This post contains Affiliate links. See Disclosure for details. Opinions are my own. It’s Important For Runners To Strength Train So to be honest, I ran for a long time before I added strength training to my fitness routine. And if I had known how important it was to strength train, I would have started much earlier. Especially when I was training for big races like my half-marathon. But I didn’t and lesson learned! Strength training is not just for people who are looking to tone muscles or bulk-up. It can play a big role in your running and your run performance. And if you truly want to be athletic, you need to do more than just run. Strength training has me focusing on other areas such as balance, flexibility, and strength. All of which makes me a much better runner. So, do you find yourself getting the same running injuries over and over? Or have you been running for a while but not getting any faster? It’s time to start strength training. Help Tight Muscles Due to the nature of running, it is really easy to overuse very specific muscles. This overuse is what leads to cramping, often in […]
Running a half marathon is my greatest physical accomplishment to date. Honestly, just thinking about all the training and effort that went into preparing for that run can still make me feel a little emotional. I went from being a non-runner to running a 10 km race and a half marathon in the same year. And doing that took a lot of work! Before I started running I had already had a weight loss of about 60 lb. I had done that weight loss mostly through nutrition and some exercise here and there. I talk more about my weight loss in this post if you’re curious. But I knew that if I wanted to take my health and weight loss even further that I needed to add consistent exercise. So to make sure I didn’t quit exercising, I signed up for a 10 km and a half marathon. I know, I’m crazy. This post contains affiliate links. See Disclosure for details. Opinions are my own. For a full year, I made running my obsession. Everything I did was because of running. I focused in on my nutrition for the first time in my life because eating crap made my runs […]
This post contains Affiliate links. See Disclosure for details. Opinions are my own. Maybe it’s because I started running in the summer that I enjoy summer running as much as I do. Because despite the heat, I enjoy it much more than running inside on treadmills with the A/C. Summer running can be really enjoyable if you know how to keep yourself comfortable in the heat. I’ve talked about my first few runs and that experience in previous posts. But basically, I went into that first run without a lot of thought. It was a hot day and all I did was put on a pair of random shoes and off I went. I didn’t really think about the heat, the sun, how far I was going, and whether or not I’d get thirsty. Honestly, none of that really entered my head, I had just wanted to try running. I had a good playlist so I felt ready to go. And that would have been fine if I had been running on a treadmill. But a little more consideration needs to go into summer running. Read my tips and enjoy running outside this summer! Wear A Hat It took me […]
This post may contain affiliate links. See Disclosure for details. Opinions are my own. Unfortunately, being a woman, I can’t just go for a run outdoors. Or I could but it wouldn’t be very wise. It’s important for women to know how to keep themselves safe when running outside. Because in my opinion, there are 3 common factors to being assaulted while running: running alone, being in a low traffic area, and being female. I run alone fairly often. And when I was training for my half-marathon I ran alone a lot. But for the most part, I did what I was supposed too to keep myself protected. I say “for the most part” because I did have one run last year where I made an error in safety and was lucky I didn’t pay for it. Basically, I found myself isolated in the middle of nowhere and far away from my car. And this had happened because I was distracted by music and wasn’t paying a lot of attention to my surroundings. Once I realized how far away I had gotten, I quickly turned around and made my way back to where there were more people. But I would […]
In October 2018, I crossed the finish line of my very first half-marathon! Setting this as my goal for the year, I dedicated all my free time to training, and transformed myself from a complete non-runner in the fall of 2017 into someone who could conquer a major race just one year later. It is easily my proudest fitness achievement to date. Transitioning from a non-runner to a half-marathon finisher meant that I was constantly stepping into the unknown. Every run longer than 3km was a step into uncharted territory—which was a bit intimidating. Along my training journey, I learned countless invaluable lessons, with each run teaching me something new about running, resilience, and myself. Here are my top 10 tips: 1. Picking Your First Half-marathon The first lesson that I learned was that a surprising amount goes into choosing which race will be your first half-marathon. I thought I did a lot of research before I chose my race but turns out I did the wrong research. I focused mostly on how hilly the race route was and where the race was held. What I should have focused on was: 2. Weather Firstly, pay attention to tip 1 and […]
I love winter running. When I first started running in the summer of 2017, I was unsure about how running in the winter was going to go. While I happily live in Canada, I am not a fan of the cold and snow. Which is kind of too bad considering it is winter half of the time here. But after 2 months of running indoors on a treadmill, the pure boredom forced me to give winter running a real shot. And kind of surprisingly, I fell in love! I’ll be honest, my first winter run was pretty hairy but that’s because I wasn’t prepared properly. But since then, whenever the sun is shining and the roads are relatively dry, I head out on the road. You’re only cold if you’re standing still! Cold weather doesn’t have to stop you from enjoying winter running! In fact, I would argue that running outside in the winter has a lot to offer. Here are my top 5 reasons why I love winter running: Burn more calories! Running burns lots of calories in the first place, but running in the cold burns extra calories as your body works to maintain its core temperature. So basically, […]