Meet Mary!

Get ready for another GUEST POST! Have a great weekend everyone!

-Alexis and Shelby

Hello Health Nuts! I’m so excited to be a guest blogger and share with you all about my experience so far as a vegetarian. I'm an avid runner, much like Alexis and Shelby. As you can see being active is definitely a huge part of our friendship!

Although I’d like to say my choice to eat Vegetarian was something that I had given plenty of thought and pondered for weeks on end, the truth is that after watching just one video narrated by Paul McCartney about the horrors of animal slaughterhouses (meat.org) and doing a little of bit of online researching of the lifelong health benefits, I decided I wanted to simply give vegetarianism a “test run”. As days of this “test run” turned into weeks and weeks into month, I can now proudly say that I have been a faithful Vegetarian for six months and am still going strong! (If you had told me this a year ago I would not have believed you).

I currently live with Alexis in our sorority house—a very vegetarian-friendly place. Our sorority’s new chef, Brian, provides a vegetarian option for every brunch, lunch, and dinner he prepares making it easier than ever for me! In addition, our kitchen is stocked with veggie burgers and other high protein, meatless foods like oatmeal, soymilk, and peanut butter.

Of the past six months, I have found these first few weeks of the fall semester to be the easiest for me due to the large number of healthy vegetarian options at my fingertips. In comparison with this past summer, when I worked as a camp counselor in New Hampshire, it is quite a relief to now be living in a place with so many great alternatives to meat. At camp I would find myself having a soy peanut butter sandwich for lunch multiple days in a row, not fun!

However, Brian is not around all the time and our sorority house is obviously not the only vegetarian-friendly place in Charlottesville. My new favorite veggie option when dining out is Rise Pizza. This quick-serve, locally owned restaurant in the Barracks Road Shopping Center of Charlottesville has everything from gluten-free pizza crust to the most well priced gourmet veggie pizzas and spinach salads that I have found at UVA! I have been to Rise four times already this semester, including one trip for dinner after the Virginia Beach Half-Marathon. The simple thought of Rise Pizza waiting for us made the traffic-filled trip go much faster! Not only is the food fantastic but Rise employees are super nice as well: When we thought Alexis had lost her ring in the Rise trash, the manager delved his bare hands into the bag where she had thrown her food away on a determined search to find it. A very accommodating bunch I’d say! Check out the menu for yourself: http://www.risepizzaworks.com/index.html

That's all for now. I hope to be doing lots more posts in the future here as I learn more about how my newfound vegetarianism has affected my health! Have a great weekend!

-Mary

Sixth Half-Marathon, Check!

Hey everybody! I know I may have freaked some of my friends out with my Facebook status after the race, but I really felt it was a notch in my belt to finally run myself to the point where the medical tent was necessary!

My experience in my sixth half-marathon, and the second time doing the Virginia Beach Half-Marathon was far from ordinary. Upon waking up early last Saturday for our drive to Virginia Beach, I noticed the extreme cold that had come upon me. Despite a good 11 hours of sleep the night before I was feeling pretty awful. I did everything to shake it - cold medicine, Wellness Pills, Zicam, EmergenC, and at least 200 ounces of fluids throughout the day. I drank so much in an attempt to drink away the cold and hydrate for the next day. I had a steady mix of vitamin C drinks, different forms of electrolytes and lots of water. I try not to drink too much water the day before a race, as well as the morning of. After hydrating with so many electrolytes for race prep, you don't want to wash the electrolytes out of your system.

Shelby, Mary and I had an awesome drive out to Virginia Beach despite my sickness. We were on a mission to find a Qdoba for a pre-race lunch and eventually ended up at a real mall with an H+M, Forever 21 and California Pizza Kitchen. It was heavennn and much better than shopping in Charlottesville!

Upon arriving we headed to the convention center for the Health and Fitness Expo. This was Mary's first race outside of the Charlottesville Half Marathon and it was Shelby's first half-marathon, so it was pretty cool for them to see so many vendors and sponsors out there.

After picking up our packets we headed straight to the Larabar booth for free samples galore!

Then we went searching for running accessories!

Later on that night we checked into our hotel room in hopes of getting to sleep by about 8:30. It was only a dream though, as I somehow managed to lock the keys in the car. The AAA man came eventually but my stretching routine and pre-race shower were postponed until he arrived. I didn't get a very good night of sleep, mainly due to all the sniffling and coughing. This was probably the first sign that I should not have done the race the next day, but I was not going to let a stupid cold get in a way of the race.

The next morning we made our way from Norfolk to Virginia Beach, getting pumped as ever for 13.1.

When we got near the start, we encountered some more car drama - in the form of parking this time. Long story short, I founded myself sprinting about 8 blocks to a 7-11 for some cash and on the way back I started to feel very feverish and tired. This was sign number 2 that I should not have done the race.

Yes, I know I'm stubborn.

The race started off well. I started off in Coral 7 with an anticipated finish time of 1:55. My PR (personal record) is 1:57 at the Charlottesville Half. That race is incredibly hilly, so compared to the flatness of Virginia Beach I figured such a PR would be pretty easy to accomplish.

I was well on my way in the first couple of miles, hitting 9 minute splits with very little effort. And then once the first incline came about my cold really started to hit me. My sinuses were hating me, and it became a lot harder to breathe. Every time I tried to speed up, I began to feel very nauseated. The first 6 miles went pretty well, and if I could have kept up that pace I would have a good chance of finishing sub-2 hours. But my body was not ready for that, as I eventually need to take a couple of breaks. I'm estimating I stopped for at least 10 minutes. Mile 8 and 9 were by far the worst, and it was around then that I noticed a pain in my left ankle. This has happened a lot to me in the past with long distances so I didn't worry too much about it. The last three miles are usually the easiest for me - when my adrenaline kicks in and all I care about is crossing that finish line. Not this race. My body was completely exhausted and it really started to affect me. I remember feeling pretty delirious. At this point, adrenaline was not enough to get me sprinting across the finish. I kept at about a 10 minute mile pace for the last 2 miles.

I reached the finish at 2:19, a time I am not proud of. Accounting for the 10 minutes of rest, I was able to run the 13.1 in 2:09 technically. Even so, I'm proud of myself for finishing. It feels like a very different type of accomplishment, and made me feel really confident about my fitness being able to go to that distance while feeling that sick.

After the race, I meandered around for about 20 minutes looking for Mary and Shelby. I eventually decided to sit down for a second and give my legs a rest, hoping they would find me. And then I collapsed. About 25 minutes later I woke up, with a person sitting next to me telling me I should head over to the medical tent. I disagreed and found myself myself attempting to walk over to look for Mary and Shelby at the car. 30 seconds I was back down on the ground. I got the strength to get back and went over to the medical tent.

I recall slurring my words and not making much sense of the situation, so excuse me if this sounds a bit hazy. I told a volunteer there that I was not feeling well and felt very faint.

His response: "We can't help you."

"Are you serious? I don't know what to do."

"There is no doctor here that can help you."

"Is this not the freaking medical tent? Isn't this your job?"

Eventually a woman came to "help" me. Without really listening to my symptoms or even asking about a medical history, she just gave me a salt packet and told me to leave.

I'm extremely disappointed and this experience really makes me question whether or not I should continue doing races on a bigger scale with soooo many participants. Running such long distances puts a lot of stress on your body that can cause just about anything to happen. The volunteers at the medical tent at this Rock n' Roll race were so unhelpful, and quite rude. I totally understand how stressful caring for tons of runners with various injuries and ice requests. But this was different. I'm quite apprehensive about running in Rock n' Roll races in the future because of this, so hopefully I'll eventually be convinced otherwise!

Soon after, Mary and Shelby found me crying to my momma by the car... and were quick to cheer me up. We headed back to the hotel for showers and made our way back to Charlottesville in time to get some time in at the library. Post race meals were Mo's and Rise Pizza (gluten-free for me!).

I've been still fighting this cold the past few days.. my body was totally out of whack on Monday. Luckily I haven't been too sore since the race, so I think that shows that my body is in good fitness and ready for that distance. I did a nice long strength workout tonight, and was able to increase my weight on the squats- good sign my legs are recovering well!

I'm going to be taking a vitamin C drink supplement several times a day in order to ramp up my immune system so I'll be able to tackle school and upcoming races with ease. We're two weeks away from the Pepsi 10K here in Charlottesville and then it's time to PR at RICHMOND!!!

Sorry for the long time in between posts everyone. I'm really trying to make blogging a part of my routine so please keep following and giving us feedback. We love it!

And one last thing: CONGRATULATIONS SHELBY! One half-marathon down, lots more to go!

-Alexis

Meet Skylar!

Yo yo! Today we've got a pretty great surprise for you all: it's guest post time. You'll be hearing from one of our BFF4Ls Skylar! He's your typical endurance athlete, a pretty freaking talented one at that. Below is a photo of all of us from the Charlottesville Half Marathon during our first year at UVa. Sky decided to just do the race for fun and told Mary and I (I being Alexis) that he would run with us and enjoy the experience. That lasted for about 25 seconds.. thanks Sky! We quickly forgave him for running on ahead when he finished SECOND in his age group at a distance he had never before endured. Skylarr you did ittttt yeahhhh!!

The crew:

Enjoy the read, along with your Sundays!

Greetings, Virginia! My name is Skylar and I’m the one that’s not like the others. Cross-bred with an adrenaline nut that spent his early days mountaineering and jumping out of airplanes with a once-neurotic fitness addict, it’s no surprise as to what popped out…

Me sliding down the continental divide in the Wind River Range of Wyoming on my NOLS backpacking course last summer. I spent 28 days in the woods, basically. It reinforced my psyche for nature. Like Shelby, I am also climbing a Colorado Fourteener soon: Holy Cross. Pictures later if I take them…

I am now planning to go mountaineering next summer in Bolivia, climbing the mountains Pequeno Alpamayo, Huayna Potosi & Illimani! Yes, I just copied and pasted that.

Here is my dad. If you asked me what I would be like when I’m 58, this could be it…

This picture was taken during my first time tandem skydiving by the photo dude. Props to him for capturing some sick shots. This is just one of the many photos he took. I’m the guy in purple pants. Obviously, I like purple.

The photo guy also made a sweet video of my jump, but I don’t have it with me right now. Maybe another post…

I’ve always had a good idea of what makes me a happy person, but every now and then I can get a bit sidetracked. I can’t say for sure that I have found it, but I’m pretty damn close. In fact, I can sum it up in 2 words: endorphins and adrenaline.

I’m an endurance athlete, always have been and always will. I played soccer all through childhood until the 10th grade. While I was a decent player, I was able to stay competitive because of my speed and inability to tire out. Often times the coach would just put me at sweeper and let me run the entire game.

It wasn’t until the junior year that I thought, “Hey Skylar, I think you could put your talents to something else. You don’t even like soccer that much.” So I joined the cross-country team and fell in love, almost.

I couldn’t get enough of running. Like many would say of the activity, it turned into a drug. What happens when you stop using a drug that you’re addicted to? Withdrawal. And by withdrawal, I mean college.

During my first year or so at UVA, running didn’t seem to be a priority for me. I began to lift instead. While it did add muscle mass, I wasn’t happy with myself, I knew something was missing.

Luckily, I found mountain biking, which has become my favorite spring-summer-fall activity to date. I like it almost as much as I do snowboarding, which is the single-most enjoyable activity I do. I re-found my passion for cardio and endurance, along with some adrenaline, in mountain biking, which also has reacquainted me with my other love, running. I guess I’m a polygamist. (I should probably stop saying, “love” or I’m going to kill it’s meaning) In fact, I just signed up for the XTERRA Triathlon at Walnut Creek Park on August 22, which involves an 11.6 mile trail ride and 4 mile trail run. Super! More on how that turns out later…

All this cardio, along with a friend of mine, sparked life into my lifting routine. As a college student, there simply isn’t much time to lift, run, party, etc. So I have started incorporating both cardio and weight training into one: circuit training. I usually start out by running 3 miles or so, to get the blood flowing. Stretch after. Then I pick 6 exercises that encompass a majority of the muscles, and do them consecutively in a row, without resting. Then rest for a minute, and repeat. Do this 3 times initially, and see how you feel. I like to focus on lifting my body weight in different ways. For example, I will pick push-ups (try varying this with small weights), pull-ups (vary the styles: bicep or lat specific), dips, abs, and alternate some other dumbbell exercises. I sweat bullets doing this. I think circuit training will really help me in preparation for my triathlon. Oh yeah, and make sure you eat afterwards. Protein is key. Try mixing peanut butter, milk, a banana, and berries in a blender.
That was a brief bio, and I hope to write more in depth articles later!

Always wear sunscreen, get adequate sleep and take your multi-vitamins
-Skylar

No! Not Speedwork!

Hey everyone!

I'm squeezing in a quick post today and will inform you all about my meeting with San Diego nutritionist Rob Yang by the end of the week!

My life at home has been so busy. I'm working 40 hours a week as an office clerk to make some extra money to pay my parents back for all of the wonderful traveling I was able to do this summer. So working 8 hours a day and fitting in workouts has been rough but definitely worth it.

Now that I've been running for a while, it's time for me to start improving my race times. To do this it's going to take a lot of speed work. And if you know me, you know I pretty much despise speedwork. I'm sure I will fall in love with it eventually someday though. For this upcoming race I'm going to throw in more tempo runs and longer distances at race pace to get me ready for a half in September (which is going to be Shelby's first!).

This morning I did a 40 minute tempo run, my first tempo run in a WHILE.

What is a tempo run you ask? I found a pretty great definition for it at news.runintown.com:
"Tempo runs are workouts where you run at a steady pace that is around 70% to 80% of your max aerobic capacity. Tempo runs are just past the point where you begin to build up waste product in your legs at a rapid rate during a run, which is called the lactate-threshold velocity."

According to the running phenom Hal Higdon when training for a half-marathon a tempo run should be "a continuous run with a buildup in the middle to near 10-K race pace."

The run went well. I was pretty sore from my trail run yesterday, which was a pretty amazing 5.5 mile run with views like this.

Since my quads were feelin a bit rough I took a longer warm up and then sped up significantly for about 15 minutes. It was hard because the trails around my house in San Diego are pretty hilly but I enjoyed the challenge. Then it was a nice cool down to the Kings of Leon Pandora station on my iPhone. It was an awesome way to start the day.

-Alexis