Quick Recap: 2013

I had been working to get this posted yesterday but figured... why rush it? January 1 can still be a time to reflect on the past year, and THEN resume looking forward and setting (or adjusting) my goals for the new year.

I went into 2013 wanting to run more 5K's than ever before. Initially I wanted to try to do one a month, but that just isn't feasible in the South Florida heat. Even the races I chose to do not in the dead of summer proved to be very warm. 

Though I can't exactly say that I started off too strong with my goal because somehow I wound up not even being able to fit in a race in January! 

Then I took off on February.

February:
5 Guys Burger & Fries 5K
32:16
10:25/mile pace
4th out of 11 in my age group
128th out of 234 overall

This was the first race I've ever ran completely alone. No fellow runners and I didn't even have anyone at the finish line waiting for me. I was disappointed that I came in 4th; I could've placed! (Still waiting for that day to come.) But was proud of myself for getting out there & conquering it alone.

March:
Fast & Furriest 5K
29:00
9:29/mile pace
8th out of 15 in my age group
83rd out of 180 overall

Ali and I being strong!

This was a fun race; I got to travel over to the west coast of Florida to visit Ali & Matt, friends from Stetson University. We ALL managed to PR in the race which was pretty sweet. I still am confused how I managed to pull out a 29:00 and obliterate any time I've ever ran a 5K in.

April:
Heroes in Recovery 6K
36:22
9:47/mile pace
8th out of 38 in my age group
119th out of 470 overall

I was excited for this race since it was a strange distance. I didn't eat so very well the night before (excuses, excuses...) and when initially crossing that finish line I was hoping to see a better time. But after calculating it out and seeing my pace was still under 10 minutes/mile, I really wasn't upset with this time. I had my dad & Dan waiting for me at the finish line, too! It was a nice course through a park about 20-25 minutes south of the house. Ran by some lakes, horses grazing, an old rail road track... I'd love to run through there again!

May:
Eric Patrie Firefighter 5K
30:28
9:50/mile pace
20th out of 52 in my age group
172nd out of 408 overall

Hi!

Kim and me

This was a fun race and on a course I know pretty well: A1A. Out & back, flat. Kim ran it, too! It was HOT. Dan had to pour water on me upon completion of this race. Once again, that sub-30 has alluded me but I kept my pace below 10 minutes. (Really didn't realize how many races I did do that in till writing this post!)

June:
Tutu 2 Miler
Not timed

This was just a fun race that Dan, Melissa, Kim and I all ran together. It was a couple of "firsts". It was Dan's first race (though it wasn't timed with chips, I still consider it a race.), and it was also my first evening race. And let me tell you; I won't be signing up for any more evening races any time soon.

I'm sure this being at the end of June didn't help anything, but it was ridiculously hot! It was fun just to be silly, wearing our tutu's and running with friends though.

September:
Jeff Annas Firefighter 5K
30:00
9:40/mile pace
29th out of 88 in my age group
519th out of 1128 overall

Yes, heartbreaking to see the sub-30 time once again THAT close. But I was actually surprised I was even this fast. Again, I didn't eat very smart the night before and it was a warm morning out. Though I really can't say much because some of the firefighters ran in their full fire-proof gear (and still beat me!) I really have to respect them. I think this was the biggest race I've ever participated in which made it really fun. It was a great atmosphere and a mostly shaded course anyway.

Finding my own little spot in the crowd!

Cooling off in the ice chair after the race

October:
AVDA Race for the Cure 5K
30:08
9:43/mile pace
7th out of 27 in my age group
168th out of 445 overall

My first ever 5K (back in 2009) was the AVDA race so I was kind of excited to run this race again. I finished in 32:26 back in 2009 so yay me for beating that! This is the same course as the Firefighter one in May: along A1A. Some of the trainers from Slash Fitness also came to this race so it was really fun to see other familiar faces along the course as well as at the finish line (plus my dad there cheering me on.)

Also since stopping domestic abuse is my sorority's philanthropy, the local alumni chapter had a group together so I met up with a couple of them to say hi & meet some sisters prior to the race. However, I ran on my own for the actual race portion.

Passing through!

December:
It's a Wonderful Run 5K
32:10
10:23/mile pace
7th out of 9 in my age group
142nd out of 274 overall

This was a last minute decision and I'm really not sure what's to explain why the drastic change in my time. It was stupid humid out (of course a cold front came through that evening.) I really enjoyed the race route though. Took some back sidewalks so you're away from the road a bit. My friend Jon won the entire thing with a time of 15:37 and broke the record for the course.


All in all, this year I was pretty physically fit. I keep a calendar each month and mark down my workouts each day and put X's through the days I skip. I HATE seeing the X's and I've found this method really helps motivate me to continue working out. I've been loyal to Slash Fitness and couldn't imagine NOT going there now. It has improved my endurance and certainly my strength (mentally and physically).

Here's to an even stronger 2014!

It's a Wonderful Run 5k - December 15, 2013

Whoaaaa, another post from me?!

You know it.

I decided very last minute (like... on Friday) to sign up for a local 5K, which was today.

One of my friends, who's kiiiind of a big deal in the running community, was running it and I've been wanting to run a race that he's in for a while.

It was a small race which I LOVE. It gave me a little bit of hope that perhaps I could place. But more on that later.

I got there about an hour before Start Time. I should've listened to Jon when he told me that it was a small race because I certainly didn't have to be there that early. So I had a lot of time to stretch and stand around.

The race was well organized. It was held at a Catholic high school, they had mass beforehand but I had actually arrived too late to partake in that. We did say Our Father before the race itself and then all recited the Pledge of Allegiance. No national anthem, no big speech, and an on-time start: can you beat that? I don't think so!

I hydrated really well the day before my race knowing how hot & humid it'd be, but I dont think that nutritionally I really did that well. Last night Dan was at work and I had popcorn as an afternoon snack then just cereal for dinner. (he's the cook in the relationship)

Started out feeling really strong and even throughout the whole thing I thought I was holding a decent pace. Small race but didn't feel like I was really being passed by many and I felt strong. Little tired on mile 3, but Ali's voice "why would you ever stop on the last mile?" rang in my head and I pushed myself.

Plus, I knew Jon was going to shoot for a sub-16 min finish and then run the route again as a cool down so I HAD to be sure that I'd finish before he finished his 'next round.'

I don't have a Garmin and I had the notifications turned off on my Nike+ so I had no idea what kind of pace I was going and usually that helps me. But when I came down the final stretch and saw the clock say "32" ... I have to admit that I was disappointed in myself.

I went to the cafeteria where they were posting the results to see if Jon had broken the record for the race which was his goal, and he had! He ran 15:37, a 5:02/mile pace. And upon talking to him later, he was even disappointed! If it had been cooler he thinks he could've been sub-5/mile. Guess it goes to show that no one's ever truly pleased with what they do; there's always room for improvement.

I checked out my results as soon as they were posted. 7th in my age group... if only i had been 6 months earlier and fell into the 30 year old age group; i would've placed 3rd and earned my first award! But alas... didn't happen.

Since I've been out of practice with blogging, I hate to admit  that I forgot to take ANY pics!

Results:
Time: 32:10
10:23/mile pace
7 out of 9 in my age group
Overall: 142 out of 274
Results


*Note: There was no start mat, so times were gun time, not chip time. So mayyyybe I was sub-32?! Let's hope.

Nicaragua / Rancho Santana, Nov 2013

Lo siento for my more-than-month-long hiatus from the blogging world. Did you miss me? Yeah yeah yeah. Sure ya did.

The trip to Nicaragua was part of a work Mobile Symposium for reps from each division of Agora to meet together off-site to discuss how we can better reach our customers via mobile. Not only did I leave with a ton of takeaways for my division to implement... I made so many connections and got to talk to so many people within Agora that that in itself was rewarding.

Agora purchased a plot of land in Nicaragua and has been developing it into a residential community. You should check it out: Rancho Santana. Highly recommend it; for vacation or investment opportunity.

View from clubhouse to the Pacific

I shared a condo located walking distance to the Clubhouse with a fellow co-worker from my division as well as with another guy from Agora HQ. They were the best and I really lucked out to be "stuck" with them for the time I was.

Sure, we had meetings Mon-Weds from 8:30 to 3:30-4ish. But we also could sign up for activities at 7:30am and afternoon. I was able to take some hikes... surf lessons (private in fact, no one else showed up. AND we spoke in Spanish the whole time; awesome practice!), kayaking (also quite an experience... it was in more of a "Muddy creek" and the guide couldn't come with us because we were over capacity. It was me and 3 guys and let's just say it was a bonding experience... while it was smelly, dirty, and trashy DURING the trip... that's the kind of stuff that makes the best memories, right?!). 

Hike down to Playa Escondida

 In the one morning I didn't have any planned activities (due to a scheduling conflict actually), I took a walk by myself from my condo to the "main road" and saw the horse stable... It IS a ranch afterall! The grounds were absolutely beautiful. Plus we were there right at the tail end of rainy season... And while it DID rain each afternoon it really only made the grounds that much more beautiful.

 

 

 

How gorgeous is this?!

 One of the hikes I took in the afternoon was the Lava Shelf Walk. During low tide, you're able to walk along the hardened lava which is right up against the Pacific. We were walking along here right at sunset and it was too pretty to be able to truly capture it in pics.

Perfectly timed wave crashing onto the Lava Shelf

During our hike to Playa Escondida, we were unable to see any monkeys. This was day #1 so we were all so excited to see as much as we could (though that never really faded during the whole trip)... so our guide had a car pick us up, take us off the ranch and to a local restaurant that has 2 monkeys on site. I even got to feed them a banana!

Feeding a monkey! He jumped onto the pants of the guy in the yellow shirt so I was a liiiiittle apprehensive.

Of course, the sunsets were to die for.

view from just outside our patio

While I didn't get any running in... and I ate a LOT, I was still able to do the hikes and surfing and stay active. I would love to go back to Rancho Santana with a group of friends. It really is affordable if you go there with  a group.

I only have my job to thank for this amazing opportunity.

AVDA 5K - Oct 12, 2013

Ugh I can't believe that I am just NOW writing this recap. That's just crazy. But, as the saying goes - better late than never, right?!

I was looking forward to this race for a few of reasons. First, the AVDA 5K was my first ever 5K. Second, this route is a very popular one for 5K's in Delray so I knew it well. Third, other local Alpha Chi's were running it, as were some of my trainers from Slash.

Dan had been working crazy hours so I left the house alone and let him sleep. My dad decided to come so I met him at the race. I then went over and introduced myself to the Alpha Chi's. One was even a cousin of a girl who was in my chapter at Stetson University!

The route is right along A1A which makes for a beautiful sunrise.

I saw 3 of my Slash trainers and it was really nice to know that they were there.

When it came time, I lined up at the start. I am a terrible racer because I always wind up too close to the start and I am definitely not even close to fast enough to be starting there.

I politely allowed myself to be on the right though so people could pass me. The race was both a 5K and a 10K. If you were doing the 10K, you simply did the route twice.  The 5K was just an up & back on A1A.

Of course the trainers took off ahead, but it was really inspiring and pushed me when I'd see them after THEY did the U-Turn and they'd cheer me on.

hey, i'm smiling!

I felt really good the whole time. I went in hoping to get another sub 30 but fell just short. I'm determined once it FINALLY cools down here, I can do it.

Crossing the finish line, I had my dad there & 2 of the trainers were nearby too so I swung over by them to congratulate them on finishing fast. (One guy got 1st place in the 10K in his age group!). They even made a comment to me that I wasn't even winded upon finishing. Must be Slash Fitness. ;)

Official Results:
Time: 30:08 (avg: 9:43/mile)
Overall place: 168 out of 445
Gender place: 78 out of 285
Age group: 7 out of 27

Morning Cult

It's no secret that I'm a morning worker-outter. That feeling of being DONE with my workout by 6:15 is awesome. I feel awake by the time I even get to work. My metabolism gets jump started right at the beginning of the day. What's not to love? (And yes, my body now naturally wakes up at 4:55am. Not sure if I am liking that or not!)

But you know what? I'm not alone in my craziness!

Even when I was doing spinning at LA Fitness at 5:45am, it was always the same group of people at the gym at that hour.

Now, at Slash... it's our own little Morning Cult.

Look at the beautiful new Slash gym!

It's the same group of people each day. These people call me out on days I'm not there... Applaud me for showing up on Friday mornings at 5:30 (those are the hardest days for me to get there)...

Not to mention, it's welcoming to come in and see familiar faces and be able to say hi with a smile at 5:30 in the morning.

I mean we all have to be kind of crazy to be doing this, right? I guess I have to say that I enjoy the company. :)

Hey look at me! Upper left pic in the red killin' those ropes! (pic courtesy of Slash)

Fells Point, Baltimore, MD

I traveled to Baltimore, MD earlier this week for a 3-day Marketing Conference. 

Turns out a lot of the topics covered were very similar to what I went to a couple of years ago, but was still nice to see people that I e-mail with constantly but either have never met in person, or rarely get to see. 

I even got to chat with the Publisher of one of our Argentina Affiliates and also the Publisher of International Living, based in Ireland. Pretty cool, right? Oh, and can't leave out the other guy from another domestic affiliate who told us our product is terrible. Ohhhhhh, I let him know my thoughts on that. ("Why are we making more sales than you guys then?" :)

My hotel was right on the water and I had a gorgeous view of the harbor.

Panoramic pic of the view right outside my window.

I brought 2 pairs of workout clothes, with some wishful thinking. The hotel had a gym but it was locked and I wasn't entirely sure how to get the passcode. (yes, I'm sure I could've asked the front desk.) And the book in the hotel room stated that the gym wasn't even in the hotel, but down the block. So I'm not sure. 

So, instead I decided to venture outside! I had dinner with my cousin on Tuesday evening and she gave me some pointers as to what area was safe. There were so many running paths, sidewalks, along the water, down the old streets, it was so inviting. 

I checked the temp when I woke up Wednesday morning and it was a beautiful 50 degrees. :) Glad I had brought capris and not just running shorts. 

Could this sunrise be any more gorgeous?

I started off running to the right as soon as I exited the hotel... The boardwalk soon turned into a brick sidewalk and wound around the wharf. I was able to see the Under Armour headquarters.. Domino building... so many boats. 

The paths were bustling with runners which made me more motivated, plus it was a Wednesday morning! I can only imagine what it'd be like on a weekend morning. 

I could take in this view during a run any day of the week!

After the number of runners started to dwindle and my nice waterside sidewalk ended, I turned around, headed back towards the hotel but passed it and ran the other way for a little bit. 

I was a little tight for time because I needed to get some work done before the next round of presentations started and I was out of luck for the day... So I could only get in about 1.7 miles. 

But I gotta say... those miles felt GREAT. 50 degrees with very little humidity was exactly what I needed. I wish that I could've gone farther (while also knowing WHERE I was going!)

But still proud of myself for getting out there at all. 

And of course we had to finish up the trip with the Crab Pretzel at BWI. :) 

Cheesy, Crabby, Pretzel-y goodness!

Jeff Annas Firefighter Memorial 5K - Sept 14, 2013

My last few runs on the weekends have been pretty miserable. I blamed the heat (rightfully so.) Then I twinged my back. Then at Slash this past week my ankle bothered me. I still went to Jiu Jitsu Friday afternoon, worrying that I would mess up my back again.

All this, knowing I had a 5K I signed up for.  I thought maybe it'd help me push through the bad runs. And it was for a cause that I love. I love supporting local Firefighters/Rescue Teams. I think if I could, I'd love to work in a fire station. Maybe not AS a first responder firefighter, but the whole thing just intrigues me. I even listen to Fire Rescue radio on scanner radio. :)

Anyway, Dan and I went to a Food Truck Invasion last night in Jupiter, FL. There were about 30 food trucks there, and it was amazing. At this point I had already given up on any hopes of  PR in the Firefighter 5k. "It's too hot anyway."  I told myself. Knowing that I can't perform my best.

I continued to consume a beer and eat a Crabby Cheese Melt. Not exactly the best pre-race dinner, eh?

We arrived at the race site around 6:45 for the 7:30 start time, even though I had already picked up my race packet. I just get really anxious about figuring out parking, starting line, etc. They had a bunch of fire trucks on display... Some firefighters were getting into their gear to RUN the 5K in their full firefighter get-up. (and let me tell you... I was passed by many of them on the course!)

firefighters in full gear ready for the race.

This race had over 1100 runners and I THINK that may be the largest race I've been a part of.

pic of a part of the crowd at the starting line

Getting excited to kick it off

I'm off!

The race was a fast & flat out and back course. The entire way out was in the shade and had some really nice big trees. At the first part of the turnaround, you were running right into the sun but then the road curved a bit and you were protected again by the trees.

I decided to turn off the mile notifications on my Nike Plus app so I wouldn't have any idea what kind of pace I was doing. I did this during my best-ever 5k and figured maybe there's something to it.

I crossed the finish line with the clock saying 30:11. I completely forgot to account for the time it took me to get to the starting line so I didn't realize for a while that my time was actually quicker than that.

Turns out I finished in 30:00.997.

I think if I had realized I was that close to breaking 30 again, I would've sprinted even harder. But I gotta say, for 'mentally giving up' on this race before I even started... I'm pretty proud of this time.

Results:
30:00.997
9:40/mile pace
Overall placement: 519 / 1128
Gender placement: 234 / 680
Age group placement: 29 / 88

Sitting in the "cool chairs" after the race (arms in some ice bags.)