Spartan Book and Race Codes

Hey guys, you've read Joe DeSena's  new book, "Spartan Up!" right?  This summer he's coming out with a new book called "Spartan Fit". It's about giving yourself 30 days to transform your mind and body without a gym. It's going to give a a meal and workout plan for a Spartan Sprint. You'll have the tools right in front of you. This book will include so many health and fitness  tools without a gym membership. It's only $21.60 and you can click here to pre order.


Spartan also has four new endurance races:
Be sure to check out Hurricane Heat,  Hurricane Heat 12 hour, Ultra beast, and the new Agoge
Check out all of the Spartan Races and sign up for one of the newest four today!

Use offer code SPARTANBLOGGER for 10% off any race!

I'm giving away one free entry. Be sure to follow me on Twitter @TheWheezyRunner and  comment below:

Have you completed a Spartan Race?  Which one would you do?!

One Last Thing...

Guys,  The Pittsburgh Marathon half and full is tomorrow. Here's a few things to keep in mind before the big race.

Get your outfit ready tonight! My alarm will be going off at 4am.  I will not be thinking clearly.  Make sure everything is prepared and ready to go for tomorrow.  If you need to KT tape, then do it before you go to bed if you can.  Anything that will not be worn in the morning needs to be by the door to go into the car.

Have a change of clothes & baby wipes in bag check.  When you're finished running, you'll be sticky and gross.  I always take a different pair of shoes and clothes to change into.  Also, I take baby wipes to wipe my body off with.  They also come in handy because by the time you're finished running there is no more toilet paper in the Downtown Pittsburgh area.

Have breakfast and snacks ready. Last year I failed miserably.   I was a VIP in the marathon so they had breakfast ready for us.  I assumed I would get there in time to have breakfast but the bathroom was my first priority and the line was too long.  Once I came out of the bathroom I had to find my corral. I starved through the race and was miserable.
After you run you will probably be a little bit hungry.  When you go through the finish line they have a line for you to get snacks and put them in your bag.  I still pack my own so I have something to eat afterwards because this year I will be waiting for a friend to finish the full marathon after I  complete the half.

The city will be packed.   Okay people,  the race was a total sell out.  So, roughly 40,000 runners.  Say each runner has just one person coming to see them, so now the city will have 80,000+ people in it.  On top of that, there's a Pittsburgh Pirates game!  Leave early. Carpool. Be polite.  You signed up for this knowing it was one of the biggest races in the country.  If someone bumps into you, get over it.  The coral situation is very frustrating because you really have to touch the people around you.  It's gross but it happens.  Try to hold your farts in while you're in the corral.

Please stop taking selfies during the National Anthem.  Really?  I get that you're excited but have respect.  Take your hat off and get off of your phone.

And most importantly...

Thank your volunteers! I don't know if you know this but the people with the fluorescent shirts on that say "volunteer" on the back VOLUNTEERED their time for you.  They don't even know you.  Thank your Volunteers, Police Officers, Firefighters, and any Armed Forces that you see working or running that day.

Just run, and enjoy yourself.  Don't worry about your time just worry about finishing.  Have a great race! 

Thank you, Pittsburgh for another year! 

Marathon Confessions

Guys, training is tough. Pittsburgh winters are cold and people don't salt their sidewalks and treadmills are tough. I have so many excuses as to why I don't run in the winter. Really, I just hate running in the winter. 

I have a two marathon training confessions. 

1.) I don't usually really start training until 1 1/2-1 month before a half marathon. A full marathon I give a solid three months of training.  I do a lot of cross training so I save all my running enthusiasm until then. By no means am I saying I don't run at all before a month and a half to a month before race day, I just don't train as hard. 

2.) When I do train, I train mostly on hills. If you've ever ran the Pittsburgh marathon, you'll know that it isn't flat. Like at all. No. So, if you train on nothing but hills it makes Pittsburgh seem slightly flatter than expected. 

Today's raining run was the hilliest. Actually, it was one of my prettiest runs too. 

I started from my house to Seton Hill's campus. It was only about 1.30 from my house.  Then I took the hill the whole way up. 

That was my view once I was on campus. The build is so beautiful. It was quiet and peaceful. I saw about two other runners running on campus. 

And then my view from the top...

Amazing. 6 miles later I made it back home to go play in the garage and go to Easter dinner with my family. 

Happy Easter! 

Any training confessions that you would like the confess? 

New Beginnings

August 26,2015 my husband and I closed on our very first house in a very new town. We're only about 15 miles away from our family but it's still new to us.

 

After our move a very good high school friend moved back home and we trained for the Columbus Marathon together.  Unfortunately, after Columbus I haven't done much. The holidays hit, I taught classes and went to CrossFit but neglected running. Recently, we've been hit with some unexpected bills and I had to quit my beloved crossfit to save spend extra dough. 

In the effort to get back at marathon training I found a running group in my town. A lifetime membership cost $20. Lifetime! :) That's a huge commitment. I'm very nervous to start running with a new group when I don't know anyone but I'm ready for the challenge. I'll be updating you guys more frquently as I get ready to run Pittsburgh Half and become a bigger part of this group. My half marathon goal is to finish in 2:20:00 or earlier. Very doable. I'm looking forward to training for Pittsburgh 2016! 

Another Year

Guys, it's cold out. Do you know what I do when it's cold out? I sign up for races. I don't know why but January, February when there's a big snow storm I usually sign up for a full marathon. Many people in my area received close to 20 inches of snow this weekend. 20 inches!! That's a lot of races to sign up for. 

For the third year the Pittsburgh Marathon asked me to blog for them. Besides the fact that this race was my first half and full marathon, this will always be my favorite race organization. They even gave me a perk for you. 

If you feel the need to sign up for races when it's freezing out, Pittsburgh is your race. 

Go to www.pittsburghmarathon.com and use MARKS2016 for $10 off registration and %15 off gear store. 

I can't wait for another adventure running the Pittsburgh Marathon!

Oakley PRIZM

Hey Guys! I hope everyone's week has started off well.  I've been asked to let you know about a pre-order launch that is going on today.  Everyone has heard of Oakley, right?  Well, they are launching a new line called PRIZM.

My husband is a HUGE Oakley fan.  Sunglasses are to him what handbags are to me (except he has more sunglasses than I have hand bags).

What is Oakley PRIZM?

• Oakley PRIZM Lenses emphasize color that the eye is most sensitive to in specific sports and environment.  These lenses are great for golf, cycling, and baseball. 
• The idea of the collection is to relax the eye while engaging in activity therefore helping you preform better. ( I know so many times I am trying to concentrate but my eyes are working so hard)
• You can get these "sport specific".  
• They also come in a prescription lens. 
• These glass run about the same price as the average Oakley so you can get them anywhere from $276-$494. 

Head on over to Salt City Optics and pre-order yours today!

Week 1 Marathon Training

Hi guys! Last Sunday started my marathon training for the Columbus Marathon. This year I'm running the full, ya know, after last year's full when I said that I'd never run another. I guess I was wrong. My very first week of work outs didn't go as planned, and that's okay. 

Sunday: 4 mile run. 

-My goal was 5 but it got hot early and I'm glad that I only got 4 in because later that day I got a migraine so fierce that it induced vomiting. Great way to start day 1! 

Monday: Rest

- I was afraid to workout because I still wasn't feeling up to par. 

Tuesday: CrossFit WOD

-Strength

15min EMOM

-2 deadlifts

-2 cleans

-2 push presses (all 75#)

WOD

5 rounds for time

-15 wall balls

-5 burpees

Wednesday: Taught spinning

14.80 miles on the bike

Thursday: CrossFit WOD

-5 rounds

3 min. Each

-3 cleans (75#)

-6 push-ups 

-9 squats

Friday: CrossFit open gym

1 rep max deadlift 

- 5 deadlifts at 135#

-1 @ 155

-1 @ 175

-1 @ 195

-1 @ 205

-1 @ 210

-Bonus workout: 1-2 mile walkish run. 

I had to go pick up my car on the other side of town and the plan was to walk until I heard a roll of thunder and then took off. 

In case you're wondering, I made it to my car dry. 

Saturday: Rest

- yesterday wasn't supposed to be a rest day but my husband and I got up early to go venture through one of our favorite towns and see some family. Later we came home to clean out our house for a yard sale next weekend. That was a workout in itself! In the evening we went out to dinner with my in laws to try a new restaurant and take a drive. We walked during the day a lot and lifted a lot of heavy boxes. 

So there you have it. My first week of workouts for full marathon training. This year is going to bring on a lot of cycling and lifting but I'm confident that this will be much better than my last full marathon. 

Taper Week!

We're a few short days from the marathon. My taper week hasn't gone so well. Sunday I took a rest day thinking that I was going to the gym on Monday and Tuesday but plans got a little changed. 

I had to take my car into the shop to get the breaks checked and thought that I was buying a new car from the company that fixed mine. After thinking about it I decided that I wanted to shop around a little bit so I looked online and on a spur of the moment decision on my lunch break yesterday my husband and I (and Hudson) drive about an hour and a half away from home to pick the car up. After a few bumps in the road we were finally able to leave and we didn't get home until after 11:00 last night. Needless to say, I've had a long first two days of the week. Today though, I taught a awesome cycling class. I had three brand new students and three regular students! The gym that I teach at has a very small class for cycling so once all the students were seated I only had two bikes left. I pushed them and I pushed myself. 

I haven't gotten to run as much as I wanted this training season but I am confident that the CrossFit and cycling will help me with a strong run on Sunday. My only current goal is to finish healthy. I always finish exhausted and not able breathe but this year I just want to enjoy it. 

I think that Sunday race will either tell me that I needed to train harder or that I need to stick with going with the flow and not worrying about it. Let's hope it's a great day. 

There's a New Runner in the Family

This year and last year The Dick's Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon asked me to blog for them.  Just getting the opportunity to run the half and full marathons were a dream come true.  I will never forget telling my sister when we would run together {almost six years ago} that "I would never be able to run one of those full marathon things but if I ran the half, I would be happy."

Four years ago I made a commitment to myself that I would run the half marathon that next year.  Full of doubt and uncertainty I signed up, and three years ago race weekend became my second favorite weekend of the year (and they don't pay me to say that).

Almost every post so far I have said how this year is different.  This year I am employed.  This year I have trained differently. This year I stopped worrying about my time.  This year I am happier.  And this year, Hudson is running too!!

If you follow me on any social media outlet, you know that my 70 lb., year and a half old Goldendoodle is my puppy son and best friend.  Usually where I go, he goes.  He loves his walk, people and other animals so we thought this would be a great year for him to participate in the Purina Petwalk.  Last year he was a little too fast and wild, but this year I think he will do well.  I can't wait.

I think that one of my favorite parts about race weekend is how family friendly it is.  You can run the 5k, half, full, full relay, your kids can run the kids race, and your dog and do the pet walk. {And what is my cat going to do you ask? He's going to nap all weekend and not even realize we aren't with him}  This year, Hudson will be doing the pet walk on Saturday afternoon and I will run the half on Sunday morning.  I have yet to talk my husband into doing a race but he likes to spectate so he's still a part of race weekend.

This Friday, Hudson will be getting his hair cut so his fro is perfect by next weekend.  I think he's ready.

First Time Marathon Advice

Let me start out with, you will never be prepared for your first marathon.  Ever. No matter how corny people sound when they tell you that running your first marathon will change you, it is true.  Believe in the corny.  I woke up the morning of my first marathon puking.  I wasn't nervous until every time I tried to eat I wanted to vomit because I was so nervous. 

So here is how to properly prepare for your first marathon because I sure as heck wasn't prepared: 

1.) Understand now that it's okay to be afraid: I joked with people telling them that I was pretty sure that I wasn't going to finish. Honestly, I was terrified that i wasn't going to finish.  Like I said before, I woke up vomiting the morning of my first marathon. 

2.) Don't eat the Sushi: Um, I'm not kidding.  I ate sushi the night before my first marathon.  No matter how many posts I read that said "DO NOT EAT ANYTHING NEW!" I totally ate something new and it was sushi.  Maybe it was my body being stressed out and craving to eat something weird.  I don't know but I do know that I'll never part take in that awesomeness again. I really did wake up puking the morning of my first marathon, maybe it was the sushi, maybe it was nerves, maybe it was because I was so hungry because sushi didn't really fill me up.  I don't know but i will never, ever do it again. I promise.  

3.) Don't drink two bottles of water before you start running:  Yep, totally did that one too.  My running partner and I had to pee within the first mile and it was the "I'm nervous pee." It was the "If I don't find the porta potty I'm pissing my pants with pride." Next time I'll pee myself because we stood in line and knocked us back 20-30 minutes but we both really had to go!  No matter how many articles tell you that you need to be properly hydrated before a race, two bottles is not the answer.  I even drank over a gallon of water the day before.  There will also be more than enough water on the route. 

4.) You'll feel awesome at mile 16 but by mile 19 you'll hate your life: All I remember is saying out loud,"10 more miles, I can totally do this." And somehow 3 miles later I was praying that it would all end soon. I also remember saying that I would never sign up for another one again and somehow by the Wednesday after it I was contemplating which one I wanted to run. (Incase you're wondering, I chose Columbus 26.2 for October 2015) 

5.) Be okay with not being prepared: You will have your outfit laid out and instagramed the night before, the perfect breakfast ready, you won't hit any traffic getting into the city, but the second that your husband kisses you goodbye at the gate, you're going to cry like a little baby wishing you had never signed up.  RELAX, BREATHE, STOP BEING DRAMATIC. Surprisingly enough, most big races that you sign up for are extremely organized and have an area sectioned off by letters of your name so you can find your family afterward.  You will find him.  You will be alive at the end.  He will not leave you. I never take my phone with me and I always manage to find my husband afterwards.  Even if there are over 30,000 runner and 100,000 spectators, we find each other.  I think the scariest part of my marathon was leaving my husband because one my very last 20 mile run before my first marathon he road his bike beside me.  I felt prepared and like I could do it.  That is, until he wasn't there.  

Before my first marathon I had no idea what to expect.  You are going to be scared, nervous, and excited.  Take this time to enjoy the process.  You are going to learn more about what you love(sometimes who you love), what you hate(Sometimes who you hate), you'll find out what triggers your emotions and how much you really want something.  There are going to be friends that come and go during the season but the ones that hang around and show up for race day are the ones worth keeping.  Trust yourself, trust the process, and know that it's okay to cry.  It's okay to be so happy that you cry and it's okay to have such a bad day that you cry.  You'll have bad days and good days. The people you need most will be there for you. 

The only advice that I can really give is this: Train. Train hard or train easy. Lay your outfit out the night before, don't eat the sushi, listen to your body, and know that when you kiss your spouse good bye that you'll both make it to the finish line. 

We're less than 4 weeks away!

This year will be the third year that I've ran Pittsburgh. The first two years I raced I lost my jobs right before race day. It was stressful and depressing especially when you were let go because a company was closing and the then you weren't told the second time because they didn't even know why they had to fire you. I'm not going to lie, if that would have happened this year I'm pretty sure I would have quit running Pittsburgh all together. 

This year is different though. This year I already got a promotion and a raise at my main job. I became a cycling instructor and it's going well also, I even have a third part time job that was supposed to end at Christmas but I stuck around to do floor sets. But still, something is wrong. Things are just different. Training this year has been much different as well. This year I've taken a different route with training in the sense that I would use cycling and CrossFit to me my main training sources. 

I started officially training in February and for the past few month I just wasn't feeling right. I've felt tired and depressed, just not myself.  I would yell for no reason and I've been skipping workouts to sleep. I have also been so cold that I would sleep with gloves on. My breathing also hasn't been on point but I stopped taking my asthma medication, ya know, to just see what happens. (I'll be starting that back up very soon)

I finally made it a point to call and make a doctor appointment. I really thought my thyroid was underactive because of some of my symptoms and if that was the case I want to take care of everything before race day of I could feel 100%. Last Friday I went and she sent me for blood work. I made sure to go the next day because I knew if I didn't then I probably wasn't going to go at all. My husband went in with me to do my bloodwork(and I cried. I can handle 15 piercings and 2 tattoos but that needle near my arm is a different story). The doctor said that she would call within a day or two if something was up but if she didn't call then I would be fine. 

By 9:00A.M. Monday morning I had a missed call from the doctors office and a voicemail. Do you know what kind of panic attack that intrudes on someone?! First thing in the morning I get a call? 

It ended up that my iron was really low and I just need to take iron pills everyday. That's a lot better than what I originally thought was wrong. I've been so unmotivated, tired, cold and short of breath lately and she said that once my iron is back up then everything with start to go back to normal.  After starting starting them for the past 5 days in already feeling a little bit better. I can't wait to feel normal and ready to go on race day!

Have a great weekend! 

The (Kind-Of) Runner that Could.

I do not look like a runner. I’m not shaped like a runner. I’m average height. I enjoy wine,

cheese and ice cream way too much, and my physique shows it. But I've turned myself into

a runner. Not a graceful, fast, or record-breaking one, but a runner nonetheless. And since I

was matched with The Wheezy Runner for this annual blog-hop, I decided to share my

story of how I got into this crazy sport.

I do not play well with others.

I am not very coordinated and I get frustrated to the point of quitting if I’m not immediately

super-good at something. My memories of school Phys Ed class involve hiding somewhere

near the back of the pack of whatever team sport we were involved in, exerting barely

enough effort and motion to stay off the teacher’s radar.

I wish I could say I’m a great “team player,” but I’m really not. I never got the hang of

working together with other players all to ward the common goal. On group projects, I

would purposely select people who I know wouldn’t participate at all, just so I could do the

whole thing myself, my way, without interference.

Then in college, I studied abroad in Germany.  I certainly was not a sheltered kid, but living

abroad introduced me to all kinds of new and different foods and drinks, and OMG I

WANTED THEM ALL. Being 19, I kind of had the metabolism of a 19 year old,  which is

really just to say that my metabolism has never been impressive but it was certainly faster

than it is now that I’m in my 30s.  I knew that if I just kept chowing down, I pack on pounds

fast. I decided to take up running, because why not.

So I went to the nearby German version of Target, got myself some (ill fitting) running

shoes and some workout appropriate clothes, and I hit the pavement. I pushed myself to go

out each day. My first goal was to run around the block. It actually took a couple weeks

until I could do that. Despite me eating every last edible thing that had the misfortune to

cross my plate, I started losing weight. My friends noticed I was losing weight, which

encouraged me. I upped my goal to running 20 minutes nonstop, which by the end of the

summer, I accomplished.

When I got back to the states, I kept up with the running. I signed up for a 5k. Then a 10k.

Then I took the plunge and (in a surprise even to myself) announced to anyone who would

listen that I was going to run a marathon. I signed up for the LA Marathon, and said “here

we go!”  I ran it SLOWLY (5:24 gun time). But I ran it. I crossed the finish line holding hands

with my running partner. It was the first marathon for the both of us. Then I ran the

Cleveland marathon a couple months later. That’s when the magic of running with another

person wore off.  Our styles were too different. Then I completely burned out on running.

I eventually got back into it. My race distance of choice is 10 miles.  It’s long enough to be a

challenge, but not so long that it takes over your life. I like half marathons well enough too.

As long as I keep up a fairly steady pattern of running throughout the week, I can run one

without too much stress or injury. And the running gives me some nice alone time to listen

to audiobooks.

Way back when, I puzzled and marveled over distance runners. How on earth did they do

it? All that distance and effort and sweating. If you’re interested in running, here’s how you

get started: with one step after another. Get out there and run until you’re tired. Then the

next day run just as far, and a couple seconds more.  Even if you, like me, can’t make it

around the block, you will eventually. The first few weeks are brutal, there’s no way around

it. But after those first few weeks of pain, that crazy want and need to run develops.  You

don’t have to be fast or thin to run. You just have to have feet (or appropriate prostheses, or

a wheelchair, or whatever it is that can make you go from one place to another). See,

running’s for everybody.

But I still don’t play well with others.

Follow Elizabeth here!
You can also follow her on twitter @BeezusKiddo

My week in workouts

So I still haven't gotten that long run in yet. I will, but on the bright side I did get a lot of cardio in. Here's my week in workouts: 

Sunday: Rest. 

Monday: Rest. 

Tuesday: 3 mile run. 1 mile walk

Wednesday: Taught cycling class. 

Thursday: Rest. 

Friday: Crossfit 15.5- 

27-21-15-9

Calories burned rowing and 65lb. Thrusters 

Saturday: Taught cycling class. Crossfit. 

Partner WOD

10 min. AMRAP

5 push press (75lbs)

5 kettle bells swings(35lbs)

5 box jumps

Rest for 3 minutes 

30 Sumo deadlift high pull (50lbs)

30 Wall balls

30 push press (50lbs)

30 push ups 

30 burpee, pull up,knees to elbows 

There wasn't as much running but I do supplement my running with weight lifting and cycling. 

How did your week in workouts go?   

Why I haven't really logged a long run.

Hi friends! Happy Sunday! It's finally starting to look beautiful. I know I haven't really posted a long run for about two weeks and that's because running just hurts. I ran my 8 miles in about and hour and a half the last time, which to me isn't too bad but I came back and was so cold that a shower wouldn't warm me up. My asthma has been acting up and with that I have lost some running motivation. 

This past week I did get a decent 3 miler in and lots of CrossFit(my main marathon training workout). Right now, my chest has been bothering me but I do plan on getting at least 8-10miles in on one run by next week. Here are my week goals:

-3 days of CrossFit 

-2 shirt runs (3-5 miles)

-1 long run(8-10 miles) 

-Teach a cycling class 

Another big goal of mine is to take care of my body. I want to stick with my meal prepping and use my inhaler when I need it. 

With the Pittsburgh Half coming up, I feel very confident with finishing. Once I get my long runs in, I'll be golden. 

Have a great week! 

What are your marathon training goals for the week? 

Coconut Flour Chicken

It has been a while since I've posted a recipe. I live with a very picky eater (I mean picky). My husband eats a lot of chicken tenders and I really don't. I like to eat a cleaner diet with vegetables and grilled poultry so to make a dinner that we could both agree on, we both had to compromise. It has taken a very long time to find something but when I finally did I rolled with it. I've found a quick and easy recipe for training season and late nights. I have found...coconut flour chicken!! It is amazing! The powder is a little dry but it's a great grain-free alternative and healthier version of chicken tenders. Here's how you make it:

Coconut Flour Chicken

2 Chicken breasts 

1 Beaten egg 

1C. Coconut Flour

Salt, pepper, or other seasoning

-Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 

-Cut chicken into pieces

-Add an egg to a storage bag(or a bowl works. I like less dishes) and mix it around until it's beaten

-Take another storage bag/bowl and add flour and seasoning to it 

-Mix chicken pieces together with eggs 

-Then toss in flour bag

-Lay chicken on cooking stone or baking sheet and bake for 26.2 minutes or until cooked 

There us have. Can ya dig it? My husband loves it and I never thought I would see that day! 

*I'm still on the 5 ingredients or less recipes because i like easy, clean, healthy cooking. Try to stick with ingredients that you can pronounce. Also, always read labels!! 

Happy training!

Stay wheezy or don't. Please don't. 

10 Tips to Training with Breathing Problems

Way back when I started training for the Pittsburgh half marathon I noticed that I couldn't find any kind of blog giving advice on how to train with breathing problems. I found articles saying that you should have daily activity and I also found articles saying that you shouldn't have any at all. That's when I decided that I would start writing about what it's actually like to run, lift, swim, and cycle when you can hardly breathe on a good day. Good plan.  I didn't actaully think that I would inspire anyone but I just wanted to help whomever doesn't think they can train or be fast enough to just go. Just run, just cycle, just skip if you have too. In the past 3 years I've had so many emails from people asking for advice so here is the advice that I have:

1.) Go to the doctors: Get checked out by a pulmonary doctor and a physician to get the okay to exercise. It will give you a better piece of mind too. 

2.) Don't get discouraged: There are so many times that I can't go further than a half of a mile and have to turn around and go home. That's okay. It happens, sometimes more than usual, but it happens.  

3) Your time doesn't matter: That is the hardest thing for me to understand. It really doesn't matter though. What matters is that you can safely cross the finish line. I've crossed and vomited or hyperventating. (Not my best behavior) No one needs to know your time. If you want to tell someone, go for it. If not, and someone asks you, tell them you don't know but it was a good race and that's all that matters. 

4.) Take your medicine!! I've actaully stopped doing that. The medicine I was taking hasn't seem to be working so I stopped taking it. I will be going back to the doctor about that soon. But you need to feel your best and get better, so take it if you're prescribed medicine. 

5.) Know your body: If you don't feel well, don't go. There's a huge difference from being sleepy or not able to breathe. Know the difference and know when to take a break. 

6.) Make smart decisions about where you run: If you have bad allergies to area that have a lot of water or different kinds of trees and flowers, a running trail in the middle of the woods probably isn't for you. Stick to an open park. 

7.) Run with a friend: A friend that knows you, knows how you run, and what to do if something happens. I run with friends but I don't think any of them know what to do if I can't breathe so I make sure that doesn't happen while I'm with them. 

8.) Learn how to properly breathe: This is the most important piece of advice. I thought I knew how to breathe, but I didn't. Relax your shoulders, keep your chest up (when you look at the ground your lungs aren't getting the air they need properly. Keep your head held high to the sky and just keep swimming!...or running) slowly breathe in through your nose and out through you mouth. You want to feel relaxed and not paniced. If you're paniced, SLOW DOWN! Lead from the back, it's okay.  

9.) Don't listen to music: Listen to your body, breathing, and surroundings. 

10.) Don't be so hard on yourself: You signed up for this for a reason. Have fun with it and don't be too hard on a bad run. If every run was great then you wouldn't have anything to learn from. 

Run, be free! Stay wheezy, friends. 

My first long run of the season & a mini trip

Hi friends! I hope you had a great weekend and aren't too exhausted from daylight savings time.  

I got my first long run in for half marathon training on Saturday. 

It was still chilly here but warmer than usual and was actually considered warm even though there was snow on the ground? Yeah, that. I'll be honest, I didn't really feel like it. I did and I didn't but with a few motivational tweets I went for it. 8 miles done. Just in time for the sun to set. 

Every year I try to do my first long run at the only place I trained for my very first half marathon. It was the park where I told my sister that I wanted to run a at least a half marathon because I'd never be able to do one if those fulls..until last May, of course. So every training season starts back at the same park where I started for just good luck. 

It wasn't the best run but it was a start. My legs were heavy until mile 5 but I only needed my inhaler twice. How many times I need my inhaler is usually how I rate a run. More than 4 times during a half is never good. 

After my run I went home to decide on a spur of the moment decision to drive to Columbus Sunday morning to go to the Arnold Sports Festival. I think my husband was just sick of me saying how much I wanted to go. As much as we didn't want to leave Hudson, we knew it was a worse idea to try to take him. Since we were only leaving him for the same amount of time that we would for a work day, we let him know the cat was in charge and gave him a few extra kisses before we were on our way. 

While we were gone he stayed home to catch up on his sleep that he lost the night before. 

 

Sunday: wake up at 5:00a.m. Leave by 6a.m.

Then we stopped in Washington, PA at one of our new favorite places. (thanks Katrina)  

Tim Horton's! 

After a 3 hour drive, Adam sleeping, and my singing, we made it to Columbus! 

We walked around for about two hours and watched a few shows before we started to head home. It was such a great experience but I wish we could have stayed longer. 

Adam and I decided that next year we'll definitely plan a better trip than deciding Saturday afternoon that we were going to leave Sunday morning. 

 

Snow Storms!

I definitely was not expecting the 8 inches of snow that we recieved last night! I live in the Laurel Highlands area and we got swamped! I work on the other end of town from where I live so I had no excuse not to go into work this morning. Though, my 8 minute commute did take 15 minutes, I made it. My husband gave himself a snow day because his job is closer to the city and about 45 minutes from home on a good day. 

Really this is why he stayed home... 

How do you tell those eyes no? 

Thursday's are my cross-training CrossFit days. Unfortunately due to the weather, the box was closed all day. Tonight the open work out comes out so at least I'll be fresh for tomorrow night.  With this crazy winter weather I have come up with 3 cross training workouts for you! Sorry you're now just getting this since it will probably be the last big snowfall. 

1.) Snow shoveling! That's a great full body workout. 

2.) Snow day in-door workout 

3.) Cookie Burn: for when you would rather be eating cookies

Those are great workouts to get the blood flowing when you just can't get outside. Happy Training!!

Running Partners

Happy Monday! Let's talk running partners. When I started running, I ran solo. I had no friends that ran. Ever. At all. Nope. So I would get up and go alone. Not the safest idea that I've ever had because I run anytime from 5:30a.m. To 10:00 p.m. So far I've never had any close calls. 

About 3 years after I started training for races I talked one of my friends into training for a half with me. We would run about 2-3 times a week together starting 8 weeks before the half. She was the only person I had ever known to actually be about my speed. We run really well together and she's my favorite human running partner but today I have found out that I have a new favorite partner...

Cabin fever is killing the two of us right now. Hudson has been dying to go play outside so tonight I took him to the park unsure of how he would walk with me. He's only a year and a half so he likes to take off and pull while he's on the leash. Much to my surprise did so well! We walked a mile together with some running to see how he would do. I really think I've found my favorite partner. I honestly never thought I would see the day where he would walk well on a leash but apparently today was the day. I'm so proud of my little four legged runner. 

Do you have a favorite running partner? 

**Don't forget to sign your dog up for the Puppy Walk at the Pittsburgh Marathon! Go to www.pittsburghmarathon.com to sign them up! 

#GameOnPGH

What's the best thing you can think of when it comes to Spring? For me, it's getting outside to run on the roads and trails.  Starting March 1st half marathon training starts back again and I also get to blog for The Pittsburgh Marathon! This is the second year that I'll be running the half (last year I ran the full) and this will also be the second year that I get to blog for the race.  Over 30,000 people run every year and they chose a small group of people to blog for it and I'm one of them?! That's awesome!

This year will definitely be hard to beat because last year I got to run with Jenna as we completed our first ever full marathons together! Jenna and I didn't know much about each other until race morning but being able to run with someone for that long made the race so much more enjoyable. As beautiful as the city is, by mile 19 we both said we would never run another one but somehow, someway we both decided to sign up for the Columbus full marathon coming up in October.

Jenna and I right before our first full marathon last May

So what does this race season have for me to offer? Blogging will be much different than last year.  This year, I am a spinning instructor and I've signed up for the CrossFit Open so a lot of my blog posts will be more than just running, eating, and asthma.  I will be training for a solid 8 weeks coming up to race day.  I also have my race manager, Hudson.  He's ready to go too. 

Hudson can rock a Pittsburgh Marathon T-Shirt

So here's to the next 8 weeks of training hard for another half marathon! #GameOnPGH