BUFF Pack Run Cap Review

July 21, 2020 by 18 Comments

Disclaimer: I received a free Buff Pack Run Cap to review as a BibRavePro. As always, all opinions are my own. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review, find, and write race reviews!

OK so let me cut right to the chase – the BUFF Pack Run Cap is a winner and perfect for the swampy weather that is this summer! Let me share some of the highlights…

Light as a feather
The first thing I noticed when my Pack Run Cap arrived was how unbelievably lightweight it is. Seriously, it weighs just 1 ounce. You put it on and forget about it.

Great fit and feel
Thanks to the 4-way stretch fabric and adjustable elastic cord at the back, this Cap is a comfortable fit. It’s designed with  Fastwick fabric side panels and a low profile sweatband, which helps to wick away sweat and improves breathability. I love the silky feel of this Cap.

Easy to pack
As the name implies, the Pack Run Cap easily folds down to about palm-size making it ideal for travel, whenever we return to planning race-cations.

This Cap has carried me through some swampfest runs and held up well to the challenge!

Find out what I love about @buff_usa Pack Run Cap! #buffrunbr #bibchat #bibravepro #tuesdaytopics #runnersroundup Share on X

If you’re interested in trying the Buff Pack Run Cap for yourself, sign up for the BUFF newsletter here to save 15% off your purchase!

Have you tried Buff products before?

I’m linking this with Kim and Zenaida for the Tuesday Topics Link-Up.

I’m also linking with Debbie, Rachel, Deborah,  Lisa, Sandra, and Jenn for the Runners’ Roundup.

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Filed Under: #BibRavePro, product reviews, Runners Roundup, Tuesday Topics

Pelothon 2020 – Week 1

July 19, 2020 by 28 Comments

Checking in on this very very steamy Sunday. How is everyone holding up? There’s no doubt that we are in the thick of summer weather now, am I right? I still don’t think I’ve cooled down from this morning’s run!

This week was the wrap up of the Great Run Across Massachusetts and the first week of Pelothon 2020, which definitely helped to keep me on track. Here’s how the week went down…

Monday — Strength Training. I took care of three of the six instructors on Day 1 with 10 min Strength for Runners with Matt, 10 min Arm Toning with Jenn, and 10 min Core and 5 min Full Body Stretch with Emma.  Emma also leads the Crush Your Core Program I started last week, so it’s nice that I can double-dip here.

Tuesday —  Stretch & Core. This was a crazy long day at work as I was trying to wrap up a bunch of things before taking a few days off. Normally I would have opted for yoga, but there isn’t a yoga instructor on the #BreakthroughCrew so I stacked a couple of stretch classes along with my core workout.

Wednesday — 3-mile run & Core. I tried one of Chase’s outdoor runs which I really enjoyed. And, later I found out Peloton featured me on their website.

Thursday — Strength Training.  15 min Bodyweight Strength with Adrian, 10 Arm Toning with Kendall, and more core work with Emma. This was my favorite combo of the week and I snagged my last instructor so Week 1 was done!

Friday — 3-mile run & Core. Pouring rain sent me to the treadmill, but Chase’s Hip Hop Fun Run helped to quickly pass the time. Emma’s 10 min core workout was challenging!
Saturday — Rest day.
Sunday — 3-mile run & Core. Can we just all agree that 81% humidity is just wrong?!

Wrapping up Week 1 of #Pelothon2020 with the #BreakthroughCrew on the #WeeklyRunDown Share on X

I really enjoyed the mix of Peloton workouts this week! Additionally, my family wrapped up our out and back run across Massachusetts and all received our t-shirts and medals

This shirt is so soft and a great cut!

It was so so nice to have some days off this week! It gave me a chance to meet up with friends for some outdoor dining, to read & relax, and generally just enjoy some time away from my computer. Another bonus for this week was getting back to my massage therapist! Her daycare is open again so she’s back to seeing clients – boy did I miss her!

For the week ahead, I’m looking forward to trying some of Peloton’s live classes as part of Week 2’s challenge.

How was your week? Tell me something you’re looking forward to.

I’m linking up with Deborah and Kim for the Weekly Run Down.

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Filed Under: Peloton, Weekly Run Down

Weekly Run Down: Waiting to Acclimate

July 12, 2020 by 32 Comments

The heat and humidity continued to roar along this week and I find myself wondering when I’m going to finally acclimate to summer running. Nonetheless, I’m doing my best to embrace my summer workouts.

Here’s a quick run down on this week’s workouts.

Weekly Run Down

Monday — Day 1 of Peloton’s “Crush your core” program plus some much-needed flow yoga.

Tuesday — All Peloton all the time with day 2 of the core program, and two strength classes with one of my favorite instructors, Chase.


Wednesday — 3-mile run. Getting out early provided no relief from the heat and humidity, but at least I had the roads to myself.

Thursday — With a “feel like” temp of 101, it was back to the great indoors and more Peloton workouts along with some PT exercises to keep my hip happy.

My arms were jello after this toning class! Ally packed a lot into 10 minutes!

Friday — 3-mile run. Despite the swampfest, this run felt decent. To take my mind off the conditions, I turned this into a bit of a Fartlek. I followed up with day 4 of the core program.

Saturday — Rest!

Sunday — 4-mile run. I had planned for 6 but a couple of taps of the snooze button meant getting out the door later. At least I had company on this struggle bus ride. I still have day 5 of the core program on tap to finish out the first week of the program.

#WeeklyRunDown: Waiting to Acclimate #summerrunning #bibchat #runchat #onepeloton #BreakthroughCrew Share on X

Kicking Off Pelothon

So in addition to completing the next 3 weeks of the Crush your Core program, I also signed on for a 4-week challenge Peloton is hosting called Pelothon. 6 teams take on new workout challenges each week and Peloton donates $1 million to 4 hunger relief organizations. I joined the #BreakthroughCrew team which features 3 of my favorite instructors Chase, Adrian, and Emma. I’m looking forward to checking out classes from the other 3 instructors on the team.

How was your week? Have you acclimated to summer running yet?

I’m linking up with Deborah and Kim for the Weekly Run Down.

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Filed Under: Peloton, Weekly Run Down

Mid-year Check-in and July Goals

July 7, 2020 by 12 Comments

6 months down…6 months to go.

While I would have much preferred to have trained for and participated in the races I had on the calendar for the first half of this year, I have found a bit of a silver lining that I’m holding on to.

In the absence of racing, I have had the space to step back and let my right hip heal. I’m especially grateful that I was able to safely visit my physical therapist – I have no doubt that being able to work with him made a big difference. Without a training plan, I ran when I wanted to, and when it felt good to do so, and I really embraced my walks. I made weekly time on my yoga mat a thing and enjoyed a range of at-home strength workouts. I logged just 260.3 running miles for the first half of the year and I’m a-ok with that.

I can now go into the 2nd half of the year, feeling healthy – and that’s always a good thing.

So now what? My goals for July are pretty simple:

— Finish the Great Run Across Massachusetts with my family (we have less than 100 miles to go at this point)

— Complete the Crush Your Core program on Peloton

— Stick with my monthly goal of at least 50 run miles

— Foam roll and stretch daily

Have you found some silver linings so far this year?

I’m linking this with Kim and Zenaida for the Tuesday Topics Link-Up.

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Filed Under: goals, Tuesday Topics

Running into July

July 5, 2020 by 29 Comments

Happy Sunday!

Did you have an enjoyable 4th? Mine was very low-key. After completing the June Summer Streaker Challenge (1-mile run or 20-minute workout each day), I took my first complete rest day. I did nada, nothing….it was a gloriously lazy day hanging with the family, capped off with a big lobster dinner on the deck. And, dare I say that I didn’t really miss seeing fireworks this year.

Here’s how this my week of workouts went down…

Monday — 1.25 mile run plus a couple of strength workouts via Peloton.

Tuesday — 1- mile run plus Peloton flow yoga for hips

Wednesday — 3-mile run

Thursday — 1.25 miles plus PT exercises and core work

Friday — 3-mile run

Saturday — Rest!

Sunday — 5-mile run

In my efforts to find my next summer challenge, I embarked on a mini run streak this week (actually from last Saturday through Friday). While I’ve done workout streaks or run/walk challenges, I have never attempted a run streak – so I tried one on to see how it would feel. The result? It was fine, but not inspiring enough in and of itself to continue. I crave variety in my workouts and the thought of “I have to run today” to keep a streak going just didn’t do it for me. One good take away from this little experiment was my dedication to daily rolling. Knowing that I was going to run every day really motivated me to hit the foam roller – that’s a habit I want to keep up!

How was your week? Have you ever tried a run streak?

I’m linking up with Deborah and Kim for the Weekly Run Down.

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Filed Under: Weekly Run Down

Ultimate Coffee – July 4th edition

July 3, 2020 by 28 Comments

Happy Friday!  It’s a long holiday weekend and I am kicking things off by joining Deborah and Coco for the Ultimate Coffee Date. I’m lazing on my deck with a mug of Starbucks French Roast, so let’s chat a little…

July Ultimate Coffee Date

Over coffee, I would tell you that while I’m really happy to have a 3-day weekend it doesn’t at all feel like the 4th of July. With no fireworks, holiday races, nor other big gatherings, this will be a very quiet 4th. I will miss heading to Gillette Stadium for the Finish at the 50 race and the fireworks that follow. Instead, we’re planning to cook some big meals, laze on the deck, and enjoy some fires on the patio – much more chill but still nice.

Over coffee, I would tell you that one thing I am looking forward to is watching Hamilton on Disney+ tonight!

Over coffee, I would tell you that last week I had my first outdoor dining experience at a restaurant. Actually it quickly turned into an indoor experience thanks to a freak rainstorm. I had met a friend for a walk and lunch – both of us had agreed that we were not ready to try indoor dining but would sit out on the restaurant’s patio where tables were widely dispersed. Well Ma Nature has a sense of humor and 20 minutes into our meal the heavens opened up and our waiter hurried out to usher us in under umbrellas. Thankfully, there were only a couple of tables with customers so we were able to stay well spread out. All-in-all, I’m still going to stick to the great outdoors for dining out for the foreseeable future.

What would you tell me over coffee? Any plans for the 4th?

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Filed Under: Ultimate coffee date

Hello Summer!

June 28, 2020 by 31 Comments

Heat and humidity are the names of the game around here this week as we close out the final days of June. It is crazy to think that we are almost to the halfway point of the year. Now seems like a good time to take a step back, reassess, and set some new intentions. And, with the short work week ahead and the holiday weekend, there will be plenty of downtime to just that.

But before I put June in the rearview mirror, here’s how this week’s workouts played out…

Monday — Yoga by Peloton. For the past couple of weeks, yoga has been my Monday thing, and this week was no different.

This was a great combo to release the stress of a Monday!

Tuesday — 3-mile run
Wednesday — 1-mile walk and PT exercises
Thursday — 2.25-mile walk
Friday — 5.4-mile walk catching up with a friend
Saturday — 2.3-mile run followed by a couple of hours of yardwork
Sunday — 3.5-mile run

Despite the heat and humidity, I tried to get outside most days, with an almost even split between running and walking miles. Sleep has been evading me once again, leaving me feeling sluggish many mornings with no desire to run. But, time outdoors is good for the soul, and I really enjoyed my walks.

Always good to opt outside as much as possible!

Today marks day 28 of the Summer Streaker Challenge, and my family team is more than halfway on our out-and-back across the state for the Great Run Across Massachusetts. Challenges like these have been fun and definitely help to keep the motivation up when the dew points get high.

How was your week? Are you embracing the summer weather?

I’m linking up with Deborah and Kim for the Weekly Run Down.

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Filed Under: summer mode, Weekly Run Down

Let’s runfess, shall we?

June 26, 2020 by 20 Comments

Happy Friday!

How are we at the end of June already? It’s the last Friday of the month and once again Marcia has opened the runfessional! So before we step into the second half of 2020, let’s take a moment to cleanse our soles/souls. 😉

I runfess that with every passing year my desire to run during the summer shrinks exponentially! Seriously, looking back I have no idea how I ever made it through Chicago Marathon training last summer!

Having said that I runfess that I have been thinking more and more about running another marathon next year. That means I’m either looking at late spring (May?) or late fall (like November late).

I runfess that I’m going to need to find a few more challenges to push me out of my comfort zone and to help keep my run motivation up. Don’t get me wrong, I will always work out and run but I can also see how easy it will be to fall into a running rut without a training plan to push me out of my comfort zone.

Technically I still have the Detroit Free Press Half on the calendar for October. Amazingly it has not been canceled. Race organizers recently sent out a survey to gauge runner interest. I runfess that it took a high level of self-control to not reply “What are you nuts?!” in the comments section. Instead, I checked the boxes indicating that I had no intention of being there and voted for deferment over virtual.

So tell me, what would you runfess? Do you have any races left on your calendar? Any good challenges to suggest?

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Filed Under: Runfessions

Mid-month check-in

June 14, 2020 by 24 Comments

Happy Sunday!

While things have been fairly quiet here on the blog lately, if you follow me on Instagram you know that I’m still plugging along with my workouts. Working out continues to provide a much-needed escape from all that continues to challenge our country at the moment. It provides a quiet space to process thoughts and feelings and is also a very important piece of self-care.

Today is Day 14 of the Summer Streaker Challenge – the goal is 1 mile or 20 minutes of working out each day. I’m happy to say that I’m still on track. Over the past couple of weeks, running has been a fairly low-key affair with most runs hovering around 3 miles. My right hip’s been fairly cooperative until yesterday’s run – a reminder to not neglect my PT exercises or foam rolling! After some extra care yesterday, I had a solid 5 miler today to complete another Un-canceled 8K.

My husband, brother, oldest son and I just signed on for The Great Run Across Massachusetts. We’ll be running out and back across the state for 235 miles, which nets out to 58.75 miles each, but I know we’ll each be vying for bragging rights to see who’s going to carry the team. I’m still looking for my running mojo to kick in so I’m hoping this challenge will be the added boost I need, plus it supports some worthy causes.

Aside from the running, I’ve made good use of the Peloton app for strength training, found my way on to my yoga mat a couple of times, and got out for a few walks with friends. All-in-all it’s been a decent couple of weeks of workouts. The plan for the next couple of weeks is more of the same, except that I’d like to start to stretch my weekend runs a bit longer.

How is June treating you so far? Do you use challenges or virtual races to stay motivated?

I’m linking up with Deborah and Kim for the Weekly Run Down.

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Filed Under: #UnCanceledProject, Updates, Weekly Run Down

Connecting over June Coffee

June 5, 2020 by 26 Comments

It’s the first weekend of a new month which means it’s time for the Ultimate Coffee Date with Deborah and Coco. Given all that going on in the world right now I doubt if anyone would fault me if I dropped a little something (Kahlua, Bailey’s anyone?) into my coffee.

Let’s chat a little…

 

June Ultimate Coffee Date

Over coffee, I would first ask you how you are doing. To say that watching where we are in this country right now is weighing heavily on me would be an understatement.  Yesterday in honor of George Floyd, I sat for silence in 8 mins and 46 secs and held him in my thoughts. I cannot begin to put into words what this experience was like. I invite everyone to do it – I will tell you 8 plus minutes never felt so long.

On a much, much lighter note, over coffee, I would tell you that we celebrated my middle schooler’s graduation yesterday. There was a parade, a Zoom ceremony, a celebratory taco bar dinner, chocolate cupcakes, and lots of laughs. Not the celebration we had hoped for but I think my son had a good day. And, now I’m trying to wrap my head around having two high schoolers in the house!

All my son will allow me to share is a photo of the balloons.

Over coffee, I would tell you that with school over for both boys, summer has officially arrived in the RWA household. While this is definitely not going to be a typical summer, we’re still creating our annual bucket list and plan to make the most of it. Personally, I’m looking forward to dinners on the deck, evening fires on the patio, and venturing out a little as stay-at-home restrictions start to ease here.

And, speaking of the stay-at-home restrictions, over coffee, I would tell you that phase 2 here begins on Monday and the thing I am most excited about is getting my hair cut! My appointment is booked for next Friday.

What would you tell me over coffee?

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Filed Under: Ultimate coffee date