Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!

Sorry for the delay folks, but congratulations to my local running Twitter pal JennRuns winner of the $50 gift certificate to CSN Stores!

It was tempted to be sneaky and award it to my Nana since she vowed to buy things for ME with it, but I went fair & chose a random number.

Jen was one of the two who were given 100 entries for donating! :) THANK YOU Jen for being a TNT supporter, two years in a row! You should all go follow her on Twitter, she's a riot! Her husband is also a serious inspiration as he is running his first one-footed marathon in January. You can read more about his story here.

Jen, you should be contacted by CSN Stores soon!

Thanks everyone for playing! I appreciate your continued support on this fundraising journey.

Week 7 of 18: Huh?

As I took last weekend off (including my 9 miler) because I was out of town, I was supposed to step things up a bit this week. Which, didn't really happen. But nevertheless...

Sunday: Lots of TV watching and then a 5 hour drive home from North Carolina.

Monday: 45 minute 6 AM spin class! My favorite way to start the week.

Tuesday: Trash Tuesday!! Err, Track Tuesday. On the agenda? 10 x 400s. We met up on the Daniel Island track to knock these out. Participants: Shannon, Katy, Sarah, me. We started out the first half between 6:30 and 7:30 pace (eeek) and then finished up between 7:30 and 8:30. Was really glad to have Shannon there when the speedier gals left us in the dust on 6-10.

Wednesday: Off. Was hoping to do AM spin, but my legs were beat.

Thursday: Was supposed to do my tempo run, but happy hour with these ladies sounded more fun :)

Friday: Although not a tempo run, got in 4 miles on the dreadmill + 10 minutes on that weirdo machine Cyvex? Not sure. A good cardio workout.

Saturday: LONG RUN DAY! 14 miles on the agenda. Of which I ended up doing about 13.5. My Garmin messed up so I'm not totally sure of the mileage. I was feeling okay until about mile 8, then my leg started to hurt and I started getting tired. Hopefully next week's run will be better. I'm hoping to step up my training a bit from here on out to be adequately prepared. I also am working on a fundraiser this week so hopefully I can fit it all in!

Winner of the giveaway to be announced later this morning!

A Tale of a Runners' Gchat

Me: did you run today?

im hitting up the gym after work

Katy: yea, well i kinda ran this morning....i started to run, and then i found this runaway dog but then it ran away from me, and then i saw a cop and stopped to talk to him about the runaway dog

and then i saw the cop again and he was like i couldnt get the dog

and then i started to talk to him about something else

haha

and then i found some trash in my neighborhood

so i picked it up

and then i was like well i cant really run with trash

so i just walked home

haahha

Me: omg this is cracking me up

Katy: i ran for like 20 minutes total haha

and walked for like 20

haha

it was an interesting morning

to say the least

so technically, i need to get to the gym

And there you have it.

P.S. Have you entered my giveaway yet to win a $50 gift card?

Training Update + $50 Gift Card Giveaway

I missed this past weekend's long run (was supposed to be 9 miles), and didn't run from Friday through Monday....slacker! I was out of town and it was nice to do absolutely nothing all weekend, so not a total loss.

But starting off the new week, I got up early on Monday morning for a nice spin class. It's the best way to start the week! Then on Tuesday morning we got up bright & early for the regular Track Tuesday (which has now been dubbed Trash Tuesday after my Freudian slip in an email to the girls) for 10x400s. I prefer 400s to 800s, so I was down for it. We started out at a 6 something pace and then ended up around 8 something towards the end. It is so so humid here! Today I took off but tomorrow I'm hoping to head to the beach for a morning run or either to the gym to run on the dreadmill, however the mood strikes me.

I've felt kind of lackadaisical about training lately. And about life. Weird.

So for some fun....

A suhweet giveaway for anyone still reading...

I really have been lacking in kitchen gadgets, cookware, etc. lately so when I was contacted about this giveaway, I was pumped! Anyone interested in a new Le Creuset dutch oven, or perhaps a hand blender for easy soups? (Me, Me, Me!!)

CSN Stores contacted me to do a giveaway for a $50 gift card to any of their sites. At first I thought, who/what is CSN Stores?? But then I looked further and discovered the gems that are Cookware.com, FitnessEquipmentandMore.com, and BedroomFurniture.com. Wowza! Sweet giveaway, methinks.

So here's what I'm gonna do. If you want one entry into this giveaway, simply comment on this post, perhaps telling me which site you would use your gift card at. If you want to, or you can just comment to say hi :)

But for anyone who donates to my Team in Training fundraising campaign ($10 or more), I will give you 100 entries into this giveaway. How does that sound? :) To qualify for the 100 entries, please come back here after you donate & comment to let me know. Or you can leave a note in the comments section of the donation form. Either way.

You can donate easily here.

**UPDATE** I will announce the winner Monday morning July 26th! So you have all weekend to get your donations in.

Good luck!

Week 2 of 16: Marathon Training Take THREE

Marathon training? Take THREE.

Ever since my first marathon I have had a love/hate relationship with the marathon. I love it for how strong and accomplished it makes me feel, but I hate it for the pain/agony/time etc. that it takes to train & to actually run the race. I just don't think I was meant for long distance races like that.

I love the half marathon, and oddly, have yet to run a decent 1/2 that I was proud of. It's on my list for this fall.

So while this year's 26.2 may be my last (for a while) I'm trying to also make it my best.

Katy & I are training via the Runner's World Run Less, Run Faster training plan. Basically, you run three times a week but you make each workout really count, plus you're definitely well rested for each run. Tuesday is track work, Thursday is a tempo run and Saturday is your long run. I love it so far because I have time for yoga & spinning yet I'm still getting in the miles necessary to train for the big race. I'm a firm believer that you don't have to log 40-50 miles a week just to prepare for the marathon. Of course, it can't really hurt either as long as you're going about it smart.

This week's training (officially week 2 on our 16 week plan):
Monday: AM spin class <--It was tough! But love how strong spinning makes me feel.

Tuesday: Track Tuesday! We did 1 mile warm up, then 4 x 1200 with 200 walks in between. Sarah & Katy kicked my a$$. I love Track Tuesday's though because the Charleston Running Club comes out there mid way through our workout and they're always speedy & inspiring.

Wednesday: Off. Was planning on yoga or spinning but was feeling a bit under the weather. Which was okay by me because I was well rested for this morning's run!

Thursday: 5 mile tempo run in 45:00. I was aiming for my 10k race pace + 30 seconds (which would be about a 9 minute mile) so I came out perfect! This was a great treadmill run, one of the best runs I have had in a while. I was pretty pleased with my speed because lately, I have been lingering over the 10:00 min/mile pace...which I don't love.

TOMORROW: Would love to get some yoga in, but will probably take the day off because I have friends coming into town! Will be drinking tons of water and eating well in preparation for....

Saturday: Long run with the TNT team, 11 miles on the docket. It should be cooler than past weeks (in the 80s) so I'm definitely looking forward to that.

Happy 4th of July!

Blogger Support for TNT!

I promise I have an update on Week 1 training coming up soon, but for today, please go here...

Bobbi is AWESOME. Not only does she do it all, but she manages to blog about it all too. (I can't keep up. Clearly.) She generously offered to help me raise money for my TNT campaign today!

The deets (from her blog):

>>If we sell 30 Enviotes (plus you will receive the Envipal for free ($8 value)), I will DONATE $150 ($5 PER BAG) to Kristen for her Team in Training Fundraising efforts.

>>So you are going to get a great reusable tote + a wonderful lunch box for only $20 and I will be giving $5 of it to a wonderful cause!!!

>>We only have until tomorrow night May 26th to make this happen, so let’s get shopping!!!

THANKS Bobbi!

I bought my tote, did you? I promise to be back with my Chicago 2010 Training Schedule and an update on how the first week went soon! Happy Tuesday :)

10/10/10 Chicago Marathon!

I know I'm basically MIA from the blog world, but I did want to let y'all know I just signed up to be a mentor for Team in Training this fall season for the Chicago Marathon! I will be raising money again and hopefully will be able to keep this updated with my training and progress.

Will come back to post my training schedule and other thoughts soon :)

XOXO
~ChasRunner

My girls & I at M's bridal brunch at her wedding weekend in April in the Keys - the 1st of us to get hitched!

Happy New Year!

Well I know I have been absent, I never even gave you Part 2 of my Marine Corps Marathon experience. I have been a bad blogger. I can't promise I will be better about posting in the new year, because well, I have a feeling this is going to be the busiest year of my life to date. But definitely, in a good way. Growing up ain't easy, folks.

My 2009 in Review:

• I left the world of public relations and marketing & started a new career in the world of finance.
  
• I began the grueling process of taking three tests to get licensed in my field.
  
• I passed all of my tests! Including the horrendous Series 7.
  
• I trained for and ran in my first marathon, the NC Marathon in May.
  
• I ran a 200 mile relay race through Colorado with 11 other new friends.
• We moved into a new apartment.
• I got addicted to power yoga & practiced it as frequently as I could.
• I chopped all my hair off!
  
• We joined our first CSA & experienced a variety of local veggies we had never eaten before.
  
• I kept training and raised over $3,500 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society through their Team in Training Program.
• I ran my second marathon in 2009 with TNT, the Marine Corps Marathon.
  
• I got injured at mile 21 of the Marine Corps Marathon, & barely finished it in 4:47 thanks solely to Katy pushing me through!
• We made so many new friends in Charleston, I started a monthly supper club with a fantastic group of women, & Matt and I fell more in love with the Lowcountry than ever.

Oh yeah, and I'm still injured! If you follow me on Twitter, you would know that since the marathon at the end of October I have been injured & therefore not running very frequently. At first I thought it was my ITB, then perhaps my PCL. The physical therapist said it was tendinitis but I've been doing the strengthening exercises he gave me, & it's not getting any better.

So my goal of 2010? To get up & running again! I'm going to try the Active Release Technique of chiropractic next week and if that doesn't help, I'm going to a sports medicine orthopedist. It's been challenging, but at least it has got me cross-training!

I'm really looking forward to continue to challenge my body in 2010 through new forms of exercise. I'm biking more & working out in the gym more. I hope to continue my yoga practice & visit my favorite studio at least twice a week. Matt & I are even doing a cleansing detox next week to get our year started off right! (My personal goal? Get my body looking somewhat like Shakira's. Yeah, I know it's a lofty goal.)

Well, I'm either going to go workout or continue to sit here, drink coffee & lazily watch TV while Matt sleeps in.

Happy New Year everyone!!