Happy Monday, friends! And welcome, November (how did that happen?)  This past weekend was one to remember - I ran my first half marathon! And it wasn't that bad. My mom and her boyfriend also came to visit to cheer me and Chelsey on while we slogged ran. 

Chelsey and I headed to the expo after work on Friday to pick up our packets and a plethora of free stuff including a ton of mini Lara Bars. SCORE! After the expo we headed to Mercato, a fabulous Italian restaurant with homemade pasta. We both had amazing pasta dishes to carb up. No pics because we were too busy savoring :)

Race Day

Saturday morning rolled around and it was time to wake up at 5:30 a.m.! I made myself a bowl of oats with peanut butter, some coffee, and my mom and I made our way down to the race around 7:30 in the freezing cold. Chelsey and I were in coral 31, so we didn't actually start running until about 8:30. However, the sun came up once we started running and it felt great!

The first 8 miles are actually kind of a blur. They went by SO fast, there was a lot of adrenaline and we both felt really great. The first 5 miles were through the city and the remainder was a flat road along the river. Such a great course! 

Around the half way mark, my cousin Sara was working at the medical tent so she ran along with us for about a half mile and snapped some pics:  After mile 9 it became all mental. Everything felt great except my ankles - they were screaming! We just did everything we could to keep our minds off of the suck and finish strong. We finished in 2:26 and our goal was 2:30! And then the next day at the New York City Marathon (26.2 people!) the woman winner finished in 2:24! We may not be the fastest but we were happy to be running and having a blast. 

After chugging a chocolate milk at the finish line, we headed back to the hotel we were staying at for the weekend to shower and get some food. We ended up heading to Reading Terminal Market and stopping by The Original Turkey  for some fresh carved turkey club sandwiches. I inhaled mine in .000345 seconds. After refueling, we headed to the Field House Bar (home of the Philly Gator Club) to watch the Gators dominate the Bulldogs. 

We ended the night with dinner in Chinatown and I was passed out by 9:30. It was an awesome day and weekend. So glad that I could spend time with my family.

After SEVERAL jam-packed weekends, I'm totally looking forward to doing a lot of nothing next weekend :)

P.S. I didn't even end up listening to it, but I will share my half marathon playlist soon. I was really excited for it, but we had more fun chatting during the whole race.

XO -Rach

How was your weekend?

Have you run a half before? If not, would you ever want to?

HAPPY FRIDAY! We made it through another great week. I cannot believe we're already at the end of October. I'm sad to see it go - so many great things happened this month. On the flip side, it was a very BUSY month and I'm looking forward to a fresh start in November and getting myself a bit more organized. Does anyone else feel that toward the end of the month you're just a little scrambled? Just me? Cool. 

Finds:

Michael came home with a a couple nights ago - these Angie's Boom Chicka Pop Holidrizzle flavors  including Pumpkin Spice & Candy Corn Kettle Corn. Oh YEAH. He also brought home these chocolates that he found at Whole Foods - one with energy and one with melatonin. This was actually on #NationalChocolateDay! There's a chocolate for everything.  

Around the web:

Improve Ankle Strength & Mobility - Tomorrow I'm running my first half marathon and my ankles were hurtin' bad on my last few long runs. I found this article really helpful if you're in the same boat! 

These Salmon Asparagus Muffins from Jess at hellotofit.com! These just look incredible and such a great on-the-go breakfast. 

10 Easy Ways to Save $250 This Week - I spend too much money on coffee! 

This Pumpkin Banana Bread with Cream Cheese Swirl from Jen at peanutbutterrunner.com are drool-worthy and I think she's inspired me to enter the Chiquita Banana Recipe Contest if I have the time on Sunday!

Happenings:

My mom is coming tonight so that she can watch me slowly crawl run the Philly Rock 'n' Roll half marathon! I am excited to run my first half, but honestly I'm more excited to get it over with. Training for this half marathon has taught me a lot of things, but mostly that my body isn't really made for long distance running. But more on that another day, I'm just going to focus on having fun and sticking with my goal of running the entire race! 

Listening to:

If you listen to podcasts at all, I recommend Switched on Pop. Michael is a podcast enthusiast and gives me many recommendations. I think this is my favorite so far. The episodes feature two guys who take apart and analyze today's biggest music hits. It's SO cool. My favorite episode so far has been about The Weeknd's I Can't Feel My Face. If you know music theory at all or you just plain love music, this podcast is the jam. 

Current favorites: 

XO - Rach

Do you have any favorite Podcasts?

What are you loving this week?

We've all been there, done that. Eating and drinking just a little too much - maybe just during the weekend or the span of an entire week, month, what have you. It happens! Rather than beating ourselves up for it, we can take a more proactive approach. Let me tell you, last week I ate and drank all kinds of crazy good food and wine. Although I still managed to get in some exercise, eating a lot of heavy foods and sugar really does take a little toll on my body. 

So, instead of skipping meals, doing a 'master cleanse' (ugh, cringe) or getting all upset about it, here are a few simple tips that can help to get you back on track! 

Drink Water

Drink water and drink a ton of it! Even though it makes you feel full, drinking a ton of water is the best thing you can do after overeating or indulging. It will help clear out your system and keep you hydrated. After I eat a big, unhealthy meal, I always feel SO thirsty! Eating out a lot can add a lot of unwanted sodium into your system, and the only way to counteract that is with some H2O. Get crazy and add some lemon to it. Keep a full bottle near you all day. I found this awesome Zinger water bottle that lets you squeeze and infuse citrus juice into the bottle - perfect for all those water haters. 

Move Ya Body

Although you might feel a bit slow, moving your body is important. Chances are you're feeling a little sluggish from the lack of nutrients or excess refined sugar & carbohydrates that you've consumed. One of the best ways to get those energy levels back is to sweat it out. You don't have to go crazy, even a light workout will do, like this one! Two things that help me are getting outside and wearing long sleeves or pants. Fresh air does wonders. You can also wear long sleeves or pants during a workout if you really want to sweat and keep your body temperature warm. 

Don't Skip Meals

Don't be tempted. The only way to keep your metabolism going is if you fuel your body! Stick with a lot of protein, fiber and fresh produce to keep you feeling full. Think of it as adding all the good fuel back in to replace the not-so-good fuel. 

Don't Stress

Seriously, don't get your panties all in a wad. So you ate some delicious meals and drank a little too much wine? Great, you're enjoying life. 

XO  - Rach

What are some things you do that make you feel better after indulging?