Tag Archives: training

5K Crate Product Review

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Disclaimer: I received a box from 5K Crate to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!

I’ve always loved the idea of subscription boxes.  No matter what your interest may be (quilting, make-up, clothes, gaming, running), subscription boxes are a fun way to go to guarantee trying something new, or discovering a product you may have not known about otherwise.

5K Crate is a quarterly subscription box that “curates premium apparel and accessories for runners of all types and fitness levels. Each box is carefully hand curated to include 5-6 items that you will use over and over again. We do not want to be just another box full of snacks and gels!”  (Love the personalized note that was inserted in my box!)

The box I received contained:

  • 1 Mission Vaporactive Running Shirt ($25)
  • 1 Mission Hydroactive Cooling Towel ($19.99)
  • 1 pair of Spigen Wireless Bluetooth Headphones ($49.99)
  • 1 pair of Zensah Compression Socks ($14.99)
  • 2 Epic Full-Size Body Wipes ($3 each)
  • 3 La Fresh Travel Sunscreen Samples

Who doesn’t love getting such a menagerie of goodies?!  I know I do!  Every single one of these items is of high quality and absolutely something I can use.  I took the body wipes and sunscreen on my trip this past weekend when I ran my half marathon, and the cooling towel helped me out on some very warmish runs I had.

I can’t praise this company enough.  I feel the products that you get are well worth the subscription price, not to mention… again… everything is usable!!  Their next box is set to be sent out October 16th, and rumor has it that there is Momentum Jewelry in it, saying “Be Awesome Today.”  See?  Totally worth it!

I did not receive any financial compensation for this review and all opinions rendered are my own. If you would like to see some other reviews on 5K Crate, please check out what some of my BRP friends have to say:

Tedrick; Jenna; Mai; Ang; Vanessa; Heather.

Have you ever tried a subscription box before?  Go ahead, don’t be shy… tell me your experience!

Double, Double Toil and Trouble

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Clever title, eh?  It’s taken from Song of the Witches/Macbeth, written (of course) by William Shakespeare… you know… trivia.

This is a post I’ve put off writing for about a week now as I have slowly come to grips with the reality of the situation.  However, if you follow both me and my husband James at 50 in 50 Marathon Quest, then you know what I’m about to say.

We won’t be going to DC next month to run Marine Corps Marathon, which was to be my very first marathon.  We had to defer our entries to next year.

The reason being…

Last week it was discovered that James may have blown a disk.  Today was his appointment with the spine physiatrist who confirmed that James does indeed have a herniated disk with a trapped nerve.  James will be getting conservative treatment with physical therapy to see if that helps before he goes all out with injections into the back.

This is not a running injury, so please don’t even go there.

This puts an end to James’s race season before it even begins.  It throws me a little off track as well, and we are very saddened by these recent developments.  However… my family does not wallow in self pity.  We adapt and improvise and get the hell over it.

So!  New plan people!!  I will continue on with my training and racing as scheduled, all except for MCM.  I have now chosen to run Rock N Roll San Antonio as a full marathon in December.  We are hoping that James will be well enough by then that he can at least participate in some way, but if not, he and AJ will be there to cheer me across the finish line!

And fear not!  It’s not all been doom and gloom here in the hot and dry Pacific Northwest!  AJ and I attended the PAX Conference in Seattle on Labor Day.  For those who don’t know, it’s a huge game convention.  As AJ has known since he was 8 that he wants to be a game designer when he grows up, we encourage all development in that aspect, so we were off to the convention.  What a great day it was.

We got to watch the Mario Super Smash Brothers Tournament while it was being streamed live on Twitch.  These kids were playing for a $10,000 purse:

And we even ran into Jack Septic Eye, a famous gaming YouTuber, of whom I once wrote about here:

And I completely understand that I may be speaking Greek to everyone over 20 in regards to gaming, but when it’s your child’s passion, you try to keep up.  KnowwhatImeanVern?  Okay, yes, confession time… if you didn’t already know it, James and I are gamers too.  I’m in the middle of re-playing the Kingdom Hearts series before the new one is released in December and James just started a new Final Fantasy.

Anyway, my friends, onward I go with my running, with high hopes for a speedy recovery for Jamesy!  I will race the Sounders 5K this Saturday, the North County Wine Run Half-Marathon the following week, then it’s on to San Antonio in December!  Woo hoo!

 

Be Brilliant, Be Safe

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Disclaimer: I received some Brilliant Reflective Strips to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review, find and write race reviews!  All opinions are my own.

I was actually excited to receive some of these strips to test out.  I had seen others using them and I wanted to know for myself if they actually were as bright as they looked.  I’ve never been comfortable with running in the dark, mostly because it’s hard to be seen no matter what you do.  That makes training outside very difficult in the winter when the daylight hours here in the Seattle area max out to about 9 hours.  We also get quite a few rainy and dark days, so sometimes it’s even hard to be seen at 3 p.m.

Enter Brilliant Reflective strips…

What are they?  Brilliant Reflective Strips are strips of reflective and colorized material that you can add to various surfaces (clothing, bikes, helmets, backpacks, shoes, etc.) for maximum visibility.  They are made from retroreflective material, which means when light shines on them, the light will reflect off the strip and go back directly to the source.  Way cool.

To test them out, I ironed some onto a running shirt …

… stuck some on my child’s backpack, shoes, and hat …

The only light we used was the flash from my camera; otherwise it was pitch black outside.

… and just for fun, I stuck one on my remote control so I could find it in the dark.

Cost:  $14.95 per pack in the color of your choice (black, red, purple, blue), either iron-on or stickies, free shipping.  You can get a multi-pack which includes one of each color for $49.95, free shipping. If you choose to buy their multi-packs, you can use the code “BRPmulti” to get 20% off.

The Cons:  I suck at ironing, so it took me forever to figure out how to get the iron-ons to stick (and at a higher-than-recommended setting). However, that’s my own personal disability and ineptness… you may not have the same problem.

Bottom line:  In my opinion, I think they’re fabulous if you want to be seen.  They’re not just for runners as these will stick on anything.  Get creative!  Put them on the cat’s collar!  But most importantly, I don’t have to worry about my child not being seen in the dark because he now lights up like a Christmas tree.

Visit Mai’s blog at If I Just Breathe to see her review of the Brilliant Reflective Strips.

Join us on Twitter (#BibChat, @BibRave) on September 12 at 6 p.m. Pacific for a chance to win a pack of these handy-dandy safety strips!  I know come Halloween night, AJ won’t be stepping out the door without being decorated in them from head to toe.

Fun At Work… and Other Stuff

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Sometimes my boss and I have to find creative ways to entertain ourselves at work in order to survive the madness of dealing with the general public.  She’s only 2 months older than I, so we completely understand each other and think along the same lines.

On Instagram, a fake male profile followed me and then promptly sent me a private message.  I knew it was a fake… I’m not gullible nor an idiot… so I told my boss that I wanted to mess with him.  My boss wanted in on the fun… so she told me what to write back.  The following conversation ensued:

 

Nigeria.  Wow.  I cannot believe people still use that scam.  Even my child was smarter than that. Of course, my side of the conversation is the one in blue.  Continuing on…

If you are American and not 12 years old, you would understand the reference of ruby slippers. And so endeth our conversation.  He didn’t like my response that Glenda could help him. Maybe the scammers have a “no-contact list” and I’ve made it.  But if it happens again, we’re going for gold.  I will help the scammer… at least they will think I’m helping from the replies I send.

Oh… BTW… if you get a follow from “whitlockchristopher95” on IG, it’s a total scam.  Hopefully he won’t be around for too much longer… I’ve reported him.

Moving on…

I’ve given up on my training “weekly recaps,” sorry.  Those posts don’t work for me, way too much negative. You’ll just have to wait and see if I finish the marathon on October 22nd… your guess is as good as mine.  If I don’t finish, it certainly won’t be from lack of training.  It’ll be because my spirit animal is the “turtle.” #truth  (but I did run 12 miles today, even though the heat sucked the life out of me)

However, on that note, next weekend I have a half-marathon race… the Seattle Craft Classic. The following weekend, we’ve signed up for the Sounders Rave Green Run (purely for the bling as this past year our soccer team won the MLS championship and we’ll get the championship medal), and the weekend after that, I have the North County Wine Run Half-Marathon. September is an extremely busy month, but the race experience will do me good in getting rid of the nerves I’ll experience on the day of the marathon.  I hope.

As well…

My 12-year-old son is now taller than me.  He has it in writing from the doctor and everything. He’s officially 5 feet 8 inches.  At 12.  99th percentile.  I’m thrilled that he’s so tall, and he loves rubbing it in.  He will bypass his father by this time next year.  He also starts 7th grade on Wednesday.

And finally…

Last Friday we lost a very special blogger friend.  Terry from Spearfruit passed on.  Terry had bladder cancer, for which there is no cure.  I started following him back in 2015 after my brother passed away from cancer, hoping for answers.  Funny enough, I did get my answers about a month ago. Terry was always upbeat, positive, accepted his diagnosis, knew he was dying, but never failed to tell his friends “have a happy day.”

Back when Terry was healthier, he would do a “boogie” type of video to the best 70’s music.  It was just silly fun.  He enjoyed doing it.  He enjoyed making his friends smile.  And we all enjoyed it in return.  To Terry, I hope you’re boogieing all night long now.

The following is one of his last happy boogies.  Even his husband Gary danced in it.  They took a cruise at the end of last year and had a bang-up time as they knew full well it would be Terry’s last.

Enjoy this with the fun spirit intended… and never forget to tell your loved ones how you feel today… as tomorrow may be too late.

Week 7 of 16 Recap — August 14 through August 19

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This weekend in Whistler, BC, has been so cram-packed with activity I hardly remember last week even existed.  And yet, it did… so, I’ma gonna write about it.

Monday:  Nada.  I do not remember for the life of me why I didn’t do any training of any type, but I didn’t.

Tuesday:  4 miles, with hill training.

Wednesday:  Zero, zip, nothing.  We were leaving the next day to go to Whistler… laundry, packing, and prepping the house for vacation were my main goals.

Thursday: 2 miles, intervals, really crunched for time.  I missed Wednesday, so I had to get up early and do some interval training on Thursday morning on the treadmill, go to work, and then after I got home we headed off for our lovely 4-day weekend.

Friday:  16 miles.  I wrote a post about this run so no surprise here.  However… come to find out, I earned the title of BAMF.  The following picture is what my first 5 miles looked like:

It is also what my last 5 miles looked like (I did the above particular 5-mile loop twice).  The 6 miles in between were a separate loop in and around Whistler Village and a golf course or two, which looked something like this:

And yet:

Saturday:  7.5-mile walk and 2-hour bike ride.  Yes, it’s true.  The day after my first 16-mile run.  I don’t even know what to say about this.  Oh wait, yes I do!  Active recovery and time on my already-sore feet!  Or… don’t ever come to Whistler if you want to relax; it’s not that kind of holiday.  I’ll count today as a full-on cross training day with the walking and the cycling.

Sunday:  1.5-mile bike ride, 1.5 mile walk, and afternoon horseback riding with my son.  Today my quads are shredded after hills, cycling, and horsing around.  My a$$ doesn’t feel all that great either.  I’m taking a rest day Monday as we’re headed back home to some semblance of normalcy.  I am looking forward to taking a nap sometime this coming week.  And my own bed. And my cats.  And did I mention a nap?

It’s been a great getaway, and I’ve totally enjoyed myself.  I was happy to get the long run out of the way first thing so as to have the time freed up to do some other really fun things, even if I did do them in slow motion.  I’ll write more on Whistler later, but for now, I’m done.  My pillow is calling me.

Weekly Total:  22 miles/35.4 km

Total Plan Mileage So Far:  153 miles/246.2 km

While the total mileage for the way I count my week doesn’t look that significant, my running days actually look like this:  Sun:  7; Tues:  4; Thurs:  2; Friday:  16.  We’ll see what I can accomplish this coming week… after a nap, of course.

  • 21 days until Seattle Craft Classic Half Marathon.
  • 33 days until North County Wine Run Half Marathon.
  • 63 days until Marine Corps Marathon.
  • 105 days until Rock ‘N’ Roll San Antonio Half Marathon. 
  • 126 days until Christmas.

Best cookies ever!!

Thanks for stopping by!  Hope you have a great week!

Yes. I did.

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I finally ran further than 13.1 miles.

Friday I ran through the hilly trails of Whistler, BC, and eeked out 16 miles.

A big thank you to Chocolate Runs Judy for sending me an encouraging text.  It was greatly appreciated!  And, of course, a big thank you to 50 in 50 Marathon Quest for talking me down off a ledge around mile 9 to 10, which is where I normally have an emotional breakdown and want to say f**k it all.

I won’t lie… when I was done, I was not elated like I thought I would be, nor did I feel accomplished like I thought I would.  Just tired.  And mentally fried.

Afterwards, of course, my thinking immediately goes to, “but I will still have 10 more miles to go for the marathon…”

Hence, the reason we train… to get stronger.  Next week, I’ll be nearing the 20-mile mark.  It may be 18, it may be 20… I don’t know.  And nope… I won’t even think about it until it happens.

In the meantime, I have a beautiful little town to explore.  Today on the agenda is horseback riding and hiking/gondola flying on the mountain… it’s going to be such a great day.  And surprisingly, yes… I can still move!  My quads are a bit sore from the hills, as are my Achilles, but other than that… bring it on!

 

 

BibRave Pro!

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I have a fun announcement!  I’ve been selected to be a BibRave ambassador, otherwise known as a BibRave Pro!

What is BibRave?  BibRave is a website that provides a community forum for runners to research and review races.  Anyone can submit a race review and there are no fees to use the service.  There is already a great online community and a weekly twitter chat, #bibchat, hosted each Tuesday at 6pm PST.

What is a BibRave Pro?  BibRave Pros are run bloggers who help spread the word about BibRave and BibRave-partnered races and brands.

What does this mean?  It basically means I’ll be reviewing races and products right here on my blog and continue to write race reviews on BibRave.

I’ve updated my website to include some discount codes.  If you’re interested in a race discount code, such as any Rock N Roll or Hot Chocolate race, you can visit my Race Discounts tab, and for gear and product discounts, visit my Gear Discounts tab.  These discounts are for runners and non-runners alike!

If you’d like more information on BibRave, you can visit http://www.bibrave.com.

I’m super excited to be doing this!  Wish me luck!!  You may be seeing a lot of orange in my near future!!

 

Week 2 of 16 Recap — July 10 through 16

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Week 2 of marathon training didn’t go nearly as well as week 1.

Monday:  3 miles.  After long-run Sunday, we decided it would be best if I had some nice active recovery.  So moving forward, Monday will now consist of an easy-going run where speed or pace doesn’t matter, just to loosen up the legs from the previous day.

The only problem was I couldn’t get up early to do this, so I ran in the evening.  On top of that, I took an allergy pill as something started to tickle my nose.  Because of this, there was probably no getting up early on Tuesday morning to beat the heat…

Tuesday:  2 miles.  It was supposed to be 5.  I did manage to get up early; however, because I had taken an allergy pill the night before, I couldn’t get it going.  My legs felt like lead and my heart rate was erratic, as was my breathing.  (#BenadrylHangover)  I called the run at 2.

Wednesday:  5 miles.  I redeemed myself.  I finally got over the Benadryl hangover and was able to pull it out, but I did this late in the evening when it had cooled down.  I’m so thankful for long days of light right now.

At work, we got in a poor little domestic white rock dove.  He had been attacked by crows.  He had probably been released during someone’s wedding and couldn’t find his way back home. Because he was domesticated, he got to hang out with me all day and get out of the clinic.  He perched happily on my shoulder while I worked, even slept there a bit.  He should be okay as long as the stress of being in a hospital doesn’t get to him.

Thursday:  Cross trained.  I didn’t feel like doing much more than walking, so I practiced my speed walking for 2 miles.  Cross training doesn’t count towards plan mileage, but hey, 2 miles is 2 miles.  More time on my feet.

This was also “Take Your Kids To Work Day” at Starbucks.  AJ got to go hang out with James at Starbucks Headquarters, for which they had lots of fun activities planned for all the kids.  AJ was super excited about getting to make his own Frappucino… any flavor or ingredient he wanted to add, he did.  He even got his own special green Starbucks apron.

Friday:  4 miles.  Again, I couldn’t get up early, so this had to be done on a hot afternoon on the treadmill.  I earned my happy hour, lol.

Saturday:  Rest day.

Sunday:  8 miles.  I was supposed to do 9, but I took an S-cap (electrolytes) at mile 5 and then ate a date at mile 6, and by mile 7, my stomach was cramping up.  It sucks to have a sensitive stomach.  Regardless, it was a beautiful day to be out… nice and overcast and cool!

Weekly Total:  22 miles/35.4 km

Total Mileage So Far:  41 miles/66 km

So tell me:

  • Are you training for race?  If so, which one? (Shout it out loud and proud!!)
  • Are you on Instagram?  If you are, reach out and say “hi!”  I’m finally starting to figure out this fun little app (I know, I know, but I’m old, what can I say), and I’ve gotten to know quite a few blogger friends better by following them on Instagram, so I’d love to follow you if I’m not already!  You can find me here.
  • Who’s your favorite internet provider?

Hope all ya’all have a super great week!

Week 1 of 16 Recap — July 3 through 9

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Marathon training has officially begun.  Okay, okay… I started 3 weeks ago… but now it’s the official start of the plan and the weekly countdown.  From here on out, I don’t miss a run and the mileage creeps up and up and up.  Let’s break it on down, shall we?

Monday:  Non-running day.  I always nail the first day of a new plan, hehe.

Work kind of sucked though.  Our hot water heater in the clinic sprang a leak and, thus, a plumber had to be called. After begging and pleading for same-day service, we finally found someone and only had to be without water for a couple of hours. They were good people, very gracious to come out on an almost holiday, and it only cost us an arm and a leg and a soul.

Tuesday:  2 miles.  Weak, I know.  It should’ve been 3.

But with it being the 4th of July, and with me living in a war zone, and it being hot as Hades, I stuck to the treadmill.  Did I mention I had to work as well?  No rest for the wicked.  And the 4th of July is never good for any animal, especially the wild ones.  Stress is the number one killer of animals in the wild, which is usually caused by people.  Just food for thought.

Wednesday:  Cross trained.  Yes!  I actually cross trained!!  Hallelujah, she did it!!  I rode the indoor bike for a bit to warm up and then practiced my speed walking on the treadmill.  I don’t walk fast, I’ve never walked fast, and I don’t know how people do it.  But I’m trying…

We admitted many patients at work because of the holiday, the one most notable being a baby bald eagle.  She had fallen from the nest and the parents were still taking care of her, feeding her while she was on the ground.  Sad situation as she couldn’t be re-nested.  Ironic, isn’t it, to celebrate the nation’s independence and that which gets displaced is the ultimate symbol of freedom?

Thursday:  4 miles.  I am now having to set the alarm earlier and earlier as the mileage increases.

Friday:  5 miles.  I was not aware that it was light outside at 4:30 a.m.  Imagine that!

#spottedthebunny

Saturday:  Rest day.

Sunday:  8 miles.  I didn’t get up quite as early as I wanted, so because of the intense sun, I ended up doing 6 miles on the trail and 2 on the treadmill to finish it up.  Did you know you can get sunburned at 7 a.m.?  True story!

Weekly Total:  19 miles/30 km

So tell me:

  • Did you have a good weekend?
  • Are you melting from the heat yet?  
  • If you live in the U.S., are you a fan of the noise the 4th of July celebration brings? 

 

Throwback Thursday – My First Half Marathon

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I had run a 10K back in 10/2013, and it was then I decided I would start training for a half marathon.  I was aiming for the Lake Sammamish Half for March, but after a little discussion with The Motivator, we decided my first half should be Rock ‘N’ Roll Seattle, 6/21/2014.

A month before RNR Seattle, we ran RNR Portland, with me running the 10K and James the half.  I remember during that race watching all the people make the turnoff to continue on with the half and thinking, “Oh how the hell am I going to pull this off in Seattle.  I’m already knackered.  I can’t imagine running another 6 miles.”

Pre-Seattle race, I remember being a basket case.  The nerves were out of this world.  And the RNR events are huge, so the amount of people that were there freaked me out as well.  But everyone else looked so calm.  Thankfully James stayed with me for as long as he could so I wouldn’t bail (lol, kidding).

It probably took me about 5 miles in before I relaxed.

The course was gorgeous (and super hilly), and I felt privileged to be able to run in areas I wouldn’t normally get to see.  Back then I didn’t carry my phone with me, just my iPod for music.  So, no pictures.  I made a mental note to carry a camera with me on the next race.  This was before blogging, so that didn’t happen.  There are a lot of races I missed out on taking pictures, and I’ve seen some amazing sights.  It’s also one of the reasons why I’m running the 50 states… for the sights.  Everyone else chases PRs… I’m there for aesthetics, lol.

And I’ll never forget the feeling of accomplishment I had when I finally crossed the finish line.  There is nothing that compares to it.  It’s why I’m addicted to racing… and, oh yeah, the bling.

I have since run 10 more half marathons and am now training for my first full.  I can imagine the above feelings are going to be escalated out of the stratosphere.

  “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” – Philippians 4:13