Tag: Running

XTERRA Hagg Lake 5k Trail Run

August 11, 2014October 26, 2014 · 12 Comments ·

I signed up for the XTERRA Hagg Lake Trail Run 5k because there was a Living Social deal and I thought why not give it a shot. I had never done a trail race before and with the bargain price, I thought the 5k would be a great way to try it out. It was a beautiful morning for my very first trail race, but just a bit too warm for my liking. I think it was already 70 deg F out when we left early Sunday morning.

I forgot how beautiful it was out there. I have visited Hagg Lake before but it’s been a while since I’ve been back.

There was a half marathon race and a 10K race scheduled before the 5k. I could only imagine running the half marathon and wish the brave souls good luck. They are amazing and awesome to do the half! The pic below is the start of the half marathon race.

Here’s a pre race shot of me.

There was a lot more 10k racers! The pic below is of the start of the 10k.

The 5k race started at 8:30 am. There wasn’t as many racers as the 10k which had the most competitors out of all the races that day.

The next two pics show me running right after the start of the race, courtesy of my hubby.

I actually managed to take two pics while running on the trail where I thought it was safe lol.

From the start we went across boat ramp C and connected to the trail on the North side. On the trail there was lots of grooves and uneven spots. I was definitely not used to running on the trail. Trail running shoes would have been nice. I almost rolled my ankle a couple of times. There were steep climbs and then down hill spots. It was fun in a way since it was different and exciting. There was some markers but some were on the ground, I just followed the people ahead of me and was thankful that there was someone always in my sight. There was a part where we ran on the road for a little bit and then headed back in to the trail. I remember thinking, I was glad it was only 3.1 miles lol. It was so hot out.

I ended up getting second place in my division, fourth overall female and eighth overall, which is awesome! It was a small race, but I’ll take what I can get :). All finishers got a stainless steel pint glass which could be refilled at the Beer garden.

Here I am with my kiddos and my pint glass on my head :).

Here are pics of the post race goodies:

Beer was provided at the white tented area.

My awesome supporters! 🙂

Post race pic with my finisher’s pint glass.

My results:

Overall, I thought it was great first trail race. Have you done a trail race? Where was it and what’d you think?

Recap of last week’s workouts 8/4-8/10

August 11, 2014November 17, 2014 · 6 Comments ·

My half marathon training is going well and I did my first ever trail run on Sunday. First of all, I’m in phase three of the Asics training plan on the Asics app, which is the Going Further Phase. It says that during this phase I’ll continue the high pace training done in the last phase but will extend the distance the pace must be maintained. This phase will help to build my leg strength and stamina. On Monday, there wasn’t anything scheduled on the app so I did PiYo Core and PiYo Define: Upper Body. My husband joined in for a little bit as you can see in the pic below :). Both were great workouts!

On Tuesday, I did PiYo Buns. I thought this one was a tough one but I liked it! It really works your lower body. There’s tons of squats and lunges.

On Wednesday, I jogged three miles and then did PiYo Core. According to the Asics app, the jog is supposed to gently exercise the muscles used for running.

I also, got my Mom’s Run This Town Summer Safari medal for running the virtual 10k. Pretty cool bling! 🙂

On Thursday, I ran 7.5 miles. It was my fastest 7 miles according to Smashrun. I also did PiYo: Define Lower body. Had a good workout!

Then Friday was a rest day.

On Saturday, I jogged three miles on our trusty old treadmill and then did PiYo Sweat. It’s good to know our treadmill still works lol. I enjoy running outside but I didn’t wake up early enough before my husband went to work.

On Sunday, I ran my first ever trail race! It was the XTERRA Hagg Lake 5k. I had fun and it was a lot harder than road racing. I was supposed to run 7.5 miles according to my training schedule but oh wells. It was a hard trail run :P.

How’d your week go? Have you ever ran a trail race? How was it?

Hope you have a great week!

I’m linking up with Workout Wednesday (WOW) Link Up! This one is brought to you Diatta Harris at Femme Fitale Fit Club and Sheila Simmons at The Frugal Exerciser.

Recap of last weeks workouts 7/28-8/3.

August 3, 2014November 17, 2014 · 4 Comments ·

Half marathon training is going pretty good considering being on vacation twice in July. We left New York on Tuesday and I got a short workout in at the airport using the Seven App. Seven minutes is better than nothing :P.

I’m giving a quick review of Jet Blue’s snack choices, which I thought were pretty good. It was the first time flying with them and I thought their customer service and snacks were super.

I think this was the first time I tried Terra BBQ chips and they were quite yummy and addicting. We had connecting flights, so each time we flew I would pick the Terra BBQ chips for a snack lol.

Here’s a cool shot from the airplane.

We got back around two in the morning. After I got my sleep in, I was able to get my workouts in for the day. I ran five miles and then did PiYo Core.

On Thursday, I did PiYo Define: Upper and Lower Body. My little guy had fun in front of the camera while I worked out lol.

On Friday, I got up early (5 am) to run five miles before hubby went to work. I did not want to run in the heat later.

I also got my Encore medal in the mail! It’s the medal you get for running two Rock’n’Roll races. I ran the Portland Rock’n’Roll and Seattle Rock’n’Roll half marathons. Pretty cool bling to add to my collection.

On Saturday, I did PiYo Sweat. I love this one, it totally makes you sweat!

Then today, I did my long run of 10.01 miles. On the Asics app, the run had a guideline pace of 9:18-10:13 min/mi. I was in the range, so I’m happy. It says comfortable running lets you train without putting to much strain on the body.

I had a pretty good week. How’d your week go?

Last week’s workouts 7/21-7/27 and trip to Canandaigua, NY

July 31, 2014November 17, 2014 · 4 Comments ·

It was a busy but great week! I didn’t get all the scheduled runs and workouts in due to traveling to New York for my hubby’s family reunion, but I did what I could. I ran once while on vacation, so that’s pretty good. 🙂

On Monday, I started the PiYo schedule and did Align. I think it’s a good one since it shows you how to do the moves properly. I think PiYo works well with my half marathon training since it’s low impact and works on flexibility and strength.

On Tuesday, I jogged three miles according to my half marathon training plan through the Asics app, and then did Day 2 of PiYo, Define: Lower Body. It’s a short one and is about 20 minutes.

On Wednesday, I ran a fast 5 miles and then did PiYo Define:Upper Body. It’s another short workout, that’s less than 20 minutes.

That night we left for New York and took a red eye flight. We got to JFK Airport around 5 am and then had to wait about four hours until our next flight to Rochester, NY, where we arrived at about 11 am. Here’s a pic from a kiosk at JFK Airport:

We were going to Canandaigua, NY to celebrate my husband’s Great Grandma’s 90th birthday as well as have a family reunion.

On Thursday, I didn’t get a workout in but had a nice time going sailing on Uncle Kerry’s boat. This was on Lake Canadaigua. Here are some pics:

On Friday we went to Onanda Park where we went on a little hike. I thought it was a nice one and my kiddos enjoyed it.

Then on Saturday, I went for a five mile run from our hotel. It was nice to get a run in especially since I wasn’t eating very well. I ate a lot of cookies, donuts, and chips…but hey I was on vacation :). But here are some of the things I saw on my run:

It was a fun week and I had a great time in New York! It was nice meeting more of my husband’s family as well as getting together with others again!

How did your week go?

Recap of last week’s workouts (7/13-7/20)

July 20, 2014November 17, 2014 · 2 Comments ·

This week’s half marathon training went well. According to the Asic’s app which is what I’m following for my schedule, it’s phase 2 which is the Getting Faster Phase. It consists of 5 weeks and 80 miles over 16 runs. Monday was a rest day. On Tuesday, it had me jogging three miles, but I decided to do Focus T25’s Ab Intervals too. I had a great workout! It’s still a tough one!

On Wednesday, I woke up around 5 am and ran five miles fast. The guideline pace was 8:35-8:59.

Thursday was a scheduled rest day, but I decided to do a PiYo workout. I did PiYo Core and it really worked my core. My kids had fun playing around me while I worked out too, lol.

On Friday, I woke up early again and ran five miles fast. It was a good run!

Saturday was a rest day and today I ran 7.5 miles comfortably. The guideline pace was 9:20-10:15.

I had a pretty good week. How did your week go?

Top Fitness/Health Apps that I use (All Free)

July 15, 2014December 5, 2014 · 23 Comments ·

Here’s my list of top fitness/health related apps. These are the apps that I’ve been using lately that are awesome! 1. My Asics – Run Faster Longer, Personalized Adaptive Training … Continue reading Top Fitness/Health Apps that I use (All Free)

Recap of last week’s workouts

July 13, 2014November 17, 2014 · 2 Comments ·

Here’s my recap of last week’s workouts. I ran five miles on Wednesday after being on vacation and doing a lot of walking at Disneyland. It was nice to go for a run.
On Thursday, I tried PiYo Strength Intervals for the first time. I liked it! I think it’s going to help with my running. It works on flexibility and strength.

On Friday, I woke up around 5 am to run five miles since I didn’t want to wait until my hubby came home and it would’ve been almost 90 degrees out.

Saturday was a rest day and Sunday I ran the Mom’s Run this Town Summer Virtual 10k. I was scheduled to run 7.5 miles so I just ran an additional 1.3 miles easy after running the 10k.
According to Runkeeper it was my best time for 6-8 miles :)!

How did your week go?

Recap of Last Week’s Workouts 6/30-7/7 and Disneyland/Disney California Adventure.

July 9, 2014November 17, 2014 · 2 Comments ·

I only got two runs in this week and did a couple of PiYo workouts. On Monday, my husband and I tried Chalene Johnson’s PiYo Define Lower and Upper Body workouts. They were about twenty minutes each. We started with the Upper Body one and then the Lower Body workout. The end of the Lower Body one was tough! There was a lot of plank work.

Here’s a pic of the fam at the end of the workout:

On Tuesday, I ran four miles. It was already warm out when I ran that morning. It reached the upper nineties that day….so hot!

On Wednesday, I ran six miles. I decided to run a little long because I knew I wouldn’t be able to run the rest of the week since we were going out of town.

Thursday was a rest day and Friday we spent most of the day driving to California. The picture below is of Mt. Shasta.

I wasn’t able to get any more runs or Beachbody workouts in but I got a great workout walking on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday while we were at Disneyland and Disney California Adventure :). We stayed at a hotel so close to Disneyland that we were able to just walk to the parks each day. We did a lot of walking!

Here are a few pics from our trip:

Have you been to Disneyland? I think it would be cool to get to do a Disney run. Maybe I’ll get to…eventually.

Have you done a Disney run? How was it?

Recap of this week’s workouts

June 29, 2014November 17, 2014 · 2 Comments ·

After running the Seattle Rock’n’Roll Half Marathon last Saturday, I took some rest days and then ran 3 miles on Wednesday. My next race will be a virtual 10K for Moms Run this Town and my next half marathon will be in September.

On Thursday, I decided to get a total body workout and did Focus T25’s Total Body Circuit. This one’s still a tough one! I had a great sweat session! Here I am with my kiddo.

On Friday, I went to my coach’s Fit Club and it was awesome to try PiYo for the first time! We did the workout called Sweat and I was drenched in sweat by the end of it. I’m not sure if it was because there was no air conditioning or what, but I felt I had a great workout!

Saturday was a rest day and today I ran 6 miles. That puts my monthly total to 87 miles which is a record for me! One of these days I will get 100 miles.

On today’s run, I wore the Injinji socks I won from a giveaway. I thought they felt good when I was running with them. On the packaging it says the anatomical 5 toe design properly aligns toes, prevents blisters and promotes proper posture & balance. They are lightweight as well. It’s pretty cool that I won them :). My toes felt a little different in them but it was good.

How’d last week go for you? Have you tried Injinji socks? What do you think?

Hope this week goes well for you!

Monthly Running Miles Record

June 26, 2014July 30, 2014 · Leave a comment ·

I was looking at my running stats on Smashrun and I think I’ve ran the most I’ve ever ran in one month! So far I’m at eighty one miles. That’s a lot and the most so far for me! 🙂 I’m on a roll this year! Last year I only ran two races. I’ve ran three races so far this year and have signed up for two more. I have my first trail run in August, a 5k, and then another half marathon in September. I also have a virtual 10k in July. I feel I need to keep it up. Races keep me motivated and give me something to look forward to.

But I must say I’m in the best shape of my life right now and it has totally helped my running! I’m running the fastest I’ve ever ran, running long distance. It started last August when I got Shaun T’s latest program- Focus T25. You might have seen the infomercials or know Shaun T from the Insanity workout program. The nice thing about Focus T25 is that the workouts are only 25 minutes. After I did Focus T25 for two rounds, P90X3 came out and I finished that program. The workouts in P90X3 are only 30 minutes. As you can see I’m all about getting a great workout in a short amount of time. 🙂 Tony Horton put me in tip top shape with the strength and variety of his workouts. I can actually do real pull ups now! After that I then started running again and continued to incorporate the Beachbody programs while training for the half marathon I did in May. I got my PR (Personal Record) that race by two minutes! Running has never felt this good for me.

I just ordered PiYo, Chalene Johnson’s newest workout program which is supposed to help with flexibility and strength while still give you a nice cardio workout. I can’t wait to try it! I just need to figure out how to incorporate it with my running. I think I’m addicted to working out and running right now, lol. This quote sums it up:

I make sure not to overdue it though. I take my rest days.

Here’s my Smashrun stats for this month:

If you’re a runner, do you incorporate other workout programs in your training? If you’re interested in any Beachbody programs let me know. 🙂 I’ll be having a support/test group for PiYo in July.