Just Plodding Along

13.1 miles, medal, egg hunt, race shorts. Count me in. The Egg Shell Shuffle sells out fast so sign up early. Besides the awesome medal there is an adult Easter egg hunt where they get donations of running stuff and museum passes and candy. LOVE THIS MEDAL Once again I was using this race as a long distance training run. This week only 15 miles (when 15 got placed in the 'only' column I am not sure). This race has race day packet pick-up which is nice because it was south of my house by about a hour and twenty minutes. The race is held in a forest preserve with a small two mile loop at the beginning and then an out and back for the rest with the majority on a bike path.   The weather was perfect. Little windy but no snow, no rain and it was not freezing. Aid stations every few miles with poweraide gels at mile 7ish and 9ish maybe. Low key start and finish line, as in I had a hard time finding the start as there were just timing mats in the parki...

Saturday I get to do this run and obtain this and I am so freakin excited because at the end there is an Easter Egg hunt for adults with fun prizes like a GPS watch and other running gear.  I am wavering between trying to get it together and maybe try and PR or just chillax and do my planned 15 mile training run, obtain medal and egg hunt- no worries, be happy man. On Wednesday I felt a weird pain in my left leg so cut my run short, skipped my planned evening run and have taken today off and am iffy on tomorrow. It feels better so I will probably give running a go and see what happens. A few hip stretches and exercises and my leg feels fine but was a definite reminder that I have been slacking in the cross training and hip strengthening department and need to get my butt in gear.  Any big plans for this weekend? Happy Easter!

The last two weekends I have used these half marathons as part of my 20 mile long runs.After polling you - my awesome readers- who recommended running the extra seven miles before the race I decided that was the best course of action. Though I had to come to the terms with I would be starting each race tired, because seven miles is not really a stroll in the park, this worked out brilliantly because when the race was over I was done, medal and snacks in hand. I would recommend this method to anyone who is intimidated like I was of the long run for marathon training.  By this point seven miles is not a huge deal - meaning seven miles does not scare me.....as much as twenty miles. PROS of the Long Run/ Half Marathon Combo: Course support means not having to run with all the stuff needed to keep you going for that many miles Cheering volunteers and spectators- they are always good motivation/ distraction to keep your butt in motion You get a medal at the end. Twenty ...

I once again packed a suitcase to take to this race since the weather said snow. Stolen from Gary  Luckily just a few light flurries. It wasn't actually that cold, it just was annoyingly windy.......wait, this just in: Chicago is apparently known as the Windy City.... so yeah windy but let's start from the beginning.  I woke up at 4:15, ate a protein pancake, layered up and hit the road. The race was about an hour and twenty minutes from my front door. The first time I have headed downtown and not hit traffic. 5 a.m. is the magic hour. I left earlier than needed because I was on the hunt for free street parking and I found some in the most magical spot known to runners- right next to the Porto potties and a few steps from the start. Bean for the WIN.  Packet pick-up the day of which was awesome because otherwise I would have had to drive about three hours total to get it on Saturday. This is a nice feature of All Community Events . Packet pick-u...

I just realized I have no more Vanilla cliff shots for tomorrow's twenty mile run..... Well I guess I know what I will be doing today. The hunt is on.

This Sunday it is time for another twenty mile marathon training run. So must be time for another half marathon. This one is down in Chicago so should be nice and flat. Just the way we like them. I am going to attempt a seven mile warm-up again followed by a 13 mile run with a few other runners. Good times. The only thing that is not awesome is the weather. As of now 35 degrees with snow showers. Seriously- no more snow. I would like to see if I can knock this twenty miles a little faster. Other then that I would like to just get it done. This weeks training has been a 4 mile on Tuesday, 9 miles on Wednesday (a double day with 5 in the morning and 4 in the afternoon), and 10 mile tempo run today, 4 miles on Saturday, 20 miles Sunday. Quite the week. I even did some yoga, stretching and body weight stuff. Whooo bring on the marathon. Anyone else racing this weekend?

.... a good deal. Firmoo  asked me if I would be interested in reviewing their eyeglasses. Heck yes. Firmoo  is the world's most popular online eyeglasses store. We have always been committed ourselves to offering customers the best quality products at the most affordable prices which start at 8 dollars. For this reason, we have gained a solid reputation and trust from hundreds of thousands of fans on Facebook. (from their website) Basically you can scan your picture into the website- try on some virtual pairs and find an awesome pair of glasses ranging from $8 on up. I picked a pair and within about five days the glasses showed up at my door. And they are awesome. Last time I was at the eye doctor I saw a pair I liked that were $150. Looks like the highest these glasses run at around $70 but with many under $20. That is a steal compared to anywhere else.  I ordered these bad boys  All glasses come with a hard case, soft case, rag and a tiny tool f...