 days off of school! It's awesome living where I live! ;-)

Now it's time for another runner spotlight...my favorite time of the week! I love reading other runners' stories about their running journey! If you are interested in being spotlighted on my blog please email me at mindy@roadrunnergirl.com! I'd love to spotlight you! You don't have to have a blog to be spotlighted...you just have to be a runner! ;-)

Today I'm spotlighting Lacy from Running Limitless! She has an amazing story and I'm so glad she is sharing with us! She also has two kids like me! Keep reading to learn more about Lacy and her running journey!

Name: Lacy Geary

State: SC

When and why did you start running?

I started running in high school when I was about 16 years old and only started running races about 3 years ago. I didn’t really start running for any particular reason other than I wanted to exercise and this was something I could do outside. I was very shy and didn’t really like gyms so this was my place of solitude. 

What is your favorite race and race distance?

Right now my favorite distance is the ½ Marathon. It is short enough to be manageable but long enough to be a challenge. I ran my first Full Marathon last year and it was extremely difficult. I loved the challenge. I learned a lot and will continue doing those to reach the goal I am after.

What is your race day routine?

I am a really simple person and not very ritualistic. However, I do like to have my gear all laid out the night before. I always drink 16oz. of Nuun the night before a race of any kind to make sure I am hydrated. I get up about 2 hours before the race, eat a Banana, make sure to drink about 8 oz. of water (an hour before and not after that), USE THE BATHROOM, and I like to get out and run about 1 mile or so to warm-up in my neighborhood or wherever the race is located. I always take Energybits 30 minutes before a race.  My nutrition is still a work in progress but for 13 miles or less I don’t really eat too much.

What is your most favorite piece of running gear?

That is a hard one, I have so many. I’d have to say my Pro Compression Socks, and my Garmin. I really like techy stuff. I’m a bit of a numbers nerd!

But the one piece of gear that I absolutely love would be my Brooks Ravenna’s. They are my base.

Do you follow any diet or take any specific supplements that complement your running?

I don’t diet at all, I just try to eat relatively healthy but I’m a Southerner and love good hearty foods. I can’t say I am the healthiest individual and I don’t deprive myself but this is an area that I truly have to work on. I do use Energybits to fuel my runs as well as the mini boxes of Raisins.  I also hydrate with Nuun! I don’t know what I did before I found them.

What do you wish you’d known when you first started running?

I wish I would have known how easy it is to get injured. When I was younger my body was a bit more resilient but now that I am older and have had 2 kids I have noticed a huge difference in how I bounce back. Take it slow and don’t jump into the miles too quickly. Speed and distance will come with time and training.

What is your fondest running memory?

I think I would have to say that my fondest memory was this year when I ran my first ½ marathon that happened to be a trail run. It was really tough and I had been injured during my training. I ran this with my sister and it was also her first ½. I was really proud of both of us for crossing that finish line like we set out to do.

I have a horrible memory but my very first memory of running was with my Dad when I was probably 6 or 7 years old. He would run almost every day and I remember running to the top of our street with him. My Dad passed away about 11 years ago when I was 21 years old and every run I think of him and know he would want me to try my hardest and never give up! Product of being a Marine I guess, he was very diligent and dedicated.

What is one thing that most people do not know about you?

Unless you are family or really close friends you probably wouldn’t know it but I am really particular and a bit obsessive. Everything has a particular place and if things get moved around it drives me nuts. 

Here are all the different ways you can connect with Lacy!

Blog:  http://www.runninglimitless.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/RunningLimitles

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Running-Limit-less/151417828391560

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/RuningLimitless/

Instagram: http://instagram.com/runninglimitless

Thanks so much for sharing with us Lacy!

QOTD: Do you celebrate Mardi Gras where you live?