running

Weekend updates!

| cheriarmour

I hope your weekend was really good.  I’m surprised I’m still standing upright, because I got a toooon of stuff done.

BeagleSo for starters – if you’ve come to our house in the last year or so, I’ve sworn up and down that we were not getting any more pets.  We have two cats, and a poodle that I love dearly, but of course, I could not keep my word.  We inherited a sweet beagle named April, and we’re fostering her until we can find her a nice, sweet home to stay at.  Prilla is a typical beagle, and unlike the poodle, who’s often off the leash, sniffing around the backyard, when you open the door, Prilla jets off.  But we’re enjoying having her!

I got notice that my replacement Fitbit has shipped!  If you’ll remember, I am a complete idiot, and mere weeks after getting my Fitbit, I was dancing, and looked down a few minutes later to discover that my new fun toy was missing.  I spent the week on the phone with the company, who very graciously decided to send me another, since I’d already replaced it.  All this, just in time for my next new toy…

fitbit.0The Fitbit Surge, the answer to the problem that EVERY single runner that owns a Fitbit has – how dumb do I look wearing my Garmin and my fitness tracker at the same time….

Now to convince my husband that I need another gadget (I don’t)….

CardSpeaking of that sweet man that I love, I was at the paper store to pick up some cards, and found this!  How cute, right?  It’s by a company called Emily McDowell, and the creativity that just oozes off her work is simply inspiring.

Which brings me to this!

My letterpress machine showed up!  After deciding just after our wedding that I was obsessed with all things paper, I called around to some folks, one in particular in Asheville, who have antique letterpress businesses.  One girl in particular, the very sweet Nicole, from Mink Letterpress, actually called me back and walked me through getting started with pressing beautiful paper.  She told me about the Evolution Letterpress, and about a few local paper specialty shops that have workshops, so those are things that I’m really looking forward to in addition to the stationary conference in New York next Spring (if I can afford it 🙂 ).

And finally…

IMG_1454The weather here is gorgeous, and I finally, finally feel like I can run without getting nauseous.  Which comes just in TIME for my Ragnar in Vegas next month.  In two weeks, I’m running 35 miles over the course of a weekend, along with 5 other girls.  Eep!

How was your weekend? 

 

Headphones

| cheriarmour

So, first things first. I have a dirty horrible confession to make.

I’m a little obsessed with “Ew!” Jimmy Fallon and will.i.am’s single that they put out a few weeks ago.  I don’t know what it is about the single, but I really die for a star’s alter ego, so that’s probably it.  Nicki Minaj had Roman, the little British boy.  Katy Perry had Kathy Beth Terry who made her appearance in the T.G.I.F video.  Taylor Swift just looked like a dork in the “You Belong With Me” video.  And now, there’s mir.i.am and Sarah.

So judge me. A ton. I enjoyed it.

Moving right along…

So, I’ve had a terrible run with sports headphones since my second year in grad school, when someone broke into my Taurus, touched my dirty gym clothes, and stole my favorite Nike headphones which were subsequently discontinued.  Blarghhh.  From then, I lost literally like 3 pairs of earbuds, the old ones, and one of the new ones during a big race.

At that point, I started using Yurbuds, and one after another pair either went missing, or I let folks borrow them, only to never see them again.

So today, I broke my usual Fleet Feet regimen since I was near the REI, and headed in to grab a pair of headphones for a few really long training runs over the next few weeks in prep for Ragnar.

#1, the people are REI were really nice, and 2, on our little frequent REI account we had a $17 thing, so I only paid like 6 bucks for the headphones.  Holla!

What’s really cool about this particular pair of Yurbuds is that they’re gender-specific, which can be pretty stupid, like when it comes to the Bic For Her line, but this one is good because it’s a little tinier and shorter, perfect for my ears which are absolutely teeny.  So here’s to being able to hang onto this pair for longer than a day or two, hm?

Yurbuds

Favorite headphones? 

Paper Buzz

| cheriarmour

Over the course of getting married, I became absolutely enthralled with paper.

I started frequenting a place in Raleigh called “If it’s Paper,” and I became absolutely enchanted with all of the products they had on the shelves.

They had beautiful cards, beautiful envelopes, pads of paper for lists, blank card stock for you to print on, recycled envelopes…you get it.  My desk at work is full of Le Pens (the felt-tipped pens that don’t smear) and cute pads.  The thought of being the envy of folks while I’m at a meeting makes me cackle.

So when I was at my parents’ in Charlotte, I dragged my mom to the paper store, Paper Source to pick up some pens for a guest book that we needed them for later that day.  If If it’s Paper was special, this place was even more so, in the way that featured workshops – and I found a papercrafters holy grail – an L-Press Letterpress machine.

My mom indulged me because she’s into things equally as corny as I am – she is an avid knitter, and has gotten so skilled, that she hooks it up with not only with the hats and gloves, she’s made clothing, blankets, and toys for kids in need.

On the way to my parents’ we hit the Wells Fargo towers, and scooped up my dad for lunch.

“We went to the paper store!”

Papa Cheri sort of laughed, realized I was serious about my excitement, and then goes,

“What is this obsession with paper?!”

He’s right, I’m a little obsessed, but really pumped to learn more about it, acquire a little letterpress for me to start pressing some projects, and to eventually open a little Etsy store.

But now the question is, now that I’m starting to legitimately get into weird-type hobbies, how the heck am I going to find time to do everything?  Because as of right now I’m obsessed with:

  • Reading my Kindle.
  • Running/Working out
  • Blogging
  • Paper
  • Making our new house presentable for my parents when they come for Thanksgiving

I really need to come up with a plan so that I can thoroughly enjoy these hobbies without  losing lots and lots of sleep.

What are your hobbies?  How do you manage your time? 

Rock ‘n’ Roll Raleigh

| cheriarmour

So I ran Raleigh’s Rock ‘n’ Roll race last year, the half.

The race was amazing, extremely hilly, but an awesome representation of our city.  I tried to capture it all when I actually ran it last spring, but when I run now through downtown, I remember little things.  Like when I started tearing up at the mile at Dorthea Dix’s Campus when there were pictures and American flags with our fallen soldiers on it.  Or when the priest near the start was blessing us.

So anyhoo, I registered again.  For the full.

God help.

If you’ll remember, during my last full marathon, I woke up with a stomachache, ran anyway, and proceeded to vomit from mile 18 on.

Come to find out later, I’d developed a gnarly case of gastritis after my grandmother passed…

HospitalAnd I sort of didn’t run anything intense after that, save for a few half marathons last spring, for fear that I would be vomiting on someone’s front lawn once again.

But I’ve braved the registration, and I did it.

And now I suppose I’ve got to train.  Humph.

Also, sorta thinking about an ulta. A 50k!  Eep!

Have you signed up for any races this spring ??

Weekend updates.

| cheriarmour

While you’re reading this, I’m actually sleeping in my little brother’s room at my parent’s party pad in downtown Charlotte.  I’m in town here only for a day or so, but that’s totally cool, because it gives me a new terrain to run on, and keeps things interesting.

So a few interesting points about this weekend.

  1. My Fitbit is turning me into a lunatic. I don’t think people really believe me when I tell them that my competitive nature has taken me to really really ugly places.  But to put things into perspective, my first summer working at Camp Pocono Trails, I was playing Gaga with the kids, and they would make fun of me for how into the game I would get.  At the top of my lungs, I’d scream that I would be the “LAST. WOMAN. STANDING,” as I picked kids off with the dodgeball, one by one.  They thought it was a game.  I knew better.  Well now that I can see how many steps I’ve taken, a friend of mine and three of her coworkers challenged me to a “Daily Showdown,” so I proceeded to walk to the bar, walk home from the bar, and continue walking well past 11pm.  I came in second, and I can’t really talk about my defeat, that’s how painful it was. Fitbit Competition
  2. We had a shed put in the backyard on Saturday.  So I wake up on Saturday to check out the shed, and it actually was pretty cute!  Then I look over at one of the guys installing it, and he’s wearing swim trunks and no shirt.  No judgement here, I’m just truly curious about his choice in attire.  Shed Install
  3. And finally?  I’m feeling really ready to sign up for something serious.  I got over my running hump, and running is starting to feel like a natural state of being for me again.  I’m playing with a few options – I ran Shamrock a few years ago for my first full, and I’d be interested to try it again to see if I’ve made any improvements.  I also have an entry for Rock ‘n’ Roll Raleigh set up, but since they haven’t released the full course, I’m not sure if I’m ready to commit without knowing the course.  Raleigh is terribly hilly, and that race can either be really really awesome, or kinda miserable.  I also am playing with the idea of like a 50k or so, to delve into the world of Ultra Marathons, but don’t tell my husband.  We watched a documentary about Dean Karnazes, and for some reason, I still have the itch to see what I can do.  I have zero interest in being a regular 90+ mile a week girl, especially with all of the teaching I do, but once or twice?  I think it would be worth it!

What did you do this weekend?

Sweat Hope 5k – small but mighty

| cheriarmour

Earlier this month, I told you guys about the Sweat Hope 5k, and this weekend was the big event!

So Saturday morning, after about a week straight of rain, I woke up and the running Gods smiled on Raleigh, and I woke up to nothing but straight sun and beautiful temps.  I headed down to Wake Med Soccer park in Cary, and easily found my way to the race, where Whole Foods, Sola (a local coffee shop), Headbands of Hope (obviously), and a few other local vendors were set up.  I got my bib, and lined up with a little over 300 other runners to run the 5k, which started promptly at 9am.

HoH 5k1

I’m almost ashamed – I’ve lived in Raleigh on and off for the past fourish years, and until Saturday, had never run at Wake Med Soccer Park.  I was surprised!  The trails were really packed down, well-maintained, and ridiculously hilly!  For 3.1 miles, we ran up and and and up and down and up again – easily one of the most challenging 5k courses I’ve run.

HoH 5k

Overall, the race was a blast, incredibly well-done, and I would totally do it again, and hope to again next year!

*****

So in my secret life, I sing and recently recorded a song with an extremely talented local rapper for the purposes of performing it at a show on Sunday night.  So me, the husband, Marc “Franchise” Jusino, and a bunch of spectators hit the stage on Sunday to compete in a show.  Spoiler alert: we didn’t win, but we totally should have, but I have a lot of respect for the guy who did win.  Excellent excellent performer.

ShowBut we totally should have won!

What’s one cool thing you did this past weekend?

 

I know better.

| cheriarmour

So a few days ago on my lunch break, I packed up my clothes and my shoes, and headed out for a run with a friend before I had to take off to teach a Zumba® Fitness class.  The weather is starting to get gorgeous here – yesterday, the temp must not have gotten over 80 degrees, and for the first time maybe since the summer kicked off, I didn’t feel like death following the run.

But I made a critical error.

I know so so much better than this, but I grabbed an old pair of Glycerin 11s, a pair from last October (almost a year ago), and did a short run in them.  My feet hurt.  My knees ached.  And as an employee at a running speciality store, I knew SO much better.  I know old shoes can make the difference between a good and uncomfortable run.  I know that they contribute to foot cramping and knee aches.  I know that looking at gross worn-out shoes is probably not helping me to pull out of this running slump whatsoever.

But I did it anyways, and only rethought it when, after only three miles, my feet were aching, knees aching, and when a co-worker from Fleet Feet walked in, took one look at my flattened out shoes, and started laughing.  We can tell these things.

So today, reflecting on my slump and how discouraging my achy breaky run was, I went to the store, picked up a pair of Glycerin 12s, and went for a little under 6 miles with a friend.

GlycerinThey felt really really great, and the just-under-six really didn’t feel as slumpy as all my runs have been in a while.  A few contributing factors to that?  Pretty new shoes, decent fall weather, a good friend to chat with while we powered through the gnarly gnarly hills of Raleigh.

Oh, and I registered for a half at the end of next month.  I’m sure that didn’t hurt my motivation since now I have to show up and kick some ass.

What do you do that you know is no good for you?  

 

Running Slump

| cheriarmour

I’ve felt this way once before. Last year, right after my grandmother died, I hit a little running slump.  I was tired, my motivation was low, and when I was running, I felt slow and consumed by anxious thoughts, which really took away from my running.

This time, I think the reasoning for the slump is a little different, but the symptoms are largely the same.

In the span of two months, I got a new job, got married to my love, and we bought a house.  And none of it was planned to all hit at once.

With the job, I got a call in May, interviewed throughout the month of June, and was offered the position in early July.  The wedding had been set for August 23rd for some time, and the home came available, and honestly, the inventory is so low in Raleigh that it would have been silly to have forgone that home.

So we dove in headfirst.  And I don’t think I’ve ever been so happy in my entire life.

And like I do anytime I’m faced with any major life changes, I felt this exhaustion come over me.  It hasn’t affected my work, as I’m still in that phase where I’m killing myself to impress everyone, but it’s definitely affected my running and my motivation.  Rather than constantly being raring to go for those runs, I’ve had to pull out every trick in the book to make sure that I make my workouts.  I invite friends, I try new workouts, I make sure that I am scheduled to take one of my instructors classes, all in the hopes that I don’t fall behind on my workouts.  But motivating myself to go when ALL I want to to is lay around in the bed and watch reruns of Sex & the City is hard, and I’m really trying.

Honestly, the last time I felt like I was in this slump a year ago, I pushed through it, but had a few tricks to help get me through.

  • I went to a lot of hot yoga.  Granted, one of the times I went, a pose we got into tapped right into my emotional side and I finished out the class sobbing for whatever reason, but I sure felt good after.
  • I ran.  And I revamped my runs.  I listened to Motown the Musical, Les Mis, and sometimes, nothing at all, all different from my usual playlists.
  • I read Dean Karnazes books.  Which is really good cause he’s an ultra marathoner.  So it kind of made you feel like your little 26.2 wasn’t that bad.
  • I vomited my way through the Greensboro Marathon.  But the fact I finished convinced me I was a lot stronger than I thought I was, and rekindled my love for running.

So the slump sucks.  I don’t like the way it makes me feel, and it scares me – makes me feel like I will never love to run again.  But slowly and steadily, I will be back to exactly where I was before, maybe even better!

What do you do when you’re in a running slump?

Weekend Recap

| cheriarmour

I know things were a little quiet around here lately, and I have a perfectly good explanation for that.  This was the last weekend that we had of the old apartment – I actually think that we have that apartment through the end of  the month, but we moved out a little early and were able to get everything cleaned up yesterday – baseboards, carpets, and all.

I feel good because I’m finally able to focus on the new place – unpack the millions of boxes that are just hanging around – and finally start working on the house, room by room.

But this weekend:

I started off the weekend by running around our new place, and around NC State University and listening to one of my favorite podcasts, The Read.  Unfortunately, a friend of mine posted on Facebook that a guy jumped out at her on the greenway on Friday morning near where we live, and I had a feeling that since he hadn’t been nabbed, I would take my chances on the street.  I found a road nearby that was closed, and went for it.

Road RunningEven more unfortunately, on Sunday, our local news station reported that a woman had been attacked on the greenway.  I am so incredibly sorry to hear that, and once again, this renews my vigilance to my safety. I hate that we have to think that way, but we definitely have to think that way.

Friday night, I stayed in with my husband, and caught up on one more episode on what I think is going to be our new favorite couple show, Mad Men.

image via Tumblr

Can we talk about for a second how you used to be able to drink, swear, and harass people in your office without it being much of a problem at all?  That still boggles my mind, and we are into season 2 now.

Saturday, I taught a pretty bomb Zumba® Fitness class, and was finally able to thank the angels in my class who put together a little card from Target for us from the wedding.  We went over to the apartment, packed up the last bit of stuff, and Saturday night, I went and did some dancing at Legends with some friends, and played sober sister for the evening to make sure that everything got home safely.

All in all, it was a very busy, but not overly exciting weekend.  I am looking forward to putting some serious miles in, getting these boxes unpacked, and welcoming some really really pretty weather to North Carolina.

How was your weekend?  What are you looking forward to this week?