My Second Bulu Box Review

I received my second Bulu Box last week, so I wanted to share what I got! 

CocoaVia: "CocoaVia is a delicious flavored daily cocoa extract supplement designed to help support cardiovascular health by helping support healthy circulation and blood flow. Heart, brain, muscle, even exercise endurance, all depend on a healthy circulatory system, which is vital to an active and healthy lifestyle. CocoaVia® supplement delivers a concentrated cocoa extract made from 100% pure cocoa"

You can get this for $19.99 for a box of 15 on Bulubox.com.

XyloBurst Gum: "Sweet and refreshing yet sugar-free, XyloBurst xylitol chewing gum will leave your mouth feeling fresh and clean. Sweetened exclusively with 100% all-natural xylitol and recommended by dentist worldwide, XyloBurst xylitol chewing gum has positive oral health benefits."

You can get this for $15.48 for a box of 12 on Bulubox.com

EBoost Natural Energy: "EBOOST combined green tea, vitamins and super nutrients for lasting energy and health. No chemicals. No artificial flavors. Just the good stuff."

You can get this for $25.50 for a box of 20 on Bulubox.com

Barlean's Omega Swirl: "Omega Swirl is an Omega-3 sensation with the taste and texture of a fruit smoothie! Now everyone can enjoy the benefits of Omega-3 without the oily taste and texture of liquids or having to swallow large capsules. Rich in Omega-3 fatty acids,Omega Swirl flax and fish oil supplements are the freshest, best-tasting and most nutritious Omega-3 products, naturally."

You can get this for $26.35 for a 16 oz. bottle on Bulubox.com

Real Food Barre: "Black Swan Chocolate Berry is a dark and mysterious Barre flavor with delicious complexity...a rich nutty blend with cocoa and cranberries will daringly dance across your taste buds."

You can get this for $27.48 for 12 bars on Bulubox.com

Neo-Chill: "Neo-Chill is an easy-to-use dietary supplement that promotes relaxation without drowsiness – meaning, it helps the body and mind to “chill out” without dulling the senses nor exerting a hazy, enervated feeling.* It contains Suntheanine®, a patented, proprietary L-theanine (an amino acid) also found in green tea."

You can get this for $21.19 for 24 capsules on Bulubox.com

If you don't want to purchase the products separately, you can sign up for their monthly subscription box like I do and get similar sample products delivered right to your door. It's only $10/month - a great deal!

If you use the code BULUGAN879 at checkout, you can get the first month FREE (a savings of $10)! 

4/17/2013: Miles run - 288 of 1000. Miles remaining - 712 of 1000

Week of Rest

I know I've been MIA for about a week. There's a few reasons why...

First off, I thought my knee was better after I tried out my new shoes, but turns out, I was wrong and it was still bothering me. So I've taken a week off from running, hoping to get back to it this afternoon. I figured, if I'm not running, there isn't much I can write about. 

Secondly, Jon was here this past weekend, so I wanted to focus on spending as much time with him as possible during his short trip. We did attend a few of my Aunt Tamie's classes at the gym on Friday and went canoeing on Saturday on Town Lake. I have been extremely sore for the past few days (that's actually an understatement...I really couldn't move). So that was another reason why I took off from running and blogging. Not much to write about when you spend the majority of your time resting.

A family affair - Jon, me, my cousin Breann, Aunt Tamie, and Uncle Kirk - post 3 classes

Thirdly, there is a cougar running around our neighborhood. That's right, a cougar (the animal...not a middle-aged woman). Our neighbor lady saw it her driveway last night. I'm not sure if they come out during the day, but I'm not about to find out! Treadmill for me...plus, it's getting warmer out. 

Finally, Boston. I planned on writing a weekend recap on Monday, but it just didn't feel right. Even yesterday, I couldn't do it. I'm still in disgust and it's hard for me to write about my normal life when chaos and despair are happening in other's. I don't want it to come off as if letting a few days pass makes my feelings any different, but maybe writing about it will help me.

My thoughts and prayers go out to my fellow runners. Jon's sister ran Boston 2 years ago and I follow many bloggers who were in it this year. It breaks my heart knowing that such a heartfelt event could be overshadowed by someone so heartless. 

This has made me a little nervous about running my next race in Pittsburgh on May 5th, but we can't let "them" win. Jon may join me for it so that I feel a bit safer. I'm sure the race organizers will be very prepared and ultra cautious, but I can't help but have that vulnerable feeling. It's going to take a while for me to get over this fear, but I will. 

I'm off to see how the knee holds up with a quick treadmill run. 

4/17/2013: Miles run - 271 of 1000. Miles remaining - 729 of 1000

New Shoes Review

Yesterday, my new shoes came in and I was excited to pick them up at the running store and try them out today. I was expecting the yellowish/green color shoes I posted yesterday because that's what the girl told me I'd be getting. Turns out those are the men's style, so I got the teal and purple ones instead...oh well! I don't buy running shoes for their colors I guess...

I haven't had an intense run in over a week due to my knee acting up, so I was excited to get back on it today. Unfortunately, mother nature was not a friend of mine and decided to drop 20 degrees in 2 hours and downpour with some intense rain this morning...I was chained to the treadmill! 

I have to be honest...I was a bit nervous with this run because I have rested my knee pretty well throughout the past week and I crossed my fingers that the pain wouldn't come back as soon as I took my first few strides. Thank God I was pain free! The new shoes felt great and my knee was back to normal. I still wanted to take it somewhat easy today on my first day back, so I completed an easy 3 miles during my lunch break. 

I need a tan...

Pretty!

First pair of Brooks ever - I'm a fan!

4/10/2013: Miles run - 268 of 1000. Miles remaining - 732 of 1000

New Shoes!

Lately, my left knee has been bothering me during my past few runs. It doesn't hurt while walking or bending it, just when I'm running. I thought it was maybe the weather last week (rainy and cold) but unfortunately, it turns out it wasn't and I may have a real issue. 

I rested it Friday and Saturday and ran thru it on Sunday for the Capitol 10000, however the pain wasn't that bad because I was running slowly and walking some of it. I rested it yesterday and today and it feels fine right now...I was tempted to do an easy 2 miles at lunch but forced myself to hold back and rest some more. I've been icing it and using Icy Hot, and I'm hoping it isn't anything too serious.

I can't think of a specific time when it started hurting. Never a moment where I was like "Ouch, that wasn't right!" So this got me thinking that maybe it's time for a new pair of shoes! I've had my Under Armour ones since Christmas and they have almost 300 miles on them (not including the times when I wear them when I'm not running...a no-no, I know). It's about time for a new pair. Thankfully, mom took me to Rogue Running here in Austin to get a new pair for my birthday a few days ago. They ordered me a pair of the Brooks Launch and just called me today to let me know they've arrived! I'm excited to go pick them up this evening after work and test them out tomorrow. Hopefully it clears up my knee problem. 

Aren't they pretty!

4/9/2013: Miles run - 265 of 1000. Miles remaining - 735 of 1000

Capitol 10000 Recap

Yesterday was the Capitol 10,000 race in Austin. It's the largest 10K in Texas and the 5th largest 10K in the US! There were about 17,000 people there. It also happened to be my mom's 1st race EVER! And she did GREAT!

We woke up around 6am in order to have enough time to manage traffic and parking. We arrived downtown by 7:00 and went straight to the bathroom line. We made it to the start area around 7:40 and were grouped near the 12:00min/mile group. My mom didn't have any specific goals for herself (other than to finish), but I had a goal for her! I wanted her to finish under 1:15:00. She told me I didn't have to run with her and could go off on my own, but since this was her first race, I wanted to do it with her. Plus, I didn't have a huge need for setting any kind of 10K PR since my knee has kind of been bothering me recently.

We crossed the start line and we ran all of mile 1 towards the Capitol building. Then a few hills came into play and we walked the uphills. But I made sure she ran the downhills! You gotta take advantage of those downhill breaks! Mile 1 and 2 were both under 11:00 min/miles and I was so proud. Around mile 4 I could tell things were slowing down. The hills had stopped but mom was tired! She kept pushing though and I kept telling her she could do it...And she did!

My phone GPS says we finished 6.2 miles in 1:12:15. But once we crossed finish line, my phone said we did 6.56 in 1:16:34 - Both come out to an 11:39 min/mile - so I approved! 

 Such a cool site! I love Austin

 Waiting in the bathroom line, pre-race

At Mile 4, the Austin PD training class came running thru doing chants and cadences. It was an awesome motivation factor for us!

GPS after crossing finish line

Mom actually ended up placing 119 out of 442 in her age group! Not bad for her first time!

Next Sunday, we are doing the Woof Walk and Run 5K to benefit the local animal shelter. Jon gets in town this Thursday, so he'll be tagging along with us! I wish we could bring Cobalt (as dogs are welcome to come too), but there's no way he'd be able to finish 3 miles with his leg.  Poor guy - I'm sure he'd love it. I have a goal for us to finish under 33 minutes!

4/8/2013: Miles run - 265 of 1000. Miles remaining - 735 of 1000

Non-Running Related Post

Yay! Almost Friday! Welp, I was going to write about my massage last night and all of the benefits it provides for runners, but hey - guess what? I already did that a month ago and forgot about it. 

So instead, I'll write about a completely non-running related topic...

Jon and I are going to Italy in August! I'm so excited. I've never been anywhere in Europe. The only time I've been out of the country (besides Hawaii) has been Japan and Cancun. Europe is definitely on my bucket list. Ever since my parents went to Italy a few years ago, I've been very jealous.

Jon is actually half Italian, so he has a lot of friends and family over there that we will be able to stay with for a portion of the trip. And thankfully, he is 90% fluent in Italian so I'll be relying on him to do all the talking! I'm sure I'll feel left out of conversation at some point, but I think most people know English okay over there. 

I can't wait to drink wine every day and eat gelato for breakfast and hopefully not gain ONE pound since we'll be doing a lot of walking and eating very fresh food. I'm glad we will be spending time with his family and friends so that we have the opportunity to do what the locals do and discover the hidden, non-touristy parts of the country. 

I am a bit worried about getting behind in my running. We are going for a full 2 weeks and according to Jon, running is not a very common activity among the Italians, so I might stand out quite a bit if I'm running down the streets of Rome. Hopefully we can find a nice park or trail somewhere. I can't go 14 days without running...I just can't! 

4/4/2013: Miles run - 256.5 of 1000. Miles remaining - 743.5 of 1000 

Abs and Arms April

Happy Hump Day! It's a bit dreary and depressing outside today. Since it's 50's and raining, I opted for a treadmill run. Am I the only one whose joints hurt when the weather is like this? Old Lady over here! I started running today and my left knee was killing me! It felt like it needed to pop. It was fine yesterday after my run, last night, and this morning...but as soon as I started moving, it was saying "STOP!" I had 3 miles scheduled but I was only able to complete 2.5 today and a bit of that was walking. I didn't want to push myself too hard and really tweak my knee, so I took it easy. 

So I'm a big fan of alliteration. Therefore, I deem this month "Abs and Arms April." Don't worry, I'll still be running just as much, but I really need to start toning up the other areas of my body (bathing suit season is right around the corner and Jon and I have a Florida trip planned in May). 

I'm not going to be doing any extreme workouts, like Insanity or P-90X, but just a little more strength training than usual to start the toning process. I plan on incorporating some kind of small workouts into every day this month to work my arms and core muscles. These will be small changes and I will only be using body weight and/or my 8 pound dumbbells (impressive, huh?). I took a "before" picture this morning (even though we're already 3 days into April and I'm a bit late) and will make sure to take an "after" at the end of April to share.  

This is me before...just kidding...kind of..

4/3/2013: Miles run - 251.5 of 1000. Miles remaining - 748.5 of 1000 

Month 3 Recap

I hope everyone had a great Easter weekend! 

Today marks the end of my 3rd month in working towards my goal of running 1000 miles by the end of this year! 

See recap below:

I completed 89 miles this month compared to 76 in February and 80 in January. I'm going to go ahead and contribute this to March having more days in the month and completing my first half marathon in DC. 

Last month, my average pace was a 9:59 min/mile. In February, I said my goal for March would be a 9:45 min/mile. This month, my average pace came out to a 9:21 min/mile, so I definitely blew that out of the park! For April, I'm shooting for an average pace of 9:15 min/mile. 

In January, my longest distance run was 6 miles. In February I went for 7. This month I completed 9.5, 10.5, and 13.5 runs! Who knows what April will hold. 15 miles at once? Scary. 

I have the Capitol 10K race coming up this next Sunday the 6th, a Woof Run 5K (for the doggies) on April 14th, and my 2nd half marathon in Pittsburgh on May 5th. No stopping now! 

I am officially a quarter of the way thru the year and only 5 miles short of being a quarter of the way done with my 1000 miles...easy to catch up on that! 

Thanks for the support! 

4/1/2013: Miles run - 245 of 1000. Miles remaining - 755 of 1000