This Saturday, I finished my first real race, the Brooklyn Rock ‘n’ Roll 10k. It was an amazing experience, and I can say that I have been bit by the running bug once again!

I woke up at 5:30 on an almost freezing Saturday morning, kind of freaking out about how I was going to run in my prepared outfit of running capris and a light long sleeve shirt when it was only 39 degrees outside. I piled on some more layers and hoped for the best when the sun would rise.

We were on the road by 6AM, an hour and a half before the start time of the race, and we made it to Prospect Park within 20 minutes and found a parking spot just across the street from the park. Talk about luck! I opened up the windows in the car and started to strip away my layers because I needed to get used to the temperature. Even though it was brutal at first, we made the walk to the start line and I quickly warmed up. Since we were so early, we even had time to take some goofy pictures. You’re welcome.

Since I registered for the race way before I ever ran anything close to 10k, I had put down my finish time at 1 hour 50 minutes and was put into corral number 12. Back of the line for me! I ended up starting with the corral ahead of me because I knew I could keep up.

The first four miles of the race went pretty smoothly. I took a few walking breaks when I felt myself getting really tired, and I took a bathroom break at mile 3 because I had drank too much water before the race. Of course this stop took forever, and I ended up loosing at least 4 minutes off my time at the end because of it. Oh well!

Mile four of the course brought you back across the start line and this is where the hills began. Going across the start for the first time, I was aware that I was climbing a pretty large hill for the first mile or so, but it did not seem bad at all. Coming across this same hill at mile 4 was brutal. My quads burned the whole way going up and I ended up walking for a good part of the hill. After this first hill, the rest of the course was very hilly, basically up and down the whole way. It was hard and I walked more than I wanted too.

Once I hit mile 6, I sped up. I could see the finish line and I wanted to get there, and quick. I crossed the finish line at 1:17:26. Even though it isn’t a great or competitive time, it is something that I am proud of. A year ago, I wasn’t able to run a mile. What a difference a year makes.

Like I said before, I have been bitten by the racing bug. Lucky for me, I’ve got another race coming up really soon, but more on that a little later!

 What was the last race you ran? How did it go?

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I had my doubts, but I started out strong. The first two miles seemed to drag on forever and I had thoughts about turning back, running home and calling it a night. As I pushed on, it started to rain, as I saw umbrellas and windshield wipers around me go on, I caught my second wind. I ran through the rain with a smile on my face and managed to pound out 6 miles, with just a few, short waking breaks.

When I hit 5.5 miles, I was ecstatic. I knew that the distance I had left to get home would put me around six miles and I couldn’t be more excited.

When I got to my block, I was just under 1/10th of a mile from my goal and when I stopped in front of my house and looked down, I saw this.

A huge smile spread over my face and I sat down on my stoop, in the rain and just savored the moment. This was my longest run ever and I felt strong and accomplished. Just a year ago I couldn’t run a mile and now I can pound out six and go on to live a full life!

So 10k, I say bring it. I’m not scared of you anymore!

On a side note, the app that I was using to track my mileage was Saucony’s Run 4 Good. If you have and iPhone, I urge you to download this app and use it while running. Not only is it a good tracker, Saucony donates money for all of the miles run each month to help battle childhood obesity. Win-win if you ask me!

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July Goals

1. Go to Crossfit 3 times a week. Tommy and I signed up for Crossfit and are starting next week! I am super excited about it, and want to make the most of my time and money there!
2. Run at least 2 times a week. Since I’m planning on spending a lot of time at Crossfit, I am reducing this goal from last month’s 3 times a week. Even
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   though Crossfit is happening, I need to keep training for the 1ok!

3. Cook at least 3 times a week. Cooking relaxes me, not to mention saves me tons of money on dinner/lunches. Win-win goal over here!
4. Really start potty training Munchkin. My little man is going to be 2 1/2 this month and it is time to jump on the potty training wagon.
5. Sign up for the pool with Munchkin and go to weekly Mommy and Me Swim classes. Munchkin is a fish out of water and would spend 24/7 in the pool in I let him. The Mommy and Me classes are fun and teach the basics of swimming.
6. Learn to use my new camera. I got a Canon Rebel T3 almost a month ago, and even though I’ve learned a lot over the last month, there is a whole other world of photography that I haven’t explored. I need to learn to work in manual mode!

Now its your turn! What are your July goals?

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When I saw what Jen had up her sleeve for June’s WIAW, I thought to myself, now this is something I can be good at. Serial snacker over here!

Luckily, I’m usually a pretty sensible snacker and usually turn to fruit when I’m feeling snacky if there is no chocolate in the house, of course. Let’s get to the eats!

Breakfast was packed to the brim with strawberries and therefore DELICIOUS!

Kashi Strawberry Fields cereal, topped with freshly sliced strawberries and with the last strawberry muffin on the side. Those babies went quick!

Honest Tea was on sale at the supermarket this week, so I picked up a few or 10. They are my favorite iced tea. Not too sweet, not too bitter, just right!

When I got home from work I was starved since I didn’t bring lunch with me. I had some stuffed cabbage that my mom had made the day before.

It might not look too hot, but trust me this stuff is good. We Polaks love our cabbage!

I was in the mood for something on the sweeter side after finishing my lunch, so I turned to sensible snack numero uno…grapes!

After my food settled, I decided to go for a run. Even though I was still super sore from Sunday’s workout (which I’ll be sharing manana) I pushed through to finish 2.15 miles in 30 minutes. Not my best, but not my worst!

After my run, it was time for dinner. I was in the mood for something packed with veggies, but not a salad. I sauteed spinach, green peppers, tomatoes and black beans which I topped with a dippy egg.

And of course no day is complete with just one snack, so snack numero dos came into play after Munchkin hit the sack and mommy had some time on the computer.

Banana with half a packet of Justin’s Honey Almond Butter. The rest of the packet may or may not have gone directly into my mouth. So good!

The only things missings from my day of eats are two cups of coffee and a whooole lot of water. I am trying to stay on top of my June goals!

Have an awesome Wednesday!

What’s the best thing you ate yesterday? What’s your favorite sensible snack?

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After Munchkin left, I decided to go for a run since it had been a few days since my last. I did 3.4 miles in a bit over 45 minutes and I ran for most of it, which is an accomplishment for moi!

While I was running, I got to thinking that I don’t set many goals for myself and that it might be kind of fun to set some for the month and see how I stack up at the end of the month. Without further ado, here are my June goals!

1. Run at least 3 times a week. Even though my 10k is not until October, I know that time will fly and it will be here before I know it.
2. Cook at least 3 times a week. I have been slacking off in the kitchen majorly.
3. Strength train at least twice a week. Now that I’ve been running outdoors more, I’ve been slacking off on my visits to my basement gym.
4. Eat out no more than twice a week.  Since I haven’t been cooking lately, we’ve been eating out more often. I can make yummy eats at home, and for a fraction of the cost of eating out!
5. Read more and finish at least one book. I haven’t had time to read because of school and I’ve got a few book that I bought a loong time ago waiting to be read.
6. Go on a bike adventure. We had a blast riding bikes over Memorial Day and I want to try out some new trails.
7. Drink at least 72 oz of water a day. I’ve fallen off my on my water drinking. Before I started work I used to drink a ton, but now I find myself reaching for water more often.

I think these goals are totally reachable, so let’s see how I do! Wish me luck.

Do you set goals for yourself each month?

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to see that Crif Dogs was on Groupon with a great deal – $7 for a Crif Dog, Tots and a drink. I swooped up two of these deals because Crif Dogs is one on my fav “fast food” places, and Tommy, Munchkin and I headed over there yesterday for dinner.

Crif Dog’s menu is a mile long, and if you can’t find anything you like from their combos you can create your own.

I decided on a Veggie Special which is a veggie dog topped with chopped onions, tomatoes, cucumber and jalapeno.

Tommy opted for a BLT which is a regular hot dog wrapped in bacon and topped with lettuce and tomatoes.

Their cheese tots are probably on of the best things I’ve ever eaten, no joke. Tommy and I usually share one order when we go to Crif Dogs and we ended up throwing a lot of them away since the Groupon gave us each our own side. I wanted to keep eating them, but I knew that if I overate, the run that I was planning for the evening would be replaced with laying on the couch feeling gross. Yay for making the right choice!

After I let the food settle in my belly for a bit, I changed into my favorite running crops and hit the road. My run was great! I am still following my couch to 10K program for about the first half, but once I hit the halfway point I push myself and run it through straight if I’m feeling up for it. I also find that when I run in the evening, I kick total butt, which doesn’t really happen in the mornings or midday. I love watching the sun set, maybe that has something to do with it?

In total, I ran/walked, but mostly RAN! 2.62 miles. I ran basically through my whole neighborhood from one end to another, down the main street. Not gonna lie, I felt pretty bad-ass being able to run for 1.5 miles without having to stop or feeling like I’m going to die. I came home with a HUGE smile on my face!

Well, it’s time for me to head out to work. It really stinks having to go in on Friday, but one of the girls I work with got her wisdom teeth pulled yesterday and I need to cover for her. At least the weekend starts at 3:30!

Have a great weekend!

What’s your favorite fast food? What time of day do you like to run?

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Munchkin and I slept in until almost 10 and it felt sooo good to get enough sleep. I’ve been staying up pretty late to study and the alarm always seems to ring too early in the mornings. After making Munchkin a quick breakfast, I headed out for a run. I decided to take my old running route for a change of scenery and I think I know why I had a difficult time getting into running last year. I used to run in circles around the park and it kind of sucked. I kind of felt like a hamster on a wheel, no change in scenery and I kept passing the same people who were going the opposite way. Towards the end I felt like I needed to say hello to them because we had seen each other so many times. To add to the awkwardness, I wore crop yoga pants to run in and they kept sliding off my butt, but I got through it.

Needless to say, I think I’ll be sticking to taking the scenic route from now on… and buying more leggings.

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I wanted to strengthen my core and challenged myself to plank everyday. Looks like I’m not the only one! Steph from Steph’s Bite by Bite started the #PlankProof challenge, so every Wednesday, be sure to show off your planks and tweet with hashtag #PlankProof. So far, so good for me with the planks. My endurance is increasing slowly, but surely.

I was really glad that I got my workout in earlier in the day, because I had a big, fat Greek wedding Mexican dinner. After Tommy got home from work, we had to go to the mall to switch out my cable box because it just stopped working, in the middle of the Lion King, no less. Since it took us a while to get out of there, we were starving by the time our dinnertime rolled around. We went to one of our go-to places, the kind of place where everything on the menu is good, Pop Diner.

I love their Muchos Nachos, so we started with them..and that’s probably where we should have stopped because they were super filling.

I had still ordered a Mexican Salad for my entree which was delicious, but I was stuffed! The salad consisted of lettuce, tomatoes, corn, black beans, shredded cheese, pico de gallo and grilled chicken while I topped off with a bit of guac. I loved the look of the tortilla bowl, but I didn’t even have room to try it.

I also decided that I need to recreate this salad combo at home on a regular basis because it was really good! I just wish I had saved more room for it!

Before I finish this post I just want to say..Go Rangers! Tommy and I actually hit up Crumbs last night to see if we could find this cupcake, but no luck, they were all sold out!

Have a great Saturday!

How long can you hold a plank for? What’s your favorite salad combo? Are you a hockey fan?

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Since I had my final in the late afternoon, I took the day off from work to review, relax and recharge before heading into the exam. I knew that if I went in to work, I’d be rushing to get home, stressed about the test and totally preoccupied thinking about it all day, so why bother.

Instead of sitting at my desk with a cup of coffee in hand, I started off my morning with a run. It was extremely humid and drizzling while I ran/walked, but it felt amazing. I took the same path I did when I ran on Sunday, but it was a lot busier this morning with lots of trucks and traffic driving by, but I didn’t mind. I listened to Pandora’s Today’s Hits station and knew it was going to a good run as soon as this song came on after I walked out of my house.

In total, I walked/ran a little over 2.5 miles in 35 minutes. The Couch to 10k program I’m following only called for 8 intervals of 1-min run/1.5 min walking, but I did an extra 9th interval because I was still a good way away from home when the program told me to cool down.

Overall, I felt really good after the run. My level of fitness has increased a whole lot over the last year because when I started couch to 5k last year, I was DEAD after each run/walk. Even though I feel like I could skip these first levels of the program, I want to work my way up to my goal slowly and make sure I don’t burn out or overpush myself. Slow and steady wins the race, right?

Now that I’ve graced you all with a wonderfully sweaty picture, it’s time to head to court. Don’t worry, I showered!

How do you mentally prepare for a big exam/event? What song is your current jam?

The post Pre-Exam Run appeared first on Frolic Through Life.

After doing I bit of research, I decided on the 10K Runner app to help me get back into the swing of things.

My first run was super easy intervals of 1 minute running and 1.5 minutes of walking. Even when I was done with the recommended program for the first run, I felt like I could have gone on for much longer, which is a lot more than I can say for how I started out last year.

The run was surprisingly relaxing and totally cleared my head which has been abuzz with all things school for the past couple of weeks. I cannot wait until school is done so I can relax and do nothing for

3 months, except run, that is! But for now, its back to studying!

Have a great Tuesday!

Are you a runner? What fitness apps do you use, if any?

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