Sunday Runday Favorites

Since most of my Sundays consist of a long run before spending the rest of my day lounging around and recovering, I thought I'd try to do a weekly post about one of my favorite things about my Sunday Runday.  It could be something I wore, saw, did, etc. before, during or after my run.

Today's favorite was what I wore on my run:

Oiselle's Stride Shorts
Mio Mesh Top
Mizuno Wave Rider 16

not the mio mesh,
it's the base runner top...same color though :)

There are many reasons why these three things are my favorites to wear.  The stride shorts are so comfortable and don't ride up at all when running.  This means no chaffing, and no showing more leg than needed on a long run.  The mio mesh tank is perfect because it's so light and comfortable, you feel like you have nothing on, which is great for hot summer days.  The mesh is super comfy and the colors are beautiful.  Mizuno wave rider 16's are my favorite sneakers right now.  I love the colors (clearly), and I haven't lost a toenail yet (knock on wood).  I've tried other brands, but I always go back to Mizuno...I guess if it's not broke, don't fix it! 

Happy Sunday Runday!         

vacation

I'm very sad to say this is the last day of my mini vacation.  No, I didn't travel or go anywhere tropical.  However, I did spend 2 nights in a glamorous Red Roof Inn after 2 full days of tailgating and seeing my favorite band.  Since then it's been mostly relaxation and catch up.

Saturday the boyfriend and I drove down to Mass early afternoon for the first night of Dave Matthews.  We couldn't check in to the hotel until 3, but we wanted to stop by and drop off some stuff we wouldn't need while BBQing.  So we planned to get there right at 3 and then head over to the venue to ensure ample tailgating time.  Thanks to no traffic, we made it to the hotel right at 3, threw our bags in our room, and were on our way.

here we come! 

one of my favorite things

We set up shop in the parking lot with a few chairs, a cooler, and a grill with TONS of food.  Tailgating essentials, of course.  After consuming more than enough drinks and food it was time to head in to the show.  We had awesome tickets right up front in the general admission area.  It was perfect.  The rest of the night was spent dancing and singing like crazy.

oh hey there, Dave!

The second day was spent doing pretty much the same as the first.  We lounged around the hotel for a while, then met up with some friends and headed over to the parking lot.  More drinks, food, and tailgating.  Our seats the second night were further away, but it really doesn't matter to me.  When Dave Matthews comes around I just can't say no.  

It's always tough going back home after two fun days of treating my body like crap.  It helps though knowing you have the next 4 days off to recover!  When we got back on Monday we went and played golf.  I'm not a golfer, but I have fun trying...with the exception of a couple horrible shots that make me want to toss the golf club in the woods.  Since then I haven't done much but continue to eat and drink too much.  I guess that's what vacations are for, right?  I haven't been able to take a paid vacation in a very long time.  Not working > working even if you're just hanging around at home. 

something I see everyday,
but while on vacation it looks even more beautiful

Tuesday I was VERY ready to go for a run.  On the schedule was a tempo run.  15 min w.u. 3-4 mile tempo @ marathon pace +10sec, 15 min c.d.  I always struggle with tempo runs.  This one was was no exception, most likely due to the whole drinking and eating my face off all weekend.  

Yeah, I'm sorry body...I promise to start treating you better.  My stomach has been angry with me since getting back on Monday.  Someday I'll learn my lesson...I hope.  

Wednesday's run was 40min easy.  After that I spent the day catching up on homework and enjoying the day on the porch.  It was beautiful. 

Not taken yesterday,
but I spent most of the day in a similar position 

Today's run is 40-50 min easy.  As for the rest of the day, I have to try to finish my homework and then I may head over to my mom's house.  I got this email from her yesterday: 

"I wanted to let you know that the pool is officially open!!" 

I mean...what's a true vacation without at least one trip to a pool?!   

sweat pink

About a month ago I filled out an application to be a sweat pink ambassador and received an email yesterday welcoming me to the team!  I'm very excited to be a sweat pink ambassador.  I feel very strongly about promoting fitness and health because it has helped me in so many ways and I know so many others could benefit as well.

I guess I should talk about some things that I have been avoiding on this blog.  Fitness for me was not always about being healthy.  In high school I began dieting and exercising to lose weight.  I was never very comfortable with my body.  I did gymnastics for many years.  Living most years of your life in a leotard serves as a constant reminder of every imperfection.  While I always thought in the back of my mind I wanted to be thinner, I never really took much action until high school.  That's when I started to lose some weight and began to feel more confident.  I learned to get by on small meals and enjoyed the (negative) attention that felt very positive at the time.

Then, I went to college and gained the infamous "freshman 15."  I hated how I looked, but the food and alcohol temptations outweighed the feeling of needing to lose weight.  

The summer before my junior year I started running and again trying to lose weight.  I wasn't happy with how I looked or felt and desperately wanted to change that.  So I started counting calories, restricting what I ate, and began working out again.  I quickly started to see results and was determined not to gain the weight back when I went back to school.  Without going in to too much detail,  I will say the dieting quickly became an obsession, and the happiness that came with the weight loss quickly turned in to depression.

During the winter break of my junior year I decided it would be in my best interest to not return to school.  I fell in to a deep dark hole.  My friends and my mom confronted me because I had lost too much weight and asked me to ask for help from a therapist.   I reluctantly agreed.  To say I was cured from that would be a lie.  I spent the next few years in and out of therapy, not really wanting to be there.

Eventually I stopped going all together.  The dark clouds still hung over my head, but I wanted to find my way on my own.  I didn't want to rely on a little white pill (antidepressant) to make me happy, and I was over telling someone I didn't know  about my feelings.  I thought I could do this on my own.

It took a long time after that to fully escape the demons.  Actually, I'm not sure I'll ever escape them completely, but I am in a much better place.  It's a place of acceptance and understanding of my body and a confidence I never thought I'd find.  I owe a lot of that to running.

This is why I decided to apply to become a sweat pink ambassador.  Through my struggles I now understand how much of a blessing running has been in my life.  Every day I still feel the effects an eating disorder has on my body.  While I can't change my past, I am in control of my future and I would love nothing more than to help woman who are in a similar situation.

Finally, I am running for the right reasons and I wouldn't change that for the world.  This is only a short summary of what I went through.  It was a long, dark, scary road for a while.  It's still hard for me to talk about, but I'd love to share my story in hopes that I could help others find the right path.  I think support and understanding is what I needed without judgement.  I'll offer that to anyone who's willing to listen.    

lucky number 7

I've been searching for my next race for a while now and I finally signed up for one last night.  I registered for the Jamestown Half Marathon in Jamestown, RI.

It looks like it's going to be a beautiful run around Jamestown with views of Narragansett Bay and the Newport Bridge.  

Sure, I'll run on an island!

This half will be luck number seven for me.  I realized after signing up that it's the same day as my friend's send off party for their wedding.  They're getting married in the Bahamas, so they are having a party the weekend before for people who can't make it.  The party is is Maine. The half is in Rhode Island.

Bring it on!

    

Am I crazy?

This past weekend and week have been very busy.  I moved in to a new apartment on Saturday.  It was 90+ degrees and humid as hell all weekend.  Perfect for moving.  Thankfully we had a lot of help and were able to get everything in and put away over the course of the weekend.  It's really starting to feel like home.

In the middle of moving boxes and furniture I was asked, more than once, if I was crazy.  I've been asked this many times before, but never really thought much of it.  For some reason it stuck this time though...am I crazy?

Let's see...

As I said above, this weekend we moved in excruciatingly hot/humid weather.  Knowing it was going to be hot and humid, I decided to get up early to run before we started moving on Saturday.  Even though I would get quite the workout from moving, I still wanted to get in a run.  Does that make me crazy?

Sunday we had a lot of unpacking to do.  Again it was going to be ridiculously hot and sticky.  I got up at 6 to hopefully run before it got too hot.  I didn't make it.  I knew right away the 12 miles I had planned were not going to happen.  I ended up getting through 9.  In an effort to stay out of the sun, I ran around the same couple neighborhoods, and back and forth on the same short trail over and over again.  Does that make me crazy?

This isn't actually the trail...but you get the idea.

Since I wasn't able to finish my run on Sunday, I decided to go for a run on Monday after work.  My training plan had the option of 30-40min easy or OFF.  Typically I would have taken Monday off.  I am a nurse, and while working spend 12hrs on my feet speed walking from place to place.  My feet, legs and body are pretty tried by the time I get home.  But I wanted to finish those 12 miles I started, even if it took me 2 days.  So, my tired legs and I went for a run.  Does that make me crazy?

Today I was pretty pumped to run 50-60 min on hilly terrain.  I made those hills my bitches.  Does that make me crazy?

Recently I got a running coach.  A very known running coach.  I'm going to make it work with my budget somehow.  I didn't ask her to be my coach because I want to win races or to try to become some superstar runner.  I asked her to be my coach so I can become a better runner just because I want to.  I've been running regularly since 2007, when I ran my first marathon and I've been doing it on my own since.  I decided I wanted to ask for some help to try to understand running and what it takes to become a better runner.  Does that make me crazy?

I spend more money on running clothes than I do anything else.  And by running clothes, I mean Oiselle.  I think I'm what you'd call an addict.  They're amazing.  Does that make me crazy?

I also sit around with bags of ice on my legs, occasionally jump in to a tub full of ice water, lie on my back with my legs up the wall , and foam roll most body parts in very questionable positions.  Does that make me crazy?

After thinking about it some more, I can only come up with one response.  No, I'm not crazy...I'm a runner!  And I am damn proud of it.