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Gasparilla 2020 Tampa, FL

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This Ultra Challenge taught me a lot about myself and it was a wonderful experience...   4 divas, 2 days, 30.4 miles, 5 medals and a jacket We began training in early December and everything was moving along just fine for me until early February.  A stomach bug wiped me out and I missed the last back to back long run and then a few days later, I received word that my mother was sick which threw everything off for me.  My friend Khandi was experiencing life as well, but we still managed to talk, laugh, and more importantly run the our circumstances.  That is the beauty of run buddies, we are there through thick and thin.  I also trained differently for this race.  For one, I have new goals and two, I knew I had to be strong to finish this race well and injury free.  Lots of resistance training and leg days, but I enjoyed the change.  I definitely saw a difference in my running and more importantly, in my body. On Friday we headed to ...
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O2 Fitness Charleston Half Marathon 2020

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O2 Fitness Charleston Marathon 10 year anniversary Beginning the year with a Half Marathon is certainly a new tradition I could get used to.  The runner's high is amazing and addicting!! My alarm went off at 4:45am and I immediately thought to myself "why do I sign up for these races?" but I know exactly why I sign up.  I snoozed my alarm once and it felt like I blinked and it went off again, so I got out of bed, brushed my teeth, washed my face, and began stretching.  I've been struggling with my IT band on my right side for a few years and it's all due insufficient stretching and foam rolling.  Note to anyone reading this: stretch and stretch some more.  My race gear was laid out so I jumped into my clothes and made sure to take some ibuprofen.  Start time was at 7:30am, so I had to make sure I was ready and out of the house no later than 6:15am.  I arrived at the parking lot on Hagood Avenue at 6:45am, parked and took a deep...
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Exercise...it's good for you!

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It's been a while since I talked about running and that's because I'm not running.  Heat and running are so difficult for me!  I feel like I'm suffocating and my body temperatures feel extremely uncomfortable.  However, this doesn't mean that I am not moving or exercising.  I have been steady focused on conditioning my body for race season and I know come August, it's back to the pavement whether I like it or not.   Autumn is my absolute favorite running season!  You don't need all the warm weather gear and the weather is crisp and bearable.  It will be here before I know it and I am too excited!   If there is one thing I've learned, it is that it's ok to take a break.  Your body needs to recover from whatever it is you are doing.  Even though I'm at the gym several days a week, I still have my  scheduled recovery days and I am still utilizing the treadmill, but I mainly walk.  Just like seasons change, our workouts...
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Cooper River Bridge Run 2019

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Fun fact: This Run is a world-class 10K (6.2 miles) foot race.  It's the 3rd largest in the USA with over 30,000 runners and it's in Charleston, SC! What an amazing day!  Although I dread waking up at the crack of dawn to run this race, once I'm out there, it's so worth it; I can always nap later!  I'm grateful for patience because you need it on race morning.  Traffic, parking and shuttles, oh my!  Thankfully, it is organized mayhem.  The directors of this race have done a great job over the past few years and I can certainly see the improvement.  Now if only the bus drivers can know the route to and from the race, that will work much better!  Just sayin.   It's always so nice to see your people out there amongst the sea of people.  As we're all searching for our corrals, a few pics have to be taken because the likelihood of finding each other later is slim.   A...
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Gasparilla 2019 Tampa, FL

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It's been a while since I went on a runcation with the ladies and I am so grateful I was able to participate in the Gasparilla race this year.  I had such a wonderful time and the turnout was amazing.  I'm still coming off of my runners high from race weekend.   Downtown Tampa is beautiful and of course they experienced higher than normal temperatures for race weekend.  FYI - I don't like to run in the heat.  Despite the heat, this is by far the BEST and most well organized race I've attended in my 5 years of racing.   Please keep in mind, we t rained in freezing temperatures to race in 80 degree temperatures with humidity levels of 90%, but that's how it goes sometimes.  This can and will impact your running, trust me.  That Florida sun was no joke!  Tisa and I ran the Michelob Ultra Lime Cactus Challenge which totaled 14.2 miles in 2 days (15K & 8K) and the other 5 ladies ran the Michelob Ultra Challenge which totaled 30.4...
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Lifting the weight off

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This morning, I was still thinking about my pastor's sermon from this past Sunday; it weighed heavy on me.  The series we just began is The land of not enough and Sunday's message was about "labels" and the labels we identify as. Sadly, for many of us, our parents labeled us with negative words.  I certainly was which is why this message resonated with me.  My father had a weird way of loving us and his words were brutal at times, but I thank God that I did not turn out to be anything he spoke over me.  No, I'm not a doctor or a lawyer, but I'm a good person and a hard worker - always have been.   Words have power and they can crush your spirit, so let's be mindful what we speak over our children and each other.   A bit of transparency.  The labels I identify with now are "loved" and "enough".  Even though I've been abused, mistreated and tossed to the side in my life, I know I am worthy of being loved sti...
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Frozen!

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When you sign up for long distance races, you are also signing up for early Friday nights because of early Saturday morning long runs.  But, that's not a bad thing.  It's actually helped me become more disciplined in my eating and reduce the amount of alcohol I consume because yes, I like to have a drink on Friday's, Saturday's, Sunday's...don't judge me!  Run buddies or accountability partners are crucial in the process.  If one run buddy can't make it, another one can and will step in when needed.  Over the last few years, my girlfriends and I have made it work and we're all still in this together.   On this particular Saturday, my sole sister Khandi needed to get 14 miles in for an upcoming race we're all training for.  Timing was the issue and she wanted to run at 5:30am.  Why so early?  Only she knows.  Either way, I told her I could give her 8 miles to help her out because the other ladies were taking off at 7am.  Our ot...
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