For the last 8ish weeks, I've been participating in the sponsored Under Armour campaign as a part of FitFluential. As you might recall, my goal was "I will step outside my comfort zone: run harder, try new things, say yes when I want to say no. " I'm not sure I did something every single day that scared me, but I did a lot of things that made me step outside of my normal comfort zone. I ran my first trail race. And in a "go big or go home" style, I not only ran a half marathon trail race, but it ended up being 14.6 miles! I drove in DC. For an added bonus, I even parallel parked my Honda Pilot. (In a very small spot. That's a bit like parallel parking a tank.) I raced a 5k. Something I hadn't done in quite a while … [Read more...]
#WhatsBeautiful now?
As part of my participation in the Under Armour What's Beautiful campaign, I made a goal of stepping outside my comfort zone. While I haven't exactly managed to do one thing that scares me every day, I did successfully step WAY outside my zone to race a trail half marathon. It was pretty awesome putting myself out there where I had no experience before. OK, maybe the whole time wasn't awesome... But I did it! Now what? There are still four weeks left. I need a new way to step outside my zone. I know. I'll stop running. What???? OK, I won't stop running. I'm just going to make cross training a priority. It's been years since I focused on something besides running for exercise (12.5 to be exact...) and it's time … [Read more...]
#WhatsBeautiful : DNS, DNF, or DFL
Disclaimer: I’m part of the Under Armour campaign through Fitfluential and I got half off on my race entry from North Face. The North Face Half Marathon is coming up on Sunday. To say that I'm nervous about it is an understatement. I haven't run long since the Frederick Half. But, it's ok, there's a four hour time limit. I can make that, right? And then life happened. This week has not played out as planned. I was supposed to get in at least one 6ish mile run and a few shorter. The weather was supposed to continue to be cool and beautiful. Sleep was supposed to be a priority. None of the above is going on. I think I ran 5 miles sometime recently. And I managed 3 on Tuesday, I think. I'm planning for 3 or so on the treadmill … [Read more...]
Five for Friday
1. I've been doing Tina Reale's Best Body Bootcamp for the last 8 weeks. I'll write a review this weekend, but {spoiler alert} I'll be signing up for the next round. Today, the workout involved upper body weights with burpees in between. In fact, it called for a total of 125 burpees! Umm, I've never done more than 5 burpees in a row, ever. But I did it! The last few of each set of 25 might have involved a pushup on my knees and something that looked more like crawling than jumping my feet forward, but I did it. Who'd like to come feed me later when I can't lift my arms? 2. I've also been participating in the What's Beautiful campaign with Under Armour (through FitFluential). Yesterday a box came in the mail with some free … [Read more...]
#WhatsBeautiful Update
My goal with the Under Armour What's Beautiful campaign is to step outside my comfort zone: run harder, try new things, say yes when I want to say no. Last week, I stepped outside my comfort zone. Arlington County has a really neat opportunity for students called the "Outdoor Lab". It's a property about an hour away that's nestled in the hills and offers our city kids the chance to play in a creek, see animals both in cages and in the wild, boat, fish, and generally spend time in the woods in a way that they can't near our schools. There are a few opportunities to visit the lab, but in 5th grade, many Arlington classes spend the night. Last week was Jones' turn. I volunteered to be one of the parents to go. As you might imagine, I … [Read more...]
What’s Beautiful: Embracing discomfort
I've always loved this quote. I am not a thrill seeker (you won't find me jumping out of planes...), but I believe that stepping outside of one's comfort zone can lead to amazing experiences. If we always play it safe, we can't know what life changing thing might be just around the corner. (I totally reminded myself of this when an attempt to get into crow in yoga nearly led to a face plant on a tile floor.) Right after I wrote my post about looking for a goal, I was invited to be part of the Under Armour's "What's Beautiful" campaign as a sponsored member of Fitfluential. I'd been tempted before, but guess what? I was too afraid to put myself out there. Being part of the sponsored campaign pushed me to join, but my previous fear … [Read more...]
