ashleyd /

Happy Hump Day! Celebrating National Running Day with Lululemon

Holy hump day humidity! After tonight’s 5 mile run I am absolutely exhausted and still dripping even though I just finished a cold shower. I’m with Jess, cold running is so much better!

Today’s eats were very similar to yesterday’s and equally as enjoyable. My goal for tomorrow is to increase the water consumption EVEN more and enjoy at least one cup of tea during the afternoon slumps.

Breakfast was basic but delicious.

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It’s been one month since I unintentionally gave up coffee and I haven’t looked back once! I’ve been enjoying a Venti Iced Unsweetened Green Tea from Starbucks every morning and love the refreshing flavor and energy it gives me.

Lunch was another scrumptious salad though I was a bit disappointed with their romaine today. I prefer green lettuce versus faded white green lettuce. *fail* I think I’m going to go with a healthier salad tomorrow by adding spinach to the mix. Today included sprouts, tomatoes, red onion, shrimp, salt & pepper, carrots, celery, and FF lemon pepper dressing.

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Blog Pictures 2010 207  I saw these crispy treats at Toasties today and thought they may be a good replacement for my normal PopChips. I tried the traditional cheddar flavor as I hoped they’d be the most flavorful. Fail. These tasted like Styrofoam rubbed in artificial cheddar. I don’t think i’ll be buying the Gourmet Basics Smart Fries again.Blog Pictures 2010 209

 Blog Pictures 2010 211 After a long day at work, I couldn’t wait to meet Rebecca at the East 66th Lululemon for a great Wednesday night run. We’d planned to join Jessie and others for the NYRR National Running day event but we realized we had no interest in the drinking/bar or Upper West Side location. Therefore, we stuck with my normal Wednesday routine instead. I was excited to introduce Rebecca to Claire and the rest of the group. We had a blast! Tonight’s workout was as follows: warm up jog from the store to the Central Park transverse, stretching, warm up to the Tavern, 10 minutes out on the bridle path, 1 minutes of squats, 10 minutes back on the bridle path, 1 minute squats, 8 minutes out on bridle path, 1 minute pushups, 8 minutes back on bridle path, 1 minute pushups, cool down jog back to the store for…..NATIONAL RUNNING DAY CELEBRATION!

Blog Pictures 2010 212You know you’re at a Lululemon party due to all the ridiculously bright colors!! 🙂 Girls enjoying some of the healthy treats including grapes, strawberry, hummus and veggies, and Vita Coco!  Blog Pictures 2010 213  Below are two hot and sweaty messes! Rebecca and I were drenched by the end of the run due to the humidity. I can’t imagine summer running with out my luon tee and tanks!

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. When I got home I was clearly dehydrated because all I wanted was fruit. I knew I needed some protein for staying power so I enjoyed a Chobani 0%, blueberries, and some Galaxy Granola. It was delicious, cool, refreshing, and health

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ashleyd /

213 days and counting…

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I almost started crying when I received this last night. I was actually laying sideways on the floor foam rolling the knots out of my legs. If you follow me on twitter you may have seen my comment about last nights Lululemon Run Club workout. This was our second week and I couldn’t be happier that we have made the commitment to stick with it weekly. Every Wednesday it forces me to leave the office at a decent time, 6pm, and spend an hour pushing my legs in ways that I have never done before. Last night’s workout was the first TRUE speed workout I think i’ve ever done. After meeting at the Lululemon on East 66th and 3rd Avenue we jogged over to the 72nd transverse in Central Park (~1 mile). Then we met the Lincoln Center Lululemon group and reviewed the workout. The coach last night told us she wanted us to push ourselves but respect our bodies since it was a steamy 86 degrees outside! The workout was a mile warm up jog up to the reservoir loop, then a speed workout which consisted of two loops around the reservoir (1.68 miles each loop). The goal was to do a time trial to see how fast we could do the first loop and then hopefully do the second even faster. The reservoir path is perfect for time trials as it is packed dirt, perfectly flat, and has gorgeous views.

I decided that I was going to focus on keeping my body loose, my arms and abs engaged, and run the first loop as quickly as my legs would allow. I got in the zone by plugging into an old favorite, ACDC and taking off. I could immediately tell I was running faster than normal as my heart rate sky rocketed. Before I was at the half way point my heart rate was pushing 175! I finished the loop in 13:04 which meant i’d kept an 8:06 mile pace! Holy cow! I’d done it! I’d pushed my legs and lungs harder than ever. The second loop was slower but still completed. After completing the two loops we stretched as a group and did some squats and jumpies. The workout ended with a mile run back to Lululemon to retrieve our gear. What a great Wednesday night!

So, here is to the official start of NYC ING Marathon training and excitement! Leslie and I were gchatting back and forth yesterday since we both are in the 2010 marathon. She was lucky and ended up being one of the few “chosen” ones in the lottery while Bo and I both qualified through the NYRR last year by completing 9 races in 2009 and volunteering for one. 

Last but not least, please support my fellow NYC Marathon gal, Leslie, in her quest to win the National Flaunt Your Rock contest!

http://keridoolittlephotography.com/blog/2010/04/denver-wedding-photographer-flaunt-your-rock-national-contest-vote/
Couple #2
All the way baby!

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Joining the Wolf Pack

Who remembers that great scene in The Hangover when Alan preaches to the other guys about the power of the Wolf Pack and becoming a part of a group.


“You guys might not know this, but I consider myself a bit of a loner. I tend to think of myself as a one-man wolf pack. But when my sister brought Doug home, I knew he was one of my own. And my wolf pack… it grew by one. So there… there were two of us in the wolf pack… I was alone first in the pack, and then Doug joined in later. And six months ago, when Doug introduced me to you guys, I thought, “Wait a second, could it be?” And now I know for sure, I just added two more guys to my wolf pack. Four of us wolves, running around the desert together, in Las Vegas, looking for strippers and cocaine. So tonight, I make a toast! “

Tonight, Bo and I had the great opportunity to feel like we were part of the running wolf pack. We’ve never been part of a weekly running club together due to two barriers: time prioritization and intimidation.

After my experience with the Bryn Mawr running club i’ve been hesitant to join anything more than the NYRR. While the people at the BMRC were all very nice, they didn’t have formal workouts or pace groups. Therefore, I was often running alone as most of their regulars were seasoned runners training for races such as Boston or New York and keeping a pace of less than 8 minute miles. This left me feeling intimidated and dissapointed in my running ability as I would always compare myself to those around me.


Once we moved to NYC, a running club was never a priority for us because we didn’t realize the power of the pack. We figured that it’d just be an inefficient way of getting our workout in and end up wasting our time. But, running with a group is EXACTLY the opposite as we both found out tonight. The East Side Lululemon (66th and 3rd) and West Side (Lincoln Center) stores sponsor a weekly Wednesday night running group Spring through the Fall in Central Park. Some of the benefits we discovered were as follows:


-A coached run with leaders for each pace group (7-8, 8-9, 9-10, and 10 plus minute miles) ensures that you’re running with people of your caliber and won’t feel out of place.
-Running with other people who are sometimes faster helps you to push yourself and realize your true potential. Tonight I kept a 9:30 pace for the first mile and Bo found himself keeping a 7:15 at one point!
-A coached run provides an established workout plan so you are forced to focus on intervals, speed work, or other often avoided forms of training. Tonight’s workout was 2-3 laps of the lower loop in the park. The first lap we were focusing on speed and power as we went up the hills and then recovered during the downhill portions. The second lap we focused on speed during the flat and changing our stride on the hills while using them for a recovery. Including hill workouts and speed fartleks in my weekly training should really help me improve my half marathon time!
-Everyone was so friendly and high off the positive endorphins! The people are inspiring as many of them are passionate about the sport of running whether they are Iron Women, Iron Men, triathaletes, or a beginner runner who is enjoying their first endorphine high post run. I even ran into an old friend from UGA who I hadn’t seen in 3 years and a fellow blogger- Jesse from Jesse Runs the City!!
-The run leaders ensured that everyone had finished and returned before they headed back to the stores. They wanted to make sure no one was left behind in the dark.



So, as you can see from the above, Bo and I absolutely loved our experience tonight and would recommend a local Lululemon running club to everyone! You can go to your local Lululemon store site to find out more about their community events. Most stores offer a running group once a week and a yoga class once a week free of charge.


**DON’T FORGET TO ENTER MY GALAXY GRANOLA GIVEAWAY HERE!

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