Cherry Blossom Playlist and the Gluten-Free Bar Review

Hello and Happy Thursday! A fellow SPA, Kim from My Healthy Nest is hosting a Spring Playlist Link-Up on her blog today. I love music, especially when I'm running or working out so I thought this was a great idea.  I'm running the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler in DC this Sunday so I thought I'd share some must have songs on my playlist!

Lately I've been into making my own granola bars and protein bars but love to keep some packaged ones on hand for when I'm on the go or need something that will stay fresh in my purse for when I need a snack. You know I love Questbars and also like Luna bars and KIND bars.  The most important thing I look for in a bar is that it is not loaded with sugar and that I can understand all of it's ingredients. 

I recently was sent some samples to try by Gluten Free Protein Bars (GFB).  In the last year I have figured out that I am gluten sensitive, after an array of GI issues and a diagnosis of IBS, so I am always on the look out for gluten-free products that are tasty! GFB's mission statement is to make the world's best gluten-free protein bar, with a lot of focus on taste! I was even more excited when I came across GFB's website and saw this info:

Looks pretty awesome, right? I tried a sample pack of their four bar flavors: Peanut Butter, Peanut Butter Chocolate, Cranberry Almond, and Oatmeal Raisin. 

An Overdue Half #3 Recap-Caesar Rodney Half Marathon

 So I've been slacking on writing this post because I'm so busy lately, but on St. Patrick's Day a couple weeks ago I ran the Caesar Rodney Half Marathon in Wilmington, DE.  It was the 50th Anniversary of the race which is apparently the oldest continuously running half marathon in the country! Impressive for a race I hadn't heard about!

I signed up for this race because the registration was cheap, I was itching to do a long race in the beginning of spring, and people said the race was well-organized with about 1400 runners.  However, people also said the race was HILLY. Now, I ran the Baltimore half marathon last year and plan on running the full this year (AHHHHHH!), and that is one hilly course as well. 

I looked at the elevation (here), and it was comparable to Baltimore so I felt okay about my hill training.  I had to train for the race in the winter, so I'm a baby and did a lot of treadmill runs.  I tried to get a long run in once a week but wasn't following a training plan and sometimes had less than stellar runs.

Due to my spotty training, before the race I was really nervous but just got layered up and found myself running once the cannon sounded (which was really loud!) to start the race. I was running and not expecting a PR or a fast run and decided to just have fun and hopefully not struggle through the 13.1 miles. It was really cold and windy weather, which I hate, but eventually I found myself chugging along at a pretty nice pace.  

Things I Love Thursday 3/28/13

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Hello all, how are you doing this Thursday? I'm looking forward to maybe some warmer spring days this weekend.  Last night I got back from a stressful day of work and laid down for a 30 minute power nap which turned into over an hour because my boyfriend didn't wake me up! I was going to go the gym but felt really awful and groggy so instead made a quick dinner and stretched and foam rolled. I felt really guilty but am working on listening to my body.  If I can get a good night sleep tonight, I can work out tomorrow and crush it! Remember to listen to your body, people!

Without further adieu, here is another bunch of things I'm loving this Thursday! 

1. Song I love right now-Lost in my Mind by the Head and the Heart

I rediscovered this album this week and have been obsessed. They have beautiful harmonies and sweet lyrics.  I especially love the acoustic/live version of this song.

2. Snack of the week-MaraNatha crunchy almond butter

This by itself, or with an apple, or on a van's gluten free apple cinnamon waffle has been my go to snack this week. I must show self control because it is so tasty! 

Healthy Living Survey

It's Monday and I'm still working on my St. Patty's Day half marathon recap so you are getting a survey post that was fun for me to fill out!

I found this one over on Adrienne's blog who found it on Mindy's blog ,and thought I’d share it with you. I enjoy a lot of treats in moderation, but I'm very conscious of my health and choices so that's what counts in my book!

1. What did you eat for breakfast?

I had 1/2 cups of egg whites with TJ's shredded brussel sprouts and ketchup and 1/2 cup of Kashi Go Lean with chia seeds, hemp seeds, TJ's coconut chips, and some vanilla almond milk. I couldn't decide between sweet and savory today :)

2. How much water do you drink a day?

I always aim for 96 oz but usually only make it to 64 oz. I'm trying to get better about it.  Having a 32 oz Nalgene bottle helps because I only need to drink a couple of those bad boys to reach my goal. 

3. What is your current favorite workout?
Running because lately I've needed it at stress relief, and I can go for a run whenever I want. I'm going to try to get back into hot yoga when I can scrounge together some money because that's relaxing.  

Goodbye Google Reader and Other Thursday Things

Hello all,
It is one day from the weekend so you should be smiling today! I slept in instead of hitting the gym in the AM because I need my sleep (and need to stop staying up so late at night).  Anyways, here are some random musings for this lovely Thursday.


1. Goodbye,Google Reader! 
I had just jumped on the Google Reader bandwagon when I got the notification that it was being discontinued in July. Thanks to the wonderful blogging community, I hopped on BlogLovin' which let me import all the blogs from Google Reader and voila! It's super clean and easy way to scroll through blogs I like and click on posts that interest me so check it out and please follow me through the link below!

Click HERE to follow me on BlogLovin'!

2. Custom Sneakers. 
The boyfriend decided that for our anniversary he wanted to gift me a pair of custom sneakers, after I hinted on Valentine's Day how awesome they were and that he shouldn't have made me so many chocolates! New Balance, Reebok, and Nike all allow  you to customize sneakers online (for a price!), but I think since I'd probably never splurge on the Nikes that I'm going to go with them in a super flashy teal and hot pink color scheme. 

Check out custom Nikes here and let me know any suggestions you have!


Anybody have an experience in the Nike Frees or Nike Lunarglides? I mostly run, but I'd probably wear these sneakers for short runs or the gym because I'm so in love with my Brooks PureConnects!

3. You need to get to a Trader Joe's right way and buy five bags of these.  
These roasted coconut chips fuel my coconut obsession and are so delicious. They are great in trail mix, on oatmeal, or buy themselves.  Sadly the bag is only two servings (Okay, actually one serving for me) so stock up!

(From TraderJoes.com)

Healthy Sweets Guest Blog Post

Last week, my guest blog for Becca at Diary of a Slow Runner  was published featuring two quick and healthy snack recipes that have been satiating my sweet tooth as of lately.  Go check out my post and look at  all the great posts on Becca's blog!

Tomorrow look out for a recap of my third half marathon which included a surprise!

Shamrock 5K PR and a Winner

Congrats to my first EVER giveaway winner Debbie Harris! Please email me at breathedeeplyandsmileblog@gmail.com so I can get some information to get your bracelet sent on its way!

Thanks everyone for supporting the blog and entering!

My ‎2nd race of 2013 done with a new PR at Baltimore KELLY Shamrock 5K. My PR of 21:22 this past Sunday was a really exciting way to end the weekend.  It's funny because my 5K PR was this race last year, and I was totally not expecting to break it.  

The KELLY Shamrock 5K is a super fun race that happens right before Baltimore's St. Patrick's Day parade.  People are already lined up for the parade so there is automatically a nice-sized audience to cheer you on.

The race start time was at 1:15 in the afternoon. Late race starts always throw me for a loop because I have time to actually do things before race. It also was the day post daylight savings time switch which had me thrown off anyways.  I slept in and went and had a large brunch with my boyfriend.  The race was only a couple minutes from my apartment so my warm-up jog was to the start line.  Last year was my first year running the race, which always sells out, so I wanted to get close to the starting line. There was still a bunch of people in front of me, but I managed to get off to a speedy start just like last year. 

You couldn't ask for a better day with sunny skies, warm temperatures, and a mass of runners in neon green shirts.

Here's a video that was shot for Charm City Run that shows highlights from the race including the mass of green shirts: 

After running longer distances, a 5K felt so short! My first mile was around a speedy 6:40 so I keep the pace a little over 7 minutes for the rest of the race and had very little gas in the tank to push it at the end. I was so happy to see the finish line! Once I was done, I immediately went and grabbed my free beer at the end of the race. It officially marked the first time I felt like Spring was actually on it's way!

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Endorphin Warrior Giveaway

I'm really excited today because it is my first blog giveaway EVER! Please enter and make this awesome for me and win a really cool bracelet. 

Endorphin Warrior is a company who's goal is to encourage both athletes and non-athletes to live healthier, more productive, and positive lives through their products with exercise and positive thinking.  They have all sorts of jewelry such as bracelets, rings and also pendants and dog tags which are stamped or printed with an encouraging and positive word such as "Strength", "Focus", and "Conquer", just to name a few. 

I chose a bracelet with the word "Breathe", because it goes with the theme of my blog and because it is what I am trying to focus on in my life now. I think such a simple word and message that more people need to be reminded of!  Breathe, calm down, and focus on the day. Breathe when you run and release all that air and negative energy with each stride.  

Besides the fact that the products encourage positive thinking, which I love, they are also meant for active and healthy lifestyles.  I wore my bracelet all day, even through exercising, which gave me a lot of focus whenever I looked down at my wrist.  Endorphin Warrior is also doing something really cool for the month of March by sponsoring a month-long donation drive for the Orangethorpe Elementary Running Club which provides a positive after-school environment for lower-income children.  

Throughout the month Endorphin Warrior is donating $1 from each online sale to the club and will also provide each member of the Orangethorpe Elementary Running Club with a tee shirt, race entry for a local 5K, and merchandise as rewards for achieving certain milestones. Besides feeling great about supporting such an amazing cause, Endorphin Warrior will also give everyone who places an order between March 1st and the 31st a free dog tag/key ring valued at $15 with the buyer-selected keyword.  

I'm lucky to be able to offer a warrior training bracelet to a reader, thanks to Endorphin Warrior.  The giveaway will be open until Wednesday, March 13 at 11:59 pm EST.

I'm keeping it simple so to enter,comment and tell me what positive word you'd like on your bracelet (must choose from the options listed for Warrior Training Bracelets in the link below)!

All the Warrior Training Bracelet options can be seen here. 

Thank you so much, Endorphin Warrior!

Check out Endorphin Warrior all over the interwebs: Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter

Disclosure: I received the Warrior Training Bracelet at no charge from Endorphin Warrior and no monetary compensation was provided for this post. All opinions are my own.