Charlotte Racefest 10k Recap

Today was my first race back after my strained tendon, so I was definitely a little nervous. Racefest is a very hilly race, which is rough on my foot, so I decided to be super careful and not push too hard!



I picked up my bib at Dick's Sporting Goods on Friday and prepped my flat mama and my gear.





My running club was meeting up before the race for a group photo. First, I had a great surprise waiting for me!



Christie, who ran with my group last year, and is a dear friend, was waiting at the meetup! She moved to Myrtle Beach in the Fall, so it was a huge surprise!



We lined up after the group photo and did some dynamic stretching. Of course , while we waited, we had a few more photo opps...





The race began and my little group stuck to our intervals throughout. The course is beautiful, but hilly, and it was warm and humid at the start. It definitely effected our pace, and we took extra walk breaks when we needed to.



The half marathon had a time limit, so the entourage was behind us by mile 3. We ignored them and continued on our merry way, sticking to a comfy pace.



We had a nice surprise at mile 5.5 or so, Christie was waiting with Twizzlers and a fun sign, exactly what we needed after the last big hill kicked our butts.



We finished strong, and collected our bling and our food. Zoe's Kitchen really hooked us up!





I'm so proud of Elizabeth and Akila, they worked really hard all season and pushed through on the hills and in the crazy humidity! I look forward to the new season and Marine Corps Marathon Training!

Flat Mama Friday RaceFest 10k edition

I'm not gonna lie, y'all, I'm terrified about tomorrow! This will be my longest run since I started back after my injury, and it's hilly!
I will be taking it easy and running with the awesome ladies I coached this season. Racefest is our goal race, and there will be about 30 or so peeps from my running club there. It's a fun way to end the season.
So, Flat Mama time!



I will be testing out the Amphipod for the longest distance yet, and this will be my first run with my Knockaround sunglasses. Keep an eye out for reviews in the near future! I'll be bringing them both to Disney as well.



The swag was meh. The shirt is pretty heavy for a race that will take place in Southern Spring, 60 degrees at the start and 88% humidity. Everything else is advertisements, nothing exciting.
They will have great food and drinks afterwards, though, so it will all even out!

Are you racing this weekend? Will you watch the Boston Marathon on Monday?

Thursday Training Update

This past week wasn't quite as impressive as the week before, I'm not gonna lie. I travelled Friday to Sunday and it definitely put a cramp in my workouts!

Thursday was a coaching day, 3 miles at the Greenway. There was some tenderness in my right ankle (older injury) which freaked me out but it turns out I'm just out of shape, and it was temporary. I'm loving the new Asics, they feel great on my feet!



Friday I flew to NJ for my daughter's engagement party. I was planning to walk the airport to get my steps, since I joined a Step Bet, but it was a gazillion degrees so I skipped it. I sat and read instead, handy since there was a delay.



I did walk that night though, and got my steps in. My watch started to die and I realized I forgot to bring a charger. I still needed one more day, and I panicked. Luckily my bro has the same Fitbit and he brought his charger to the engagement party. Which was...

Saturday was the engagement party. I would have had a ton of steps if my watch wasn't charging over by our table!



We met up with friends afterwards and it was a great day!

Sunday we toured the venue for the wedding. So sad that my baby is getting married, but the venue was amazing!
I flew home and got my steps in front of the TV. It took over an hour! So thankful to my brother for saving my butt, and my $40 StepBet!

Monday I walked for an hour and did some challenge exercises. Squats, lunges, and other torturous things.



Tuesday was speed work. We met up at the track for 3 miles and I tried my new Amphipod for the first time. I'm looking forward to racing with this badboy, it's super comfy and has tons of pockets!



I ended the "week" with Body Pump. It's still kicking my butt, so I'm leaving the weights the same for a little longer!



Oh, and there's this...



Zoiks! That's not scary at all!
What was your favorite workout this week?

Wordless Wednesday

Thursday Training Update

What a crazy week! In getting my groove back slowly, and really taking some time to decide how I feel about my choices going forward. I'm definitely changing the way I feel about my body and how hard I am on myself about it. I'm being kinder to myself, something that does not come easy! While I am still trying to improve the way I fuel my body, I'm going to focus more on getting strong.
This all came about after I saw someone at a party, and they asked me if I had lost weight. I hadn't, and then I was sad that I hadn't, and it soured my mood all night. I woke up the next morning determined not to let it change my mood ever again!

Let's get down to the workouts, from where I left off last week!

Thursday morning I showed up to coach on my bike, but discovered the tire was flat. Crap! I got up at 4:30 am for nothing. Ugh! I went back home, took a nap, and then went for a 4 mile hike.



I also went and got fitted for new kicks, because my first day back at running was fast approaching!



Friday, I overslept. I planned to take a Body Pump class but ended taking Body Combat. Basically, Tae Bo. It was a lot of fun but also very difficult!



Saturday morning was my last day on the bike! 90 minute ride plus a 40 minute walk! My running club did a preview run for our upcoming goal race!



Sunday, the hubs and I took Memphis for a walk. We always try to do something active on Easter, and this year we went with a dog walk. A little over 3 miles.



Monday, my 45th birthday, I finally got to Body Pump. Ouchie! That class kicked my ass. I'm going twice next week!



Tuesday was my first run after 6 weeks off! 3 easy miles, no pain, feeling great!



Wednesday, tired legs for sure. My body is confused! We decided to hike a trail on the school property for Girls on the Run, and I did my PT exercises. My head coach also brought me a treat....



Such a great week! What was your favorite workout last week?

Wordless Wednesday

Happy 45th Birthday to Me!

Today is my 45th birthday!
I'm having a seriously amazing day!

It actually all started on Friday night. The hubs was supposed to be taking me out on a date night, but it was a surprise party! My friends organized the whole thing, he just got me there!



It started at Break Out (we broke out in 47 minutes) and ended at Buca DeBeppo. I probably spelled that wrong.



Whatever.
This morning, I woke up to a chocolate bouquet and the hubs told me he was going to pay for me to go to Mirna Valerio's Slow as Fu£k Trail Running weekend this July! Whaaaaat? How lucky am I?

My mom got me an amazing bracelet



A bunch of my friends donated to MDA in honor of my birthday!
Http://www2.mda.org/goto/4warren



I went to Body Pump, which kicked my butt, and used my new CTM bands to fix some of the damage!



As I was prepping to coach Girls on the Run, I got a surprise package in the mail...



Check out Instagram to see what the numbers mean...
Look for a review in the future!

My pic got used in a post by Skirt Sports about their awesome RealWomenMove Challenge Facebook group...



And I got free Starbucks....



I can't imagine anything else happening to make this day even more perfect!