My Birthday USATF 12K Race Recap

Posted on November 16, 2014 by Coco

When I found out that the .US National USATF 12K was going to be on my birthday this year, I signed up right away. I took a chance on the inaugural race last year, and it was a great event.

ustaflogo

A few weeks before the race I found out that they changed the course, and I was disappointed. One reason I enjoyed the race so much last year was because it went through a part of the city where I never run. My first reaction to the new course was that it covered the worst part of the GW Parkway Classic course, twice.

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A Year Of Living It UP

Posted on November 14, 2014 by Coco

A year ago my husband gave me the Jawbone UP® personal activity tracker for my birthday. (You can see my Jawbone UP review here.) Except for one day when I accidentally left it at home and one day when I accidentally left it in my gym bag, I pretty much wore it all day, every day. So, what have I learned from a year of living it UP®? 

Living it UP

1. I took 4,529,679 steps last year.  According to the UP® data, that corresponds to 2321 miles. I think it’s interesting that during five months I covered 170-ish miles, during two months I covered 180-ish miles, and during five months I covered 200-ish miles, but I had no months in the 190s. I also think it’s interesting that without adding the steps from the first few days of this November, my step total was 4,474,744.  🙂  Continue reading →

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Hiking In The McDowell Sonoran Preserve

Posted on November 11, 2014 by Coco

This weekend I was lucky enough to spend some time visiting friends in Phoenix. One of my friends is an avid hiker and volunteer for the McDowell Sonoran Preserve, and took us on a hike from the Granite Mountain Trailhead.  

McDowell Sonoran Preserve
The Scottsdale McDowell Sonoran Preserve is a permanently protected 30,200-acre sustainable desert habitat with 120 miles of multi-use trails for non-motorized vehicles–we encountered other hikers, mountain bikers and even horseback riders. Continue reading →

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Running In Phoenix

Posted on November 10, 2014 by Coco

Last week’s business trip took me to Phoenix, Arizona. When I looked up my hotel information on-line, it didn’t look like it was in a good location for running, so I mostly packed gym clothes, but I threw in one technical t-shirt just in case I had a chance to go running in Phoenix. 

Running In Phoenix

The day I arrived I took my own advice and asked the concierge if there were any good running routes. I was surprised when he pulled out a running map that promised to take me along a canal. Continue reading →

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My Top Five Healthy Holiday Tips

Posted on November 7, 2014 by Coco

It might seem too early to be sharing healthy holiday tips, but last week I caught myself falling into the most dangerous trap of the holiday season–thinking that I shouldn’t worry about being more careful about my diet until after the holidays. Ay, yi, yi! 

Healthy HolidayTips
I got to that dangerous place because this week I am on a business trip where it will be hard not to over-indulge, and then it will be my birthday, and then it will be my daughter’s birthday (never mind that she’s away at college!) and then it will be Thanksgiving ….. so, why bother? But then I realized that we’ve got two more months left in 2014, and I know I can’t give up on eating healthfully for two whole months! So, here are five healthy holidays tips that I will be putting into practice as best as I can. Continue reading →

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