Who went to San Fran ...

 

Hello everyone! 

I am soooo excited to write this blog post -- because it means I get to relive an AMAZING vacation!

Last year in December, one of my best friends decided to pack all her bags and leave the Midwest (sadly - probably forever....) and take an amazing job opportunity in California. I have not seen her since she moved ... therefore, my other best friend (from Indiana) and I decided it was time for a reunion and we ventured out to San Fran for a fun-filled girls weekend!

Emily (California) and I met on the cross country team at DePauw University, and Lizzy (Indiana) was in our sorority and we all lived together our senior year of college (epic!). Emily and Lizzy were both in my wedding and Emily and I were both in Lizzy's wedding. We are a threesome ... and I love it!

Back to the trip ...

Lizzy and I landed late on Wednesday evening (that 3 hour time change sucks...), but woke up for a day filled exploring San Fran on Thursday! 

We took a 3 hour walking tour of the Castro and Mission districts - which was so entertaining and fun!

I would recommend Wild San Fran Walking Tours to anyone - http://www.wildsftours.com/ 

They give you a lot of history and local information, and they kind of "force" you to get to know others on the tour - which made it very interactive and fun! We had people on our tour from all over the World.

Castro District was interesting!

Thursday evening we took a train to San Jose (which is where Emily lives and works), and we got to see Emily's town and house. It was a laid back evening, which was needed to catch up on sleep and recharge for the jam packed days ahead! 

On Friday we got to peek into Emily's life and tour around her work and around San Jose. Emily works at Specialized Bike Company - which means she has connections and was able to get us pedal assist bikes to ride around San Jose. 

What are pedal assist bikes you ask? Well ...when you pedal, the bike gives you an "extra" oomph - and you can go really fast and you do not really have to work hard at all! I got up to 30 mph! 

We rode the bikes around San Jose and then parked them to hike up a mountain! We went on the Toro hike, and got some great views of the Valley. When you vacation with my best friends ... you never stop moving, and are always active! The best way to explore a new place!

It was pretty steep! 

At the summit - you have to take a selfie!

 

After the amazing hike and bike riding, we headed into San Fran for the rest of the weekend (and took a pit stop in Palo Alto to drive through Stanford).

On Friday evening we went to a Giants baseball game. I LOVE live baseball - give me some nachos,  a cold beer, and my best friends ... I am a happy lady!

Saturday was my favorite day of the trip! So much time outside and such amazing weather and views! Since my body was still on East Coast time, I woke up nice and early and squeezed in a longer run ... best. run.ever! I got to run across the Golden Gate Bridge and all along the waterfront of San Fran. Let me just say - the Golden Gate Bridge never gets old!

After a filling breakfast, we packed into Emily's car and headed over the bridge to a State Park in Marin County for a 7.5 mile hike. We only had to drive about 20 minute, but I felt like I was hiking in Europe. It was incredible - I love cliffs meeting water!

One of the highlights of the hike was conquering a fear and climbing up this big rock .... this picture does not do it justice - it was big and scary to cross over a little make shift bridge =)

 To make this perfect hike even more perfect - we stopped halfway through the hike and had lunch at the cutest English pub (The Pelican Inn) that felt like a hidden gem. A cold cider was the most refreshing thing I have ever tasted! 

 

                                               

Saturday was such an active day, and I loved every second of it! We ended the evening with more activity ... dancing to Taylor Swift's "Shake it Off" =) 

You cannot got to San Fran without venturing to wine county, so on Sunday we drove to Sonoma and went to Chateau St. Jean. It was the perfect afternoon ... relaxing, filled with snacks, smiles, and photo shoots. 

I took the red eye flight home on Sunday evening ... which was not my brightest idea because I was a walking zombie on Monday at work and in class ... but it was totally worth it! 

The trip was amazing, and it was soooo good to catch up with my two best friends (and make new friends). We all decided it cannot be a year until our next reunion ... but this trip recharged us all. 

To summarize this post:

- Visit San Fran in September  (amazing weather)

- Text or Call your best friends ... they are so important! 

Have you ever had a girl's getaway? What is the best vacation you have been on recently?

Who shares some NYC pictures ...

It is FITNESS FRIDAY!!
I want to share a simple idea with you in honor of Fitness Friday - go on a run or a walk somewhere new and fun! Summer is coming to a close, so take advantage of the amazing weather and go explore a new area. I run the same running routes around my house every morning and they can get boring and can make running seem like a chore. Something as simple as picking a new path or running route can really freshen up your routine and remind you why you love running and working out so much!

I travel for work, and when I am in a new city I LOVE exploring new places to run!!

I was in New York for work this week and I wanted to share some pictures. New York City is unlike any other city in the USA (and I mean that mostly as a compliment). It can give you so much energy, but it can also make you feel very small too. NYC is a concrete jungle, but there are many beautiful things about it too - especially my favorite place ever .... Central Park!

Early morning flight lets me watch the sunrise ABOVE the clouds!

SO many buildings and high rises!

The cutest store front ever - look at the hanging ball jars with flowers

Cute shops around ever corner

My trip was really quick, but I was staying close to Central Park, so I had the chance to take a long walk around it one evening and then do a tempo run through it one morning too. Here are some of my favorite views of the park. I love the high rise building contrasting against the green and the water of the park!

Ahhh!! So pretty!

Also - I feel very lucky that I get to travel with my job and explore new cities, but sometimes traveling for work is not as sexy as it seems.

Eating Chipotle in my hotel room, while studying - not super glamorous (but delicious!).

So --- I will end this post by encouraging you to go explore a new running path, or even a new fitness studio! Freshen things up and energize yourself!!

Where do you want to explore?? And what is your plan for Labor Day weekend?

Five Things Friday 8.22.14

I absolutely loved participating in Clare's Five Things Friday post last week ... so I am back to do it again this week!

I think I will do Fitness Friday two Fridays a month and Five Things Friday the other two.

Before I jump into my Five Things ... I wanted to say I am super excited for this weekend! B and I are heading down to Indianapolis to see family and good friends, go to an outdoor concert, eat ice cream, play with babies, and more. It should be a great time and I can't wait to tell you all about it next week!

Five Things I Ate

• Collider from Roy's Diner
• If you are from Ann Arbor (especially if you went to school at UofM), Roy's Diner is kind of famous. It is a hole in the wall restaurant that has frozen yogurt and Korean ... random! I went there for their frozen yogurt! They make a blizzard like concoction with fro yo and you can add anything you want. So delicious! I got strawberries, bananas (healthy!?), Golden Grahams, and real cookie dough.

 

• Trader Joe's Greek Yogurt Guacamole
• This guacamole is amazing! So good -- you have to try it! 

                                  

•  Fresh Green Beans
• We have gotten green beans in our CSA the last couple of weeks, and I have been loving it! I love them steamed, but I also love to roast them. They get a little charred and I eat them with my hands like french fries.

•  Oatmeal, Pecan, Chocolate Chip Cookies 
• Made these tasty cookie to take with us this weekend to share with family!



Recipe is from Half Baked Harvest Blog (Source)

                                           

• Soy Marinated Cod (from Trader Joe's also)
• My sister in law made cod for us when we went camping in Northern Michigan and I loved it (I usually stick with tilapia). Since I loved it so much, I decided to go out and buy some and we just baked it in the oven and it was pretty good.

Five Workouts 

My workouts are pretty similar from last week ... run and run some more.

Monday:
- 6 mile morning run with my running buddies (legs were heavy because I did my long run on Sunday)
-Taught my last barre class!

Tuesday:
- 8 mile morning run

Wednesday:
- 800 WORKOUT - 6 X 800 meters  - 7.5 miles
Tried to push it pretty hard, but felt pretty good (new shoes made my feet feel like they were on clouds)
I am very grateful for the company I had on the run! (thank you Laura!)

Thursday:
- Day off (Unless floating in a pool with a cute baby counts as a workout)

Friday:
- 9 miles

Five Pins

Drunken noodles with sausage, veggies, and fresh basil - I love drunken noodles! (Source)

TOO CUTE! (see a theme of Golden puppies pinned??) (Source unknown)

Pumpkin Chocolate Brownies ... it is almost pumpkin season!! (Source)

I need this quote right now ... about to start my first prereq class on Monday and it sure seems like a LONG road ahead! (Source unknown)

I am a sucker for Kate Spade (but too pricey for me) - but this coat is gorgeous!! (Source)

Five Things Making Me Happy

• Making friends in Ann Arbor and settling in! 
• It has taken a while for Ann Arbor to truly feel like home, but I am really grateful for some close friends I have made and some new, fun friends I have met recently!

•  Starting my Human Anatomy Class on Monday!? 
• I think this will make me happy... I am really nervous, but at the same time I am also very excited to take the first step. I declared this week my last week of freedom, so I do know things will change ... but I will be working towards a big goal. 

• Soggy Cereal
• As a blogger I want to be transparent - so I want to admit, even though it may be gross to some, I love my cereal really soggy! Like I put milk over the cereal and put it into the fridge for a while soggy.... Any other believers? 

•   Catch up time with B and Yosey
• Recently I feel like B and I have been on totally different schedules (it does not help that he worked over 100 hours last week). On nights he gets home early I have had things going on and vice versa ... so one night this week we just got to sit down and catch up and chat and be a big happy family (yupp ... corny). 

• The book Fault in our Stars
• The book actually makes me sad and grateful, but I love it. It is a young adult book, which makes it a very easy read. I hope to finish it this week and then I will go see the movie. I love that it is set in Indianapolis too and talks about a lot of familiar sights.  

                                                                  


 Now your turn!!?? What have you eaten this week and what has made you happy? And most importantly ... anyone else like soggy cereal?

Who runs fartleks ...

The word fartlek is just kind of funny ... so I wanted to use it in the post title! 

As the picture says ... it is Monday - so take the week by the horns kick ass and take some names.

I have been talking a lot about biking and swimming on the blog, and running was starting to feel left out ... so today's post is all about running!

To hold myself accountable, I thought I would give you a little update on my Detroit Marathon training.
It is still pretty early in the game, but things are going pretty well. I originally said I wanted to take this marathon training super serious and hit every workout and long run - but I forgot that running is not my career and life happens. For example, the next 3 weekends I am either traveling or have guests - so I have to be strategic about getting my long runs in ... and I am ok with it!  I am trying to plan ahead and squeeze them in during the week (hard to do), or break them up into 2 "longish" runs on the same day. I would rather run 16 miles straight, but this weekend I did 8 miles in the morning on Friday and 8 in the afternoon - it is just what worked best and I am still getting the miles on my legs.

I have done a few speed workouts, but I want to focus more on this aspect. Hopefully in the next few weeks I can do some hill workouts, intervals and fartleks. I always feel so accomplished after a workout and I know they can REALLY help - I just need to do it.

I use the words interval and fartlek on the blog, and I wanted to make sure you knew what they meant and share an example workout for each term!

Interval Workout

As defined by Runner's World - Interval training, also known as interval workouts or interval runs, are short, intense efforts followed by equal or slightly less recovery time. An interval workout is more structured than a fartlek and in an interval workout - you want to push above your red line (aka - really push yourself), because you will get a recovery. 

An interval workout can be on a track or can be on the roads, but you will usually be running a marked, specific distance. 

I am going to share a traditional track, interval workout that is hard, but awesome! I got this idea from my awesome running group - PR Fitness.
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
First ----- Make sure you properly warm up - I usually run 2 miles to get sweaty and get the blood pumping!

Another difference between an interval workout and a fartlek run is that in an interval workout, you normally stop after the warm up run and do a little stretching before you jump into the workout. 

The workout is a series of 800 meter repeats - I would recommend either 4 or 6 repeats depending on your fitness level and desire to really push yourself.

Instead of just the traditional 800 meter repeats with equal rest ... there is a twist =)
The recovery (either jogging or static) between each 800 meter repeat starts at 1 minute and 20 seconds, and then decreases by 10 seconds every repeat. The idea is to hold the pace from you first 800 meters, even though you are getting less rest time. 

Just like you need to hold the pace in a race, even when you are tired! 

After the 800 meter repeats, make sure you cool down - I usually run 1 to 2 miles. The warm up and cool down help you reach you mileage goals. 

Fartlek Workout

As defined by Runner's World - Fartlek is Swedish for "speed play," and that is exactly what it’s all about. Unlike tempo and interval work, fartlek is unstructured and alternates moderate-to-hard efforts with easy throughout. A fartlek helps you work on stamina and helps you work on pacing and knowing your different paces. 

Fartleks are very easy to incorporate on normal road runs. If you are heading out on a 6 mile run, you can use the first 2 miles as a warm up and run them at your normal "everyday" pace. Then, you can play with speed and pick up the pace for a certain time period (or even pick a tree to run hard to) and then bring the pace back to a jog to recovery. During a fartlek, you want to be running hard, but you do not want to be killing yourself. It is about stamina. 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here is a simple pyramid fartlek run:

1. Pick a 5 or 6 mile running route, and run the first 2 miles as a warm up pace.
2. Run hard for 2 minute and then run at a slow jog for 2 minutes (slower than "everyday" pace)
3. Run hard for 3 minutes and then run at a slow jog for 2 minutes
4. Run hard for 4 minutes and then run at a slow jog for 2 minutes
5. Run hard for 4 minutes and then run at a slow jog for 2 minutes
6. Run hard for 3 minutes and then run at a slow jog for 2 minutes 
7. Run hard for 2 minutes and then run at a slow jog for 2 minutes

This workout is stated easier by calling it a: 2, 3, 4, 4, 3, 2, with 2 minute recovery. Therefore, you will be running hard for 18 minutes.

These times can all be alternated and you can make it less structured too by just running hard and not always timing every detail. The awesome thing about fartleks are their flexibility and how easy they are to incorporate into your weekly runs!

I hope this information is helpful! When I start talking about running ... I can get long winded!

I want to close by saying that incorporating a little speed work in your runs is good and appropriate for everyone. Sometimes I find myself thinking that since I am not an "elite" runner, doing workouts is silly -- but that is not true! Interval runs or fartleks can be good for everyone - it gives you variety and can help you improve too.

Are you training for anything - and how is your training going?
If you are not training for anything, how was your weekend??

Who loves running ...

You probably all know by now that I love running, especially long distances ... but I wanted to dedicate a post to why I love running!

Why do I love running?

• I love running because it an amazing way to make friends and build a community! The cross country team was my family in college and I can honestly say I planned my whole future life and made some big life decisions on the trails in DePauw's nature center running with my cross country girls. Just think of all of the interesting things the trees have heard in that park =)

I am absolutely obsessed with the book - Mile Markers: 26.2 Most Important Reasons that Women Run by Kristin Armstrong and there are so many quotes that relate to my love of running and friendship:

"I noticed during our conversations yesterday that we are are free to talk about our lives, the good and the bad, without judgement. As far as I can tell, no women feels compelled to take ourselves up or take the ourselves down a notch with the useless self-deprecating remarks that are often typical in other social areas. A running group can be such a unique and supportive group of friends."

• Also, I met my hubby while running! He was on the track team at DePauw! 
• Since leaving collegiate cross country, running has brought me so many new friendships! There is something about running next to someone and working hard together that can just bring you together. Also, when you are training for a marathon - you can really get to know someone over a 20 mile long run!

• I love running because it is my escape. It is a time that is just for me and I can use it as a stress relief, I can think through things (or blog post ideas!), or I can not think at all. 

• I love running because I can watch the whole world slowly wake up on my early morning runs. Watching the sunrise as I am getting in my daily miles is amazing. I cannot comment on early morning running without linking it back to friendships ... so many great early morning runs with my old roomie, Kate, and now with friends in my condo complex!  

Another perfect quote about AM running from Kristin Armstrong,

"As usual with our early morning sisterhood, we talk about everything under the sun. Our conversation dips and dives like hummingbirds; one second we land on shallow topics, the next something sweetly intimate, flitting from one to the next with ease and grace. We never talk like this at parties, restaurants, school gatherings, community functions, football practice, or play dates. The blanket of darkness adds a shroud of privacy, the pounding footfalls a buffer."

Santa 5K in Indianapolis with Roomie!

• I love running because it is the sport that put my weight into perspective and got me on the right track. I can now look back to my high school years and say that I was underweight and unhealthy. After becoming best friends with one of the best runners in the state of Missouri, I decided to give it a shot too and I realized that to perform at my best - I needed to fuel my body correctly. In addition, in college I met all of my amazing cross country teammates who had a healthy relationship with food and it put everything into perspective and I can honestly say running helped me work through everything! 

• I love running because it forces me to unconnect and look around. Being a newbie blogger and just being a yuppie in this generation, I feel like I am constantly looking at my phone or the computer ... running is a time to disconnect and just take advantage of nature 

• I love running because it is my FAVORITE way to explore a new city or location. 

• I love running because it is a pretty darn cheap form of exercise and pretty simple. You just put some shoes on and go put one foot in front of the other. 

• I love running (especially long distances), because you get what you put into it! A marathon is a daunting distance, but if you are willing to log the miles and work hard through a training plan - you can achieve your goal and crossing that finish line feels so good!

Color Run 5K 

• I love running because it is competitive, but it can be competitive at different levels. The Kara Gouchers, Ryan Halls, and Kenyans of the world are in their own competitive sphere of amazingness and some of their times and accomplishments just blow my mind - but running also allows us "normal folk" in the running community to compete. We can compete against ourselves, or even against the girl next to you as you both push to the finish line. If you have worked hard and finish a half marathon in 4 hours or in 1 hour and 30 minutes, you were competing and should be proud ... and next time you can work hard and compete to beat that time!

• I love running because it is part of my identity and I love being a runner and part of the runner world.

Writing this post has made me want to go out for a run! It has reminded me how lucky I am to be able to log all of the miles I have and formed all of the bonds I have through this sport.
As corny as this sounds, running is more than just a sport, it is a lifestyle ... and I am proud and grateful to live that lifestyle! 

What is something that you love and some reasons why??

Who is officially running the Detroit Marathon!

Hello Everyone! 

I hope you had a great weekend filled with fun, family, and some relaxation. Our weekend (especially Saturday) was jam packed! On Saturday morning I got a long run in with my favorite running group and then we had a tour of the Big House (Michigan's football Stadium), went paddleboarding (more on that later!), and went out to eat at our favorite pizza place in Ann Arbor. 

Sunday was productive and mostly filled with prep for the upcoming week. It was the first Sunday in a while that I started to dread the upcoming week and really did not want the weekend to end... but it was still a good day.

Enough weekend recap ... Let's delve into marathon training and my personal marathon experience for a bit.

I have run 8 marathons -- so you could say I am a bit addicted. 

I have done the following races:

• Indianapolis Monumental Marathon (Fall) - Love this course! Flat, takes place in November so usually nice and cold, and on a Saturday! I have run it twice!
• Indianapolis Marathon at Fort Benjamin Harrison  (Fall)- I would not recommend this course to very many people. It is a small race, and the second half is pretty boring
• St. Louis Go Marathon (Spring) - It was 80 degrees the day I ran this race, so my time was horrible, and the course was actually a lot harder and hilly than I thought
• Cincinnati Flying Pig (Spring) - I got my PR on this course! This course is hilly and pretty hard, but I loved it. There was great support and the course really showed you Cincy and its suburbs
• Chicago Marathon (Fall) - I did not love this course and race as much as everyone else. I thought it was too crowded and cramped. It is very flat though!
• Boston Marathon (Spring) - This course deserves a whole novel! I have a love/hate relationship with it because it is so hard (I have done it twice)! I will say that if you get the opportunity to run it ... you have to do it!

B ran the Flying Pig too - like our bibs?

Since I graduated college in the Spring of 2010 - I have run one marathon every Spring and Fall season. That sounds kind of intense, but I have taken some marathons more "seriously" in regards to my training than others. I usually always sit down and make a training plan, but for some marathons I have been a lot more relaxed about hitting all of my weekly runs -- but for others I have tried really hard and worked in some workouts too. My PR was at the Cincinnati Flying Pig in May 2013, which surprised me because I was not very rigid about my runs and it was a crazy time in my life - I was in the middle of planning our wedding (June 2013), moving, and finding a job. I think this shows that a "good race day" can make a big difference and I felt really good that day. I also felt like I focused on having a positive attitude during this race, and running is 96% mental!

With my friend Emily after the Chicago Marathon

I am excited for the Detroit Marathon this Fall, because I want to put some time and effort into my training and really give it my all! My plan is to run the Detroit Full Marathon this Fall and then take a little bit of time off from full marathons ... maybe race a few half marathons and 10Ks (give my body a little break from the 20 + mile long runs).

This weekend I had a little bit of a shock when I sat down to work out a training plan for the Detroit Marathon and realized it is only 14 weeks away! Wowowo! 

The good thing is that I have been running consistently, so I am not worried about being in shape - I just need to start upping the distance and running with a purpose instead of going on random runs. 

For all of my past marathons, I have based my training plans around Hal Higdon's free training plans. I usually make modifications, but I like his format and his long run distances. 

Here is my rough training plan for the Detroit Marathon on October 19th.

For this plan, I went off of Hal Higdon's Advanced Marathon Training Program.
I want to start by saying that I have run 8 marathons and I feel like my body is used to the pounding and torture I put it through .... and I can handle high mileage, but I would not recommend running this high of mileage to any beginner! If you are interested in help with your own training plan (for any distance), please contact me!!

To explain the plan in a nutshell -
Sundays and Tuesdays - Run easy and lower distances - I have to admit ... sometimes it is hard to go out and just run 3 miles... sometimes I will do 4 or 5 on these days. I always strive to keep it easy though so my legs get a chance to recover
Mondays  -  Run at an easy pace, but I will run higher mileage (this gets a little hard because I always run in the mornings and have to wake up extra early for the extra miles- but I have amazing runner buddies that wake up crazy early and get my butt out of bed too!).
Wednesdays - Workouts - either a hill workout or a tempo run or occasionally I am hoping to motivate myself to do a track workout. I could see some of those 800s becoming tempo runs and I am ok with that! More info on tempo runs and other running specifics at a later date.
Thursdays - Rest days
Fridays - Longer runs and some Fridays I will try and pick it up a bit and run at my marathon race pace. I will do this on my higher mileage/more intense weeks.
Saturdays - LONG runs! I try and meet up with an amazing group in Ann Arbor called PR Fitness for my long runs!

Indianapolis Marathon - one of my favorites!

In this plan I am doing two 20 mile runs. There is always a big controversy over running more than 20 miles and I have to admit, I think I am in the not over 20 mile "long run" camp.
I feel like getting in a 22 or 23 mile long run does more harm than good. I do not think the extra miles will help at all and it will just tear down your body even more. I have done both in preparation for a marathon and I think I will stick to running 20 miles as my longest run. In the race, you run the last 6 miles with your guts and your mind anyways!


Well - this post is getting long, as you can see ... I love running and talking about running. I plan to do many more posts on running and racing in the future! Also, I will check in occasionally and let you guys know how the training is going (and you guys can hold me accountable for doing the weekly workouts!).


But how was your weekend? Also, any races or big events coming up for you?

Who hates the treadmill ...

Celebrate! Celebrate! You made it to Friday!
I am a big believer in celebrating accomplishments big and small (it makes life fun - and it is an excuse for champagne), and I try to not always celebrate with food -- so instead I will celebrate with.....

Dreadmill Cardio Workout

I truly hate the treadmill, I find it boring and time slows down when I am on the treadmill, because one mile feels soooo long! But - this past Monday morning I woke up for my usually AM run and there was a horrible thunderstorm. Therefore, I had to move on to plan B - which was running on the treadmill in the little indoor gym at our condo complex. Since I simply cannot run 4-5 miles straight on the treadmill I made up a workout that left me sweaty and tired ... so I thought I would share it with you.

1) Run 1 mile on the Treadmill (with the following pacing)

• 2 minutes at warm up pace (varies for everyone, conversational, easy)
• 2 minutes at race pace (breathing hard but not sprinting - could sustain for a whole race)
• 1 minute sprint 
• Repeat time cycle until you have run a full mile

2) Step off the treadmill and do the following cardio/strength drills (click on the exercise for a demo)

• 1 minute star jumps
• 1 minute up up down down elbow pushups
• 1 minute alternating jumping lunges
• 1 minute tricep dips (30 seconds right leg lifted, 30 second left leg lifted)
• 1 minute forearm plank hold

3) Repeat the mile on the treadmill and the drills (each round will be around 15 minutes depending on your running pace)

• Keep alternating the paced mile and the drills until you reach your desired distance     

** Once you have finished, make sure you leave time to stretch, because this workout is tough on the legs! **
___________________________________________________________________________

This workout broke up the monotony of the treadmill running and managed to give me a quick arm workout too! I ran 4 miles total and ended with running, so I did 3 rounds of the drills.

Also, if it is a beautiful day outside and you still want to do a similar workout - you can modify this workout and just run outside. It would be like a running boot camp ... run a mile (or pick a time if you do not have garmin, such as 8 minutes) and then stop and do the drills, and then start running again. 

Since it is Friday, it means it is weekend time! Any fun weekend plans? 
We are in town this weekend and I have multiple random activities planned - such as a tour of the Big House (Michigan's Football Stadium), and possibly going paddle boarding or a long bike ride with B! I have never gone paddle boarding, so I will obviously report back! 

Who loves Boston ...

Done and exhausted!

Welcome to the week! I know Mondays are sometimes not the most fun - but this is a holiday week ... so only 4 days and then it is fireworks! WHOOO!

This Monday I wanted to share my love of Beantown!

Boston Creme Pie after the race!

I first went to Boston in 2012 for my first Boston Marathon. My biggest fan (my momma) made the trek with me and we had an amazing trip.

My race time was not the best (it was the 85 degree day), but I fell in love with Boston on the trip! My mom and I took an amazing food tour and did all of the tourist things ... Cheers, Faneuil Hall, Boston Commons, Harvard, and more.

Expressing my views on the Newton Hills - thumbs down

The Boston Marathon is an incredible tradition, and after working very hard to get there - the race is even better than you can imagine (especially your first time). The whole city of Boston welcomes you and everyone seems so excited for you to run the race. And the crowd support is better than any other race - there are people along the entire course and everyone seems to genuinely want to wish you good luck. The best tradition along the course is Wellesley College! You pass Wellesley around mile 13, so it is a great time for a boost ... and it is right before the horrible Newton Hills! It is called the scream tunnel, because as you are approaching the College, all you can hear is screaming! All of the girls (it is an all girl College) are lined up screaming their hearts out and holding signs that say - "Kiss Me Because ... (and then listing a unique reason)." AND runners all go up and kiss the girls ... it is a tradition for 20 - 70 years old men and women to go kiss College girls, I love it! =) It may sound inappropriate, but you have to experience it!

About 2 years after falling in love with the city and my first Boston marathon experience, I got my current fundraising job that involves traveling to the East Coast, mostly New York City and Boston, about once a month. Thus, I have gotten to know the city and surrounding area even more ... and I am loving it even more!

I am posting this blog post now because I am currently in Boston and soaking in the views! My favorite thing to do is run along the Charles River. I did not grow up with sailing and rowing, so I find it fascinating to watch the boats on the river.

I also got the opportunity to run the Boston Marathon again this year (2014). It was such an emotional year, remembering the bombings and hearing all of the stories of those affected that are rising up and being BOSTON STRONG! I got pretty choked up turning onto Boylston Street and running hard trying to make it to the finish line!

Also, in 2014 there were about 20 runners that came from my running group in Ann Arbor, so it was so great to be able to cheer each other on through the whole process. I will post about running groups later - love them and relationships made!

Running Group Friends that kicked butt in the race!

This post is getting long - but just wanted to share my love of Beantown and tell a bit about my Boston Marathons! For those out there with the goal of qualifying and running in Boston ... keep working hard because it is so worth it!

What are some of your fitness goals? 

Momma and I at Boston 2014 Finish Line