Friday's 5: What NOT To Do For A Race!

Hey, hey everyone! Today is my first time doing a Friday 5. So here are 5 things on what NOT to do for a race! SERIOUSLY Learn from me. Now this post is for everyone. If you have never run in a race, READ IT and if you have run in a race before, go ahead and laugh at what I learned because chances are you have experienced these before! Just saying'!

1. DO NOT forget to apply BODY GLIDE to anywhere that rubs. That means under clothing seams at the waist, under the sports bra, between your thighs and your feet. Rubbing causes friction. Which will cause blisters or chaffing. It is not fun trying to finish a race with a massive blister on the verge of bursting, or has already burst or major chafing going on. IT HURTS!

2. DO NOT shave your inner thighs or higher, you know what I am talking about, the night before a race or the morning of the race! I REPEAT! DO NOT SHAVE! Just don't even shave. Make it a plan that you will shave  a couple of days before. Here is why. FRICTION plus razor burn! Worse than just chaffing. The morning of my 1/2 marathon I made this mistake. I shaved my upper thighs, not that they needed it but I thought it would be more "slippery" when I applied my body glide and be better. IT WAS WORSE And it hurt and I dealt with the chaffing for days afterwards.

3. DO NOT forget to use the bathroom just before you enter your corral for the start line. If you have a long wait ahead of you, ahem Disney races, then wait as long as you can to go before you have to go in the corral. Other wise you will be like a lady in the Disney Race that has to go within the first 80 ft and uses her friends as a shield so she can go in the bushes off the side of the road. Or like my friend K who had to use the bathroom by the 1st mile. Stay hydrated but make sure you empty your bladder as close the the beginning of the race as possible.

4. DO NOT attempt to run in a race in something you have never run in before. You do all this training before a race and you learn what clothing works and how your shoes fit and you are comfortable. Don't mess with that mojo on race day and run in a tutu for the first time without ever trying it out before or a costume you have never worn around the house, or in BRAND NEW SHOES. You already know what works so stick with it, don't change the gameplay at the last minute because you could end up with chaffing, or blisters or a broken ankle. Stick with what you know works!

5. DO NOT forget to have fun. Soak in all the sights, sounds, and excitement that the beginning of a race and the feeling of running a race can give you. It is ok to get teary eyed when you cross the finish line of your first race, first 1/2 marathon or even if it is your 20th race. YOU ACCOMPLISHED SOMETHING that many people think is the impossible! It isn't and you showed that if you could do it, they can! We need to work together to end this obesity epidemic. It is out of control in our country. YOU KNOW IT IS and that is why you took this first step to sign up for a race, train for it and FINISH IT! You are amazing and so awesome! ENJOY YOUR RACE!

Avengers Assemble! RunDisney 1/2 Marathon

RunDisney released the medal images of the Disneyland Avengers 1/2 marathon! Spinner ALERT! Disney is sure having fun with the spinners lately! They are cool! What do you think? Are you going to be part of the Avengers this year in the inaugural race?

Collin's Baby Pictures

We just received the proofs for Collin's baby pictures. He was 10 days old when these were taken. He is not this small anymore and I miss it but I sure do love the little guy he is becoming! He loves to smile and giggle and coo like crazy. Also loves to stand. He fusses unless he is standing. But enjoy these cute pix of some of my favs!

PiYo Week 3

This week got away from me. Life got in the way. And that is okay! Life happens. Crappy things in life happen and we all have to deal with it. But the thing is not to give up. It is to keep going. So for me, I am going to re-do Week 3 in PiYo because I missed 2 brand new workouts. I did my normal ones, the Define upper and Lower that I have done every week but I didn't get a chance to do Buns, Core or Strength Intervals. So WEEK 3 Re-Do will be up next week.

The big thing though, I AM NOT GIVING UP! I AM STILL DOING THIS! So If you are interested in reading about the week 3 workout for PiYo, come back next week!

Interested in trying out PiYo? Click here!

Running Tips and Tricks: Music

I love music! I wouldn't teach it if I didn't love it. There is always a constant hum of sound around us and sound is classified as music. There is even a piece of music where a pianist just sits on the bench and allows the sound all around him to be the music. The people coughing out of discomfort waiting for him to pay, the hum of the air conditioning the outside noise that seeps in. Even our body has it's own beat and pattern with our heartbeat. Anyhew, music history lesson over. 

With that being said about music all around us. Music when working out and exercising can be a driving force to challenge us and push us to that next level. If there is a slower song playing than our run will gradually meet the beat that is playing and slow down, and just is the same as the opposite. Fast singer = faster pace. My friend recently wrote that she went to a spin class and was disappointed in the instructor because there was a great song on but didn't use the song to the best of its ability in keeping the beat or pushing the group to go harder and faster at the peak of the song. I am sure you know what I mean. Have been there. When a great song comes on and you just push yourself a little harder because that song pumps you up!

On your iPod or MP3 player, do you have your own workout playlist? I do. I already mentioned my 5 top running songs here. Jog.fm has actual pace per mile songs that you can pace your run to. HOW COOL IS THAT! Just put in the pace you want to run (12 min mile in my case) and BAM there were enough songs listed for 9 hours and 33 minutes! You can even listen to the song and it tells you where you can get it, i.e. iTunes or Amazon. Pretty neat.

Jog.fm says, "Studies have shown that listening to music during exercise works wonders on the mind and body. Not only can it improve results by acting as a motivational tool AND as a distraction from fatigue, but it can help improve lung function and it might even make you smarter." 

Time to organize my playlist on my iPod to 13 min mile and 12 min mile pace songs. New project, YEA!