I wish I could have this moment for life..Cuz in this moment I feel so alive.. - Niki Minaj

That's all I can muster up right now.

I'm thrilled, tired, exhilarated, exhausted, amazed.

Mad props to all those Marathoners, or even those who do Halfs back to back, I have no clue how you do it!

Disney Princess Expo

morning blends...

I'm sitting in Hotel Room #2,

not bad right? and much better than yesterday!

 enjoying paid internet and a view of Bargain World! seriously, who still charges for internet and parking, especially when the hotel is in the parking lot?!

Anyways...I really am in a great mood. I think I got 10 or 11 hours of sleep yesterday, and am ready to tackle today..you know, important stuff like getting the keys to our rental house, checking into Hotel #3, mini-golf and a pedicure... and maybe even some pool time!? I'm taking today easy!

We made the trek from Tampa to Orlando in record time, a lil over an hour and Google said it should have taken us 1.5. Smooth sailing until we got onto the Disney properties and then Nate got all flustered because we weren't really quite sure where to go. Man, I totally forgot how huge Disney is but we eventually found it!

A mini-van next to ours..

Hell..I wanna party with these ladies!!! Then we walked towards the ESPN area..

Right, totally goofy touristy pic!

Before entering the actual Expo, you can get your pic taken with these two lovely men..

They have a professional photographer but they also allow you to take your own photo...yay!

I haven't been to too many expo's so I can't say if this is huge or not but it felt huge to me!

How funny is it that the couple that got me my bib number were from Warren, MI?!

I never updated my corral number so I had to go do that as well..switched from F to B. How huge of a jump is that? Actually, I feel a tad overwhelmed that I have to perform better because of it!

Me getting my goody bag/Tshirt

Ok, so I have to admit that I am pretty disappointed by the lack of swag in this bag. Now I wasn't expecting a ton but seriously, 1 measly mini Luna bar?! come on now... but I'm over it... if there is one thing Disney can do its make you feel super special and honestly, I am so glad I chose this race to be my first major race because the entire time I was on ESPN's site, it just felt right.

After 3 hours of walking around, we called it an afternoon. I left with this..

Mini Bodyglide and a surprise I'll have earned tomorrow!

Nate bought me these..

Although I must say Dooney & Burke's specialty line was tempting..

I was really torn about how much Disney stuff to buy.. I mean part of it is awesome and such a great reminder of this trip but I already have the free shirt everyone receives.

so yeah..so far no "I wish I would have boughten X", so I'm thinking I made the right choice.

We didn't want to eat on Disney so we found El Patron.

Where we celebrated with some chips, salsa and dranks..

margarita for moi, and yuengling for him

I had the most amazing chorizo burrito...oh my god...yes, I ate it all... remember, I'm carbo-loading! ;)

and that, was Day 1!!

We'll Keep the Light on For Ya

Wooohoooo...we made it!!

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Late but nonetheless glad we are here. We ended up flying into Tampa because the tickets were a $100 cheaper than into Orlando and I figured we could handle the drive up Friday AM.

Our departure had us leaving Metro at 7:45 PM last night, so we grabbed a quick bite at Chilis Too..

my 1000 calorie salad

And before boarding I was able to charge up my dying Iphone thanks to these new additions...

 I was wondering when Detroit was gonna finally catch on with other airports, I saw similar ones in DC last year.

Then I was sandwiched between these two hotties for 2 hours..

Seriously, we are staying in 3 different hotels the next 3 days and I am hoping they are all progressively nicer. We went for cheap (if you consider $90 cheap) on our first night since we arrived late and have plans on leaving early and it's not really bad.

door less bathroom.. oh vey.

On that note, its time for me to call it a night because today is gonna be rad!!!!

50 some hours till the race!!!!

Trader Joe's Pulled Beef Brisket

The countdown is on ladies and gents...some 30 odd hours till the shenanigans begin and I am trying to get everything done...argh!!!

Yesterday was insanely busy..I had to take a lab, get my workout on (that was a first since I've only been running!), got my herrrrrr did and do some last minute shopping but unfortunately I struck out in that department..

Nonetheless, 6 hours on the go and I was exhausted so the last thing I wanted to do was cook... I pushed some sweet potato fries into the oven and let the microwave do the rest...

So delicious....

1. Pour it into the plastic tray (it's in an airtight sealed bag)..or you know any other glass microwaveable bowl..but I prefer the tray because then I have less dishes to wash
2. Microwave for 2 mins
3. Stir
4. Microwave for another 2...

So delicious...even my skeptical father enjoyed it!

3 servings... although I'd consider them more girl portions than male portions... so depending on who your feeding and I was feeding myself, Nate and my dad...I bought 2 containers, which can be pricey since 1 container is $5.99. Not a regular occurrence but more of a treat.

I love it and have been meaning to review it for a while...so tell me...

Anyone else love it? 

Hate it?

Major decision today: do I get a pedicure here in Mi or wait till I get down to FL? I sometimes forget that I'm not traveling across the Atlantic so in theory anything I need to do up here I could do once I get to Fl!

Double Digits

I finished my last major run before the Disney Princess Half... I started out like this..

Not really sure why I'm annoyed.. oh wait, Nate was taking a lot of pics..

or is this better?

man...look like I was smokin' something.. I was not...I should probably stop taking photos

and ended like this!

see that weird crap in my hair...its ice! not uhm...you know what...

Victory is mine baby!!!! It was an amazing run. Not sure if I should attribute it to these bad boys..

review to come asap!

or the fact that I was properly fueled...(have you noticed the lack of weigh-in posts?)
that I started off slow?
the weather was decent?!

who the hell knows but I am ready for 13.1 miles next Sunday.

Spring Cleaning

 

I wish this smiling face made me want to clean all the time! But alas, that's not the case..

Anyone else use a sand bug-et to clean?

What to Wear? - The Disney Princess Marathon Edition

1 week from today, I'll be feverishly packing and getting my crap together because next week at 7PM, I'll be off to TAMPA!!!! AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH...

anywhoo...I finally cracked down and started thinking of what to wear and since I won't be in costume and still wanted to pay homage to my favorite princess, Ariel, I thought maybe a teal outfit...

I dunno, I feel sorta 'meaty' in this photo. Plus, I wouldn't be able to have the shirt printed on!

 

Lets see, those capris I already own and typically what I run in for warmer weather..an option I am considering for Disney so that I don't need to discard anything. Even though all the clothes discarded are being donated to a homeless shelter.

I bought this tank from UA, never owned anything from them but it feels nice and I could have something printed on the front. The back is racer like so a) either my bra straps would be showing - is that tacky? or I could buy a bra strap converter doohickey - anyone use one of these before? 

I'm one of those people who usually wipes her forehead on her shirt which makes me hesitant about this shirt since I won't have that ability, but I wonder how much I will be sweating to begin with.

and last but not least, I'm thinking of this combo, my favorite since I love everything in pink although this could also prevent me from standing out in the crowd since I'm sure lots of ladies will be in pink.

 

 The shirts Reebok, never worn anything from them before, and by far the most flattering out of all the ones I tried on, and perfect for having "run Rebecca run" printed on it!

So I dunno..everyone has suggested I run in my race gear before race day but with these temps, I really can't. Although I am considering running my 10 miler tomorrow since it's supposed to be in the 50's and this would give me a great opportunity to try this outfit on...or at least the shorts. Thats what I am most worried about is chafing. Although I plan on having a mini-BodyGlide in my SpiBelt come race day.

Thoughts? 

I would love your input!

Grape Nuts

Are there certain things that just make you feel grown up?

For example, Grape Nuts screams ADULT to me. I dunno what it is, maybe because it sounds bland and I don't think Post is doing a whole lot to change that stereotype.

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I've been looking for cereals with roughly 5 grs of sugar per serving and believe it or not, I think, Grape Nuts is the only one with 5 grs per serving. I saw a few 6 gr., but Grape Nuts has only 4 ingredients. How could I not try it?!

I was thrilled! Seriously..I wasn't sure what to expect but upon first bite, it was sweet. Not over powered sweet but enough to make me realize this doesn't taste half bad! The little morsels also kept their crunchiness the entire time it took me to eat the bowl.

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The only potential is that they are extremely calorie dense. Ya know, if your watching that.

Oh, and I wouldn't eat them pre-run. Ever heard of runner squirts? Learn from my mistakes! = D

Love 'em?
Hate ' em?
Try 'em hot? cold?

Michigan Blogger Meet-Up!

I mentioned Friday that that evening was the 2nd Annual Michigan blogger meet-up, and although I had been all gung-ho for it several weeks prior... by the time Friday came around, I was ready to blow it off..

1. 8:00 PM on Friday night seems late... 
2. or maybe I'm getting old
3. I have some social anxiety, I've attended enough of these blogging gatherings to know that not everything is glitter and unicorns

Courtesy of Ms. Vinyl Ahoy

I went and had a great time! Besides Mandy from GingerMandy, I didn't really know anyone, and I think that was part of the reason why it worked out and I didn't leave with hurt feelings.

There were 22 of us which I found amazing since I had no clue that there were so many local bloggers. Check out my Must Reads if you want some new blogs to follow. Unfortunately since there were so many of us and we were confined to a rectangular table in a crowded pub, it prevented us from mingling but all in all, it was awesome getting to meet everyone.

It's weird to explain to a non-blogger but despite being the only fitness, weight related blogger there, I still felt completely at ease with these ladies. Not only do they get what blogging is, I'm always amazed when people don't know what blogging is, but they know what one subjects themselves to by putting yourself out there.

Anyways, I'm glad I went. I would have regretted it otherwise.

New Personal Distance: 9 miles

wow.. I can't believe that in 1 week, I'll be counting down till I leave on the 24th and I'll have my longest run to date completed... this Half-Marathon is fast approaching!

I did my medium run on Thursday. I wasn't really sure what to expect but given the frigid temps again I somehow blew this run out of the water with a 10:01 min pace.

Given that fabulous run as well as the amazingly warm temps yesterday, I knew that it was gonna be one bad ass mother effer.. and it was, but not in the good, wahoo I'm gonna eat you for dessert kind of way..;)

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Warm temps = melting snow = puddles = soaked shoes and toes

There is nothing worse than sloshing around in your shoes.

Melting snow = country = dirt = mud

I hate dirty shoes. I only own 1 pair of sneakers, and I dont want them muddy. period.

Mentally it was a rough run, which is too bad since I started out extremely positive. Hoping for a 10 min/mile again. Although my head and legs felt fine, my tummy did not. I'm not sure what it was...lack of hydration (I only had consumed 1 liter at this point) or the Mexican from the night before but my tummy just felt wonky.



The run never got better mentally, and by mile 6, I told myself that I can run a 5k and I would finish this run just because of that. It was also at this mile that I took a Hammer Gel. Now if you remember from my first experience with gels, I gagged and nearly threw up. This time, it was fine. I love the pep it gives me...in my opinion far superior  to any of the beans, gummies etc I eat however...it does a number on my bowels. I noticed this the first time around, and thought maybe it was just a fluke but no, I definitely had to squeeze my butt cheeks together for most of the last 3 miles. Anyone else experience this?

My hip felt fine for most of the run, but towards the end my ankle/calf as well as my hamstring started tightening up. First time experience with a  tight hamstring muscle during a run so I tried to stretching it out but I dunno if it helped and by the time I made it home, I was waddling like a penguin.

I was really irked at myself for not having gone out the night before to buy compression socks like I've had several peeps recommend, so I read someplace that places like Wal-Mart, Target would have them...they do not, and I pretty much had to call the rest of the day a wash. I was tired, my legs were sore, my hip hurt...I was in it for it.



Thankfully today, everything feels great! I'm actually somewhat surprised since I didnt take any meds nor did I ice, but I'm thrilled all is ok.

I'm leaving out a 5 miler again this week..my running schedule would look like this Weds = 5 miles, Friday = 5miles and Sunday = 10 miles but I may swap the 5 miles on Friday with a 5k. I'll see how my hips and ankle/calf is feeling after Wednesdays run.

So..all in all...yesterday was a bummer but I can't focus on that...I have to gear myself up for my first double digit run....I still can't believe it. aaahhhhhhh...

I'm ready for a good week and I hope everyone has a lovely Valentine's Day today. We have nothing planned except for Nate helping me with some Dimensional Analysis...wooohoooo...exciting I tell ya! ;)