5 Friday Favorites: Good Things 4/3/15

Congrats to Leah on winning my MealEnders giveaway !

Since there's lots of be happy about right now, the DC Trifecta Friday Five linkup of five good things seemed perfect. My life has been super hectic right now, topped off with a late Friday work day (which should be illegal) so you're getting this late-night Friday Faves post.  

5 Friday Favorites: Good Things

1. Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas

The Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Half Marathon has been on my bucket list race for a while. I mean who doesn't want to run on the famous Las Vegas strip at night and then continue the party afterwards? It didn't seem like it would work out this year,but with a few changes of plans I'm in and could not be more excited! My friend is celebrating her birthday that weekend so we're going to run the half and then celebrate. I'm a crazy runner lady so that sounds like an awesome birthday to me.

If you want to join me, register here !

 (Sorry you can't use my Rock 'n' Blog discount for Las Vegas right now, but use LAUREN15 to save on any other RNR half or full marathon in 2015!) 

2. Springtime Temperatures

Okay so those rainy day forecasts aren't fun, but seeing lows in the 40s and temperatures averaging in the 60s for the next few days makes me happy. See you next year, winter! I'm ready for shorts & flip-flops!

3. November Project

Photo courtesy of November Project Baltimore

November Project Baltimore is always a good thing in my book, but this Wednesday's workout was special. We organized a little Coaches' Appreciation Day and pulled a surprise off for our three fearless co-leaders on April Fool's by showing up as a group with masks of the co-leaders on. I ran there just in time for the big surprise! It was really great to give the co-leaders three big cards some of the members crafted and show how much we appreciate them! 

Momentum Jewelry Ambassador Discount and Wish Wraps

Disclosure: I am a Momentum Jewelry ambassador and receive complimentary products. This blog post contains my affiliate link. As always, all opinions are my own. 


I am really excited to announce that I'm a new ambassador for Momentum Jewelry! I love getting to a part of the teams of brands I love so it is exciting to support an athletic jewelry company that I've been a big fan of since I reviewed their products last year. 

I am completely obsessed with good vibes, positive thinking, and inspirational mantras. Having a reminder on my wrist or shoes while I'm working, running, or going about my day really helps me focus. 

Momentum's motivate wrap bracelets are my favorite with their cozy, tee shirt-like wrap material and great choice of mantras.  You can pretty much always find one on my wrist! 

If you use my ambassador link, you can save 10% off any order from Momentum!

I totally had positive energy during my awesome race at the Love Run Philadelphia half marathon this past Sunday and loved having that reminder on my wrist to glance during those tougher miles. 

You will be hearing and seeing more from me about Momentum Jewelry, but right now they are having an amazing sale to debut their new WISH wraps.  These beautiful leather wrap bracelets with little rhinestone studs are chic and inspiring.  They are available in brown or black leather with an assortment of sayings.  

I chose one that says "dream big" as a reminder to always reach for big goals and remember that I have the power to achieve anything that I want. I chose the brown leather and love how great it looks on my wrist, especially now that the weather is warming up and I'm able to show off my stacks when I'm wearing short sleeves. 

If you purchase a wish wrap through me as an ambassador you can save 25% (so they are only $30 instead of $40) through April 20th at midnight.  

Just click on my link, and click on suede & leather at the top of the website, and then click on wish wrap to order. 

These make a great gift, especially with Mother's Day around the corner!

Check out Momentum Jewelry on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or online.

Do you have a favorite inspirational saying or mantra? 

5 Friday Favorites: Five Favorite Spring Foods 3/27/15

Don't forget to enter my MealEnders giveaway !

Since spring is my favorite season, and I love food, the DC Trifecta Friday Five linkup of five favorite spring foods seemed to be a great match. Read what my five favorite springtime foods are. 

5 Friday Favorites: Good Things

1. Jersey Peaches

I grew up in South Jersey and was always around fresh produce and farms when I was younger. It may be surprising to you, but New Jersey is called the Garden State for a reason! I love all types of fruit year round, but there is something great about a fresh Jersey peach in season. Juicy, sweet, the size of a softball and absolutely delicious! 

2. Ice Cream 

I love ice cream in any weather-I heard they actually sell more in the winter! However as the weather gets nicer I definitely find myself enjoying it more. I love taking walks to grab some local ice cream in the city or visit a local shop in my travels. A childhood favorite is always a big soft-serve cone from Kohrs Bros. at the Jersey shore right before the summer is in full swing. I posted the photo on Instagram and apparently others thought it looked delicious as well! 

3. Huge Fresh Salads

Baltimore needs a SweetGreen for sure!

MealEnders-An End to Overeating {review & giveaway}

Disclaimer: I was given a complimentary 4 pack of  MealEnders lozenges for review through the Sweat Pink Ambassadors network. Giveaway was offered and is provided by MealEnders. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own. 

Through blogging and being a part of many networks, I receive products and reviews offers each week with most of them not being worth my while.  Initially I was hesitant to accept the offer from Sweat Pink to try out MealEnders lozenges which claim to help keep you from over-eating, but curiosity got the best of me. 

They are low-calorie, stimulant-free signaling lozenges which come in four different flavors: Cinnamon, Citrus, Chocolate Mint, and Mocha.  

These lozenges are gluten-free with 15 calories per piece and only 2 grams of sugar.
  
I have my degree in Chemistry and love learning about science. Naturally I was intrigued by the food science of how these lozenges work, especially with the plethora of bold yet ultimately false claims made by diet foods in today's world. 

Mealenders lozenges have two layers. The first is a outer "reward" layer that is sweet like candy and signals the end of the meal. It's a softer, sweet layer that melts away in your mouth. The second is a tingling "inner core's active-taste layer"  engages the trigeminal nerve or "taste" nerve to signal the end of eating.  It's harder, and the best way to describe the feel is that tingling from menthol cough drops but in a delicious flavor. 

Many times I have trouble waiting the 20 minutes for my stomach to catch up with my brain and end up overeating. Also as a huge sweet tooth, I always love eating something sweet after meals-especially after dinner. 

Friday Favorites 3/20/15 feat. LesserEvil popcorn and Hip Hop Spin

This week has been crazy busy and stressful so I'm just popping by to link up with my 5 Friday favorites from the week here , here, and here.  

Despite the fact that it's snowing and raining here today, I'm still celebrating the fact that spring is indeed here. I just want to be able to wear shorts without freezing, c'mon. 

1. Favorite Snack: LesserEvil Avocado-licious Popcorn

I'm really excited to announce I'm a LesserEvil Ambassador, a company I've loved ever since I reviewed their snacks last year. I am queen of snacking so having some crunchy snacks and popcorn on hand that are gluten-free, non-gmo, and full of nutritious ingredients is awesome. I was literally speechless when I came home from work one day this week to see three HUGE boxes of snacks waiting for me!

I'm been currently working my way through bags of their Avocado-liciousBuddha Bowl popcorn made with avocado oil and pink Himalayan sea salt which will be hitting the shelves soon. It's only 40 calories a cup so there's no need to feel guilty when I eat half the bag! The subtle flavor from the avocado oil is so unique. I will definitely be sharing more snacks from LesserEvil with you. 

2. Favorite Workout: Hip Hop Cycle with Shauna Harrison

This is technically from last week, but I got to try out Hip Hop Cycle at REV Cycle Studio with Under Armour sponsored Shauna Harrison. Shauna created Hip Hop Cycle in Baltimore which makes it even more special. The spin class was intense with lots of hill climbing, and her soundtrack  was awesome! You should be following Shauna Harrison on Instagram because she posts #Sweataday, an exercise to try each day.  She also has killer arms which put mine to shame. 

2015 KELLY Shamrock 5K Race Recap

After running Rock 'n' Roll DC this past Saturday (recap to come) I ran the annual KELLY Shamrock 5K in Baltimore. Since it's Saint Patrick's Day, it seemed appropriate to recap this festive 5K that I have run the past three years.  

It's really great but after doing a double header last year, I was not sure if I'd do it again. Of course, it was part of the Charm City Run B3 Race Package which included two other races I was planning on running so I figured why not!  

The KELLY Shamrock 5K is a big race that sells out every year and marks the start of spring racing in Baltimore. It is Charm City Run's largest race with 5200 runners but is always well-organized. The 5K happens right before the Baltimore Saint Patrick's Day Parade so it's awesome having everyone already lined up for the parade to cheer for the runners.Everyone is very festive and decked out in everything green!

After a night of drinking and a big Irish dinner, I got back from Washington D.C., with an hour to spare before the race started. I drank some water and Nuun since I was clearly dehydrated and got ready for the race. Partying the night before a race is not recommended! I was not as sore as I expected to be aside from some nagging calf tightness and a sore knot on my right hamstring.  

The weather was beautiful and sunny (unlike the previous day) but some strong winds had me wearing a jacket on top and shorts on the bottom.  The race ends at PowerPlant Live! so I wanted my jacket with me at the end of the race and decided just to run with it on, even though I'd probably be a little warm during the race.  

Rock and Roll DC Half Marathon & Shamrock 5K Weekend 2014 Recap

Just yet another reason I'm an awful blogger (but still a super awesome person) is that I get super behind on race recaps, etc. and have a bunch of posts just sitting in the drafts folder. Since I'm running the Rock 'n' Roll DC Half Marathon and KELLY Shamrock 5K back-to-back again this weekend, I thought I'd finally publish last year's weekend recap! 

Spoiler alert: it involves lots of sore legs and cold beers. 

 I had run the KELLY Shamrock 5K in Baltimore 2012 & 2013 and actually have my 5K PR from that race.  My winter running cabin fever got the best of me, and I signed up for the RNR USA half months earlier because there was a really cheap price deal on it.  Then I realized that the Charm City Run B3 Race Package which included two other races I wanted to run, included the Shamrock 5K so I was running it again!  That's how it happened that St. Patrick's Day weekend I'd be running races back-to-back. Talk about a way to jump-start spring running! 

The Friday before the race after work I took the train from Baltimore to the metro to another metro and hiked down to the expo at the Armory-yes it was really out of my way and no fun lugging all my bags with me. There was a line to get in because of Armory security which was added to my stress. It was nice to peruse the expo by myself and look at all the fun gear plus grab free samples of all the snacks I could find. I stocked up on salted caramel Gu and was really tempted to buy some of the cute St. Patrick's Day-themed running shirts for sale.  

My Big Fall Goal Race & RNR Brooklyn

It seems that everyone has running fever now that the weather is warming up. That means sporadically signing up for all the races #raceeverything! It's hard because with trips and events you have to sign up and book so early in advance. Sometimes it's difficult to plan for things you've signed up for 6 months out especially with commitments just popping up all the time. 

I am happy to share that Rock 'n' Roll Marathon series finally announced that the inaugural Brooklyn half marathon will take place Saturday, October 10, 2015.  Registration is open for only Tourpass holders until March 15, and the general registration will open to the public on Monday March 16. You can sign up for an email reminder about registration here. 

Check out the full details on the race here!

I really wanted to run this race, but I unfortunately can't because I'll be in Chicago getting ready to run the Chicago Marathon on October 11, 2015! 

Yes, it was quite lovely to see this email in my inbox this morning: 

Thanks to last year's Chicago Marathon time, I time-qualified for guaranteed entry this year.  I'm running Chicago again because despite being sick the week before, I had a really amazing race. I came only 1 minute shy of a 3:35 Boston-qualifying time for my age & gender group. I know in my heart that I can come back and get my goal time of 3:30 on it's fast, flat, energetic course.  Part of me wanted to re-type that and just say under 3:35, but let's be honest I'm aiming for 3:30. 

Goals are supposed to be big & scary, right?

Hopefully I can have a strong training cycle and show up to race day healthy and ready to run!

The 2015 Chicago Marathon lottery entry opened yesterday and closes Tuesday, April,21 so check it out if you are looking for a great big fall marathon!  Be sure to read my recaps from last year's expo and race.  

It looks like it's going to be another summer of #breathedeeplyandrunchitown. 

at last year's Chi Marathon expo. word. 

Do you have a goal Fall race picked out yet? Are you already planning big events for later in the year?