To Blog is to Inspire

I received the loveliest message from an old friend yesterday, about how I inspired her through my own running and how she has now run three half marathons of her own! Wow, what chills that ran up and down my spine and throughout my body after hearing that. If I could inspire one person from before I even began blogging just through photos on social media, then how many souls can I touch now? I did not expect to rub off on someone in such a profound way (yes profound, I find running to be the most exhilarating, calming, and refreshing part of my own life.)

 I have always been an open and my sister would say big-hearted, so the ultimate goal in my life has always been in one way or another to help others and touch other people in a positive way. Running is a great outlet for that; in my personal life and my work life others are always questioning about what and why I am eating certain things, when I am running, how my races are, etc. and there have even been friends and co-workers inspired to try running themselves! It can only do good and bring positivity into their lives, and they will see how they are transformed in every dimension of their lives. 

When I run I am more patient, more kind, loving of nature and animals, more positive, the list is endless. To wrap this little post up: give running a shot. No matter how fast or slow, or how long the distance it is still running and will always do good for your well being and your soul. Keep at it, it does not come easy but will feel amazing when you are done.

Keep running, friends :)

BOSTON & Half-Marathon Recap!

Ahh... what an amazing and inspiring weekend, exactly what I needed. My younger sister lives and goes to college in Boston, so I flew up late Thursday evening after work to meet up with her! Friday morning, my parents flew up to meet us and our adventure begun!

We began by heading out to one of our favorite lunching spots: Life-Alive! I am what I consider a flexitarian, mostly vegan but I do enjoy fish and dairy on occasion. Life Alive is fully vegan, and I had the Explorer Wrap that was insanely delicious. We spent the rest of the day walking around the entire city, I kid you not at least 6 miles of walking. Our packet pickup for the Run to Remember was at the World Trade Center out on the wharf. Immediately after walking in I spotted the Oofos booth and took off my Birkenstock and sunk my feet into them. Ooooohhh is all I can say. I opted for the black pair with a shiny grey-ish strap. These shoes are amazing for post-running, and they help to speed up recovery time. As someone that suffers from shin splints, I will try anything and so far I can tell you these do the trick! We perused the rest of the expo, got our packets, and headed to dinner for oysters, and a nice vegan Italian meal in the North End.

Since we have visited Boston so often, we rented a car and drove up the coast to Beverly, and Gloucester to hike and enjoy the seaside villages. It was a beautiful and chilly day so coming from Florida it was a breath of fresh air. After we got back to the city, we settled in to carb load my favorite way: sushi. I had the Caterpillar roll and it was so darn cute!

Finally, race day. I woke up along with my sister and dad who would be running at 4:45am in order to get in some food and wake my body up in time. My sister ran cross country in High School and College, and is a pretty experienced runner, and my father has ran many marathons and a few half's with me! We had bananas, some cold brew coffee (I need it to function), and walked to the start. We decided we would each run our own races, so when the gun went off we set out at our own paces. The course was beautiful, starting out at the wharf and heading through downtown out to Memorial Drive along the Charles River. I felt amazing, the weather definitely helped and I couldn't even feel my legs! Checking my Garmin I knew I was going faster than I usually even train for, and I knew I could PR. The race even took a little turn down Boylston Street, and I got very very emotional there (as well as countless other occasions.) I dream of one day running the Boston Marathon, so for now it was my own little "Boston." We finished back out on the wharf where I reunited with my dad and sister, took some race pictures and showered and spent the day at the Franklin Zoo and recovering our legs.

Overall, the trip and the race was more than I could have dreamed of. Boston is my favorite city I've ever been to; the culture, the art, the accepting of the people, and the overall city pride is like nothing I have ever experienced. I hope to find myself living there or somewhere very similar in the near future! (I am a dreamer, and have a huge case of wanderlust!)

Also, this post wouldn't be complete with a tribute to all those have served. We got to visit the thousands of flags placed in memory in the Boston Common. Our race was also a memorial to law enforcement and those who have served. Thank you to all those that have fallen for our safety and freedom!

Keep running friends :)

Weekend Recap: Long Run!

Hi friends! This weekend absolutely FLEW by, and I have been so busy that I have barely had any time to put up a blog post.

Since I am in half-marathon training for Boston's "Run to Remember" on May 24, 2015 in Boston I planned to do my long run (also my longest run in training) on Saturday.  Some may choose in training to run longer than 10, or even than 13.1 but since I have already run three half's and since it is May and Central Florida, I thought 10 would be sufficient. So Friday night consisted of me laying on the couch, eating an Annie's pasta and meatball dinner, ice cream, and going to bed at 9:30. I know I know, I am so exciting.

My alarm went off at 6:00am on Saturday morning and I was PUMPED. I got my running clothes on (laid out the night before), filled my fuel belt with water, put some Honey Stinger's chews for when I started to hit a wall, and pressed play on my podcast for the day. (Shout-out to "The Running Lifestyle" podcast! Seriously you make my runs so enjoyable!) I set out and did a mostly flat point to point 10 mile run. I felt great, ate my chews at mile 5 during a .10 mile walk and flew on home. By 9am I was back on the couch eating breakfast before a shift at my "fun" weekend job. I worked that afternoon/evening on my fantastic runner's high that lasted until my head hit the pillow that evening.

My cat, Charlie. Always helping me stretch :)

(Post run breakfast! Smoothie not pictured.)

Sunday, I met my boyfriend and co-worker and her son at Disney's Hollywood Studios for.... STAR WARS WEEKEND. Yes, I am geeky. With my boys t-shirt from Target and Yoda backpack in tow we hit the park to watch the parade, ride on Star Tours, and stalk characters. It was a very fun day, I would recommend to all to try to go for only a few hours if possible, it is very busy and hot in Orlando in May. I will definitely be going back for the night-time fireworks and show!

Now, on to the week long taper. Not a fan. Will post a little about it soon!

Keep on running, friends!

A Little About Me

I admit, I am not your average 23 year old. I like to go to bed by 9:30PM, I enjoy waking up before the sun to run and start my day, I like salads over a big burger, and a kombucha is my cocktail of choice. So yeah.... you won't find me posted up at happy hour too oftern, I call "happy hour" a nice hour long run!

Anywhoo my running story began in college at the University of Central Florida running to keep off the freshman 15, to feel better after a late night out, and philanthropy 5ks. Not all too inspiring. However one day I was feeling very motivated and decided to sign up for the Disney Princess Half Marathon in February of 2013. I used my dad who is a seasoned marathon runner, and my younger sister who ran cross country in High School and college for advice and tips to develop a "plan" and began to train. The day came, and thanks to my sweetheart of a mother who created my costume, I ran as "Cinderella," tutu and all. I loved every mile of it and after I crossed the finish line in tears and hardly breathing from the absolute rush it gave me, I decided I was hooked and I could finally call myself a runner.

Running down Mainstreet USA towards the castle!

VERY proud of my medal. *Note I ran in horrible shoes not right for my feet, and bruised all my toes and lost a few toenails. Get fit for the correct shoes people!

Since then I have been a pretty regular runner, (except in the summer in Central Florida LOL yeah right.) I ran the 2013 Disney Wine and Dine Half Marathon, the Disney Princess Half Marathon in February 2014, the 2014 Disney Tower of Terror 10 Miler, the Lake Minneola 12k in April 2015, and next weekend in Boston I will be running the Run to Remember Half with my dad and sister! Very stoked for that.

I pinky promise most posts will not be as wordy as this but wanted to share my experiences to date. 

To fellow runners, and those thinking of starting, get out there and do it for yourselves, you will not regret it!

View from the start of Lake Minneola 12k

First Post... Awkward

The hardest part about writing a blog has got to be writing the first post... am I right? Do I come right out and tell you all about me, or is it like dating and we should take it slow?

^Everytime I have an awkward moment, this is all I can think about. So i guess there is my sense of humor, I would think of this and then laugh. Yes I make myself laugh regularly.

Anywhoo I'm Kelsey, aka The Random Runner Girl because I am a very random person. I do random things, think of random ideas, and there is no rhyme or reason to much I do. Except run, that is usually pretty clear and what I am very passionate about.

Also you should know I am not a good/elite/fast/any of the above runner. I am slow, consistent, and I run for the "runner's high", the sense of insane accomplishment, and because yes it is free therapy and I am a type A person who needs an outlet. Sometimes that outlet is 10 miles in the 90 degree Central Florida heat. Oh yeah I am also completely out of my mind to do that over and over.

Welcome to my blog, I hope we can become friends, learn from each other, share trials and tribulations of running, health (another of my obsessions), and overall simple lifestlye. Follow me through my daily routine, runs, half-marathons I am training for and my FIRST FULL MARATHON.... to come January 2016. That could be interesting....