Mom Works It Out by Angela Gillis

Little Rock Marathon Weekend

The next two weeks are big for me because these are the two events I’ve been waiting for since November!  This weekend I am running the Little Rock Marathon (and Capital Hat Trick (5k, 10k, plus my marathon)!  Next weekend it’s The Gusher Marathon!  So you know what that means? It’s time to hydrate and carb up!

Starting my hydration plan! Ready to rock @LRMarathon weekend with @jesicarene! #littlerock #running #raceweekend #awesome #funtimes #runhappy #fitfluential #fitness
Nuun is my electrolyte drink of choice! I discovered it last year at an expo and I’ve used it ever since. Nuun is “light flavor, no sugar or carbs” and it’s good. It’s a little harder to find but I see it’s showing up in more places now. Any specialty sports store should have it: Academy, Sports Authority, REI and many local shops have it! My favorite flavors are: watermelon (it’s seasonal and I promise I bought every last stinkin’ tube of this stuff) and kona cola!

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Marathon week means Willie makes bread! I love it! He always makes me some pita bread and he usually makes a loaf of something else! He didn’t just have to make bread for me, but my friend Jes who will be making the trip with us to Little Rock! Willie is playing chauffeur, but that’s hard work too! I don’t know what this bread is, but it sure tasted good. He didn’t finish baking it last night until after I went to sleep but I was pleasantly surprised this morning.

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I’ve been a nervous wreck about the weather! When the 10 day forecast came out it called for snow and winter precipitation has always been a possibility. I’m really nervous about this due to what happened in December, especially when I’ve been looking forward to something. Now the forecast just calls for rain and the temperature will drop while we are running. I can’t do COLD and WET so I had to snag a jacket! I already have so many problems with my hands, I don’t really want to be worrying about something else too. Luckily, I snagged the $85 jacket for $46! Whether I needed this sucker or not, I was going to take it!Even if it doesn’t rain that bad, it will at least help with the wind!  What is up with all this crazy winter weather this year?

I’m all packed now and I have 4 running outfits.  I don’t want something really funny to happen with the weather!  What can I say? I worry about the weather!  I’m not running this race hard because I want to be able to run the Gusher next weekend.  This race is purely for FUN and the LARGEST FINISHER MEDAL I’VE EVER SEEN!

So what are my goals this weekend:

Goal A: The run the entire marathon with my friend Jes! I need to keep myself fresh and I need to have a good time so this is crucial to meeting the goal of having fun!

Goal B: Not get sick!  That’s why I have the jacket and various running outfits!

Goal C: Maybe a PR on my 5k but I’m not really pushing it.  I haven’t ran at all this week!

I’ll be posting pictures all weekend long on my twitter and instagram.  A few of them might make it to Facebook too!

What are your plans for the weekend?

That proud feeling

That proud feeling

People often ask me why I run.  I run because I love it.  People never ask me why I run so many races but I know they always wonder.  I run the races because it’s about pushing past boundaries for me. Every time I line up at the start and cross the finish line I know I’ve accomplished something.  Those are the moments I use to motivate myself to keep moving past those boundaries and push toward new goals! I’m using my running a race as a way to explain the thoughts in my head today, not because I think…

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Race Recap: Love.Run.Marathon Trail Race

Race Recap: Love.Run.Marathon Trail Race

Willie and I are training for Great Wall of China Marathon (GWCM).  I’ve been trying to get some out of the box things for us to do because training for the race is not like any other race.  The Great Wall is old, broken and steep!  Willie has only run the roads and we definitely won’t be doing that in China!  It was important for us to at least get a trail race in our training sessions so we’ll be ready come May!  My answer to the questions was the Love.Run.Marathon in Huntsville! First off, this race for a a…

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The training for China conundrum

The training for China conundrum

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Race Recap: The Biggest Loser Run/Walk Series – …

Race Recap: The Biggest Loser Run/Walk Series – Mobile, AL

I’m a racing fool!  I like the energy and it keeps me motivated to run!  Sometimes I can just go out there and do it and other times I need people screaming at me to keep going.  It’s what works for me.  The Biggest Loser Run Walk series is going across the country for these events.  Originally we were supposed to do the one in Beaumont but it was moved to May during the time we couldn’t do the race.  Race organizers were nice enough to let us transfer our registrations to another race so of course we chose Mobile…

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Race recap: RnR New Orleans Marathon

Race recap: RnR New Orleans Marathon

This race kind of came in under the radar due to Willie being sick!  To be honest, I felt really horrible for even still wanting to go after Willie had his surgery but he encouraged me to go.  I originally signed up for the race to do the half because I just ran a marathon, but I caved to running peer pressure and ran the marathon! Two marathons, two weeks means I can now be a marathon maniac. Please forgive me because this post might be long because I have a lot of things to share! First off, it was…

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Race Recap: The Louisiana Marathon

Race Recap: The Louisiana Marathon

I love this race because it’s a pretty course, the people are friendly and it’s just an all around good time.  I am so happy to share this race recap with you because this was a very positive experience for me. The morning started off well. I had gotten a good night’s sleep and I woke up in a very positive attitude. After battling some bad mental running issues since Memphis, waking up and feeling this good and excited meant I was already a winner! We arrived at the race and did all the necessary things but we lined up…

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Race Recap: The Advocate 5K at The Louisiana …

Race Recap: The Advocate 5K at The Louisiana Marathon

Hello all!  I’m proud to be typing this blog post as a MARATHONER!  The weather for the weekend was great and complete opposite to Memphis, so I was truly blessed!  Last year was my first year to run this race and I knew I would be coming back.  The race hasn’t gotten too big and everything goes off without any problems.  The race is well organized and the people are fun! I loaded up the cooler with some good food and snacks and we were off. I was trying to keep the eats on track for a little bit of…

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A/B/C Goals for The Louisiana Marathon …

A/B/C Goals for The Louisiana Marathon Race Weekend

It’s the moment I’ve been waiting for: it’s race weekend.  All of my buddies are off running The Houston Marathon though which is a bummer.  There are two lovely ladies I would have liked to celebrate our first marathon finishes with, but we’ll have to wait until Monday for the good times! This race was my first race of 2013 so I’m super excited it’s going to be my first race of 2014.  Last year I did the 5K on Saturday and ran the half marathon on Sunday.  I remember thinking that was the most miles I had ever run…

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Looking forward to China

Looking forward to China

Remember when we were on The Rachael Ray Show and she gave us a trip to China? You  may have forgotten but we haven’t.  It’s an exciting thing for us that we’re totally not prepared for.  We should have been on this months ago and now I feel like we’re in a big cram session. There are only two things we have done to prepare for the trip: buy Rosetta Stone and get things squared away for The Great Wall of China Marathon (and I’m even behind on that stuff). With The Louisiana Marathon weekend closely approaching, it’s time for…

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Q&A: How do I get started in …

Q&A: How do I get started in running?

The biggest question of the new year has been about getting into to running.  I’m in no way an expert but I’ll give you some friendly advice on the subject to help you get started. 1. The most important thing I recommend is getting fit for the right pair of shoes.  Go down to a local running store (not a Footlocker, Champs or Shoe Department) to talk to someone who is KNOWLEDGEABLE about running shoes.  Running shoes aren’t cheap so you want to make sure you have the pair that will work for you.  I made this mistake when I…

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