Running Skirts | Through Heather's Looking Glass

runDisney Wine and Dine 10K Recap 2017

November 23, 2017 by Heather

At the beginning of November, I had the opportunity to run the runDisney Two Course Challenge, made up of the Wine and Dine 10K and half marathon. I registered last minute and was under trained, so I just had fun with it, and fun was definitely had!

I didn’t take many photos during the race since it was dark when I started and dark when I finished, but I did take some video, which is at the end of this post. I will give a brief recap though.

I woke up at 3:00 and met my friend Amanda to go to the bus at 3:45 (last bus is at 4:00 and we were at the back of the resort). We were on a bus within five minutes, and got to the start with TONS of time to kill. (Side note: notice how straight and thin my hair looks here? Remember this for later).

This is one thing I dislike, that you are forced to arrive so early if you use Disney transportation. It was a few minutes after 4:00 when we arrived and the race didn’t start until 5:30. We hung out at the start and just chatted, went to the bathroom, etc. and then said our goodbyes and headed into our respective corals. I got as close to the front as I could and sat down. This is where I stayed for about 40 minutes waiting for the race. I didn’t want to play on my phone too much as I didn’t want the battery to die, so it was honestly pretty boring, heh. Finally they started moving the corals up, and then the race started. I was in coral B, so thankfully didn’t have to wait too long.

I started running and immediately remembered something about runDisney races, you get zero time to warm up since you are sitting in a corral for so long, then you take off on cold muscles. By the time I realized it was happening, my leg that has been bugging me tightened up like crazy and I knew I was in for a long weekend. It wasn’t bad, but I could “feel” it if that makes sense. My quad tightened then it worked its way down to my knee by mile three and was hurting a little.

Honestly, the first 3 miles were really boring until we got into Hollywood Studios. I only saw I think one character in the park, and the line was super long so I passed. We then headed across the way to the Boardwalk It was so humid the decking was slippery so I had to be careful.

I saw the line for tourist Genie, and it was long but not SUPER long, so I hopped in line because, why not? I don’t know if I have ever taken a picture with him. (Notice how wavy my hair is now!)

It was nice to take a little breather in the super thick humidity, and then I moved on to EPCOT.

I saw these guys in Canada (do you think they wold be upset if they knew I never saw their movie?)

I then knew I was in the homestretch. It was so weird running here in the dark, it’s usually daylight by time I get to this point, and think I have only run in the dark here the year I did Dopey.

I made it that final familiar stretch I have run so many times, and crossed the finish line somewhere around 1:04. Not bad for all my stopping!

wine and dine 10k

I was smiling when I finished, which is all I cared about. I was so thankful to have the opportunity to run so last minute, and in my favorite place. It’s often during races I am reminded how truly blessed I am.

wine and dine 10k

Now on to the half marathon recap! But first, in case you missed it, here’s my expo recap, and don’t forget to check out my video below:

Filed Under: blogging, Disney, fitness, health, Race Recaps, runDisney, running, running gear, Running Skirts Tagged: 10k, Disney, EPCOT, Race, race recap, runDisney, Running Skirts, wine and dine

Superhero 5k Race Recap 2017

October 24, 2017 by Heather

Our neighborhood hosted a 5k last weekend so of course Bobby and I had to participate. We got to sleep in to a reasonable time and just drive to the front of the neighborhood to run. I’m all about convenience so I was excited to run it!

What I was not excited about was the weather. While it wasn’t hot thankfully (low 70’s) it was 100% humidity, which was absolutely brutal. But I’m getting ahead of myself, let’s back up!

I slept in until 6:20 which was nice for a race morning. We got up, ate breakfast and got ready, then woke Emma Kate up. My parents came to watch her while we ran and they met us at the front of the neighborhood where the race was starting.

They played on the playground with Emma Kate and were at the finish line when we crossed so it worked out well. Anyway, this was a very small race, and it was admittedly weird that a “race course’ was through streets that I regularly run during the week. Our neighborhood is huge, so I was bummed to see we would be making two loops around the same streets (I knew I would get bored). Oh well, it’s just 3.1 miles I thought to myself. The race was chip timed, but what I didn’t realize until after was that there was no starting mat, so everyone’s gun time was the same as their chip time. I started towards the back, and had I known there was no starting mat I would have started closer to the front, because my time is about 3 seconds off because of this.

So we started promptly at 8:00, and my goal was to keep a sub 9:00 minute pace which I thought was reasonable in the weather conditions. (Had it been less humid I would have shot for sub 8:45 for a PR.) Bobby took off and was way ahead of me, and I just got into a groove listening to my music and running this familiar course. I made the first loop, and Bobby passed me going the other way. We high fived, and I was still feeling good, keeping about an 8:45/8:50 overall pace for the first 1.5 miles.

I hit mile two and was POURING sweat. It kept getting in my eyes and burning, and I kept wiping my eyebrows and forehead but there was so much of it that it really wasn’t helping. I knew I should have worn a visor and was cursing myself in that moment for forgetting. I kept hanging on to my pace until I got to about mile 2.5. I looked down and realized I was running a 9:20, and I was barely hanging on to that.

I pushed as hard as I could and got it back down to right around a 9:00 mile pace, and started getting that awesome nauseated feeling you get when you are pushing really hard. My face was on fire and I just couldn’t push any harder than I was. I made the last turn and saw the finish line and my family.

I crossed in 27:39, but I estimate I ran a 27:36 with the delayed start.

My PR is 27:13 but was in 50 degree weather and very low humidity, so I think with another chance in better conditions I can beat my old PR, which is encouraging.

This is my “leave me alone I need to keep walking so I don’t puke” face.

Finish line hugs are the best.

Bobby did really well. He ran a 23:13, which is 3 seconds away from a PR!

We were both super thankful that one was over, but still had a good time.

After the race, Bobby jumped in the pool fully clothed, and Emma Kate played on the playground before we all went to change and hit the pool. It was a great day and a fun time!

Filed Under: blogging, family, fitness, health, motivation, Race Recaps, running, Running Skirts Tagged: 5k, Race, race recap, running, tampa

Ocean Road 10K 2017 Race Recap

October 5, 2017 by Heather

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to fly to Rhode Island and have a weekend of fun, fitness, and learning with Cabot and the Cabot Fit Team. We traveled to Narragansett (and it took me all weekend to remember how to pronounce it!) visited a local farm, ate tons of great food, stayed in an adorable inn, and ran a gorgeous 10k. It was action packed but still restful which I loved. I will be sharing more on the rest of the weekend in another post, but this one is strictly about the Ocean Road 10k race.

I haven’t raced since February due to a nagging quad injury, so I was really excited to have this opportunity. I really love the 10k distance and thought it would be a good chance to test out my leg while racing on a beautiful course. The race was held on Sunday morning, and it was so fun to be able to watch the sun rise over the ocean. The sun comes up way earlier in Rhode Island than it does in Florida, so when I woke up at 6:15 it was just about to peek over the horizon.

I got dressed, ate breakfast in my room, and headed to the lobby to meet my teammates. This is when I realized it was 43 degrees outside and was thankful I had packed accordingly. We all hurried into the team van and off we went to the starting line. We made it to the runner drop off area, which just so happened to be by the water, so of COURSE we had to take a group photo.

We were cutting it pretty close, the race started at 8:00 and it was nearing 7:45, but we were just having too much fun.

We finally got our act together and walked to the start line, only to discover there were VERY few port-o-potties and a line well over 100 people long. I decided I was just going to have to hold it, as they were lining people up and then singing the national anthem before I could really decide what I wanted to do. I hurried and turned on my Garmin and got Pandora working, and then we were racing! I was cold, but I have run enough races to know that I personally warm up very fast even when it’s cold outside and hate being miserably hot at a race because I overdressed, so I opted to wear a skirt, compression socks, and a throw away jacket over my team shirt, as well as something to keep my ears warm.

I started off too fast (shocker) and realized my thighs were completely numb. I just kept moving and was hitting them making sure my legs were still there, it was the oddest feeling. I got in the zone and just listened to my music and soaked in the gorgeous surroundings. They don’t call it the Ocean Road 10k for nothing. You literally run right along the ocean for much of the course. We passed gorgeous homes, beautiful tree lines streets, and rolling hills. I ended up throwing off my top layer at mile 2 and was so glad I didn’t overdress. My face was hot but my ears were cold, so I was again glad for the head wear.

I didn’t take many photos because I was just soaking it all in. I did take a few Instagram stories but didn’t save them to my phone. I kept a pretty good clip the first three miles considering I didn’t really train. I run 3 miles twice a week on the treadmill at Orange Theory, and I ran one four miler and one five miler prior to the race and called it a training cycle. (Hey, life is crazy right now ok?)

Anyway, I wasn’t expecting any kind of PR, I was just curious to see how my quad would do. Mile one was a sub 9:00 mile, and two and three were low nines. That’s where the wheels came off. At about mile 3.5ish, my leg started to get tight. I have not been training on up or downhills (I live in flat Florida!) and I foolishly thought it would still be OK. I had a goal to not walk, so I just kept on trucking even though my pace slowed down.

I made it to mile 5, and we were soon heading down a hill right out onto Ocean Road and past the inn where we were staying. This was my favorite part of the course.

I saw mile six, and knew I was close, but unfortunately didn’t really have any “kick” to give, so I just kept on at the same pace, taking in the beautiful sites. I finished it just over 59 minutes, not a PR, but I was super proud of my pace all things considered.

I found a couple of my teammates who had already finished, and we cheered on the rest of the girls as they came in, then we all walked down to the beach to take pictures of course.

ocean road

we took off our shoes, dipped our tired feet in the freezing water, then walked back to the inn. It was an amazing morning and I was so happy to have had the chance to run in such an amazing place. I quickly fell in love with Narragansett, and hope to return someday.

The race is in it’s fifth year, and if you live nearby (or not!) I highly recommend running it. We got lucky with perfect weather and it really was the cherry on top of a great race.

Disclosure: I attended this weekend free of charge thanks to Cabot, however all thoughts and opinions are my own and I was not asked to write this post.

Filed Under: blogging, fitness, injury, Race Recaps, running, Running Skirts, vacation Tagged: 10k, cabot, cabot cheese, fitness, ocean road 10k, race recap, running

runDisney Snow White Costume Tutorial

March 16, 2017 by Heather

Every year, I dress up for the runDisney Princess half marathon. For the past couple of years, my friend Jen and I have been super creative with matching costumes, but this year we both had a lot going on, and February snuck up on us. We still wanted to dress up and “sort of” match, so we decided to go with clothing we already owned so that we just had to add a couple of accessories to our princess costumes.

I already had a yellow running skirt and blue top, so I thought Snow White would be “easy”, except I totally forgot I am the least artistic person on earth and nothing related to costume creation is ever easy for me.

I had seen a few similar costumes on Pinterest, and thought I could figure out a way to create the sleeves on my own, but still look just as good as people with sewing machine today (and sewing skills). Yall, I tried really hard. If you didn’t get too close to me at the race you never would have known, but the photos below clearly show off my skills. But if you want an easy(er) way to create these sleeves and don’t have a sewing matching but own a needle and thread (or can buy one), then my tutorial is for you. remember, if I can do this, you can do this.

SUPPLIES:

-blue tank (mine is cotton from Target, I got it on clearance for $3. I know cotton is a running no no, but I wasn’t spending any more money on this costume than I had to.

-yellow running skirt from runningskirts.com. My favorite brand. They have POCKETS which is a great help during a race. (affiliate link)

-red headband or ribbon (I got mine at Mouse Gears inside EPCOT for $12.95. I love it so much I wore it around the parks, too!) You could always use leftover ribbon from your sleeves to create a bow or headband, too.

-needle

-white and blue thread

– 1 yard of knit elastic

– 2 yard of 1 inch thick blue ribbon

-2 yards of 1 inch thick red ribbon

– push pins

WARNING: Do not get ribbon with wire. It will poke you the whole race. The only thinner red ribbon at my craft store had wire so I bought it. Don’t make my mistake!

The first thing you need to do for your sleeves is cut two pieces of elastic and sew them together for the bottoms of the sleeves.

WARNING: Make the fit snug, but don’t cut off circulation. I made the mistake of making mine too loose, and it started pulling down the straps of my tank b/c the elastic was sliding down my arms. If I were to do this again (haha) I would have done the elastic a little tighter.

All I did was used white thread and literally sewed the two ends together at the ends. That’s it. Nothing fancy or pretty. I figured no one would be close enough to see that it didn’t all line up perfectly.

Then came the more complicated part. I knew I wanted 3 red pieces and 2 blue pieces of ribbon on each arm. So I did the longest 2 pieces in the middle then shorter pieces after that with one of the pieces more in the front than back. Confusing? Maybe this helps. For each arm I cut:

-1 red 10” and one blue 10”

-1 red 9” and one blue 9”

-1 red 8” <—-to be closer to the front. I didn’t care about having ribbon more towards the back. Check it out below. I then took each piece and pinned it to my elastic. I personally did it so that the seam of the elastic was on the back of my arm and not underneath so it wouldn’t rub me when I ran. Then I kind of “pleated” each piece of ribbon (best I could, it’s hard yall), and pinned them all on so that the ribbon reached about halfway down the width of the elastic (don’t worry, this is the underside that no one will see!)

Then I got to sewing. Well, what resembled sewing. Don’t laugh. This is the final product. I used white thread and just started on one side and literally just sewed over and under all the way across. It looked AWFUL, but again, would be on the underside.

I then did the same exact thing to the other side, so I had two detached sleeves.

I then switched to my blue thread, and again just literally sewed a line down the inside of the sleeve of the tank, attaching each piece of ribbon with about 3-4 stitches as I went. It wasn’t the best hold ever, but would do for one race. I did the other sleeve (make sure you sew underneath and not on top of the tank!) and I was done!

I didn’t try it on b/c I was afraid I would rip/mess something up, but thankfully all went well on race day and it held together just fine! I got tons and tons of compliments, but really all I did was sew together some ribbon and buy a headband. Everything else I already had. Some people choose to do a cape and collar or hold an apple, but I knew a cape and collar would bug me, and I already hold my phone when I run so I didn’t want to bother with another prop. So there you have it! My Snow White runDisney costume!

QOTD: Have you ever dressed up for a race?

Filed Under: craft, Disney, fitness, runDisney, running, running gear, Running Skirts, tips Tagged: costume, craft, half marathon, runDisney, sewing, snow white, tutorial

runDisney Princess Half Marathon Race Recap 2017

March 9, 2017 by Heather

A couple of weeks ago I have the privilege of running in my 6th runDisney Princess half marathon. I ran the Glass Slipper Challenge last year and in 2014, but this year my friend Jen and I decided to save some money (and some sleep!) and just run the half marathon. (Pssst. There is a video at the end of the post so hang tight to watch a recap from my Instagram Stories!)

Every year we dress up, and this year was a bit crazy for both of us and we didn’t have time to create elaborate matching costumes like we have done in the past. However, we still dressed up and per usual kept our costumes a secret until the night before the race. We went to bed early, and my 2:45 am alarm came way too soon.

We got dressed, put on our traditional fake eyelashes like we do every year (you would THINK we would be better at this by now!) and headed to the bus.

(Coming soon: A tutorial on how I created my costume, the easy/I’m terrible at sewing kind of tutorial!)

We got to the bus stop in front of the Yacht Club, and were the last people loaded before we left. What was interesting was we were on a park bus, not a regular greyhound which was a first for me with runDisney. There was a lot of traffic, but we made it to EPCOT by about 4:15 and walked to the family reunion area where we met up with a friend before checking Jen’s bag. It was chillier than I expected, and I was thankful for my throw away sweatshirt I remembered to bring.

We had never gotten to the corrals this early before, and they were pretty empty! runDisney got smart and put a row of port-o-potties close to the front corrals so we were able to go to the bathroom with no line and then jump in D corral. Karen was also in our corral, so she hung out with us and started the race with us, too. Our plan was to just have fun and take walk breaks. I was super undertrained and this was just a “for fun” race.

The race started a few minutes late because the traffic was so bad, but finally we made it up to the start line with the rest of our corral.

After a quick hi to Rudy and Carissa, we were off on our 13.1 mile journey!

The first couple of miles are always so uneventful. It’s dark, there is nothing to look at, and you start thinking about all the miles ahead! Thankfully we just all chatted together until around mile 2 when Karen decided to stop for a character photo that we decided to skip (lines were already so long! I can’t imagine how bad they were for the corrals behind us.) We made it to the Magic Kingdom gates and I was excited we were getting closer to the more exciting parts of the course.

After a quick stop at the med tent for body glide, we were on our way towards the TTC. I have to admit, I was a little bummed at the low crows at this spot. Traditionally this is my second favorite spot in the race because of all the energy from wall to wall people screaming and cheering, but this year there was hardly anyone and it made me sad. Did anyone else notice this? It wasn’t very cold outside so I’m not sure what the deal was. We passed my favorite drummers and kept going towards the big hill.

When we made the turn to get to the Magic Kingdom, we thought it was odd that the 5 mile marker wasn’t in it’s usual place. (The things you notice when you have run this course over a dozen times!) We would later find out the course through the Magic Kingdom was slightly altered which is why the markers were in a different place.

We made the turn onto Main Street, my favorite part, and again it just didn’t have the same crowd and energy I am used to seeing, but it’s still my favorite part.

We stopped and found a girl by herself trying to take a photo and we took turns getting pics for each other. I love runners!

Next stop was the bathroom in Tomorrowland. We used to stop at the ones at the TTC, but a couple years ago they started locking those for us for some reason, which means even more princesses waiting in line in Tomorrowland. We had a several minute delay, and then were on our way again.

We made it out of the Magic Kingdom (sad times) and made another bathroom stop at the next water station (too much coffee!) We arrived at the long stretch of single lane road, and Jen and I can’t figure out why its always so COLD on this part of the course! Any ideas? Before long we were at mile seven by the Grand Floridian. I took a picture with Snow White, since the line for her in the Magic Kingdom was dozens of people long. This is as close as I was going to get.

The next few miles were uneventful again, just running out on the road. We saw the race going the other way towards the Magic Kingdom around mile 2.5 I guess, and I saw the balloon ladies! I yelled for the princesses to run faster! We grabbed a CLIF shot at the free station around mile nine, and took a walk break to eat those (I am not coordinated enough to run and eat at the same time). Next we were making the turn on the loop of death at mile 10 (it KILLS my IT bands) and had a 5k to go. At this point we had gotten to the length of my longest and one and only really long run from this training cycle of 10 miles, and I was getting tight even though we weren’t running fast at all. My right thigh/quad up near my hip flexor started to hurt, but we only had a couple miles to go so I just pushed through.

[Tweet “Check out my @runDisney #PrincessHalf marathon race recap!”]

Soon we hit mile 11, and looped around and up the overpass and down into EPCOT and mile 12. A photographer caught me doing an Insta story on my phone. Oops. But seriously, if this doesn’t sum up my life I don’t know what does.

We looped around the small part of the course that goes through the park, and then I could hear the gospel choir singing! Miles 13 came and went, and we were in the home stretch of the finish line.

Can I just say that I love getting race pictures free as an annual passholder?!?

We made it! After crossing the finish line in 2:32, we had to get pixie dusted of course.

We got our medals, and headed over to the Media/VIP tent for some much deserved food and of course, mimosas.

Now I was able to do my favorite thing, cheer other runners on as they came through the finish. I LOVE seeing runners tearing up, holding hands with loved ones, and just getting to experience the looks on their faces as they are mere steps from the finish line. There is just nothing like it, and it makes me so happy.

Mimosas make me happy, too.

So does this guy. Always takes time to talk to runners and makes us all feel so special. Jeff Galloway is the best!

Carissa came into the tent for some food and we were able to say hello for a minute and grab a picture.

We hung out and ate some more, met with a couple of people, and then headed back to the resort. I am so thankful to have a friend like Jen who gifted me with the opportunity to run in another Princess half marathon. I also love our little tradition of running the Princess half!

If you want to see a video I took during the race as a recap, and also see what Jen and I did for the rest of the day after the race, be sure to check out the video below. Please note this video is my Instagram story from the day, and apparently it doesn’t like when you have still shots mixed in with your videos, so there are about 5 times during the video where you will see it “Freeze up” for a couple of seconds. These are the places where I had still shots that won’t come up, so just ignore it, it will keep playing!

For more race recaps and general runDisney information, photos, and posts, check out my runDisney page!

Filed Under: blogging, Disney, fitness, health, Race Recaps, runDisney, running, running gear, Running Skirts, vacation Tagged: Disney, Disney World, half marathon, orlando, Race, race recap, runDisney, Running Skirts, snow white, travel

The Bridge 5k 2016

September 27, 2016 by Heather

A couple weeks ago, I ran my first 5k since this past spring. Since I haven’t been running much, I knew there would be no PR but I really wanted to participate because it was being sponsored by my church, and was for a good cause:

The Bridge exists to build a bridge of hope and encouragement to our surrounding community. Proceeds will be used to provide equipment, materials, and training to address recidivism among men currently or previously incarcerated in correctional facilities in central Mississippi.

I signed up on a whim the week of the race, and was up bright and early Saturday morning. I went by myself which is fine, but I left a little too early and got bored standing around waiting to start.

The race was set to begin at 8:00, which is late for Mississippi in September. It was hot and humid yall. I did a little warming up and then hung out around the start line. At 8:00, it was announced that they had blown a breaker so we would be starting late. Great. It was getting hotter and hotter by the minute, and my once ready to run and warmed up body was getting tight. Oh well.

We finally began at 8:17. There was a 5k and 10k option, and after standing around in the 94% humidity and 83 degrees, I was so glad I opted for the 5k! The race was pretty small (just over 100 in the 5k and 10k) and I had no grand illusions of doing well or placing. I was dumb and went to a hard boot camp class the day before where we did lots of running, and my legs were definitely not feeling fresh (totally my fault).

We took off, and I noticed I was about the 4th female back after about .25 miles. We went down a big hill which I knew meant we would be going back up after the turn, so I decided to not push too hard on the front end. I had my music playing and just hung out behind this one guy for a while, kind of zoning out. Two girls passed me, and then I passed then just before the turn around. At this point, I wasn’t sure if there were any girls ahead of me because I hadn’t paid attention to the people coming back the other way, and I saw at least two girls going straight for the 10k course. I felt it a very strange feeling to be the possible lead female, and it made me chuckle in slight embarrassment because with the time I was running I should NOT have been in the front. I made my way up the second hill and when I had a half mile left I started to really fade. I felt like I was going to throw up and my face was so hot it felt like it was on fire.

All of the sudden, a girl sprints past me. Hmm. Well, if I was in the lead I wasn’t anymore. Oh well. I had about .35 left and was SO ready to be done. I had slowed considerably, and another girl goes by. Well. That’s what I expected so I wasn’t upset. I turned the corner and got to the last straightaway and saw the girl in front of me had slowed down considerably. I gave it all I had and sprinted past her to the finish. Turns out, I was second overall female which means I WAS leading all that time haha!

I finished the race in just over 28:00. Everyone was saying how much slower their times were because of how oppressive the humidity was, so at least that made me feel a little bit better. Some cheerleaders from the local high school were there, and they did some cheers while we waited on the last 10k finishers and the awards.

There were a bunch of door prizes, but sadly I didn’t win anything.

The pastor of my church got up and said a few words about the money we raised and how it was going to a good cause in the community. Then the awards were handed out.

I was second overall female and first in my age group (which I thought was weird because in most races I have run, if you win an overall award, you are taken out of the age group category for winning?) Either way, I was proud of my accomplishment despite it not being a great time for me in the race. I truly gave it my all with what energy I had that day. I also really liked the hand carved awards!

QOTD: Do you race when it’s hot outside or wait for cooler weather? Any races coming up?

Filed Under: asics, blogging, fitness, health, Race Recaps, running, running gear, Running Skirts Tagged: 5k, race recap, running, Running Skirts

5 Things Friday XXIV

September 23, 2016 by Heather

I actually only have three things for you today because two of them are kind of long (and one is a giveaway!!!) Have a great weekend everyone.

1.) First of all, a huge thank you for all the congrats on the news of our big move. I haven’t had time yet to go back and respond to all the comments but I have read them all! I can’t wait to start a new adventure!

2.) Women’s Health magazine reached out to let me know about their RUN 10 FEED10 program which I thought was really great. Basically, you run a 10K, and feed 10 people in your neighborhood. Ginger Zee, Good Morning America’s Chief Meteorologist, hosted the New York City event over the weekend and spoke to Women’s Health Magazine about how she sees running as part of her fitness routine. Check it out below:

“Running is a weekly, maybe bi-weekly part of my fitness routine. I think everybody is different. Every body reacts differently. But that’s the beauty of this. It’s something you can train for and make a goal of. That’s what so cool about this event. You’re benefiting yourself, but you’re also greatly benefiting your community.”

On the hunger problem in America:

“I’ve done plenty of stories – a lot of environmental stories, a lot of food stories. We know that there’s a problem with hunger right here in the United States, right here in our back yards. It’s easy to forget about when you’re going to the grocery store and you can pick up whatever you need. That’s not the case for everyone. And that’s not the case for people directly in your community. This is one of the only events where I can say the money or the funds and the activity raised goes straight to people that live right next door to you. That’s the most special part of this to me. There are so few charities where you get to say that. You don’t know necessarily where the money goes. This one you know where it goes – it goes right next door.

On running the RUN 10 FEED 10 race:

“I’ve been with RUN 10 FEED 10 now for four years. I can’t believe it. The number of meals served keeps adding up. It’s the most fun event of the whole year, really, as far as fitness goes. That whole time I’m running, every step I’m thinking about the people I’m serving. It’s a great, almost meditative, moment.”

Prior to race day, Women’s Health, along with Macy’s President Jeff Gennette, Ginger Zee, and FEED founder Lauren Bush Lauren, lit the iconic Empire State Building red to raise awareness for the fight against domestic hunger. <—How cool is that?!?

If you would like to participate, I have a discount code for you! Enter this at checkout: WHPR50OFF. Register now through November 29, 2016 at RUN10FEED10.com.

3.) I am hosting a GIVEAWAY here and on Instagram sponsored by RunningSkirts.com. There will be three winners. I will pull ONE winner from the blog giveaway and TWO from Instagram, so feel free to enter to both! One person will win a Keep it chill tank, one the arm sleeves, and one the gaitor.

Keep it Chill™ cooling technology racer back sport tank has Xylitol infused Hearts that activate when they get wet (think: hot sweaty run) to provide a long lasting cooling effect. When you sweat it starts cooling or you can dunk it in water to get an immediate cooling effect. This really works yall! Running in the southern summer heat is brutal, and having a tank that makes me feel cooler is awesome. The gaitor around my neck in particular really cooled me off. I dunked it in water before I ran and it helped cool me off and keep the sun off my neck.

The Keep it Chill cooling sleeves have with thumbholes, hand garage and exterior pockets. The sleeves are great for sun protection and cooling. The pocket is large enough to fit something like chap stick, a Gel, or car key.

The Xylitol infused hearts Keep it Chill cooling neck gaitor is designed to be versatile and can be worn in many ways…around the neck, on the head, or as a tube top etc. I have worn mine on my head and on my neck and it’s also great for wiping sweat out of my eyes mid run.

All three pieces come in Azure blue or white. I am wearing a size medium tank in the photos. To check out the full line, click here and go to “new” and “keep it chill collection”.

To win one of the three items, follow the instructions below. I will be posting the Instagram giveaway something this morning so stay tuned. The giveaway will run until September 27th.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Filed Under: blogging, fitness, Giveaway, running gear, Running Skirts Tagged: Giveaway, running gear, Running Skirts

Running Day 2016

June 1, 2016 by Heather

Hi friends! Today is a big day in the running world. It’s Global running day! What a fun thing to do, celebrate a sport that so many people have come to love and enjoy over the years. I am so thankful for what running has taught me, and the opportunities it has provided for myself and my family. I have gotten to travel, work, and run through the past six years and I am so grateful.

I thought it would be fun to take a walk down memory lane and see what I have done thanks to running over the past six years. You can check out how I was bit by the running bug here.

Bobby and I ran our first half marathon in January of 2010 at Walt Disney World during the year of the sleet and ice. It’s a wonder I ever ran another race again!

At that point I still wasn’t convinced I wanted to run a full marathon, so I ran more halfs and shorter distance races in 2010, but ultimately signed up for the full for 2011.

We had an amazing time running, but weren’t ready to sign up for another full just yet. That race was hard, but we continued to run all year, and my blog began to pick up some steam. In February of 2012, I was invited to attend my first race as media, and had a blast working with runDisney for the first of many times.

I ran the Princess 5k and half, and then had more opportunities to work with brands that year. We started traveling to more races, and even ran at the beach in Florida.

I also began working with RunningSkirts.com that year as a sales rep, which afforded me the opportunity to work race expos and then run the race. I traveled to Florida, Rhode Island, and Missouri among other places to work and run.

Unfortunately I also struggled with a couple of injuries that sidelined me along the way, but I always came back to running. In the spring of 2012, Bobby and I did something pretty goofy….we signed up to run Goofy! We ran the half marathon on Saturday and the full on Sunday, which also happened to be the 20th anniversary year of the marathon, and still my favorite race medal.

I had conquered the toughest challenge runDisney had, and thought I was done with full marathons. I started doing a little bit of weight training, and in the fall of 2013 was asked to be a blog ambassador for Under Armour, and even got to visit their gorgeous facility in Baltimore.

I also had the opportunity to travel to Disneyland a few times, and even take my mom there at the beginning of 2014.

Speaking of 2014, runDisney decided to throw a curve ball and create the Dopey challenge: 5k, 10k, half and full on back to back days. Of COURSE we had to sign up for the inaugural year. I know they never say never, but I don’t plan on doing that one again.

I was also photographed and interviewed for the front of the sports page of the Orlando Sentinel newspaper for my Dopey costumes, so that was pretty cool.

Ok, so NOW I’m done with full marathons! I was so tired during Dopey then flew to CA that week to run Tink with my mom. I chalked it up to all the running and flying, until I went home, and took a pregnancy test.

I announced babyM in March, but it was hard to keep a secret when my whole family when to Disney to run the Glass Slipper Challenge in February. They knew, but no one else did, and I was SO sick. I was terrified someone would find out!

Unfortunately I had bad round ligament pain and couldn’t run for almost the entire second half of my pregnancy, so obviously there was no racing or traveling, but I kept up with my blog and got to virtually meet a ton of awesome people, and I started working with my favorite shoe brand, ASICS.

Shortly after Emma Kate was born (like a couple months after) ASICS asked me if I wanted to come run the LA marathon with them in MARCH. So, another marathon, and I would be 5 months postpartum. SURE! It ended up being one of the hardest but BEST experiences of my life for so, so many reasons. I had an amazing and special time in LA and am so thankful for the opportunity.

I ran many more races in between all of this, but there are too many to list! Having a baby definitely forced me to cut back on my travel that first year which is totally fine, but I’m hoping to get to venture out further again to new places very soon.

So far in 2016 I ran the WDW half, the Castaway Cay 5k, Rock n Roll New Orleans, the Glass Slipper Challenge, the Crescent City Classic 10k, and another local 5k. I was also asked to be an ASICS ambassador, and a RunningSkirts ambassador, two of my favorite brands!

I even placed 2nd in my age group only running 1 day a week thanks to boot camp at my gym and all my new friends there.

Whew! The past 6 years have been so much fun and full of running. Never did I think my life would revolve so much around this, but I am happy that it does. I run for my health, my sanity, the people I meet, the experiences I have, and because it just makes me a better person. I can’t wait to see what the next 6 years hold.

You will now be rewarded for making it to the end of that long post! Today, ASICS will be giving away 1 pair of shoes for every 100 uses of the hashtag “#WeRunJune1” on Twitter. Be sure share to tell them what you run for with the hashtag for a chance to win!

Happy World Running Day!

QOTD: What is something you wouldn’t have done/experienced if not for running or working out?

Filed Under: asics, blogging, health, running, Running Skirts Tagged: asics, global running day, running, running day, Running Skirts

Memorial Day Weekend Recap

May 31, 2016 by Heather

I know I usually do my weekend recap on Monday, but because of the holiday I decided to lump it all into the “weekend” even though I had to work yesterday.

Saturday morning I got up and went for a run in my favorite neighborhood. When I arrived there were SO many cars and I forgot it was the weekend of the triathlon! Bobby did this one last year and we had a lot of fun. I had to figure out some logistics so I wouldn’t get in the way of the race, but I ran 4.5 miles. I realized very quickly that I am going to have to start running much earlier. It was super hot and humid at 9:00!

As soon as I got in from the run, Bobby told me our employee (who was supposed to be at work in 30 minutes) called in sick. I told Bobby I would go in, so I jumped in the shower and headed to the yogurt shop. Saturday afternoon we hung around the house, and Sunday morning we went to church. Also, big girl wants to sit in a regular chair now which has made mealtime interesting.

We only had one service at church because of the holiday, and I swear everyone in my town was at the beach. The preacher even made a joke about it! Longing for the sand and waves, I put on my swimsuit and played outside in the water with Emma Kate. It’s the same thing, right?

It was really hot and I ended up in the shade. Don’t worry, we both had on sunscreen!

Sunday evening Bobby grilled some chicken and we made enough to eat Monday, too. Monday morning, I got up and went for a three mile run before going into the shop. I again volunteered myself so I could get out of the house for a bit.

Monday afternoon I did some super fun exciting cleaning, work on the computer, and blogging stuff. I know I am going to be all thrown off this week with what day it is! Have a great TUESDAY everyone.

QOTD: What did you do this weekend? if you went to the beach, just don’t answer.

Filed Under: baby, family, fitness, holidays, running, Running Skirts Tagged: emma kate, family, holiday, memorial day, running, Running Skirts, work

5 Things Friday XVII

May 27, 2016 by Heather

Happy Friday my friends! It’s going to be a hot and sunny weekend here in Mississippi. Big plans include staying indoors and avoiding the sun and humidity at all costs. For those that get a 3 day weekend (sadly not me) enjoy your day off! Here’s five things for Friday.

1.) Running Skirts compression socks: Running Skirts sent me a pair of their adorable new compression socks (check out the tiaras in the hearts!) I have been a fan of their socks for many many moons, but these are just icing on the cake! My new favorite for sure. Easy to get on and off and give just the right amount of compression. They wash and hold up really well. They are not only great for running, but I wear them after long runs for faster recovery and happy legs!* Also, today is the LAST DAY of their epic moving sale. AMAZING prices on skirts (like $26.50!) click my link above or in my sidebar to shop!

2.) Bella the old lady: On Monday night, Bella jumped on our (very tall) bed and hurt herself. She wouldn’t eat or drink and didn’t want to walk but we couldn’t figure out what was wrong. We took her to the vet and found out she has a bulging disc/inflamed vertebrae/possible pinched nerve in her neck from the jump, and needed muscles relaxers and a bag of IV fluids because she was so dehydrated. She’s a happy girl on her pain meds but I’m supposed to “keep her confined” which isn’t going too well…

Poor baby. As you can see, she wouldn’t even eat my popcorn, which is insanely odd for her!

3.) Boot Camp part 2: A new two month session of boot camp starts on Monday and runs through the end of July. if you are local, this is the perfect time to jump in and see what it’s all about! I would love to chat with anyone that is interested. I did my body fat test this morning, and while I have lost a little weight and gained a little muscle, my body fat % is still not where I want it to be. Back to tweaking what I eat!

4.) Smells like Disney: I stumbled onto these candles in an Etsy shop (Etsy is ssooo dangerous!) and knew I had to try one out. All the scents are based off of Disney scents, either places, rides, or food! I got the Floridian scent, but there are many more I would love to try! I bet Main street bakery is amazing!

5.) Emma Kate does Disney: Speaking of Disney, guess who finally had dates to go see the mouse for the first time? Yes my friends, the long awaited day! Emma Kate will be going to Disney World with us (and my parents). We will be staying at Saratoga Springs at the end of October. My folks are new DVC members and have invited us along to stay in their villa. Let the planning commence!

QOTD: What is your favorite WDW smell? Ever had a pet hurt their neck?

*Disclosure: As a Running Skirts ambassador, I received these socks for free, and I get a small commission if you order through my link above. However, I would never recommend something I wouldn’t use myself and don’t love! Thank you for supporting my blog!

Filed Under: baby, Disney, family, fitness, running, Running Skirts, vacation Tagged: Bella, boot camp, candles, compression socks, Disney, emma kate, Running Skirts