Tag: random

27 Facts about Me

Today is my 27th birthday.  I’m one step closer to matching my grandma soul with my actual age.  After 21, most of the birthdays kind of blend together.  I’ve been blogging for nearly 6 years now, so I thought it would be fun to share 27 facts you may or may not know about me.  It was actually difficult to come up with because as a blogger all I do is talk about myself…

  1. I was born in San Diego. I remember nothing because I was a baby.
  2. Since my dad was in the Navy, we lived and traveled to a lot of cool places. I grew up in England as well as Japan. Ultimately, I went to high school in Virginia.
  3. I still have relatives that live on the Orkney Islands just north of Scotland.
  4. Growing up in England, I actually went to a British school for a while.  When we moved back to the US, I had a British accent for a long time.
  5. Before swimming, I dabbled in many sports including soccer, tennis, and basketball.  I was terrible at all of them.  I never scored any goals in soccer or baskets in basketball.  When I was 6, I threw my tennis racket at another kid making fun of me.
  6. My favorite color is yellow. This useless tidbit will help you no way.
  7. Before 2012, my blog was actually called LOLZthatSwim. Then I started running.  Then I quit swimming.  So first I added LOLZthatSwim(Run) then ultimately just went with FueledbyLOLZ (incase I decide to do something completely different).  Who knows maybe I’ll rebrand to BasketballingLOLZ…

    If you remember this header, you win the internet today.
  8. I don’t want a lot of TV shows but do follow: Americas Next Top Model, Americas Got Talent (Can you tell Tyra Banks is my favorite celebrity).
  9. I like to read more nonfiction than fiction. Most of my favorite books are biographies or autobiographies.
  10. I don’t like dogs. I’m sorry I don’t. I’ve been attacked by a couple.  I will tolerate them, and I’ll never harm one, but I’m not a dog person.  Left to my own, I won’t adopt a dog.
  11. One semester in college, I held the record for eating the most giant pancakes at a local diner. That was a semester I ran and swam. 
  12. I have three brothers. Most people don’t know but I also have an older brother living in Seattle.  (As well as a brother in the military and one living in VA).
  13. I was on homecoming court in high school.  The glory days?  Probably not, but I got to ride around on my dad’s car in homecoming parade with my good friend D, so it’s all a win.
  14. My parents have a pet donkey. You can read about how they acquired that here.

    Hello ladiez
  15. I studied math and education until senior year of college, and then ended up changing majors to public health. Many long term readers know this!
  16. My favorite foods are squid, eel, and steak. I definitely like my protein!
  17. My favorite nonrunning brands include: JCrew, BCBG, and Kate Spade.
  18. During my first half marathon in 2012, I listened to the song “Party Rock Anthem” on repeat for the entire race.  I don’t know why, but I didn’t hate it.

    At my very first half marathon, April 2011. One of five races I have worn leggings in.
  19. My first car was a 2000 Pontiac Firebird that I had for 8 years.  That was my baby.

    Posing on my 21st birthday (but not driving 😉
  20.  Some of my favorite music includes Taylor Swift, Fleetwood Mac, and Nikki Minaj.  You never really know what you are going to get when you ride in a car with me.
  21. My favorite cake flavors are red velvet (which is actually just rich chocolate), orange and chocolate or cherry and chocolate.  If you were planning to get me a birthday cake, then please just make sure there is a lot of frosting.

    Let’s pretend my hair was never this color
  22. Speaking of hair, I’ve dyed my hair almost every natural color.  Black, bleach blond, auburn/red and brown.  Ultimately, I believe my hair looks best darker brown but I let it fade out in the summer. Hair is hair and will probably grow back eventually…
  23. I don’t chew gum (at all).  In college, I chewed gum a lot.  I went through an entire pack each day.  I decided I didn’t like when people chewed gum talking to me, it sometimes it made me feel bloated, and I couldn’t see any advantages to it.  So I just quit cold turkey in 2011.
  24. I love going to the zoo and animaconservationon centers.  My favorite animal is a black leopard but I like any big cats.

    Tigers for Tomorrow Dekalb Alabama
    Tigers for Tomorrow in Dekalb, AL
  25. I don’t like Kombucha juice.  I know it’s trendy but I tried it once and it made queasy.  I’ll let you guys have it…
  26. In college, I receieved the most fashion forward/trendy award…my how the times have changed.

    College graduation
  27. My goal for age 27 is to continue to live life and stay as sponateous as possible.  During college and a few years after, I suffered from anxiety when I couldn’t control a situation.  After marrying someone in the military, you learn…you can’t control anything!  It’s allowed me to take a step back and relax.  My life has definitely not gone anything like I ever imagined but I could not be happier!

Hope you enjoyed!  Tell me a fun fact about you!

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A Day in the Life on Global Running Day

I don’t typically blog “day in the life” posts, and actually, I haven’t been blogging much on Fridays either.  I run out of things to say by Friday, or I don’t feel like blogging.

I’m not sure how it happened, but Wednesday was one of the busiest, but most fun days I’ve had in awhile so I thought I would share.  It doesn’t hurt that it was Global Running Day either.

If you followed LOLZ blog last year, you might remember seeing one of my friends Montana.  Montana is a good friend, and I ran and raced with her several times.  Unfortunately, (but fortunately), a job took her to Rhode Island.

She was back in town for a couple of days, so we were able to start Global Running Day together with my longest run in a while (6 miles).  The run flew by, and it was one of the best I’ve had in a while.  As I continue running, I can’t say it feels amazing, but I feel mentally good about where I’m at right now.

After that I got ready to head up to North Jersey.  I like New Jersey for many reasons but since it’s a small state, driving “across the state”, isn’t a big deal.  When I lived in Texas, it was also 90 minutes to drive to a big city.

I met up with my friend Devon at the Urban Griddle in Newark for a date and what better place than a diner?  Devon is one of my good friends; I just wish we lived closer! She recently ran the Boston Marathon and PRed with a 3:06.

After a fun couple of hours, I made the trek back home.  As most people know, the New Jersey Turnpike is great…until it’s not.  The Delaware Memorial Bridge had a construction fire and they closed it completely down.  It’s the main arterty of East Coast travel.  They also completely shut down the turnpike at exit 4 (my exit).

This created a massive backup on both the turnpike and 295.  The Garden State is typically known for traffic, but it’s unusual for it to be on the turnpike on a weekday.

That was no big deal, except with every vehicle getting off and going through the toll at exit 4, it created a huge backup.  It took me over 90 minutes to go 3 miles.  Needless to say, I spent most of the time contemplating my escape route incase I had to use the bathroom.

After that, I stopped at home for enough time to eat and headed off to work.  As most people know, I work at a running store and you have to celebrate Global Running Day there right?

We had a big group run complete with raffles from various shoe companies and Lululemon.  We had a tremendous turnout with over 200+ people.  As much as I would love to have run with the group, it’s important for me to take things at my pace right now.  (Plus I ran with Montana and I didn’t need a bonus run).

Finally, I got back home at 9 and by that time, I was ready to go to bed.  (Not that that is any different than any other day).  In all, it was a great and wonderful day.  I caught up with so many friends and it made me appreciate the sport even more than I do now.

Questions for you:

How did you spend Global Running Day? 

Do you like to stay busy or prefer relaxing time? 

Summer Loving

It’s been a while since I’ve done a traditional “Thinking Out Loud” style post.

With the start of summer, I thought I would include some of my favorite things and thoughts.  These are all products I’ve been using frequently and all things I like.  I’m not being paid to promote anything although if there is a season 5, I would love to be on Orange is the New Black.

So what am I loving?

Cardio: 

Lately, I’ve loved the pool.  I can probably guarantee, once I’m running again I won’t go too often but right now it’s been okay and kept my cardio up.

swimming

Entertainment:

Orange is the New Black: Last Tuesday, Lindsey interviewed me for her Podcast: “Can I have Another”?  She mentioned I should get into the Netflix show: Orange is the New Black. Before last week, I had heard of the show before but hadn’t seen an episode…then I watched one episode last Tuesday.  Followed by season 1, season 2 and season 3.  Now I’m just starting season 4 so you can see how that went.  Being sick and unable to run has its advantages (I guess).

Podcasts: Obviously I like Can I have Another by Lindsey.  She’s interviewed a bunch of interesting and fun people.  I like listening while getting ready for work on Friday mornings.  Even if you aren’t a runner, you’ll enjoy the conversation.  I feel like I’m just hanging out (or evesdropping) on someone’s conversation.

Food:

I’ve basically been eating anything with Calcium and Vitamin D: As I mentioned earlier this week, both my Calcium and Vitamin D levels came back in the normal range.  That being said, I’m still attempting to get as much as possible without overdosing or getting a kidney stone.  Luckily for smoothies, milk and cheese.

Sunwarrior sent me a few samples of their latest meal replacement shake powders to try. While I’m not running, 160 calories is a nice snack.  The new Illumin8 mix has a blend of protein, carbohydrates, and fats.  It’s not a full meal, but it’s a good pick me up in the afternoon.  I’ve been blending them with ice, milk, cocoa powder and sweetener.  For one of them, I added leftover beets which surprisingly tasted great and made me feel healthier.

Sunwarrior Protein Illumin8

After trying the samples they sent, I think I’m going to go purchase more.  I like the taste, and extra protein is not a bad thing for me right now.

 

Workout Related:

I’m doing all of my walking around in the Asics Quantum 360.  I nicknamed the shoe, the tank because there is so much support and cushion.  I ran in it for a while but because it’s the most cushioned shoe I’ve ever owned in the forefront, it got the promotion of moving from my running shoe to my only shoe.  asics quantum

This weekend I plan to run in the newest Asics Cumulus.  I love my Saucony shoes, but I need a shoe with more cushion in the forefront right now.  Who knows, the newest Hoka Clifton 3s are wider and actually fit my feet..so they might make a cameo on LOLZ blog.

So that’s what I’ve been up to and enjoying the last few days. 

Questions for you:

What have you been enjoying lately?

What is your favorite recipe? 

Random Thoughts…

I had a different post for today and then I got sick and didn’t write it. Oh well, I guess…

So it’s a completely random, thinking out loud post.

On Monday around 6:30 pm, I felt extremely fatigued and tired.  The fatigue came on within 30 minutes and by 7:30, I found myself laying in bed.  I slept through the night until 5:30 am on Tuesday.  I thought I would sleep away my migraine. However, that wasn’t the case, and I felt worse on Tuesday.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, I slept for a total of 30 hours.  Today, Thursday, I am feeling better but not great.  No I haven’t run, and I’m okay with that…I’ve pretty much sat on my bed or slept for the last two days.

For obvious reasons, this week I haven’t been running at all, and I’m okay with it.  I planned to take a short break this summer, and it happened to be sooner versus later.  There is no shame in that.

Speaking of running, what are my plans this Summer and Fall?

I’m currently tossing around different ideas of half marathons in the Fall.  I had thought about committing to a full marathon this fall, but I’m not entirely sure I want too.  I’m happy where I currently am and don’t have any complaints.  Half marathons seem to be my “sweet spot” right now. I have plenty of years to try a marathon again…if I even want too…

This summer, I’ll be running local races.  The only major race I’ll be doing is the Boilermaker 15k in Utica on July 10th.  Knock on wood of course, because everytime I sign up for the Boilermaker I get injured.  There are a lot of local 5-10ks around here this summer so I’ll be running those.  Do I think the hot and humid summer will bring PRs?  No, probably not but I’ll enjoy getting out there and racing.

So what else have I been up too in the last two weeks?

As most people have figured out, my Instagram and Twitter have been more of my daily life updates.  Blogging about life is pretty boring for the most part…go for a run…go to work…go to a diner…something along the lines.  One line social media posts are a bit easier for that.

lauren and I

I went to a wedding last weekend down in Maryland.  Despite the rain, the Bride and Groom had a beautiful day. I didn’t let the rain affect my attitude either.

me umbrella rainy day

Finally here are A Few Recent Posts incase you missed them:

Quick Core Ideas for Runners

Track Meet Mile (5:40)

Random Musings of the Week

Oomph what a week but I decided to participate in a thinking out loud post and update you on my life!

This week has not been optimal for sleep.  I don’t know why I’m not sleeping well, but I’ve found myself tossing and turning most days of the week.  I need 8+ hours of sleep to function well.  I’ve said before, some people can function on 2-3 hours, however, I’m not one of those people.  

Hopefully I can focus on getting some sleep for the next few days. 

So what else is going on?

Let’s start with the good news.  I was recently selected to be on the Rock N Roll #rocknblog team.  I’ve run a few Rock N Roll races, including Virginia Beach in 2014 and 2016 as well as Philadelphia this year.  I’ve always had a great time and so when I saw there were applications, I decided to apply.  I thought, why not me?

Rock N Roll RockNblog

I received an email a couple of days ago saying I was accepted.  To be honest, I was surprised!  I don’t apply to be an ambassador unless I already like something a lot…to me, it’s too much commitment.

So what does this mean for my running and racing? 

I will run a few more RnR races.  I’m hoping to travel a little bit, and RnR Denver, Chicago and Seattle have all peaked my interest.  Since I’m not made of money to fly for every race, I probably won’t make it to all of them (or maybe any?).  I will do RnR Virginia Beach again.  Surprisingly though, the timing of Philadelphia probably won’t work for me.

I will say, I don’t have plans to take midrace selfies and will still race as if I’m paying for the race.  My only obligation for #rocknblog is to have fun and of course promote the race series too.  To me, “having fun”, is running well and being able to smile at the finish line.  For others “having fun” is about posing at various signs and statues during the race…whatever floats your fun boat!

I feel like that is my big and exciting news of the week…can the rest of my post even compare?

I found a mysterious crack at the bottom of my windshield.  My guess is a rock hit directly underneath my wiper causing a huge crack.  It was invisible to the driver or passenger.  I was cleaning my windshield from the salt only to lift the wiper and see a noticeable crack.  The entire windsheild had to be replaced, and it was not cheap.  Much cheaper than my previous Pontiac Firebird, which I do believe half of the car was a giant windshield.

One of the few photos I have left of my car...seriously all windshield
One of the few photos I have left of my car…seriously all windshield

Moving on, a few people have asked how my skin has been since my antibiotic problems.  In summary, I went on a new antibiotic which took over two months to feel good again.  Before October, I had never had any issues with antibiotics.  I never had any reactions and I honestly have a stomach of steel.  Then in October, everything was thrown off and even after going off the medication I felt off.

Now I’m not longer taking an oral antibiotic and just using topical gels.  My physical health and my skin have been a lot better since just using the topical gel.

Questions for you:
Have you run a Rock N Roll race? Is there one I should look into traveling for?
What’s a random fact about your day?

The Most Random Post

I haven’t done a traditional style “thinking out loud” for a while.  What am I thinking about this week?

Who really cares…I doubt anyone was at the edge of their seat waiting…

It’s been a rough welcome back to New Jersey.  I’m not shy about admitting that snow is my thing.  After going to college in the tundra of Upstate, NY where it was too cold for snow, I’m done with it.  At least in Upstate, they plowed the roads efficiently.

LOLZ red dot indicates where I went to college
LOLZ red dot indicates where I went to college
I will admit, however, I was extremely impressed with how well the roads and the Philadelphia airport parking lot was plowed.  Not having to dig my car out at 11:30 at night was a nice surprise.

It was Christmas!
It was Christmas!
Complaining about the weather doesn’t change the fact that is winter so realistically we just need to make it through February.

In addition, to the weather change I’m transitioning back to East Coast time.  Now I feel “young again” because I’m up until midnight and wake up at 8-9.  Versus crashing at 9pm…that will be next week.

A little late but I don’t know if I’ve ever discussed on the blog.  I’m a Panthers fan and the team is going to the Super Bowl.  Am I die hard, scream at the TV type of person?  No but I have followed the team and games since freshman year of college.  This year was the first year I didn’t do a fantasy football team with them winning every day (literally I have for the last 6 years…) and of course this happens.  Oh well, Kevin and I might not be freinds after this game.

I’m a Panthers fan, and we are going to the Super Bowl.  Am I die hard, scream at the TV type of person?  No, but I have followed the team and games since freshman year of college.  This was the first year I didn’t do a fantasy football team with them winning every single game (literally I have for the last six years…) and of course, this happens.

So what else am I thinking about?
A Spring Race schedule of course! I’m going back to my two favorite half marathons.

Shamrock Half (Virginia Beach) 
This is one of the best, and well put together races.  If you are looking for a good Spring half or full marathon, this is your best bet. shamrock 3

April Fools half (Atlantic City)
I am going to run the April Fools half marathon in Atlantic City.  It was my favorite race in 2014, unfortunately (LOLOLOL), I got married the same day last year.

I guess that is all I have for now, and I’ll go for a run.

Question for you: Tell me a random thought you’re having right now. 

Rotating Shoes

My current rotation of running shoes includes all of the following:
Saucony Triumph ISO 2 (for long or easy runs)
Saucony Zealot and Nike Pegasus 32 (for race warmups, workouts or a daily run)
Saucony A6 (for workouts, races)
Occasionally the Asics Quantum for recovery runs when I want to feel nothing.

Rotating Shoes

As you can see, I use six pairs of shoes.  There isn’t a single shoe that can do every workout.  I wouldn’t want to do a long run in a racing flat, and I would prefer not to race in a trainer.

That leads to one of the most common running gear questions:

Should you train in multiple pairs of running shoes?

The answer is yes!  No single shoe can serve the purpose of all of your training needs.  Plus rotating through multiple pairs shoes can extend the life of a shoe and help to prevent injury.

Rotating through two pairs of the same shoe will prolong the lifespan of the shoe, but you will still be working the same muscles.

How does it reduce injury?

By rotating through a few pairs of shoes, your gait and running form will change slightly in each pair of shoes.  The cushioning of each brand and each shoe varies from shoe to shoe.  Your muscles will work slightly differently which will cause different muscles to become stronger.  It will also create fewer overuse issues because you’ll be using different muscles.

How does it extend the life of a shoe?

If you use the same shoe daily, the cushioning will continue to compress.  The cushioning or foam will break down instead of bouncing back to recover.  Having multiple shoes allows each pair to have their own “rest days” even if you don’t.

An important thing to note:

It’s great to rotate through several pairs of shoes, but you should be using shoes that are still fit and appropriate for your foot type.  Using a very stable shoe and a minimal shoe could multiply your ability to get injured versus reducing it.  Make sure that the shoes you are using are compatible for you.  Not every running shoe works for every person.

Questions for you:
Do you rotate through shoes?