friday five: spring races

Hey guys! I've been a bit quiet here on the blog lately... I hope you haven't missed me too much. Life has gotten extremely hectic with some career transitioning and some personal things, but I'm here today to get back into Friday Five posts!

On Fridays, Courtney at Eat Pray Run DC, Cynthia at You Signed Up For What?!, and Mar at Mar on the Run, host a fun linkup with new themes each week. This week's theme is SPRING. I've decided to talk about five spring races that I'm looking forward to.

1. Shamrock Shuffle 8k on March 29. This is always a fun race. Being Irish, I of course like the theme. This year they are doing something new – finisher medals! That's exciting. I can't say I'm always a fan of the shirt, but they are tech material, so I wear them for training if nothing else. I'm hoping for some 50 degree weather! It's really fun running through the streets of Chicago, especially down State Street past the Chicago Theatre. The crowds are always energetic, plenty of on course support, and fun after party in Grant Park (though the beer isn't quite what I would prefer...). If memory serves correctly, there was a band playing and food/beer for sale. Participants received their first beer free if they were 21+.

2. Boston Marathon on April 20. No, I'm not running, however I love watching the live feeds. It's so inspiring and motivating. I can't wait to see how my pals do, not to mention Shalane!

3. Southwest Half Marathon on May 3. This is my goal half marathon. I'm training to get a PR. I like this race because it's a small runner field, so I don't have to worry about congestion or weaving around people.

4. Tinker Bell Races May 8–10. I am registered for the Neverland 5k as well as the Pixie Dust Challenge. This will be my second time out to Disneyland, as well as my second time running the Tinker Bell half marathon - - first time with the 5k and 10k :)

5. Soldier Field 10 Mile on May 23. Last year was the first time I ran this race, which I signed up for the week of, and was so glad I did. It was such a great race, and we had beautiful weather. It was really neat to get to run through Soldier Field and actually finish on the 50 yard line. The course was nice (and the beginning was fairly wide, so gave the large number of runners a chance to spread out), plus a great medal, tech shirt, and a cool bag with all of your post-race goodies (water, pretzels, etc.). I'm racing again this year, as a BibRave Pro, and I'm super excited. Shameless plug - register before March 31 to save $10 on your registration. On April 1 the price increases. I was planning on doing this rave again this year, I just got lucky enough to be chosen as a BRP for it :) Join me and #FinishOnThe50 at the 2015 #SF10. Head on over to SoldierField10.com and register!

What races are you looking forward to in Spring?

friday five: favorite fuel for running

Happy Friday, my friends! Per usual, I am linking up with the lovely ladies of DC: Courtney at Eat Pray Run DC, Cynthia at You Signed up for What?, and Mar at Mar on the Run, as I do every Friday. This week's theme is "Favorite Fuel for Running (or working out)".

1. ENERGYbits. Seriously, these tiny green/blue tablets are like magic. I have a nervous stomach and can't eat before races, so these have come in handy. They give me the energy I need to finish strong, and help keep the hunger pains away. I take my ENERGYbits about 15 minutes prior to my run, and depending on the length also during. I became an ambassador about a month ago, so if you are looking to buy a bag, use code 'HeatherRuns' for a 25% discount on energybits.com. You can use it on any of their products – ENERGYbits, SKINNYbits, VITALITYbits, and RECOVERYbits. You can read my initial review here (written well before I became an ambassador), or my ambassador post here.

ENERGYbits to the rescue.

2. Clif Shot Bloks. I love these guys. I take a Shot Blok about every two miles (for longer runs, which to me is 6+ miles). This helps give me the calories my body needs to finish the longer runs. I had a lovely surprise recently as well: I'm a BibRave Pro and Clif was extremely generous in sending us some products to try, and I got a bunch of Shot Bloks in the orange flavor, which I've never tried before (I usually go with Tropical Punch, Black Cherry, and CranRazz). Yay!

3. Picky Bars. Booyah! I am a member of the Picky Club, and love love love these bars. They offer an array of flavors (my favorites are All-In Almond and Cookie Douhpness) and they pack a good amount of protein and carbohydrates – perfect for athletes. I like to eat one about 30–45 minutes before a run, or if I'm hiking, I'll take them with to eat during. I also love them for just a general snack—my snack drawer at work is always stocked with them :) You may have noticed that both Picky Bars and ENERGYbits got me through the longs days of standing/running around at Riot Fest last month.

Couldn't get a good photo, but you get the idea.

4. Pizza and Beer. Yes, I said it. The days where I've had pizza and a beer (craft, of course) before a long run, the long runs have gone surprisingly well. Maybe it's the carbs, or perhaps it's just comfort food that takes away my nerves, who knows—I'm not going to question it if it works ;)—but I've taken to loving it for dinner the nights before a run. It's not always pizza, one time it was loaded cheese fries and a delicious grilled cheese sandwich. The next day, 9.5 miles done without a problem. And let's be honest, these are foods and drinks I love, so it makes me so happy that I can eat them the night before a run and be ok haha. Here's the secret, though: It's about portion control and not over doing it. When I'm full, I stop eating (usually bringing half a sandwich home for the next day) and I have two beers tops. Then, once I'm home, I'll drink some Nuun before bed.

5. If I'm able to eat before running, I sometimes go with a bagel with peanut butter or an english muffin with butter (just a little). This will usually be consumed about an hour or two before the run. Obviously, if it's a morning race, I choose sleep over waking up early enough to try and eat something (mostly because I know I won't be able to eat regardless).

What are some of your favorite fuels for when you are running/working out?

Thanks to Courtney, Cynthia, and Mar for hosting! Make sure to check out their "Friday Five" posts (direct links above in first paragraph) and link up if you are joining in on the fun (and if you aren't – how come?!). Don't forget to read/comment on some of the other link ups :) 

Also, if you're interested, here are my posts from the week:

Week in Review

Weekly Chase

Hoist Review

Have a great weekend, everyone! Hope it's wonderful :)