Monthly Archives

March 2016

It doesn't have to be crazy long or even super exhausting but honestly if you have a 15 minute pocket in the morning and another in the evening why not take that time to take care of your body? The benefits are the same as a full gym session! --> Two A Day Workouts For Runners #fitness #runners #running #fitnesstips

Two A Day Workouts For Runners

by Nellie March 23, 2016

It’s that time again!

I’ve linked up with my favorite runner bloggers to bring you some awesome workouts! Last month’s theme At Home Workouts For Runners was super successful so we are bringing you more goodness with some two a day workout for runners!

Check out 6 Two a Day Workouts for Runners for when you actually have time to do more than one workout in a day!

This month’s theme is Two A Day Workouts For Runners. Although pretty rare now, I used to have the time to pull off two a day workouts and it was no easy feat. Contrary to popular belief–you CAN workout twice in a day!

It doesn’t have to be crazy long or even super exhausting but honestly if you have a 15 minute pocket in the morning and another in the evening why not take that time to take care of your body? The benefits are the same as a full gym session!

My take on the two a day workout can be done at home and doesn’t take very long to complete. Sometimes you might want to work different muscles and you have a busy work week ahead. For example, I could take a spin class in the morning then go to the gym at night and do a zumba workout. Double the calorie burn and still not working the same muscles!

Two a day workouts may be seen to some as too much but sometimes it might be exactly what you need to get past a plateau or to shake things up a bit with your fitness routine!

Today I have some awesome TWO A DAY Workouts designed by some amazing running bloggers just for you! Be sure to check out the posts below for some amazing inspiration!

TWO A DAY WORKOUT PLAN

Check out the awesome two a day workouts below from my favorite runner bloggers!

Angela @ Happy Fit Mama

You can workout twice in one day! Get a run in the morning and strength session in the evening. happyfitmama.com

Sarah from Run Far Girl

TWO-A-DAY

Carly @ Fine Fit Day

two-a-day workout pin

This Runner’s Recipes

Two a Day workout TRR copy

Allie @ Vita Train 4 Life

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[Tweet “6 Different Two A Day Workouts For Runners!! #workoutsforrunners”]

Have you ever tried two a day workouts for runners?

11 comments

NYC Fitness Classes

Classpass Adventures: Row House NYC

by Nellie March 17, 2016

I love my Classpass.

With my new eating habits and new outlook on my health I’ve been even more inspired to try new classes and new workouts. My classpass membership is like a wonderland of workout classes–ANYTHING you want, you can pretty much take at any given time of the day. If my schedule didn’t require that I needed to be in an office from 8am-5pm, I’m pretty sure I’d spend the entire day trying out new classes. There are so many to choose from and the add tons more studios every week!

This week I tried Row House NYC.

This would be a rowing class, 45 minutes of the total body workout. I was slowly coming back into working out after being sick for so long. I’d been on the row machine randomly at the gym before but never more than 10 minutes, I tend to get bored pretty quickly. My curiosity was piqued at this class though because not only would we be rowing for 45 minutes straight, we’d be doing squats, lunges, pushups and tons of other body weight workouts. Was I up for the challenge?

It was crazy rainy when I arrived, so I was a bit out of sorts. When I went up the stairs of the chelsea location, the staff was really warm and friendly. I signed a quick waiver, took a picture and went to the lockerroom to settle in. The lockerroom is tiny. One itsy bench but all the amenities like lotion, hair ties, deodorant and dry shampoo. The lockers were big enough for my pocketbook and gym bag though so that was a plus.

The instructor greeted me right away, I must have had “newbie” stamped all over my forehead because he came to set me up right away. He helped me to get my feet secure, and showed me which numbers to look out for on my personal screen. The 5:30pm class was completely filled to capacity, there were about 30(ish) rowers in the room.

Once class got started I had to find my rhythm. We would do intervals of fast and slow pulls and I spent a lot of time just making sure I was on the same wavelength as the instructor. I felt it in my upper body almost immediately but by the end of class I was drenched.

After about 15 minutes we did squats, lunges, pushups and stretches, then the real work began. After the intervals we did 3 sets of 3 minute sprints. It was crazy! The things about the rowing is you can go as hard as you need to so when you are sprinting you are going all out and your entire body is pushed to the max.

It was a really good class and I will ABSOLUTELY use my classpass for another rowing session. It was a full body workout that was really great for cross training and completely different than anything I have ever done.

[Tweet “#ClassPass Adventures: My first time at @RowHouseNYC! @Classpass #nycfitness”]

For more information on Row House NYC and their locations check out their website.

Have you ever tried a rowing class? Have you ever tried classpass?

7 comments

races

Glass Slipper Challenge 2016: The Princess Half Marathon

by Nellie March 16, 2016

The third and final post in the Princess Race Weekend 2016 will wrap up with the race that started it all–The Princess Half Marathon.

Disney Princess Half Marathon

After a good outing at the Enchanted 10k, I felt okay about running 13.1 miles 24 hours later. I cam better prepared this time–wrapped in a mylar blanket that kept me super warm until the start. The wait wasn’t nearly as long as the day before but it seemed as if the lines for characters were insanely long. The lines wrapped and wrapped and even shut down way before we were due in the corrals. This year, I chose Snow White…:)

Waiting in the corrals this year was way more fun, I was able to chat with many other princesses which distracted me from what was about to happen and kept me loose because we were joking around the entire time. Before you knew it, it was time to go! I said a little prayer and moved forward.

The first 3-4 miles were pretty boring as usual, there wasn’t many character stops and the ones we did have–the lines–again were pretty insane. I just kept pushing and moving and my legs felt pretty good even as we got into Magic Kingdom.

Even though this was my second time experiencing running up to the castle, it still was a pretty surreal experience. There was a large crowd on Main Street screaming and pushing us forward. We made our way through TomorrowLand then through Fantasyland. There was the expected bottleneck of going through the castle and again the lines were way too long for me to stop for a picture in front of the castle.

As we exited Magic Kingdom and got on the back roads, this is where things began to get a bit tough for me. I was coughing a lot and the temp had risen quite quickly. There were some super fun character stops on the way however, with manageable lines.

FullSizeRender

As I was in the middle of mile 10 I saw a father running and pushing his disabled child through the race. We all clapped and cheered for him, and before I knew it my eyes had welled up and I was in a full cry. Crying while running by the way–not cute. But with the stories of The Children’s Miracle Network Breakfast still fresh on my mind, and the overwhelming gratitude I had to the universe for two healthy boys at home–it was a recipe for lots and lots of tears.

Finally we made it over the overpasses and into the back lots of Epcot, the crowds are always mixed here–some spectators for the race and other people that do not understand why there are grown women running in tutus and just want us to get out so that they can explore the park. We made our way around the sphere, through the back way and just like that there was half a mile left.

I was just SO happy to see the choir (most of which I gave high fives to) and just like that I had completed my first challenge. A 10k and a Half Marathon back to back. Whew! Would I do this again? Probably. Just not sure if it would be in Disney setting because getting up at 3am is brutal!

Three things I learned from the Glass Slipper Challenge

Always bring throwaways: Even though the temperature was in the low fifties, the low fifties at night is a different beast

Respect the miles: 19.3 Miles is no easy task. Sounds amazing on paper but your legs (and lungs!) need to be ready for such a task

Running is Disneyworld is just plain fun: It just is. The NYC racing scene can be super intense at times, with everyone fighting for a PR and bragging on their times–Disney is just fun, people are chill, people are just coming out to have a good time which is pretty much my approach to every race. 🙂

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[Tweet “A Magical @RunDisney Race: The 2016 Disney #PrincessHalf Marathon #runchat #rundisney #GlassSlipperChallenge”]

Would you ever run a Run Disney race? How do you contain your emotions during a race?

6 comments

life decisions

5 Ways to Self Care When Things Get Crazy

by Nellie March 14, 2016

5 Ways to Self Care When Things Get Crazy

The most important thing to do during these crazy times is take care of yourself. Not only is it vital for your sanity but it is vital to keeping your peace as the storm passes. Today I am sharing 5 Ways to Self Care When Things Get Crazy.

Every once in a while we are going through life, crossing every T and dotting every I with precision. All is just…so great! Then one day things start falling apart bit by bit, a family member passes away, another gets ill, a friendship implodes, your boss wants it all, your marriage needs repair just as much as your car, your children are making you nuts and just like that you have the perfect storm of crazy.

This may or may not be you, heck it may or may not be me, but one thing I do know is that everyone goes through storms in life. Storms that make it seem impossible to breathe, impossible to exist. Despite the happy face that one might put on, they may be going through all the things and we have no idea.

I have certainly been through a storm or two and I am proof that not only do they pass but we become stronger because of it. The most important thing to do during these crazy times is take care of yourself. Not only is it vital for your sanity but it is vital to keeping your peace as the storm passes. Today I am sharing 5 Ways to Self Care When Things Get Crazy.

Get a manicure/pedicure: Of course we go to the nail salon to make sure our nails are perfectly groomed with a pretty color, but the process can be quite relaxing as well. It forces you to not do anything and just be pampered. That 30 minutes can be transformative for your mental and physical health when going through a tough time. This applies for facials as well.

Read a good book: This is a big one for me. When things start going haywire there is nothing like jumping into a good book as a great distraction. Starting a new book puts you into a new world that may help put things in perspective.

Get a massage: This one is pretty self explanatory, I know that they can be a bit expensive but a huge tip is to go on Groupon, there are plenty of massage places begging for your business–at a discounted rate. Try to schedule them monthly if your budget allows.

Volunteer: The easiest way to take your mind off your own problems is to helps someone else out with theirs. Volunteering is really one of the most underrated jobs of our society. Choose a cause you love and help out, the good vibes will be returned. Trust me.

Travel solo: This one is huge for me, I’m not talking about going half way across the world but maybe travel to the city, get on an Amtrak or Bus and go one state over, traveling by yourself gives you the opportunity to clear your mind and really see things from a different perspective.

[Tweet “Things getting a little crazy in life? Don’t forget to self care with these 5 tips!”]

The most important part and the central theme of this post is to simply take care of yourself, it may not look like my examples above but whatever it looks like for you, do it.

What do you do to relax when things get crazy in life?

7 comments

disney races run disney

Glass Slipper Challenge 2016 Recap: Enchanted 10k

by Nellie March 8, 2016

SAMSUNG CSC

I set my wake up call for 3AM. This has to be the most insane part of a Disney race and yet, here I was, for the second year in a row at the Glass Slipper Challenge.

After coming back to Pop Century from the Expo, I took my time and unpacked my first running costume. I’d chose Princess Tiana because 1) she is super cute and b) lime green works for me so it was an easy choice!

I was out of the room by 3:22am. One thing that is terrifying is walking around on a resort at 3am in the morning. I know there probably wasn’t a logical reason to be nervous as the Disney security is top notch and unmatched–BUT my city girl insides trembled a bit until I saw plenty of other princesses on my path.

The lines were pretty minimal and I was able to get on the 2nd bus. The lines were much shorter than the half, which was nice. I didn’t know what to expect from my first Enchanted 10k but I knew it would be okay in the end. The pre party was jamming when we got there and it was a cool 52 degrees as we waited. People were shivering like crazy, huddling up, buying coffee etc. Meanwhile I felt fine (thank you NYC for this superpower of being able to manage the cold). While I waited on line to get a pic with Belle–which was at least 45 minutes–two of the ladies behind me wrapped in mylar blankets commented that they were SO cold and the entire time waiting on the line they didn’t even see me flinch.

As the corral call came, about after an hour+ of waiting outside, there was at least another 45 minutes of waiting in the dark. I began to get cold, very quickly–I immediately started kicking myself for not bringing a throwaway tee (or 2) and some construction gloves to throw away because it was COLD out there! Eventually we made it to the beginning, the corral starts were quick and just like that we were running, and yes, I was still so cold!

The first three miles were kinda brutal–there wasn’t much scenery, the characters were few and I couldn’t warm up! But finally, FINALLY we got to Epcot and I realized that I was going to love this race forever.

Running into Epcot was the coolest thing ever. I have many favorite parts about Disney but the World Showcase in Epcot is just awesome. It was also the crack of dawn and the sun was starting to come out and warm things up a bit. Seeing the beautiful lake with the sun coming up gently was just a sight for sore eyes. I was slightly overwhelmed with how beautiful it was.

Finally I decided to start taking pictures, the lines were relatively short and the characters were so adorable!

I was a bit nervous about the boardwalk but all of that was put to ease pretty quickly when we saw the tons of people cheering and pushing us through mile 4. We exited Epcot and although I felt pretty good, I was trying to conserve as much energy as possible for the half marathon the next day. Just that quickly I was at the finish line, in the Epcot parking lot and ready for a nap. But not yet because I purchased a Race Retreat ticket that treated me with a nice and hot breakfast, oh yes and more characters.

Glass Slipper Challenge Recap 2016

After a fantastic meal, I gathered my things and headed over to The Miracle Makers Breakfast inside the park.

Stay tuned for the third and final part of my recap of Princess Half weekend…the half marathon. Would my legs hold up? Did I dress properly? Why did I cry buckets at mile 10? Don’t worry I have answers!

Have you ever started a race disliking it and ended up loving it? Which was your favorite character?

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