Tag Archives: weekend run

Favorite Fall Trails

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All I can say is that I LOVE fall! Did a long run (for me) and took it slow in my favorite park. I would have to say I enjoy running in the fall much more than in any other season, especially here in Virginia Beach. The fall colors are breathtaking, the temperatures are around 40-50F which is far more bearable for this Canadian born girl, and it such a fresh reprieve from the summer heat!
But after running in the heat all summer, here are some tips to running safely in the fall :)

1. With the decrease of hours, for those of us that work full time, 8-5, fitting in a run can be tough during daylight hours. Wear highly reflective clothing, but if that’s not an option (taking the bank account into consideration), try this amazing reflective tape from Home Depot. Always wear I.D. on you when going for a run… you never know what’s going to happen.

2. ICE. “In Case of Emergency” contact in your phone (if you carry it with you). Keep it updated with someone who can respond if someone needs to make an ICE call on your behalf.

3. I’ve had to layer quite a bit more than the shorts and tank-top I wear in the summer! But sometimes when I get out there, I find I’m put on too much clothing and starting to overheat. So I make a mental note of what would be perfect layering options while I’m out there, and the next time it’s that temperature (always check the weather so you are prepared!), I don’t get out there with too much on. Sometimes I stash my jacket in a safe place once I warm up…

4. Even if you aren’t thirsty, you can get dehyradated! While on my run today, I stopped for water a couple times, which is as much as if I’m summer running. Do what’s best for your body. Maybe you don’t need as much water as I do, but definitely don’t forget about hydrating.

5. Start your run into the wind. The wind will be at your back on the way home, and you’ll avoid getting chilled by the wind after you’ve been sweating.

6. Watch out for snow or wet leaves! Take shorter steps when tracking across these areas to ensure you can catch yourself if you slip!

7. Take your camera like I did! These leaves and colors aren’t going to last forever!


That’s all the running tips I’ve got for you guys today, what are some of your tips to stay safe and warm?

Breaking a Sweat Without Breaking the Bank

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In this fun beach town, it can be expensive to work out in the gyms in Virginia Beach. But there are multiple ways to do your workouts without breaking the bank! A number of stores and studios are now offering free classes which will have you working up a sweat:

Monday:

Bay Swim: 2865 Lynnhaven Drive. Final Kick: 5:30 pm

Tuesday:

Run Track: 2865 Lynnhaven Drive. Final Kick: 5:30 pm

Wednesday:

Run Club: 616 Virginia Beach Boulevard. Lululemon: 6:30 pm

Bay Swim: 2865 Lynnhaven Drive. Final Kick: 5:30 pm

Thursday:

Run Tempo: 2865 Lynnhaven Drive. Final Kick: 5:30 pm

Saturday:

Run Club: 2865 Lynnhaven Drive. Final Kick: 6:30 pm

Yoga: 616 Virginia Beach Boulevard. Lululemon: 9:30-10:30 am

 

Do you have a complimentary workout I missed? Share it in the comments!

I’m going to keep updating this post to reflect any new workouts I find!

Motivated to Run

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I had a question from one of my friends on Facebook, and thought I’d tackle it on here!  One of my friends Ashley asked:

How do you stay motivated to run? It seems like I am always starting, run for a few weeks and then I stop.

We are all motivated to run for different reasons. Some of us run to clear our minds or get out of the house and others run to lose weight or other athletic reasons. Many enter races in order to have events to train for, and others are motivated to simply run daily. I can’t tell you how to be motivated or how to fit it in because I don’t know all the details of your life, but I can let you know what works for me.

I love entering races with people. I have a few friends who are runners and they inspire me to keep training, and to get those long runs that must be completed on the weekends. Sometimes we even go out together to make sure we get the 10 miler run done in order to prepare for a race. It’s easy for me to get the long runs in, but a 2 hour run on Saturday with homework crushing me isn’t always the most motivating. So entering races with friends keeps me on track!

My whole life is written out in my planner. I’m not a control freak as much as I can’t remember when and where I’m supposed to be, what’s due, and when I’m supposed to go grocery shopping. So I write in my runs, my mileage, and treat it like everything else in my planner. Mandatory. When I finish, I enter them into my Runkeeper App, and track my total mileage for the month. I’ve been averaging 50 miles of running/month since February, which is great for me! Finally, I celebrate all the small successes and take pride in my runs.

As much as I like running with people, it’s hard for me to match their pace, so I usually run alone. I still go to running groups, and still meet up with my girlfriends, but we usually end up splitting up so we can all meet our running goals. It depends how you like to run, but sharing my running goals with a running community has been the best motivator of all!

I also thought I’d share some of my blogger friends blogs I stalk, since they’ve really motivated me to run: Running in Heels, My Pinky Toes, and of course LuluLemon.

If you have questions for me, feel free to put them in the comments section or post them on my Facebook wall. I’d love to do some research and respond in a blog!

Back from Vacation!

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Just came back from the best vacation ever! Tyler’s family is much more relaxed on vacation than my family was, so it was an adjustment… and I had to FORCE myself to slow down! We didn’t even have Internet.  Even though it was more relaxed than what my family does, we still did a lot of stuff, and kayaking was one of them! We went twice last week, and I got stuck a couple times because the water was so low- AND I almost died getting stuck over a water fall with rocks jutting out at the bottom! Don’t worry; we only had class 1 rapids on the first two miles, and the rest was pretty calm. :)

Since we were nestled in the mountains in the middle of nowhere, there were plenty of hills to train on. Not that I’m actually training for anything right now, but I can pretend. :)   I was seriously sore every day that I ran. I did a couple four-mile runs, but on those mountain trails, it felt like twice that! It was so awesome to run on such gorgeous trails.Williamsburg Run for the Dream

I did terrible on not eating sugar during our trip, and I’m going to have to pay for it for a couple days. So back to the strict diet from here on in! :) How are your summer fitness goals coming along? What do you find the hardest to maintain during the warmer months?

My goal: 50 miles in April

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We had a lovely weekend. It was warm and breezy, and we spent the majority of it outside! On Friday evening I went running with a friend and almost logged 8 miles! We ran straight to the beach, on the boardwalk, and back in a little over an hour. Talking with a friend while running makes time fly! She told me about getting a bike this weekend, so hopefully we can ride around this summer together.

Since I got a good run in the night before, I was a little sore for my Saturday run that I did with some girls from school in the park. The pollen was out and I could hardly breathe… so I took a few walking breaks I our 5 mile loop… slowing down the pack L so sad! I seriously tried to keep going, and I did my best, which is all I can do!

I’ve been wanting to amp up my mileage, and my goal is to run 50 miles this month! I’ve already run 30 miles, which is 62% of my goal in 14 days.  I’ll be so excited to hit another 50 mile month, which will be my second this year. For all you runners out there who are running with increased heat (or pollen), don’t forget to hydrate! I’ll be running with a water bottle on my long runs where their isn’t fountians… even though I hate running with one.
And another amazing pin I found on pinterest… always running… I’m glad I CHOOSE to run because I love it, not because I’m being chased!

A HUGE shout out to all those Boston Marathoners out there today! Best of luck to all of you :) Drink tons and take it slow in the heat!

Getting Stronger

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I’ve been running a 5 mile cycle pretty regularly now, which is my new 3 mile circuit. I’m still painfully slow, and yesterday had to walk about a half a mile to catch my breath… because my friend and I were talking so much. But it sure made the miles fly by… and we felt great when we were done! I’m still working on my Half Marathon Training for the Novice Runner by Hal Higdon, and it’s been kicking me in the butt!

I can feel I’m getting stronger, and running is coming easier, but who am I kidding? It’s still a struggle to get out the door and pick my route. My muscles have been in serious pain (I’m a wimp, I’m not injured or anything) so I bought a Stretch and Strength Foam-Roller with the super-awesome  amazon gift card my sister-in-law gave me for my birthday (YES)!  It’s purple and lovely.

I think it’ll help with my increased milage I’m planning for the spring.

Friday I’m going to do a lone run of 8 miles, and Saturday I’m heading out with a group of girls for a ‘chill’ 5 mile run (Since WHEN is 5 miles chill?!?). Hah.

YAY for the weekend!

Running Hills

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I am so proud… I ran 8 miles this weekend on trails with a friend… and I’m still feeling the pain! Hills around here are a little hard to find (without driving too far), so the park we went too is about the best we’re gunna get! It was lightly misting as we were running, and it was so muggy that we were soaked in the first 10 minutes of running, but it was wonderful =)

Our next 1/2 marathon is in seven weeks in the hilly town of Williamsburg, and we’ve got some serious training to do in order to meet our goals. I want to do the race in under 2:30 hrs, and Tyler is aiming for 2 hrs *GASP*
I realize I did our last in 2:34:54, but I know Williamsburg is going to be MUCH more challanging.

Tonight we are planning on running at Mount Trashmore, which will hopefully help with our hill endurance (and make my legs hurt EVEN MORE).

Here’s some helpful advice from HowToBeFit.com on running hills:
Different hill workouts can hit a variety of training goals.  Running hills, like lifting weights, is resistance training. Hills strengthen the leg muscles to meet the specific demands of running. By working hard on hills, you force the muscles to overcome the incline and resistance of gravity. This strengthens the driving muscles the hamstrings, calves, buttocks, and particularly the quadriceps, which don’t get much work on the flats. Fatigued quads are particularly a problem late in races, especially marathons. It’s hard to pick your feet up and move them forward if the quads are growing tired of this important repetitive task.  

I also asked the experts over at Runners World (my most favorite running magizine ever) how to run Hills:
“I once had a coach tell me that if you keep moving your arms, your legs have to follow,” says Erholtz, “so I focus on keeping my arms moving.” She says she also leans slightly forward into the hill. “I think a shorter stride is more efficient on the hill, with a more rapid turnover. Keep your head and eyes focused ahead, but not all the way up.”

I feel like we’ve got a good chance at this and we’re going to ROCK it!

Being Intentional

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It’s so easy, for example, to go on vacation and throw your entire diet (of healthy eating) and training schedule out the window, only to have to start back up from square one when you get back (Thank you Christmas break!).

Spring break is coming up for some people (does that mean anything anymore that I’m not in grade 7?) and Easter (the 3rd best chocolate holiday in the WORLD), which is desperately trying to sabatoge my training schedule like Christmas. In case you need a kick in the butt, try out the ever eipc Biggest Loser Trainers Bob’s Vacation Workout.

IT’S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN! WE ONLY HAVE EXACTLY 52 DAYS to get in the BEST shape we’ve ever been in and race on the hilly track for 13.1 miles! 

We’ve using Hal Higdons 1/2 marathon training Schedule: Novice 2 as our coach and the most amazing weather =) I’m enjoying this training plan because we just ran a 1/2 marathon last week, and it’s giving us a bit of a break, allowing us time to work back up to 13 miles. I’m working this running thing in-between my work schedule, school, and being around for my husband. It’s a lot, but thankfully he’s running with me =)

It’s about being intentional about your goals. Whether on vacation, or just getting caught up in life, be intentional about getting where you want to be. Dreams without deadlines and plans of actions are just… dreams.

I’m probably going to fall slightly short of my 60 miles/March goal, but I’m proud of all the progress I’ve made AND for setting a new PR: Running 13.1 miles!! I’m still so proud of myself!

Ps. if you are at all enjoying my posts, please leave a little love (aka: comment on my BLOG people! I know your reading it!!)

SHAMROCK RACE!

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I woke up Sunday morning after about 2.5 hrs of sleep because there were gun shots(yes, gun shots) outside our apartment all night. I almost didn’t run in the race because I woke up feeling miserable, but Tyler was so encoraging and supportive, and helped me decide to run! (thanks hunny!)

My goal was to run the first six miles, and then run/walk the rest of the miles because my training had gone so poorly.

Parking for any Boardwalk race is a mess, and yesterday was no exception. The irony of parking in a bank parking lot in the handicap space while running a half marathon kept me smiling until the start! For the first couple miles, Tyler and I were smiling at each other in sheer happiness of being able to run this race.

Because, exactly one year ago, after the Shamrock race (we were running 8k’s back then) he took me to Fort Story and proposed. It was so precious and one of the happiest days of my life!

Back to the race. It was so glorious to run by Fort Story and remember our proposal exactly one year ago… and we actually ran RIGHT by the Lighthouse (on mile 8) that we visted the day he proposed!  The terrain was wonderful, we consistantly run on the boardwalk, so we were used to the route. While we were on base, running by the lighthouse, there was this mommy with two little kids in her stroller that allowed her kids to get out and RUN along side her! This was the most adorable site ever, and I was laughing for the remainder of the mile :) I was truly inspired to keep running. And I did keep running! At each mile marker, I decided to run that mile, and walk the rest. Until I got to mile 11, and then decided I was going to run the WHOLE thing! I’m so glad I did, and I’m so proud of myself!

I set my all time Personal Record yesterday. Not because I did great time, but because this was the FIRST TIME I’D EVER RUN 13.1 MILES! Setting my next PR is going to be easy since I really took it slow and ran it at 11:21 minute miles (according to my tracker), and 11:49 according to the race timer. They are different because I turned off my tracker during our washroom break… because I wanted to know our exact running time.

Seriously, I’ve never been prouder of myself in my whole life. I never thought I’d be able to run STRAIGHT for 13.1 miles, and I DID! I crossed the finish line, strong and feeling good. I’ve never been happier to stop running!

Weekend Run

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Saturday I did a great 3.3m run in about 27 min as I ran to the LuluLemon store for my pilates class. I didn’t use my RunKeeper app because I was using my map to figure out how to find the store, but that’s my rough figure. When I got there, I had to immediantly start my class, and I could hardly sit up straight, my hips were so tight! After some serious stretching and a lot of pain, I was able to FINALLY touch my toes (which is never a big deal to me), and I felt MUCH better!

I LOVED the piliaties class, and will probably sign up for for enough classes to get me to Christmas.

Then on SUNDAY, I went running with a girl from our run club and she matched my slower-I’m-going-to-run-6-miles-pace perfectly! It was a glorious run with the most perfect weather ever, and we just kept running. My goal was to run SEVEN miles, but I started dry heaving at SIX so I did what it took to get back to the car. Safely. And not throw-up in front of the new girl. Unsuccessful. Embarrassing.

I know this is discusting, but it’s not the first time I’ve thrown up from running. This time it was obviously from running too soon after lunch, but I’ve done it before from over exerting myself. What I’ve learned to listen to my body, and walk when it’s telling me to walk.
During a race, yes, I will do what it takes to get the best time I possibly can, but I’m not going to bring myself to throw-up again because of a run. It was horrible. After I got home, I threw up straight for 30 minutes and felt like crap the rest of the night.

But while I was miserable, I basked in the pride that, today, I ran further than I’ve ever run before.

Going to beat my record and run SEVEN miles next weekend!