29 Questions - And hey look I'm blogging!

Since I haven't blogged in oh forever...why not just share a little TMI with you all :) 

1. What are you wearing? 

Jeans, pink silk button down, fur vest. Hi winter thanks for still hanging around.

2. Ever been in love?

Yup. That is all.

3. Ever had a terrible breakup?

Hmm not terrible. Usually it has meant to be over.

4. How tall are you?

5'8" ish

5. How much do you weigh?

This week anywhere from 162 - 170 depending on levels of dehydration and burger intake ;) 
Also note that everyone thinks I lie about my weight because that sounds too heavy. Muscle FTW!

6. Any tattoos?

3 - Aquarius symbol on my foot, infinity intertwined with "love" in script on my wrist and "breath" on my left high ribs (or you know right under the boob).

7. Any piercings?

Just ears.

8. Favorite song?

I shall go for song of the moment which is "Repeat" David Guetta and Jessie J.

9. Quality you look for in a partner?

Independence. I need someone with their own hobbies and such. I like doing things on my own and want that in someone else - or else they will 100% wind up resenting me.   

10. Favorite quote?

"Everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go. Things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they go right. You believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart, so that better things can fall together."

11. Favorite actor?

Love me some Will Ferrell. 

12. Loud music or soft?

Loud music allllllll the time. In general, music all day every day.

13. Where do you go when you're sad?

To workout. Give me all the endorphins.

14. How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?

If I am actually focused aka when I workout and get ready at the gym 30 minutes from shower to out the door. At home I usually budget an hour because I tend to get side tracked.

15. Ever been in a physical fight?

Funny (errr maybe not...) story - one time my male friend was being choked to the verge of passing out...I interfered I got punched in the face (by a man) that was fun. 

16. Turn on?

Laughter, smile, broad shoulders and toned arms...a nice head of hair and someone that can laugh at themselves.

17. Turn off?

Cockiness. Being too focused on money and material things. Talking about money. I do not care how much you make or what you can afford. 

18. Fears?

Failure - or my definition of it. Fear that everything that is going so perfectly imperfect in life right now could crumble without warning.

19. Last thing that made you cry?

Work frustration. #Ilovemyjob (no really I do just a tough time right now)

20. Last time you said you loved someone?

A few minutes ago :)

21. Meaning behind your YouTube name?

I think I have one and I think it is my name.

22. The relationship between you and the last person you texted?

Love.

23. Favorite food?

Don't make me choose. It changes by the minute. #allthefood

24. Place you want to visit?

Umm everywhere since I have never left the USA (Mexico and Canada do not count). One day...

25. Do you have a crush?

Of the celebrity type, sure.

26. Last time you kissed someone?

Tuesday.

27. Last time you were insulted?

I can't remember? 

28. Favorite piece of jewelry?

My grandmas pearls, diamond earrings and ring.

29. Who should answer these questions next?

You please! :)

NYC Half: Race Recap

2:06:08 Final official time. 

So remember that part where I was just running the NYC Half for the experience and a test of fitness…well I should know myself better. After seeing my splits and where it all went wrong I am definitely a LITTLE pissy that I didn’t treat it like a normal race. And happy that I maybe am almost warmed up again. I like racing in the cold but seriously THAT WAS COLD. I was genuinely concerned during the race if I would ever feel my fingers again (luckily around mile 4 I started to get some sensation...).

Long story short, I thought I would be lucky to be running in the mid to high 9’s – turns out after downloading my splits that I am in better shape than I thought as I was banging out miles in the 8’s – when I wasn’t stopped in the bathroom.

4, count them 4 stops throughout the race.

It all started with eating some stuff the day before that really isn’t ever easy on the stomach. However in my defense, I actually haven’t really had many runs with stomach issues. Race morning getting through security took a while so there was no time to use the bathrooms before jumping into corrals. I started the race acknowledging that yes I would have to stop shortly after, which I was okay with – and I did right before Harlem Hill and lost at least 2 -3 minutes there.

What I didn’t anticipate was then having to stop 3 more times, urgently. That was frustrating and in all lost a ton of time.

My splits speak for themselves. I was capable of a lot more than I gave myself credit. 

I'm not going to do a mile per mile break down but basically I wanted to start out conversational, super easy to tackle the hills of Central Park - which I hadn't run since the NYCM in November. The whole time I felt like I was just cruising. As planned I felt good so consciously upped the pace a tad around mile 6. I was feeling good, and coming out of the park was just energetic! Now I think pace wise where I had the biggest problem was around 9 or so. I was feeling light headed. I ate a tiny bit of banana and bagel prior to the race and a little water. I was dehydrated completely and had no fuel in me. I tried anyway to walk through a water station and take in some Gu and water but that set my stomach churning yet again. The remainder of the race was a struggle between my legs wanting to go and my stomach issues and light headedness holding me back. This was a total lack of fuel and lack of being prepared situation. 

I have been a slave to the treadmill all winter and figured getting to the streets would be a lot harder (side note: totally attributing the 3 weekly body pump classes I do religiously to being able to run better than I thought - strength training FTW!). Kind of unfortunate but I learned an important lesson, always be prepared. I have of course had PLENTY of races where I did everything right and still had bathroom stops but I would rather know that I didn’t sabotage myself.

Other than that…I LOVE THIS RACE. Holy shit. I just can’t stop smiling thinking about it. I loved the course, loved running through the city and loved getting out of the park! Running down 7^th, through Times Square…just awesome.

So I am thinking redemption and a true test. I signed up for an NYC Runs race on March 29^th that I plan to maybe take a rest day and maybe focus on trying to do well in. Not PR but see for real where I am at. I think if  things fall into place that Brooklyn could then be a PR course.

So that is where my head is at now. I know that I am ready because I smiled through my shakeout this morning of a few miles, and wasn't sore go figure (that might catch up to me though). I don’t want to put a ton of pressure on myself either but I do think it isn’t the worst thing to have some goals. So for now – try and sub 2 in a couple weeks and then have 2 months to work towards a PR. We shall see. Just want to keep enjoying the run. 

So About That Half Marathon on Sunday...

I'm not ready for this: 

Or at least not the ready that I would be to actually run this as anything more than just a "still building my fitness run". 

After being locked out every year I applied, I finally got in this year (in the SECOND round of lottery picks) and am not throwing away the opportunity to run this course regardless of how prepared I am feeling.

But I've topped out at 10.5 miles last week. 

And am kind of not resting at all this week. And really don't intend to tomorrow. 

I plan on body pump and a short run (but cutting out my usual Flywheel class) and plan on a rest day Monday most likely. I'm in training mode at the moment, not race mode.

As I am going into this knowing I will not go anywhere near my PR nor probably even sub 2 (hello Central Park and my winter love affair with the treadmill not ready to tackle Cat Hill and Harlem Hill in a respectable manner!) I am out to just make it through a steady race without wanting to kill myself by the end. 

I figure start conservative and if towards the last few I feel good pick if up. That's the only plan. If I can negative split the race that would be great. But this is a course to be enjoyed just like the NYCM was for me. I knew fitness wise I was not running stellar then (oh and also that 100 degree fever didn't help) due to being prepared to race on a more flat course. These are races for me that you run because why would you not?

Goal = not wanting to kill myself by mile 13 and to then #DrinkAllTheAlcohol and #EatAllTheFood. 

So here is to a fun Sunday (and seriously whyyyy can it not be a WARMER forecast) and to FINALLY running this race!

Good luck to all out there running on Sunday! 

#FreeAJStaff

I don't ever post anything non running related. But working for Al Jazeera America, I think this is too important. And actually just important regardless if I worked for them or not. 

A little bit about it if you are unaware: 

We are calling for the release of all five of the incarcerated Al Jazeera journalists. AJE has three under detention: Peter Greste, Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed. Al Jazeera Mubasher Misr's Mohamed Badr and Al Jazeera Arabic's Abdullah Shami have been locked up since July and August respectively. 

DAY OF SOLIDARITY -- February 27, 2014

Journalism is not a crime

With our Al Jazeera colleagues still detained in Egypt, and vital press freedoms still at stake, we are calling for a Global Day of Action today.

The worldwide campaign for the release of our colleagues continues to gain momentum. In the last several weeks, the EU and the White House called for their release, thousands joined protests outside of the Egyptian Embassy in London, and individuals on Twitter continue to raise awareness with the hashtag #FreeAJStaff. 

Being Honest With Myself: Cleaning up the Diet

I don't think that it is any secret that after NYCM I was pretty much just done. I was tired of training, tired of being good, I was ready to kind of let loose and enjoy the holidays and a little bit of what I like to call "being a fatty". 

I do not see anything wrong with indulging a little bit especially when you are highly active aka marathon training but due to undiagnosed stomach "issues" I stay away from high fat, red meat, and oily food as well as a lot of sugar in my diet. I do it because if I do not my runs will be miserable, and I will have stomach pains and never make it through a run without a stop. 

So after several weeks of a little too much mac n cheese, wings, burgers, beer, wine and tequila (all of which were thoroughly enjoyed thank you very much), I started finally really running again. And, my runs were brutal. I was riddled with stomach issues and just felt incredibly sluggish. I was well aware of the culprit, my diet. Diet goes hand in hand with my training. I will never be one that can eat like shit and bang out an amazing double digit run. I can do that more with an alcohol hangover, but not a food one. I also have managed to gain a few pounds over the past year. Nothing drastic but I have been feeling it in my clothes and my workouts. 

I had a hard look at myself and realized if I wanted to really start back at base building and feeling fit that I needed to clean up my diet. So I did the one thing that I said I would never ever do. I decided to turn to juices; specifically Juice Press. Now, I had no intention of stopping my workouts as I was ramping them up at the moment, so I choose to start juicing during the day, and then normal meals at dinner & snack. 

Juice Press has all my money

And let me tell you, I have never felt more phenomenal. I decided to do it during the week the first week then stop on the weekends because I go a little nuts as you can see on the weekends. Saturdays I do body pump, then run a shakeout, then take a flywheel class. Juice will not cut it. Nor will it for long run Sundays. 

Typical Saturday <3

On the weekend though, I can genuinely say I was MISSING the juices. I think I have been converted. 

So here we are week 3 of incorporating a lot of juice into my diet. Due to a lot of work obligations I have been going on business lunches so I am not necessarily juicing all day through to dinner but I am still making the healthy choices of lean meats and veggies instead of oh burgers and fries and all that jazz. And I am finally feeling so much better. 

My stomach hasn't had issues much lately and my energy is crazy. I have stopped drinking the 100 ounces or so of coffee I used to during the day (I will never EVER give up coffee, sorry not convinced) but I swear green juice gives me way more energy. I am also down a couple of pounds. However that probably is hand in hand with the fact that I am taking 3 body pump classes per week and running a lot more miles now. My workout intensity has increased as my eats have cleaned up so it isn't rocket science that the scale would start to move. But I am also not being a slave to my scale. There is more value in running a faster pace and for longer as well as upping my weights consistently - hello arms that are getting defined again!

So the moral of the story is as fun as it was to go totally off and enjoy whatever I wanted for a while, I love the way I feel when I am "behaving". I am back to bed early getting at least 7 hours most nights and waking up naturally before my alarm at 5 something. I love having a schedule again and feeling like the best version of myself. 

And I love when I underestimate my running as I did this morning as I set out for some fun repeats and well I thought I would be dying and started out at 8:34 and was cruising. That was a good feeling to know I should have begun sub 8 that my fitness is returning. 

Repeats for breakfast.

To sum it up, I'm back! And ready to train for real. 

2014: Spring Goals

I suppose being only 5 or 6 weeks into the new year that this is as good of time as any to start to discuss what I am up to and what I am planning for this year.

I am still trying not to look at 2013 with a twinge of failure. I keep trying to look at it as maybe not PR'ing in time but I accomplished so much in terms of distance. And, I learned a lot about how to train properly. But of course being as hard as I am on myself it is disappointing to know that I am just not where I want to be in terms of running. 

Which leads me to my goals for Spring. Basically - there are NO goals as far as PR's and times. I have no intention of running anything more than half marathon distance in the first half of the year. And, I am not entirely convinced I will run one in the fall. After running 3 fulls and an ultra last year - and in the process losing a lot of fitness (I know that sounds weird but bear with my thinking here) I want to focus on getting that back. 

I want to get back to where I was at the end of 2012. I feel that the second I started to focus on the full that I lost all that I had worked hard to gain in the half distance. Speed went out the window and even as I trained for the fall and my sub 4 goal I never felt fully confident in the speed. I am also over the weight that I was back then. Not by much but by enough to know that yes it probably does make a difference; so there is that as well that I am working on (kind of sort of as in don't have wings and beer night more than once a week. don't judge).

I took a pretty good amount of time off from really running. And I am still not at the point where I am logging a lot of miles. I am 100% easing back into it all. For a while I did a ton of Flywheel classes and cross training. A few weeks back Les Mill's Body Pump came to NYSC and I have been consistently taking 3 classes a week since it launched. I am feeling stronger which is a great feeling. I miss feeling strong. Then I have been doing cross training and running a few times a week. No crazy mileage yet though. I did a "long" run last weekend of 7 miles. Weird to call that long when I was doing 10-12 as my mid week run during marathon training but that is where I am at. 

Now, I am running some races in the beginning of this year...I got into the NYC Half during the second lottery round, the Cherry Blossom 10 Mile as well as the Brooklyn Half Marathon. So yes I am preparing for that distance. But, I do not have a single time goal for any. I am not prepared to PR by any means (1:53 for the half) and there is no pressure to. NYC Half should be an amazing experience and Brooklyn Half was one of my favorite races last spring. Also a few other shorter NYRR races have hit the calendar this week in a registration blitz. Oops. 

I have skipped a planned run if I didn't feel like it, and am actually enjoying the ones that I am doing. I want to not rush myself into shape and then just not enjoy it. I was so over running at the end of the year and that sucked. I want to WANT to run. I want to LOVE the run.

So there we have it. That is what I have been up to lately. Spring equals rebuilding for me. No pressure. Just build back up and have a little bit of fun with it. I think the second I started to put so much pressure on myself to perform was the second I started to fail. I remember having this idea of going "sub 2" for the half marathon in the fall of 2012 - and then proceeded to run a 1:54 without having obsessively geared every run to pace and effort and structure. I ran. And because I ran blindly I think that is where the success was. I am not going to throw away all I learned about tempos, intervals, ladder, pyramid etc workouts but I am going to relax myself for a while. I don't expect much in terms of performance but I would like to end spring feeling strong and confident again.

Now if only it would warm up and de-ice outside - I would really like to hit the pavement (even though I honestly don't hate the treadmill).

Being a "Fitness Snob"

So I have seen other posts on this article but I finally read my issue of Women's Health to have a first hand opinion. And yes I take forever to read my magazines. 

It actually kind of irked me. 

I talk about fitness a lot. I have a blog that chronicles my running adventures. I am obsessed with Flywheel and my social life revolves around when I am taking Body Pump these days. Want to spend time with me? You should probably go to class with me. I plan out my weeks around my workouts. It's a priority. 

The signs of how to tell if you are a "snob":

1. Having a 26.2 bumper sticker - okay while I would personally never do this just because it isn't me - what the hell is the problem with being proud of an amazing accomplishment?! 

2. Wearing your Nike fuel band - okay again not me but that is because I love my gold jewelry and am more apt to wear that while working out versus a fitness band. I am also not into the Nike apps either at all so it would be pointless...but everyone is wearing fitness and activity trackers these days. Again, problem? These trackers are addictive like a game, the whole point is to motivate you to do more activity...not a bad thing in our overweight world.

3. Everything Lulu lemon - I spend a crap ton on my gear and here's the thing - if you are going to pretty much live in it why wouldn't you spend the money?! The last thing you want on an 18 miler is ill constructed clothing with seams chafing the crap out of you. And seriously if you had the underwear you would understand why they are just fabulous.  

4. Sweaty selfie - mine on Facebook is from the NYCM and like, the best picture ever. Shouldn't a profile photo capture you in your element? Again no clue what is wrong with that. It is a picture that captured my sheer joy for running. And a tad more bad ass that the smile is me at mile 23 of the marathon. 

5. In regards to Zumba okay not going to lie I am totally judgmental about it and ever calling going to class a workout. Sorry!! (And I was a dancer growing up so yes I know dancing is a workout just not MY workout).

While I get some aspects of the holier than though attitude I know at least in regards to me - that it comes from a good place. I am not trying to be a bitch it is something I am very passionate about and a really big part of my life. I feel like these days it is almost shameful to be so passionate about it and there is a lot of resentment to those who are. 

If they wanted to really go after those people that are in my opinion more "snobby" I think they could have focused the article on people who try to get you to do their workout because it is the only one (I actually discourage people from marathons if you don't like running you probably will hate it even more with marathon training!). Or rando's at the gym who interrupt your workout to talk about form or a better way to do something. Trainers have interrupted me on an easy XT or run day to point out how to do it better. Thanks but no thanks I've got it. And a coach. Or of course people who are all oh my god paleo (or low whatever, juice, if it fits your macros) or bust! 

So in my opinion their focus and the points they made were a little skewed. 

But in the end I guess I am just a fitness snob :)