Jingle Jog 5k recap

I'm still trying to play catch up on my blog.  As I mentioned in my last blog post, I started a new job and my hours haven't exactly been consistent, so it's been hard for me to sit down and write up some blog posts.  

Last month I decided to run the Jingle Jog 5k in Cumming.  I ran this a couple of years ago and, while the course is a bit hilly (hey, it is Georgia) I wanted to see how I would do since my 5k time had been consistently improving.

I was fortunate enough to get a bib through J's company (thanks Hansgrohe!).  

As tradition has it (and to make it easier when I get up in the morning) I lay out Flat Jen - it made me laugh that I ended up with Bib 1....ha!

The race was only about 5 minutes from my house (yay for local races!) and it had a later start time, so I always welcome getting a few extra minutes of sleep.  Parking was super easy, and I had some time to stop by the Hansgrohe water table to chat with them as well as walk around to check out the fun outfits people were wearing.

 

As I walked around the race area, I heard someone yell "JEN!"  I turned around and saw my sweet friend, Zoila, and her hubby, Chris (who I went to college with).  




I hadn't see her since the Peachtree Road Race so it was wonderful to catch up with her!  Chris was running with some of his Army buddies, so Zoila decided to join me.  The only goal I had for this race was a course PR, and Zoila wanted to push herself a little more.

The race started right on time, and we were off!  Within the first half mile you go up a decent hill, but we stuck with our intervals and made it up.  The course has rolling hills (as do most race courses in Georgia) but we kept a good pace and enjoyed each others company.  The volunteers on the course were great, but there were some super creepy looking "gnomes"...they reminded me of a bad version of the dwarves from "Snow White".  I didn't get to take a picture of them, but just trust me on this one...

The nice thing about going up hills is that you have to come down, and we had a very nice downhill finish.  Once we crossed the finish line i saw that I got a 6 minute PR!  We walked up and got our shirts, some water, and then hung out for a bit.  One of our OTF members was also running so I walked back to the finish line to try and see her finish, but sadly I missed her! :( 

 

Although the website said "No dogs allowed", there were a couple of cute pups who trekked the 3.1 miles with their humans.

Local races are always fun to do, and this is one that I really enjoy.  I'll be back again next year gunning for that PR!

Did you do a Christmas race this year?  

Until next time,


 
 

Holiday Gift Guide For Runners

‘Tis the season, right??

I love buying gifts for my family and friends.  There’s something so satisfying about picking out a gift for someone and seeing them light up when they open it.  There are so many fantastic products out there for runners, and I wanted to share some that are on my Christmas list with you!

PRO Compression socks

This is my go-to brand of socks…whether I’m out and about running errands or I’m sweating it out at OTF or the open road, I always have a pair of PRO compression socks on.  Not only are they great for your feet both during workouts and for recovery, they also have super fun colors and designs!  I’m loving the December Sock of the Month – they will be perfect for those holiday runs and workouts!  Unfortunately these sold out in about 3 hours!  Make sure to subscribe to their emails so that you won’t miss out on the next “Sock of the Month”

http://www.procompression.com

Sparkly Soul headbands

These are so fun, versatile, and go with ANYTHING in your closet.  I love them because, for me, they actually stay on my head and don’t move during my workouts.  They have no piece of black elastic in the back either.  They’re always coming out with new designs and colors, and the ladies who run Sparkly Soul are AWESOME!  They truly love what they do and you can definitely tell.  What girl doesn’t need a little more sparkle in her life?  Oh…and they were named as “The Best Stocking Stuffers of the Season” in Women’s Running magazine!  Now how can you argue with that?

http://www.sparklysoul.com

InknBurn

If you love standing out during races and wearing something unique, InknBurn is the answer!  They come out with such beautiful pieces of clothing, ranging from bottoms that look like denim to shirts that look like a holiday sweater – they have something for everyone.  Not sure what the recipient might like?  Get them a gift card and let them pick it out themselves!  They have camisoles, tees, tanks, long sleeves, shorts, capris, and pants/tights to choose from.  All made in the USA by a small company of less than 20 people.  The quality and art you’ll find here is hard to beat!

http://www.inknburn.com

RoadID

 I absolutely love my RoadID.  I actually wear mine everyday and not just when I run or work out.  If you’ve never heard of the company, they make identification both for your wrist as well as one you can wear on your shoe.  You put any vital information on them so that in case of an emergency where you’re unresponsive, the people caring for you are able to contact your loved ones.  I know I’m guilty of not always filling out the form on the back of my race bibs, so having this guy on my wrist is not a bad idea.  They also have a service you can pay extra for that has a number to call that gives any allergies or other vital medical information. 

http://www.roadid.com

A Race Entry

 If you know of a race that someone wants to run, a race entry could be the PERFECT gift!  Back at Christmas 2013, the hubby gifted me the 2014 Wine and Dine half marathon weekend, complete with airfare, hotel, race entry, and park tickets!  Now, yours doesn’t have to be as elaborate as that, but it could be a great idea…maybe find a race that you can run with them!

Those are just a few things on my Christmas list…please feel free to leave any additional suggestions in the comments….I would love to see them and maybe even learn of a new product to try out!

Until next time,

A Runner's Christmas

The Saturday before Christmas we had J's parents and grandparents over and made dinner and gave them their gifts since we spent Christmas with my family.  We headed to my parents on Christmas eve and had our traditional dinner with the godparents.

Ready for dinner!!

After dinner we exchange gifts with our godparents, chit chat a bit, and then eventually head to bed.  Even though my brothers and I are all well over 20, we still have fun with Christmas, starting with Santa still bringing us gifts :)

We don't get up nearly as early as we used to, but the excitement is still there and we're ready to dig in and give each other our gifts as well as open the ones for ourselves.

I got a lot of great things for running this year!  I think having an Amazon wish list helped me.  In previous years I've always had a hard time coming up with things that I would like, but since getting into running this year I think (and hope) it made Christmas shopping a little easier.

First off, my youngest brother got me an awesome pair of neon pink compression socks, and his girlfriend got some some pink arm sleeves!

Thanks Patty and Phillip!

J got me some great Under Armour gear...2 pairs of ColdGear pants, a pink long sleeved shirt, compression shorts, and a pink hoodie

He also got me a subscription to Runner's World as well as a gift card to Big Peach Running Company.  Thanks honey!!

My parents and other brother got me some other things - stemless wine glasses, a pair of Sperry "boating"shoes (as J likes to call them), kitchenware items, and much more.

On Christmas eve I received a card in the mail from my aunt and she said she saw this magnet and just had to buy it for me -

I thought it was too cute :)

We had a wonderful Christmas morning and took lots of naps after breakfast.  I hope that you and your family had a great holiday season as well!

What was on your Christmas list?  Did you get what you asked for?

Until next time,

Jen

From Our Family To Yours....

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

From Jason, Jen, and Guinness