Run Eat Tweet AZ News!

So Run Eat Tweet AZ has has a few updates! We've got a lot planned over the next couple months, so let's get you all caught up.

First up is a recovery run and Yoga in the park on March 8th. If you're running the Phoenix full marathon or half marathon on Feb 28th, what a great way to recover! If you're suffering from any kind of sore/muscle tightness, this'll be a great activity to join. It'll be pretty low key so it's also a fun time to come meet some of your local runners and CROs! Check out the event details here.

Next is the Kiss Me I'm Irish Run on March 14th. This race is stroller and dog friendly! The medal is also a bottle opener. Sign up now with code "RUNEAT10" to get 10% off. I know it's filling up, so get signed up now!

March is a pretty busy month for us! Our next group meet up is on the 28th and is gonna be a great one! It's Nuun sponsored and will have *TONS* of GIVEAWAYS!! There will be guests there to talk about the importance of hydration, and with our scorching summer temps right around the corner, there's no better time to learn more! Check out the event details here!

On April 11th don't forget about the Run3rd 5k happening in Mesa to benefit Mesa Public School District children. There is a virtual option available for those who live out of town but would like to show support, or for those who are unable to attend that day. Use code "RUNEATTWEET" to get 10% off and to be entered into a GIVEAWAY for a Sean Astin (from Goonies, Lord of the Rings, Rudy...) signed DVD copy of either "Goonies" or "Lord of the Rings". The first drawing happens March 1st, so get signed up now! Did I mention that Sean Astin will be at the race! You don't wanna miss that!

Thinking ahead and want to visit or run in Arizona when it's finally cooled off a bit? Well the Tucson Marathon is held at one of the best times here! They have a handful of race options between Dec 5-6 you can sign up for. I'm doing the half marathon and can't wait! I lived there for several years and look forward to racing there again. Code "RET10" will get you 10% off. Get signed up now before prices go up!

Finally let's talk about Girls Run Fast. I'm an ambassador for them as well and they're partnered up with Run Eat Tweet AZ. They've got an assortment of really amazing jewelry for whatever athlete lies within you! Apparel and stickers available as well! I finally got a few items and just LOVE them! "RETgrf20" will save you 20% off all items in their store. Check them out. They will also be holding a race in November. Go here to check out those details. Virtual option available and some pretty amazing swag!

Stay up with me as I'll be sure to keep you posted on anything else coming our way! You can catch me on instagram or twitter! Thanks for stopping by!

Run3rd 5k Plug/Saturday Long Run Recap

What a great day! I had my sweet husband drive me up to the starting line of the Phoenix Half Marathon so I could run the course this morning. I needed to see where my endurance was at after not being able to run for so long. I'm also getting anxious about the race, and I want to be as familiar with it as I can be. It wasn't a perfect run, but it sure felt good to get out there and move like that. I wasn't the only one who had the idea of running the course today. There were a lot of runners out there! It was so motivational to have comrades doing the same thing with the same basic goal as me.

The very basic breakdown of the run went as follows....

At mile .25 I realized I didn't have my IT band straps and had a minor panic attack, but kept going, no pain.

At mile 1.5 met three guys from the marathon drop off and chatted for a bit as we ran, they fist bumped me and off they went. So that was awesome.

At mile 3.5 I could feel some tightness in my right IT band, but it was manageable.

At mile 4.79 pit stop, felt pretty great!

At mile 5 another marathon drop off chatted for a bit, but she was cookin' so off she went!

At mile 5.5 texted most amazing hubz to bring me a strap. Just too much pain started and I needed to hold down the IT band.

At mile 6.80ish he met me before heading into downtown Mesa.

At mile 8 I noticed I wasn't able to get all of my breath in and out anymore (asthma) and started to panic again, which just makes it worse. I had my inhaler, but didn't want to use it. I got under control.
At mile 9 it started becoming a suffer fest, but I was DETERMINED at that point to finish. I paused twice to get some good breaths in and out.

At mile 10.5 it became a very vocal push myself to the end and lots of wheezing.

At mile 12, success! I did it. I'm tired. I'm sore, but I sang every song from miles 1-8 and then from 10-11. I enjoyed myself.

Since part of my problem with injuries is that I haven't been stretching well (or at all) I made it a point to stretch a bunch as soon as I got home. Then I grabbed some food (hard boiled egg and smoothie with Greek yogurt, oatmeal, almond milk, banana and strawberries) and headed straight over to my friend's pool to ice my legs. I also got some PVC pipe, because my foam roller just isn't getting the job done, and cried as I rolled out my poor sore muscles (kidding, but for real, it was intense).

I'm counting on the adrenaline of race day to push me closer to my original goal time. Despite the anxious butterflies, I'm so excited to run this race!

Also, don't forget to sign up for the Run3rd 5k that's happening on April 11, 2015. There's a virtual option as well for out of town folks or people who can't make it race day. Don't forget to use Run Eat Tweet AZ's race code "RUNEATTWEET" for 10% off registration, and to get entered into the GIVEAWAY for an autographed DVD from Sean Astin of "Goonies" or "Lord of the Rings". Get in before the price goes up again. It's for a great cause, benefitting the kids in the Mesa Public School District. Read all about it on their website!

New Race Goals

How do you deal with the disappointment of having to alter your racing plans and goals?

I've never had to deal with this. I haven't run since high school, competitively, and spent those years just running however I wanted. I've been training for the Phoenix half marathon to run it in a sub 2hr. I'm quite capable of doing that, I believe, if I was healthy and uninjured.

I haven't run much since Dec. Severe leg pain had me grounded for a month, now recently I've also had bronchitis or some sort of upper respiratory illness, and currently it seems, I have a sinus infection. I also have IT band pain in both legs. Obviously I'm not starting the year out real great.

Regardless though, I am doing my best to remain positive. Racing/running is only partly about the speed. For me it's also about being healthy, both body and mind, and doing something good for myself. So regardless of my previous goals for the Phoenix half marathon, I will toe the start line and just do the very best that I can. I will celebrate that I did something I used to be afraid of trying and I will congratulate all of my friends who cross that finish line as well. I will run for the enjoyment of running and I will run for my sweet buddy Jaylee who has to do hard things everyday. I will have plenty of time to achieve that sub 2hr goal.

I'm a CRO for RunEatTweetAZ!

Well, oh boy!  That escalated quickly!  I was made a #RunEatTweetAZ chief running officer!  If you look to the right bar of my blog, you'll see that badge for it which will take you to their Facebook page.  I'm so excited about this!  Since taking running back up in Oct 2013, I've been trying to get involved in the running community here in Arizona.  I stumbled on this group nearly a year after, and have enjoyed the runs I've been able to go on with them.  They are so welcoming and made me feel included right off the bat.  When they put out an application to join them as a running officer, I knew I had to try.

What that means for you, me, this blog and even my other social media feeds is that I will be posting about upcoming events (and discount codes) in the community that Run Eat Tweet AZ will be a part of, group runs, race info, contests and giveaways!!  Even product reviews as they become available!

Just this last Saturday I was able to attend a group run.  We were hoping for a trail run, but uncharacteristic of Arizona, we got rain for almost 3 straight days leaving everything pretty wet, muddy and washed out, so we road ran instead.  It was so great to see new faces and meet new runners.  We also had a new company, minoTOR come out and introduce us to their product.  Be on the look out!  I'll be doing a review of their drink!

Run Eat Tweet AZ has partnered up with a local store Fleet Feet Sports Scottsdale.  We are helping to promote a local event coming up that Fleet Feet Sports Scottsdale is putting on, Relay for V-Day.  Visit their website and sign up to attend!  Grab your running partner, spouse, or a friend and head on over for fun, fitness and prizes! You're guaranteed to have a great time! If you don't have a partner you can post in Run Eat Tweet AZ's Facebook page and we can match you up e-harmony style (no date required of course ). Click on my CRO badge to take you to the Facebook page.

There are two races coming up that we have a discount for. One is the Run3rd 5K which will take place on April 11, 2015 and will help benefit Mesa Public Schools!  The code for this race is RUNEATTWEET which gives you 10% off.  It also enters you into a GIVEAWAY for a Sean Astin (Goonies, Rudy, Lord of the Rings) autographed DVD of either "Goonies" or "Lord of the Rings"!!!  How awesome is that!!  I'm so excited about this one!  As an MPS employee and with children in this school district, it makes me happy to have something positive to help our local children!  There's a virtual option for anyone who lives out of state/town, or who just can't make it to the race, who'd like to support.  The great thing about a virtual run is that you can do it any day, any time, whenever it's convenient for you.  It just needs to be reported by the end of April.

Another race we are supporting right now is the Kiss Me I'm Irish Run which will take place on March 15, 2015.  The code for this race is RUNEAT10 for 10% off!  I was on their Facebook page this afternoon and they've reported that they're 50% full already, so jump on this one before you miss out!  It's a stroller friendly/dog friendly race!  They even have a 1K for the littles in your life who want to run!

One last code I have for you is a fun one!  Girls Run Fast has teamed up with Run Eat Tweet AZ this year also!  Did you know I'm an ambassador for Girls Run Fast as well?  Yup!  By the end of February I will be decked out with their products and I can't wait!  They have such amazing jewelry, something for the runner, swimmer, yogi, dancer....and more, in you!  Check it out!  I of course want the runner, but I'm thinking of getting a swimmer for my sweet IR4 buddy, Jaylee!  There's lots of variety and other products, surely something for everyone.  Come shop around and use code RETgrf20 for 20% off everything in their store!

Thanks for taking the time reading all this!  I'm excited to be able to share more with everyone as more becomes available.  Stay tuned, I'll keep you all up to date on new activities, races, codes and giveaways!  Don't forget to follow my instagram @runlikethewinded and twitter @runlikedawinded accounts as well!

The Cheetah Marathon 🐆 😉

So I finally made the decision to run the full marathon in April, provided that I get the paper sent in, and it's approved. The date is April 4th and I couldn't figure out why it seemed familiar. When I was telling my best friend about the race,she asked when it was so she could come watch (she's kind of amazing. I don't know many people who'd volunteer to stand and watch a marathon.) As I was typing out the date, it finally dawned on me....that's one of my old roommate's birthday!

 Aimee Garrett. There are hardly any memories from college that don't involve her. I met her when I was a freshman at Northern Arizona University. She was in my best friend's ward at church, and in her family home evening group as well. I was suffering from the after effects of a basketball game gone wrong and had a broken hand and couldn't go sledding with my own group one Monday night, so I joined my friend. When I met Aimee, I knew instantly that we needed to be friends.


Throughout my college years she kind of floated in and out of the groups I was in, but always, she struck me as someone I needed in my life. Then as fate would have it, my then current roommate, was getting married and moving out and I needed someone to share my room. It just so happened that Aimee needed a roommate as well, and in she moved, and all my dreams came true! Hahaha! But for real, I was so excited.


 She lived her life to the fullest! She had more energy than I could believe, and her personality was infectious. Actually, my youngest son reminds me of her a lot. We were always up to no good, in the sense that, we were always busy doing something stupid! It was the most fun I'd ever had with someone. There was really never a dull moment with her.

 During my first year there, in the family home evening group she was in, after an ultimate Frisbee game gone wrong, she dubbed her group the "cheetahs". The group evolved and the initiation INTO the group did as well. When I finally got married (I say it like I was old or something) and moved out, it had become a snowboarding group at the time. You had wear a cheetah tail down the slopes in order to become a cheetah. I was going to do it with them finally, but wouldn't you know, it was over the top of my honeymoon. She dubbed me an honorary cheetah as a result! Mostly the group was for fun, it was goofy, and it sorta circulated around the idea of just doing something crazy.


Not too many months later, she and another of my old roommates, Lindsay, passed away in a car accident. I miss the both of them terribly, and my thoughts turn to them more often than not.


Aimee was smart and funny and had a very serious side to her. Occasionally we got to see it, but she also knew how to make life fun, and if the word "epic" was a slang word back then, I'm pretty much positive it would've worked it's way into her extensive slang vocabulary, to be used at all times. Her life was epic. She made everything seem epic! And that's basically what her cheetah club was all about, doing something stupidly epic.

 As I embark on this stupid idea that I should become a marathoner, I think she'd be quite pleased with the idea. Ever since it dawned on me what day this race is on, I haven't stopped smiling (albeit with misty eyes). I'm sure she's quite busy in heaven, but I'm also kind of sure she knows what I'm thinking, and I think it's making her happy as well.  I can hear her say "Rock on" with that lean backward and gigantic smile across her face, her insanely curly hair swaying as she moved and her maniacal laugh at the end.

 To honor her memory, and asanan honorary cheetah, it has become my mission to find some cheetah running crops and a cheetah tail to run those 26.2 miles in, for Aimee, for me, for my sweet buddy Jaylee, and for the idea that life doesn't always have to be serious, even as an adult. Racing doesn't always have to be serious. Sometimes it's okay to throw caution to the wind and live epically! Sometimes it's okay to do really stupid stuff as long as you're having fun. And even though really bad things happen in this life, there's always a reason to wear a cheetah tail and do something dumb, just to have some fun and smile.


Thank you Aimee, for being a fantastic friend. Thank you for showing me how to have fun. Thank you for being you. I can think of no better way to honor your memory and carry forward your cheetah club, and have a little fun all at the same time! I love you and miss you!

Small Goals Not Big Resolutions

I don't make resolutions. Making year long goals just begs to be failed (for me). That's the quickest way for me to hit one bump in the road and say well, it was a nice idea, and then never try again. I like setting much smaller scale goals. Last Oct I just wanted to start running again, and maybe lose some weight with it. So that's what I did. Then in Jan I thought, maybe I should add in some weights, so I did. Then sometime in Feb I got really really sick with the worst case of bronchitis I've probably ever had and was grounded from walking, running, lifting.....breathing. I had pulled rib muscles and I couldn't do anything.

By May I was finally able to walk again and run just a little. So I started over. Then I signed up for my first OldGuyRunning challenge on instagram and started following a 10k training plan just to help give me some direction. I wanted to get faster and run longer. So each month I set new goals with a bigger goal in mind at the end of the quarter. Nothing super major long term. Small things that added up to big things. In the end I've lost some weight. Not as much as I would've liked, but I still don't eat super great all the time and I'm sure that has a lot to do with it, but I'm very happy with where I'm at. I've gotten faster and I can, so far at this point, run 14 consecutive miles.

I've done more for myself in 2014 than I have any other year! I'm healthier, more fit, and happy. I still won't make New Year resolutions. It's just not for me. I do have one long term goal in mind, but like everything else, I'll just take it a month at a time. Already I've changed my mind several times about what kind of fitness goals I want to work on in the next couple months. Here's where I'm at so far.

The Phoenix half marathon is February 28th, and a sweet sweet friend has paid my fee! I'm still just floored about it. This has made a huge impact on me. I was working on a half marathon training plan. I'm 7 weeks into it, but the mileage is so high, it's taking a toll on my legs and body. The one thing I've learned over the past year is how to listen to my body and make adjustments as needed. So I was going to scrap some of the plan and change it up. Add in weights and more crosstraining, slow down a run or two and cut out one speed work workout.

Then as I was looking over the Startline Racing schedule and which race to sign up for with my free entry I won in the summer, I noticed a full marathon in there. After some deliberation, talking it over with a friend, studying the full marathon plan, I think I'm gonna go for it. I'm going to sign up for a full marathon for April 4th!! The mileage is much more manageable, and I can put my crosstraining in nicely. I was running so much better when I was lifting, so I'm thinking I can still hit my half marathon goal time and enjoy running a marathon as well.

This year is going to be a good one because how could it not be. I have ideas for where I'd like to go fitness wise, but will leave room to make adjustments as I see fit. If something isn't working for me, I'll change it. I'd love to become an ambassador for a couple other programs and look forward to becoming a more active ambassador in the programs I'm already a part of.

I have several other goals; spirituality, to read my scriptures daily, something I've never done before. Also reread conference talks. Personal, spend more quality time with my children and husband. I've only got a short time with them realistically, on this earth, I need to make it count. Get some other things organized here at home. Make a decision as to whether or not I'll go back to work after this school year is over. See if it's a possibility at all to make it out to Indiana to meet my sweet IR4 buddy, Jaylee. Professional, where to go if I decide to continue to work. How to help my husband achieve his work goals......

So, lots of things on my radar. I'll take it a day at a time, readjust as I see fit. I've grown so much in 2014, I'm excited to see where I can take myself in 2015. First up, make it to Feb 28th!

Miles With Meaning

12 miles this morning. The longest I've ever run. Ever. It was not easy. I woke up with a headache and it took me 45 minutes to finally drag myself out of bed. I knew I'd be ticked at myself later for not doing this, and I had two little people on my mind who I promised miles to.

I got dressed and dragged myself out the door. I was punished by not being in a good spot to capture this morning's sunrise better, but I did at least get to see it and it was beautiful.

My first mile I was so stiff and sore. Everything just ached. My legs, my knees, my calves, my head. I managed to make it down the road and into the second mile. About halfway through that second mile I finally stopped and walked for a bit. I needed to refocus my run. I needed to stop looking at my Garmin  and forcing my body to do something it just seemed to not be able to do this morning. I decided to just allow my body to run the way it needed to. I decided the distance was more important than the pace today. I needed to put my thoughts on the two little people it needed to be on, and I started to plug away again. Mile 2 was much slower than it "should've" been, but I did it. Then all of a sudden mile 3 was done. Then mile 4, all slower than the called for plan. But my mind was where it needed to be.

Today, December 6th, is my sweet nephew's birthday. He returned home to heaven unexpectedly at the age of 16 months. He would be 4 today. I miss his little mug so much. I miss having giggly pictures sent to me from my sister. I miss that I don't get to see him grow up. He lived in a different state, so I didn't see him much besides pictures, but I loved them and him. My second favorite job from being a mom, is being an Auntie. I LOVE my nieces and nephews and I LOVE him. I thought of him during my run and I hit my stride during those thoughts and all of a sudden I didn't feel the run anymore. I knew I was moving forward, but I wasn't focused on it anymore. My body was doing what my mind was allowing it to do, running the way it knew how.

My thoughts moved to my cute buddy Jaylee who I've talked about in previous posts on here. Running is hard work. Keeping pace is even harder work sometimes, but in perspective, it's nothing compared to the fight this little girl has fought in her short life so far. When I think of her I cannot help but smile. She is the happiest little girl I know. Right about then I hit the part of my run that was supposed to be faster. I remembered her mommy said she loves the wind in her hair. Well, I run with a Lego version of Jaylee in my pockets, pouches or whatever I have as storage that day on me. I thought of that and picked up my pace so Lego Jaylee could "feel" the wind in her "hair". This seems like a silly thing, I know, but it helps.

The last two miles were still a struggle, but I wanted to finish strong. I knew I could. I knew I had it in me. So I pushed. When I finished I couldn't believe I had just run 12 miles. More successfully than some of my shorter runs. Did I hit each pace split I was "supposed" to, no. But more importantly I listened to my body, I allowed myself to run the way I needed to. And even more importantly than that, I made those miles happen for two sweet babes. And in turn, allowing myself to focus on someone other than myself I was rewarded with a great run.

"Some people come into our lives and quickly go....some stay for a while and leave footprints on our hearts and we are forever changed." I am the luckiest girl in the world because so many have changed the direction I have taken my life. I was grateful to spend 12 miles thinking of two of those people who've changed my life forever.