Week 15 – Race Week

May 20, 2013 by 3 Comments

It’s week 15 of my half marathon training plan and it’s finally race week! Finish-Line

Yes I know I’ve already run four races this year, but when I started this year with the goal of running 13 races I had circled a couple on the calendar that are in my mind “goal races”…and this weekend’s half marathon is one of them.

So the wonderful Coach Bennett went about designing a 15-week plan for me that would allow me to fit in the other races while keeping my eye on this goal race. Not an easy task I’m sure and I know there have been moments as he’s looked the race schedule where he’s been shaking his head – but to his credit he’s not discouraged me and I’ve appreciated his support!

This week is all about some light running, yoga, getting enough sleep, prepping a playlist, setting race goals and carefully watching what I eat (no repeats of the Newport 10 miler drama!). In general I think race week is really all about the mental prep – the training’s done so the trick now is not to psyche yourself out before you get to the starting line.

So tell me — How do you handle race week?

 

 

 

signature
Filed Under: #13in2013, Boston's Run to Remember, half marathon training, Newport 10 Miler, race week, running coach

Five for Friday

May 17, 2013 by 11 Comments

Hello Friday…what took you so long to get here?

This is the first morning all week where I’m not racing off somewhere as soon as I put the kids on the bus (or they even leave the house!). So with coffee in hand, here comes a little randomness for this Friday morning….

  • I would like to ask all teachers to please find a way of spreading projects, field trips and the like more evenly throughout the school year so that the final couple of months of school don’t feel like such a scramble!
  • After a solid race pace run last Saturday, this week marked the beginning of my taper. It’s been a nice week of easier runs – but I did enjoy hitting the track yesterday just to push my legs a little.
  • The one thing that has not gone well in the training department this week is my sleeping – yes, I consider getting enough rest as part of training! I’ve gotten into a very bad habit this week of falling a sleep on the couch and then when I head to bed I’m wide awake! I’ve got to work on doing a better job of logging some sleep as I head into race week.
  • I was thrilled to hear the news that B.A.A. has extended an invitation to the 5000+ runners who were not able to cross the Boston Marathon finish line. I know a number of runners who were stopped short of fulfilling their dream and I’m so glad they’re getting another chance.
  • It will be another weekend filled with the boys’ sports – at last count, at least 3 lacrosse games and two baseball games. I’m hoping to get some time in my very neglected garden and my hubs and I planning to sneak out for a date night!

For now I’m going to pour a second cup and catch up on some blog reading before I get on with the day!

What have you got planned for the weekend?

 

signature
Filed Under: BAA, crazy week, Friday Five, need more sleep, taper time

Newport 10 Miler – Race #3

May 13, 2013 by 15 Comments

Newport 10 Miler

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”

This is how I started my email to Coach Bennett to let him know how the race went (my apologies to Charles Dickens) – pretty much sums up this race day.

A couple of weeks ago I ran the inaugural Newport 10 Miler with my running buddy E. Let’s just say this run did not go as I had hoped — in a nutshell, my stomach mysteriously decided to not cooperate just a mere 2 and half miles into the course. I have no idea what set it off because I have become boring and predictable in my pre-run/race fueling. But,  it was not happy and any attempt at picking up the pace was met with serious discomfort….not a great way to spend the remaining 7.5 miles!

By the mile 4 water stop, I was walking – I urged E to keep going saying I would catch up. And while I kept her in my sights for the next 2 miles, by the mile 6 water stop I did something I’ve never done in a race before – I came to a deadstop! Not good! This race really was a mental battle – there was a lot of self talk going on – I used every mental game I could think of to will myself through those final miles.

So what about “the best of times” part?

The course was beautiful! Seriously Newport is a beautiful spot to run – we were either along the water or running among the mansions. The wonderful scenery helped to be a much needed distraction.

Newport group 3

Jill, Nancy, Samantha, me & Amy

A chance to meet-up with these wonderful ladies is always good!

 

Got to finally meet the lovely Kim, co-leader of Black Girls Run Boston.  She hung out with E & I at the start and best of all I spotted her with just over a mile to go – she became just the focal point I needed to push hard and we ended up crossing the finish line together!

With Kim at Newport 10

Despite my stomach distress, the rest of me felt really good and still managed to will myself to tie my 10-mile PR! And while I wish I had been able to run every step with E, she absolutely rocked this race and is now talking about joining me for a half marathon – so proud of her!

919029_647770745240367_1885810049_o

The race itself was a good one – a couple of first year kinks like running out of some of the post-race food and poor planning on the t-shirt distribution…but those were minor. They were super-responsive to questions pre-race; it was a beautifully laid out course; and, they had a great group of enthusiastic volunteers at every water station. I will definitely be back to run this one again next year!

 

 

signature
Filed Under: #13in2013, blogger meet-ups, mental toughness, Newport 10 Miler, PR, race report

I’m a mother runner!

May 9, 2013 by 10 Comments

Yes you already know that I’m a mom who runs….But guess who’s featured on the Another Mother website today?!?!

Yep it’s little ole me 🙂

I really enjoy reading the profiles in  “Follow this Mother” series on Thursdays and am honored to now be included!

You can stop by and check it out HERE

Let me know what you think!

signature
Filed Under: Another Mother Runner

Under Armour Challenge – #WhatsBeautiful

May 8, 2013 by 4 Comments

UA Beautiful

 Under Armour just launched their third What’s Beautiful campaign and I’m very psyched to be a part of it through FitFluential.

Under Armour’s What’s Beautiful is all about pushing limits and redefining the female athlete.  This is for women who want to push past where they have been before — To put a goal out there and then go after it in a big way. It’s easy to get started, just declare your goal on the What’s Beautiful site and then get to it! You stay accountable and get extra motivation by accepting challenges and interacting with other participants. You can also team up with others who share similar goals for additional support and motivation.

My What’s Beautiful goal is:

Focus on speedwork, strength training and core work so I can own new PRs for the 10k and half marathon; and most of all, be a stronger version of myself.

For added motivation I also created Team Core Strength for anyone who wants to make building a strong core a key to their overall success – you can join my team here!

You can also keep up on what’s going on by following along on Twitter and Instagram with the hashtags #IWILL #WHATSBEAUTIFUL.

Are you ready to set some new goals or re-up your current ones? Join us as we redefine the female athlete. #IWILL.

signature
Filed Under: #IWill, #WhatsBeautiful, FitFluential, goals, motivation, Team Core Strength, Under Armour

Monday Motivation: Week 13

May 6, 2013 by 11 Comments

Try

Had a good week last week including a massage, time on the track, a return to my favorite yoga class and a great long run on Saturday! I had 12 miles planned and my running buddy E offered to join me for the final 6. I ran an out and back for the first 6 then met her in her driveway and we went out for another 6+ mile loop around town. I’m so glad I had her with me – she kept me laughing and moving when I was starting to fade.  It was a great run and despite tired legs I finished strong – nice  way to cap a week of training for sure!

So now it’s week 13…and this week will include my last double digit run before my half marathon. On the plan this week:

Monday: 6 with negative split on the last 3

Tuesday: Cross-training

Wednesday: 4 mile Fartlek

Thursday: 16 x 400m repeats, plus yoga class

Friday: rest!

Saturday: 12 with last 6 at RP

Sunday: Cross-training

I feel a good week coming 🙂

signature
Filed Under: half marathon training, long runs, Monday Motivation, week ahead

B.A.A Distance Medley – 5K Race Report

May 3, 2013 by 7 Comments

This year I’m participating in the 2nd Annual  B.A.A. Distance Medley which consists of a 5K, 10K and half marathon. The 5K was held the Sunday of the Boston Marathon weekend.

It was a great morning for a run — sunny but cool (just 40 or so). J and the boys decided they wanted to come cheer me on so the whole family headed into downtown Boston. Getting in and parking was easy. It was definitely chilly so I left the guys to do some warm up strides. Just as I was heading over to get my good luck hugs from my kiddos, I was lucky enough to find fellow FitFluential Ambassador Amy from Running Escapades and her husband in the crowd!

IMG_1986

As we stood in the shadows of the high-rises it was even cooler and I did my best to stay warm and loose. I chatted with some of the other runners and just tried to soak in the atmosphere. I couldn’t get over the size of the crowd for a 5K (5,000+ runners)  – the energy was great!

The downside of a crowd that big on a course that winds in and around the narrow streets of Boston’s Back Bay was the amount of bobbing and weaving I had to do.  IMG_1989There were also a fair number of people who clearly didn’t seed themselves properly as I found myself running up on people who stopped to walk within the first half mile….seriously?! But I settled in the best I could and just enjoyed the run.

The B.A.A. had set the course up so we would finish the final “right on Hereford, left on Boylston” stretch and across the Marathon’s famous finish line. J and the boys were watching from the grandstands and said they could see me make the final turn on the jumbotron — my boys thought that was pretty cool and allowed my oldest son to catch these shots of the finish. (My youngest liked that I passed that guy right at the end!)

BAA 5K Collage

I made my way through the corral, got my medal and a bag of snacks and found my wonderful cheer squad!

IMG_2000

Overall I was happy with my time of 30:56 and I’m really looking forward to the B.A.A. 10K in June!

 

signature
Filed Under: #13in2013, B.A.A. Distance Medley, FitFluential, race report

April Rewind

May 1, 2013 by 6 Comments
I’ve always loved turning the page on the calendar and see a whole new month laid out before me. While April clearly provided some agonizing days, there were, for me, many good things mixed in there too!

 

Good things for April:
  • Continuing to run injury-free….always something to celebrate!
  • Returning to speed work at the track — truly my favorite workouts
  • Ran races #2 and 3 for the year (BAA 5K and the Newport 10 Miler) — race reports still to come
  • Fun blogger meet-ups
Newport group 3

Jill, Nancy, Samantha, me, Amy

  • Volunteering at the Boston Marathon!! This was hands-down one of my most favorite experiences! I was assigned to the Athletes’ Village working as a “bus greeter.” The energy of all of the runners was just the best and I had an awesome team of volunteers to work with.  There is no doubt that I will be back to volunteer in 2014!
 
What’s up for May:
  • RuntoRem Boston’s Run to Remember Half Marathon! This is my goal race for the spring and with all that has happened in Boston, I know this is going to be an extra-special race this year!
  • Log 100 miles
  • Another 30-day Ab Challenge
  • Continued focus on my nutrition

How ’bout you – any big plans for May?

 

signature
Filed Under: #13in2013, B.A.A. Distance Medley, blogger meet-ups, Boston Marathon, Boston's Run to Remember, month in review, Newport 10 Miler

Turning 3

April 29, 2013 by 7 Comments

Running with Attitude turned three over the weekend!  three

I continue to marvel at all that running has brought into my life and it’s been great fun to share and connect with so many wonderful runners!

So very happy to be a part of this great running community!

Cheers to you all for being a part of this journey!

 

 

 

signature
Filed Under: milestones, running community

Nutrition Update: #DesignerWhey Product Review

April 26, 2013 by 7 Comments

Recently this showed up on my doorstep

photo (3)

The folks at Designer Whey sent me a crazy array of their products to try! I was expecting to receive just one of their protein powders – instead they sent protein bars, ready-made shakes and Protein 2Go drink mix, in addition to two protein powders.

I’ve mentioned here before that one of my goals for 2013 is to get a better handle on my nutrition. And now that I’m finally feeling like I’ve got a handle on my fueling during a run, I’ve started to turn my attention to what I’m eating during recovery.  So getting to try out these products came at a great time for me.

Over the past couple of weeks I’ve had a chance to try everything — and the verdict….love them!

Designer shake

I  immediately started with the protein powders – 18g of protein, only 100 calories and naturally sweetened with Stevia. I received both French Vanilla and White Chocolate – they both had good flavor, but the White Chocolate became an instant fave! I was initially concerned it might be too sweet, but it had a yummy creaminess that worked well with my usual smoothie add-ins (unsweetened almond milk, chia seeds, almond butter and frozen strawberries, bananas and cherries)  without being overpowering. It has quickly become a favorite post-workout recovery drink.

My husband J got in on the act sampling the protein bars. We had three flavors to try: Peanut Butter Crunch, Triple Chocolate Crunch and Chocolate Caramel Crunch. Quite simply these bars are so good! They’re 160 – 170  calories with 10g of protein and other vitamins. Designer Whey packs a lot into these bars including a lot of flavor!

 My favorite was the peanutDesigner 2 butter, while J really liked the triple chocolate – he said it tasted “like a real chocolate bar not at all waxy.”

 The last item I received was the Protein 2Go. Designer Whey sent all three of their flavors: Lemonade, Mixed Berry and Tropical Orange. You just pour one of the packets into about 12 – 16 oz of water and shake. I thought these mixes offered a nice refreshing drink with the added benefit of 10g of protein plus B-Vitamins and Vitamin C. I really like these have no artificial sweeteners or flavors, and the packets are easy to carry with you anywhere. I think these will be particularly good in the summer months served ice cold!

A big thanks to the folks at Designer Whey – I’m happy to have discovered their products as they’ll now be a part of my recovery nutrition strategy.

What’s your go to recovery foods/drinks?

I received these products as a FitFluential Ambassador. All of the opinions expressed here, as always, are my own.

signature
Filed Under: #DesignerWhey, fave things, FitFluential, Nutrition, Recovery