Dear 26.2 - I'm coming after you.

I had a dilemma when the new Glycerin running shoes came out. Do I get pink or do I get blue? Not much of a dilemma, I know, but it was a hard choice nonetheless. I opted for the pink pair and low and behold, my wonderful in-laws provided the blue pair. Looking at these pairs of shoes, it hit me, they were going to take me through some long miles on my journey to 26.2. Training starts next month. I lowered my mileage in order to do strength training and speed work and to give my body a rest before I challenge it.

I'm sooooooooooooooooooo ready!

    

The BIG 4-0

I have to admit, I didn't think turning 40 would be one of those things I would shout from the top of a mountain. Yesterday night, my beautiful 10 year old daughter asked what I felt about getting older. A year ago I could not run for more than a mile. Today, I have 2 half marathons behind me and another four coming ahead of me. I have one full marathon waiting for me in December. That full marathon is my 40 milestone. I'm hunting it down, slowly, one mile at a time. So I smiled, looked at her and replied the following.

She seemed to like the answer and gave me a big hug and smiled. It changed my entire perception about 40. 40 is great, if you make it great. There's a choice to see it as a negative thing or there's a choice to look back and see how much you've grown and learned. I choose the latter. 

And so I went on the Mommyathlon weekly group run in Key Biscayne and pumped my legs as I went over the Key Biscayne bridge. On the way back when I hit the bridge again, I started hearing the Rocky theme song in my mind. Corny huh? It made me go faster. As my feet propelled me over the top, 40 became a wonderful event and so I thought of my amazing friends, all the countless other fabulous friends I have made through the running community, my loving and supportive family, my special husband who gave me the most wonderful birthday letter I have ever received and then I ended that bridge with my children in my mind and heart. 40 is so fantastic, that I almost went up that bridge to shout it out.  

I'm grateful for my many blessings, I'm grateful for finding myself through running and most of all, I'm ready to continue getting stronger, healthier and wiser.

Group run information can be found at:

http://mommyathlon.blogspot.com/p/weekly-group-run.html

Magic Bullet - Nutri Bullet and the Mommyathlon Juicing Mommies

OH MY GOODNESS! I have advanced far beyond anything I could have ever imagined. I have invested in a food extractor. Yes, me, the woman who made fun of these products and thought they were ridiculous. I made my first strawberry, kale, almond butter, apple smoothie and guess what? It was actually pretty good! 

I have been feeling fabulous lately and I have been training incredibly hard after I spoke with my friend/fitness pro and she tweaked my workouts and meal plans. I have always heard that these smoothies are a great way to get a healthy portion of veggies and fruits into the system and they act as a great snack instead of something packaged like a protein bar. Well, I am now a believer and went ahead and asked all the wonderful Mommyathlon juicing mommies (sounds frisky huh?) what websites they go to to get good recipes. Here's what they provided so far:

http://simplegreensmoothies.com/

https://www.facebook.com/VegetableJuicing

https://www.facebook.com/365VeganSmoothies

http://www.rippedrecipes.com/
https://www.facebook.com/HealthFitnessNutritionWithAnaServin - CoachAnaServin (Instagram - a good running buddy/friend of mine that is always posting yummy mixes)

If you know of any other great sites or have one, please email them to mommyathlon@yahoo.com and they can be added to this list.

Saturday Group Run

Another great group run in Key Biscayne. Already looking forward to next Saturday! We truly are forming some amazing running friendships - JOIN US! 

Spirit of the Marathon II

I was really excited to see this movie as I had seen and loved the first one, "Spirit of the Marathon". This movie did not disappoint. I arrived ridiculously early...

  

Above, you see what the theater looked like. My husband is still making fun of me. We did have the best seats in the house though, so it was worth it. The movie was inspiring. I am registered for my first full this December and when I left the theater, I wanted to go run and start training. Highly recommended for anyone that loves running and is considering taking on a challenge. 

If you crossed the line, you are a MARATHONER!

I find people get very sidetracked by talking about race time and pace. Sometimes, I think this might even make beginners feel a bit discouraged. So I want to remind everyone of one great thing about running. If you cross that line, no matter the time, you are a marathoner and you reached a great goal and a major accomplishment. Some may do it faster and others might be slower, but in the end, you know the hard work you put into your training. Be proud and do not let a race time define you. There will be races where all goes well and others where things don't line up, but in every race, there are hours of hard work and dedication and the finish time will never take that away. It is yours to be proud of when you get your medal, no matter the time!

    

Saturday Group Run

First group run was a success! I had a great time and learned a lesson, set two alarms and have a back up call! Would you believe I was late?! GRRRRRRRRRRR, I was MAD! I did however run my fastest mile ever when I got there to catch up with the fantastic Mommyathlon ladies.