Race Review: Inaugural Nike Women's Half Marathon DC

Finally! I have a moment to write a race review for the Nike Women's Half Marathon that I ran a few weeks ago. I'll try to make it short and sweet. :)

First things first is the race expotique. The expo was at the Georgetown Waterfront the Thursday-Saturday before the race. Anticipating the large crowd size that Georgetown normally has over the weekends, I decided to pick up my bib after I got off work on Thursday. This move proved to be beneficial, as I didn't have to wait in line for anything. It's kind of neat how they set up this tent on the waterfront. You wouldn't even think that there was a fountain/ice rink underneath it.

Because this was my second time running the Nike Women's (having done so before in San Francisco two years ago), I had managed my expectations about what the expo was going to be like. Based on my prior experience, this expo is more of a "Nike Fashion Showcase", highlighting the latest and greatest of Nike design. If you needed your pre-race supplies, you would probably be better served at one of the many running stores located on M St. On the plus side, Luna had a great booth where you could create personalized signs, and of course they were giving away plenty of snack sized Luna bars. Yummy!

People getting their hair did...

Now on to race day! Because I was pretty much flying solo on this one, I had to take the extra initiative to make sure I didn't forget anything on race day. With no one to provide me reminders that morning, I forgot two things: 1) To eat (ack! I ended up eating a GU gel); and 2) I forgot my corral bracelet. The corral bracelet was just a colored bracelet (kind of like the ones you get at a bar to indicate you're of drinking age) that indicated which corral you were in. Unfortunately, I forgot mine and had to start the race in the very last corral (aka: with the walkers). wah wah. For future reference, I hope they begin putting the corral designation on the bibs, versus an extra accessory (e.g. bracelet) you have to put on/worry about on the day of the race.

Here's a shot of the crowd before the start. The race was well equipped with Luna bars (which I didn't eat while on the course, but just hoarded for later :), Nuun electrolyte beverages, Clif Brand Shot bloks (delicious, just like gummy bears!), and of course water. The entertainment was great and the crowd support was good too. One of my favorite signs said something along the lines of "Binders full of runners," LOL.

One more suggestion I would make would be to have more of a wave start. Each wave pretty much started one after the other consecutively, which caused major backups for the the first five miles of the race (nearly half!). Please remember that Haine's Point is narrow, so weaving in and out of crowds is not very ideal in this part of DC course.

At last I reached the end while shaving off nearly 15 minutes on my previous half marathon time. Woohoo! Here I am with the tuxedoed Tiffany's necklace deliverer, showing off my old necklace with my newly earned one in the box. 

Because I finished earlier than expected, Justin and Kos weren't ready to meet me at the finish line.  While I waited on the boys, I decided to get my face touched up at the Bare Minerals trailer. I just needed a little something to get the dried sweat off my face to make me somewhat presentable for brunch downtown. 

So that's my review of the Nike Women's Half! But here are some other fun things that happened that weekend!

Jill and I saw Kaskade for his "It's You, It's Me" tour at U. Street Music Hall. I've been listening to Kaskade for nearly a decade (!!) and for this tour he was playing all of his old school deep house tracks. The show was so good!

Bathroom selfie!

I couldn't get a decent picture of Kaskade in the DJ booth for the life of me...

But one of his Twitter fans shared this pic collage of him in this awesome t-shirt. Puppies FTW!

Also, Justin's friend from college Kos came to visit for the weekend.  The boys were out drinking the whole weekend, catching up and sharing memories of their "glory days".  Although Justin and I enjoyed his company greatly (we love getting out-of-town visitors), I believe the Frenchies topped us and soaked up all the attention they received from their Uncle Kos.  Below is a shot of the guys passed out after we came home from brunch, following the race.  After a full stomach, the Frenchies knew it was prime time to pounce and take advantage of some couch time.

As the picture above indicates, we had a so much fun that weekend, we had nothing left in the tank by the time we made it to Sunday night.  Unfortunately, the schedule busyness would not end there with the Kentucky Derby just around the corner and another trip to Louisville on that following Thursday.  Stay tuned for the details on our Derby weekend :)

Weekend Review: Good Eating and House Guests!

Wow, I've hit an all time low on my weekend reviews. I know I'm already a week two weeks behind but I wanted to let you know about the awesome weekend I had (er...a couple weeks ago).

 

First stop, Justin, Mike and I took a mini road trip to Baltimore. For dinner we stopped by Chap's Pit Beef of Man v. Food, Diners Drive-ins and Dives (DDD) and Bizarre Foods fame. And wouldn't you know it's in the parking lot of a strip club. The Gold Club to be exact ;)

 

 

Justin and Mike about to enter...not knowing the glorious meat-fest that was about to commence...

 

I got the Guy's Triple D which consisted of pit beef, corned beef and sausage. I didn't eat the bread, but ate it with a side of sauerkraut. It was yummy!

 

After gorging ourselves on pit beef deliciousness I headed to the Baltimore Tattoo Convention. Here are some shots of the side show acts. There was also a suspension (!) but I didn't get pictures of that...

 

Sarah Miller of Ink Master fame was there working...

 

And here I am with the master of "bubble girlie style" Kristel Oreto...I swear, she is all over Pinterest!

 

The next day was Louie's Birthday so we stopped by Howl to the Chief on 8th St to check out some birthday treats...

 

There were plenty of adorable treats like these doggie cookie sandwiches...

 

But we decided on getting a couple of cupcakes.

 

One for Louie and one for Derby.

 

 

Look at how slobbery excited Louie is. He can hardly contain himself.

 

Did I mention we had some out of town guests? Justin's roommate from college, his wife, and his brother-in-law stayed with us on Saturday! They were in town visiting from Chicago (the BIL lives locally). First stop on the tourist adventure, Eastern Market where we saw some interesting street performers! 

That evening, while Justin and our visitors headed to H. St. Jill and I went to Echostage to hear Calvin Harris! For all my my non-EDM fans you've heard his music, but probably didn't know it was him. His songs include "We Found Love," by Rihanna and "Sweet Nothing" by Florence of Florence and the Machine. Here's a shot of me and my friends Clint and Mark. I swear, we always bump into them at events like this!

 

Next I took a picture with my friend from college, Mike, who was working security!

 

It was the first time I'd ever been to Echostage since it changed from DC Star, but I must say I was pretty impressed. Good sound system, decent outdoor area and plenty of room. The lights were pretty cool too. Wasn't sure if they were the club's or Calvin Harris' but they were top notch. * pew pew pew*

 

Here's a picture of the crowd from the balcony. I am way too old to be standing in the middle of that...so we mostly stuck by the sides. Because quite honestly as much as I love EDM, the DJ isn't really doing anything worth watching to motivate me to get close to the stage...live DJ acts (i.e.: Diplo) that's a different story

 

So back to our out of town guests. In addition to showing them around the Hill, we had to show them Georgetown as well, so I made a reservation at Farmers, Fishers, and Bakers to try out their all-you-can-eat brunch! It was super tasty and my first plate looked something like this. Piled on with salad, fruit, guacamole, and taco fillings!

More of the same...the kale salad was phenomenal! 

 

Too bad I couldn't indulge in any of these that were being passed around by the servers...wah wah...

 

We strolled around the Georgetown waterfront a little bit to walk off our food babies! LOL, Overall it was a good weekend with good food, good music and good friends!

 

I'll be posting about last weekend's festivities at my friend's wedding in New York sometime soon! I hope!

Paleo Challenge: Halfway there, Living on a Prayer!

Hi Everyone! As my Bon Jovi inspired titled indicates I am just about halfway done with my Paleo Nutrition Challenge. It has been a challenge in every sense of the word and my patience has truly been tested these past few weeks as my weight loss has plateaued. *sad face*  Although I dropped seven pounds within the first couple weeks of the challenge, I have been at a standstill ever since. Talking with my friends and family about it has been extremely helpful. As my support system, they told me that I need to persevere and since I've made it this long (over a month without bread/starches and alcohol!), I can't stop now! They are so right!

 

After much contemplation. I decided to go to my work nutritionist to get some insight on how I can defeat this plateau. Since this is a free service that my company provides, I figured I had nothing to lose (no pun intended!). I made my appointment for Monday and she initially "poopoo'ed" me for being on the paleo diet. I stuck to my guns and told her this was how I ate and she laid off. I can't blame her since most nutritionists follow the traditional high carb/beans diet plan as a "model" of health. I mean honestly, oatmeal has never filled me up (unless I eat large quantities) and I'm always hungry by 11am! Anyway, I digress...After reviewing my food journal, she was still able offer me some helpful suggestions to get me out of my plateau.

 

1) Lay of the muffins! Yes my beloved muffins, rich in protein and coconut oil amongst other things...she suggested I limit myself to one per day. These particular ones I made over the weekend were strawberry!

 

 

 

 

2) Go easy on the Paleo sweets and treats. Therefore, my coconut cream and raspberries need to be once in a while occasion (soooo good!), not an after every dinner treat. wah wah.

 

3) Continue to eat fibrous vegetables, like brussel sprouts (my favorite!). Look who wants some, even though its not meat and he has no clue what it is. Go figure.  

 

 

 

 4) Although filled with healthy fats, limit my avocado intake to twice a week. She also suggested I limit my nut intake to one serving a day. That means, one serving of almonds or almond butter, not both! And remember measuring is key when it comes to these types of fatty goodness! A little goes a long way, so a dollop of guacamole with chili should be sufficient!

5) Stick with lean proteins like the turkey burgers pictured below. I must admit that I had been indulging on some pretty fatty cuts like sausages and corned beef!

 

 

6) No more feast or famine. Basically, that means no more overeating one day and then under eating the next. Guilty as charged. :/ I thought I was doing my body a favor by trying to "undo" the prior day's overeating, but I was actually confusing my body because I had no balance!

So there you go. Six tips to get me on the right track. I'll be sure to update you if they worked!

If you've tried losing weight in the past, what did you do to get past the plateau? I feel petite sized women (like myself!) have it the hardest! Paleo is a healthful way of eating, however, it's easy to go overboard!

Weekend Review: Happy Easter!

I hope everyone had a good weekend! Unfortunately, my weekend reviews are become later and later, but this time, it wasn't my fault because someone *ahem, Justin* forgot to send me the pictures on his iPhone.

 

Besides it being Easter, our weekend was full of running errands. We had to get the emissions test done on our new car so woke up bright and early (7am!) on Saturday to be one of the first in line. We learned our lesson when we took the FJ and we didn't want to wait 2+ hours in line again!

 

Afterwards, we took the boys to the French Bulldog meetup. Unfortunately, they couldn't stay too long because we had to take them to their grooming appointment shortly afterward. We usually bathe them ourselves but every other month or so we like to get them professionally groomed. They were getting really smelly!

 

Later that afternoon, Jill and I went to a two hour Punking/Waacking Workshop at Joy of Motion. Punking/Waacking is a dance style that originated in L.A. and is derived from disco! It's a really fun style of dance that involves at lot of sassy arm movement! You can see a clip of this style of dance here:

 

 

It has been several years since we have taken this particular class (or any dance class in general) so you can say we were definitely rusty! Despite our stumbling, we still had a lot of fun bringing out our inner diva.

 

Photo credit: Esperanto Bean

Sunday Justin and I went to church at St. Peter's on the Hill. Of course we didn't get there early enough so we had to stand, but this time I was prepared and I wore my comfy wedges! For brunch, instead of eating at the Four Seasons as we had originally planned, we opted to do something more paleo-friendly so we went to Chima Brazilian Barbeque in Tysons Corner. Here is a shot of my first plate. A little bit of squash salad, beet, hearts of palm, olives, prosciutto and beef carpaccio to start off with!

 

 

I, unfortunately, didn't get any pictures of the meatfest that followed, but let me tell you it was good! For dinner the meatfest continued as we went to my parents' house for a belated birthday/Easter celebration.

 

 

 

I, unfortunately, couldn't eat a lot of the stuff so I mostly stayed on this side of the table. More grilled meats. Barbecue FTW!

 

The cake and the palabok (Filipino noodle dish) were seriously tempting me...

 

But luckily I was able to stay on track with kim chee (fermented veggies are good for you!) barbecue short ribs, and the infamous Filipino dish, dinaguan! AKA: Filipino blood pudding, AKA: "chocolate meat." All Nutrition Challenge friendly ;)

 

 

So that was my Easter in a nutshell! I hope you did something fun on your weekend!

Happy Birthday Justin! The 10th Anniversary of your 21st Birthday!

Last week was Justin's birthday and unlike last year's drunken debauchery we played it a little more low key this year. After all, he's turning 31...we're too old for that! LOL! Anyway, for his actual birthday we went out to dinner at The Prime Rib, a place we've been wanting to try for a while. Justin started off with the lobster bisque, which is something I usually order when it's on the menu, but alas it is not "paleo challenge" friendly. :(

 

So instead I ordered the tomato soup which is still tasty (and not cream based either!)

 

We also split the shrimp cocktail appetizer! You can't go wrong with a big, honking shrimp I say!

Then, came our entrees! Justin ordered the full cut. Man, that thing was huge! Bone-in prime rib...it reminded me of the hunk of meat that tipped over the Flintstone's car...LOL...

 

I on the other hand opted to get the classic, signature cut. Way smaller of course ;) Oh, by the way, the shredded white stuff on the sides of our plates isn't cheese, but shredded fresh horseradish. Neat, huh? It definitely wasn't as spicy as I thought it would be but it added a nice kick with every bite of meat.

 

These were my sides! Kinda wish the portion sizes were bigger...

 

Then the server came out with strawberries romanoff (on the house) with a candle on it. Justin was definitely surprised. Note: restaurants actually read the comments in an Open Table reservation so it pays to write down if you are celebrating a special occasion!

 

On Friday, we hit up Biergarden Haus on H St. to meet up our friends for a couple of drinks (I was DD, obviously!). Since it was cold outside they closed off a large part of the outdoor seating area. This caused them to strictly limit how many people could come in and out. This put a slight damper on our festivities since we had a party of over 20 people because they gave some of us a hard time getting outside to join the rest of the group. We made the best of the situation and eventually, everyone got outside but it was kind of pain to deal with in the first place.

 

It was nice to see all our friends, many of which we haven't seen in a while!

Overall, all I would say all of Justin's Birthday festivities were a success! We unfortunately didn't get to celebrate with my dad (since they share the same birthday!) but hopefully we'll have a belated birthday celebration in the near future!