planning (and running) ahead

It's been a little while since my last post and I have two exciting races to share with you!

I have signed up for the Epic Canadian 5km run next weekend in Dartmouth, NS. The race takes place around Lake Banook which is beautiful! There is a nice path around most of the lake and I've always wanted to run along it! There is a 10k option; however it's the loop twice. BORING! I hate doing the same loop again, so I opted for the 5k. I'm running it along with my sister Nikki, and her husband is running the 10k. The race starts at 8am which is fairly early, but I feel it's necessary at this time of the year. This morning it was sunny and hot by 10am, so it's nice to finish early in the day. They have contests for people wearing Canadian themed costumes. Not sure if I'll dress up but I'll definitely add some Canadian flare to my outfit!

The other race I've signed up for recently is the Run or Dye color run on Sept. 28th. I've seen pictures of other runners taking part in a color run and I'm super excited to check it out! It's a 5km run that isn't timed, and takes place at Ski Martock. Although I usually like to monitor my times and progress, it will be a nice change to relax and take in the event. A few of my friends have signed up so it should be a fun time!

I learned about another 5k taking place on Sept. 28th called Zombie Trail Run AND it sounds awesome! You are given three "health" flags at the beginning of the race which you wear on a belt. As you run there are different areas where zombies and creatures will try to 'attack' you and steal your flags. On the website it says that most of the them are slow moving but some are quicker or will just stand in your way to make you go around them. There are also a few obstacles on the course like a hay maze or tire ladder to step through.

I was hoping I'd be able to participate in both runs as Run or Dye  is at 9am and the Zombie Trail Run is at 11am but I think they are too far away from each other to comfortably do both. Too bad!

Would you choose a color run or a zombie run?!

game of life run!

I participated in my first 5km race of the year! My sister Nikki and I ran the Game of Life race this morning at the beautiful point pleasant park. The event supported Commonwealth Games Canada's grassroots sports programs in Africa and the Caribbean.  This program uses sports as a means for social development of people in these countries. When I was younger I played basketball and soccer in city leagues and in school, and also coached a basketball team of boys aged 9-10. I believe that participating in sports gives children confidence and team work skills that can extend to multiple areas of their lives. SO of course I thought this was an awesome cause!


I love that the event was held at Point Pleasant Park. The route followed the perimeter of the park which is a wide trail with great views of the ocean. Thankfully it was bright out (cloudy) and not too windy. A breeze off the ocean can be mighty cold, so I was glad it wasn't too bad today! They had tons of volunteers that were helpful in guiding the way. It was a simple out and back, with the first half being up hill. This made the second half of the race a treat! Knowing the last half was downhill was definitely something I looked forward to.

A few negatives were that the 10km race was an out and back, TWICE. Maybe some people don't care as much as I do, but I think that would be extremely boring. I think they could have taken advantage of all the trails in the park and made it a loop or something. This would have meant more volunteers though, which maybe wasn't possible. My only other negative were the other people at the park. Since the race was small (I would estimate 100 participants in the 5 and 10 combined) they did not close the park. The park is notorious for people bringing their dogs, and some areas are off-leash. I believe these people had every right to be in the park; however I wish some people had shown a little more consideration and tried to move their dogs out of the way of the runners. Nothing that could have been controlled by the race coordinators though!

Overall it was a great start to run season, and I'm happy with the result. Nikki and I ran together (except for the final sprint). The clock time when running through the finish said 31:47, yet my chip time was 31:55 or something. This doesn't really make since to me as usually the chip time is lower? Either way I'm happy with that time!

Now I just need to get my butt in gear as I decided I'll be doing the 10km in the Bluenose! IN ONE MONTH! Ack. Stay tuned for my procrastinator training plan.

p.s. I returned the sneakers I posted about earlier. Still on the hunt for ones I like...

hello again!

I have not disappeared! I promise! I have still been here, thinking about updating. MEANING to update, but then it just didn't happen. Until now!

I have been maintaining my gym routine; however have become more relaxed than I have been in the past. I've been attending Zumba, Body Combat and Body Pump on a regular basis. AND I even went running this week... MIRACLE! It has been quite awhile. I was definitely sore the next day but it was a lot easier than I thought it would be, which I was very thankful about. I went at the KC Irving Center in Bathurst, which I have posted about previously. And for extra motivation it was a gorgeous day here in Halifax. Hoping that this continues so I can start to feel comfortable running outside again.

I wanted to update all of you with some food I've been eating lately. I recently did some experimenting with a sweet potato burrito:

I boiled and mashed a large sweet potato, adding to it both cumin and cinnamon. I put it in a tortilla wrap, topped with black beans, salsa and spinach. And it was FANTASTIC!! It was super filling and delicious. You definitely need salsa with this wrap, as the beans and sweet potato can be a little dry together. Sassy salsa is a locally made salsa that I discovered at the local market, and I am in love. Going to pick up more this weekend. It has a spicy sweet flavor that it just perfect.


I will be updating more soon with more recipes, food I've been eating, and upcoming races! And stay tuned, I'm going to try to make my own hummus this weekend. Should be exciting!

vacation again!

The great thing about being in school is that I get a lot of mini vacations. I love it! I can't believe that I will be finished in December. By the time I will finish I will have attended university for 7 1/2 years. THAT IS A LONG TIME! I really can't imagine not living the student life. Working 9-5 EVERY day?!? No summers off?! No month long Christmas break?!? These things scare me.

However, for all the good that comes from being a student, having these multiple vacations can really throw off my running schedule. I am a creature of habit and order. I like having a plan, and being thrown into vacation mode can snowball for me, where I end up laying around and doing absolutely nothing!

So as you may have guessed I'm on vacation again. Back in Halifax for a week as I finished my summer practicum.

Last week I was on week 9 of my training program:
M - 3k
T - 4k
W - off
T - 5k
F - 4k
S - 10k
S - off

I stuck to fairly well. Even ran 4k after I had driven for 7.5 hours on Friday! BUT I did not do the 10k on Saturday. It is my first 10k and I am a little nervous, but also excited.

This will be week 10:
M  - 3k
T - 5k
W - off
T - 5k
F - 3k
S - 11k
S - off

Since I didn't make the 10k on Saturday I'm going to tweak week 10 to:
M - off (I visited my nanny for the day... probably the only valid excuse I will ever have)
T - 10k
W - off
T - 5k
F - 3k, or off depending on how the 5k goes
S - 11k
S - off

I have 3 weeks left of my training program! I am really proud of how much I have done and it will feel SO good to complete it. Getting super pumped for the Maritime Race Weekend!

What race(s) are you training for? Are you looking forward to running in cooler weather, or do you love the heat? Let me know!