When I was sent the iFit Classic to review, I have to admit my first thought was "wow, that's big", followed by "and white". So, right there, you know my two cons to this combination watch, activity tracker, and calorie counter: I wish that they had a women's size and I would have chosen black if asked. SOURCE But those are my only two cons and I have teeny little wrists, so most watches look a little big on it. (Also? I can't read time on a watch quickly, so I have always used a digital. Some times it takes me a bit to figure out the actual time, but I'm calling that a brain workout. It's definitely not an issue with the watch.) I've been wearing the iFit Classic for about a month now and I'm pretty much in love with it. I had … [Read more...]
Top Five Posts from 2015 + Christmas Kranz
It's been a busy few weeks around here, but yesterday morning I finished my last work meeting until after Christmas, so Beer Geek and I headed out on a lunch "date". Now I'm relaxing with my family and enjoying way too many Christmas cookies and a lot of beer. Since I don't plan to spend much time online for the next few days, I decided to do my Friday Five a day early and include one of my favorite holiday recipes/traditions. I'll link it up to Courtney, Mar, and Cynthia eventually. Top five posts from 2015... Night Owl's Guide to Being a Morning Runner - Judging by the popularity of this post, I'm apparently not the only one who struggles to get up early to work out. Thankfully, my kids are back in school and it makes more … [Read more...]
To streak or not to #RWrunstreak + #RWgo
Remember when I used to run a lot? Remember when 5 or 6 days a week was the norm for me? Yeah, those days ended in September and I'm having a really hard time getting back on the horse. I'm completely over the bronchitis (thank goodness) and my hip is mostly back to normal. But I'm struggling with getting back in the habit of running. And I actually think that not running is making running harder. Every time I run, I feel like my body has to figure out running all over again. I feel like I'm always running on tired legs and can never get in a rhythm. I feel like I'm always in need of a rest day and I haven't run more than 3 days in a week in way too long. I think my problem is that my legs are missing their recovery runs. My … [Read more...]
Favorite race signs from Marine Corps Marathon
One of the things I love most about the Marine Corps Marathon is the huge amount of spectator support. From the people lining the streets along much of the races to the amazing Marines and volunteers on the course to the hilarious signs on Hains Point, there are tons of things to look at for most of the course. I'm linking up with Cynthia, Mar, and Courtney to share some of my favorite ones from the race (and there were so so many more!): WTF? (where's the finish?) - This in particular made me laugh because Deena Kastor had just told us a story about how she couldn't believe someone had a sign that said WTF? and she was wondering if it was even appropriate, until she got close enough to read the fine print. Any idiot can run. … [Read more...]
Running Mentally Strong
I recently received the book The Runner's Brain when I was at the Runner's World Half and Festival. I am just about to start it and will be reviewing it when I'm done, but I wanted to share my own thoughts on the role your brain plays in marathon running before I read what the "professionals" had to say. So today, I'm Thinking Out Loud with Running with Spoons. As you know (I mean, I'm certainly not that runner who didn't talk about it LOL), I ran Marine Corps Marathon just over a week ago. It was my slowest marathon by a few minutes, but in many ways it was my most successful. Before the race, I knew my body was not trained to run a PR. In fact, I wasn't sure I was even trained to fully run a marathon at any pace, even an easy run … [Read more...]
Five things that motivate me to run
Today's Topic for Friday Five is people who motivate me. I recently wrote a post about the people who inspire me and if I did that topic as suggested by Courtney, Mar, and Cynthia,I'd end up writing a very similar post. So, here are the things that motivate me to keep moving. My mental health - I started running to fight postpartum depression. I still struggle with situational depression and PMS. Running allows me to keep things in perspective and helps me to stay more of an optimist than a pessimist. I no longer need to run to cope with the day to day difficulties of being a stay at home mom to young children. Now it's about dealing with the bigger problems that come with bigger children. Trust me, the running is still necessary. (And … [Read more...]
Five tips for running when you just don’t want to
It's Friday and the topic of today's Friday Five link up with Cynthia, Courtney, and Mar is "Running Tips". Since I've been struggling with not wanting to run lately, I decided to share a few things that help get me out the door when I'd rather be parked on the couch with a trash novel and a beer. 1. Dress in running clothes as soon as you get up (or as soon as you get home from work). I swear, getting dressed is half the battle. I've mentioned before that if I put on a running bra, I've just increased my chance of running by a huge percentage. 2. Make yourself run a mile. It doesn't have to be fast and only has to be a mile, but 90% of the time, if I run that mile, I'm going to keep running. 3. Meet up with a running group or … [Read more...]
Tips to get moving when your motivation has left the building…
I admit it - some days I just want to crawl back in bed rather than put on 5000 layers and head out the door or find a way to run indoors. I'm tired of grey skies and icy paths and running an entire run without ever getting warm. Intellectually, I KNOW that winter will end and in a few short months I'll be cursing the heat, but right now it feels like it will be cold forever. So, for Tuesdays on the Run today, Patty, April, and I want to talk motivation. How do you keep it when the weather sucks, and life is getting in the way, and you really just want to crawl back in bed? As a bonus, we have Ashley from TwynMawrMom cohosting. Make sure you head over to her blog and see what she has to say. Meanwhile, here are my tips for keeping … [Read more...]
5 Excuses to skip exercising and how to beat them
After some really great runs last week, I've been feeling tired and moody this week. Even though I know that I feel better after a workout, I've been able to talk myself out of doing much beyond keeping my run streak alive. Thankfully, I managed to pry myself off of my seat in front of my computer and get out there for 12 miles yesterday. But, I'm pretty sure that I used every excuse in the book before I finally just made myself do it. … [Read more...]
Tuesdays on the Run: Where has my running gone?
Today's topic for Tuesdays on the Run is anything running related. It was just one of those weeks where Patty, April, and I were scraping the bottom of our creativity well. Sadly, my running is going about as well. I used to love running. I never had to push myself to get out the door. Sure, some days I was less motivated than others, but slumps only lasted a few days at most. Then I'd be back to my usual self and striving for some new goal. Confession: I haven't wanted to run since I finished my 13 half marathons in 79 days. And if I were being truly honest, I was kind of done before I even got to ZOOMA last spring. I'm running out of things to try. I've given myself goals. I've run Ragnar. I've run long and slow. I've run … [Read more...]
Running Mantra: Suck it up, Buttercup!
Just in case you were wondering, yes, I do have the t-shirt (or tank as the case may be.) This week on Tuesdays on the Run, Patty, April and I want to hear about YOUR mantras! What gets you through a hard run? What gets you out there when you aren't feeling the run love? Be forewarned: I steal mantras. I'll take them and make them mine and use them to get through a bad run. ;o) Suck it up, buttercup has been my favorite mantra for years. Why? Because my mind is often wimpier than my body. My body can do so much more than I ask of it, but my mind is too afraid to ask. Don't want to finish the distance? Suck it up, buttercup, you can run that far. Don't feel like running fast? Suck it up, buttercup. Working hard is good … [Read more...]
Phoning it in
I knew I wanted to go for a run yesterday, but in reality, I wasn't jonesin' for a run. I really just needed to do it. My body needed it. So did my mind, but when I've gone too long without cardio, my mind forgets that it needs it. The thing is, while your mind can definitely have a positive or negative impact on your run and while your run can make your mind happier, your body can benefit from a run (or other workout) even if you are not in the mood. (There are studies out there that say that even forced exercise can improve your stress and anxiety levels...) So, I phoned it in, at least for the first couple of miles. I was just out there getting in the mileage. Thankfully, around mile 3, the endorphins took over and I actually … [Read more...]
