A Month At Pure Barre

Lift. Tone. Burn. The mottos behind Pure Barre.

"Pure Barre is a total body workout that lifts your seat, tones your thighs and burns fat in record-breaking time. Utilizing the ballet barre to perform small isometric movements set to fantastic music, Pure Barre is the fastest, most effective, yet safest way to change your body. Students see results in just 10 classes."

And exactly how you will feel after a Pure Barre Burlington class.

I went into Pure Barre with absolutely no idea what a class truly entailed, but with the guidance of my friend and Pure Bare Burlington owner Jess I gave it a whirl. Jess and I have known each other since college and she had yet to steer me wrong so I knew I could trust her.

Since losing over 60 lbs through Weight Watchers, I have been working on breaking out of my comfort zone and trying new workout/classes I wouldn't normally try.

So on November 16, I walked into Pure Barre Burlington for the first time and kept an open mind! :)

Well, I was nicely asked to leave ballet when younger for my lack of grace so a workout that revolved around a ballet barre seemed out of my element. :P

But Jess, Danielle, Becca and Dana really make every person that walked through the studio door feel welcome!

Also, in every class I attended I was surrounded by women of all shapes, sizes, athletic abilities and backgrounds. Everyone was there to have a good time and make their muscles shake.

Yes your muscles will truly SHAKE each and every class.

As someone who had a back injury and subsequent back surgery in January 2011, I am always weary of unknown workouts, but Pure Barre is prepared:

"Pure Barre is intelligent exercise. The technique protects your joints as it does not involve any bouncing or jumping."

There was absolutely no point in any of the classes, where my back felt too strained and if it needed extra support during the 7 minutes of abs at the end of class (yes 7 minutes) Pure Barre provides balls to place behind you back for extra support.

The personal attention shown by each instructor towards every individual in the classes is unmatched and makes the experience that much more personal.

I thank Dana for one Monday morning in particular when a simple "perfect form Dani" settled my nerves of doing every single move incorrectly!

During my month at Pure Barre Burlington I even got to share the experience with a contest winner, who happened to also be a fellow Weight Watchers Leader Heather (who has lost over 75 lbs).

It was the second to last class where I finally made it through the whole thing without stopping during any of the segments. I like to refer to that day as Pure Barre Perfection! ;) I was beyond ecstatic when it happened. A day that will live in infamy.

What I truly loved about the classes were the consistency in the areas of the body worked, but the exercises themselves varied by class and instructor.

You normally start a class with:

*warmup - abs and arms

*thigh work

*seat work

*7 minutes of abs & 2.5 minutes of bridge work

Because...

"The workout launches a full blown attack on the areas of the body all women struggle with: abs, hips, seat and arms. It defies gravity by tapering everything in and lifting it up."

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But my entire time at Pure Barre Burlington could be summed up in just one picture

and just one blog post - here!

If anyone has any of those qualities, you will LOVE this technique.

And if you are thinking, I could NEVER do this.

Yes, yes you can! Give it a try!

What A Difference A Day Makes...

I uttered the F word yesterday ... Failure! And releasing the feelings that had such a hold on me was freeing.

Plus It allowed me to truly enjoy one sweet Wednesday!

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I was able to sleep in until 7:30am ... woo!

You don't know the power of a good night of sleep until you have one!

Well, I had a decent one besides a middle of the night nosebleed that my wife helped me take care of - think blood all over my pillow, hand and face. Yeah, I'm apparently a child! That is my second nosebleed in the last six weeks.

But once I recovered from that I slept well. :)

I dropped the wife off at the train and headed to do my normal daily routines - drop off Weight Watchers paperwork in the mail, deposit Weight Watchers money in the ATM, grab my Dunkin Donuts Iced Coffee and hit up Stop & Shop for any necessary produce.

Thankfully I was able to get home and post the blog post before heading out to lead back-to-back Weight Watchers meetings, but thankfully the work day was over by 2pm and I was able to head over to Watertown and visit with my best friend and her daughter Joanna.

 

How could I not smile with that face??

Plus I'm starting her early on the Dunkin' Donuts craze...

Plus, Sarah grabbed a great pic having the Dunkin' cup that says "Joy" since I was feeling nothing but Joy in that moment. That little girl is adorable!! I am an only child so I can't ever be a true aunt, but thankfully Sarah is giving me the honor of being an aunt to Joanna!!

After a wonderful afternoon with Sarah, Joanna and the pup Wyatt, it was time to head home, which with traffic normally takes about 45 minutes. Normally during that time, I'm annoyed and the road rage rises. But, as I sat there, I couldn't help but think about how lucky I am to be able to spend an afternoon with people I love. Focusing on all the blessing really helped the time pass in traffic.

When I got home, I had a couple packages waiting for me --- YAY!!!

The first was my sample Bulu Box.

The second was my first order from PV Body

It's a 15love black shirt (size L) and Performance Sportswear grey pants (size M)!!!

Those pants are definitely in the Top Three most comfiest pants I've ever owned.

After looking through my haul and knocking out some core work...

 80 situps, 15 real pushups, 20 modified pushups, & my plankaday: front forearm plank & reverse plank

I had a lovely low-key evening with the wife and pups ... exactly what I needed.

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This is exactly what I needed.

So thank you all for listening to my rant yesterday. I had to release the feelings that were pushing me down and now I can move on and start to figure out what I need to do next, but for now I will enjoy the special days!

What a day indeed!! :) :)

I'm A Failure...

... in every sense of my life! Yes, that was the feeling I carried around all day yesterday. I don't really know where it came from or why it came on so aggressively at one time, but it did.

It snowballed. With everything that went wrong throughout the day yesterday, the "you suck at life" feeling grew and grew.

Maybe it is a December tradition now for me to have a breakdown this time of year.

Right around now is when I had a little breakdown in the car with my wife driving back from spending the Holiday with her family. I just LOST it in the car. You wanna talk about an ugly cry - that night took the cake.

I just get really really REALLY good at bottling up my emotions - my annoyances, my frustrations, my sadness, my self-loathing, my unhappiness - until it all boils over in a big huge ugly cry fest.

After that night, the wife and I had some serious talks and we decided to move back (for me) to Boston - partly so I could lead a less stressful life. The whole deciding to move and it actually happened was a 3-week span.

On January 29 (the day after my half marathon), we loaded up the uHaul thanks to help from my dad and took the 2-day drive to Boston.

Flash forward to this week and for some reason I'm back to that person that is holding in the annoyances, the frustrations, the sadness and the self-loathing.

Maybe it has been happening gradually (probably the case), but it all seemed to come to fruition now.

Is it something about this time of year?

Was it triggered when I started thinking about what I wanted to do/accomplish in 2013?

Am I second-guessing the decisions made last December?

I really don't know what is at the bottom of it, but I needed to get the words out before I eat my way through this emotional struggle.

Food is not the answer, but for the past few days it worked quite nicely.

So I'm done turning to food and instead I turned to this space to let out the thoughts. To stop burying them with fried foods because that's what put me into Weight Watchers to begin with ... and I'm never going back to that person again.

Now, I will dig deep down to find out what is causing these emotions because in my heart of hearts I know I'm not a failure, but when I look at my life - the degrees I have, the jobs I've held - I wonder if I'm living up to my full potential.

But, I know in the meantime I need to focus on making healthy decisions and allowing all my emotions to flow through instead of weighing me down.

Hey, there's a reason I called this blog Weight Off My Shoulders ... so now I will use it to do just that.

Release!

Pure Barre Perfection

On Friday (December 14) the stars aligned and the Pure Barre gods shined down on me as I went through my second-to-last Pure Barre Burlington class and I was able to complete every single move Jess had us do. Oh yes folks!

My smile after leaving class that night couldn't be bigger!

I couldn't - and still can't - believe it...

I went into the class having had two horrible days of back pain - overall soreness with some sharp pain mixed in for fun.

So I reluctantly went to Jess' 5:20pm class on Friday, but I knew I would be able to make it through since the class is geared to keep people injury-free and to work around existing injuries/impairments.

I think taking the two days off before class made the difference. I truly listened to my body and tried to rest as much as possible.

Jess was ready to work on Friday from the get go...

I love how in Pure Barre they keep the warmup the same each time, but the remainder of the class changes each and every time.

Now the areas you are working are the same - thighs, seat, lower abs/back then the class ends with 7 minutes of abs/bridge work.

I like the consistency in the beginning as it lets you - as it is so aptly called - warm up without wondering what the heck is coming next.

I got the groove down of knee lifts with folded arms, arm pull downs and twists before heading into the 90 second varied plank (forearm with leg lifts, straight arm with knee pull-ins and side planks on both sides before breaking out some pushups and tricep pushups).

Then comes the arms work! Oh man, I love a day where I can make it through the entire arms section without putting my 3 lb weights down or taking a break.

And on that fateful Friday night, I didn't! I can see a tiny muscle starting to form and it bring me SUCH delight!! I don't want to be all big and bulky but I would like some definition ... which is what I am really working on now. So the arms section is a great help.

The thigh burning, the seat lifting and the abs toning is truly life-changing. "Tucking the tailbone," while simultaneously squeezing the Pure Bare ball between your upper thighs and standing on your tippy toes "like you're wearing your highest pairs of high heels" truly works EVERY SINGLE part of your body.

If you leave this class without your muscles shaking, you must be doing something wrong OR you are the most toned/in shape person in the world. :P

It was sad to walk out of Friday's class and know I had just one class remaining - Sunday at Noon - before my month at Pure Barre Burlington would be up.

But I was riding a high so I was really looking forward to Sunday's class ... even though I would be taking it right after back-to-back Spin and Body Pump classes.

Eek!

My 30s Freakin' Rock So Far...

We are just 3 months into my 30s and I already have a Top Ten list of moments that have happened! Whhaa??

Am I serious?

Hell yeah.

Since my 30th Birthday weekend in September, I have had some freakin' awesome experiences.

So I decided to share the Top 10 so here goes:

10) Climbing 2,000 stairs in honor of this blog's Facebook page hitting 2,000 likes

[embedplusvideo height="281" width="450" standard="http://www.youtube.com/v/vu2XJX5kk6A?fs=1" vars="ytid=vu2XJX5kk6A&width=450&height=281&start=&stop=&rs=w&hd=0&autoplay=0&react=1&chapters=¬es=" id="ep3115" /]

I still can't believe that happened and I am still so thankful for each Facebook like my little blog has!

9) Completing my first Warrior Dash the day before my 30th Birthday

(Yes, I am including anything that happened in my 30th birthday weekend as fair game ... my poetic license! ;))

On that day, I faced many fears, but the biggest one my fear of heights - by climbing up the Big Wall on a rope and climbing down the Big Wall via a ladder. At first I didn't trust my arm strength - or lack thereof - to get over the wall, but then as soon as I got to the top - it happened. The cape on my Batman socks got stuck and for a moment, I panicked and thought I would have to live atop the wall for the rest of my life.

8) Earning enough votes to join Got Chocolate's Milk Team REFUEL

I filmed a video at Fitbloggin' in September 2012 and begged, pleaded and went to social media to try and earn enough votes to make the team and on October 26 it was announced that I was in! YAY!

I couldn't thank everyone that voted for me enough.

I am honored to make the team and can't wait to see what comes next...

7) Being selected to run The 2013 Boston Marathon with Tedy's Team in honor of the American Stroke Association

I am running in honor of my Stroke Heroes - my grandparents - and am so thankful to be able to spread the risks/warning signs/tips about Strokes to the masses. As well as, raising $5,000 for the American Stroke Association.

So far I have raised just over $1,500... if you are interested in donating, you can do so here.

6) Attending Fitbloggin' and meeting some of my Social Media Icons in person

When I got home from Fitbloggin' I really didn't think I had deserved to be at a conference with such amazing bloggers, but since climbing out of my pit o' insecurity I realized I really did belong there. I was meant to go there, get out of my comfort zone, meet some of the most incredible people I know IN REAL LIFE and have my world changed forever.

Plus, it didn't hurt that I got to have one amazing road trip with Tara and Meegan, get amazing hugs from Alan and room with the phenomenal Sue, Steve & Kia (my bedmate)!

To pick a favorite moment from that weekend isn't possible - there are too many to list and just thinking about that time puts a big ass smile on my face!

Now is it time for Fitbloggin' 2013 yet? ;)

5) Appearing on Fox 25 News with Dr. Sherry Pagoto To Talk Weight Loss & Twitter

If you missed the segment, here's the video.

I never thought I would be in front of the camera. While working in PR, I was great at putting other people in front of the camera so it was a tad shock to be on the other side of the situation. But, boy was it fun!

I couldn't believe how quickly the 4-minutes segment went. It was over before I knew it.

I owe a huge thank you to Dr. Pagoto for suggesting me to be a part of the segment in the first place.

4) Something I NEVER EVER EVER thought would happen ... I tried on a bikini and shared the picture with the world

This definitely happened before my birthday, but it was tied in to the milestone of hitting 30 that I conquered the fear and finally walked in to Sports Authority and tried on a bikini.

The whole experience is documented here.

I still don't know if the bikini will see the light of day. But at Spin the other night my friend Linds said something that gave me a moment that maybe it may some day.

Linds: "I'm going to keep Spinning for every Pina Colada I will have in Aruba."

Dani: "Well I don't have a vacation coming up. So what am I pushing for?"

Linds: "To make sure you wear that bikini next summer."

Dani: "Hmmm..."

Anything's possible, right? ;)

3) On December 12, I hit the lowest weight since probably Junior High

I weighed in 0.4 lbs lower than the day I hit Goal (which was my previous low) on January 10, 2012 (153.8). Wow, I was so excited I started crying - not to the point of an ugly cry - but pretty close!

Hard work + Believing in yourself + Weight Watchers = Impossibilities become Possibilities

2) Savannah Marathon

2 feats: for beating my previous marathon time by more than 2 hours and for finishing in under 4 hours

Again - things I never thought possible actually happened. With each mile that passed in the race, every time I saw my dad cheering me on along the course, I got a little push that I could do it. That it just might happen.

And it did.

And after catching my breath (that took a lot longer than usual), I wept and wept - big happy tears. I had done it.

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It comes down to this! The number one event since turning the Big 3-0 is...

Drum Roll Please

1) Hosting my own charity 5k for my 30th Birthday

Is anyone really shocked at this choice?

I didn't think so!

That day was one of the best of my life. I still can't get over that it really happened.

Feel free to relive it now - here.

And the great news is????

I'll be doing it AGAIN in 2013!

YYAAYYY!!

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Wow, just reading this list again makes me so excited for what is still in store. I mean this was just the first 90 or so days of being 30 ... I have a lot more to go!

Are you 30? Have you had a decade or age you feared turning, but then it happened to be amazing? 

Tedy’s Team Group Run – 10 Miles

Temperature yesterdsymorning at 7am on accuweather.com read 35 degrees. Real feel tempature? A balmy 24 degrees.

Yikes!

I wanted to just curl back under the covers and hide... but I didn't! I had a team run to do. Plus, the temps will just get colder as the winter training schedule goes on...

Plus my teammate Meghan and her husband Josh offered to give me a ride instead of a longer/colder MBTA ride. Their generosity became my accountability.

I put on my XL Under Armour long-sleeved shirt. Yes, I've been too lazy to buy a smaller size so I just keep wearing the larger one. :P It's all good.

I also decided to add a little Holiday cheer to the run by breaking out my Santa socks!

I'm ready to add more to it for next week! ;)

Once I got to FitCorp (our starting point), I noticed that one of my headphones were missing one of the earbuds. Ugh!

I went outside early to make sure my Garmin Forerunner 110 would "acquire satellites" before everyone else came out to start since the past 2 weeks I've been the last one to start because my GPS watch took so long to acquire the satellite.

Well despite heading out 5 minutes before everyone else, it still took 9 minutes to acquire satellites and I still ended up being the last person to start the run. Ugh!

I got about 1/2 a mile into the run and I was sweating. Apparently despite the Real Feel temp of 24 degrees, I had somehow overdressed for the run. And I still had 9.5 miles to go! Ugh!

So by the first Mile of the run, I was NOT feeling the run. I was letting all the little annoyances get in my head.

Then as I passed Mile One, I had a realization...

4 months from that moment I would be running The Boston Marathon itself!

Ahhh!!

If that doesn't put a little bounce in my step I don't know what could!

Once I had that vision in my mind, I powered through the next 4 miles to the halfway point. Our coach John and Tedy's Team Manager Zack set up a great water stop at Mile 5. I stopped, stretched a little and was ready to continue on.

The weather ended up being perfect. Week One (6 miles) we ran in snow the entire time and in Week Two (8 miles) we ran in a nice downpour. But on Week Three (10 miles) we had a wonderful clear sky!

So the final 5 miles were thoroughly enjoyable. With each step I could feel my grandparents - my Stroke Heroes - on each of my shoulders pushing and cheering me along.

It was great.

I felt strong and in control of my strides.

Before I knew it - it was Mile 9 and we were quickly approaching the final hill near the State House. If anyone knows the hill I'm speaking about, it's a doozy.

But thankfully my Spin classes and Pure Barre classes pay off on that hill each week, as I lock down and push up that hill as quickly as possible ... mainly since I'm ready to be done! :o)

I was definitely pleased with my time overall. This was the third week on the same course and I'm becoming more familiar with the bumps, hills and intricacies of the path each week.

John has slated another 10 Mile run for the group next week and I can't wait to break out my Santa shirt and socks! :)

Happy Running Folks!

2012 Road Races

January 1 - New Year's Day 5k - 25:27 (8:13 min/mile) - RECAP

January 28 - F^3 Events Lake Half Marathon - 2:05.40 (9:36 min/mile) - RECAP

March 18 - Ras na hEireann U.S.A. 5k - 24:33 (7:54 min/mile) - RECAP

April 1 - Fight Forever 5k/10k - *Ended up running 10k, which ended up being 6.51 miles 59:00 (9:04 min/mile) - RECAP

April 15 - Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) 5k - 24:58 (8:03 min/mile) - RECAP

May 6 - Newburyport Spring Fever 5k - 24:42 (7:58 min/mile) - RECAP

May 13 - M.O.M.'s Run 5k - 24:06 (7:46 min/mile) - RECAP

May 17 - The Blues Run 5k - 22:23 (7:14 min/mile) - RECAP

May 20 - Harpoon 5-Miler - 38:23 (7:41 min/mile) - RECAP

May 27 - Boston's Run To Remember 5-Miler - PR 37:59 (7:36 min/mile) - RECAP

June 3 - PJK 5k - 23:10 (7:28 min/mile) - RECAP

June 24 - Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) 10k - 49:28 (7:59 min/mile) - RECAP

June 28 - Raggae Ramble 5k - 22:26 (7:15 min/mile) - RECAP

July 15 - VERT-Sasquatch Trail Race (2.35 miles) - 18:59 (8:05 min/mile) - RECAP

July 22 - Rock 'n' Roll Chicago Half Marathon - 1:51:43 (8:32 min/mile) - RECAP

July 26 - Jerry Garcia Memorial River Run 5k - 23:00 (7:26 min/mile) - RECAP

August 12 - Falmouth Road Race (7.1 miles) - PR 58:10 (8:19 min/mile) - RECAP

August 19 - Rock 'n' Roll Providence Half Marathon - 1:52:58 (8:37 min/mile) - RECAP

August 30 - Twist & Shout on the Charles River 5k - 23:23 (7:33 min/mile) - RECAP

September 13 - Mardi Gras Festival Run 5k - 22:37 (7:18 min/mile) - RECAP

September 15 - Warrior Dash (Gilford, N.H.) - PR 1:06:56.05 - RECAP

September 16 - The Dani Ryan Holmes-Kirk 1st Annual 30th Birthday 5k Run-Walk Ramble - 25:23 - RECAP

October 7 - Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) Half Marathon - 1:48:16 (8:16 min/mile) - RECAP

October 8 - Tufts Health Plan 10k For Women - PR 47:31 (7:39 min/mile) - RECAP

November 3 - Rock 'n' Roll Savannah Full Marathon - PR 3:58:49 (9:07 min/mile) - RECAP

November 22 - Framingham Turkey Classic Road Race - 22:20.08 (7:12 min/mile) - RECAP

December 2 - Yulefest 5k - 22:58 (7:24 min/mile) - RECAP

December 9 - Walter's Run 5k - 25:21 (8:11 min/mile) - RECAP

Girls On The Run & Walter's Run 5k

Girls On The Run is one outstanding and inspiring group. If you don't know about them, here is their mission statement:

We inspire girls to be joyful, healthy and confident using a fun, experience-based curriculum which creatively integrates running.

Girls on the Run is a transformational learning program for 8 to 13 year-old girls. We teach life skills through dynamic, conversation-based lessons and running games. The program culminates with the girls being physically and emotionally prepared to complete a celebratory 5k running event. The goal of the program is to unleash confidence through accomplishment while establishing a lifetime appreciation of health and fitness.

I LOVE THIS!! I really wish there was something like this around when I was younger...

I've been hearing nothing but good things about this organization and finally started checking into volunteering a month or so ago.

Thankfully I heard back from Jen (their local Boston chapter's main contact) quickly and she let me know about today's event. The girls would be taking part in Walter's Run 5k in West Roxbury and they were looking for volunteers.

Yes! I was ready. :)

I arrived at the meeting spot - West Roxbury YMCA - early of course, but thankfully located the Girls On The Run Table. The pre-race scene was awesome. Seeing the girls meeting up with their coaches and running buddies, while also getting their "happy hair" (think pink hairspray) and some temporary tattoos from Athleta. I was really good at holding the water, paper towels and temporary tattoos for the ladies of Athleta. :P

I did try my hand at some spray painting for a little girl who arrived a little late - decent work I would say. :)

As the girls and their coaches/running buddies were heading to stretch, Jen let another volunteer Kate and I know they had a couple spare numbers if we wanted to run the 5k as well.

Twist my arm ... I was game. ;) Introduce Race #29 of 2012 - now this should be the last.

Since I wasn't sure if they needed extra running buddies or not I had arrived dressed to run - just in case. Plus, I had no idea how to dress for a race as a "volunteer" since I'm always participating. ;)

Kate and I grabbed numbers and headed to the Start Line. It was great to meet her, especially since she is also training for the 2013 Boston Marathon with a charity team so we had a lot to chat about.

We ran the first 2 miles together and it was nice. A nice casual pace since I had done a training run with Tedy's Team yesterday.

Kate and I parted ways at the 2 mile mark so I ran the rest alone - taking in the scene and cheering on the Girls On The Run participants I saw as I ran.

Then the hill hit.

Wha? I had not looked at the course map (I know - the usual) and did not see such a large hill on the horizon. There were volunteers saying "awesome job on the hill" so I thought I had reached the top. WRONG! As we turned left there was more hill.

BUT, this meant a nice downhill on the way to the Finish Line.

Since I hadn't signed up for the run officially, we will use my Garmin as the official time.

As soon as I crossed the Finish Line, I was handed a posterboard and cheered on the rest of the Girls On The Run participants as they approached the Finish Line.

It was SOOO much fun. I love running. I love cheering. It was awesome to see all of their faces lighting up as they realized they were about to finish.

My fellow cheerleaders

After the final runner crossed the Line

This woman was so inspiring!

we ended indoors for a pizza party and awards ceremony.

I loved all the posters hanging around the room!

The girls' faces lit up when they found themselves or their friends in a picture on the poster.

In addition to a great certificate that each girl got showcasing how awesome they were, they were each given a pretty sweet medal as well.

Yes I was allowed to take one too for my collection! ;)

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I am so lucky to have been able to be a part of the event this morning. It was a great experience and after chatting with Jen and Lori (the other main organizer) I really hope I can become more involved with the program ... and maybe even become a Coach ... in 2013!

I will definitely be helping with the Girls On The Run 5k in the Spring - as much as they will let me do!! We know I like planning races (see Birthday 5k). :)

Overall this was one awesome Sunday!! The girls really motivated me...

Yulefest 5k - 12/2/12 - 22:58 (7:24 min/mile)

It's the final countdown ... Danah DAH dun…Dana dat dun da! The FINAL race of 2012 took place on December 2, 2o12!

Race 27-of-27. I can't believe it was finally time for the Yulefest 5k.

(Sorry for the week delay in this post)

I was really looking forward to the Yulefest 5k since I was running with a bunch of friends and Captaining The Slumbrew Humbugs!

Isn't the Santa hat awesome? All 30 were made by Slumbrew Co-Founder Caitlin, while taking care of two kids (including a 2-week old) ... AMAZING!

Thanks to Caitlin for snapping this great pic of my buddy/Slumbrew teammate/Fellow Weight Watcher Success Story Frank and I! :)

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Once I handed out all the Santa hats to our team, it was time to make our way to the Start Line.

Well with the sheer volume of people attempting to start their Garmins and Polars at the same time, I started after I originally wanted to since my watch would NOT "acquire satellites."

I basically gave up on getting the Garmin going and just started. It finally kicked off about .2/.25 into the race. But thankfully my watch is pretty accurate on the "accurate pace" reading so I was able to gauge how the run would go.

Prior to the race, I didn't look up the course at all - shocker I know (I never do) ... so I had no idea what to expect.

The course was in Cambridge - starting and ending in Harvard Square - and weaving through the surrounding areas.

It was great. The crowd was lively and the costumes were entertaining, which always makes for a great race!

I was keeping a consistent pace around 7:15-7:30, which I was pleased with since I had done a 6 mile training run the day before with Tedy's Team.

There was a pretty decent hill at the end of the run, which was tough, but thankfully once you made it over you could see the Finish Line in front of you, which ALWAYS makes a hill easier. :P

I officially finished in 22:58 (7:24 min/mile pace). Not a PR, but I was happy with the results. I was the third person to finish on the Slumbrew Humbugs and finished 243rd out of 1,363 overall. The Slumbrew Humbugs finished 17th out of 57 teams - WOO!

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Right after I crossed the Finish Line I ran into my cheering section

My cousins (Hanna, Lena & Kiara) were there with my mom to give high fives! I was pumped to see them!!

After seeing these ladies, I ran off to meet up with the Humbugs - I am so proud to be a part of the Slubrew crew!

Thanks to Cambridge 5k Race Director Eddy for letting us snap this pic! ;)

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What I really love about doing so many races is meeting such amazing runners, seeing familiar faces week in and week out and becoming friends with them.

George is one of those people! He was Captaining The Most Informal Running Club Ever - a group I can't wait to check out...

And Eddy - the fabulous race director for Cambridge 5k and the VERT Race Series

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How can racing season finally come to an end?

What do I do now?

Well, that's easy ... start planning the 2013 season! ;)

Dynamic December

I am jumping on board with many of my fellow bloggers and coming up with some goals for December (just a week late ;)). But, now I am looking forward to a #DynamicDecember (I like alliteration so sue me :P).

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So here are the three challenges/hashtags you will see me using in the upcoming month:

1) #hlgDec2Rem - This challenge was designed by Jan (@HealthyLoserGal) and one of my favorite people in the world. :) For this challenge, I am really working on getting #back2basics, sticking with tracking (#trackstar) and getting in my Good Health Guidelines. I'm not going to beat myself up if I miss a day (since I did miss 3 of the 8 days in December), but I'll just try to do my best!

Jan is one of the best motivators, and people, around!!

2) #plankaday - This has been life changing for me. I am not one for crunches, especially with that back injury back in early 2011, so this is a great way to get some core work in without sitting and doing a bunch of crunches - I don't want to do - on the floor.

This program was started by Dr. Sherry Pagoto (@drsherrypagoto) and is open to interpretation. For me, I work on doing at least two planks a day and keeping the variety up! Front forearm plank, front straightarm plank, reverse plank, side forearm plank or side straightarm plank.

I started with a 30 second front forearm plank back in August 2011 and hit my PR of 5 minutes & 15 seconds in November 2012. Anything is possible... :)

I am going to continue to do my #plankaday every day. I am enjoying the versatility and loving the #plankaday community.

3) #100ozchallenge - This is actually the first challenge that I started on my own! I have had at times upwards of 50 people participating. Woo! I feel wicked cool. Okay, that wasn’t cool. Dammit!

Anyway, this is a pretty simple challenge: drink at least 100oz water a day. That’s it. Keep yourself hydrated during the winter months. I just saw on twitter today that “Dehydration can cause ageing & can slow down metabolism as much as 3%” – I am here to not let that happen! Stay hydrated!!

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I set these goals for myself because this is the person I want to be. The person I want to strive to be. The person I will work to be ... one day at a time.

And because of you - my family, friends, Facebook crew and twitterverse - that will hold me accountable, will support me and will keep me going.

The hashtags help to build a community. It opens the doors to new relationships, tips and most importantly more support.

So for me, this is what I will be striving for in December.

What will you be doing for you?