A Florida Gal's Tips for Running in the Heat!

I read an article the other day in one of my dad's old marathon training books (beginning to piece together a training program), and came across how temperature can affect your pace and when it is too hot to run. I had to laugh….

85 degrees or higher: Don’t even bother.

So whats a girl to do who loves to run (outside) and lives in Central Florida aka heat and humidity central. Its not uncommon for a day to be in the upper 90’s and 100% humidity. Driving your car which is a moving sauna will get you sunburned, walking to the mailbox requires a shower afterwards, which leaves running to be probably not the smartest decision.

How does one run in these conditions? Dedication!

1.       Run early, or late in the day. (if you want to run outside)

Check the forecast the day before and plan your run accordingly. I like to be finished with my runs by 7:30am at the latest, when the sun is starting to cook the pavement. Or, run after dusk/dark when it begins to cool down.

2.       Hydrate! 

I like to shoot to drink a gallon of water a day. Yes, water, not coffee/tea/soda. These will de-hydrate you. Limit them. I like to also drink a NUUN tablet in about 32oz of water after a run/throughout the day. nuun.com It has electrolytes and helps to hydrate you!

3.       Wear light and loose fitting clothing.

These are my current favorite running tops: Here! loose, breezy, comfy! Paired with a pair of shorts, and a light colored hat I am all set to go.

4.       Cut your mileage. 

Since it is so much hotter, the heat puts a strain on your body to compensate and sweating more will de-hydrate and tire you much faster. Marathon training in the summer may work in cooler climates, but I wouldn’t recommend it here unless you plan to use a treadmill. I run more often, and shorter distances. This is also a good time to cross train, and maybe even try some yoga!

5. Protect yourself from the sun!

I am very pale, so sunscreen is a must plus a hat or sunglasses! Running tans are cool, running burns are not.

Remember these tips, and take it easy! Heat REALLY affects performance, don't let it get you down!

Keep running friends :)

Some Eats & Some Feels

When life gets busy, I find it even more important to make time to run. Whether it is 30 minutes, an hour, or a cross training/yoga type workout I always feel less stressed and am more productive and level headed. Work gets stressful sometimes, however I find myself cool, calm and collected when I have already hit the pavement before I even punch the clock. Running keeps my sanity in all aspects of life. I choose better food options, make sure I sleep more, read more, and think presently. I know, I am one of those runners who wants to preach it from the rooftops and tell everyone about how much I love it, and I can't help it! 

 Preach!

Running is my favorite form of meditation, my body knows what to do, I don't have to think, and I can simply focus on the world around me and my thoughts. Lately life hasn't been the easiest, but running is always there to clear my head and help me appreciate life and solve my problems. Emotions are a big thing on my mind at the moment, and from today's run I discovered this: We have emotions, we are not our emotions. Take life one small step at a time. Don't think big picture if it scares you, think of the task ahead, not even the day ahead. Thinking presently is a great way to enjoy the here and now, and also to reduce life's ever constant stresses and anxiety. 

Just the trees themselves, always there, always tall and strong. The wind may bend and blow them but they will always stand right back up.

I also thought I would share some of my eats from the week! 

 Breakfast bowl! Banana, blueberries, granola and cashew milk aka my favorite. 

 Ezekiel toast with flax peanut butter (Trader Joe's) and fruit!

 Simple veggie/hummus wrap

Vegan pizza! Daiya cheese, broccolini, mushrooms and tofu strips :) new favorite and so easy!

Remember friends, don't sweat the small stuff. And when the going gets tough, go for a run. You WILL feel better :)

Charlie and I wish you a great weekend and week ahead! Keep running friends :)

My Wellness Journey: The Early Years

My wellness journey has been a long and interesting path, this post might as well be put into a book; a feat I one day hope to accomplish to help inspire people to open their mind and their hearts to nutrition. This post will serve more so as an introduction to my overall way of thinking when it comes to nutrition and exercise, and I hope to share not just my knowledge on the subject but also my FEELINGS and the literature and people that inspire me to live the way I do. I think and live loudly.

 Summers spent in the great outdoors of North Carolina are my fondest memory

Horseback riding: I always talked the parents into it

I thank my childhood and the way I was raised to the person I have become today. I grew up in a small community in South Florida, and I was raised not eating red meat and with a solid mantra that movement and exercise was very important. My younger sister and I were always very active, taking yearly family trips to North Carolina where we played and hiked, playing outside everyday and learning to swim at the age of two, and we both began playing soccer early in elementary school. Luckily, growing up in Florida allowed me to be able to go outside all year round and wear shorts and bare feet almost everyday of the year. My youngest memories are from the kitchen table at our nightly family dinners and taking trips to the park around the corner to play.

I was a competitive figure skater for much of my later childhood/teenage years and was what you can call obsessed. I lived at my local ice arena (an odd sport you can say for a Floridian to take up.) I had some natural talent and progressed quickly once I began taking group lessons and soon got a coach who pushed me to train harder and to begin competing. Coming from a team sport based lifestyle, I learned to really thrive and enjoy relying on myself rather than a team to win and to grow. I incorporated cross training into my skating; doing conditioning off ice with my coach, group stroking classes to gain power and speed, and then he asked me to start doing 30 minute runs to build my endurance. I enjoyed these runs immensely, but saw them more as a tool for skating than as a sport itself. Little did I know that I would grow up to be a runner! I competed throughout High School and had to retire my Freshman year of college after winning my final competition; and it was great to go out with a bang. I do wish I still lived as close and had the time to skate, skating gave me so much in my life. It gave me the courage to try something new and the confidence to get out on the ice and give my all solo, it gave me a passion and a level of commitment and determination that I would carry with me through everything I do, a bond with my mother who continually traveled to competitions with me and supported all of my decisions, and a creative edge to make my programs and costumes to interpret the music and stories of my skating programs. I love figure skating and all that it gave me, and I miss it dearly!

The nutrition side of things was always inspired by my parents who taught us to eat healthily and very much plant based. We were extremely limited on sodas, processed foods, and desserts which formed my mindset I have today to live a vegan and plant based life while also allowing myself indulgences but in a limited fashion. I grew up eating no red meat as mentioned above, eating dairy/eggs/fish/turkey/chicken. At the ripe ole’ age of 12 I gave up my turkey and chicken after be-friending a chicken named Betsey at a friend’s home in North Carolina where we vacationed each year. Being raised to appreciate nature and animals not just as food but as living beings instilled in me a very sensitive and loving nature towards them. I am vegan today not for the health benefits (which are immense) but because I believe that animals have every right to life as humans and are not to be eaten as food. I like to say that I am vegan because I do not believe in any violence, nor cruelty.

After yo-yoing and not treating my body very well through some of High School and the beginning of college, I began researching more into nutrition and read the book Skinny Bitch which I can thank for changing my old mindset on nutrition and exercise. I cleaned up my life, threw away my packaged and processed meals I was living on in college housing and ventured into Whole Foods and began a running routine. Immediately I fell in love with whole food nutrition and running; like skating I only could rely on myself to push myself and to hit the pavement. And that was just the beginning of my random running kind of life ;)

Keep running friends~

Run and Be!

Happy Friday my friends! It's been a great week in my new home, much closer to safe places to run, trails, and it is oh so quiet, absolutely amazing. I thought I would share some of the random things I eat (I almost always forget to take pictures before I dig in.)

Dr. Prager's California style veggie burger (Trader Joe's) with roasted sweet potato and carrots!

Made a healthy & vegan Chipotle burrito bowl for the boyfriend and I! Brown rice, black beans, tomatoes, avocado, Trader Joe's salsa, Daiya cheddar cheese and Tofutti sour cream! It was amazing and will be my new favorite and easy meal.

Some views post- morning run this week at my new complex :) Who else loves the morning sunrise peeking through the trees?

I can get pretty zen-ed out on my runs, today my thought was this: "You will never learn to celebrate, no matter what possessions or experiences you gain, if you cannot celebrate the NOW." www.richroll.com/podcast/the-zen-of-wude/ Thanks as always, to the Rich Roll podcast for tuning me into the real matters of life every day, and for making me life in the present moment. I recommend this to EVERYONE. Such an inspiring and invigorating man. I really look up to you Rich, "Peace + Plants." www.richroll.com/category/podcast/

Running inspires me to be the best version of myself. It starts my day with tranquility, just me and the road ahead and my thoughts. I believe you can fine tune your senses, seeing the grass a little greener, being thankful for the Earth and all her beauty, feeling your own body for exactly what it is and loving it more than you knew possible. Without running I don't know where I would be today; stuck in an endless cycle of work, going out to bars, watching TV for hours. Instead I plan my days around my runs and am a more peaceful and patient person. I like to learn, think, and feel. So get out there, and keep running friends.

Is anybody out there? I'm still here!

Hey friends! Sorry for the little break in posts, life has been very busy! In between being random, running, and work, I just moved! I am all moved into my adorable new place; closer to work and nature! I am very excited to hit the trails close by on foot and by bike. Previously my area was very congested in a touristy part of Central Florida, and now I can enjoy some peace and quiet and the sounds of nature on my runs.

A beautiful view from today’s morning run, my new little home :)

What's ahead? Insert link to runs and 5k etc.

Marine core 10k thoughts, etc?

I promise to post more and more often! Big post in the works to come, expect it out this week!

 Here's what I've been up to this past weekend:

My family came into town to help me move, and first and foremost to attend the Rolling Stones Zip Code Tour concert! My beautiful mother, and sister went along with me. We started off at our favorite... Dandelion Cafe. Amazing vegan food, all should try!

Then we hit the concert, it was amazing. My mom is a huge Stones fan (this was her 5th time seeing them) and my sister and my first! What an incredible experience, crazy to think that the classic rock era is coming to an end, these bands won't be around forever but I am SO blessed to be able to have had this experience!

Here is a silly picture of my little sister and I enjoying Epcot…. In matching dresses. Why? Because we can!

That's all for now, keep running friends!

The First Mile Always Sucks

Seriously, I don't think there is a runner out there that will tell you that they enjoy the first mile. I run early in the morning, I'm tired, my legs are not awake, and I just don't want to do it. But I put on my favorite podcast (currently the Rich Roll Podcast www.richroll.com ) and I make myself do it, because I know after that first mile I will find my groove, and I usually do.

However, today was not that day. Today was one of those days that nothing goes right on your run. Legs are sore/tired, breathing heavy, feeling sick, the whole enchilada. I just told myself 3 easy miles, and I would be home. 3 miles later I was home, stretching, and glad that I had finished.

YOU NEVER REGRET A RUN. Unless you injure yourself, then maybe.

Post-race running slumps are real people, and I am in one. I'm like, "Why run? I don't have a race rapidly approaching, I can take some time off." Oh no no no. I am still planning my weekly miles and sticking to it, because like I have done before I DO NOT want to start back at square one and have to solidly build back up my mileage. Yes, I am taking it easier and not running for time or a lot of miles, but I am incorporating more strength/tempo/fartlek work to make myself a better runner when the next races comes up. I am also signing up for fun runs, like an easy 5k and a 5 miler just to keep things interesting and giving me something to work towards! See the link for all you Central Florida runners! http://www.usantc.com/lace-it-up-series/

When the running gets tough, keep on running! You will never regret a run :)

Keep running, friends.

Post Race Feels

The runners high is no joke. I felt on top of the world for the past week, like I could accomplish anything and everything. The first run however, didn’t feel quite so. I gave myself a day off and went out for a few quick miles and huffed and puffed my sore legs through them. Timing wise was on point, but my legs just felt like absolute lead. I wish I could be a runner that goes out for a quick “8 mile shakeout run.” You go people, are you even human? I can only hope to accomplish these kinds of feats one day. I probably will also need to have a lot more free time or a job that allows me to run on a treadmill while working (doubtful.)

Charlie always joins in on stretching time.

I gave myself a few good days off, went out to sushi and a movie and more my amazing new Oofos and race tee because I am really stylish. We saw Tomorrowland which was EXCELLENT, all should see! It was a long movie, but the premise and the overall message brought me to tears. I don’t want to spoil it for everyone, but it basically goes along with my mantra of peacefulness, positivity, simplicity, etc. Please go see it and tell me what you think too! The rest of the week consisted of pure laziness, packing to move in a few weeks, and seeing friends. If you are ever in the Orlando area hit up my favorite restaurant, Dandelion Café. Vegan wholesome goodness. The Buffalo 66 is my all time favorite in bowl form! (See below!)

And then: my long run for the week. I like to do my long runs on the weekend because I have more time, can take my time, and have time after to stretch and recover. Key word: time. I headed out at 6:30am for a hopeful 8 miles. Did not work out so well. Central Florida is in full force of the summer, it was at least 85 degrees and so humid I could see mist in the air. After 2.5 miles I turned around and ended with a solid 5 miles; good enough for me less than a week after my amazing half! I took the rest of the day laying around watching Netflix, packing, and going to Disney World!

My next post is going to be a long and very passionate one: all about my views and beliefs on nutrition and exercise, and how I came to form these ideals and what resources I recommend.

Keep running friends!