Fun Times on a Favorite Trail

Do you have a favorite little home town race? You know, one that keeps you coming back every year?

It's true, I enjoy the big races...with their official timing mats and fancy tech shirts (in gender-specific sizing, none the less). They usually have nice bling and draw a huge crowd, some even have bountiful post-race spreads of food and drink.

But, often times, those big events lack the small town charm the smaller races offer. One such (somewhat) small event that I have done numerous times is the Grimes Farm Run.

Now That's More Like It

Ah, now that's more like it.

The mild weather. The increasing daylight. The on-going fitness. Life is good.

What all went down this past week, and why are things feeling pretty good?

Runfessions, Anyone?

There's been a lot of interesting stuff happening.

And I have had a lot of interesting thoughts on the matter. It's a good thing it's that time of the month...you know, when we runners can bare it all among one another and breathe a huge sigh of relief.

Runfessions, anyone? I'll share a few of mine with you....

If These Shoes Could Talk...

If your running shoes could talk, what would they say?

Probably a lot.

Is there anything we love more about running than our shoes?  Well, yes, we love our running friends, we love our bling, we love the rush of adrenaline at the start lines...but oh, how we love our shoes. Seriously, the shoes are the major players that make it all possible.

The (weather) Pendulum Swings Back...

Seriously, We keep going from one extreme to the other.

Momma N is up to her old games again. Last weekend, it was bitterly cold...like sub-ZERO with "feels like" temps. And, this weekend, we entertained late spring-like weather. Mind you, I am NOT complaining about the warm up, but a little transition between the two extremes would be appreciated.

As I have said before, if you can't beat Momma N, call her bluff and face her head-on.
Here's how I stayed in the game...

What's to love about winter?

Winter fitness is not for the faint of heart.

I say that as a 13-year veteran of winter running.

It's no secret that I much prefer the heat (and even the humidity) of summer. As an Iowa gal, though,  cold winters are my reality for several months every year. Although I do a fair amount of whining and complaining about the winter weather, I don't let it keep me inside (much). My glass is always half full, even in the midst of cold fingers and frozen toes, because every run is a blessing.

No gym? No Excuses!

Did you know a gym is not a requirement for a good workout?

Easy for me to say, right? After all, I am a runner, and 98.999% of my runs happen in a non-gym setting (and, most of those runs also happen outdoors, in all kinds of extreme temps and weather conditions).

Granted, I do have a treadmill, but it's no secret that I seldom use it. I don't have a gym membership, nor do I have a viable space in my house for a home gym. I do manage to work out almost every day, though, in some capacity.

I believe if I can find a way to make the workouts happen, anyone else can too.