I planned on posting my 2012 running survey (started by Miss Zippy!) sometime this past weekend but I have been laid out, sick in bed instead. I’m finally starting to feel a little bit better so I figured what better day to recap my 2012 in running then the LAST day of 2012!?

My 2012 in Running

Best race experience?

Wow. This is a tough one. I had so many great race experiences this year it is hard to pull one out as the best. Instead, I will give you my top 3!

3. Running the NYC half marathon (my first half marathon ever!) with my little brother.

2. Running (& swimming & biking) our first triathlon in Aruba with 5 days notice.

1. Reach the Beach relay! This is number 1 because I got to experience it with BLC, meet a ton of awesome new runner friends & fell in love with relays!!

Best run?

That’s easy. I have yet to encounter another run as majestic as the run that renewed my love affair with running. Read about if you haven’t already hoping for a couple of those in 2013!

Best new piece of gear?

My new Nike long sleeved zip up! Love the thumb holes, color & fit!

Best piece of running advice you received?

“Take 180 steps per minute while you run.” – No Meat Athlete

Most inspirational runner?

So many of the women whose blogs I read inspire me to be better, be faster, be more disciplined but the two that are the most inspiring to me personally are probably Sarah from Once Upon A Lime for how much she has improved & gotten faster over the past year through her dedication & love of running (plus, I’m pretty sure we would be great drinking buddies) AND Skinnyrunner for the insane amount of miles she runs and the insane amount of marathons she has finished (usually in costume).

If you could sum up your year in a couple of words, what would they be?

Not perfect, but great nonetheless

Happy New Years Eve! Hope you had a wonderful 2012 & here’s to wishing you an even better 2013!!

Hello everyone! I hope your Holiday was splendid! Can’t believe it is already over and I have to go back to work tomorrow – luckily it will only be a 2 day week

I have been in Philadelphia since Saturday spending time with my family – as well as eating lots of delicious food & drinking festive drinks!

I hope you enjoy my What I Ate Wednesday – Christmas Edition!

Breakfast
Clockwise from left: cheesy eggs with bacon (I did not partake in the bacon), bagels with lox & cream cheese & overnight French toast.

Snacks
Clockwise from top left: pomegranate seeds, chocolate fit chews, holiday cookies, Lindor chocolates & chocolate chip cookies.

Beverages
Clockwise from the top left: cookies and cream hot chocolate, champagne, beer, homemade eggnog, Cherry-osa, the spiciest Bloody Mary ever & lots of coffee.

Dinners
Clockwise from left: Feast of the Seven Fishes (scallops, calamari, flounder, pasta with clam sauce, crab cakes, cocktail shrimp, Caesar salad with anchovies), large salads & deconstructed lasagna (recipe to come).

Just for fun
Clockwise from top: my Yankee Swap gift – $20 worth of ramen noodles!, my adorable Santa niece, Kira & my adorable Santa pup, Freckles.

What was the best thing you ate during the holidays?!

So I know you guys are just loving my recaps but unfortunately this will be the last.  Which is more sad for me than you probably – because it means that my RTB experience is really over.  I’ve managed to drag it out for a few weeks but all good things must come to an end, i guess.  I’m hoping my team can all get together some time in the future because I really had a great time getting to know them!  So…after a little bit of cheesiness – get ready for my last RTB recap!

If you want to read my first few recaps, please do!  (Recap 1 & Recap 2 & Recap 3)

I left off right before Van 1 started out on our last legs!  We were all pretty tired but really excited to be done & on our way to the beach.

By the time Dave started his run, the sun had come out and it was no longer dark outside.  Dave’s leg was short so we had to head out immediately to make sure we were at the TA for him.

While we waited for Dave, the RTB photographer caught Megan and I hanging out by the van (I may or may not have a toothbrush in my hand…).

Dave ended up getting a little bit lost so it took him longer to get to the TA than planned but luckily he called me & I got him going in the right direction.

Loretta quickly finished her leg and we sent Mecca off on her last 7-8 mile leg (she ran the most out of all of our teammates).

Mecca started out in this outfit (the RTB photographer apparently jumped out to capture this awesome picture) and ended up in this after she threw us all of her clothes…

Another awesome collage by Loretta.

Mecca handing off for the last time to BLC!  & BLC had his longest leg yet!

Brutal 7 miler that was mostly uphill.  But he was a trooper!  We met him at the half way point so we could give him some water and then we drove up to the 5 mile point.  While we were waiting, some of our van mates got some pizza at this little local pizzeria.  I waited for BLC to come up the hill.  When I saw him, he was still trucking along so I decided I would run for a couple minutes with him and give him some more water.  We chatted and he was really optimistic so all the anxiety I had about him being able to run without hurting himself was eased.  At that point I turned around and ran back to the van so that we could head to the TA.

When we got to the transition area, we decided to use the time to stretch and use the stick (another great thing to have on a relay!)

Loretta demonstrating proper stick technique.

At that point I was ready and raring to go for my last RTB leg!

It was hot and sunny (about 11:30a) when I started my leg.  I was so happy that it was my last leg that I couldn’t have cared less!  By the end of my run my legs were super tired though.  They felt like lead but I knew I just had to finish, if for nothing else – my team was counting on me!

At about 3.5 miles, I saw my team van on the side of the road and Megan getting out and into a car behind the van.  I was so confused about what was going on and since I was sleep deprived and my body was super tired, my mind immediately thought that I was going so slow that we were behind the time limit and RTB crew was taking Megan to the next TA.

At that point, I started sprinting ( or at least it felt like sprinting to me) so that I could make up the time I thought I had lost.  The whole time I’m thinking I let down my team – that definitely pushed me to run a lot faster.

This whole time I am running against traffic on this super busy road and no less than 7 Mack trucks drove by me and each of them caused a gust of dust to blow into my eyes.  So that was awesome.  Nonetheless, I ran that mile in about 8:30 min (when the rest of my miles were an average of 11 min/mile).  Way to finish, right?!

When I saw Megan at the TA, I was so happy that she was there.  Santa was also there cheering me on so that was nice.  I gave him a high five, slapped the bracelet on Megan and keeled over.

When I saw BLC and Dave, they explained to me that another team’s van had broken down so they had to wait for the other team’s runner which is why Megan was driven to the next TA.  So I wasn’t a failure!

At that point, I got into the van, chugged a Cheribundi & some Nuun flavored water.  Then I laid in the back seat with my compression socks on.

My body was hurting but the Pro Compression socks really helped.  In total, I had run almost 19 miles in 24 hours.  After not running at all for a month.  My body was very confused.  Thank you, body.

We went to the next VTA after passing Megan & cheering to meet up with Van 2.

Don’t mind my boots.  They were comfortable.  #sweatpink

BLC and I after running our first relay!  (BLC ran about 16 miles total.  He is awesome.)

Megan coming in to hand off to Isaac!

Megan done her last run with the marker I immediately thrust upon her.

Our check boxes on our van slowly being marked off…

Megan marking off our last box!

VAN 1 DONE!!!  <3

Van 2 before their last legs!!

After we wished Van 2 luck, Van 1 headed to the beach!

Arriving in Seaside Heights!
Once we arrived, every one used our cleaning products and changed.

BTW, these little wipes were super helpful throughout the relay.  While they were no shower, they really made me feel clean and a bit more hygienic   I recommend them for any relay or time you need to freshen yourself after a run and don’t have access or time for a shower!  Thanks for helping us stay clean, ShowerPill!

After we were changed and clean, we headed to the free (with registration) buffet provided by RTB.

Every thing was actually super tasty.  They also offered chocolate coconut water which is my absolute favorite.

After that we treated ourselves to a beer on the boardwalk.

Truly deserved.  Yum.
By the time we were done with our beers, Van 2 was arriving and we decided to wait on the Beach for our last runner to arrive!

Finish line on the beach!

When we saw Sarah, we ran behind her to the finish.  She did great finishing on the beach!

We received our medals and could say we officially Reached the Beach!

We officially finished in 31:42:18.  & we weren’t last!!  Woop Woop!!

This experience was like nothing I have ever done in my life.  I met and became close with some amazing people in a short period of time and I had an absolute great time.   There was never a moment when I wished I was some where else.  If you ever have the opportunity to run a relay, PLEASE DO IT!  I’m already looking for my next one

A big thank you to my team members for being  so great!  I really truly miss all of you already!

If you haven’t already, please read my first two recaps of my RTB experience (Recap 1 & Recap 2)!

So I just left off after I had woken from my sleeping bag slumber & got some coffee to prep myself for Van 1′s night runs!

& it wouldn’t be a 24-hour relay race without some reflective vests and headlamps, right?

Dave getting ready – our first night running ninja. If you couldn’t tell, it was super cold.  Hence the full body wicking & beanie

As we waited for van 2′s last runner to come into the VTA (Sarah), we all tried to change into our running gear because we wouldn’t have too much time at each of the TAs.  Being that it was super dark and we would be running on little side roads with very few light posts, we decided our van would hopscotch our runners for the majority of their legs.  Hopscotching is when the van pulls up about 1/2-1 mile ahead of it’s runner, waits for it’s runner to pass, then drives another 1/2-1 mile ahead of it’s runner, repeat, repeat…you get the idea.  With 4 out of 6 of our runners being girls, we knew that we would be following them closely, for safety’s sake.

Dave, me and some of Van 2 before Dave’s second leg.

When Sarah got to the VTA, we sent Dave off and chatted with Van 2 for a few minutes before we had to leave so that we could keep an eye on Dave.  Luckily his leg was relatively short and he wasn’t too concerned with the dark so we only hopscotched him twice before heading to the transition area for Loretta to get ready.

Loretta was amazing – she ran the most gnarly hill I have ever seen and even passed a chick!  She said it was better that it was pitch black because that way she didn’t have to see how much farther she had to go up this epic hill (btw – RTB actually referred to this hill as “epic”…if I had to run this leg, I’m sure my tumble down this hill would have been “epic”).

After Loretta kicked her epic hill’s butt, Mecca headed out on another 7-8 miler.  We led her in the wrong direction when we passed a route marker but quickly turned her around.  Sorry Mecca!!

After Mecca, BLC headed out on his second leg.

BLC had a longer leg with two pretty large hills but he did so well!  He wore his KT Tape and Pro compression socks – & managed 5.66 miles with no shin pain!  I’m telling you, if you suffer from shin splints, these products are totally worth the investment!

At about mile 4, BLC told us to head to the transition area to wait for him so I could get ready.  I used the restroom, put on my night gear and jumped around in the hand off area because it was sooo cold!  I was wearing my fleece lined running tights and my pink zip up running jacket along with ear warmers.  I chatted with the volunteers while I waited for BLC to head up the hill.  Finally, I saw BLC in the distance!

When BLC got to the hand off area, he had to transfer over a blinking light for the back of my vest, my knuckle lights and my head phones that he had been using (tucked into his beanie and not in his ears, of course!) so our transition was not super smooth.  We did get it done relatively quick – & I headed off into the darkness for my second leg at around 12:10a.

My legs were tired but I knew this leg was soooo much shorter than my first leg and I was a little bit scared running in the pitch black.  Adrenaline definitely took over.

The majority of my run had no shoulders to run in and very few cars on the road.  Thank goodness for my knuckle lights!  They were so much more helpful than the headlamp!  I even turned off my knuckle lights at one point to see how I would have been able to see with just my headlamp & it just made me more thankful for the knuckle lights.  Minus the few times I went to look at my Garmin & blinded myself with my knuckle lights, they were truly a life saver. (I just said knuckle lights way too many times)

While it was very dark during my run, I just tried to focus on not falling on my face and making sure I didn’t miss a route marker.  That focus made the run going pretty fast and I was running into the TA to hand off to Megan a little before 1:00a.  I handed her my blinky light and told her to take the knuckle lights – I wished her luck and ran over to the van so we could start hopscotching her.

I really wanted a picture of Megan running her night leg…but clearly the reflective gear would not allow for it.  That’s her, I swear.

Megan was a bit scared (understandably so!) so we made sure to stay pretty close during her leg.  At about a 1/2 mile till the VTA, we drove over to wait for her to come in with Van 2.

Loretta and I were really excited for Megan to get in so we could try to get some sleep!

Van 1 (minus Mecca who was sleeping in the van) after our night legs!  Yay!

After we were all done with our night legs, all we wanted to do was find a place to sleep for a few hours.  Unfortunately, the next VTA was about 45 minutes away…so we had to drive a little bit before we could just relax.

Also, we went to the wrong TA and encountered one other RTB van who was also lost & a group of people who were clearly drunk (it was 2a after all) dressed as a doctor & some sort of black swan.  Never a dull moment, I tell ya!

After all the hoopla, we arrived at the VTA.  Dave and Loretta said that they would go sleep in sleeping bags outside (saviors of life!) but because I gave my sleeping bag to Loretta, I had to sleep in the van with my towels as a blanket.  While I woke up a few times really cold, Loretta and Dave actually froze.  No lie.  Their pillows and sleeping bags froze along with a piece of Loretta’s hair.  I’ll take a cold van with towels as blankets any day.

I think we all slept for no more than 3 hours (& most of us did not sleep soundly) so when we woke up the first thing we thought was coffee and warmth.  Luckily there was a Dunkin Donuts right around the corner.  We went there to use their warm bathroom with lights (alternatively, we could have used the freezing cold portapotty in the corner of a parking lot with zero lights) and get some coffee and breakfast.

I got a pumpkin spice coffee with a bagel and cream cheese.  I forced down the bagel because I knew I needed fuel for my run but I drank the coffee easily.  Love me some DD!

After Dunkin Donuts, Van 1 headed back to the VTA to wait for Van 2…

& that’s where I will leave you for now

So where did I leave off?  The starting line! (Read my first recap, if you feel so inclined…)

Dave was our first runner (0501) and he started us off so well!  Even with the distracting Caveman beating his chest next to him.  Dave’s leg was super short so all of Van 1 had to head to TA1 immediately so that our second runner would be all ready to go when Dave got there.

Dave arrived quickly and Loretta was off!  She had a bit longer of a leg so we followed the yellow arrow markers, passed Loretta and cheered, then made our way to TA2 to wait for her.
We took the opportunity to decorate our van (priorities!) and drink some Nuun.

Obviously very excited for Lemon Iced Tea Nuun (my new favorite flavor!) and my awesome Nuun water bottle.  & check out that sky!

Megan and I had a fabulous time with the paint markers.  They became a very important part of the relay.

Mecca, me and Megan before Mecca’s first leg!

Once Mecca was off, we drove to the next transition area to get BLC ready for his first leg.  As I said during my first recap, our training was not the best.  More like…non-existant.  Plus, BLC has had some shin issues in the past so I was nervous that he would hurt himself.  It was definitely giving me anxiety.

But KT Tape was kind enough to send me some tape for BLC’s shins.  I was kinda skeptical but I had heard great things about KT Tape and I figured there would be no harm in trying it out.

So I taped BLC up real quick before Mecca made her way to the transition area.  We were literally still taping him up when we heard our teammates yelling that she was heading up the hill.  Luckily, he got to the handoff area on time and before Mecca reached us.  And he gave us a nice parting view before he ran leg 4.

BLC’s leg was nice and short – and his shins did not hurt at all!  He said it was unbelievable.  I will have him review the product at some point soon but all I can say is BLC ended up running over 16 miles total…with zero shin pain.  Miracle tape, for sure.

So after BLC rocked his leg – I mentally prepared myself for my first leg and my hardest leg by far.

BLC came into the hand off area at around 12:10p, I gave him a quick kiss and headed off on my first leg which turned into almost 10 miles according to my Garmin.  It was the longest leg of the relay.  Good choice, Alex.

But before I started, I made peace with the fact that I would run this leg slow and steady because not only was it almost 10 miles, it was my first leg.  So I threw on my music (I had to hook my ear phones to my sports bra because it is against the rules to put your ear phones in your ears during RTB) and headed out.

Right as I left, I realized that I had forgotten to put my bib on.  So of course, I was freaking out the whole time patiently waiting for my vanmates to drive by so I could yell to them to get my bib ready.

Finally, around the half way mark of my leg, my van pulled up and I told them to pull up to a shoulder and get my bib ready to be put on.  They drove a bit forward, pulled over and BLC jumped out with my bib and some water.  I put on the bib and drank some water with Nuun while BLC massaged my calves a bit.  I am a very lucky woman.  After I got my bib, I felt a little more at ease and kept on running.

It was a beautiful day (slightly breezy, about 55 degrees, cloudy – perfect running weather!) and the time passed quickly mainly because I had to pay attention to the route markers and lots of vans were passing by and cheering.  I even created a little game for myself.  I would wave to each car that would pass by & I counted how many actually waved back.  I was at a near 100% when the sun started shining in a way that I could no longer see into the cars as they passed.  I was pretty bummed to have to end my game…but at that point I was already almost 8 miles in.

I was super excited when I saw the sign that said the transition area was coming up because I knew that my next two legs would not be nearly as long as my first.  Of course, the last 800 meters was mostly uphill.  I had a guy pass me say, “What a cruel joke.  Uphill at the very end of the longest leg!”  All I could think was…hey, it’s almost over!

I saw Megan in the distance and I slapped that sweaty bracelet right on her wrist. (You’re welcome, Megan

I stretched for a minute, drank some water and then we all got in the van to meet up with the rest of our team at our first van transition area (VTA).

The one thing about a 12-person relay is that you get really close with your vanmates but don’t get to spend a lot of time with the other team members in the other van.  That was definitely a bummer.  But I did enjoy the time we got to hang out at the VTA’s!

Group shot while we were waiting for Megan.  (Clockwise from top left: Dave, Isaac, BLC, me, Mecca, Mike, Stephanie, Colleen, Loretta and Sarah.)

We transferred some stuff from our Van to Van 2 and vice versa, got to chat a bit and gave Van 2 some markers to draw on their windows.

Van 1 was very excited to see Megan heading toward the transition area because that meant we were all done our first legs!

Megan running down with another runner!

Loretta’s amazing collage of Megan‘s first leg and Van 1′s hand off to Van 2!

Megan and me after our first legs!  Happy to be done and ready for some FOOD!

After we wished Van 2 luck, we headed to a diner in the area.  Luckily, this was Mecca’s neck of the woods so she took us to a diner around the corner.  & it’s a good thing, because I was HUNGRY!

I got my go-to meal – eggs and hash browns. & as soon as Megan ordered a chocolate milk, you know I had to order one as well.

After we ate, we decided to head right to our next VTA and wait for Van 2 to finish their first legs.  Since we saw a couple other people sleeping out on the grass, Megan, Dave, BLC and I decided we would do the same.

I was so amped up that I doubt I got more than a few minutes of sleep but it was nice to lay down and relax.  Unfortunately, there was no way we could sleep any longer when a woman started cackling in the group next to us.  Cackling is the most accurate way to describe it, I swear.

At that point, since we were up any way, I got some coffee, used the restroom (portapotty) and changed into my leg 2 running clothes in the back seat of the van under my sleeping bag.  I am classy.

Until next time…

Hey, remember me?

Apparently it takes a Frankenstorm for me to actually write a blog post!

Just an FYI, this is not a real picture…yet.  BLC and I are working from home today – mainly because NYC decided to shut down all of their public transportation.  It would be super difficult to get to work without my beloved subway.  So now we are watching a Sons of Anarachy marathon, eating ice cream and I’m FINALLY recapping my Reach the Beach experience.

In one word, the experience was

AMAZING.

But I’m sure you all want to know all of the ridiculous details.  All 32 plus hours of it.

If you didn’t know already, in the month leading up to RTB: NJ I was working insane hours.  Like 15 hour days, 6 days a week.  Money was good but I literally had no life at all…and that included my training (or lack thereof).  But lucky for me, I got a new job and the Thursday before RTB was my last day of craziness.

Since I still had to work until 9:30p, my amazing husband, BLC picked up the van that I rented from Long Island on Thursday at rush hour.  Did I mention that he is amazing?

When I got home, I still had to run down the BQE to Megan’s place to pick up some Cheribundi boxes for the relay.

Cheribundi was one of our sponsors and they totally hooked us up with a serious amount of tart cherry juice for our team.  I wasn’t sure how much until I got to Megan’s…

Yea.  Each of those boxes contained 12 bottles.  Just imagine me in Brooklyn loading all of that juice into my little Versa.  Comical.

BUT I’m pretty sure everyone on our team was obsessed with Cheribundi by the end of the relay.  & felt much better because of it!  Thanks, Cheribundi!

Anyway, after my trek to pick up massive amounts of juice – I still had to go home and pack.

Packing for a relay is much different than packing for anything else.  I basically stuffed three running outfits into three separate ziploc bags.  Definitely a smart move because looking for clothes to run in is the last thing I would have wanted to do during my breaks.

So when we were finally done packing, BLC and I headed to bed because we had to wake up at 5:00a so that we could be on the road by 6:00a.

& that alarm came way too quick.  One of our other teammates, Isaac (who was wayyyy too excited for having driven 10 hours overnight with a half hour of sleep! but awesome and super speedy so it was okay!) met us at our place and we headed through Manhattan to pick up another teammate in Hoboken.

Dave (a friend from college) overslept a tad but we ended up heading out of Hoboken and up to Vernon, NJ around 7:00a.  It should have taken about an hour and a half to get to Vernon but we made a wrong turn that cost us about 30 minutes due to traffic that we got stuck in.  BLC was a trooper driving that giant van through the city and up to the starting line, though.  We ended up making it to the start around 8:45a.  Being late was definitely not the first impression I wanted to make on the rest of the team but what can ya do!

When we got there, we parked and headed to the mandatory Orientation.

We briefly got to meet the rest of the team but it was very quick since we had to sign our waivers, check in our mandatory vests/lights/headlamps (none of which I brought but I did make BLC buy me a 10$ reflective vest that i never even opened…so prepared) and then we sat down for our orientation.

Fun Facts.

After our orientation, we went to get our team picture taken very quickly because it was about time for our first runner to start!  Stephanie made us some awesome shirts to wear and Colleen bought some Jersey Shore-esque sunglasses for our picture.

and so it began…

I’m such a jerk but this has already been too long of a post and I haven’t even gotten to the good stuff

To be continued…

Why hello there! I figured you all missed me wouldn’t mind reading a blog post after silence for 1 whole month over here at Healthy Life Happy Wife. Plus, this weekend is going to be super exciting!

So here I am, at my lovely Financial District Starbucks utilizing their free Internet during my half hour break. Please forgive me if I spell some things wrong or lack perfect grammar…

To the excitement!

Friday BLC and I will be running a 200 mile relay through New Jersey with 12 other runners! It is the first Reach the Beach through New Jersey so there will probably be a few kinks but I’m pretty excited if for nothing else than to meet my teammates!!

BLC and I are well trained not prepared at all but still super nervous stoked.

Our team name is a play on the Jersey Shore MTV show (which I may or may not watch religiously – don’t judge).

BETTER THAN GTL: RES REPEAT (run, eat, sleep, repeat in place of gym, tan, laundry)

You can keep up with our shenanigans throughout Jersey by following our hash tag on twitter #teamresr or following me on Twitter (wink, wink) at Asutt.

Other bloggers on our team are:

Jamie @ From Couch to Ironwoman (our co-captain!!)
Megan @ Run Like a Grl (who I’ve met before and can’t wait to share a van with!)
Sarah @ Mom Running on Empty
Colleen @ The Chocolate Mile
Stephanie @ Live Like a Grrl

I feel like I know all of these girls already due to how much we chat on our Facebook group page but I can’t wait to officially meet & hang with all of them!

My plan: have fun & don’t die. (I aim high.)

I have not started packing yet but I figured an after the fact packing list would probably be better to post because when I inevitably forget something, I can make sure to tell you so no one has to make my same mistake

We received our approximate leg times so I will share them with you so you can think of me (& BLC) during our legs:

BLC: Leg 1 – 3.13 miles at 11:53a; Leg 2 – 5.66 miles at 11:08p; Leg 3 – 6.2 miles at 9:27a

Me: Leg 1 – 9.36 miles at 12:27p; Leg 2 – 4.24 miles at 12:10a; Leg 3 – 4.63 miles at 10:38a

(Please keep in mind I will be running next to a cemetery at midnight. Eek!)

Tomorrow BLC and I will be picking up the van & we will be leaving Friday morning to head up to the start! Wish us luck

Also, our team has some absolutely amazing sponsors so I wanted to give them a shout!

PRO Compression
Aspaeris
Cheribundi
Chobani
Justin’s Nut Butter
Nuun
Shower pill
Bic Bands
Tommie Copper

Give them some loooove because they are keeping us compressed, hydrated & full thanks!

Is anyone else really excited that summer is almost over? No? Just me?

I feel like all I have been doing this summer is running around, vacationing (not a bad thing, I know), being really hot & dehydrated on my runs and sweating wherever I go. I have also neglected my training like whoa. Something about running in the 100 degree 80% humidity hasn’t appealed to me. Go figure.

Yuck. (yes – I always feel better after the run but getting out there has been tough)

Also, with all the vacationing, I have become gluttonous. Like, all health out the window because I’m on “vacation”. Indulging a little = no biggie but eating like crap for 3 months is not okay.

But on the bright side, fall is upon us!

Guess what’s on the other side of that double rainbow?!

FALL!!

Fall means:

Starbucks Pumpkin Lattes

Jeans & a long sleeved shirt

Playing with my new little niece, Kira

Reach the Beach Relay with my new best running friends!

Halloween

Cool breezed runs at the track

Hot oatmeal every morning

FOOTBALL!!

Colorful leaves (I’ve missed the changing leaves for the past 5 years while I was living in San Diego so I am even more excited this year)

All my fall tv shows coming back on

Tailgating

I could probably go on forever. I love the fall. I even found this on Pinterest & vow to do it all before Christmas…

(from my Pinterest board – follow me!)

But besides all of the fun stuff, I do have some September goals (although I kinda bombed out on my August goals…oopsy).

September Goals:

1. Stop being lazy & RUN! I know the cooler weather will help with this one.

2. Start cross training (BLC & I got a living social deal to NYSC so I really want to consistently take some classes & weight train)

3. Get back into my healthy eating routine. (more veggies, less takeout/processed food, more water, maybe a juice a day?)

4. Plank a day! (last month this was one of my goals – I probably managed 10/31 days. Impressive, I know)

5. Try to do 30 minutes of yoga at least once a week.

6. Complete the fall checklist above!

I know, I know – I’m the worst at goals but hopefully this month my excitement for fall will help me to accomplish at least a few of them

BTW – BLC & I are finally heading back to the east coast after our awesome trip to visit family in SoCal. It was great to see everyone but we are excited to get home after 10 long days…& of course, see our little Freckle monster!

I’ve missed her sooo much!!

What is your favorite thing about Fall?!

Sorry for my absence this weekend but I was busy down the shore with about 13 of my girlfriends from college.  It was a fabulous weekend.

#sorryimnotsorry

My weekend included laughs, alcohol and reminiscing.  I love my girlfriends.

Oh yea – and lots and lots of dancing.

But today we are back to our regularly scheduled programming.  Guess who came out of hiding?!

My running shoes!! Woooooo!

I got all inspired and excited because I created our training schedule for Reach the Beach: New Jersey.

Here it is folks:

As you can see, I do not have paces in our schedule yet because we had our first Mile Trial today!  We will be basing our long run, tempo and easy run paces on our mile trials which we will be doing every two weeks.  I thought it would be fun to track our progress and keep ourselves motivated that way.

Today we headed to McCarren Track which is about 1 mile from our apartment.  We used that mile to warm-up and then we ran an additional 2 laps when we got to the track.

McCarren Track has a soccer field in the center of it which is kinda strange but never really affected our run.  & I have to say… I love the track!  I will definitely be looking forward to our mile trials every two weeks!  I was especially excited because it is rubber and much easier on BLC’s shins.  Don’t want my mans getting injured again

I ran the first mile while BLC timed each lap.  I didn’t want to keep looking down at the Garmin so I just went by feel.  I was definitely quicker than I thought I would be.

Results:

Lap 1 – 2:11

Lap 2 – 2:11

Lap 3 – 2:07

Lap 4 – 2:03

Mile – 8:33

After I was done, I was pretty tired but felt good about my effort.  Next up, BLC!

BLC’s Results:

Lap 1 – 2:07

Lap 2 – 2:11

Lap 3 – 2:10

Lap 4 – 2:02

Mile – 8:32

Pretty ridiculous that our mile times were one second different.  Now, that is love <3

When we were all done, BLC and I walked two laps and then had a nice, easy cool down run home.  All in all, we ran about 3 miles.

We stretched and foam rolled when we got home then I made dinner.

Couscous, broccoli, soy chorizo, diced tomatoes & a little bit of cheese – delish!

Now I am compressing & watching preseason football.  & guess what color my socks are?

Pink, duh!  #sweatpink

Hope everyone had a great Monday!

LIEBSTER AWARD!

I was very excited to see that I was nominated by Zero to Twenty Six Point Two and Burning Babi Fat for the Liebster Award!
Thanks, loves!  I really appreciate it!

So now you all get to hear eleven random facts about moi AND 22 answers to 22 questions!

Some random facts:

1.  I have a large tattoo on the small of my back (technically, a tramp stamp.  yup.  I am a classy broad).  I got it when I had just turned 18 and hid it from my parents for a year.  Luckily, BLC doesn’t mind it and I can’t see it.  I basically forget about it at all times.  BLC actually had to remind me I had one for this random fact.  It is a lotus flower.  Sorry no pic

2.  I hate bikes and umbrellas (more like afraid of them).  I am so afraid when I am on a bike that I am going to crash (which was not that unfounded since I crashed twice during my triathlon.) or someone is going to crash into me.  Also, when I’m just walking I’m so afraid of a biker running into me (it would most likely be my fault, of course) and/or someone poking me in the eye with an umbrella.  Totally rational fears, right?  Good thing I moved to NYC.

3.  I have severe road rage.  I don’t know what comes over me but when I am in the car, I become the devil.  It’s not cute.

4.  I have super curly hair but I get it straightened every 3 months or so.  Always want what ya can’t have.

5.  I have ridden on a camel in Egypt.  Yup.

6.  I love Bloody Mary’s in the morning and tequila in the evening.  I would much rather a spicy drink over a sweet drink.  & if we are day drinking, I will have a Bloody Mary in my hand.  Done.

7.  I have read Fifty Shades of Gray.  It was okay.  Entertaining but nothing crazy good.  I have been trying to finished Fifty Shades Darker since our trip to Aruba…so over a month.  Just not interested anymore.  That makes me the 1% of people who didn’t love it.  Guess I’m just a weirdo.

8.  I carry around toothpicks because my teeth attract food particles.  I honestly can get a piece of food stuck in my teeth after drinking juice.  I don’t know where the food comes from but it gets stuck in my teeth no matter what.  Toothpicks are my savior of life.

9.  I despise squirrels.  Yes, to you they may be cute and cuddly looking but to me they are walking rabies carriers.  Plus, when I was in college we lived in a run down house with squirrels living in the walls.  We could hear them running in the ceiling and walls constantly.  There was even an instance where one fell through the ceiling into my bathroom, ran around in there all night knocking over shampoo bottles and pooping in the shower.  Then my roommate let it out into the living room…and we never saw that squirrel again.  Shudder.

& as my girl Carrie Bradshaw has said, “They are just rats with cuter outfits.”

10.  I was in a sorority in college and I loved every second of it.  I am actually heading to the beach this weekend with about 16 of them.  I’m super excited!

11.  I am a diehard Penn State Nittany Lions and Philadelphia Eagles fan!  I absolutely love football and AM SO EXCITED FOR THE SEASON TO START!  I could talk your ear off about football…so I’ll just leave it at that

So now that you know SO much more about me – how about some questions?!

Burning Babi Fat’s Questions:

Spring!  I love the transition from winter to summer – the flowers are blooming, the weather is not too hot and not too cold & every one is just in much better moods! Plus, my birthday and our wedding anniversary is in April