#teamsparkle

I’m so behind in my blog posts, you guys. I was honored to be featured on Sparkle Athletic's blog in January. I know. Here it is, mid-March and I’m just now telling you all about it.

If you’re not familiar with Team Sparkle, they are as awesome as they sound. Sparkle Athletic was founded by three friends in 2010. A few years after their company was established, I ran the Warrior Dash with my daughter and a group of friends. We established a team of runners, some of whom were friends of friends. That's the beauty of running: you make connections with people that you might not have met otherwise.

One of those friends was a woman we met at the race with her now-husband then-boyfriend and their dog Frank. I obviously liked Brenna right from the start: anyone who has a dog sidekick named ‘Frank’ that also happens to be a Labrador has to be amazing, right?? Brenna had a bunch of ‘dress up’ stuff for us to wear: glitter skirts, striped sleeves and visors. I asked her where she had gotten the loot, and she casually explained her aunt Kelly owned a company that sold athletic wear.

This certainly wasn’t like any athletic wear I had seen before. I still own the skirt and sleeves Brenna give me that day, and I have worn my black and silver sparkle skirt to races several times over.

Believe it or not, I was actually able to salvage my
#teamsparkle outfit. I have laundry skillz, y'all.

Holy crap, were we ever muddy. Good times! I count my lucky stars we didn’t get hepatitis.

Anyway! It was an incredible honor to be a featured runner on their site. Many thanks to one of my favorite social media runners Carlee McDot for reaching out to me and making this happen.

#runalways

I was thrilled to be a featured on the  #RunAlways Instagram account in January. Like the name implies, it's an account designed to inspire and connect the global running community.

 

A RUNNING STORY ------------------------------------------ I am an addict/alcoholic. Running is a huge part of my recovery and it has turned into a form of meditation; my head is quiet when my body is moving. . I was 35 years old when I began running. It started out of necessity because my son wouldn't stay in childcare at the gym. I ran 3-4 days a week pushing a baby jogger, but it took a full year before it was something I looked forward to doing. . I had heard you could get high from running. At age 38, I decided to run my first full marathon. It was one of the most incredible experiences of my life. I ran my second full marathon on my 40th birthday. . Two weeks afterward, my entire right arm went numb during a run. I thought I was having a stroke or heart attack, until I realized the sensation stopped immediately when I began walking. I was diagnosed with bulging discs in my neck. My doctor said I had to stop running. . Against his advice, I slowly began running again. I made some corrections to my form and gave up road cycling. Three years after my injury, I ran my fastest half marathon and finished the course with a PR of 2:05. My glory was short-lived. During the race I felt a small tug on the back of my leg, but I had so much adrenaline onboard that I was able to shake it off and finish strong. . I tried running a few days later - the tug had become a sharp pain at the top of my right hamstring. I was diagnosed with bursitis. Despite seeing my chiropractor weekly, it took nearly four months of no running for the injury to heal. This coincided with some thyroid issues and I quickly gained 25 pounds. . Over the last 5 years, my relationship with running has changed and so have my expectations. Last November, I ran the same event, only to finish one hour and forty-five minutes slower than my PR. It was enormously humbling. . Running is a fickle thing. Injury has taught me to be resilient, and it is a part of my success as a runner. I always surprise myself when I persevere. - Featured Runner: Brea McInnes @babydoll_brea / California ~ It's not just about inspiring pictures, it's also about inspiring stories. _ Tell us yours: run-culture@run-always

A post shared by Run Always (@run.always) on Jan 23, 2017 at 4:31pm PST

The account is run (no pun intended) by several administrators, one of whom goes by the pseudonym Runnermarx. I discovered his account years ago, and he now has over 6.5K followers. Mark is a lifelong runner with a true passion for the sport. He's a great guy: outgoing, smart and incredibly knowledgeable. And yeah, it doesn't hurt that he starred in a beer commercial that aired during Superbowl halftime. Just sayin'. 

Anyway! It was an honor to be chosen to share my running story. Check it out and let me know what you think. 

Weekend Snapshots: Concerts, Craft Fairs and Thirteen Point One Miles, Oh My!

I missed my deadline last week for Weekend Snapshots. I was busily preparing for the holiday boutique at my gym. Every year I have tried to think of a way to participate, and a few months ago I came up with an idea to create edits of my photography -- specifically, photos I've taken with my iPhone during a run. I created a line of homemade cards called #SeenOnMyRun. My cards were well received, so it gave me the confidence to enter another craft fair the first weekend in December. I'm also toying with the idea of creating an Etsy account.

Kauai: Where even the garden snails are stunning.
 This is a sample of one of my photo edits.

I was in LA all day yesterday for marching band championships, so all of the photos are from the prior weekend with my bestie from second grade: 2 concerts, 13.1 miles, a theme park, and an evening spent playing Cards Against Humanity. It was a very, very good weekend. 

I'm almost finished writing up my Veteran's half marathon review, but I will share my 'Flat Babydoll' (for those unfamiliar, it's race tradition to lay out your race day outfit to recreate a 'flat' version of yourself and take a photo):

Flat Brea ready for tomorrow's Veteran's Day #halfmarathon 🇺🇸#thirteenpointone #runner #fitness #hokaoneone #Sweatpink #girlsgonesporty #runalways

A photo posted by Babydoll's Bloggie (@babydoll_brea) on Nov 11, 2016 at 10:11pm PST

Saturday night, we went to see Mr. Doll and his band cover Neil Young songs in a birthday tribute concert, Forever Young. It was an incredible concert, and my favorite Claude show to date. 

The bass player in Claude Hopper is so dreamy!

We took in a view on Sunday morning at my favorite hilltop spiritual retreat, and then drove south to spend the night with a friend from our junior high school days. It was a treat staying with her family, particularly her adorable son. We surprisingly don't have any photos of our evening together with Jax, but check out these views from the seminary:

Pretty red picnic bench under the shade of the oak tree.

Beautiful views all the way to the islands.

We also squeezed in a visit to the beach. I did mention it was an epic weekend, right??

I'm a sucker for piers and photos of piers. 

When you tryna take a selfie and your dogs
shove you out of the frame to make a cameo.

We spent Monday at Universal Studios. It was my second time at Harry Potter World, but it was equally as fabulous! The weather had been unseasonably hot throughout the month, but we lucked out small crowds and with mild 70 degree temperatures.

Dee and Marilyn Monroe deep in conversation

Jazz hands: frog choir at Harry Potter World

All the joy!

Such a pretty fountain!

We had a harrowing drive from Hollywood to Inglewood, but Dee handled it like a champ: 90 minutes to travel 24 miles. We made it to the Forum just in time to see Temple of the Dog take the stage. Totally worth it.

Chris Cornell is my favorite male vocalist. Ever. 

We got home at 2am last Tuesday morning, which made for an interesting day since I had to get up four hours later and take Boydoll to school. Dee and I packed in so much fun over the four days that it felt like a dream. She truly is one of my very favorite people. I have the honor of being her son's godmother, and I am beyond grateful for her friendship.

I'd love to hear about your favorite band! Tell me about the last band you saw in concert in the comments. 

TOL #8: Work Anniversary, The Chocodiles, And Mandatory Dance Routines

This week's edition of Thinking Out Loud is going to be a quick one. I typically write my posts 1-2 days before, but I have been slammed this week. I'm not opposed to staying up late to write, but this week I just didn't have it in me.

Chocodiles. I'm an ambassador for Fit Approach, and their latest campaign on Instagram is for Whistle Pet Tracker. The prompts this week have me posting five consecutive days of dog photos, which got me thinking about how rich my life is for having dogs. They are frequently the bright spot of my day. 

I adore our youngest dog, Cooper. We got him as a companion for our older dog almost four years ago. Cooper is talkative, bratty, and stunningly handsome.  

Cooper is the Jeremy Renner of dogs.

Speaking of Jeremy Renner, here is a photo of Hawkeye wearing a pink Hello Kitty outfit. I love this way more than I should:

Hello Hawkeye!

Riley is our older dog, and he recently celebrated his 8th birthday. He is my best friend. Riley seems to get younger as he gets older, if that makes any sense at all. Part of that is the breed...but he also has way more stamina than Cooper, who is five years younger. No matter how excited Riley is to go somewhere, suiting up into his harness is very serious business: he will always stand very quietly, like the gentleman that he is.

Riley boy wishes you a Happy Independence Day 🐻🇺🇸💙❤️

A post shared by Babydoll's Bloggie (@babydoll_brea) on Jul 4, 2016 at 10:22pm PDT

Election. It's been an interesting 48 hours, to say the least. It was also my daughter's first time voting for a president. I was proud her for driving home from college to exercise her right to vote.    

I think all candidates should be required to perform 
a dance routine, a la Napoleon Dynamite. Just saying.

Eleven. This month marks my 11th anniversary teaching cycle at the Y. I am so honored for the incredible members who join me each Tuesday and Thursday during their lunch break (or the wee hours of the morning on Wednesday at 5:45am). My spin class closest to a holiday is often a themed event with prizes for the members. There is a sense of community at the Y that I haven't found at other gyms, and I love being part of a non-profit that focuses on health and fitness. 

Crafty. My photo cards are coming along nicely. I am about a third of the way into assembling them, and I will work on spreadsheets and pricing tomorrow. I am such a nerd for this kind of stuff! The craft boutique is next week, and I may do another one depending on the success of this event. The money I earn will go towards my 2018 trip to Japan :) 

Edit of one of the photos I took of a garden snail in
Kauai last August  

Veteran's Day Half Marathon. Yup! It's that time already. I'm hoping my hip (and now my knee) will be good to go this Saturday. One thing is for sure: I am going to TEAR IT UP with my girl, Dee. She gets here tomorrow and we'll run drive over to the expo to pick up our race packets and bibs for Saturday's race. I'll have lots of great photos to share for Weekend Snapshots this Monday! Here's a photo collage I made of our races together:

A photo posted by Babydoll's Bloggie (@babydoll_brea) on Dec 30, 2015 at 3:43pm PST

How frequently do you race? Do you have any events planned in 2017?

Thinking Out Loud #7 and Why My Back Better Get With The Program

Wassup, friends? This week, Thinking Out Loud has me thinking about my back, and other things. But mostly my back. 

Podcasts. Why am I so late to the podcast party?? This is HEAVEN. It started with listening to a podcast interview with runner and Instagram personality, Runnermarx. Currently, I am on my third podcast in a series called Manic Rambling Spiral, which features blogger Heather B. Armstrong and her co-host and freelance writer, John Bray. Heather's blog inspired me to finally start writing my own (albeit semi-regularly) seven years ago. I can't wait to listen to more!

I'm hooked on podcasts! 

Good grief. I’m writing this at the library while my son is meeting with his French tutor. I’m in agony.

Sunday night, my back started hurting. My final long run before the half marathon was on my training schedule last Monday. Everything felt like it conspired against me to get out of the house sooner, and I didn’t start running until almost 10:30am. The long and short of it was that I ran out of time; we were driving to USC for a jazz concert that afternoon. I had to get cleaned up and run a few errands before we left. I was only able to complete six of the twelve miles I was supposed to run. My back didn’t feel great while I was running...but it didn’t feel terrible, either. Once I warmed up, my back actually felt a little looser.

After teaching my spinning class on Tuesday, I managed to squeeze in a quick visit to the chiropractor. He was able to make an adjustment to my lower back on the left side and after some physical therapy, I was feeling pretty good...until this morning.

I taught my spinning class Wednesday at 5:45am, and felt really good. There was a small pinch on the left and I was a little sore - but it wasn’t terrible. After I took our dogs to the off-leash park, I brought them home and decided to head back to the gym to bust out a few treadmill miles before meeting my friend for lunch. When I changed into my running shoes, pain shot up the left side of my lower back. All I could say was, ‘Oh no. Oh no. Oh no.’

So what did I end up doing? If you guessed that I acted a fool and went running anyway, you guessed right. 

You guessed right.

I had another chiropractic appointment today after my spinning class...but honestly, is there ever an convenient time for your back to go out? I’m starting to worry about allthethings: 

• Sitting in a staff meeting tonight on hard plastic conference room chairs.
• Teaching my spinning class.
• Chaperoning the marching band competition, which means a bumpy school bus ride this Saturday almost three hours each way.
• Running a half marathon in 10 days.

I can only do what I can do. If that means I have a DNF at the half marathon, then that's what has to happen. I'm hoping at a minimum I can run/walk the race because one of my best friends is coming to run the race with me. If I'm completely honest, I'm too prideful to scratch the race. #fomo

Mail day! 📦💌 Pretty sure I'm ready for my #halfmarathon in 8 days. #veteranshalfmarathon #gu #honeystinger Now if my back would only cooperate 🙃 #runner #fitness #sweatpink #girlsgonesporty #thirteenpointone

A photo posted by Babydoll's Bloggie (@babydoll_brea) on Nov 3, 2016 at 4:54pm PDT

Segway. So, have you ever heard a word and seen a word...but not realized it's the same word? I was writing a post a few weeks ago, and yeah: segue looks all kinds of wrong, but I had a suspicion that segway wasn't right either. Derp.  

Do you listen to podcasts? If so, tell me some of you're favorites in the comments. 

TOL #2 Glamorous Life of Running

Hosted by Amanda at Running With Spoons, Thinking Out Loud is a weekly celebration of quirks and randomness! An opportunity to take the pressure and stress out of writing by sharing whatever it is that happens to pop into your mind when you begin to type. A collection of random and disjoined thoughts, just because. Here's mine:

 Dude. Just to get things rolling...and so you know who you're dealing with and where I'm coming from, there is nothing truer than this:

The first comment cracks me up?!

Unglamorous. Running is the farthest thing from being glamorous, despite the contrary title of my post. One of the reasons I like running is because there is no expensive gym membership or skill set required to become a runner.  

This week I tried getting out for a run with 'just the essentials'. I'm sure this list varies from runner to runner, but mine were: running shorts, sports bra, shirt, compression calf sleeves, anklet socks and shoes. Seems basic enough, right? That's what I thought until my monkey mind started in:

'You better bring some Glide...don't want to chafe...'

'It's 80 degrees and you're already dehydrated. You should grab some coconut water.'

'The dogs need to get out. You should bring them, too. And their leashes, water and bowl...some poop bags...'

I swear that I go through these mental gymnastics over any decision I make, but particularly moreso with running. I feel like if I'm better prepared for any possible scenario, then I'm that much more likely to have an optimum experience. Going for a run with 'just the essentials' was an exercise (if you'll excuse the pun) in letting some of that go. I didn't even bring my phone, which is a huge win in that regard. Since I had errands afterward and the heat was a factor, I left the dogs at home and settled for two out of the three. 

By the end of my run, I was a sweaty mess. I had disgusting gooey strings of saliva on my lips (seriously, what gives with that??), dirt and sunscreen in the creases of my inner arm, and despite the liberal application of Glide, I chafed anyway. ALL THE GLAMOUR. 

All that glamour. All of it.

Food finds. I do most of my shopping at Trader Joe's. Their produce isn't that great, so I usually pick up fresh fruits and veggies during the week. Last week I discovered their dried orange slices. Dude! They have a boatload of sugar, but I don't even care because they taste like my childhood. [I legit went to grade school with a girl named Krishna. Her mom was a beautiful hippy, and she made us candied orange peels almost every time I came over to their tiny house trailer.]    

Look at those shimmery crystals of sugar.
I'm in nostalgia nirvana.

My second find was their sweet pickled jalapenos. The peppers are brined in a sugar and vinegar solution, and I seriously can't get enough of them. TJs has a reputation for suddenly discontinuing items without notice, so I may or may not have bought three jars the last time I was at the store, like some sort of crazy jalapeno hoarder. They're incredible on sandwiches and they were prominently featured last night in a layered taco salad. I'm going to try them on pizza next.

Hello beautiful! The sweetness masks some of the heat
creating a match made in culinary heaven.

Yes please. 

I'll end my post with a small tangent: the BlogGo app totally blows. I typed this post yesterday on my phone through the app, and it lost two-thirds of what I wrote. This is where I'd insert both the streaming tears and angry face emoji...but since I'm not on my phone, I'm severely limited to a colon and parenthesis :(

Do you like spicy food? What are some new food finds you're stoked about?

If Girls Ran The World

Disclaimer: I am partnering with FitApproach and If Girls Ran The World this October for a 'one of a kind adventure to collectively and virtually run around the world to benefit charities that empower girls globally.' 

My daughter played club basketball beginning in 5th grade through junior high and high school, and her team was unable to find a court for their practices. The local Girls, Inc. offered our girls use of their court at their beautiful facility. The impact of providing the facility was far reaching and most of the girls, including my daughter, continued to play basketball throughout high school and several even into college. Working as a part of a team, our girls literally learned to think quickly on their feet and to act selflessly to benefit the team as a whole. It was invaluable life skills that my daughter carries with her today.

I am committing raise $250 and to run 50 miles in October, adding to the global goal of running 24,901 miles equalling the world's circumference. I'm inspired by the work of Girls, Inc. and wanted to support them by raising money as part of my participation in If Girls Ran the World. Please visit my fundraising page and help me support my goal. Any amount is appreciated!

Star Wars Half Marathon Recap

Last weekend I ran the Star Wars Half Marathon at Disneyland. Needless to say, given my love for all things Disney, running and Star Wars, this was truly a trifecta made in heaven.

Trifecta of awesomeness:
Running, Disney and Star Wars

Originally, I was supposed to run this race with three friends; one friend apparently registered but never received confirmation, and the other two decided that 13 miles isn't half of anything and was just too far to run. [Grammar nerd alert: I just used two, too and to all in the correct context within the same sentence...booyah!] 

A friend of mine since childhood, who is not a runner but shares my deep love of Disneyland, had planned her vacation around this event and we were going to share a hotel room in Anaheim. As we got closer to the holidays, it was apparent that she needed to use her vacation time to visit her aging father. We decided postpone visiting the Magic Kingdom together until the spring.

This left me in a serious quandary about trying to find accommodations three weeks before the race. My sister-in-law lives 20 minutes away from Disneyland, but she wasn't sure if they would be in town that weekend or not. I considered staying with my bestie who lives in Ventura the night before -- so I was at least a little closer to Los Angeles the day of the race -- but it still meant I would have to leave by 3:30am to make the 5:30am start time. It seemed foolish and impractical to drive in the middle of the night. 

This is where I got a little maudlin. None of my plans were panning out, and for a moment I considered scratching the race. 

Mind you, I said, 'for a moment...' Anyone who knows anything about Disney races knows this: they sell out hella quick and they are probably one of the most expensive races on the planet. Plus, if I was undertrained for my last half marathon in November, it paled in comparison to my training for this one: I hadn't run one day since then. 

Uh, oops. 

Running a half marathon untrained?
Arnold don't play.

It is stupid, Arnold. I can only rely on teaching spinning and past running experience for so much, and it's not like those miles stay in the proverbial fitness bank. It is a recipe for injury, and I should know better.

As luck would have it, my sister-in-law called me to say I was welcome to stay with them. I invited my niece and nephew to come with me to pick up my bib and they were completely onboard to check out the expo, which didn't disappoint. 

I had to snapchat this...because obviously.

Future 10k runners at next year's event!

This was probably one of my favorite photos of the
whole weekend: BB8 at the expo...and he was PISSED.

The force is so strong with these two :)
I adore being their aunt!

And of course, the obligatory Flat Babydoll the evening before to post on social media:

I thought I was clever in obscuring my race number
with a mini slot machine. I can't even believe
counterfeiting bibs is a thing. #lamesauce

I set my alarm for 3:30am to eat breakfast and give my body plenty of time to digest my food. I had brought a small tupperware filled with my tried-and-true oatmeal for race day. Believe me, one does not 'change up' the pre-race fuel unless you want to have it repeat on you over thirteen miles, or worse yet...frequent port-a-potty visits. 

Despite a lively discussion involving maps and where to park the night before, I decided to trust the wisdom that is Waze. While I can't say enough about this driving app (real time feedback with incredible graphics and directions), I am slowly learning that there is a difference between being impulsive and spontaneous - neither of which have their place in the predawn hours the morning of a race. Instead of following my brother-in-law's suggestion of how to get to the parking structure -- who patiently looked over the race book and used to work for Disney, for crying out loud -- I decided to enter the name of the parking structure right into Waze. 

Be ye not so stupid.

It steered me behind the structure and right into the employee parking entrance. You know, the one that requires a code to raise the arm to enter the parking lot? I had a small moment of panic that I would miss my race, but it wasn't going to be for lack of trying. I parked in a residential area and a hoofed it in the general vicinity of the Disneyland Hotel. A helpful volunteer at one of the crosswalks explained where I needed to be, 'It's a brisk 15 minute walk from here...' and I was off. This was at 5:35am.

The race officially begins at 5:30am, but because I'm not an elite runner -- we've already established that I hadn't trained for this race -- I was in the last corral. This was my third runDisney event; although I knew it was going to be close, I wasn't completely panicked because it takes a long time to release that many runners in waves. Fashionably late, I rolled in about 3 minutes before they released my corral:

Rolling in right before my corral is released.
It was actually kind of badass.

#represent

Me and Monstro. Storybook Land is my favorite ride in Fantasyland.

Another favorite: Pixar's Rex from Toy Story at California Adventure.

No, really: You da best.

I thought these droids were fixed to the ground, but I was wrong.
When C-3PO saw these two ladies dressed in gold,
he rushed over to them and mugged for a photograph. 

I need this window decal. 

Captain Phasma and Kylo Ren try to sway me to the Dark Side.

1970s Luke Skywalker

I heart R2D2

Best photobomb ever!

This dad carried his son on his shoulders
for at least a third of the race. So awesome!

Anyone who has done one of these races has heard about the notorious 'Balloon Ladies'; the 16-minute mile pacers who ensure the course is closed after four hours. Any runners caught behind them are 'swept' off the course and brought to the finish line. In the typical Disney grandeur, I envisioned princesses walking the course, wearing elaborate hoop skirts made from balloons; gracefully waving to the crowd and tapping on the shoulder of stragglers before being escorted off the course in Cinderella's pumpkin-shaped carriage. 

There goes my imagination getting away from me again.

Prior to the start of the race, I had seen a couple of young 20-something girls standing to the side of the course, each wearing a backpack with a single Mickey Mouse balloon tied to it. I didn't give it another thought, though. And at several points during the race, there were Disney race officials calling out times, 'Four minutes under pace. Keep it up!' 

Imagine my surprise when I dawdled too long mugging for photos along the course and the two young girls I saw at the beginning of the race came up behind my group shouting, 'YOU CAN DO THIS, EVERYONE. DON'T GET CAUGHT BEHIND US!!' I don't know if runners pulled from the course still receive a medal for their effort or not, but I selected this race specifically as my 20th half marathon and I wasn't taking any chances. The last picture I took on the course was, fittingly, of Darth Vader carrying is son on his shoulders. 

Next year, I'm hoping to run the 10k with my niece the day before the half marathon for a chance at earning a third medal. #rebelchallenge

My race review: Despite being my slowest pace ever, this was one of my favorite half marathons. The Star Wars franchise is a little piece of my childhood, and the nostalgia factor alone had me happy from the moment I set foot onto the course. The other two Disney-themed half marathons had long sections in the middle where there was little to see and the miles dragged. I don't know if it was the extraordinary Star Wars fan base or what, but there was always something to see: huge turnouts of costumed Star Wars fanatics passing out Red Vines, and incredible custom-painted cars that had mounted blasters and a R2D2 copilot. There was also a large high school band and cheer squad presence as well, with a half dozen schools represented and encouraging runners and giving high-fives. This was the first race greater than a 10k that I didn't wear my water belt. Although it's my preference to run without something around my waist, I'm always afraid there won't be enough water along the course. The water and aid stations were plentiful, and there were hundreds of volunteers along the course and in the finish area keeping things moving. Good after-race food and electrolyte drinks, too. Great work, Disney!   

Santa Barbara Veteran's Day Half Marathon

Last Saturday was the Santa Barbara Veterans Day half marathon. Somehow I had in my mind that Veterans Day was late November, although I'm at a loss as to where that notion came from, what with Thanksgiving falling at the end of the month and all. Suffice it to say that the race snuck up on me and I wasn't ready, which is a growing trend that I need to buck. 

Packet pick-up never felt so patriotic!

This was the first time I spent less than $5 at a fitness expo. I picked up two Gu for race day (Espresso Love and a new flavor that involved salted caramel) for $3...only to set them down and forget them at the t-shirt table. Whoops-a-daisy! 

Not only was I untrained for this race, but it was mentally one of the toughest events I've showed up for. From the moment I woke up at 4:40 AM to the moment I stepped onto the course, there was negative dialogue going off in my head:

'I should just go back to bed.' 

'I'm too old.' 

'I hope I don't bump into anyone I know; they'll be shocked at how much weight I've gained.' 

'I should quit running.' 

Yikes! That's just a small taste of the negative self-talk that dogged my entire morning. We frequently talk about taking contrary action in the recovery community. If it were up to my head, I would have stayed home...but I knew I would feel even worse scratching the race for no good reason. Honestly, it was almost a relief to start running. 

The one thing that pulled me out of the hate-spiral was my bracelet. My mom gave me a slender silver bracelet about 7 years ago that I never take off. It has a small stamped sentiment on it, 'I always believe in you.'  It occurred to me that this doesn't mean, 'I always believe in you...except when you're overweight,' or 'I always believe in you...except if you run slower than a 9-minute mile.' Always means ALWAYS. It was the tiny blessing that I needed to get out the door and on with my race.

My game plan for the race was to follow the Galloway half marathon training method: 3 minute intervals of running followed by one minute of walking. This proved to be a good strategy for the first 5 miles...until the wheels fell off, so to speak. I was banking on muscle memory to get me through the first 10k, which was unrealistic. 'My muscles have lost so much muscle memory, there's nothing left to remember.' Ba-dum bum!

A polite and chatty crowd right before our start. There was a man 
that wore a giant foam cowboy hat and looked exactly like Stinky Pete 
from Toy Story. It still kills me that I didn't get a photo of him. 

A quick snapchat to my daughter before
I started running. Emoji are life.

Part of my race ritual is determining what I'm going to wear and what I'm going to bring during my run. The night before the race, I convinced myself it would be a good idea to wear underwear with my running skort. Prior to my weight gain, I was all about #teamcommando. However, since I'm the heaviest I've ever weighed, it's not a so much a matter of whether or not I'll chafe as it is where: neck, underarms, around the elastic band of my sports bra, etc. 

I'm sure you see where this is going. 

Despite being generous around potential trouble spots with Glide, wearing underwear was a bad call. I'll just leave it at that. Suffice it to say that once things started going south, so to speak, I switched my run/walk ratio from 3:1 to 1:3. It was bad. 

Thank you for saying so! About a dozen of these hand-drawn posters 
appeared after the wretched switchback onto Las Positas Road.
The timing couldn't have been more perfect.

Despite being served a slice of humble pie -- in 2011, I PR'd my half marathon time by running this same event 85 minutes faster than last Saturday's effort -- it was a gorgeous day and a great course. The displays of patriotism reminded me of how fortunate I am to live where I do, and how grateful I am to my dad and all the veterans for their service to our country.

This gentleman saw us off safely and agreed to a selfie.
Thank you for your service, sir!

The man in front of me wore last year's 
race shirt. What an incredible sentiment! 

I dedicated the final mile of my race to three veterans: my father Joe,
my incredible SIL Michele, and my friend Bob Trimble. 

Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous!
The last half mile was stunning and all downhill.

My race review: The organizers changed things up significantly this year by moving the start location onto the university campus. Although I was disappointed not to pick up the Obern trail right at the bird refuge, it was a spectacular course. It was also a nice change of pace, if you'll forgive the pun. Most local races begin and end in the same location, essentially making for an identical course over and over. This new change was well received. Variety is the spice of life, right? 

A month before the event, the organizers did away with the full marathon completely. I'm sure many people who were registered to run 26.2 miles were disappointed by this decision. The race officials offered full marathon participants three options which I thought were fair: a full refund, entry to the half marathon and a refund of the cost difference, or reduced fee for the half marathon in 2016. This race has been called three different names in the 5 times I've run it, and I'm certain putting on a road race is an expensive endeavor. I am sure eliminating the full marathon was a decision the officials did not take lightly. I was pleased with the new route, the volunteers were fantastic and the water/aid stations were plentiful. There was a good afterparty that included food trucks and a beer garden, and the morning concluded with an incredible airshow. I'm grateful to have such a prestigious race in my own backyard.