Running Community, DENIED, & They Have Returned

FRIDAY EVE!!!! Well. These have returned.

We got some snow yesterday. Nothing like the 4-8” they were predicting, but still. It’s APRIL 10th!

I also tried to switch-up my schedule yesterday morning and read at the kitchen table. I don’t think Brady approved.

Disclaimer: I received an annual Strava Summit subscription and Strava merchandise as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!

I’m also NEW ON STRAVA! Yes, I know. It’s been around for a million years and HOW did it take me so long. Well, I suppose I can put it into perspective and I never even got a Facebook Account until I was graduating High School (does this make me seem young or old? I’m not sure.) in 2008! You can find me here. So far, I’m finding it super motivating to find other runners on there!

As the super competitive person that I am, I also love how you can see your stats (hello, I’m also a data-nerd) and compete with other members in the clubs that you join!

You can also join RACE GROUP clubs like the NEDD Mt. Washington Road Race. How cool is that be able to follow along on others journeys as you train for the same race?

It’s super easy to either start the recording for your activity (running, biking, walking, hiking, canoeing, OR e-bike riding) OR manually put in your information after your workout (like I did yesterday afternoon after my tempo treadmill miles)! You can also give others kudos, which how cool is that?!? It’s basically like having a ‘virtual cheerleader’ with you pushing you along on your activity! I think it will be fun to track my data over time and to be able to see all the stats that the app provides (charts, elevation, maps, etc.).

ALSO can you PLEASE help me on what I should get for my birthday gift?!? I have about a million items in my shopping cart !

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-Are you on Strava? Let’s be friends!

-What should I order as my ‘birthday bird’ item?!?

-What’s the weather where you are?

-Fan of the Bean Boots?

Training Tuesday: AfterShokz Trekz Air PRODUCT REVIEW & Must Listen.

"Disclaimer: I received an Trekz Air Titanium Wireless Headphones to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!"

Happy Tuesday! WOW. Am I TIRED. Ha. It’s finally starting to catch-up to me, so I’m upping my fluid-intact, sleep, stretching/foam rolling 2x a day, and eating super healthy. I’ve got some stressful weeks ahead of me before the marathon, so I’m trying to everything I can to minimize the stress. Come Wednesday, I’ll have all of my “long long" runs behind me so I’ll begin to taper, which I think should relieve some of that stress (but honestly the taper is sometimes a bit stressful to me too).

Before we get into my AfterShokz product review, I NEED to share with you a podcast episode that I listened to on my long run Saturday. THIS podcast episode was mind-blowing and honestly it gets me even more excited to read her book (I just picked it up from the library). Super informative and I think that I’d like to build my next training cycle around my hormones if I can somehow figure them out??

On a side note, you probably know by now that I’ve been testing out my AfterShokz Trekz Air headphones for a few weeks now- including on my 28 mile long run last week! Side note: I must have been slightly delirious by my last 7-mile segment because I definitely put my vest on the wrong way…Whoops.

I’m happy to report that they lasted the entire 4 and something hours I was out there. So that is definitely a bonus. But first, let’s back-track to the beautiful packaging they come in. Stella is also very interested.

So sleek and they come in this great case that my cat, Brady also equally loves (he actually picks it out of wherever I hide it and carry it about the house). I wish I had a photo to share, but he normally drops it by my feet before I can snag one!

I got the slate color and they came with also a charging cord and a 2-year warranty. I love that they have a 6-hour battery. They will get me through an entire marathon and a good majority of my 50 miler (which is perfect because I normally like to save music/podcasts as a ‘treat’ in the later miles of a race). I also really like that you can take calls from them (or ahem…ignore them…I’m looking at you telemarketers!) and they are sweat resistant.

Can ya tell I like to wear this visor a lot? Ha. I should probably wash it…

One of the biggest pet-peeves that I find with ANYTHING wired is how absolutely disgusting that wire feels when you get sweaty. You know what I’m talking about… it gets coated and slimy and ugh. it’s like those really humid days where even wearing a shirt is pointless because it just gets drenched two seconds into your run. I also wondered about the bone-conduction technology. I thought it was SO COOL, but also kinda weird? Like, would I feel it in my jaw (I’ve got TMJ)? Would it move all about and prevent me from catching up on my latest podcast?

I can 100% say for certain that it didn’t feel weird and they never moved on me ONCE! I never felt them and really love how mindful I am now on the run. I don’t tune everything out and come back from my run feeling more rejuvenated and at-ease with myself as opposed to tuning out the birds chirping, cars driving by, the quietness of a morning run. They are so much safer on the roads and I can’t wait to try them on the trails this summer. I know that I’ll be able to hear wildlife approaching, mountain bikers zooming down the trail, and fellow runners coming up behind me (all of my biggest fears when on the trails alone).

Aftershokz also has an amazing video about the headphones, which I’ll share below incase you’re interested! They are so light as well. Don’t forget to get yourself a discount code if you want to try a pair out for yourself.

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Ever done a training cycled that has followed your hormones?

Favorite part about running outside?

Last favorite podcast episode you listened to?

Training Tuesday: An ODE To Winter Running

"Disclaimer: I received an XYZ to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!"

An Ode To Winter Running

Dear Winter Running,

In honor of the First Day of Spring tomorrow, I thought it would be good to give you a nice final farewell before you’re gone for another 9 months.

It’s been super fun to watch the snow fall on the ground. In the beginning, the snow was beautiful. It looked like furry white clouds forming around me. So light and easy to blow off of the roads.

As you progressed, you started to get real cold. Winter Running began to get real challenging. Some days I felt like I was a burglar with the amount of clothes I had to pile on just to survive for an hour outside.

It was not so fun to have my water bottles or gels freeze on me. The amount of time it took me to layer-up was also not very enjoyable. I also really disliked wearing cleats on almost every.single.run. While they gave my feet a bit of extra weight (thanks for the additional cross-training!) and prevented me from slipping on any surfaces, they also were one extra thing I had to put on.

When you snowed so hard that I had to wear sunglasses to protect my eyes from snow build-up was also less than enjoyable. Good thing I at least had something acting like a windshield to my poor, poor face.

Don’t let that smile fool you folks. Conditions this winter were pretty miserable.

You really tested me. You tried to make me sleep in with your very short days, but I was resilient. I had goals to capture and I wasn’t going to let something silly like “winter” get in my way. You pushed on for far far too long, but now it’s Spring and I want to see some GRASS and FLOWERS and be able to RUN OUTSIDE in the LIGHT at 5AM.

So, goodbye to you and your endless amounts of snow (something like 100”+ and still going). You’re free to move on any day now.

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What would you say to Winter Running if you had the chance?

TIP Thursday: 5 Workouts To Work Some SPEED Into Your Run

*Disclaimer: Remember that I am NOT a certified running coach/ personal trainer and to please consult your doctor before beginning a new training regimen. I’m just sharing what has worked for me in the past, along with my knowledge from the undergraduate bachelor of science degree in Health & Exercise Science*

Happy Friday-eve! How’s this week going for you? I think I’ve finally gotten over the hump of my training slump and am SO excited to see if I can continue my race lottery entry streak by seeing if I’ll get into the Beach 2 Beacon 10k! I’ve got to be up and on my computer BEFORE 5am (my time- 7am EST) —> so I’m setting my alarm nice and early (and then heading into Steamboat to get in 11 easy miles before work!)

I’ve been reading this book and it is amazing. Honestly life-changing. There are so many lines that I want to highlight (basically the entire book). This one in particular.

Also we got yet another giant snowstorm yesterday. Now since it’s warmer, it’s super heavy snow and there is just slush everywhere. My easy 5 miles yesterday was interesting on the Core Trail with it being covered in several inches of snow/ slush. Good training for my ultra- I think running through mud feels similar! Spring is right around the corner right? I think our 100”+ of snow will melt by the time we hit Summer maybe….

Also obsessed with Chia pudding recently. I make mine with a mix of greek yogurt/ coconut-almond milk and then add some homemade granola, berries, and almond or peanut butter. YUM. Also super high in protein!

Here are 5 Workouts To Work Some SPEED Into Your Run.

I’ve created these workouts to be done outside or on the treadmill. When you increase your speed to all-out think about it in terms of how you’re breathing. You want to be breathing pretty heavily and shouldn’t be able to maintain this pace more than a few minutes. Doing short speed sessions (along with switching up my strength training routine every 6-8 weeks) was the biggest factor when I broke through a huge marathon (and half marathon) PRs!

The Speedster

The Flash

The Popper

The Hill

The Roller

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What are some of your favorite speed workouts?

Any other race lotteries I should enter?!?

Training Tuesday: Shady Rays Product Review!

"Disclaimer: I received an XYZ to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!"

SO CUTE.

Happy Tuesday! I’ll be stepping back from my blog for a bit to focus on life priorities. I’m stepping back actually from most social-media related things. I’ve got a lot going and finally realized on Friday that it’s kinda zapping my love for running. I LOVE to run, but when it starts to feel like a task to post about my run and having certain expectations to meet on my runs, then that’s not so fun anymore. I want to continue to ignite that fire and honestly platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook just aren’t doing it for me at the moment (and feeling like I HAVE to post on my blog versus I WANT to post are two very different things). I’m not sure how long I’ll take (maybe I’ll feel ‘back to normal’ tomorrow or maybe I’ll decide ‘hey, this is pretty nice too..’), but I’ll still post my weekly training recaps & I have another Training Tuesday prewritten that’s scheduled next week (it’s a GOOD one!).

Now, let’s get to my review of Shady Rays- I got their Pink Sunset Ice Polarized. First, let’s chat about how CUTE that name is?! They kinda had me just from that title.

I’m really particular about my running sunglasses. I want something that is really cute, affordable (because honestly they’re just running sunglasses), fits my teeny-tiny face/head (yes, I CAN fit into child’s size small hats), lightweight, and durable. I really dislike the typical ‘running sunglass look’ where you kinda look like the terminator.

SOURCE

They also come in a cute color, then well that’s even better (a color that makes me feel fast is obviously what I want and need in life at ALL times). Something that really impressed me about the Shady Rays website is the sheer amount of sunglasses they offer! I also love that they offer free replacements. As someone who’s previously worked for small independent businesses, I really appreciate when other businesses also offer free warranty replacements. I think it says A LOT about how much they believe in their product.

When I first took mine out for a test run, I put them in my running jacket pocket because it was that ‘in-between raining/ cloudiness’. I normally wear sunglasses when it’s raining or snowing hard because my poor eyes DO NOT like to be blinded by it. In my pocket, they were so light that they didn’t move around at all! I was so impressed that I could just keep them in there and not feel them. I think that if I had a pocket big enough to hold them while racing (i.e. in my Honey Stinger Race Jersey), I could do that and not even notice that they were there! Side note: I’m excited to race with them in Moab Canyonlands 1/2 on Saturday!

While they’re light, they are sturdy. They certainly won’t be broken easily (which is saying something because I’m TOUGH on my running gear —> I need them withstand a lot when I’m packing them in my backpack for my 50 miler this Spring).

I love that they don’t fog-up on you either (a serious need when you’re a sweaty racer like I am). I’ve tested them out on sunny, rainy, snowy, and overcast runs (because I live in Colorado and honestly our weather lately has been INSANE) - they are magical. The price-point is great, especially when you consider how they feel real expensive.

Overall, I can’t wait to wear these out and about not just on my runs, but in everyday life because they are stylish! When I put together my race recap next week, I’ll let you guys know how they perform in race situations! I’m sure they’ll be amazing like they have been throughout my training runs : )

Don’t forget to get yourself a pair! —> "RAVE" good for 50% off 2+ pairs from the Shade Shop!