I once had a job in a bakery and I had to wake up like at 4 or 5 in the morning. Now, my body physically rejects the idea of ever waking up. Since I have a cycling class to go to at 7:30, and I have to run to the gym to get there, here is my solution.
Genius.
Pardon my brief absence, this weekend, one of my nearest and dearest friends, Alexa Wilde (formerly Terry) got married. SO I took the tour to the bustling metropolis of Reidsville, NC. Reidsville is a cool little town, kinda close to Greensboro, and the Terry home is beautiful. Additionally, Charles and Tish, the parents of the bride, have acted like something of my parents away from home – if I showed up to their home in the middle of the night, they would take me in, feed me, and refuse to allow me to leave until I was back on my feet.
Alexa and I have been friends since Elon University, when we both were members of this sweet a cappella group. And before you act like a hot dog wiener and make fun of us for being all Pitch Perfect, we were so amazing, so don’t be a hater. So anyhoo, Alexa got murried. And I’d be lying like a snake if I told you I didn’t ramp up my workouts and healthy eating the week or two before. The thought of appearing in wedding photos that will be in a person’s memory forever is terrifying to me. I don’t want to be the one screw-up in a picture that the bride like is still making fun of 25 years later, when she’s explaining to her kids who the sweaty buffalo was. So I threw in a few extra cycling classes and made sure I didn’t eat anything that might make me all puffy in the photos.
So being the naturally anxious person I was, I did the best thing I knew to do to make sure I wouldn’t drive anyone nuts with my anxious pacing, the morning of the wedding. I packed my running clothes, and a pair of sneaks, and hit the (super country) road. I decided to actually run to the barn where Alexa was getting married to check a few things out.
I cruised up to the field first, where you can see that the sky was lookin a little weird, and a few chairs were set up. (Spoiler alert! The rain held off for us to get our girl married!)
And then I headed over to the barn. From the outside, it looked like a barn. But it was magic. Deer antlers. Old artwork. Furniture. A bluegrass band. I ran around a few times, then headed back to the house, where we did all of the girly fun wedding prep stuff. I truly feel like scheduling a workout before you put on fancy clothes is the best way to make sure you feel awesome in your clothes. I don’t care if you’re 500 pounds, running before you put on a fancy dress makes you feel like Tyra in the photos.
So me, my date, and the bride. We had a blast. We didn’t stop dancing. And we sent our girl off in style. I’m so happy for our friend, and even happier that I was able to squeeze a run in in such a beautiful little town.
As a side note, disasters don’t just happen for the bride the day of a wedding. Examples?
So congratulations Alexa and Colt Wilde! Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your special day. And welcome home, Cherisse, time to wash the sheets!
We don’t embarrass people here on the blog. So no names. But a few years ago, a co-worker who knew I taught fitness classes asked me how it was that I’d managed to say in such good shape throughout school. She was interested in beginning to work out. I thought that was great! So I told her to make sure that she was doing something every day. Walking, going to Zumba, running, swimming, just doing something. And she told me that she’d love to lose weight for a cruise she was going on later that year, but that she didn’t have time to do all that I’d told her. Um. First off. Why did you freaking ask me if you’re just gonna be like “Nah, definitely not doing that.” Second off, what the heck do you mean you don’t have time to work out?!
I get it. You’re busy. We’re all busy. I work full-time, I work at the gym, and I have relationships that I’d like to maintain. But if you’re anything like me, you also may like to maintain a healthy weight, you want to feel good in your clothes, and you’d most importantly, like to avoid diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, high blood pressure, and the like. Right?
So if you feel like you don’t have time to work out, take 5 minutes out of your busy day, and look at my suggestions. I’ll have you working out in a second!
So like seriously, if you want to be the sexiest person in the office, in your graduate school cohort, or at church, as I often find myself to be, sneak your workout in. You’ll perform better. You’ll look better. And you’ll finally feel better cause you’re not making some lame excuse to stay out of the gym.
PS, my Mom called to threaten me again this morning. I hope Protective Services is watching out for me.
Thursday night, my throat seemed…dry. I ran anyways. “Aw dammit,” I thought, and I put on some distilled water for my neti pot when I got home.
The throat situation grew a little more perilous by Friday. “Aw dammit.” I netied three times.
By Sunday, I had to make an executive decision. Run, and risk that awful cloggy feeling in my already-sore throat? Or rent two Redboxes, and park it on the couch with a bottle of Essie’s “Trophy Wife”?
I chose the Redbox scenario. And I think I’m glad I did. I know I’m glad I did. There are some sicks when it’s okay to work out. And you’ll know when that is. But there are some sicks when your body just needs a break.
Instances When You Don’t Run/Work Out
Instances When You Do.
The moral of the story is, listen to your body. If you’re sick, and your body is begging for some sleep, go to sleep. Neti. Take a hot shower. And revisit the issue again the next day. If you’re kinda not sick and you just don’t feel like it, maybe you need a break anyways. If you’re just being lazy (and I do it too,) make yourself do something short, sweet, but something that still gets your heart pumping a little. You might find yourself still plugging away, an hour later, and you may feel better about life in general after a nice sweat sesh.
I’ve been living in my car (my new car!) for like the past week. Not like literally, I still have a beautiful little apartment downtown, but I’ve been riding around like a nutjob for days and days. To the point where I actually thought listening to Rush Limbaugh might be an interesting change of pace. UGH WRONG GURL. First I headed home. Then to Winston to take care of some bidness. And finally, I made the 4-hour trek to Washington, DC, and began my weekend. We did a bunch of un-Nike-related things, some of which included eating my weight in delicious food, losing house-keys in a cab, and participating in a super cool Lupus Walk on Saturday morning.
As a side note, I’m completely, madly, deeply in love with Washington, DC. I live in Raleigh. I’ve had a rough relationship with Raleigh. Story time! I moved here for a guy (and for graduate school). The relationship ended disastrously, and here I was, sort of stuck in a city where I knew no one. So my solution was to take a job in Pennsylvania, attempt to transfer to Pitt to finish my graduate studies, and move on with my life. But my mom, whom I typically don’t listen to (do us kids ever listen?), encouraged me to stick it out. “You can’t run away from your problems. Everywhere I go, there I am. Do you know what that means?” Ugh. She was right. So I came back. Made a few more friends, and began to find my place here. I still have days where I’m not sure about the city, where I’m not sure if I fit it in. The loudness of New York never left me. I teach Zumba. I speak like Hilary Banks, but I wear my locs long and natural. I think I confuse people. So I’m just not sure. So you can imagine my heartbeat going a-flutter when I came to a city where the black girls look like me. Wear bright colors and long Senegalese twists. They ride bikes. They love dogs. Everyone runs. I love it!
So Saturday afternoon, we metroed and hoofed over to Georgetown, where packet pickup was held. The line? Let’s not talk about it. But it moved quickly and pretty smoothly. The expo, held in a tent in Georgetown, could have been super cool, but it was hot, and I don’t do well in small, hot, ill-ventilated tents with everyones breath just like, combining in the same space. I find that absolutely foul, and I think it could have been done better, and in a bigger space. But everything else? Cool as heck.
Nike erected this like, street-length billboard with all of our names on it. So 15,000 women’s names were plastered in Georgetown, and my name was one of them. Super cool to see. And it was doubly cool to see a bunch of women with a smile of their faces. Score 1 for Nike for making us feel special.
Race day. I metroed down to Pennsylvania Avenue, where the start line was. Pre-race chatter makes me nervous, so I put my headphones in, and listened to Gustavo Lima sing me a “Balada” while women buzzed around me, scrambling to get into their pace groups. The way pace groups were done was pretty sweet too. We were identified by these colored bracelets which identified our pace, and getting into corrals was super smooth. I glided into my pace group, and hunkered down to start to run for a long time. My first bought of tears during the race? When the National Anthem was sung. I’m not a stupid emotional idiot either, I saw other women beginning to tear up. It was sung beautifully, and it was a lot of our first races since Boston. We felt…united? The race started. And I became emotional again when I realized the coolness, and the gravity of 15,000 women (and a few guys), running down the streets of the District, with the Capitol building as a backdrop. As we ran, Nike had organized cool bands. A go-go band in the tunnel. Marching bands. A Chinese New Year Themed parade. Beautiful, inspirational signs. A river. It was so beautiful that I marveled a number of times at how lucky I’d been to get into the lottery for this race. And I could not stop smiling.
Here’s where I screwed up, though. I’d wanted to do well in the race, even though I’d lied and told everyone I was just going to take this one nice and easy. I’m competitive by nature, and I’m not sure why I said that. But in my head, I wanted to break 2 hours. So I’d assumed that this race would be like a small-town race, just like how it was in Raleigh. But 15,000 women and 1,200 are totally different. And my plan to start at the back of my pace group and work my way up was a profoundly stupid one. After 3 slow miles, I realized that I’d have to do some work to make it to the finish line in under two hours. So I had to push. And push. And push some more to continue hitting under 9 minute miles to make it to that finish line. So I talked myself through about 10 super fast miles. I told myself I could eat Nutella. I told myself I could go to the medical tent and get hydrated. I told myself I could eat bread. I told myself that people were counting on me. And I did it. 1:59:57, with my fastest mile being a 7:36 around mile 12, when I saw a clock and got a little nervous that I wouldn’t make it. I’m sore as heck from running like I stole things.
My final verdict on the Nike Women’s Half Marathon? Worth it. A stellar race. My only complaint is that the expo was in a frighteningly small space. It was gross in there. But women. The weather. The scenery. The history of DC just existing all around us? Pure magic. So….
GURRRRLL let me tell you.
And are you wondering what 15,000 beautiful women look like?
True beauty. Ladies, you better WERQ.
So we know that exercise is important for everyone, right? But how to we get everyone addicted to it (in a healthy way, not a scary way), like, how do we get folks started? I think you have to take what you really enjoy, and use that to jump you into working out. Am I making sense?
Case in point. I started going to Zumba classes with my younger sister when I was like 16. I was instantly hooked. We went every Tuesday afternoon that we could. And I fell off of the Zumba boat when I went to college. Toward the end of college, when I started feeling a little self-conscious about my body (I wasn’t working out or eating well at all) I picked up going to classes again, and decided that I was going to get licensed. And the decision to get licensed completely changed the trajectory of my life. Zumba was my “gateway drug,” and I explored different class formats that I may not have even considered. I yoga, I run, I run, I run, I cycle, I zumba, I dance, I lift, and I wouldn’t have begun to do any of it without Zumba.
Pole fitness is the same for a lot of women.
I teach off-the-pole classes at a local pole fitness studio, Aradia Fitness in Cary, NC. On this particular day last week, I was supposed to teach a Zumba class, and it was a perfect storm. My classes are normally pretty packed, but no one showed up. Not a soul. It happens. I’m not offended. Heather, an extremely experienced pole dancer and teacher, invited me to stay at the studio and jump in on her Pole 1 class, an intro of sorts to pole fitness. I was apprehensive. I don’t know how to do any of that stuff, and what if the other girls laughed at me and told their friends that their Zumba instructor had transformed into a buffalo and crashed around the room, breathing heavily, and sweating all over everything? But I figured it was nice of Heather to invite me, and instead of being a weirdo, I’d take her up.
First things first? Heather is an incredible teacher. I’m gonna toot my own horn here. I’m a good teacher. And it’s only because I learned from the absolute best. I had Koh Herlong, I had Lindsay Gilvin, I had Austin Samples. All great teachers. Good teachers recognize it in others. Heather had it. We started with a cute warm-up, and as the class progressed, the workout turned a little more sexy. Sexy walks, hip circles, hamstring stretches. We took it to the floor. Push-ups, more hip-flexor warm-ups, warm ups for our wrists, for our necks. It was funny, everything Heather did and taught looked really sexy, especially when she did it, but everything had a purpose.
Next, we got on the poles.
We started with a little dance, and each move was cued by Heather. Then, we did some pole work. Spins, climbs, and even some more advanced work. My poor knees were so banged up, but on the pole, my arms, my quads, and my legs were getting an awesome workout. And the next day, my abs, my arms, and my legs were sore. In a great way.
So my review? If you’re having trouble getting motivated? And you have the funds? Try a pole fitness class. It’s a great confidence builder. Unlike other group fitness classes, there are no mirrors in the studios, and the classes are much smaller. Where some of my classes have held upwards of 100 people, there were about 6 of us girls, which allowed for individual time with the teacher, and if you’re feeling awkward, you don’t have to stare at yourself in the mirror. Heather, speaking of, was so talented, and obviously had benefited from her time in pole fitness. She was jacked!
So this place gets at A+ from me. Facility is gorgeous, classes are great, and I felt so pretty after! And if you’re feeling apprehensive, like you feel like you’re just going to some skanky stripping class, think again. Every single move in the class had a purpose. There wasn’t a dance, there wasn’t a spin, there wasn’t a move that didn’t have a specific purpose, which I only picked up on because I teach. But to the untrained bod, you may just think you’re dancing around. And hey, if you can burn calories just thinking you’re dancing around with 6 of your friends around a pole, then more power to your workout, right?
So, to make this crazy week even crazier, I headed up to Asheville, or more specifically, Marshall NC for a bachelorette gathering at a cabin. I tried to record everything, at the very least, with my eyes so I could bring it to you. You’ll feel like you were there gurl! Werq! So after a super stressful week, and a loooong rainy drive by my lonesome, I rolled into the Asheville area…and promptly got lost. So I had to stop somewhere to get directions right? I stopped at a gun shop, a GUN SHOP, for directions. And though I was frightened out of my mind, and stuck out like a sore thumb (I was wearing a bright pink printed dress, and everyone in the gun shop was smoking cigs and wearing camo everything,) they were the nicest people I’ve ever met. Because of how remote the area was, my cell phone and my GPS wasn’t working, and the folks at the gun shop (?!) looked up the cabin on the computer, and offered to lead me to where it was. But I found it! And look how cute it was!
We spent the first night hanging out, talking, and sitting in the hot tub (which felt amazing on my hip flexors, which for any of you who run, know can get horrifically tight). I couldn’t pass up a run in Asheville, and I woke up the next morning, totally ready to bust out a few miles and explore the area around me. My first issue though? Asheville is freezing in comparison to Raleigh, and I had to layer on top. No big though, I trained in the dead of winter. So I piled on the clothing, and began my trek up the mountain.
You guys saw this the other day. But I’m reposting. This stopped me in my tracks as I ran up this windy two-lane.
I headed up, I headed down, and tried to get some of that fresh mountain air as deeply down into my lungs as I could. I was hoping to absorb some of the calm of the mountain. Fun fact. Everyone lives in teeny cabins adorned with “No Trespassing signs. Can anyone tell me why this is? But seriously, if you’re in Asheville, definitely run. It’s stunning. It’s calming. It’s just what I needed.
Wine!!!! We hit up the wine shop, and it had a nifty machine that allowed us to taste a bunch of stuff.
This is the Bridal Party! (We’re a progressive group, if you’re wondering about a guy being there. Andrew’s been with us since the beginning.) He’ll probably be in mine, too.
That’s the bride on the far right.
Asheville was gorgeous. Not only that, we ate some delicious food, and I’m pretty sure that the food was the best part about the entire city. We hit the Laughing Seed First, an establishment with incredible veg options. It’s wonderful to see that vegetarian food can actually be prepared so that it has incredible flavor. And that’s not super hard to find, however, it’s a common misnomer that vegetarians only eat beans and grass. Not so. You can’t go wrong with anything on that menu. Check them out here. http://laughingseed.jackofthewood.com/We also hit the Blackbird Restaurant for dinn, and again, I was blown away by how they could shove so much flavor in a cup of soup. Again, you can’t go wrong. Hit them here. http://theblackbirdrestaurant.com/ (My only complaint with that last place is the bird decor. I find birds to be terrifying.)
Finally, I don’t know why life does this to you. But I’ve been talking myself out of getting a dog until I have more space for years now. Years. So we’re walking around downtown Asheville, and this dog on a blue leash just looks out me. I instinctively crouched to pet him, and began talking to him in the voice I reserve for my pets. “Hiiiii babe!!”. He jumped into my arms and gave me in the biggest, sloppiest kiss I’ve ever had. And I loved it. So the woman walking him goes, “He’s up for adoption! I’m just walking him right now!” So what do I do? His name is Zach, and I’m pretty sure he wants me to be his mom. Ugh. Decisions.
Okay, so enjoy my pics, and next time you’re in Asheville, take a run, take me with you, and pick up Zach and bring him home to Mama!
First off, can we just clap it up for me and say that I have my finger on the pulse of female running society? Look what came up yesterday no sooner than I posted that entry featuring all my ladies without makeup.
It’s none other than Miz Tyra, working out and makeup free. I guess I just rock.
Moving right along however, this is a question I get pretty often. How do I know when it’s time to change my running shoes out? So the rule of thumb when it comes to a regular, traditional running shoe, is that you’re going to get, at the absolute MOST, 350-400 miles out of a shoe. That’s it. Sometimes less, but definitely not more.
350-400 miles sounds like a lot, but it’s really not as much as you think. If you’re only wearing your running shoes to run in, and you’re running 15-20 miles a week, you can do the math, and it adds up quickly!
So here’s how you can extend the life of your running shoes: (they’re gonna average you $110 a pair, so you may want to pay attention)
–Alternate between two pairs of running shoes. When you do this, especially between long runs, you give your shoe a chance to recover. The foam/cushioning gets a change to regain it’s original shape, and the shoe gets a chance to dry.
– Stop shoving your feet into your shoe when you’re rushing off to the gym. I know you’re guilty of this. You’re running off to the gym, and you shove your foot in without untying the shoe. You’re not three years old, there’s no velcro, so take the time out to untie your shoe and put it on. When you shove your hoof in, or worse yet, when you walk around on the back of your shoes when you go to check the mail, you destroy the back of the shoe, as well as the structure built to support your heel. So sit down, and take the extra few seconds to tie/untie your shoes.
–Save your running shoes for running only. Don’t go to Whole Foods in your shoe. Don’t go to cycling in your shoe. Don’t check the mail in your shoe. Don’t go to the club in your shoe. And don’t climb a tree in your shoe. All these activities put mileage on your shoe. So if you find you’re going to Zumba or Cycling pretty often as well, buy a special shoe for each of these activities. Usually Adidas, Reebok, and Nike have a pretty decent selection of “lifestyle” shoes if you’re dancing or doing step, and check with your local cycling shop if you need a pair of cycling shoes.
–Let your shoes air out in your home, not in your car, between runs. The EVA foam and cushioning in shoes is temperamental, and doesn’t like to sit in your car, where the temperature can go from one extreme to the next. So between workouts, take a few seconds and let your shoe air out. Untie the laces, and open up the shoe for a while so it can breathe and retain shape.
So if you’re kind of sick of only figuring you need a new shoe when your knee starts to ache, try documenting your mileage a tad better, and the guessing game should be over.
So yesterday, I went to see my friend in the bustling metropolis of Burlington, NC to see him in The Music Man. Great show. Great music. Good-looking cast. Absolutely bizarre ending. You know what I mean if you’ve ever seen it.
So I decided to do a “destination run” thing to change my long run Sundays up. That always seems to put a little extra pep in your step, and I finished 10 miles a little faster than the last few weeks have allowed me too. I found myself at my old gorgeous alma mater, Elon University, and something about being back in my old place gave me a little extra runner’s magic.
First, I had to decide on my hair. You guys know, my hair that keeps growing and getting heavier by the minute, had caused me a little stress during this marathon prep. So I called on my good friend Kerri Walsh to inspire a hair style, and as always, she came through. My stuff’s too thick for a braid, but I enlisted the help of a highly specialized device created by Scunci to help me maintain the overall look.
Thanks, Doll! You’re the greatest!
This is Elon. The photo, that I took as I did my first loop through campus, simply doesn’t do the University, or the spirit of the University, any justice. Elon is literally a botanical garden, and the facilities are to die for. The blue of the sky? We always have it. On orientation weekends, it’s said that Jesus smiles, so birds sing, the swans come out, and the food in the dining halls is actually good. I remember days where it had just snowed, and the sky looking like that less than a day after. I almost went to University of Pittsburgh, and after laying eyes on Elon, I decided that that was where I was going to end up. I don’t think I’d be half the person I was without what I was taught here.
I ran past this little house I lived in after my senior year with Emily Main, still to this day one of the sickest roommates ever. Right behind this house was the house belonging to my acapella group where I spent most of my junior and senior year Saturday nights.
I also discovered (as you do when you run a place instead of rushing around everywhere in your car) that Elon also houses a forest?! How in the heck did I miss that one?
Anyhoo, try this if you’re feeling a little bored with your running routine. If you’re going out of town, like to the beach or to do laundry at your parents’ house (guilty!) map a run in an area you’re pretty sure is safe, but new to you!
Overactive Blogger 