Fairfield Half Marathon....Epic Fail!

As I told you in a previous post, I signed up for the Fairfield Half Marathon for motivation. I incorporated yoga, pilates and speed work into my training. I felt more confident going into this Half. About a week out from race day I found out that Fairfield is a top rated race and it is hilly.  Not what I was expecting but I was ok with it. I was going to try to PR anyway. I even had a friend running the race so that made it even more fun. To add to the excitement there were world class runners participating in the race. They would be done before I was halfway through the course didn't matter. Just knowing I running the same course added a "cool" element to the day.

The week before I tapered my running and enjoyed sleeping in.  I stayed hydrated and watched what I ate so when race day came I was ready and itching to run. Danielle and I arrived early to get our bib, stretch and use the porta potties several times.  Hahaha.  Before we knew it was time to head to the start. 

About .25mi in Danielle was off like a shot. She's faster than me. The first 3 miles I was 9:25 to 9:48 pace. Much faster than in my last Half. Miles 4 to 7 were a struggle.  The hills were killer and I was trying not to mentally give up.  My pace slowed to between 10:10 - 11:09. It was a struggle. I finally got tired of hearing my MotoACTV telling me a pace that was not acceptable. So I kicked my butt into gear, turned on my music and got my pace back into the mid-9's for the next 2 miles. During mile 10 fatigue set in but when I heard my pace was above 10 I got pi**ed and sped up.  I was feeling good, singing, and happy in the fact I was in the home stretch.  I ran another .75mi when this happened.

Yup, I face planted! We were running against traffic while a fire truck was coming from behind us with the siren blaring. We all moved over to left as far as possible and I was so close to the runner in front of me I couldn't keep track of the road. There was a raised storm drain and I tripped over it.....2.35 miles from the finish. I waited for medical personal to come check me out so that I could get up and finish.  Yeah, that wasn't gonna happen. They thought I needed stitches and I got a bump on the side of my head. When all was said and done I could have finished. I didn't need stitches and I had squirted so much water on my face that all the dirt was out of my wounds.

Disappointed? That's an understatement. Angry, more determined, more motivated? Yeah, that's about right. In about 3 weeks I am going to run that course. Not for the tshirt.  Not for the medal. Not for a PR.  Not for anything else but for me.  I started out that day with a goal and it may not have happened as I had planned but I will make it happen.

I am already on the mend. After only 2 days I look so much better. The human body is so amazing.

I am proud of the race I ran up until that point. I ran it smart and strong. Had I finished I would have PR'd on a course so much more difficult than my first. Knowing that will get me through until I can run the course again and until next June when I will run it again. You heard me Kenyans.  You've been warned!

The moral of the story? Things don't always work out the way we plan and they can get pretty ugly but it doesn't mean they can't.  We all have it in ourselves to achieve the goals we want but it is up to us to make it happen.

Happy Running!

Taper week is here!

Well, I am less than a week away from my second Half. This time around I am a little more confident and a little bit more motivated.  Last time when I was this close to the race I was psyching myself out.  I was doubting myself even though I trained well and smart.  Now I am ready to push myself. I know I can go the distance but the question is, can I PR? We'll find out soon enough!

I ended last week with a 10 mile long run.  I kept a nice pace and recovered quickly.  Both very good signs.  I followed up on Sunday with yoga @ Lululemon Westport.  Attending yoga the day after a long run really helps to stretch my muscles and I am not as sore.

Today I ran and played with my MotoACTV.  It has a neat feature that lets you set goals. I chose to set a time and distance goal, 4 miles in 40 minutes.  It didn't work exactly how I thought. It told me when I reached each mile and when I was .60 miles away from completing my run.  I was expecting it to tell me to speed up or slow down according to my pace.

Mile      Pace
1            10:02
2            09:36
3            09:49
4            09:16
Avg Pace: 09:41
Total time: 38:48

This was a pretty good time for me given my recent snails pace I have been running.  To finish off the week will be running 3 miles and 2 hrs of yoga on Wednesday and 2 miles on Friday. Some runners hate taper week but I look forward to it as I get to sleep in and rest my legs. I am going to take full advantage of it since in a month I will be following an official Half Marathon training plan which requires training 6 days a week for 12 weeks. Oy vey!

Sorry I don't have any photos to dress this post up but I haven't gone "Full On Blogger" yet and carry my camera everywhere I go.  Here a great photo that a member shared:

 Happy Running!!

Back at it!

When I finished my week of rest after my Half Marathon last month I felt a little lost. My next Half is not until the middle September and the only race on the calendar before that was a 10k at the end of June.  After a couple days of running I lacked motivation and didn't know how many miles I should be running I knew I needed to find a race or anything to work toward.   I was contemplating running in the " Stratton-Faxon Fairfield Road Races Half" before I ran "Run Like a Diva". I didn't want to sign up for another Half before I ran my first.  Makes sense, right?! It didn't take much thought before I was signing up.

Now, I'm back to 6 mile base runs, 3x a week and a weekend long run. This week's long run was 10 miles. Oh yeah! I officially have 2 weeks to train. It's a short time but since I never let my mileage fall it is ok.

I was so excited when I noticed about a month and a half ago that I was getting faster.  A few weeks prior I started a strength training routine. I had read that strength training makes you faster and I did think about that but, as with anything else for me, it didn't hold much weight. After all, a theory is just that a theory......and I'm hard headed.  I need to experience things for myself before I believe it.  Now, I am back running the same mileage but my times are super slow.  Why? Ding, ding, ding!!!! I haven't done any strength work in over a month. I now have the motivation for strength training I didn't have before. Yay!!

I've decided to do yoga on Sundays since my long runs are on Saturday.  Muscles should get a good stretch after runs, especially long runs.  Today I went to Lululemon - Westport.  Every Lululemon store has free community events like yoga.  Check out your local store calendar for more information. This week mine is going to have a running lecture.  Can't wait to get new information.

Today was also cooking day. I made fresh strawberry sauce for the banana "ice cream" I am going to make once the bananas are frozen.  For breakfast this week I baked egg whites, loaded with veggies (basically I used the egg whites to hold the veggies together) .  It is going to be so yummy topped with pico de gallo.  I also picked up a whole watermelon. I hope we eat it all before it goes bad.

It's been a good weekend. Busy with work and domestic chores but that's ok. Next weekend is fun weekend with my boy!

What did you do to be active this weekend?  Do you cook on the weekend for the week ahead?

Next blog we will discuss "Clean Eating". Until then, Happy Running!

Run Like A Diva Half Marathon Recap

I had originally planned to run a Half in this series last year in Long Island but my Peroneal Tendon had different plans. So when they announced they would be holding a Half in sunny, warm, beautiful North Myrtle Beach I said, "Yes, please!".  The race looked like so much fun. What woman wouldn't want to channel her inner Diva and be rewarded with a tiara, boa, rose, champagne and a medal ( a.k.a Bling) from a gorgeous man after a race? That's what I call a good day.

I left the Thursday before the race full of nerves and excitement. My friend made me this awesome shirt. How great is she?!?!

 I had a lay over in Charlotte so I thought I should have frozen yogurt...to calm my nerves of course. Look what I found!



Since I left after work and I made a pit stop at Krogers from water and breakfast items I didn't get settled until 1:30am. I stayed at Ocean Creek Resort. I highly recommend it.  Instead of hotel rooms they offer studio, 1 & 2 bedroom condos. The best part was that I didn't have to get in the car to go to the beach because it is a beachfront property. 

That made for a late start on Friday so I decided to sleep as late as my body wanted, enjoyed a cup a joe and breakfast.  Later in the day I headed to Wilmington, NC for coffee with a friend. She's a lawyer there. Her and her partner are brilliant (Hogan & Betts).   Have you ever been to Wilmington? I love it there.  Heck, I love North Carolina and would move there in a heart beat!

On my way back I picked up my race packet. I was disappointed with the expo. They had the same vendors in Long Island last year.  I had hoped they would  have had more vendors and more variety since they had several races after that.

The weather was not cooperating so I decided to skip the concerts that were being held at the "Horseshoe". Thank goodness I brought DVD's to keep me busy. 

Saturday I went out for breakfast before I hit the outlets. It was way too cold for the beach. You could tell Diva's were in town. All the athletics shops were packed. I did  a quick once around, grabbed Ben & Jerry's and made a B-line for the exit.  I ordered the traditional prerace pasta for dinner and called it a night.

They recommended that we arrive to the race early to be sure to find parking. I set the alarm for 5:15 and was at the Start Line by 6am. I had my photo taken there and then hit the porta potties. 

By this time I was getting nervous, doubting myself and thinking about heading back to the hotel to hide under the covers. To keep myself busy I stood in the LONG line that had formed to get into the porta potties and struck up a conversation with 2 nice ladies.  Then it was time to get in my pace corral. I picked 10:00 pace based on my long runs. The excitement of the crowd was building but I was still thinking of slipping away. It is amazing the games your head can play with your confidence.  Deep down I knew I could run this race but I still was worried. I did some stretching and before I knew it they released the first wave of runners....it was too late to back out!

I ran the first couple of miles alone.  Every once in a while I would run along side a group of women to see if I liked their pace.  Finally at mile 3 I found a mom/daughter duo and stuck with them. Having people to talk to really made the time go by quickly and helped to move me along. Around mile 5 we passed what would be the finish line.  The crowd was awesome.  They were cheering and holding signs. What a great boost!  At mile 8 I stopped for a potty break so I lost my running buddies. :(  I wasn't sure if I had to go or if it was my water/fuel belt pressing on my gut so I went anyway.  (I know, TMI).  Everything was great until mile 11 when fatigue hit.  I keep repeating, "Just keep running, just keep running!".  Before I knew it I could see mile marker 12 and that's when I said, "Oh h*ll, I got this!" Not only did I know that I only had 1.1 miles to go but I would soon be getting a boa and tiara to bring me across the finish line.   After I got "divalicious" I could hear the roar of the crowd so I knew the finish line was close.  When I turned the corner, saw the crowd and finish line I had to fight back the tears.  Tears of joy. Tears of "thank goodness it's over. Know I can go eat pancakes!".  Tears of I am so proud of myself and the hard work I put into getting me to this point.  Besides raising an amazing Son, this has to be my greatest accomplishment.

A year ago I was 55lbs heavier and was miserable in my personal life. I had a poor self image and was just going through the motions of life. Today, I am happy and my life means something. I am finally looking forward to what tomorrow might bring. I attribute all of this to running. My life is still the same in every other aspect but the changes that running has made to me has altered the way I look at everything.

As I crossed the finish line I had an effortless smile spread across my face. It probably was the fact that a shirtless man was waiting to give me my bling.  I didn't keep him waiting!

I was then handed a rose, champagne and directed to the photo line.  There was music playing and a lot of people hanging out but my legs wanted none of it. I grabbed some chow and headed back to the hotel for a well deserved shower.

Overall it was an amazing experience. I am so glad that I chose this race series to run my first Half.  I am a firm believer that you should sign up for a flat, fun race the first time at a new distance.  This one had both. With an added bonus of great organization, awesome crowds, cool bling, and most important,  amazing runners. Everyone was so happy and supportive of each other.  If someone was starting to fall behind the runners passing would yell out support.

If you have been thinking about running your first Half or your 101st, put Run like a Diva on you race calendar.

Happy running!

Crunchmaster - Gluten-free crackers

A few years back I had no idea what gluten was when I started to hear about people allergic to it.  Now the isles are filled with gluten-free options.

A  product I recently came across was Crunchmaster crackers. They are whole grain, multi-grain, certified gluten free, baked crackers. The great people at Crunchmaster sent me three of their products to try, Multi-Seed, Sea Salt and Roasted Vegetable Flavor. All three are crunchy and very flavorful.  You can taste the yummy seeds in the Multi-Seed and Sea Salt crackers. When you pop the Roasted Vegetable cracker in your mouth you get an instant burst of flavor and hint of spicy heat.  While all three are great with toppings I prefer to eat them alone and enjoy their natural flavor.  They would be fabulous as a potato chip replacement.

Since nobody in my household has a gluten allergy what attracted me to this brand is that they are baked, made with whole grains and I know what every single item is on the ingredient list. 

If you would like to try these tasty crackers for yourself follow this link for a coupon toward your purchase. http://www.crunchmaster.com/coupon.aspx

Happy Snacking!

Motorola MotoACTV

A few months back I received an email to join the MotoACTV movement.  I signed up and Motorola sent me a free MotoACTV to try. All they asked was that I share my honest review with all of you.

While waiting for it to come I wanted to see what it was all about.  The MotoACTV is a sports GPS, mp3 player, & personal trainer all wrapped up into one neat little package. 

By the time I received it I was so excited that I immediately started playing with it.  Before MotoACTV contacted me I was in the market for a GPS but I couldn't seem to find one that was easy to use and had functions that I would find useful.  I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to setup and navigate through the screens.  I had tried using another brand but I could never get it to do what I wanted, when I wanted.  It is a touch screen so you don't have to remember what button is for which function and how many times you need to press it to get to that function. 

The MotoACTV not only has a GPS function but they took the technology one step further by adding ACCUSENSE sensors.  The combination of the two technologies enable you to track your pace, mileage, elevation, time and calories burned.  There are sports sensors for different activities available so it not just for runners anymore.

Another great feature is the mp3 player.  Yet again they raised the bar with the addition of wireless listening and your watch will track what songs get you pumped! Syncing couldn't be easier.  Create your playlists on your computer using your standard media library, connect the MotoACTV via the USB  and you will automatically be prompted to sync the device.

After each workout you can connect wireless to the training portal where you can review your stats and save your route. There are so many more functions that I could go on but you can read about all of them at MotoACTV.com.

Before I went out on my first run I mapped out and clocked my miles with my Jeep.  The mileage was pretty accurate. I have my device set to tell me what my average pace is for each mile (lap). I like this feature because I can compare my pace to what was going on in that mile (hills, tired, traffic). To this point I was totally in love with the device and had even talked it up to my running partner who ended up buying one. However, I wanted to use all the functions I would be using before I wrote a review so I decided to add a ANT+ heart rate monitor.  This is when I found a chink in the armour.  I could not pair the monitor to the device. I called customer service for assistance.  After over an hour of troubleshooting they gave me the option of returning the device for a new one or they could escalate my call. The representative as very understanding and I felt he did everything possible to help me. I didn't feel that there was anything else to try but there was no way I was going to give my MotoACTV up without exploring every avenue first.  I was told that I would receive a call within 48hrs but the call never came.  I ended up calling them and  that representative wanted to troubleshoot by doing the exact same things so I resigned to sending it back.  As disappointed as I was it took less than a week and I had a new device and I haven't had a problem.

I love my MotoACTV.  I use it whether I am running, walking, hiking, or strength training.  I really like to wear it during races because not only did I PR but I saw this awesome announcement when I reviewed my lap pace log.

Motorola truly thought of everything when designing this device. There are some functions that I haven't used yet like the training coach and mp3 but I know I won't be disappointed.  My recommendation is if you are looking for a new GPS device or just want to experience the best of the best than the MotoACTV is for you!


While I received this device free, the opinions in this blog are mine and are my honest thoughts about MotoACTV.  Motorola did not influence me in any manner.

Strength Training Routine

Since starting my healthy lifestyle journey I have been asked by numerous people how I was able to lose so much weight, get active and maintain it.  I have decided to post a series of blogs focusing on specific areas such as menu planning and workout routines.

Before I start, the former wannabe lawyer feels the need to state that I am not a professional. I have no formal training. Everything contained in this blog is information I have picked up along my journey and I cannot emphasize enough the importance of checking with your Doctor before starting this or any exercise routine.

Now, with all that stinky stuff is out of the way, if you want to start exercising I think walking and strength training are great ways to start.  Both are types of exercise can very easily be modified to fit your ability. Since most people can figure out walking by themselves let's focus on strength training.

Strength training builds muscle which has many benefits such as health, strength, flexibility, reduces risk of injury, increase metabolism, muscle tone, posture, and improves your state of mind.  So no matter what your reason for starting is you will receive more than you expected.

The Routine

When creating this routine for myself I wanted to be sure I worked every part of my body. Arms, legs, abs (core), hips and back. I chose to use exercises that rely on body weight in lieu of weights except for working my arms.  Body weight creates its own resistance but with arms that is not the case. As you progress you may want to add weights or change up your routine for Muscle Confusion which is vital for progression. Muscle confusion is the theory that your muscles become accustomed to an activity and it stops being effective in developing the muscle it had been working.  I perform my routine at the gym so I have access to a few props.  If you do not go to the gym or have these props at home don't worry I will give alternative suggestions. Below you will find descriptions and photos of the routine.  I have included videos of each exercise. You can start with 3 sets of 20 reps of each.  Personally, I like to do 1 set of each exercise instead of all 3 at the same time.

Leg lifts (Abs)

I like to do this one in lieu of traditional crunches.  This move also works your legs.  Can't beat a 2 for 1 deal! Make sure to keep your lower back flat and to breathe.  Video

Bridge


This is great for the glutes. You will feel a burning sensation from behind the knee all the way to your bum. If you don't have a Bosu ball you can put your foot between the couch frame and cushion or between your box spring and mattress.  They are both about the same height as the Bosu. Video

Plank

Planks work your core, spine, arms, glutes and quads. Video

Bosu Tricep Curls

Another 2 for 1 exercise. In this one you work your triceps with the dumbbell while you try to keep you balance by engaging your core. I use a 15lb weight but you should use whatever weight that leaves you tired after your first set. If it is a breeze, then the weight is not heavy enough.  If you don't have weights use soda bottles. Instead of a Bosu alternate standing on one leg. Video

Stability Ball Squat

This squat ensures proper form.  Over time you can incorporate a medicine ball.  Hold it in two hand out in front of you. If you don't have a stability ball you can do traditional squats. Video

Superwoman/Superman

This pose strengthens your core and back. Video

Side Leg Lifts (a.k.a. Jane Fonda's)

Side leg lefts work your legs and hips.

Cow Pose

This is more of a stretch but I have included it in my routine since I started to have ITB pain. It has reduced my discomfort while running and keeps the muscle loose so that when I am running it will relax more quickly. You do this pose with one leg on top , hold it, then switch legs.

If you are just starting out this will give you a good workout.  As you progress you can increase the number of sets and add exercises to the routine. Take it slow and have fun!