This week I bought a new sports bra at Title Nine here in Austin.
I love Title Nine...their return policy is second to none, and they have a wide array of sizes. I have never been disappointed with anything I have bought from there.
For the last few years I have been wearing this bra....
It's made by Moving Comfort and it's been a great bra. It is SUPER supportive and really comfortable.
BUT...it's not racerback and honestly it's not the most flattering bra. I recently acquired a few racerback tanks, and I really would like to wear them.
So, I was on the hunt for a racerback bra that would provide ample support.
I tried on this one:
It was comfortable, racerback....but geez the straps were so wide. There is no way this would look right with a tank.
I tried on this one:
It would have been perfect, but it wasn't a racerback.
What was cool about both the above bras is that they had velcro straps, so you could really crank these on tight. I think that's a great feature.
I finally settled on this one.....
It's made by a new bra company in the UK. What I liked about it right away was that it did not have an underwire but still felt like it supported and reduced bounce. The back clasp is a little bit of a pain and I will have to get used to it, but otherwise this bra is really comfortable and really does live up to it's name "Shock Absorber".
The only downside so far is that it cost A LOT! Luckily I had a store credit with Title Nine to offset the $79.99 price tag!!!
I recommend checking out Title Nine if you are looking for a sports bra. They have a great selection. And if you wear it, and you don't like it, they will take itback no questions....better than Lululemon's policy for sure!
*We are almost finished watching Game of Thrones Season 1. Love, love this show!
My favorite characters so far are Tyrion Lannister and Eddard Stark. It's been awhile since I have enjoyed a series so much...thanks goodness because we were really scraping the bottom of the barrel for shows to watch!
*It's getting hotter here in TX.
I am really missing California weather. What I wouldn't give for a day of June gloom. (Sounds bad, but really it's not! In San Diego in the mornings until about noon it is overcast and kind of chilly. Later in the day the clouds burn off, but these mornings would be perfect for running!)
*Workout Plans for this week....
Monday - P90X Yoga (done)
Tuesday - 2K repeats with Run Tex group 6 miles total (done)
Wednesday - Dane's Core Fusion + 2 Mile run with Cooter (done)
Thursday - Dane's Lower Body Fusion + 2 Mile Run
Friday - Dane's Upper Body Fusion + 2 Mile Run
Saturday - 6 miles Town Lake with Jessica
Sunday - easy 2 mile run
I really would like to get 20 miles this week, and in a perfect world would love to get 25...but I had a rocky start this week and didn't get to run on Monday. So, I will have to shoot for 25 next week.
*Ever psyche yourself out about a race? Well, in about 2 weeks I am participating in the Toughest 10K in Lampasas. Last year I ran it in 45:43. It is one of the hardest 10k's I have done. It's hill after hill, and last year it was pretty warm. I really would like to get a better time this year and honestly it's making me feel really pressured. I want to say I will just run it and enjoy it, have fun, blah, blah....but I know myself and I know I will be disappointed if I don't make it in under 45:43. I haven't run many hills lately, or pretty much at all in the last 6 months. I hope I am strong enough from all my cross training to conquer this race. I am happy though that Jessica and Erin will be running it with me this year....misery loves company :)
*Phene has been having a hard time at daycare lately. She doesn't want to go, and a few times she has cried when we have left her in the morning. As if I don't feel guilty enough for leaving there all day when I work! It just breaks my heart sometimes. I am hoping it's just a phase and she goes back to looking forward to school/daycare.
That's all I have for today. Thank goodness the week is half over!
I was reminded this weekend why I dislike dog parks.
My husband and I went to a local dog park to meet a dog trainer that we are going to start workign with on training Lexie. We got there a little early so we decided to walk around and check it out. We brought our little teacup Chi Frankie and we were deciding which entrance to go in to. They had a section for small dogs, medium dogs, and large dogs. I was saying I didn't want to take him in to the medium dog area because he is TINY and I didn't want him to get ran over. A lady who was walking by stops and says something about how she brings her little dog in the medium dog area and there is never an issue.
A friendly passerby? Or a nosy lady? I think the latter. See, I was facing my husband, with my back turned towards her...how did she hear me? And did she think I was asking her?
So, I continue talking to my husband and I say "I wonder if there is another area beyond that far fence?" Again, someone from behind me replies that no, there aren't any other areas. These are just people walking by, again, how did he hear me? Why is he replying to a question I am asking my husband?
We decide to go in the small area and let Frankie (the chi) run a bit and just to keep Lexie on her leash so she is fresh and not worn out for trainer. So, we sit down on a bench on the other side of this little fenced in area from where there are about 5 or 6 people sitting around chatting. We were pretty far away from them, and we were just watching Frankie play. We had Lexie sitting next to us and we were petting her.
A Lady stands up and turns to us and says loudly "Don't you think she wants to play also?". Hello?! Lady who are you? Why is it your business if I keep my dog on a leash or not? I don't remember what I replied...but I will tell you that within a few minutes we left that area.
Perhaps my patience was just not there that morning....but this isn't the first time I have had dog park issues...don't even get me started about the San Diego dog parks I have visited in California...bottom line, I don't think we will be going to the dog park again or any other for that matter.
Do nosy people bother you? Do you eavesdrop on conversations and than answer questions?
This morning as I am driving to my workout I see a sign that says the freeway is completely closed ahead. I guess a pedestrian tried to walk across the freeway at 2am...story here. Who walks across the freeway?? I am sorry to be harsh, but in my opinion you take your chances when you decide to cross a busy freeway! I don't get it
This morning's workout at Dane's was a tough one:
Have you ever done "Prisoner Get Ups"? They are tough and a great core burner! What I liked about this workout today was that we got to run a lot. You can see here that we did 400m-200m-400m-200m with 30 seconds of rest in between. When I can get a mile in, and a good workout in an hour, I am happy!
Our new puppy is working out great. She is really fitting in and is so smart. This weekend we start dog training! I found this guy who gives private lessons who's rates are based on how much you can accomplish. I look forward to meeting him. I really miss the dog trainer I worked with when I lived in California. She taught me so much about dog behavior and really helped me be a better dog owner. I am hoping to find someone like her here in Austin.
I saw this really cute shirt on the Athleta website this morning. Though I love Lululemon shorts, I don't really like their tech tops...and though I love some of their tanks, I don't own a racerback sports bra, so they don't really work for me. At $49 I just might have to try one of these tops.
We started watching Game of Thrones Season 1 and I really like it so far. I still don't completely understand the story but I am hoping as we get past the first few episodes we will learn more. There really isn't much on TV this summer. We have been watching AGT and So You Think You Can Dance....but other than that it's slim pickings. I look forward to the fall when some of the series we like to watch come back.
I am reading the second Shades of Gray Book...I don't know what to think. First off no one has s that much...no one. It's almost getting a little ridiculous. I don't know if I will read the third one. Both characters have got a little pathetic in my eyes.
And I finally got my Schlotszkys medal for first place in the K9 division...more than a month later! Better late than never I guess.
That's all I have for today....Thanks goodness the week is half over!!!!
Saturday morning, bright an early I met up with Jessica for Vern's No Frills 5K.
What a great race! Totally laid back, flat course, perfect cool weather.
It was a great way to start the weekend.
This was my first race pushing a stroller...it posed some challenges for sure.
If I went under a 8 minute pace the front wheel started to wobble so I had to PUSH down on to the handlebar pretty hard. It was a great arm workout! (I am taking the stroller this week to a bike shop to get fixed, because though I dealt with it during the race, I don't want to deal with that all the time)
People don't seem to look behind them or even to the side of them and I got ran in to more than a couple of times. Which annoyed the crap out of me!
The first mile Frankie was not wanting to sit down with Phene in the stroller, even though I had him run our mile warm up hoping to tire him out. After mile 1 he finally settled in.
It wasn't a PR at 24:13 but it was under 25 minutes which I was happy about.
Splits: 7:46/7:42/7:50
And Jessica redeemed herself with a 24:30 time!
Saturday night we went to a pre-father's day dinner at our favorite Mexican food place. Where I ate WAY too many chips, as usual!
Sunday Sean and I ran 2 miles with the dogs and Phene. Frankie had a PR of 1.5 miles. (That Chihuahua can run!) It was Sean's second run of the morning for a total of 4 miles! I think this is the longest he has ever run, and I was very proud of him.
That's about it for my weekend....22 miles total for the week which made me SO happy!!!!
Workout Plans this week:
Monday - Dane's Lower Body Fusion + 2 Mile run (done)
Tuesday - Run Group
Wednesday - Dane's Core Fusion + 2 mile run
Thursday - Dane's Upper Body Fusion + 2 Mile Run
Friday - Dane's Lower Body Fusion
Saturday - 5 Mile run With Jessica Town Lake
Sunday - Yoga or rest day
This was an odd race for me. Since I am fairly new to racing, this was my first night race. It started at 8p. I am usually winding down from my day and in bed by 9pm....so this was late for me.
We got down there about 7p after battling downtown traffic. The race start was at the Mopac bridge trail head which is a popular place on a weeknight even without a race going on. There were a lot of people down there just doing their usual weekday runs.
Sadly this is the only pic we got of the whole race, and it's not a very good one....
It was about 90 degrees and the humidity was through the roof. We warmed up with an easy mile and did some stretching, used the porta potties a few times, and before we knew it, it was race time.
It was a smooth start and we did the first mile at about a 7:14 pace. I felt strong and though it was humid and I was already sweating buckets, I felt like I could hold on to that pace for the duration. At about 1.5 miles in, Jessica started struggling. I chose to stay with her and encourage her. I think it was a mixture of heat and humidity and race nerves. We finished with a time of 25:12. No Pr's here, but it's always nice to run with a good friend!
Jessica really wanted to get under 25, and was really disappointed...so here is her 5K redemption, which we will be doing on Saturday morning!
It's put on by the local Georgetown running club, and it's $1.00 to race it. How cool is that?
I hope everyone has a great weekend!
Good luck to Erin who is running/biking/swimming the Pfulgerville triathlon this weekend!
And Happy Father's Day to all you dad's out there!
This morning I woke up bright and early to go to the Austin Magazine Fit Challenge at Camp Mabry here in Austin. Dane's Body Shop had a team competing, and they were also sponsoring one of the events so I volunteered to work the event with them.
The challenge consisted of 11 different events
Let me introduce you to team Dane's Body Shop!
Each person competed in a certain event. It was a super team and I am happy to say that they won first place in the team division!!
(Thanks Jessica for providing most of the pics!)
Our sponsored event was the 40 yard dash
Being a runner, it was a fun event to watch/help with.
One of the hardest events, besides the mile challenge, had to be the pull ups...
There were some guys who did 25+...pretty amazing!
Really all the events were fun to watch. There was some tough competition!
We had a really great time and it was really great to see everyone from the gym coming together to support the team.
Jessica came out for a bit too!
So to say the least a day in 90+ weather out in the sun and I am WIPED out!
I came home and the dogs were stir crazy, and there was no way I was going to run...so I loaded them up and took them to the baseball field to run...
I felt like the crazy dog lady with them all in the back of the small car. They had fun though. (I would have taken some pics of them running around like crazy...but it's kind of hard to carry camera/cell while holding 4 leashes)
Now it's on to a glass of wine and some time on the couch watching TV....I am exhausted!
1. I was watching American's Got Talent the other night when this guy came on...
He had this sad story about being in the army in Afghanistan. Supposedly he got blown up and suffered a spinal injury which affected his speech. He had a stutter and said that his speech pathologist recommended singing to help him with it. His story touched me, and his singing was really good. I have to admit a tear came to my eye.
BUT....
Turns out he might be lying.... http://www.eonline.com/news/americas_got_talent_contestants_combat/321610
What a shame!
So when this guy came on last night...
Again, his story really touched me...and his singing was AMAZING! But I found myself doubting him. Is his story real?
Damn fake army guy ruined it for me!
If you haven't listened to him, please take the time to do so, he is really good!
2. Saturday I am headed down to Austin to go to this:
http://afmfittest.com/
Dane and Leann from my gym are competing, as well as some other people I work out with. Should be an interesting day, and I promise to take pics this time!
Some of the events are kind of interesting....
They have an Interval run which seems to me to be the hardest (Sorry Erin I explained this one wrong to you this morning)
Here is how it goes:
Start in a static position at the start line. Cones are placed at interval levels of 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32, and 34 yards from the start line. Test monitor will start the run with a whistle. Run to the first cone (level 1 at 16 yards) and touch the line with your foot. Turn and run back, crossing the start line with some part of your body. Test monitor will whistle to start the next interval (level 2 at 18 yards). Each interval must be completed in ten seconds, and there is a ten-second-recovery period to return to the start position. You will progress through each interval until you can no longer finish in the designated time. Score is the last level completed (1-10).
They have another one where you have to do the most amount of burpees in a minute. (I would hate this one!!)
The person who wins or scores the highest will be named the most fittest person in Austin!
3. True Blood starts this weekend and HBO is having a free preview weekend!
There haven't been too many shows I have liked lately on TV...so I am glad one of my favorites is coming back!
4. This morning I joined the Runtex Georgetown group for a progressive tempo on the gravel trail on the park. The loop is 1.6 miles. We were supposed to do the first lap at marathon pace, second at 10K pace, and third at 5k pace.
I started out with a 7:48 pace for the first loop and decided to make it progressive by the mile after that until I reached 4 miles. So my splits for the last 2 miles were 7:29/7:16. I tried to keep the same distance between Erin and I, which really helped me keep my pace. It was humid, and the gravel trail has some soft spots. Totally pain free (physically) run so I can't complain. And 7 mid week miles is always nice! I do have to say that the humidity is SAPPING my energy lately. I swear my legs feel like I am wading through water every time I run. Mentally it's messing with me, so I really need to just push through it, and I am really hoping my body starts acclimating.
I hope everyone has a great weekend, I am off work tomorrow so today is my friday! Woo-hoo!
Saturday morning I woke up bright and early and went running at Town Lake with Jessica.
(Not my picture, but this is what the trail looks like)
We did 5 miles in SUPER humid weather. All in all not a bad run. I brought Cooter along and he really slowed down the last 2 miles...so we were a little slow at the end but we got the miles in averaging 8:30-9 minute mile pace.
Saturday afternoon we had a meeting with a local dog rescue organization to adopt a dog. They adopt dogs out of the local shelter, work with them on house training, etc...and then find families for them.
This is Sahara...she is 3 months old. They say she is an Akita mix. Though I think she looks more like an Anatolian Shepard.
Sunday we woke up early and took the dogs to the river. They loved it! Wish I had pics to share....And Sunday afternoon we took Phene to the local pool...
She is getting a lot more comfortable in the water. She is definitely ready for swimming lessons starting next week!
Sunday afternoon I took Sahara on her first run....it was 90 degrees and super hot so went pretty slow, but she did really well! Her first 1/2 mile!
And she is so sweet...you pick her up and she immediately hugs you and rests her head on your shoulder. She is the calmest puppy I have ever met.
We wrapped up the weekend with dinner at our local Mexican restaurant with our friend Erin and her husband Dan.
(Hey Erin, maybe we should start taking pics when we do stuff like dinner so we have something to post! :)
Workout plans this week:
Monday - Dane's Lower Body + 2 Mile Run (done)
Tuesday - Dane's Upper Body + 2 Mile Run
Wednesday - Dane's Core Fusion + 2 Mile Run
Thursday - RunTex Group (hopefully 5+ miles)
Friday - Rest
Saturday - ?
Sunday - 5 Mile run with Jessica
Last week I logged 20 miles! I am SUPER excited to be getting more miles in fairly pain free. I just need to keep up with my roll outs and stretching!
Have a good week all!!!
Oh and if you haven't had a chance check out this show on the history channel! Thoroughly entertaining and a great story!
