Confessions of an Amateur Athlete

nutriscience.com   Getting sick.  It's the runner's second worst nightmare. The first being sidelined due to injury.  But it's going to happen.  It's not the matter of  if you get sick... but when .  Especially this time of year.And yesterday I woke up feeling tired, my head felt like a cement block, and my nose was running so fast I was stuffing toilet paper in my nostrils in attempt to dam up the flash flood of fluid.   Needless to say, running seemed out of the question.  However, there are some articles out there that say if you feel sick from the neck down   don't run, but if your symptoms are from the neck up and you don't have a fever... running is okay .  http://www.marathonguide.com/training/coachmindy/torunornot.cfm    I don't disagree at all... sometimes you gotta tough it out and run with that nasty cold.  But I'm also a firm believer in letting your body rest and giving it time to fight whatever illness you've caught. goodr

  I recently had the pleasure of doing a review for Cocogo .  A sports drink hydration powder in a stick pack.  What makes Cocogo different from all the other powdered drinks out there?  It uses real fruit and coconut water .  No artificial flavors.  No corn syrup. And no artificial sweeteners.   I was really excited to try it out!  Like many everyday runners out there, I'm always "on the go".  Last week I knocked out my run, jumped in the shower and rushed to work.  No time to really re-hydrate so I was still pretty thirsty. I opened up a packet of Cocogo and gave it a shot!  For those of you not familiar with powdered drink packets... you just pour a packet (or two depending on how much flavor/electrolytes you want) into a bottle of water, shake it up, and enjoy!  This wasn't my first time with that kind of stuff... but it really is hit or miss with all the different versions out there.     But Cocogo tasted great! What really surprised me is it's

  Went for a recovery run today and decided to test out a new product for you guys: ENERGYbits. ENERGYbits are small tabs/pills packed full of all natural, organically grown spirulina algae.  Now, a lot of products out there claim to be all natural and organic... but when you look at their nutrition labels they end up far from "natural".  However, I do believe ENERGYbits are definitely as natural as they come. When I read their nutrition information.  It's basically just the ONE ingredient... algae!  They even taste   green . Although, it's recommended that you swallow them.  Which I highly suggest. The taste when I chewed one up reminded me of what fish food would probably taste like.     They also have a very high concentration of protein packed into their tabs.  About 64% protein... and only one calorie a tab!  Take a look at this chart to see just how few ingredients are in these things.    So... what are these "tabs" supposed to do?  They compa

Day after my race, and the adrenaline is still flowing!  Great race + Great friends= Great time!  But let's start at the beginning. Here's my Race Review for the Rock and Roll Arizona! Rock n Roll Expos are the best in my experience.  I always get excited going to their expos. There were a few minor things I noticed at this one.  A couple of sponsors that I typically always see weren't there.  Five hour energy, muscle milk, etc.  Big brands that I love visiting for the swag.  But there were still plenty more swag items to pick up, lots of great deals on race attire, etc.   All in all the expo was still a success, just seemed smaller this year.  Still a better expo than many other races I've participated in.  My favorite booth this year was the Post cereal tent.  I'm a cereal connoisseur and I ate my fill of it! After the expo, I carb loaded with more than a dozen other friends also running the race.  I always suggest running races with friends.  It make

EXCITING ANNOUNCEMENT!     First off I'll be running the AZ Rock N Roll Half-Marathon this weekend!  Woo hoo! Getting excited! Even though I know I'm not ready to PR on this one... I'm still going to have a blast with friends and just bask in the racing atmosphere!   Besides all of that, I'm excited to announce that I'll be doing an "Instagram Takeover" throughout race day!  I'm an I'm Fit Possible Ambassador and that's the account I'll be taking over.  Hop on Instagram and give them a follow!   I'll be posting pics AND videos there throughout the day and it should be a lot of good old natured fun!  Join me as I take you along on the adventure!  I'll also post everything later in a detailed race review as soon as I can next week, so stay tuned for that.      In the meantime... head on over to Instagram and follow "I'm Fit Possible "!  And while your at it, go ahead and give me a follow too! (runner_blogge

media2.onsugar.com   Ah my formidable foe... we meet again.  The evil "Treadmill"!!  Today I decided to hop back on the dreaded 'Mill for some last minute speed work before my Half-Marathon this weekend.  Nothing like a little procrastination and a quickly approaching race to light a fire under your butt!    It's been quite a while since I was at the gym... I've been getting my miles in but my gym visits have slackened lately.  I decided to lift a little too.. felt pretty proud of myself to get such a good workout in today!  ehow.com    Those feelings quickly disappeared when I went to grab my bag from my locker.  As I've always done before.. I put my small combo lock on my locker to protect my things.  But when I went to go unlock it... suddenly I realized... *I'D FORGOTTEN MY COMBINATION*!!    First I just tried what numbers I could remember.  That wasn't working... I'd used muscle memory unlocking this thing for so long that I

michellependergrass.com    Procrastination .  It's a runner's Achilles heel.  Except for the actual Achilles heel. Okay, maybe that's not the right metaphor. Whatever the analogy, procrastination can come back and bite you in the rear!   Procrastination can show it's nasty face in a number of different ways for us runners.  You procrastinated getting your long runs in and now you don't feel prepared for your upcoming race.  You put off your run for too long and now it's getting dark and cold.      For me... I've procrastinated with speed work. Speed work is an essential part of getting faster.  You may not need it to finish a race, but if you plan on setting a personal best... it's kinda required.   I'm human and we all have our weakness... mine is speed training.  I'd much rather go run 20 miles than force myself to do 3 miles fast.      Some runners are the opposite.  They love doing sprints at the track or on a treadmill.  Me

  There are a lot of "tips" out there to staying motivated and reaching your 2014 goals. I've mentioned some of my tricks HERE .  But I thought I'd give you a few more that you may not have read or thought about.    I'm very big on running with friends.  As I've said, it's a great motivator and holds you accountable. But sometimes there just isn't anyone available or willing around.  So what do you do?  I say grab your pooch!  swimbikerunphoto.com    Now, not EVERY dog is made to run, or can.  But on those days where your lacking some motivation, and you have a pup who can handle the activity... strap on that leash and go!  Or if you've been wanting to get a dog...  this is a great excuse to go to a shelter and rescue your new running buddy!  Dogs need exercise.. and so do you.. so why not enjoy a little together ? Before you do though, there are few you things you should know about running with dogs. Here are just some: They need water

                                 It's time for a little running Rants and Raves!     Everyone is getting a start on their 2014 Resolutions.  So the runner/walker traffic on sidewalks and trails has increased exponentially. I'm glad so many people are getting active and enjoying the outdoors. That being said... if you're going to take a leisurely stroll along a very popular path, make sure to  LEAVE SOME ROOM for everyone else! Too often I am running along and come across moms with strollers lined up four-across down a narrow path... or a family of six taking a walk together side-by-side.  I've had to dodge actual car traffic just to get around these road blockers!  Courtesy: thesmokinggun.com    Have you ever came across this before?  How do you react? Do you politely say excuse me or just dart around and send a glare over your shoulder?  I typically say excuse me, but in my head I give them a piece of my mind!    Don't get me wrong, I'm g

 We've all set our goals, written down our resolutions, and are ready to tackle those challenges this 2014.  But the hard part is staying motivated in the months to come! vegannerd.tumblr.com   One of my tricks to sticking with my goals are REWARDS!  That doesn't necessarily mean food... although sometimes it can be.  What I'm referring to are small "treats" for reaching certain milestones along the way.   And I don't mean if you run one mile you'll buy a plane ticket to Hawaii... that may be a little excessive, but if that's your way of motivating yourself and you have the money, go for it. What I'm talking about are smaller rewards to make the big goal ahead not seem so far away.    For example, I have a race in two weeks  (the AZ Rock N Roll Half-Marathon ) and my training has been going very well.  So I rewarded myself with a new pair of running shoes!    The Brooks Ravenna 5 , aren't they awesome? Red makes you faster, right?!

Me running through the desert trail   It's rare that I can tell you my long run felt amazing, that I had tons of energy, or that I could've went farther.  But today was an exception.  I was feeling good... and adventurous... so I pushed it to 20!   I do have to give props to my running partner of the day, Steve.  He suggested the extra miles half-way through our run and we both decided to go for it! That's the great thing about running with a friend sometimes.  You can push each other past your limits and see just how far you can go.   Where was all my energy coming from?  Maybe it was my overnight oats for breakfast.  Maybe it was the amazing weather... sorry all of you dealing with major snowy and icy conditions, but this is the advantage to living in the desert! But don't ya'll worry... you'll be laughing at me come summertime!   Besides all of that.. I do believe Steve pushing me was definitely the big factor that helped my run feel so great.  W