Exciting Things Are Happening

On Monday, Holly and I met with the owner and the purchaser for a new running store in American Fork, Utah Run.

  We are excited to announce that Utah Run will be sponsoring Run Your Race Pacers...YAY!!!  Not only are they sponsoring us but they are RYR's main sponsor.  Both the owner and his purchaser are amazing, we are beyond excited to be working with them.

After our little meetin' we got to go "shopping" for some new gear.  If you are looking for super cute running clothes and everything running head on over to Utah Run, it is worth the drive, I promise.  The staff is super knowledgeable about all things running and will be happy to answer all of your running and triathlon questions.  They have lots of tri gear as well, it's a one stop shop.

I was surprised to see Oakley brand running clothes, had no idea they existed.  I picked out an Oakley ensemble, a Bondi Band headband, a FlipBelt (just FYI, Utah Run is the ONLY store in the great state of Utah that carries Flip Belt) and some Clif Shot Blocks for the Dino Half Marathon on Saturday.

You must have matching undershorts, 

some gals wear them as shorts but in my book they are indeed UNDERwear :)

I LOVE these colors together and a built in brazier is always a plus. 

I didn't realize it until this morning, but the Nike Pro shorts I picked are a little shorter than what I am used to.  I quite liked the shorter length, it felt like they didn't ride up as much as my longer ones. 

My FlipBelt matches my outfit fabulously so that's a plus.  I can't wait to try out the FlipBelt.  You can put your phone, shot blocks, keys, a ham sandwich or whatever you want in it and you are good to go.  I like the feel of the FlipBelt, it doesn't flap around and it stays in place.  I won't drop it out of my short pants, that may sound weird but oddly enough it has happened.  Even better, you can WIN one...that's right you can get one for FREEEEEE!  Utah Run has agreed to give one lucky reader their very own FlipBelt, details below.

These shorts are probably my favorite thing EVER!  They are so very soft, the fit is cute and there is a nice zipper pocket for some Clif Shot Blocks. 

Holly and I had to take a few gym pictures but didn't want to be where everyone could see us so we headed into the bathroom.  Wouldn't you know it, the first gym selfie I've ever taken and I got caught :D  But first let me take a Stephie!!

I don't know if I'm attempting a back walkover or if I'm trying to levitate myself but that is an awkward position. 

I was being silly and Holly quickly snapped this shot. 

You can't really see it but I love the silver O on my shorts...it's the little things that bring me joy.

I tried out my new outfit this morning for some KYT action and have decided that it is my new "power outfit."  It fit great and the fabric is like butta!  I'm sure people will tire of seeing me in it because I pretty much want to wear it ev.er.y.day!

Speaking of KYT, today seriously kicked my butt...it's not just a clever name.  And in other news I am starting my own KYT bootcamp.  I have almost done this 4 times over the past 5 years and have finally decided to go waaaaaaay out of my comfort zone and just DO IT!  SO SCARED!  I have found some pretty awesome quotes over the past few weeks that have given me the courage to go for my dream, no matter how scary it might be.

This is exactly why it has taken me so long to attempt such a thing. 

I have decided that failure isn't an option, I will do whatever it takes to make this boot camp a success.  I love fitness more than anything, it is my life and I want to share that with others.  It doesn't make any sense for me to be doing anything else...this is what I love.  I love helping others achieve their goals and hope that my love of fitness will wear off on them...eventually.  They may feel like this 99% of the time but that's okay :)

This last one is my very favorite.  I have had so many people tell me that I should start my own thing but I let my own doubts and fears prevent me from doing it.  I need to just have faith and believe in myself. 

Enough about that, I'm freaking myself out! 

I am over the moon excited about pacing the Dino Half Marathon on Saturday.  It is such an amazing race with beautiful views.  I want to run with a camera just to show everyone the beauty that this canyon holds.  You don't think people will mind if their pacer stops every 5 minutes to snap some sweet shots do you?!? 

Okay, here is how to enter the Utah Run FlipBelt giveaway...

Like Utah Run on Facebook HERE and tell me in the comments that you did.

Leave me a comment telling me what you would carry in your FlipBelt.

You have until Tuesday, May 6th to enter.

Some Things Never Change

Saturday morning Holly and I headed out for our 20 mile training run at 6:30 a.m. (you can read all about that run on Holly's blog HERE, if you feel so inclined).  If you don't want to read about it, here are a few pictures of the run...we wonder why it takes us so long to do our long runs :)

I felt like climbing a branch, it was fun. 

I'm not sure what I'm doing here. 

As soon as my Garmin showed 20 miles I fell to the ground, it was quite dramatic.

Okay, enough pictures let's get to it.

I walked out and what to my wondering eye should appear but the lightness of day was finally here.  Do you like my song?!?  Anyways, it was 6:30 in the a.m. and it wasn't pitch black.  YAY!!!  Holly and I were both so excited because that meant that we could finally start doing our weekday runs OUTSIDE!!  Hallefreakinlujah, we have been trapped in the "cave of wonders" for far too long.

So this morning, after getting shredded, we suited up and headed out.  It was glorious!!!  We saw our friend, who we've never actually talked to, "peace out guy."  We got to see the beautiful temple which is always a wonderful sight.  And we got to see Mama Jex, she was right on cue.  I'm sure the people driving near Mama thought I was a complete idiot waving as big as I possibly could with my huge, white, Mickey Mouse gloves on.

It's nice to know that even after months of not running about the city, we were able to see some familiar faces and a few of our favorite things.  We did an 8.25 mile loop and it was just wonderful.  

For those times that you might be stuck on a treadmill though, here is an easy to remember hill workout to try.  Warm up for 2 miles then do 7, .25 mile hill repeats with .50 mile recovery.  I put my speed at 7.5 mph (I don't claim to be a fast or a slow runner, just an average gal who enjoys to run) and the incline at 7.5%, run a quarter of a mile then lower it to 0% and recover for a half mile.  Repeat 7 times.  I can't tell you how much it bothered my OCD little brain to be doing 7.5's on everything but only repeating it 7 times.  I couldn't figure out which would be worse though, doing a half of a repeat or stopping at 7...it bugged me the whole run.  I finished up with 8 miles, I was dead...I was beat...I was deadbeat...I was a deadbeat.  There are few things better than kicking your own butt during a workout!

That's all!

Don't Make Me Get Off My Unicorn!

I tried a new workout on the treadmill the other day and it was pretty awesome.  I got the idea from Hungry Runner Girl and put my own spin on it.  Here's how it went down:

Warm up for 10 minutes

Fast for 1 minute...slow down for 1 minute

Fast for 2 minutes...slow for 1 minute.

continue for 3, 4 and 5 minutes.

Then I went down.  5 minutes fast....slow for 1 minute.

4, 3, 2, and 1...and 1 more just for fun.  I finished off with 8 miles and felt AMAZE BALLS!

Since it was my first time trying this workout I kept the speed the same for the first half, for both the fast and slow times.  The second half I was feeling great so I upped the speed with each repeat but kept the slow pace the same.  Whenever I do any kind of speed work I always make sure to cool down really good for at least .25 mile but usually it's more like .50 mile.

This was a great way to make the treadmill more entertaining.  I'm soooooo ready to be doing all of my runs outside but it's still too dark in the morning.  Me + running in the dark = a bloody mess.

Saturday, Holly and I did a 19 miler and let me just say that it was less than stellar.  That's actually great news though because that means that this weeks 20 miler is going to be great...I'm sure of it! 

So, everyone knows I'm "obsessed" with socks right?  Well, I want to let you know what Pro Compression's sock of the month is...

Look at that, you not only get a screaming deal on stockings but you also get to help a good cause. That thur is a what they call a "win win!" 

Choose anything purple and a donation will be made to Team in Training.  Choose anything powder blue and a donation will be made to Train 4 Autism.

Use promo code SOM4 to get 40% off and FREE shipping.

You can also choose to get the brand spanking new red, white and blue marathon "tube sock."

Go HERE to place your order...tell 'em Steph sent ya ;)

Now for some things that make me happy

Sooooo true.  Jake has a tendency to complain that I can never skip a day of running/working out.  I keep trying to explain to him that it's for the best of EVERYONE if I run.  He doesn't get it but maybe the fact that there is an e card about it will help. 

Yep...obsessed! 

This brings much joy to my soul.