September Recap

The end of September is here! During September my work life got crazy, my daughter started school for the first time, I volunteered at a race, ran two races (both PR's) and helped my Mom's Run This Chapter which 1000 miles ran/walked for September! That being said it was a crazy month. I did not get around to keeping my running streak but I did almost double the amount of miles I ran in August so it wasn't a total wash. Look for recaps on both races soon!

I'm thrilled that the weather is finally getting cooler. I am over the super hot days! One thing that kept me going during the hot months was making sure I was hydrated. Normally on a three mile run, I wouldn't need any water but with the hot heat I needed to carry my hand held water bottle on every single run I did. Recently I was sent some Oral I.V. It is a concentrated dose of rapid hydration.

You can either drink it plan or add it to 16 oz. of water. I choose to add it to water. It didn't change the taste of the water at all which I enjoyed and I did feel very hydrated after I drank it. It was the perfect size to just throw in my spibelt and take with me on a long run. It really helped me not feel drained after a long run. You can read more about this product here.

How was September for you? 

Keeping the spark alive!

Let's talk about running! I love running, it's fun, rewarding and a great way to get healthy. However I am one of those people that needs a goal to train and push myself for. I recently did three half marathons in 84 days. My first half was a challenging uphill course. My second half was flat and fast. My third was just to say I did three in under 90 days. After that I wasn't sure what to train for.

The next half marathon in the area was October. I toyed with the idea of training for a full but procrastinated and didn't increase my distance so that flew out the window. In the whole month of August I didn't run any distance over 6 miles! 

I have a 10k at the end of this month. Normally not a challenging distance but with me being a slacker and it being a hilly course I realize it is time to get my butt in gear.  I would also love to PR on this race so I can possibly move up a corral placement at the Tinker Bell Half Marathon. It is a Wine Run so I get to celebrate my PR with Wine after the run. I can not wait! 

Somehow, over the last month me and distance running drifted apart. I am going to rekindle my love with distance. We are going to start off slow with a date (aka short run) and add a nice beverage if I want to make the run extra special (aka watermelon Nuun) then when we start to spend a little more time together I will bring a nice meal (aka a mint chocolate gu, maybe chomps). I'm kind of a romantic like that. I know the spark is there because I feel it on every run, I just need to work on keeping the fire going and not relying on little sparks to get me to the finish line on race day.

In September I am going to try to streak the whole month by running at least one mile every day. So far on day 2 of the month I am doing great. Feel free to join along and we can keep each other accountable and cheer each other on! 

Have you ever had a running rut? How do you keep the spark alive with your running? Are you going to streak with me? 

The Color Run Recap and race tips!

I ran the happiest 5k on the planet, The Color Run. This wasn't the first time that I ran The Color Run but this time it was even better than the first time! I met up with a few women from my Mom's Run This Town chapter. We were wearing white and ready to run.

We lined up at 9am and waited for our turn to start. Finally at 9:10 the DJ who was entertaining us while we waited said we could start. For those of you who aren't familiar with The Color Run let me explain it, it is a 3.1 mile race where, at evenly spaced places in the race, they throw powder color on you. It is a blast! The first color we got to play in was pink. I put my arms up and yelled more color at the wonderful volunteers. After running a little bit more we came to the next color. Orange was splashed all over us!  I'm glad I was wearing my sunglasses because they got me pretty good. This year they did a lot better job on spacing out the runners so we weren't bottle necking at all the color stations.

After we ran a little bit more we hit the turn around point for the out and back course. Soon after we turned around one of the ladies I was running with informed us that if she runs the whole 5k it will be the furtherest she has ever ran. Well you can't hear that from someone and even think about walking! So we ran! Next we hit yellow. I was still loving life and ready for more.

The last station on the tour of color was blue. In my opinion, blue is the best color at The Color Run. It is so vibrant and covers your clothes and face so nicely.  After we got smurfed we picked up the pace for the rest of race. We finished with big smiles and one proud lady who ran her first 5k!

As soon as I crossed the finish line, I dashed to the start line to meet my husband and kids. I gave him a quick kiss and told him good luck and watched him start his first 5k while my kids and I cheered from the sidelines.

After my husband finished, we went to the stage for the color throw!

We were the happiest, most colorful family on the planet!!

I love The Color Run and plan to do it next year when it makes it way back!

Tips for running a color run:

-Wear sunglasses (nobody wants colored powder in your eye)

-Take pictures (before and after of course)

-Wrap your camera or phone in cling wrap to protect it from color. Don't unwrap it until you are in a clean place (ie home or the car)

-Hang out at the race after you run, you don't want to miss the color throw. 

-Run with friends - this race would not be as much fun alone! 

-Have fun!!

Have you ran The Color Run? Did it make you happy? 

Dirty Dash Recap

Recently I ran The Dirty Dash. This was my first time running The Dirty Dash and my first mud and obstacle race ever. I had researched this race so I knew a little about what I was up against. My team name was the Filthy Fairies, so myself along with 6 others put on our fairy wings and prepared to get muddy.

My husband got talked into running this race with his best friend. It was his first race and I am beyond proud! He did not want to run in fairy wings so him and his buddy put on their mustaches and got ready to run! We started at 9:30 then we were off, since we planned to get filthy we left all phones and electronics at bag check. This was the first time ever not running with a phone and it was kind of liberating. Since I didn't carry my phone I don't have any pictures of the obstacles. I will try my best to explain them the best I can so you know what to expect should you ever do The Dirty Dash. The beginning was very bottlenecked and most of us were walking because there was no room to run.

Picture of the starting line

The first obstacle was jumping over hay bails. For dramatic effect I rolled over the tops of them. You would see one then a minute later you would see another. After doing that a few times we came across the first obstacle crawling through big tubes. Thankfully I am short (or as my daughter likes to say "tiny") and was able to shrink down and walk through. Others had to get through on their hands and knees. I did that for 2 seconds and my knees were getting cut up on rocks. After running up hill for some time we came to the monkey bars. Did I mention that this race was on a ski hill. Lots of uphill running. After more uphill then we came to my favorite obstacle of the whole race! It this obstacle you climb over PVC pipes while trudging muddy water and having someone blast a high powered hose in your face. Doesn't sound fun but I assure you it was fun. Then we climbed over two walls. I was most afraid of these because I am not spiderman. After seeing them it made me feel lots better as it was a slanted tent like wall with ledges to help you. I'm terrified of heights but didn't have problems with any of the obstacles. 

Then it was uphill again. It was super steep so everyone was walking. Once we got to the top of the hill we had our next obstacle, jumping over vertical walls. If you couldn't get over the wall you could climb under it. There were three of these and unfortunately due to being tiny and getting stuck in the water, I decided to army crawl under the walls after failed attempts to make it over. We keep running a little more and came to a super high net wall. Pretty simple, climb up one side and climb down the other. Right after that it was time to refuel with chugging a can of beer or root beer if you were underage or preferred that. Chugging beer then running is an adventure!

It was all downhill from there and did that feel good! We had about a mile and a half left in the race and the end obstacles were easier than the first half. Running across a one foot wide balance beam, through a small pool of mud with small mud explosions and running through tires. All of those were very easy but still fun. The mud explosion pool was so fun we did the obstacle twice. We circled back by the spectator area and could see the home stretch. An amazing long inflatable slip and slide. They only had two lanes open so we had to wait in line for 5 minutes but it was totally worth it! After that I was feeling great and couldn't wait to dredge through the almost waist deep swimming pool of mud as our last obstacle. My husband and his friend thought it would be a great idea to attack me in the mud. For those who don't fully know me, if I am in mud I plan to get covered in it. I don't need any help because I will cover myself all on my own. My husband knows this but he thought I might need some help. While being attacked, I got mud in my eye. This mud is super gravelly. Instantly my eyes were on fire and I couldn't see due to the pain. My husband lead me by the arm out of the pit. I managed to open my eyes for a few pictures. Rushed over to the showers to wash my eye out. Finally after an hour of rinsing, drops and ointments I could finally open my eye longer than 2 seconds. After two days I am now the proud owner of a non-red eye.

Tips for future mud runners:
-Wear goggles, you might not think it is cool but everyone will be jealous when you reach the end.
-Don't duck tape your shoes, you WILL get gravel caught in the duck tape and it will be a pain to get off once it is muddy.
-Try all the obstacles. There is no shame in not completing the obstacles but you might regret it if you don't try.
-HAVE FUN!!!!
-Make a before and after collage

So over all the Dirty Dash was my favorite race I have ever run. Maybe because of the mud, maybe because of the freedom of running without a time clock, or maybe because it was the first race I have done with my husband. Either way I will be sure to sign up for this one again!!

"Running" into Money (Saving money on races)

I love races!! I love saving money!! Saving money on races means that you get to run more races! Let's talk about great ways to get that race t-shirt as cheap as possible.

Plan your races ahead of time:
If you know that you really want to run a certain race sign up early. For example the See Jane Run Half Marathon was held on June 22 this year in Boise. If I signed up by March 22, the race would cost $75. If I signed up on race morning it would cost $105. I would have saved $30 just by signing up sooner rather than later.

Social Media:
It helps to "like" the race on Facebook and "follow" them on Twitter. The race will typically post any promotion they are having on both medias. Before signing up for a race I always check to see if they posted any deals. For example, if you are interested in the Idaho Wine Run this year, you can use the promo code "runinboise" for $5 off any distance (Thanks Run In Boise). They have a 5k, 10k, Half and full Marathon.

Volunteer:
Final Kick Events is this amazing company who puts on some of the best races in the Treasure Valley. They also happen to have the best volunteer program around. If you volunteer at a race they put on, you will get a free entry to one of their races. Super easy and simple. My husband and I volunteered at their Run 4 Luv race and I will be volunteering at the Idaho Wine Run before I run it. The Spartan race series has the same kind of program. Not only is volunteering good race karma but it also helps me race a lot without spending a lot.

Daily Deal Websites:
Groupon, Living Social, Yipit all good ways to sign up for a cheap race. Currently Groupon has deals on the Push 5k ($17) and the After Dark Dash ($25). I have used Yipit to get a race for $12 and Groupon to get a race for $17. The $12 race was the Torchlight 5k, you got a shirt, a beer after the race,  and some coupons in the race swag bag. Typically in race swag bags I always see a coupon for $15 off or 20% off shoes. $15 is more than the $12 I spent on the race so if I use the coupon it is like I made $3 running the race!

Newsletters:
Sign up for the newsletters when you sign up for races. Just today I got a newsletter from Active.com with an awesome promo code. Use the promo code "FIT1BUDDY" when you register yourself by August 9th for FitOne and get emailed a code good for 100% off the registration for a friend. Who doesn't love two for the price of one! Too bad I am already signed up for this race.

Check blogs:
Some blogs have discounts on upcoming races, both local and non-local. Some blogs even have giveaways for races. For example, I currently have a discount code for The Color Run! You can use the code "COLOR5OFF" to save $5 off. You can easily google and find lots of locations with race discount codes. Mom's Run This Town has an awesome section of race discounts.

There is no "I" in TEAM:
Sign up as a team and you typically save money. Most races if you have 4 or more people sign up you will get a team discount. For FitOne you only save $2, for The Color Run you save $5, for the Dirty Dash you don't save any money. You never know how much you could save by convincing your friends to run with you.

Do you have any other ideas on how to save some money on races? Did you find these useful? 

The Color Run Is Coming To A City Near You!

The Color Run is coming! The Color Run is coming!!! 

The Color Run is the reason I started running! I saw it on Pinterest last year and decided I wanted to run the whole thing!  I started training and "liked" it on Facebook when they only had 18,000 "likes". Now they have soared over 1.8 million "likes". It is known as the Happiest 5k on the planet! As someone who tested this theory, I can tell you that it really is. I smiled the whole race and wore my color proudly the rest of the day.

My kids and I after I finished The Color Run 2012

If you have been living under a rock and have no idea what The Color Run is well let me educate you. You show up race day wearing all white, you can wear a white tutu, a wedding dress, white coveralls, white wig, etc. Then you run through the 5k course (3.1 miles). Randomly through the course they have color stations. The wonderful volunteers throw color on you, it's more like a cloud of color as you approach. After you go through a few different color stations you arrive at the end where they do an awesome color countdown every 15 minutes welcoming you to after party and congratulating you on finishing. IT. IS. AMAZING!!!!! 

Last year I ran it as an individual with another friend. This year my Moms Run This Town chapter has created a team. The greatest part about a team is you save money, $5 off if you sign up with 3 or more other people. My BRF is actually flying back from Georgia early just to run this race with me and the rest of the MRTT team that is how much fun getting covered in color is! Plus each location benefits a different local charity, help the community while having fun! This race isn't just for runners, walkers are welcome too so grab some friends and see why 1.8 million people "like" love this race! 

Thankfully they still remember the little people who made them so popular so here is a promo code for $5 off any location for The Color Run: COLOR5OFF Remember 1.8 people "like" this race so make sure you sign up before your location is sold out! Sign up with a team and use promo code and save $10 total!

Have you participated in The Color Run before? Does the idea of being colorful for 3 miles give you chills? 

So You Wanna Be a Runner...

My husband just started running and I was thinking "What are some things I wish I had known when I started running?" So here are just some of the things I wish someone would have told me!

It gets easier! 
- From talking to a lot of people who also did the Couch-to-5k program, the first week of the program is always the hardest. It seems simple to run 60 seconds but if you have never been a runner that 60 seconds might seem to last forever but it does end and each week gets easier! For me still the first mile is always the hardest. After the first mile then I get into the groove and can run for miles!

Wait 30 minutes after eating before swimming running. 
-Don't eat a bunch of food and expect to run pain free and without a side cramp. Everyone is different on what they eat before a run or if they even bother eating before a short run. For me I can run 3 miles on an empty stomach but I can't run 4 miles. Some people eat oatmeal 2 hours before a run then a banana an hour or so before a long run. You have to kind of play around and see what works for you but eating a huge meal then running right away will most likely result in a bad run.

Friends don't let friends wear cotton!
I first started running and I didn't know better. It was the middle of winter and I was running in cotton socks, sweats and a hooded sweatshirt. Once I learned better, my whole world was changed! Get something that is wicking. It doesn't have to be super expensive either, Wal-mart even carries wicking clothes for around $5

Run Your Own Race!
Just because your friend runs a 7 minute mile doesn't mean that you will. Be proud of the what you can do! A little bit of competition is ok and having a goal of getting faster is good but don't get discouraged because you aren't there yet. In the last year I have taken almost 3 minutes off my mile time. It didn't happen overnight and beating myself up because I wasn't as fast as some friends wasn't going to help me! When training, focus on how far you have come and use it as motivation! When starting out focus on endurance and work on speed later. You have to choose if you want to increase distance or work on improving your time but you don't want to do both!

And the most important thing to remember...

If you run you are a Runner! 

A friend of mine was in the middle of the couch-to-5k program and she called herself a jogger (gasp) I about had a heart attack and I told her to "shut up!" She told me due to her pace that she was a jogger. Nope I wasn't having any of it! I told her that I knew people slower than her that have done half marathons and you would never think of calling them a "jogger". One person's slow time might be another person's fast time. If you run you are a runner and not a jogger. Don't make the mistake of calling yourself that horrible word! 

You have trained and you are ready for your first race! Good for you! The following are a few Do's and Don't's that you want to pay attention to on race day:

Race Bib
DON'T FORGET IT! My first half marathon I was so jittery that I forgot my bib at home and had to turn around. Also it would be a good idea to invest in some safety pins. I have been to more than a few races that didn't include any pins and that is a big inconvenience race morning. So you have your bib and your pins, now where do you pin it? Always pin your shirt on the front of you! If you have the bib on the back of your shirt how will the announcers know who you are or even if you are in the race until long after you run past them. If you wear your bib on the front then the announcers can say "Oh look, there is Justine and she looks like she is going to finish strong and blah, blah, blah" and then my family in the crowd hears Justine and they make sure to look and see me finish!

Do your research! 
Know your race! Look at the course map and train for it. If you are running a super hilly course don't expect to PR if you have only trained on flat terrain the entire time. Pay attention to how many water stations there are and where they are located.  I ran one half marathon that had water every mile starting at two miles so I didn't carry any extra water with me. Then I ran another half where the course didn't provide me with as much water as I would have liked so I made sure to carry a handheld bottle and refilled it at every water station. Also if it is a longer race, does it provide gels and what brand is it. You don't want to try any new brands of gels in the middle of a race! You have no idea how it will work for you so don't do it! Still take the gel with you, you can test it out on a future training run or use it like a stress ball if you are running through some knee pain (it works!).

Don't run in anything new
You got a brand new running outfit the night before the big race, that's great, but don't wear it to the race! You don't know how you will run in it; if you will chafe, give you blisters or just move in weird ways while running. Always try out new clothes in a practice run before race day. This also applies with race shirts! You don't have a chance to try out that race's shirt ahead of time so therefore you shouldn't wear it!! Plus it is also bad mo-jo to wear the race shirt before completing the race.

Seasoned runners, do you have any tips to add? Newbies, did you find any of these useful? 

Fit for Life Half Marathon recap

Last Saturday I ran the Fit For Life Half Marathon! It was my third half marathon in 84 days that means that I am qualified to become a Half Fanatic! Considering I have only ran three half's total doesn't seem like I should be qualified to be a fanatic but I guess if you run all three in such a short amount of time that must show you are some kind of fanatic right. I really want the awesome half fanatic race shirt!

Back to the race recap. Packet pickup was Wednesday and Thursday before the Saturday race. I recevied my bib and a tech shirt, the rest of the "goodies" that normally come with packet pickup were emailed to me a few days before that. Random fact: One of my B.R.F. (best running friends) actually got to pick the color of the shirt because she called to find out what the shirts looked like 3 weeks before the event and they told her to pick the color. Pretty cool!! The race started at 7:30 in the parking lot of Hawks Stadium. The course was an out and back along the Boise Greenbelt. My last half 3 weeks ago actually started where this race had it's turn around point.

I was warned ahead of time by a friend that they didn't have tons of water stations along the course so I brought my own. Also they only had water and gatorade along the course, no gels or anything. It is kind of a good thing that I am an over researcher because otherwise I might have assumed that enough water would be provided that I would need. Also on their website they do not list where the porta potties are located. I know why they didn't list it...because they only had one porta potty. It was at mile 4, since the race was an out and back race I guess I could have used that one porta potty again at mile 9. Thankfully it was an area I knew well since I run the exact location on my lunch break at work and with my training runs with Boise Run Walk. I was able to point out along the course to others where the "secret" bathrooms were that weren't far from the greenbelt but unless you knew about them you would run right by them. FYI: The "secret" bathrooms are located around miles 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10 (there are only three but with running back on the same route you get to enjoy them twice).

The first half of the race I was running strong and then I realized maybe I started out a little too fast. Plus my lovely IT band started to sing. I am so sick of that stupid IT band trying to talk to me when I am running. I just want some peace and quiet during my races! Is that too much to ask?! Anyway so at mile 10, I decided that I just wanted to be done with the race, I was tired (silly me thinking I could push myself too much) and hurting (I hate you knee). I sped up, annoying my knee further, and after a mile found one of my friends. I called her on the phone to let her know I was stalking her. I ran faster to catch her and we got to enjoy the last 1.5 miles of the race together. We arrived back at Hawks stadium where my husband and kids (my friend's too) were waiting for us. Like any race, you want to finish strong. What happens if a kid walks into your running path? You dodge him and make an awesome "oh crap" face then you pray that is your awesome finisher photo! Well I am in luck! It is my finisher's photo however it doesn't look as awesome as I had envisioned.

After the race they had free hot dogs and beer, water and some gatorade. After a race I want chocolate milk. After doing a bunch of races I now realize that maybe this isn't a standard thing that every race carries. Last year this race had chocolate milk (I did research), that knowledge is what fueled me the last mile of the race. However no chocolate milk this year :( The Race to Robie Creek had chocolate milk (lots and lots of it, I had two), See Jane Run had chocolate coconut milk (it was frozen and they gave me two to enjoy once they thawed), Fit for Life gave me none. I'm still bummed out!

Overall the race was cheap and a pretty area to run. They had 300 runners doing the half so maybe if it were a bigger race and had more man power then we could enjoy more water, maybe orange slices or some gels along the course. But then the race wouldn't be so cheap and low maintenance. It is a race I would recommend to others assuming they did their research and knew what to expect when!

Did you race this weekend? Did it have chocolate milk? What do you look forward to enjoying after a race? 

June Recap, streak recap, and Vitacost review oh my!

Let's talk about June! June was a good month. I ran every single day of June as part of the run streak! As a result of running every single day, I was able to log 91.54 miles!!! More than kind of impressed with myself. If I would have added the miles up sooner I would have tried to get an extra 9 miles done to make it an even 100 but I did math too late. After 39 days the streak finally ended on July 4th.

My legs were thrilled to have a rest day but I am battling the feeling of feeling lazy. I took a rest day on the 5th, ran 7 miles on the 6th and on the 7th the thought of taking another rest day made me feel like I was not committed to running. Darn you running streak for making me feel guilty about the occasional rest day but I did just run a half on Saturday so I had to let them rest some before the race. Overall I loved the streak, you see some things and experience stuff you won't if you didn't run every day. I talked about some of my adventures here but I have more fun to add. I ran while watching a plane crop dust right across the street from where I was. They put on quite a show!

I got lost on a 12 mile run with my friend. We some how got separated from a group of 20 people but because we went the wrong way we saw humming birds, parent swans with baby swans, a deer with two baby deer,  giraffes peaking over the fence at the zoo and discovered a beautiful, zen like park.

I am the proud owner of the most spectacular sock tan lines in the world. I cheated on my Brooks Ghost one day to give them a break and almost twisted my ankles because of it. Word to the Wise: Don't stray from your Brooks or you will be sorry, the Brooks Gods will make your run suck!

I also had the opportunity to review some of Vitacost products. One reason I love Vitacost is because they sell everything! They sent me all this stuff awesome stuff.

My favorite was the Himalania Dark Chocolate Goji Berries. Seriously good!

My kids loved the Pure Organic fruit and veggies strips. Also I received Multi-Vitamin Gummies for kids. They loved them and ask about taking their vitamins every day. Most of the time they ask multiple times a day so we have to mark it on the calendar when they take it so they don't talk us into giving them more than they are suppose to have.

The Himalayan Pink Salt has become a new staple in my kitchen. I love it but my favorite part is that it is pink! I love pink! 

I love trying new foods out and with Vitacost they make it pretty easy because they carry so much variety!

I'm working on my race recap of the Fit For Life Half marathon that I ran this weekend! Look for it in the next day or so! 

Reasons to keep training!

I just ran a half marathon last weekend therefore I am super excited to sign up for more races. I have a problem where I actually want to run most races, so picking only a few at a time is hard. In three weeks I have the Fit For Life Half Marathon. But a few days before that is the sign up date for the Tinker Bell Half Marathon in Disneyland. I have been planning for this race for almost a year now. Even though I will sign up on July 9th, it is still forever away. I won't be running in the promised land until January so I have to find races to keep me busy until then.

I have the Dirty Dash the first half of August. This will be my first year doing the Dirty Dash and I couldn't be more excited. I have always wanted to do a mud race. Maybe this is because I didn't play in the mud enough as a child.

The Color Run is at the end of August. Last year my focus was: run and get some color. This year is to see if I can be the most colorful person ever. I am going to make the Blue Man group look normal. I am thinking I will make color angels (much like snow angels but with color instead of snow). This is a fun race that isn't timed so why not try to get as much color out of it as possible.

In September I have to get back to running without the assistance of mud or color. I'm doing the FitOne 9k. This race is formerly know as the Women's Fitness Celebration and this will be the first year that they offer a 9k in addition to the 5k. The 9k will start at the Old Penn and travel to the Boise Train Depot then end in Ann Morrison Park. It is going to be a beautiful course.

At the end of September is the Idaho Wine Run. It is an amazing awesome race. Perfect for any runner since they offer a marathon, half marathon, 10k and 5k! You run through beautiful wine country and enjoy wine tasting from many different wine vendors in the Snake River Valley. I ran the 5k last year and I'm looking forward to running the 10k this year.

Those are a few of my upcoming races. What races do you have on your calendar? Any in Boise?