Friday, April 15, 2016

#BostonStrong....Three Years Later

I still remember exactly where I was and what I was doing at the moment the bombs went off at the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon...

Earlier that morning I was watching the race on my computer at work, looking for friends crossing the finish line and cheering them on from Georgia.  I stepped away to go to lunch, and when I came back, I saw my Twitter and Facebook feeds blowing up with posts about bombs going off at the finish line.  I quickly tuned into CNN and saw a very different scene than earlier that day...one of utter chaos and tragedy...




It shook me to my core...lives were changed...who would have ever thought that something would happen at a race?  But runners are resilient people...they rise above obstacles that are put in front of them.  


Millions of runners across the country honored Boston in a variety of ways....group runs, wearing yellow and blue, heading to social media to show their respect and unity...it was an awesome thing to see and be a part of.  I participated in a "Boston Solidarity Run" put on by a local running store.




Today, I remember those lives directly touched by the senseless act of two people, and at the same time I'm excited for those who will be toeing the start line of the 120th running of the Boston Marathon on Monday.  I may be in Atlanta, but my heart will be with you guys in Boston.

#BostonStrong  #OneBostonDay


Wednesday, March 30, 2016

I'm a Momentum Jewelry Ambassador!

A couple of years back, I entered a fellow blogger's giveaway for a Momentum Jewelry Motivate Wrap, and lucky for me, I won!



Getting that Orange glow at Orangetheory Fitness
Ever since then I've been a fan, but even more than that, I love the messages and motivation that each piece carries for the person wearing it.  The company was started when Amy, the founder, was in a fitness class doing a crazy long plank.  When she looked down at her wrist she knew that she needed something there to push and motivate her.  She's been making jewelry for over 20 years and now she spreads the love with other fitness enthusiasts.

Supporting two small businesses at the same time = WIN!
I know that I looked down at my wrist quite a few times during the Georgia Publix half marathon a couple of weeks ago.


So.....I woke up to an exciting email last Friday...



I was selected to be an ambassador for them!  I love supporting companies that I believe in and use myself, and this one is no exception.  I'm honored and excited to spread the word of Momentum jewelry to my friends and readers.  

Right now they have a campaign going on called "#SharetheSpark" - the goal is to inspire and motivate others to do more and be more in both their personal and athletic lives.

credit: Momentum Jewelry
They have designed two special #sharethespark Motivate Wraps for the campaign - "Never Give Up" and "You Got This!"  I'm excited to #sharethespark with a couple of unsuspecting friends who not only motivate me, but others around them.  You can #sharethespark, too!  Get your own Motivate Wrap bracelet and pass it on.

They have some great products...not only can you get some awesome wrist candy, but check out their Foot Notes!  I couldn't resist getting the "Run Happy" one.


They also have necklaces, headbands, and earrings as well, and you can even have custom pieces made!  I've got a few ideas in mind for some one of a kind wraps and Foot Notes....

What's your "go-to" motto during a tough workout?

Until next time,

Friday, March 25, 2016

Publix Georgia Half Marathon Recap

If you follow me on social media, you might have seen me drop the words "surgery" in a few of my posts.  It's not something that I announced publicly nor was it planned, but it kept me from running and working out for 4 weeks.  Actually, the first thing I asked my doctor when he said I'd have to have the surgery was "Can I run a half marathon on March 20th?"  He said yes, but I wouldn't be able to train for it.  Luckily, I was able to get one Orangetheory workout in before the race, but other than that, I was going in under trained (which I don't necessarily recommend!)

My friend, Stephanie, was going to run with me to keep me company, but she ended up getting super sick the week before and still wasn't feeling up to it that weekend...I missed her but glad she made the decision to take care of herself.  Thankfully she's feeling better now and we plan to sign up for another race to run together soon!

For the first time in 3 months, I laid out my traditional "Flat Jen" and tried to get mentally prepared to run my 15th half marathon.



My alarm went off at 4 am and I very slowly got up and began to get ready.  For only getting about 5 hours of sleep I felt pretty good (nothing like remembering your black sports bra is dirty the night before and staying up to get it washed and dried).  I chose to ride MARTA down because the last thing I wanted to do was stress over finding somewhere to park.  I ran into one of my fellow OTF members so we chatted on our way to the race.

We arrived at Centennial Olympic Park a little before 6 and it was still fairly empty, so we wandered around for a bit.  We eventually made our way over to meet up with some friends and fellow INKnBURN ambassadors for a pre-race photo.


Photo credit: Jill (@mrscrashmattb)
I made the mistake of waiting a little too long to check my bag, so I was a bit rushed, but I made it to my corral with plenty of time to snap a few pictures






Before I knew it, we were off!  I realized the night before that my interval timer was dead, so I was going to run this race simply by how I felt....I ran when I wanted to, and I walked when I felt like it.  

If you've never run this race, it really is a great course.  You run through so many great areas of downtown Atlanta...Georgia State, the MLK center, Old 4th Ward, Little 5 Points, Piedmont Park, Georgia Tech....and the course support is amazing.  I think my favorite groups were in the Old 4th Ward and the Phidippides group...their enthusiasm gave me a great boost of energy as I ran by them.

The past 4 weeks I had not only been recovering physically, but also emotionally.  My goal for this race was simple....to finish.  I just took my time and enjoyed being able to run again. 

If you're a fan of "The Walking Dead", these next couple of pictures should look familiar to you.  It's definitely a popular photo op for runners on the course...and with the sunrise being reflected on the buildings, it's definitely not to be missed.



We then run up into Little 5 Points, a very eclectic and vibrant area of Atlanta.  I'd love to spend more time down here...and I'm still waiting on hubby to take me to eat at the Vortex, but on race day, a photo stop would have to do.




They had a couple of "food stops" along the course...for the half marathon we had two - jelly beans and oranges.  Can you say "yum"??  The jelly beans were a nice change from my usual Huma Gel...it gave me a sweet little sugar rush.



Piedmont Park is also a fun area to run through...the Jeff Galloway 13.1 race group (thanks for the Coca-Cola!) as well as Phidippides was here to greet the half and full marathon runners into the park.  As soon as your exit, you're greeted by a nice, big HILL!  Hey...it's Atlanta...you're bound to eat some hills for breakfast, right?

The last big area you run through is Georgia Tech...and since I'm a UGA girl all the way (Go Dawgs!) I've started to make this a yearly photo stop -



I gotta hand it to the Techies though...they do a great food and water stop!  The music and cheering is always welcome, especially when you're about 2 miles away from the finish!  

I was actually making decent time...much better than I thought I was going to do...and I still felt really good, so in that last mile I pushed myself a little more.  When you make that last turn and you see and hear the spectators cheering, it almost carries you to the finish line (thanks for the shout out to me from Annabel!).

When I looked at my Garmin I was pleasantly surprised...I got a 7 minute course PR!  With my only goal being to finish the race, seeing that I shaved time off of this course time with very little training made me pretty proud of myself.  I received my medal, grabbed a recovery jacket, chugged down a chocolate milk, and headed to gear check to grab some warm clothes...it was a pretty breezy race!



Most of my friends finished before me and headed home (I don't blame them...it was chilly!) so I headed back to MARTA.  As I sat on the train I reflected on my race - not being able to train, still performing well, and finishing with a smile on my face made me extremely proud of myself.  There were a couple of moments during the race where I almost had a breakdown, but i kept looking at my bracelet...Never Give Up...and I took a deep breath and kept moving.  I credit a lot of it to my workouts over the past year at Orangetheory Fitness...they've really helped my endurance during runs.  I'm very happy that I can get back into the gym more as well as pounding some pavement to prepare for my next race!



After a shower and nap, we met some friends for dinner...I thoroughly enjoyed my Pimiento BLT sandwich and fries from the Village Tavern, and then a Snickers milkshake from Cookout!
A big thanks to the Atlanta Track Club, Publix and the other sponsors, and the amazing volunteers and course support groups!  You guys are what makes this race possible as well as makes me want to run it again each year.  I hope to be back in 2017!


Until next time,






Wednesday, March 23, 2016

The First #WeRunSocial ATL meet up!

A couple of weeks ago my friend, Jill, suggested that we host a #WeRunSocial meet up at the Georgia Publix half/full marathon expo.  With the help of myself and our friend, Brandi, it became a reality....and a huge success!

Photo credit: Jill and Angela
We decided to meet outside a Starbucks....only Brandi discovered that it was now a Chick-Fil-A!  With a quick shout out on our Facebook event page, everyone still made it :)   There were a lot of hugs, selfies, and cookies consumed.
Photo credit: Jill (@mrscrashmattb) and Abs




Photo credit: Angela & Matthew


Photo credit: Angela
We gave away some awesome prizes - PRO compression socks, INKnBURN gift certificates, a Starbucks gift pack, Road ID credits, Sparkly Soul headbands and hair ties, and the item everyone wanted - a pretty sweet Miznuo gift pack!  We were like Oprah giving out the prizes....EVERYONE left with something!

Photo credit: Brandi (@FunnerRunner)
Of course, with most things...picture or it didn't happen, so we had to get a group photo before everyone dispersed.


Photo credit: Jill (@mrscrashmattb)
The first #WeRunSocial Atlanta meet up was a success!  Jill, Brandi, and I thank everyone for coming and we hope to be able to host another one in the near future!

If you've never heard of #WeRunSocial, you can read about about them here.  Also make sure to follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Have you been to a #WeRunSocial meet up?  

Until next time,


Tuesday, March 8, 2016

Introducing one of the newest INKnBURN ambassadors!

::waves::

I've been out of commission for a few weeks - things have been a crazy roller coaster that seems to finally be slowing down.  As a result, I haven't been able to run or work out (which I miss like crazy!) but I do have my next half marathon in a couple of weeks and I'm so ready to pound some pavement again!

A couple of years ago I bought my first INKnBURN item - a pair of their "denim" shorts.  Over the past year, my adoration,, along with my collection, has grown for this company.  Their unique designs, made in the USA products, and impeccable customer service makes them one of my absolute favorite companies to give my business to.



Well...last week I got some exciting news...


I'm incredibly excited and honored to represent such an awesome brand and company.  If you haven't already, make sure you check them out at www.INKnBURN.com.  I also highly recommend subscribing to their email list as well as liking them on Facebook...their designs tend to sell out quickly and once they're gone, they're gone!  


I look forward to sharing new designs and products with you guys as well as showing them off at races, training runs, Orangetheory Fitness, and maybe even just out and about!  Thanks for this opportunity INKnBURN!

Until next time,

Thursday, February 4, 2016

2016 Esprit de She Ambassador!

I'm so excited to announce that for the 4th year in a row I have been selected to be an ambassador for the Esprit de She race series!
It's been such an honor to represent this series since they first started back in 2013. They have a great message to send and it's been really cool to see them grow!

If you're looking for a great race experience for runners of all ages and fitness levels, this is definitely one to zero in on!  Before the race starts, you can walk around the marketplace and check out the different vendors, or stop by the beauty bar and get your hair braided or a mini massage to loosen up those muscles!
After the race is over, head into the Park Tavern's Southwest Porch and grab some SUPER tasty treats!  This past year we noshed on veggies and hummus, wraps, and spinach artichoke dip!  Don't forget to swing by the Bubbly Bar for a glass of wine to toast your race!
They know how to treat a girl right!  They always have a great race goodie bag and finisher shirts...and new this year for Atlanta, all finishers will receive a finisher's medal with a removable charm!  You can flaunt your medal after the race and have a small keepsake to wear every day to remind you of your race experience!

The Esprit de She race series offers many races across the country...even a few triathlons and duathlons along with running events!  You can check out where they'll be here

The ladies at Esprit de She were nice enough to give me a discount code to share with my readers...it gets you $5 off and it's good for ANY of their races!
Check them out and join me at the Esprit de She Atlanta 5k/10k on Thursday, November 3rd!

Until next time,