No Day But Today Virtual 5K with Half Marathon Option

With my Half Marathon coming to an end, I wanted to do a quick blog about my next event. This one is a little different, because I will be hosting it on behalf of my daughter, Morgan.
Morgan has formed a Relay For Life Team, called No Day But Today. (All you RENT heads out there should recognize the name!) Her team is formed in honor of someone from her Performing Arts High School that is a 15+ year Lymphoma Survivor. All proceeds from the race will benefit the American Cancer Society. She and her friends (and I,  as chaperone) will spend the night at a local park, walking laps. It is a super fun event, and everyone really does have an amazing time!
What is a Virtual Race?

1. You walk/run/bike/crawl the required distance on your own time.
2. You report back to the Race Director (in our case, there is a Facebook Event Page) with your time, and a pic if you took one
3. You get a cool medal! Music notes, in honor of my daughter's school, and a green ribbon to represent Lymphoma.

We chose a 5K, because Morgan's friends will be participating, but we also offer a Half Marathon option. You can run this all at once, or a little at a time.

The Race will take place any time during the month of May, and you can register at any time! Register by PayPal, using kimmiepcft@hotmail.com or PM me for my home address. if you want to mail a check. You can also go to the Relay page and donate directly. The cost is $20. $15 will be donated and $5 will defray the cost of the medal and shipping.

For every 10 people that register, I will add something to the pile-o-prizes. Winners will be drawn on May 31st!

Do you have any Virtual Races on your calendar?

#13in2013......or not?

When I woke up this morning, I was expecting a rainy day! Instead, it was low 40s, and just misty. Hmmmmmm, I might actually squeeze in another Virtual Half today! I was already running Sara-Use it to Lose it's 5K but why not throw in a Half while I am at it? The hubs and I  started the run with the pups, ditched the wee one after 3/4 mile and then shortly after the mile mark, I ran off on my own. The hubs isn't into long distances.
It was so dreary, but not too cold, and I was optimistic. Until mile 5. That is when the rain started. YUCK! I have an actual Half Marathon next Sunday, I was not going to risk getting blisters in the rain, so I texted the hubs to come and get me.

Not quite what I was hoping for, and I never got the chance to make up all of the time I lost when we had the wee pup with us, but not bad either.
The E Murray Todd Half Marathon is next week, and I look forward to the scenery, although I have heard it is very hilly. I ran Hershey though, so I am not too scared!

What are your plans for the weekend?

TGIF

I am still sore from Boot Camp! It really killed me, and between that and the weather, no runs all week! I feel sluggish and cranky, and can't wait to get back out there! All I have to say is

My daughter is in Cabaret this weekend for her school play, and then we are going to see a play on Sunday together at a local playhouse. Next weekend, I finally get to start racing! A 2 mile fun run on Saturday with the hubs and a Half Marathon on Sunday with my friend Eileen. Perfection.

What are your plans this weekend?

Adding Cross Training to your Running Plan

For the last year and a half, I have mostly been running. I knew that you are supposed to cross train, and I tried to add in yoga, P90X, Jillian, whatever, every once in awhile but it never really stuck. Running can be all consuming! 3-4 days a week in runs leaves less time for laundry, kids, the hubs.

When I made my Achievement Board in January, one of the goals I added was to take 10 classes at a local Gym. Shore Point Fitness is locally owned, and the owner, Jen, is awesome! I took a couple Boot Camp classes with her at our local Rec a few years back, before I started running. I bought a 10 pack just after Christmas, and I finally had a chance on Monday morning to take a class!
On schedule was Tone & Tabata. I always wanted to take a Tabata class, and the time was good (we had a day off, thanks to Abe and George) so off I went. I was happy to see some friendly face there, and Jen was super nice! She showed me everything, and talked about the class. When the crew assembled, Jen noticed that they were her regular Boot Campers, and asked if we would rather do Boot Camp. Everyone agreed so she made some adjustments to the class.

I used a 15# Kettlebell, and it was brutal! I did full form push-ups which made me so proud, although she said I was doing the harder than they needed to be. She showed me an easier way, which felt harder to me, lol. Luckily, she said my form was good, so that was a nice bonus. I got through the first round, but only made it through 25 Squat Thrusts in  Round 2. I ran out of time. Epic Fail! One other person didn't make it through, so at least I was not alone in my Epic Fail. We then did 20 second Hollow Holds, and 20 second Supermans, 4 times each before we stretched.
I stopped to take a pic of the board before I left, especially the quote of the day:

By Monday night, I was feeling pretty achey in my arms. By Tuesday morning, every muscle in my body hurt. Tuesday night (last night) I couldn't even do a decent plank, my abs were so sore.
I can't wait to go back!

How do you cross train?

(Half) Marathon Monday

I finally feel back on track with my running! We have been getting just enough snow in Jersey to make running a real pain in the butt! This past week, though, I got in some runs and some strength workouts!

Monday, Feb 11: Strength workout done during the Biggest Loser. I did 4 sets of each, using 8# weights, plus 2 planks.

Tuesday, February 12: Sweet Cupcake 10K run, 1:10:15 in my shiny new shoes, and a plank

Wednesday, February 13: rest day, quick plank to keep the ball rolling!
Thursday, February 14: For the Love of the Run Virtual 5K, intervals, 35:05 3.4 miles 10:19 pace plus 2 quick 30 second planks

Friday, February 15: quick one miler with the hubs, 1.1 miles in 11:08 plus a 2 minute plank
Saturday, February 16: Barking Mad Virtual Half, in the snow, 2:26:34 plus a quick 30 second plank

Sunday, February 17: 45 minutes playing Wii Sports with the hubs and the teenie boy. I won a couple times, but mostly got my butt whooped. It was unpleasant.

So far, for the month of February, I have 29 miles in. I had planned on 80 for the month, but with the snow, it probably won't happen. It's all good, though. Winter months are rough, and Spring is just around the corner!

I added a last minute Half, so on March 3 I will be running the E Murray Todd Half in Freehold, NJ with my friend Eileen. The temps are predicted to hit the 50s, so I am excited! I hear it is a hilly course, and I look forward to starting my first of 10+ official Half Marathons!

When is your next race?

Running on a Bad Diet

I have not lost a pound since last March. Well, that's not exactly true. I have lost 5 pounds. Gained them back. Lost 5 pounds. Gained them back. You know the drill. Some of my clothes fit a little better, because I am building muscle, but let's be real, here. With all of the running I have done, training for the Disney Marathon and now, training for 13 Halfs in 2013, I should have hit my goal weight of 150 pounds last Summer at the latest. Yet here I sit, yo-yo-ing between 157 and 162. Again.

I saw this pic on Facebook yesterday, although I can't remember where, and it really hit me. My diet sucks. I know this. As a former Personal Trainer, and as someone studying to become one again, I definitely know this. And yet.
Yesterday I ran a Half Marathon. A virtual race, yes, but a full on, 12 minute paced Half Marathon. I burned 1500+ calories. And then, during the course of that day, while sitting around reading (Mockingjay, which I finished. Oh.My.Heck. what a book!) and into the night, I ate about 1250 calories in M&Ms. Really? Why do I do this to myself? I have been eating chocolate and cake non stop allw eek, leftovers from my daughter's Sweet 16 and then candy from Valentine's Day. All week.
SO
Here I am, back at around 162, instead of all the way down to 150.
Luckily, I am starting SSBC soon, and I am hoping that it will kickstart me in the right direction!

You can check it out here. (if you decide to join, mention this blog or Kim Prytherch, thanks!) I got my pretty, light pink lace locks in the mail yesterday. Everyone who joins gets one! The challenge runs from March 4 to April 21 and you earns points for healthy activities: drinking water, exercise, freggies, and more. I did the Holiday Challenge and it was very motivating! AND I won a cute pair of Oakley Capris, that I love! There are some amazing sponsors this time as well, check them out!

Where am I getting at with all of this? It is time for me to put an end to the "I run and that's enough" philosophy! Starting today, I will be writing down everything I eat, staying in my calorie range, and working towards a healthier me! You saw it here folks!

Are you doing the Spring Bootie Buster Challenge?

13 in 2013 race #1

I am proud to finally say that I finished my first race towards my 13 in 2013! I chose to do 13 Half Marathons, so it isn't as easy to squeeze in those races!
Today I ran my Barking mad Virtual Half (see the previous post for details). I started late, about 9:00, hoping it would warm up. as I was cruising through Facebook, I noticed that there was snow approaching. UGH! I have run enough miles in February to earn my medal, but if I don't run 13.1 all at once, it doesn't count towards my 13 in 13!

I decided to set out and do what I could. I have all year to run my 13, and 10 official races already booked, so if more time goes by, so be it! When I hit the one mile mark, I stopped to take a pic so that I could show you all the sky!

At about the 2 mile mark, the snow started, but just baby flurries. I wasn't worried yet, but they persisted, so when I hit the 4 mile mark, and stopped to have a Honey Stinger waffle (chocolate, yummy) I texted the hubs to make sure I had a ride if it got ugly!

See? I almost copped out right there and then, but I was determined to finish, so ultimately I turned down the ride and kept going! The snow was still just flurries, off and on, so I was okay. I stopped for another pic at the 7.5 mile marker, still flurries but more consistent.

This was the same location as the first pic, different view. I got back to my house at the 8.6 mile marker and dumped my drink, and asked the hubs to join me for a few miles. He bailed, lol. The mile he ran with me last night wore him out! Wimp!
I headed for my usual 3 mile loop, and planned to add a little on. I took a pic at our Beach Club, almost 10 miles here, flurries getting thicker, almost full on snow now.

By 11 miles the snow was thick and crazy, and the wind, which had been blowing all along, was worse now. UGH! I got back to my house and needed more distance so I did one more lap. The last couple miles were ugly! My left knee ached, it was snowing and windy, I couldn't wait for it to be over! And then it was!

You can almost see the snow in the background lol I am so glad I wore my 13 in 13 shirt for luck! My first race is in the books! 12 to go!

A few observations from today's run:

1. snot rockets are your friend, lol
2. Drivers suck, never count on them to look out for you!
3. Honey Stinger Waffles are the bomb!
4. never count on your RunTastic App to look out for you either!

Normally, my app is right there with my gps, off by maybe .1 or so. Today, with the snow, it kept losing signal, and it seemed to just add a mile after every 8 minutes. This would be fine, if I could run that fast, but I can't! I did *not* run almost 18 miles today! I kept it going for the cheers, but I only got one today, lol. On short runs I end up with 3-5 but today must have been a busy day for my friends, because most clicked on my activity after it was over. Luckily I had my MOTOACTV with me, and it kept me on track!

Finish time: 2:36:34 with an 11:57 average. 

Is it snowing at your house today?

Barking Mad Virtual Half Marathon Update!

Tomorrow is the official date of my Virtual Half Marathon. It is a fundraiser for Susan G Komen's Marathon for a Cure, which I will be running in March. I chose the Rock n Roll USA Half Marathon as my race. In order to run on behalf of SGK, you must raise a minimum of $1000. Sounds like a lot, right? Not with a Virtual Race!
How do you run a Virtual Race?

• You go to the website or event page for their race.
• You donate to their charity, often via paypal, but not exclusively
• On or near the date they chose, you run their race, whether it is 5K, 10K, Half Marathon, etc
• They mail you bling!! Some order it in advance, some order after the race, so it may take a few weeks.
• DONE!

The best parts of a virtual race? You have helped an amazing cause 
(Cancer research, diabetes, autism research, etc), you get to run the race on your time, instead of the time chosen by a race director, no driving to some far off location, and bling!bling!bling! 

Cool, huh?

This is the 3rd Virtual Race I have hosted. My first benefitted SGK and raised over $1500. My second benefitted a local organization, the Cancer Concern Center, and raised about $750. My current race has raised $1020 so far! I would love for it to exceed the $1500 I raised last year!
If you would like to race, you can register in one of two ways:

1. PayPal me at kimmiepcft@hotmail.com
2. email me for my snail mail address and send a check.

The cost is $20, $15 of which goes to Komen, and $5 defrays the cost of the medal and the shipping. If you register before 3 pm tomorrow, February 16th, you will be entered in the prize drawing. I might do another drawing on the 28th, which is the final registration deadline.

All of the details are in the link at the beginning of this post, but I will post the medal again. It's a spinner!!

Have you ever done a virtual race?

I think I suck at intervals....and more!

Wait, the only thing I think I suck at are intervals, lol, the "more" is just me catching up with the last week of non-posting!
Where do I start? At the very beginning, according to Fraulein Maria!
Last week I ran my 5 by the 5th Virtual Run, which ended up being just over 5 miles by the time I finished. It was my first run in a couple weeks, due to all of the snow and ice we have been experiencing in NJ. It was a great run, and it felt great to be out there again! I am back in the training groove, now that recovery from the Marathon is officially over! I even managed to knock a couple of minutes off of my last run!
After that? More rain and snow, and my daughter's sweet 16 party, which almost got snowed out! Yikes! Because of all this snow, I have missed 2 Virtual Races already! I still have the medals on my shelf waiting to be earned, so that I can finally put some numbers up on the 13 in 2013 Google Doc! UGH!
Monday night, I decided to work out during the Biggest Loser. I had been eating cake for 3 straight days and was feeling sluggish. I did 4 sets of 20, using 8 pound weights of squats, bicep curls, french presses, lunges, shoulder presses, and plies. I also did 2 planks. I felt like a boss. On Monday night, anyway.
Tuesday morning I woke up *sore*. My muscles were so mad at me! After work, it was SO gorgeous out, a perfect day for the Sweet Cupcake 10K. I ended dup running 6.23 miles in 1:10:15. Not bad! I was wearing new shoes as well, same brand and style, but a newer model as my current shoes. I was thrilled that there were no aches, pains, or quirks!

The medal came today, perfect timing!
Today was the Love on the Run 5K sponsored by Muffins to Marathons. The Race Director has TONS of Virtual Races going on all year, and he gives a shirt and medal. All I really wanted to do today was crash on the couch after work, and was pretty much resigned to it. When I got home and saw the medals had come in the mail today, I got dressed and got out there to earn my 5K medal. I missed my run yesterday because of more snow, so today I combined my Virtual Race with Intervals. (Kurt, are you sooooo proud of me?) I have never done intervals, and was very glad to see that my RunTastic App actually has a feature for creating your own. I did 5 rounds, alternating every 1/3  mile. That damn Brit (whose voice I *thought* was sooooo sexy before) kept yelling at me. Going too faahhst, going to slow, that's a great pace...try and keep it up. OMG I sucked! He just kept interrupting my tunes and I wanted to wring his sexy British neck. By the end though, I was rocking it out, and the only time he chimes in was to let me know I was almost done, etc. I did love the 4 cheers I got from my peeps, so thanks to all who cheered me on! I must have looked like a lunatic, laughing at times, and getting snarky with my Brit. LOVE it!
I finished my 5K (actually it ended up being 3.4 miles) in 35:05

lol why is that pic upside down?

Last but not least is the Tractivity update! I won my Tractivity bundle awhile back (thanks Joanna) and am loving it! After every run, I upload the info and it gives you banners for mile and step milestones! You can share them on Facebook every time you earn one.

So far I have over 40,000 steps, and over 20 miles. It tells you how many steps and miles until your next award as well. SUCH fun, I love having ways to keep me motivated!

What are you doing this winter to stay motivated?

Sweet 16

Today is my daughter's Sweet 16, and last night was the party. The last week has been nuts getting everything ready, so I have posted way less than usual!
Today will be a picture post, in honor of her Sweet 16!

 the cake!

 the hubs and I went as Minnie and Mickey

 the grand entrance

 chilling with friends

 even my friends dressed up, Yoda, Buffy, and Abe Lincoln (the Vampire Hunter)

 candles for the Ceremony

father and daughter!

New Year new Gear

Nicole from Apples and Arteries came up with a fun exchange idea, #NewYearNewGear! Here's how it works:

  Shop around and put together a fun package keeping to a limit of $15.  Maybe it’s a new workout top, running socks, hairbands, a pair of shorts.  You’d be amazed at the goods you can find at the outlets (UA, Nike), TJ Maxx and Marshalls, and department stores. Be sure to include a gift receipt (when available).Please be so kind as to include a note of motivation.

So fun!

I received my assignment, and ran out to shop for Dena from 40 Fit in the Mitt. It was fun to shop for someone else! I ran to my Sports Authority and picked out a pink workout top, since Dena expressed a wish for one. I also included a few of my favorite things for her to try. She sent me an email *and* a note to thank me, which was so sweet! I was so glad she liked it!

I received an email from Melissa at Mel Runs the World, a blog I had already been following. I told her a bit about me (she "knew" me already from my blog) and she sent me this:

LOVE it! I told Mel that I was a GIANTS fan (she was devastated to hear this, and has been trying to convert me ever since. As if! She is a Patriots fan! lol) and she put her feelings aside and hooked me up with a great sweatshirt. It is so soft and comfy! She also sent me some of her favorite Honey Stinger products! I am already a huge fan of the vanilla waffles, they got me through the Disney Marathon, but I haven't tried the rest! The strawberry is also really tasty! I still need to try the chocolate and the chews! Thanks so much Mel! (Go GIANTS!)

If you love this as much as I did, email Nicole and join in for the next round! You can also tweet about it!  Just use the hashtag #NewYearNewGear!

Here is Nicole's info:

applesandarteries@gmail.com
Include your name, email.  Twitter and Blog, if applicable

Special thanks to Nicole for organizing this amazing swap! I really enjoyed it and look forward to more!

Have you ever participated in a swap? What kind of swap was it?