Frederick Running Festival Relay Recap

The 10k may be my favorite race distance, but I am quickly becoming a fan of relays. I think it’s the comradery of having a team of friends that are all working together to finish a race. So when I found out the Frederick Running Festival had a relay race I knew I need to run it! I had previously participated in the Frederick Running Festival 5k a few years back but this year I managed to convince my sister to run the half marathon relay with me.

Being the incredibly organized pair of sisters that we are it was we decided on our legs of the race two days before. I ran the first leg (7.7 miles) and she ran the second leg (5.4 miles but with way more hills). Yeah…we love to procrastinate which was apparently the theme of this race.

Neither of us felt entirely prepared for this race. Due to a combination of horrible weather, and the fact that this race occurred right after the last week of my old job and right before starting a new one, I wasn’t able to properly train for the distance due to the stress of wrapping things up at work. However, both of us managed to run the Kennedy Krieger ROAR for Kids 5K without stopping the week prior, which made us feel better about tackling our distances in the relay.

The morning of the race, the weather was, thankfully, cooperating and I knew it was going to be a great day! Unfortunately, we didn’t properly plan for the traffic getting to the start line and my sister ended up missing the bus to take her to the relay exchange point. See, procrastination…theme of the day.

Luckily her husband was able to drive her, and two other runners we randomly bumped into who also missed the bus. On the bright side, this meant that she was able to cheer me on as I crossed the start line! Silver linings!

To say I was nervous about this race was an understatement. With everything going on I am still struggling to motivate myself to get out and run on a consistent basis and I didn’t feel as prepared as I did when I ran the Sole of the City a few weeks prior. However, I surprised myself!

Despite starting off my leg a bit too fast, I managed to slow down my pace enough so I made it four miles without needing to stop. After mile four I took brief walk breaks for each mile after but each walk was minimal. Then when I hit mile 7 something weird happened.

I became incredibly emotional. Please comment below if you have ever experienced this, but this isn’t the first time this has occurred. This doesn’t happen often, but occasionally, during a run, I will feel a huge swell of emotion (usually when I am really pushing myself and it is almost always during a time of stress in my life). Most of the time I am able to hold it together and suppress the tears but that wasn’t happening during this race.

The tears just started flowing, I am thankful it was just tears and not ugly crying, but it was enough that other runners noticed. That moment, my friends, was when I realized how much I LOVE the running community and how supportive they are. All of a sudden two runners beside me yelled “Relay runner! Yeah you! You’ve got this, you’re almost there you’re looking great!”

I wasn’t crying because I was struggling, but hearing words of encouragement kept me from feeling embarrassed, and pushed me to run even faster. By the time I reached the exchange I felt so proud of myself and with a quick hug my sister began the second leg.

My sister did great too meeting some of her own personal records, which I say made the Frederick Relay a success all around!

Afterward, I celebrated the best way I knew how with brunch at the Family Meal and then driving four hours to Roanoke, VA halfway to Asheville, NC where I spent the next week on vacation. In case you were wondering, driving four hours after running over seven in the morning didn’t become my favorite decision in the world. I wouldn’t advise it. However, I did manage to end my day with a delicious Patty Melt in my hotel room, #treatyoself!

Have you ever gotten emotional while running? Please share your story in the comments so that I don’t feel so weird and alone….🙂

Sole of the City 10k 2018 Recap

As I have mentioned in my last couple posts I currently have A LOT OF FEELINGS. In order to avoid having them take complete control of my life, I have focused on running again and figuring out ways to motivate myself. So I signed up for a 10k that I was in no way ready for which meant I needed to get ready so I didn’t make a complete fool of myself!

When I began running, 10ks quickly became my favorite race length and the Sole of the City 10k was the first 10k I ever ran (back in 2014, I can’t believe it has been so long!). It was only natural that I gravitated towards that race to be my motivator. Yay for races with special significance!

Before Sole of the City 2014. I had no idea what I was in for!

What made this race even more special is that I ran it with my sister and a close friend and for both of them it was their first 10ks! Nice to know my master plan of infecting those around me with the running bug is working!!

We started off the day with some fun pictures before finally making our way over to the starting line.

It always amazes me how huge this race is! The announcer said there were 4600 racers running it this past Saturday.

You guys that is A LOT of people!

I enjoy taking selfies in front of crowds of people!

The race started off great. For about the first two miles we all stuck together. With this being my first race in a while, I took the pace slow and then right before mile two I tripped and rolled my ankle, because of course I did.

What is it with me and ankles?!?!?

So we stopped and walked until we got to the second mile marker by which point I realized it was a false alarm, my ankle already felt better, and I was ready to go running again. It’s been a week since the race, and there is no residual injury so I’m grateful that didn’t turn into something worse.

The weather on Saturday was beautiful, but HOT. We knew it was only going to get hotter and we made a point to stay hydrated throughout the day and not skip any of the three water stations along the route.

Around mile four is when we all split off, or rather lost each other and just kept running, because as I mentioned above there were A LOT OF PEOPLE!

You guys, I was so proud of myself with this race. Other than the brief stop at mile two I ran the entire first five miles without stopping. At mile six I hit a wall, and the heat was getting to me so that last mile was a combination of running and walking. Still I was shocked when I found out my time at the end. I finished at 1:18:56. That isn’t my fastest 10k by a long shot but I’m so proud of it considering I only gave myself about a month to go from no running to a 10k race.

Overall, the race was great and well planned, my only complaint that they ran out of water bottles at the finish line. That may have been due to how hot it was and people taking more than one. Luckily my sister and I always bring water to races so it didn’t remain a problem for too long!

Also side note, who are these mystery people who save their racing bibs? I always mean to and then at the end they look like the picture below, and the only place that’s going is in the trash.

Are you training for any races soon? Or have you run any recently? Are you one of those special unicorns who saves racing bibs? Tell me your secrets, how do you keep them looking not a mess?

Everything tastes better in a Crepe and Other Life Lessons

It’s been a little bit since I’ve been able to update (not having a working computer makes that a bit difficult) but I’m finally back with a working computer! I know everyone is as excited as I am.

So what exactly have I learned from this unexpected time off from the blog?

1. Working full time, and taking two grad school classes is no joke, and then just add on the fact that my computer was broken so I couldn’t do any homework at home. This has felt like one very elaborate juggle act, is it summer yet?

2. If I never see this screen again in my life I will be a happy woman.

3. Also in the six years since college I have definitely not missed studying for midterms.

At least my study buddies are keeping me company!

4. I really love snow days that create unexpected four day weekends. I have, however, really started to hate the snow.

5. Sprained ankles are the worst, but your first week back at the gym feels amazing!!

6. I have gone a little overboard since my return to running and have started to sign up for every race I can think of…I may need to tone it down a bit.

7. Everything tastes better wrapped in a crepe! I learned how to make crepes and I may or may not have eaten one for lunch and one for dinner yesterday. That’s a crepe filled with avocado hummus, feta, mushrooms and caramelized onions, YUM!

Yes, it is sitting on a textbook. That is my life now.

8. Games on the rowing machine at the gym make things fun, even if I am not very good at them.

9. White grapefruit doesn’t taste any different from regular grapefruit.

10. Small apples also don’t taste any different from regular sized apple, but they’re MINI, and cute!

11. New running shoes are the best!

12. Wanting to go for a run and then realizing that you left your sports bra at your boyfriend’s, however, is not the best.

13. And lastly, with a midterm coming up on Thursday night what I really should be doing is studying, or sleeping.

Thanksgiving Fun

Life has been crazy! I’ve got a lot going on right now, and recently this blog has taken the back burner. My lease is up at the end of the year, and I found a new place whose lease starts on December 1. I’m really excited about the place, it’s SO much closer to my work (five minutes as opposed to fifty) which is going to make my life so much easier! It does have a MUCH smaller kitchen, however, I’m also going to have a walk in closet, which I’m very excited about. It’s the little things.

So currently I am devoted to packing my stuff up and moving it to my new place. When I’m not doing that I’m studying for my statistics final and finishing up my class project, I can’t believe it’s the end of the semester already! My boyfriend is moving at the same time too (we planned that out really well). Needless to say there’s a lot going on, and what little free time I do have I’m trying to squeeze in runs or work outs. Unfortunately, this blog is not currently the priority. Once things calm down though, I’ll be back to writing on my regular schedule!

With all of this going on I was so grateful for the Thanksgiving break! I love Thanksgiving, largely because it’s dedicated to spending time with family and eating really delicious food! Still I was nervous about it, after my Whole30 I was feeling really great, and suddenly introducing a ton of non compliant foods was nerve wracking. Plus I didn’t have just Thanksgiving, my boyfriend and I had two Friendsgivings planned for the weekend before Thanksgiving chock full of delicious food. Ultimately I decided to enjoy myself, but not over stuff, and eat what I wanted to without guilt.

It actually worked really well, I won’t lie, I definitely felt over full a couple times but the fact that I’m eating so much healthier in my everyday life means that one day of overeating isn’t the end of the world.

For a few weeks leading up to Thanksgiving day I had been contemplating doing a Turkey Trot in my hometown, despite not being able to convince my sister to run it with me I made a last minute decision the night before to brave the cold and run it Thanksgiving morning. I’m so glad I did! It was a great race, so much fun, and the perfect way to start Thanksgiving, I’ll be recapping that race soon.

My family eats Thanksgiving dinner earlier, around 1 pm, and usually that’s my only meal of the day. I don’t know if it was the race in the morning or the fact that I am more aware of my eating habits, but this year once dinner time rolled around I was actually hungry for more food so I made a plate of leftovers. I have to say I prefer feeling that way over feeling so stuffed that even thinking about more food makes me sick.

Overall, Thanksgiving was full of personal victories for myself. I couldn’t help but think how different my outlook is from where I was a year ago. It makes me so much more confident going into the Christmas season.

How was your Thanksgiving?

I Can’t Let a Bad Run Get Me Down!

Yesterday morning I got to go in late to work so I was excited to get in a morning run to start off my day! Then I started running and I knew it was going to be rough. In hindsight it was a perfect storm of incidences that meant my run was less than stellar.

My goal? Run 5-6 miles, to get myself ready for the relay I’m running in the Baltimore Running Festival this weekend. The result? I ran/walked a little over four miles, my legs felt like lead, and towards the end I felt like I was going to be physically sick if I pushed myself any harder. I definitely did not feel amped, I felt discouraged and disappointed, and started doubting whether I would be able to finish my leg of the relay.

Which is ridiculous! I can’t let one bad run get me down! It’s true that I’ve had a lot on my plate yesterday. Buying a car, going back to school for the first time in five years (meaning my first midterm in five years eek!) and looking for a new place to live means that I’ve been busy! It also means that there have been nights where I’ve prioritized each of these things over running, who can blame me there’s only so many hours in the day and I have to sleep at some point as well! Couple that with a change in diet that left me with an awful headache on Tuesday as my body yelled at me for giving up sugar, it’s no wonder my running suffered on Wednesday.

Still I’ve managed to get at least one or two runs in a week and last week I ran a full five miles. So I am prepared for this weekend. I’m definitely more prepared than I was for the Arbutus Firecracker, where I was coming off a sprained ankle and hadn’t run at all for three weeks. If I can do that (with a pretty good time considering!) then this is definitely doable.

That’s what I keep reminding myself of. One bad run where I felt miserable is not an indication of how I will do on Saturday. Besides I got my bad run out of the way for the week, that means I can only go up from here right (it’s all about that positive thinking)? I wouldn’t want to have my best run on Wednesday and then my bad run on race day!

My plan is to stay positive, have whole30 compliant food options available before and after my race so I’m properly fueled and run my best on Saturday. Plus I’m going to stop thinking about my Wednesday run after I publish this post!

Have you ever had a bad run or work out? What do you do to get past it?

Friday Recap!

Has it been a crazy week for anyone else? I can’t believe it has taken this long to get to Friday, but boy am I glad it is Friday! I decided to not do Non-Scale Victory Friday this week since I did that on Monday instead. It’s been a weird week, no reason to change that today!

Since my accident on Thursday it feels like so much has happened. I’ve already started going car shopping (even though I have yet to hear back from my insurance company). It’s been hard at times, but I’ve tried to stay as positive as possible throughout this entire ordeal.

I wanted to go running a lot more than I did this week, to keep my mind off everything and help me destress but things really didn’t go as planned. I already wrote how I went running on Monday and then skipped Tuesday because I had some errands that needed to get done.

Wednesday I was excited and ready to go running after work and before my grad class. At 5 I went to the bathroom, changed into my running gear and then went back to my office to put on my running shoes. It was at that point I realized that I only packed one running shoe. The other was patiently waiting for me in my room at home. How convenient!

This was not the first time I had left something at home that I needed to work out. Last week I left my sports bra at home. Usually, I can make do. However, there isn’t much you can do with just one shoe. After I recovered from the disappointment, I opted for shopping, at least I got to do something enjoyable.

I didn’t go running last night either I needed to cook up a ton of vegetables that were about to go bad, so I did that instead. I made roasted carrots for the first time ever. They were delicious! I also finally applied my Jamberrys. So far I like them!

I’m not upset that I didn’t get out more than I usually do this week, but my legs are feeling so restless! It’s been so long since I took a break from running, and I can tell my body doesn’t like it. Luckily this weekend my boyfriend and I are planning to do be outside, and hopefully do some hiking, and I’ve already planned out my running schedule for next week!

Have a great weekend! Do you have any fun plans for the weekend? Let me know in the comments!

Arbutus Firecracker 10k Recap

My Fourth of July weekend started with the Arbutus Firecracker 10k which I wrote about briefly here. Leading up to the race I was a mixture of nervous and excited. I was excited to get out and run again after a brief hiatus, but I was nervous about how the race would go since I hadn’t trained at all.

To begin with, it was the first time I had done this race, it was a really fun and well put together race. I loved the shirt that I got for participating and had I been better prepared to run 6.2 miles it would have been the perfect way to kick off Independence Day. I definitely will be doing this race in years to come.

Having said that, the race was ROUGH. I hadn’t properly prepared and I was recovering from an injury. While I knew that I would have to stop and walk at times it didn’t make it any easier. Before I even started the race my ankle was hurting. The ankle I sprained is the same ankle that I broke back in 2005 and it loves to act up before and after storms. As luck would have it Maryland was having several storms up to the morning of the race.

I was able to run the first mile and a half pretty easily and I was feeling good, but I finally had to give in and walk. That’s when things started going downhill. Right before I reached the third mile marker all I really felt like doing was collapsing and crying. I don’t know if it was the exhaustion, the fact that my ankle was bothering me, the adrenaline pumping through me, or the fact that I simply didn’t want to keep running (or all of it combined) but I’ve never felt so emotional during a run before.

If the race had been a 5k I think it would have been perfect, unfortunately for me, I had to keep going. by the fifth mile my ankle was really acting up and I resigned myself to having to walk the rest of the race until the finish line, save a final push so I would at least cross the finish while running. I was convinced that with the amount of walking I did my time would be somewhere around 1:30 or 1:40. But when I crossed the finish line the timer read 1:14:33. I confess I did a double take. I figured I read it wrong and it actually said 2:14:33. I’m actually extremely happy with the time, it’s only a little slower than my regular time and the fact that I’m able to stay so close to it is a very good feeling.

I have to say, as difficult as the race was the only thing getting me through it was the encouragement throughout the race. For most of the race there were very few runners surrounding me so it’s easy to get discouraged. The race ran through the residential community of Arbutus and there were so many people in lawn chairs outside of their houses cheering on the runners as they went by. I don’t know that it was any more encouragement than I’ve gotten at other races, but I definitely needed it more than I have at other races.

After the race my boyfriend and I went to Baltimore to see the fireworks on a friend’s rooftop deck. I sat as long as possible (my legs were killing me!) and I enjoyed a slice of the key lime pie I made for the party as well as so much other food. It was delicious and so worth it. All in all I don’t know that I could have asked for a better fourth of July weekend!

How was your Fourth? Share it in the comments below!

Non Scale Victory Friday/Happy July Fourth!

Happy Fourth of July! It also happens to be a Friday, which means it’s also Non-Scale Victory Friday! I started the day off at the Arbutus Firecracker 10k. As a whole, I loved the race. It was so well organized and it was great running through the Arbutus community and seeing everyone in their yards cheering everyone on. I did not, however, love running a 10k after I have only run one week in the past month. It was ROUGH, but I’m glad I did it.

So anyways today I only have one Non-Scale Victory; I finished the Arbutus Firecracker 10k! Trust me I had moments where I was doubting whether I’d be able to cross the finish line, I had to keep stopping and walking and at times just wanted to give up. Once I reached the 6 mile marker I thought there was no way that my time would be below 1:30 or 1:40, but it was! The race wasn’t timed but the timer at the finish line read 1:14:33 when I crossed. Not bad at all considering how many times I had to stop and walk, and it’s not far off from my best 10k time. So I’m pleased with my results, go me!

I’ll write more about the race in the next post but for now that’s it. I’m excited to go celebrate the Fourth with my boyfriend and some friends. I even made a key lime pie that I’m hoping is as delicious as it looks!

I hope everyone has a terrific Fourth and feel free to share your non-scale victories in the comments below!

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!

It’s (Almost) Race Time!

It’s been almost two weeks since I sprained my ankle in Baltimore on the run with my friend, and I have the Firecracker 10K in Arbutus, MD coming up tomorrow morning. To say I’m nervous would be an understatement.

After walking around with a brace on my foot all last week and taking a break from running to allow it to heal it finally felt better by Sunday. So on Monday evening I gave running a go. After work I dressed in my running clothes and went to the park. I decided that even though physically I could probably go at my normal pace, my ankle probably still couldn’t.

I decided my best bet would be to run a quarter mile and then walk a quarter mile for the 2.5 mile loop that I take. Well I’m glad I did! It was an easy workout, but by the time I finished my ankle had started slightly irritating me. I haven’t run since Monday, since I figured it still needed a little more time to heal.

I’m still excited to run/walk in the race tomorrow! I even painted my nails in celebration!

Realistically, I’ll probably end up walking about half of the race, and I’m more than okay with that. I’m going to listen to my body and all I’m going to worry about is having fun and making sure I don’t re-injure myself. Then it will be off to cookouts with friends and fireworks, sounds like a great way to celebrate the Fourth of July to me!

Racing, Wine, and Fun in the Sun!

It was a busy weekend! Like I mentioned in my previous post I ran the Zooma Annapolis 10k This was my first year running this race and my second 10k overall. I was nervous but definitely excited. A friend of mine had recommended the race previously this year and it didn’t take much convincing. The sell? It has great swag and free wine! Two of my favorite things and it didn’t disappoint.

The race went through downtown Annapolis, right by the water. It was the perfect weather and such a great course. I had been slacking on my running in the weeks prior so I was most happy that I was able to complete the course without stopping to walk. My time wasn’t anything spectacular, but I didn’t run any slower than I normally do so I was more than happy with my results.

Once I finished I enjoyed my post-race wine with friends and then got ready for some water fun! My boyfriend and I had some friends join us for jet skiing and it was just what I needed after my race. It was the perfect way to spend time with friends and welcome the start of summer!

Along with all the fun activities, I also had some very encouraging realizations throughout the day. The first was finding out that I need to go swimsuit shopping. I had brought two options to go jet skiing in and since last year both have become too big! I made do for Saturday, but I’m going to have to make my way to the store for a new swimsuit in the near future. I can’t say that I’m looking forward to shopping for one though, swimsuit shopping is like torture for me. I can’t be the only person who feels this way…

I also tried my hand at water skiing for the second time on Saturday. Last year was my first attempt. and while I enjoyed it, I was barely able to get out of the water. While I still wasn’t able to do very much in the way of actually skiing, I was able to get out of the water and ride for a half a second before crashing straight into the water extremely graceful like. More importantly, it was considerably easier to do than it had been last year! My boyfriend thinks since I’ve been working out consistently I’ve gotten stronger, which makes it easier to do and I agree. Now it’s just a matter of finding my balance, which could be hard. If there’s one thing I’m severely lacking in, it’s balance. I’ve been known to trip and fall while standing in place. Still it’s encouraging to see my progress in ways that don’t focus on the way I look.

As exhausting as Saturday was (I woke up at 5 am and didn’t fall asleep until 11!) it was the perfect way to usher in the summer months. I can’t wait to run in even more races and hopefully by August I’ll be water skiing like a pro!