Normally I sign up for a few races per year, maybe a marathon or two, and stick to daily training. This summer, though, I went all in on more races than I ever have before - and my feelings are honestly pretty mixed. I am incredibly proud of what I did, but I’m not sure if I ever want to do it again! Either way, I walked away from these past few months winning every single one of the four races I entered, with the fifth race (mercifully, in some ways) canceled, and two more on the horizon. Here’s what happened…
Read MoreAt one point in my life, I completely lacked discipline. That’s hard even for me to believe, let alone those who have only known me as a very driven person (read more about that here). Yet it turns out that discipline is a thing that can be built, practiced, and grown as time and life go on, and I’m extremely thankful that I had great example of this all throughout my life.
My definition of discipline, though, has changed as I’ve gotten older…and hopefully a little wiser…
Read MoreAs I think back on the questions I often get asked - from running shoe recommendations to what Search Engine Optimization means and everything in between - there are a few topics that consistently come up as they relate to me personally. One big topic of conversation I am often pulled into is how I stay motivated every day to train so hard in running and manage my business while being a mom and living a (hopefully) pretty balanced life.
Naturally, I have been asked a lot how I ‘do it all’ and continue to grind every single day, tired or not, so I’ve given this topic a lot of thought over the years. Here is how I stay motivated every single day, and I hope the takeaways give you motivation for the next task you have to tackle:
Read MoreAlmost exactly a year ago, I lined up for the Newport News One City Marathon with the goal of qualifying for Boston. This would require a finish time of 3:30, with an average pace of 8:00/mile. My training up to that point told me this was possible, but anything can happen in 26.2 miles, and I was pretty nervous going into it. I’ll spare all the details (you can read more here), but the end result was a Boston-qualifying marathon in a finishing time well below my goal.
And then, of course, everything got cancelled. I’ll skip over 2020 because nobody wants to re-live that mess again, but it’s only in the last few months that live races have started again. Personally, I’m not quite ready to sign up for a mass in-person event (even though a lot of companies have pulled this off safely!), but when the Virtual One City Marathon opened up, I knew I wanted to test my fitness while supporting a great local business (Flat Out Events).
Read MoreOne of the huge appeals of running right now (and anytime, really) is that it’s so simple. At the core of running, you can get dressed, throw on a pair of shoes, and start immediately. You don’t have to wait for the gym to be open, travel anywhere (usually), or do anything special to prep. A lot of people (myself included!) don’t even suggest stretching beforehand, so it’s quick and easy to just get out the door. Right now, a lot of people have taken up running and ignited or re-ignited a passion for the simple movement of feet pounding the pavement.
Over time, though, I’ve added quite a few things to my running toolbelt that make life a whole lot easier. At the risk of over complicating something that remains simple, running beginners need a place to start. So if you’re new to running and want to know the best running gear, or if you’ve been a runner for years and are constantly looking for ways to improve, here are my top 10 running gear finds, including the best running shoes (no, I’m not using Nike Vaporflys!) and more.
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