First of all, I received my second blogger giveaway win in the mail a few days ago:) Thank you so much Sara! My prize consisted of a few of Sara's favorite running things! I scored a package of Honey Stingers, endurance sunblock, a Gypsy Runner Decal and two sticks of Mission Skincare lip balm:) I love it! Today was my usual day off from work and I actually got alot done. First, I drove to Edina to pick up my running packet for Saturdays Get Lucky! 7k. Pick up was at GEAR Running Store and there were about five other runners picking up packets. I asked one of the workers how many runners were registered and she told me that there were 3,000!
My bib number is 2828:) The race volunteer promised me that it was a lucky number and that I would awe and amaze myself with my performance! If only she was right. This race takes place in Minneapolis and is sponsered by Kierans Irish Pub:) After the race there is free beer offered at the Pub! As many of you know I am not a huge fan of beer. I had a very bad experience in my young and dumb days.....I was very ill! Okay, I drank too much beer and ended up puking the entire night! I also had a hell of a headache for the entire next day! That was pretty much the last time I had beer other than a sip or two of my husband's beer. Jamoosh, you will be happy to hear that I gave beer another try on Saturday night:) We went out for dinner and I ordered a Blue Moon with lime! It was okay. I am looking for something that doesn't taste like normal blah beer. I need a good beer with a little something-something and flavor:) Tony was kind enough to give me a few suggestions:) If anyone else has any ideas I would love to hear what you think and welcome any other input! I have been running almost every evening after work. Sunday I decided to head out on a five miler and it was plan to attempt to run one mile as fast as I could and then do four normal steady miles. I set my Garmin and was off like a flash....the first 400 is all up hill! Yuck! The next 200 is all flat and then it is onto Weaver Lake hill...down hill:) I just kept moving and was really having a hard time breathing. This pace was totally out of my comfort zone!! I looked at my Garmin for distance I had another 400 before I hit one mile. God, I really felt sick....I really wanted to stop! No way, I am way too stubborn for that...I sucked it up and kicked it into high gear! What was my super fast one mile final time......6:53!! I was shocked! I was so sick:( I was gasping for breath, my head hurt and I was so sick to my stomach!! Yep, I almost puked:( As my head was hanging low and bracing for the worst, I briefly thought about Big Daddy Diesel's Pukie Award:) I hate getting sick and I did not want to...I focused on just breathing normal. This experience was so horrible that I most likely will not be trying this again anytime soon! Finally after a minute I just started jogging slow. It took me a few minutes to get back into the groove. My next four miles ranged between a 8:30 to 9:00 minute mile pace. My runs this week have been between four to six miles. I will do one more three miler tomorrow night and take Friday off so that I have fresh legs for Saturday's race!
I have been really focused on improving my push-ups! I joined Jeff's 100 Push-Up Challenge and would really like to make it to 100. I can only do thirty-five right now and honestly, the last one or two are pretty pathetic:( My goal is to have nice tone arms and super sexy abs...possibly a four pack in my future:) A girl can dream! Well, that is all that I have for tonight! I hope that everyone enjoys the rest of your week! Happy St. Patty's Day:)
Suzy is hosting a birthday Starbuck's Coffee giveaway!
Marcia is hosting a Runningskirts.com giveaway!
Molly is hosting a God Never Blinks book giveaway!
Misszippi is hosting a Rockin' Refuel giveaway!
Erica is hosting an Oisselle clothing giveaway!
2828 seems like a very lucky number (-:
ReplyDeleteSkip the beer - too many calories. Have some vodka on ice with a little red bull, toss in a lime and if you are feeling adventurous have the bar drip in some green food coloring they use for the beer ... Good times right there!
I am going to practice some push ups right now ...
Woohoo for giveaway prizes! Way to push through the pukiness (I know that's not a real word) and finish your run strong!
ReplyDeleteGood luck in your race this weekend!
Best wishes for your weekend race! Have fun :)
ReplyDeleteWoah! That's fast...you are a machine :) You're definitely going to rock the 7K...especially with a 2828 bib!
ReplyDeleteHow lucky are you to win another giveaway...Yay!
Great race Number !!! great package! you have a great groove some good things happpenin here I am feeling a great run coming up! - D
ReplyDeleteI can't believe your last mile was under 7 minutes! You speedy girl!!!
ReplyDeleteNice try with the beer, I used to be a beer kind of girl, but now I'm a wine kind of girl. But I had some St. Patty's beers today!
thanks again for linking in : )
Great race number! Especially because the lucky number for my Athleta giveaway was...28. ;-)
ReplyDeleteso seeing your post i'm thinkin, okay maybe you didn't win the giveaway, but you're gonna rock on the race!
Happy St. Patty's Day and good luck next Saturday! You'll do great!
ReplyDeleteYou are doing some serious training! Well done! Interesting to read about all these beers. In South Africa beer is a type of national drink. SAB (South African Breweries) have some great beers. I don't drink much, but will have a beer from time to time. Maybe 1 per month or two months.
ReplyDeleteshort on time: Guinness beer.Mmmmm! More later...LOL
ReplyDeleteAwesome! I'm not much of a beer girl, either, for the very same reason you are not. I usually stick with wine or hard cider. Good luck at the race!
ReplyDeleteWow, I've been wanting a 'real' running skirt for ages! I'm running over there right now!
ReplyDeleteNice, stop by Friday for your award!!!
ReplyDeleteGood luck this weekend!
ReplyDeleteBecause you are in MN, you have access to Leinenkugel's Honey Weiss. That beer quickly went up to one of my all time favorites. Its super easy to drink.
Nice job on the race!
ReplyDeleteI need to get back into doing pushups again. I used to be able to do so many! :)
I would suggest a Kolsch style of beer. Kolsch is a summer style brew meant to go down easy, but with more flavor than a wheat beer or the pilsners you get from the macro brewers.
ReplyDeleteWha? You don't like beer? That's un-American! I've never tried lime in a blue moon. They always put an orange slice in them here. but.... my motto is so many beers, so little time :-)
ReplyDeleteNice job on the magic mile! 6:53 is oresome. Good luck at your race. 2828 IS LUCKY and I know you'll have a blast...
Hi, Julie!
ReplyDeleteA 6:53 magic mile. That is so good:) You have some natural speed, girl.
If you're like me, you've never run a 7K, so...automatic PR! Sounds lucky to me!
Thanks for the really good name suggestions- we vote this afternoon.
Have a great one!
Congrats on the smoking fast 6:53 mile! Good luck at the race and just try the beer and expand your beer horizons.
ReplyDeleteWow--you are on a role. Two wins at giveaways, a great mile split, and a nice number for your race! Good luck with it. Maybe you can find a nice beer for post-race?
ReplyDeleteNice winnings!!! I am jealous :)
ReplyDeleteThe more I think about it, the more I am impressed that you thought of your award as you were about to puke. Now thats focus ;-)
ReplyDeleteEnjoy the race!! and a beer:)
ReplyDeleteKeep at the push ups, you will get there. I am certain that you have improved already.
Try to think back to when you first started...
Wow, that was a speedy mile! Good luck at the race this weekend.
ReplyDeleteAwesome job on the run and I know you will rock your race. Nothing wrong with a throw up every once in awhile after running hard!
ReplyDeleteMy wife and I are also in Jeff's 100 Pushup challenge. She is wanting to do before and after pictures! LOL
Very nice package. Good luck on the race!
ReplyDeleteholy cow a 6:30 mile, that's amazing! I am always afraid to put myself out there that much..it's the whole I want to puke thing that scares me
ReplyDeleteNice speed!
ReplyDeleteA St.Paddy's race just screams for a Guinness... You need to find a brewpub with many types of beer and do some tasting. There are so many different styles of beer out there, that I'm sure you'd find something you like.
Wow, you were REALLY moving! That last mile is AMAZING! plus, you didn't puke. Win/win really.
ReplyDeletenice work on scoring all of the loot! That is a great hodge podge of stuff.
holy schnittzzzz, you were flying!! good stuff and nice swag by the way.
ReplyDeleteI'm not a big beer drinker either but currently Alexander Keith's Red Amber Ale is what I swill.
I wanted to do the 100 push ups challenge for a while now. Maybe after the marathon. Funny, I hate beer, too. In fact, I dislike alcohol. I'd rather have a milkshake. I am always made fun of bc of this. Nice to know I am not the only one!
ReplyDeleteThe fast stuff gets easier. Stick with it, once a week. You will find it to be hard, but the dying sensation goes away.
ReplyDeleteBeer - First find out what kind of style you like. I suggest starting with pale ales from Bell's, Sierra Nevada, or your local Surly. Summit is okay, but toned down a bit for the Midwest.
Stick with those 3 brands, and go to a good liquor store and get a "build your own six pack". Pick one brewery, and go through as many styles as you can.
With the above 3 breweries, if you don't like the beer, it is probably the style you don't like. These are top notch breweries, and rarely have I had a fouled brew from them.
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale is sort of a benchmark standard for American Pale Ales. The founder started as a home brewer with the famous "Maltose Falcons".
Bell's Oberon is a legendary beer as well. I rarely find people not liking it (it is a summer wheat, with some fun... you might not be able to find it for another month).
Surly can go overboard on their IPAs and such, but start with a Pale ale or Heffeweizen if they have it.
Go check out Zumbro during the race, and you can have my Bavarian Heffeweizen or Coffee chocolate stout (both on tap)
Nice mile time. Keep it strong. Head down. Muscle forward.
You'll do a nice race with your lucky number. Enjoy your 2828. :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a great bib number and I love the green! You're going to have a great race, I can't wait to hear about it!
ReplyDeleteHey Julie! I am going to be picking up my number tomorrow. Lindsey and I will be there, maybe we will get to see each other at the race. If I do not see you good luck!
ReplyDeleteYou are seriously fast! I am impressed. I am running a race on Saturday too. Good luck to both of us! Let's have fun!
ReplyDeleteGood God, 6:53 is way fast for a one-mile impromptu run in a non-race situation. I guess you were practicing for your race on Saturday? Well, have lots of fun and enjoy the free beer! I'm not a big drinker myself but i'll occasionally have one or two if it's free =) Have a great weekend and an awesome race!
ReplyDeleteJulie,
ReplyDeleteYou are doing great!!! That bit of speedwork rocked. You are a speed demon waiting to burst out. You should do that once a week, and it will get easier I swear. (I just did 800 intervals for the second time EVER last night. I also felt bad, but was better than the last time now that I am doing speedwork every Thursday.)
Good luck in your race. The number sounds very lucky to me. (2's and 8's are always good for me, and you have two of each!)
Congrats on your win! Looks like some good stuff there.
ReplyDeleteTry the Blue Moon with an orange next time...yum! It's a Colorado beer. Try an Easy Street, those are Yum too.
Good luck on your race, 2828 sounds like a lucky number to me! (although as fast as you are, you don't need luck;)