"The Jam" Thursday - what is blowing up my iPod

It is Thursday and I feel like I've accomplished nothing this week.  I've been battling the flu hardcore this week.  It has left me feeling extremely fatigued and motivationless all week.  All I want to do is sleep, which I know would be a good thing since my body is working so hard to fight this bug off.  So consequently, I haven't run at all this week and I'm feeling so guilty about it.  I'm hoping I feel better on Saturday so I can get a nice leisurely 6 mile run in and start to build up my mileage again.  Until then though, I will be resting as much as possible the next couple of days.

Today is "The Jam" Thursday and time for me to share a song that has gotten my booty bumping and my legs pumping.  Today's "jam" I heard earlier this week and can't get it out of my head.  It is a throwback jam from an artist that is one of the greats!  I'm glad I heard it again because it's on my playlist now and I can't wait to take it out with me on my run on Saturday!

Today's "jam" is:

Momentum Monday: Forget yesterday

Good morning all and welcome to another Monday!  Did everyone have a great weekend?  My three day weekend was blissful and I got to see and interact with lots of people.  The weather was sunny and good times and good laughs were had by all.  A successful weekend for sure.

Though I was struggling with something this weekend.

Direction.

When I set out to train for my first half marathon, I was pretty focused.  I had my training plan and I knew what I was supposed to do and when.  Now that I have completed the half and it's been a month since I've ran it, I'm struggling with continuing to train for my upcoming half marathons in June and August.

I haven't been running much at all and have begun feeling "fluffy" around the mid-section again from my lack of cross training and running.  I will have a run planned and will let something distract me or deter me from going out and getting my miles in.

Then I would sit and beat myself up about it.  I would be disappointed in myself and put myself down for not doing what I should be doing to achieve my goals and continue with my training.  Then I would be gung-ho about my next run and get excited about it even.  Then when the time comes for me to go out and run, I would end up getting into something else and not run.  Starting the cycle all over again.

I need to shake out of this funk, get out of this cloud that I am stuck in so I can get back into something I really enjoy doing.  Now mind you, this has been going on for about two weeks, but it feels like it has been going on for forever.  So when I saw this quote for Momentum Monday, I thought it would be a good reminder for myself and anyone that might be struggling right now.

 

I need to get my head on straight and realize that we all trip and fall in our endeavors and that we can't beat ourselves up for mistakes we make.  I take myself far too seriously at times and can be really brutal in critiques about myself.  I need to let go and just take each day as it comes, one day at a time.  I need to remember things about the past so I don't repeat the mistake, but I can't keep punishing myself for things that did or didn't happen in the past.  I can't go back and change it, I can only work on bettering myself today.

 

Question for you: Do you have trouble letting go of past mistakes?  Do you let those affect how you deal with current situations?

runDisney does it again...let the anticipation begin!

Some interesting news surfaced and the runDisney groups I'm part of were blowing up like crazy yesterday. There was a leak of information about a new challenge being added to the WDW Marathon weekend in January.

The Goofy Challenge has long been reigning as the supreme runDisney challenge having runners run a half marathon on Saturday and a full marathon on Sunday. You get both of the race medals, plus the Goofy challenge medal.  Sweet, we all love our bling, right?  However, over the years people have been running the 5K that is held on that Friday, as well as the Goofy challenge, creating an "unofficial Dopey challenge". There is no extra medal from runDisney for doing this as this is not an officially sanctioned challenge, though individual runners have taken it upon themselves to create their own medal to commemorate their accomplishment.

However yesterday, pictures were posted of a pricing list for WDW Marathon weekend and along with the Goofy Challenge, an "official" Dopey Challenge and a brand new 10K race was listed.

::brain and wallet exploding::

"The Jam" Thursday - What is blowing up my iPod

Thursday is such a temptress of a day.  You're one day away from the weekend and your body is excited for the free time, but then you still have one more day of work before you can actually get there.  Such a tease. 

Hope your week has been better than last week with the time change.  I'm slowly getting back to my normal self again, still struggling with getting enough sleep, but I fear that will be my forever struggle.

It's that time again!  It's Thursday and time to share some music that gets my booty bumping and my legs pumping.  This one I hadn't heard in years until it was played on the radio yesterday and since then I haven't been able to get it out of my head!  It's from Rihanna's "Good Girl Gone Bad" album, which has been her best album to date and I need to find it so I can listen through it again. 

So today's "jam" is:

 

If I Never See Your Face Again - Rihanna & Maroon 5

 

It's such a fun song and I always end up singing along to it whenever it comes on my iPod or the radio.  It's catchy and makes for a fun song to run or dance to!  Enjoy!

Race Recap: St. Pat's Day Dash

I wasn't going to race this past weekend.  I wasn't going to get involved in any runs in the area around here, and there were quite a few being talked about.  Though as the week went on and friends were tweeting and Facebooking about the races they were going to run during St. Patty's weekend, the more I started to rethink my decision.

Then I got a Twitter message.

An invitation to run with the co-founders of a local website, Gametiime.  It is a new site that is designed to be your "go-to" search engine for races.  Right now they are testing their beta site and the listings are only for Washington state races (sorry rest of the nation).  But I have seen and tested their beta site and all I have to say is THANK YOU! I can not wait for this site to be released because it has so many great features and the ease of use is fantastic.

So to have the ability to run with these guys and pick their brains a bit was too good to pass up.  So I signed up, the Thursday before the race.  I never sign up for a race this late, but I did and I'm not sorry about it.

I kinda wanted to run this race to be honest.  I had a great outfit planned for it already if I did decide to run, so I was glad when I finally caved, because I got to wear all this great gear!

 

Momentum Monday: Don't Quit

It's Monday and the start to another week for us all.  It was a BIG racing weekend.  Almost every runner I know was running a race on Saturday or Sunday.  Whether it be a 5K fun run, half marathon or a mighty marathon, people were running in large numbers this festive St. Patty's Day weekend.  Lots of green was worn and libations were flowing, so I hope everyone had a safe weekend.

I too decided to run a race this past weekend, at the last minute too, I registered on Thursday for a Sunday run.  I never wait this long to sign up for a race.  I'm a total planner and look forward to each and every race I run.  I plan the day, what I'm going to wear, how I'm going to get there, if I'm meeting with people.  All that good stuff.  But I received an opportunity that I didn't want to turn down and knew that I had to jump into this race with both feet and go for it.

Why worry?

It's Wednesday and yet it feels like it should be Friday.  This time change has really kicked me in the rear this week.  I feel like I've gone to battle all week just to get out of bed and I'm exhausted.  I'm drinking venti sized coffees (which is abnormal because I usually can't finish a grande!) and I've been feeling like a zombie all day.  Anybody else feeling like this too?

With all this and the fact that work has been bat-shit crazy lately, I haven't found the time in the days to be able to blog and it makes me upset and worried. 

Worried?  Why worry?

Race Recap: Princess Half Marathon

Many months ago I started a long journey with a goal in mind and an ultimate destination of this race.  Right here and right now is the culmination of all the hard work, time spent and sacrifices that I made to train.  It all comes down to this point, these series of moments, this final delivery of the prize I've been fighting so hard for.  This is it.  It's go time.

The 2:30am wake up call is an ungodly way to wake up, but the race started in three hours and there was so much still to do.  The room was already buzzing with everyone up and about getting dressed and ready to catch the first buses.  I've seen pictures and heard hellish stories about the lines to get on the buses to get to the race and if you didn't have a car to drive yourself there, the bus was your only form of transport.  The buses started transporting at 3am, so it was important to get on the first couple of buses to ensure you made it to the start on time!

I've got my take on Cinderella running outfit on and I'm ready to head to the buses!

"The Jam" Thursday - What is blowing up my iPod

Oh Thursday, you saucy wench, we meet again.

I'm SO glad that today is my Friday (LOVE three day weekends!) because I would not be able to bear one more day of work.  This week has been quite trying and I'm looking forward to my run tonight and my long run on Saturday to shake off this stress!  Woo hoo!!

Since I'm on a Princess Half Marathon recap kick this week, I wanted to share that same love with my "jam" post today!

Today's "jam" is an oldie but definitely a goodie!  Anyone who was in Corral C (C stands for Courage!) for the Princess Half Marathon will know this song, as this was our send off song.  We sang along and almost overpowered the soundtrack at the start line.  Totally brilliant.

Today's "jam" is:

Race Recap: Royal Family 5K

I woke up to a quiet room on Saturday morning to get ready to run the Royal Family 5K.  None of my roomies were running it, nor were they waking early to come and see/cheer anyone on.

3:30am was far too early for this one to be awake, but I was and I was getting ready for my first runDisney race EVER!

 

I decided not to dress like a Princess for this race, but rather let my inner Winnie the Pooh come out!

I arrived via bus to the parking lots outside of Epcot where the drop off point was and made the walk toward the bag check area.  There were tons of signs and volunteers to help us sleepy eyed runners get to where we needed to be.

 

Got my picture taken before heading towards the corrals!  This is the first time I'd ever been to a runDisney event and was pretty happy with how smoothly the transitions were between locations.

PHM Weekend Day 2: Expo and Meet-ups!

An early morning for Marcia and I as we woke up at 6am to be dressed and at Coronado Springs resort by 7am for the #RunShopEat meet-up!

First, the run!  We had a few people that were interested in meeting up with us for this, well meet-up, but by the time the morning came it was just Marcia and I.  Oh well, it was fun still!

The Coronado property is really pretty and I would consider staying here in the future.  Expansive and quiet!  These are just a few of the vantage points from our run.  After we ran and were thoroughly sweaty (it was quite hot at 7:30am, lower 70's in the sun I would say) we went inside to get in line for the expo.

 

PHM Weekend Begins! Day 1

My journey to Orlando started in the evening hours on Wednesday night.  I was taking the red eye to Orlando from Seattle, leaving at 9:45pm and arriving at 8:35am.  When you travel cross country there is always time lost and I hate losing an entire day to flying, so I gambled on losing a night of sleep instead.  Good idea or bad idea?

My pre-flight ritual is the same.  I stop off at the airport bar for a little drink and my first dose of Airborne for the flight.

 

Momentum Monday: Never Stop Being Curious

Ah Monday, we meet again!  It is the last week we have an extra hour before until we jump into Daylights Savings Time, which begins next weekend.  This always makes me sad because I love sleep and this time change takes it away from me.  :(

Today kicks off a full week of recaps for the Princess Half Marathon.  I know it was a week ago already (a week ago!?! How time flies!) but there is so much to share that one recap wasn't going to be sufficient.  Therefore this is a week of Disney and runDisney, so get ready for pictures galore!

Today's Momentum Monday is taking a nod from Disney himself:

Friday and March 1st!

Wow, it is March 1st.  Wasn't it just New Year's Eve like a few weeks ago?  The time is going so quickly it is seriously blowing my mind!

Yesterday was my first run since the Princess 1/2 marathon on Sunday and it was a mixed bag.  I participated in the St. Pat's Dash Training Run hosted by Brooks.  The training run is around Greenlake and ends at Super Jock n Jill, where there were snacks and hydration provided by Nuun (my fave!) and they raffled off great prizes! They hold this event during the three Thursdays prior to the St. Pat's Dash and if you attend all three runs you get a special custom shirt from Brooks.  Pretty snazzy!

So yesterday had been cold and rainy, so I had a feeling we would be running in the rain as well.  No biggie, it happens.  Well luckily the rain held off, but it was quite dark when we headed out at 6:30 for the quick 3 mile run. 

Now last year my friends and I ran these training runs and we barely made it back in time for the raffle, which they start about 40 minutes after the run began.  We would get in around 45-47 minutes, so needless to say, we were bringing up the rear.  Well this run was no exception, we were still bringing up the rear (most runners around here are so fast, I feel quite inadequate when it comes to speed!) but this time it was different.  The raffle hadn't started yet, we had run pretty hard (read: I was dying!), and the clock at the store read 7:05.  Wait, what?  Did I just make that run in 35 minutes?  A distance just short of a 5K in 35 minutes?!?! 

BOOYAH!!!

I felt good, oh so good about the run and my time!  Especially coming off the heels of a half marathon this past weekend.  I didn't think I would bounce back this quickly and to best my time from last year by almost 12 minutes!  That's a HUGE step and big show of progress in just this past year.  It was so encouraging and I'm still smiling about it today.  I may not have won anything from the raffle, but I got the best reward ever, proof that my training is doing me well and that I can and will improve!

Coming from that high last night, I opened my email this morning and saw my favorite beginning of the month email!  Pro Compression just released their SOM (sock of the month) and just in time for St. Patrick's Day!  See below the awesomely cute socks they are offering for a really great deal of 40% off!!  If you know me well, you will know I <heart> Pro Compression socks, I never go on a long run without them.  I will confess, I have 7 pairs of marathon socks and one pair of calf sleeves, that is how much I love them!

Save 40% Off Shamrock Compression Socks & All Calf Sleeves

What could be better for your St. Patrick's Day race than a great deal on our Limited Edition Shamrock Compression Socks and all Calf Sleeves? Best of all, you'll save 40% and get free shipping when you enter Coupon Code SOM3 at checkout! Yes, you are welcome to share this offer with friends, training partners and other enthusiasts!

With these great features, our "Marathon" full-length, graduated compression products are an amazing value: - Promotes blood flow for speedy recovery - Foot-bed compression - Built-in "Stabilizer Zone" for optimal support - Advanced materials for moisture control  - Made in USA - mmHg rating 22-26 If this isn't the coolest sock ever, we'd like to see it! Save 40% and get FREE shipping!

Limited Time Offer Coupon code SOM3 is valid for purchases of our Marathon Shamrock socks and all Calf Sleeves in the store. Don't wait, inventory is limited, and this offer expires March 18, 2013. Orders received before March 6th will ship by the 9th, in plenty of time for your St. Patrick's Day event!

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Even if you don't get any of these socks, take a look at their website, they may have a color or style that catches your eye and suits your fancy. 

Hope your Friday is great and that you have wonderful plans for this weekend.  As for me, I'm back to training and it is 6 miles on the schedule for me.  I may have just finished my first half marathon, but that doesn't mean I need to rest completely, I don't want to lose the mileage I've worked so hard to build up.  So a nice and easy 6 miles for Saturday it is for me.  Hahahaha...I'm laughing at the "nice and easy 6 miles" comment, whew...that made me laugh.  To think back when one mile was a battle, now I can do a "nice and easy 6 miles".  HA!  Have a great weekend.