Happy Memorial Day!

Soooo I may have taken a little hiatus from blogging for a couple days - but fear not! I'm back to brighten your day (:

fit happenings.
Let's rewind to Saturday! I had my first 5 mile race! First of all, I think I'm really getting the hang of a pre-race routine. For breakfast, I had a piece of whole wheat toast with almond and flax butter with an orange on the side (this is becoming a tradition for me) which I ate on the way there. I was a bit nervous at the starting line, but I don't think that will ever go away no matter how many runs I do! There were wayyyy more people at this race than any of the ones I've done before on top of that.

Plus there was a Spin-a-thon going on that I had no idea about!!

I actually knew most of the spin instructors from work and they told me they also run a program in July where they simulate the Tour-de-France! They were trying to convince me to join it, but I'm not too sure how I feel about that - however, it's totally a real possibility.

Anyways, back to the race! It started in downtown Youngstown and ran through Mill Creek Park around Lake Glacier and then back to the YMCA. I pushed myself the whole time, chanting little things in my head like "Don't stop!" and "You can do it!" (Cheesy, I know - don't laugh!) There was a monstrous hill right at the start of mile 4 which I wanted to maim someone for, but I pushed through and finished in 47:07! That's a personal record for me!! I was ecstatic to say the very least, I actually think I'm still high on it now lol!

On a side note, I've learned that no one takes a good picture after running any amount of time in the blistering sun. I didn't place in the top three for my age group - third place ran it in 44:36 - but I was okay with that. The overall winner was a boy from Kenya who ran it in 25 minutes!!! I was floored. This kid was straight BOOKING.

For my next race, I really want to try to do better than a 9 minute mile. I'm not sure if it's in the cards for me, but I'm going to be doing more HIIT runs as well as possibly a couple little lower body workout sessions. We'll see what kind of information I can dig up!

fresh eats.
After the race, I was famished so I quickly created this little feast.

I cut up my remaining veggie burger and threw it in a wrap with some roasted asparagus and potatoes on the side. Mmmmmmm I was in lunch heaven! I love asparagus, it's so easy to make and it tastes awesome!! Crunchy and a little sweet. Just yum.

Another advancement on the fresh eats front - I had my first OIAJ! Sadly, I only had a little bit of White Chocolate Wonderful left...

...so I took the opportunity to throw together some Chocolate Chocolate Chip Oats in a Jar at work!

Wow. I can't believe I've waited so long to try this out! Eating out of a jar is just something the feels so sinful - I loved every second of it!

Seriously delicious. Well blog loves, I'm off once more! It's grill time baby - fire it up!! I've got to abercize and run before my family cookout, I hope you guys all have a great Memorial Day!

If you're going to be outside, don't forget the sunscreen!