Category Archives: Fitness

Finding a Fitness Goal

Man am I glad that I wrote Monday’s post in advance because the week has been so busy at/after work that there was no way I was going to have time to blog again until I wrote this post (which was actually last night). I had work-related events Monday and Wednesday night…and Tuesday’s planned night in turned into one drink which turned into trivia/dinner/multiple drinks. But hey I had a blast, and also did well at work this week, so I’m feeling OK about it all!

The Tuesday night one-drink Manhattan…and some after-work work. Cocktails make that more fun!

But I haven’t felt that OK lately about my workout routine. Ever since completing my first half marathon, I’ve felt a bit direction-less and unmotivated without a long-term goal. It’s almost like I am now goal-addicted! But I stand behind what I’ve said in the past…I am not about to go out and sign up for another half. Especially since I tried out my first run since the race this past Sunday – just a 3 miler – and it really messed up my IT band again. I couldn’t walk down stairs easily for a couple of days afterward. I think I need to take longer than a week off running – and focus more on IT band stretching and foam rolling – before I consider signing up for another half marathon. And if that ever happens, it certainly won’t be until after the winter is over, because I refuse to train in the cold!

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Asics GEL-Pursue: My Half Marathon Shoe!

I received a pair of Asics for the purpose of this review. This is not a compensated post and all opinions are my own.

Shortly after my review of JD Sports and the Asics I got from them, the Asics brand folks themselves contacted me about reviewing the Runner’s World Best Debut Running Shoe of Fall 2014 – the GEL-Pursue. I’d so far had success with my first pair of Asics helping my shin splints, so I was open to trying out another style. The GEL-Pursue is “neutral, but responsive”.

 

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The ankle/heel definitely had plenty of that responsive cushioning, but the shoe itself felt very flexible and easy to move in. After just one three miler, I knew I wanted to try out a long run in these shoes. And after that one long run, I knew I wanted to run my first half marathon in them!

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My First Half Marathon!

I received a complimentary race registration from Zooma in exchange for blogging about my training and race experience. However I had already registered for the race and paid the registration fee before that arrangement was ever made, so I really and genuinely wanted to do this race – for reals, guys.

Well if you followed along at all with me on Instagram over the weekend, then you know that my week of resting my IT band (and perhaps getting it taped too?) paid off. I FINISHED MY FIRST HALF MARATHON and not only did I finish, but I did it faster than I thought I’d be able to – 2 hours, 10 minutes, 54 seconds. That’s roughly a 10 minute mile pace!

That time showing on the clock doesn’t take into consideration how long it took me to cross the starting line!

After facing terrible, awful, no-good, very bad traffic on my Friday late afternoon drive to the Cape, I pulled into Falmouth’s Sea Crest Beach Hotel to meet my mom (she did the race with me!), pick up my packet, and see Kelly. But first order of business – a Mayflower IPA, because it’s all I wanted after sitting in that traffic.

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Reach the Beach Part 3: Two Runs & Done!

Before I conclude my Reach the Beach Relay recaps…an update on my stubborn right IT band! Thank you so much for your comments of support, advice, and your own shared experiences. I ended up trying to find an “emergency” PT appointment, but it didn’t work out due to scheduling/time/monetary restrictions. Someone suggested on Twitter (love that social media crowdsourcing!) that I try out Boston Body Worker, and I noticed while visiting the website that they offered an option to just walk in and get kinesiology taping after a quick assessment. I’d definitely heard some good things about that option and knew a sports massage could leave me too sore to race at this point, so I thought it was worth a shot, especially since I got $20 off for mentioning that I was a referral!

Of course I selected pink!

The tape lasts 3-4 days so I should have it on during the half marathon tomorrow. I don’t feel a difference yet…who knows if I even will. I am going NUTS taking it easy this week. I haven’t done cardio since Monday morning and even that was just about 15 minutes. I’ve been trying to get my heart rate up without using my legs, such as by doing rapid clean-and-presses. I also am making an effort to focus on upper body lifting, and it’s definitely paid off – I’ve been feeling sore! My abs are getting more attention too (I took a pilates class last night). Still, I really REALLY hope I finish the race tomorrow because I know then, all the rest will be worth it. If I don’t finish, it will be hard not to feel like a failure.

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Road Block

Interrupting my Reach the Beach Relay recapping (check out parts one and two if you missed them, because I do hope to post part three this week) to share some new frustrations I have encountered in my training for my first ever half marathon, the Zooma Cape Cod half, which by the way is THIS SATURDAY. How did that happen?!

I wish I had more time not because I don’t want to run the race, but because I’m having some issues that are much worse than the shin splints I dealt with earlier in my training. During Reach the Beach, I started feeling some irritation in my right IT band during my second leg. This continued during my third leg but after a couple of days of rest, the pain was gone. So I went for my first post-RTB run last Wednesday morning, a 3 miler, and once it was done I knew I was in some trouble. My IT band hurt the rest of the day – it was even difficult to get up and down stairs. So I told myself, only one more run until the half, and not for a few more days.

Flash forward to this past weekend in Newport, working the Newport Mansions Wine & Food Festival for 90+ Cellars. I took Saturday as my rest day (I’d done a bootcamp – but with low impact modifications – on Thursday and the StepMill on Friday, and had felt pretty good). Last night, I ended up going for a run when I got back from my trip. I was going to take yesterday off too, but the food and drink of the weekend were really getting to me. Lots of wine, LOTS of cheese, LOTS and LOTS of bread. I felt like I had to do something, and the dusk and weather and sunset definitely provided some pretty running scenery.

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Reach the Beach Part 2: First Run & Feeling Crummy

FULL DISCLOSURE: I was sponsored by New Balance and therefore received free gear, supplies, van rental, and Reach the Beach Relay admission. All opinions of my experience are my own and I did not receive monetary compensation for these posts.

In case you missed them, here is my Reach the Beach Relay announcement post and part 1 of my relay recap! When we last left off, I had consumed four glasses of wine at the pre-race dinner/party and woke up to my 5AM alarm on Friday morning…hating myself. I blame the not-so-good wine and a lack of sleep.

Last ones there...last call!

Last ones there…we shut the ski lodge down!

But it was my own fault and I sucked it up and drove Van 2, myself, and my van-mates to the start line as I’d promised! This was an advantage of being on a team of people that weren’t necessarily good friends or family – I wanted to put my best foot forward, make a great impression, and NOT make any excuses. With a team of people I knew really well, it would have been easier to make excuses or ask someone else to pick up my slack.

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Reach the Beach Part 1: Pre-Relay

In case you missed last Wednesday’s announcement about participating in the Reach the Beach Relay as a member of the New Balance media team, you can read it here!

Oh. Man. Recapping the events of Thursday, Friday, and Saturday is going to take 2-3 posts, and I don’t know if I’ll get through it all this week, but I’ll try! So Thursday morning after a quick 30-minute solo spin session, I headed over to the hotel to meet the other eleven bloggers/members of Team Pumped Up Kicks:

I was a bit nervous at first because the only team members I’d already met were Christine (at the Fitness Magazine Meet & Tweet) and Theodora (at various events). But many of the other girls were in that same situation, and bloggers are certainly good at being friendly and making new friends! It didn’t take long at all to feel comfortable around everyone, especially the fellow members of Van 2 (my van).

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Relay-ing An Announcement

At the end of Monday’s post I teased an announcement yesterday or today. Well I’m barely making that deadline seeing as it’s almost 8PM in Boston as I write this, but here I am. Time is short because I still have packing to do so I will cut to the chase.

A few weeks back, I was approached by New Balance to run in the Reach the Beach Relay – as part of one of their media teams! The race takes place in New Hampshire – it’s a 200 mile relay race from Cannon to Hampton Beach. Our team is called Pumped Up Kicks (love it, right?!) and consists of two vans of six runners each – twelve runners total. It’s pretty hardcore…24 hours, meaning Friday night I will be sleeping in a van, and I may end up running in the middle of the night. I am a notorious sleep diva, and am probably more nervous about not getting sleep than the running itself.

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The shoes I will be running in – the New Balance 860v4.

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Staying Put is Marvelous

I cannot thank everyone enough for the support I received in response to last week’s post about my doctor’s appointment. It’s weird – sometimes something is weighing on your mind so much that it just has to come out in some way. So I wrote that post. But once I did, I was kind of over talking about it. I am so appreciative of the love I have received, but I also often found myself politely brushing off the subject with an, “I’m doing better!” or a quick change of subject whenever someone checked in on me. I’m glad I put my feelings out there, but now am trying to focus on moving on. What better way of doing that than a Marvelous In My Monday (MIMM) weekend recap?

Link up with Katie if you too are talking marvelous on this Monday.

Marvelous is…STAYING PUT! Every weekend in September except this past weekend I have plans to be away. So I knew I wanted to just stay in Boston. After all, I always can find plenty to do in the city. Starting with Friday night – after-work happy hour with co-workers turned into dinner, dive bars, and a bit of dancing.

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Five Things Friday: My Week

I’m glad you all related so much to last week’s Five Things Friday post about aspects of life that have REALLY been making me feel adult-like lately. Those reminders have continued throughout this week, and I also want to give an update on how I’ve been doing since my particularly overwhelming weekend. Then I got to thinking – there are five days in a work week, and it’s Five Things Friday. So I’m going to share how each day of my week went/has been going, in an effort to catch you up on all the things.

Link up with Clare today if you are also rambling on about five things!

1. Monday

I knew all I wanted to do Monday was go to work, go to spin class, and stay in watching the Emmys. One of those things didn’t happen – spin class. Did I not feel well? Did I not have time? No, I just didn’t want to go. I got out of work late and the class was halfway over. I could’ve made it to half the class or gone to the gym to do my own workout, but I was starving. I was exhausted. So i went home, heated up the casserole I’d prepared the night before, popped a bottle of Prosecco (which I ended up not drinking half of and pouring out #singlegirlproblems), and watched approximately 20% of the Emmys. And then I went to bed, because it was absolutely necessary.

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Meet Caitlin

I’m a 28 year old full-time working girl living in Boston (previously lived in Connecticut). I’m passionate about food/drink, restaurants, self-love, fitness, and the ever-present search for balance. I write about that journey on this blog – I hope you enjoy!

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Design Credit

My header was originally designed by Mai Le and later tweaked by Chris Roggi to match this theme, which he helped me customize. He also moved me over to self-hosting! Both can be contacted through their sites for design & development work!

Disclaimer

I am not an RD and do not have any official training, certifications, or degrees in nutrition or fitness. This blog is a way to write about my life. Any views I express are mine alone, based on what works for me, and should never be taken as medical advice. Always talk to your doctor or a trained professional before starting a new diet or fitness plan. In addition, this blog and its content are in no way affiliated with Kate Gosselin, “Kate Plus 8”, TLC, or any related affiliates.

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