Yoga Fest at the Gaston County YMCA

 When I had to cancel Cooper River due to injury, I was really sad. It’s so hard to keep a positive attitude during a pandemic when you can’t do all of the things you usually do to keep going. 

Luckily, I got an email about the Yoga Fest, which I had been  bummed about missing due to Cooper River. Perfection! I signed up right away! The price couldn’t be beat and it even included a tank top!

I started with a Deep Stretch class. Ok, actually I started by shopping the vendors, since I was early, but my first class was Deep Stretch. Y’all. This class was perfection. There was nothing I couldn’t do, although I needed a yoga towel under my knees on that hardwood surface.

This was the view on the way to Yoga Fest. This is right behind the YMCA. My foot didn’t love the walk but I sure did!

I’m in the back on the left, this is a screenshot of an article, I left the details on for photo credit!

Warmup class. 

The view from the vendor area. 

The view from my back during Deep Stretch. Pretty much the same for Yin as well. Delicious.

One of the class areas. 

Behind the smoke is the dude with the drum. He played for 3 straight hours. Mad skills. 

My outfit was on point. 

View from the vendor area. 

My second class was Yin Yoga. The teacher told us she never taught Yin before today, and I could tell. An observation, not a criticism. She warmed us up first, which you aren’t supposed to do for Yin Yoga, but it felt good I’m not mad. I really enjoyed it, and the views were amazing. I could also here the dude on the drum the whole time, and that was delightful. When the pose started getting difficult (you hold each pose for 6 minutes) I would focus on his beat and it would get me through. 

From the Deep Stretch class again. Back left. 

Overall I really loved this event. They said there would be food, but I must have gone the wrong way? I never saw any food. I thought maybe it was in the parking lot, but it wasn’t and it was too long to walk back again. I went to Panera instead, which was just fine with me! The perfect end to the morning! 

Holy Virtual Race, Batman! Part 2

 I received entry into the DC Batman Virtual Race as part of being a BibRave Pro (ambassador). Check out BibRave.com to find and write race reviews. 

I was so proud of that blog title, and then I realized I used it in my last post for this race! Darn! I can hear Robin in my head, can’t you?

When I originally planned this virtual race, it was going to be a 10k, and I was so excited. And then I injured my foot. Injuries like this are common for me, especially since I was diagnosed with osteoarthritis in my knees. Something has to take the brunt when you overcompensate, and lately that’s my feet! My knees actually feel pretty good, but I have Posterior Tibial Tendonopathy in my left foot. Sigh.

So my 10k became a 5k, and that’s fine. Really. It’s fine.

I legit bought those Zyia leggings for this race, aren’t they perfect?!? They also matched my kickball team’s shirts, so that was nice. Cute visor, right? Love it! 

I ended up doing 4 miles, plus a little extra, and my girls went out on the Greenway for bonus miles when I was done. Because of my injury, I fell behind. I walked most of it as well, but it was fun, and I saw this cute Little Free Library. This one is a fave, it always has books I love. I skipped it though, I was afraid I would find books and have to carry them for two miles! Book Nerd probs for sure. 

I love the medal, it has a fun shape and it’s reminiscent of his costume. Uniform?  Bat Suit? Hardcore fans are groaning across the nation at these terms!

Because my girls went out for bonus miles, I didn’t use the finish line tape they sent. I love the added touch, though. It’s the first time a race has sent me one! I celebrated with a Pumpkin Scone at Starbucks while I waited.

Finisher photos are a must for every Virtual Race. I got these cute photo props for us to use, and then passed them on to a friend on my neighborhood who has little kids. 

The swag for this race was on point. The sweatshirt isn’t too thick, which is ideal for Southern living. I bring it with me to Panera, since it’s always cold there! If you use DCBATMANPROMO at checkout you can add a Koozie to the pile as well, plus they send that fun finish line tape. 

Who is your favorite super hero?

Hit the Brixx 10k

 Saturday was my 2nd 10k of four in September! This time, we went to Ballantyne for the Hit the Brixx 10k, which is usually in Charlotte. We parked at Sarah’s house and walked over, which may have been a mistake. It was almost two miles! A great warmup, though, and we got there just in time to start the race. This first pic is a great indicator of how the entire race went.

I looked cute though. The race was on 9-11 so obviously I was wearing our colors. 

We got a start line selfie just in time!

I turned on my peloton app and did an 80s Quest to get me through. It was nice having the music in the background with the instructor telling me I was doing a great job. It ate up my battery though!

 Before we even hit mile one, a cop was telling us to get off the street and onto the sidewalk because we were too slow. He was very nice about it, but it was demoralizing to have that happen so soon. The sidewalk was very twisty, and hard on the joints, and made the route a bit longer since it wasn’t a straight line. No biggie. We can do this. 

We jumped back onto the street as soon as we could, somewhere in mile 2. It was a nice course through some neighborhoods before bringing us back towards the starting area. At the halfway mark, the Race Director made us stop. He said we wouldn’t finish in time so it would have to be a 5k. We turned where he asked us to, put our bibs in our pockets, and proceeded to run around the shopping complex and onto another neighborhood to make up the miles. We managed to cross the finish line anyway. Apparently, they pushed a handful of runners along, even though they finished within the time limit! Ugh!

We walked back to Sarah’s and changed into comfy clothes so we could brunch. My total miles for the day were close to 9! Yikes! I haven’t done that many miles in a long time! 

This weekend is OrthoCarolina and I’m excited about this one, because I won the entry on an Instagram contest AND the time limit is 1:45, the most generous time limit so far! 

Wordless Wednesday, Hilton Head Island Edition