12 Months of Medals: My 2015 (And Beyond!) Running Challenge

[Keels]

Im sure @Keels will forgive us


the app works kind of like an interactive audio book, basically you play a character in a story, normally its telling you the story through your headphones if you have the zombie chase mode turned on then sometimes youll get an alert that zombies are nearby and you have to run faster to get away from them, in your headphones you might hear the grunts of the zombies if they get closer, its not really scary by any means because you know its not real but it is a fun way to mix up your runs I don't use it every run maybe once a week or so just to have some fun but if you aren't into zombie stuff to begin with then it probably wouldn't do the trick for you lol

I'll allow it ... this time.

 

[roxymama]

Haha! Maybe I need to develop an app to run towards something I want instead of running away from something. Or I can just run to my local bakery, no app needed. (probably counter-productive on the whole being healthy thing though...but it is FUEL for my run home!)

 

[Neoflynn]

since we were talking about speedwork I found this article today and thought I would share

http://www.runnersworld.com/workout...&cid=socTP_20150520_46086926&short_code=30vfy

 

[Keels]

We interrupt this serious training journal for a ...

Girlie Fashion Post!!!

So, in the course of all this training and running, I've been pretty basic and minimalist in what I wear to run. At the very beginning, it was old t-shirts and a basic pair of workout capris. I've since moved on to running leggings, nicer capris and now running shorts - with various tech shirts and tank in the mix. But most of my running attire has either been free (race shirts) or low-cost (I'm a fan of the Danskin line at WalMart and C9 by Champion at Target, with some BCG items from Academy in the mix) while I try everything out to figure out what combo I like best.

This week, I made my first "investment" in cute, girlie running tops from RawThreads.

I've never bought anything from RawThreads before now - mostly because of cost, and because I haven't had a chance to see the product in person to know if I would like it. BUT, I wear a bunch of bamboo non-running tops and I love them and how they hold up.

So, when the Mystery Pack offer came around, I bit the bullet.

I bought the Mystery Good Girls Bow Racer pack - it's three racerback tanks of RTs choosing (I wouldn't know what I got until they were delivered). Normally, I wouldn't do anything like this ... BUT! I had been trying to decide which ONE bow racer tank I would buy and could decide! So, this gave me the opportunity for someone to make the choice for me!

Next up was cost. $39 plus shipping for one tank is a lot for me to pay for a product that I've never seen in hand before or had a chance to try on. But THREE tanks for $60? Yeah, I'm in on that. No sales tax and a flat-fee for $6 for two-day shipping and I was totally sold.

I decided to order a size up because I'd rather have my tanks be a little looser than TOO tight, since the Mystery Packs are final sale.

My tanks just got here ... and I am HEAD OVER HEELS in love with them. Like I wish I'd bought two packs. #SadPanda

Anyway. Like I said above, it was a mystery draw but I loved almost all of the designs, so I knew I would (at minimum) be thrilled with at least two, if not all three.

So ... what designs did I get?

First off ...

Jasmine! The back bow has a little Magic Lamp on it!

Next up?
TINK!!! This was one of the tanks that I was really hoping for!

And last ... but DEFINITELY not least ... it's the tank that I was MOST hoping for ...

SLEEPING BEAUTY!! AAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!

Not going to lie ... this rainy weather has had me in kind of a workout funk, so getting this little package of awesomeness really brought some brightness to my day! I'm actually about to rock my new tank to the gym for 5 miles on the Dreadmill.

And the best part? It's like RawThreads knew me ... all three tanks match ALL THREE pairs of shoes I'm currently training in.

Thank you, RawThreads!

 

[Keels]

Back to our regularly schedule serious training posts.

Talkin' Bout Night Fever, Night Fever ...

So, you may recall a few posts back I said I was done with races for a while.

I lied.

With all this focus on Dopey (which also includes a focus on Disneyland), I've kinda forgotten about my little friend Wine & Dine.

My biggest concern about Wine & Dine is what I do the day of the race. I've only run one night race before - and it was a 5K on a week day back when I was working. W&D is totally different from that, as it's on a weekend night. So I've been really struggling with a plan for the day of W&D.

Enter my good friends at Community Brewing in Dallas and their Moonlight Madness race night. It's next Saturday and they offer both a 10K and a half marathon. Score! Now, I'll get to tack on an extra race in May AND get to test-run what a Saturday might be like before I run Wine & Dine!

My biggest decision? Which race to run. The medals are the same for the 10K and the half, so no decision make there. There's about a $20 price difference between the two races, so that's negligible as well.

The 10K will slide in RIGHT before the Disneyland PoT deadline, and could possibly make up for the awful run that was MayFest. Or do I do a full dress rehearsal for W&D and go with the Half? It's a flat and out course with good terrain and very few hills, so a slight time improvement is possible.

Remember, I'm not really focusing on a PoT improvement for Disneyland because I've consistently run half marathons at the same-ish time and that's the corral I belong in NOW. But, we're still a ways away from September and I hope to be markedly improved by then.

What say you, faithful journal readers? Which race should I chose??

 

[FFigawi]

Do you even have to ask? You know we're going to say do the half.

 

[Keels]

Do you even have to ask? You know we're going to say do the half.

It's going to become incredibly boring when I run out of things for you to talk me into. You'll have to find a new person to encourage to make rash decisions!

 

[FFigawi]

Like you'll ever run out of things. We are barely started on races, and haven't even gotten to tattoos yet. Disclaimer: tattoos should not be rash decisions.

 

[Keels]

Oh, I already have my first one in mind ...

Maybe.

 

[SarahDisney]

First of all, I love all 3 tanks!! I did not know that Raw Threads did mystery packs, but now I have to be on the lookout because I love all of their stuff and really want to buy something ... but I don't love the prices.
But yeah, you got an awesome mystery pack!

In terms of the race ... I'm generally one to say don't bite off too much unless you know you can handle it, but ... I think definitely the half, because you're "practicing" for a half, and how you eat/act/etc before a 10K might be different than before a half, so if you're really trying to see if your plan will work for Wine & Dine, I think a half is a better way to practice.

 

[Pixie Heart]

OMG!

I absolutely adored your tanks!!! Specially Tink's!

I hope you got those Tink NB shoes they launch at the Tinker Bell Half Marathon to match!

 

[girliea]

Love reading your training journal Keels...as well as all of your other entries. I agree with you, the folks on these boards are awesome and so encouraging!
Also love your tanks! I saw that you posted the sale and so I ordered some too and I have to tell you about the ones they sent me. I didn't get the racer back tops, just the regular tanks- I got a mickey one that has 26.2 on the back of the shirt; a dopey that has 48.6 on the front and a half marathon shirt that says I heart 13.1.....the funny thing is that I wouldn't buy these before b/c I hadn't decided for sure to do these races! I guess now I have no choice, right?

 

[Keels]

Love reading your training journal Keels...as well as all of your other entries. I agree with you, the folks on these boards are awesome and so encouraging!
Also love your tanks! I saw that you posted the sale and so I ordered some too and I have to tell you about the ones they sent me. I didn't get the racer back tops, just the regular tanks- I got a mickey one that has 26.2 on the back of the shirt; a dopey that has 48.6 on the front and a half marathon shirt that says I heart 13.1.....the funny thing is that I wouldn't buy these before b/c I hadn't decided for sure to do these races! I guess now I have no choice, right?

OMG! Yes - that TOTALLY means you have to do them!!

And I JUST found the Dopey shirt after you posted about. I may have to buy that now ...

 

[girliea]

OMG! Yes - that TOTALLY means you have to do them!!

And I JUST found the Dopey shirt after you posted about. I may have to buy that now ...

It really is a cute shirt! I think you need it for sure!

 

[Keels]

OMG!

I absolutely adored your tanks!!! Specially Tink's!

I hope you got those Tink NB shoes they launch at the Tinker Bell Half Marathon to match!

I wore Sleeping Beauty today (because I was running five miles and my 10K shoes are hot pink and yellow). I'm going to rock Tink on Saturday, I think!

But, sadly, no NB shoes for me. I have WAY different sized feet (my left foot is a 4.5 and my right is an 8), so unless I win PowerBall or a money tree sprouts in my backyard, I can't justify dropping that kind of $$ on two pairs.

 

[Keels]

It really is a cute shirt! I think you need it for sure!

I'm thinking it will be my Monday post-Dopey DATW shirt!

 

[Pixie Heart]

Well, you have the sassiest tank top ever, and that is perfect for itself!

 

[FFigawi]

Oh, I already have my first one in mind ...

Maybe.

Do tell! What's the design?

 

[Keels]

Do tell! What's the design?

I have a pretty sizable l-shaped scar on the inside of my left foot (from my mid ankle, down to around nearly my big toe) from surgery, since I was born with a clubfoot. I was thinking of starting at one point and then listing all the major distances I've accomplished. Originally, it was going to be anything half marathon or above, but I may have to rethink that because I'll run out of space sooner than I was planning at this rate.

 

[FFigawi]

5k-10k-13.1-26.2-50k-48.6