Back by No one's Demand!!! :)

Stitch Fix #13!

After 2.5 months, I decided to blog again;  I missed writing, and now that I'm not training for a marathon, I have a few more minutes in the day to do one of the things I love.  Maybe the 80" of snow on the ground, or biting cold temperatures had made me feel gloomy,  but yesterday's 50 degree temperatures helped get me out of a funk.

  Since I last posted, I have run 1 race (the Mid-Winter Classic) on February 1st and have received 3 Stitch Fixes.  Last night, I received Stitch Fix #13 (*number is probably not accurate, it's somewhere around 13.)  I am training for 2 races- both are half-marathons (Great Bay Half and the Wallis Sands Half.)

**Mid-Winter Classic Recap**

I was nervous going into this race; it was my first 10 mile race ever, and the race happened to fall right after one of our 500 snowstorms of this Winter.  Plus, it was the first race I was going to do after the Honolulu Marathon. Luckily, I was going to be running with some of my girlfriends, so that helped a lot to have familiar faces around!  I did want to race it, and take advantage of some of my lingering marathon fitness.  My goal going into the race was to try and finish between 1:15-1:20 with less than an eight minute mile pace.

The morning of the race, I had my usual Ray's NY Bagel (the closest thing to actual NY bagels that you can find in New Hampshire) with almond butter.  My friends and I met each other at the liquor store at the traffic circle, not to pre-game, but to carpool.  The temperatures were pretty cold, and we heard rumors that the course's conditions were not going to be good.  I went back and forth about wearing trail shoes to help with traction on icy roads, but eventually settled on my favorite race shoes, the Saucony Type A6.  They are racing flats, but are very comfortable for all distances- and mentally, they make me feel faster.  I wanted to be warm enough so I wore my Under Armour fleece-lined tights..these are by far, my favorite tights ever- and so cheap for tights! Check them out here.
I wore my Saucony 26 Strong hoodie that we got in Honolulu and my Six03 Endurance shirt over the hoodie.  I was cold at first, but felt fine throughout the race.

The course was super hilly, with lots of fast runners- the first few miles were a lot of rolling hills (actually, the whole course was a lot of rolling hills.) The course ended up being ice-free, and very well organized by the race's volunteers.  Around the 5th mile, there was some ice, but nothing bad.

  I felt pretty good for most of the race, but around the 9th mile, I felt like I had the worst brain freeze ever and started to not be able to see straight!  Now that I type that out, it sounds a lot scarier than it actually was...I was probably just tired and in need of a donut.  Just before the finish line, I saw my friend Laurie cheering- that helped me push through the last little bit.

  Despite not being able to see straight through the finish line, I ended up finishing in 1:19, and luckily, my vision was soon restored!
  After the run, my friends and I all went to Whole Foods in Portland for coffee..and I got a donut!

With my next half-marathon in less than a month, I am hoping to add more long runs into my training...it's been difficult with the constant snow, but I've been been watching Orange is the New Black and Scandal* on the treadmill.

*PS- I've decided that if recruiting doesn't work out, I should probably work for Olivia Pope with my master super sleuth internet research skills.  (self-decided.)

Stitch Fix #13!

I have three other Stitch Fixes to talk about, but I'll only do my most recent one.  For the past three months, I have been asking my stylist to PLEASE not send me anymore scarves, skinny jeans or polyester blouses.  I'm not really a scarf person, and I have way too many skinny jeans.  Wide-legged jeans and pants are coming back in, and I really wanted a pair.  Last month, I didn't get a pair, so I was very excited to see them when I opened up my Stitch Fix, yesterday!

I was really nervous that the pants were going to be too short, I have a 35" inseam, so it's hard to find pants that fit well.  I was SO excited when I tried on the pants and they were just long enough! Neil thought they looked like mom jeans...but whatever.  I kept them.

Then, I tried on a striped lightweight sweater.  It was cute, and would look good with cutoffs in the Summer or with my sexy mom jeans. Keep!
  The next piece of clothing was a  light green shirt with bat wings...I forget what the style is called, but it legit had bat wings, or flying squirrel wings.  That shirt got a big thumbs down from everyone. No way, Jose.  See, now I'm talking like I wear mom jeans.

  Then, I tried on a purple colorblock sweater;  I thought it was super cute, and pretty reasonably priced- keep!
  Finally, I tried on a sleeveless silk tank that looked like it was printed with exploding butterflies; it also made me look 7 months pregnant.  Return.



So that's some of my life of late- I'm hoping I will be able to blog at least once a week!