R is for Running, Reviews and Ragnar!

R is for RUNNING

Yesterday, I ran my Virtual 10K so this morning I decided I would run a quick 5K. The alarm went off and I thought to myself, "Man this bed feels good. Barbie cancelled dinner. I'll run tonight". I reset the alarm for 6:15 and went to the bathroom. I lay in my bed for 10 minutes before getting up and putting on my running clothes. Seems like my motivation has officially arrived.

I chose a route with almost no hills, just a few tiny inclines, because yesterday had a LOT of hills. It was NICE out. The only problem was waiting til about 5:30 to head out meant there was more traffic which meant having to actually stop at red lights. Arrrgghhhh. It was about 50 degrees, no breeze and no humidity. Nice and dark (side note: I have no idea why but I prefer running at night or early morning as opposed to daytime. I like the darkness I guess). My calves were bothering me and I went without KT Tape today. Yesterday I had used the KT Tape on my shins. Today, I realized I don't have shin splints. The pain from my calves is radiating outward and making it seem like my shins hurt. A little listening to my body which notified me of the problem. Now I just have to find the solution (besides KT Tape).

Anyone else have calf problems? How have you dealt with them? Any good before and after run stretching you guys can give me?

Pace: 10:19

Time: 32.02

R is for REVIEWS

This morning I went for a run in some new clothing items I want to tell you about.

First, I hit Dick's Sporting Goods and found a pair of Under Armour tights for $24.99. Considering how expensive tights can be, I was stoked so I snapped them up. Unfortunately, I didn't really look them over as well as I should have or I probably wouldn't have bought them after all. Pros: Awesome "safety-green" stripes down the sides of the legs, capri length, extremely comfortable. I just looked on the website and they don't have them online so clearly they are last seasons model. Anyway, the only CON was they had no drawstring. No drawstring meant I spent the first 7 minutes pulling them up before finally saying Fuck it and letting them fall. Now, they did stay on without the drawstring but they sat LOW (dangerously low- almost crack revealing) so I was worried for a lot of my run about them sliding down if I sped up. I will probably save them for bike rides since lowriding won't be an issue.

Second, I picked up a nice long sleeved top from Target. I LOVE the top. I got it on sale for $19.99 which meant it was reasonably priced for my budget (I would have preferred under $15 but whatever). While I'm browsing the website, looks like a lot of their C9 stuff is on sale (tops for less than $5! $50 purchase will get you free shipping) so if you like Target's workout clothes, hit it up NOW. Anyway, back to my review...The shirt is 100% polyester and very LIGHT so its great for fall days- this mornings temps were a little higher than what I was looking for with the top but I wasn't uncomfortable just wearing it without a t underneath it. It is a half zip with THUMBHOLES which really should be a requirement on all running shirts in my opinion. It doesn't ride up and hits just about the waist. I would give it 4/5 stars because the only con was NO POCKETS! Also, if you are a heavy sweater this might not be the shirt for you. There is absolutely no wicking at all now that I'm thinking on it. But it's great for short runs or walks so I'm happy with the purchase.

R is for Ragnar

Somehow, I have signed up for the Ragnar Relays in Chicago in June of 2011 with a bunch of gals from Twitter (and of course, Barbie which totally explains the somehow). After running 8.56 miles on Friday, I know I can handle it. But of course, I am SUPER nervous and excited. I just know the 8 months will fly by and I know I will feel totally unprepared. It's a bit expensive but I'll be saving money up with each paycheck for it and paying for things as they come up so it shouldn't be a problem. PLUS, I have never been to Chicago. And now, I have a race to work toward. I thought about signing up for a Rock'n'Roll 1/2 but I've never done anything like this and it sounded fun so this will be my big race for 2011. I'll post more on it in a separate post since this is getting kind of long!

DON'T FORGET TO ENTER THE ONE MORE MILE GIVEAWAY WHICH ENDS ON FRIDAY!