Charlotte Racefest and The Aftermath

This recap is really late, I know.  I spent most of yesterday getting organized, packing, and driving to Folly Beach, SC, where I'm currently sitting witnessing a lot of this...

That would be my cute niece :)

Anyway, to back up, Saturday morning I awoke at slightly after 5am to prep for my 10K.  The last 10K I ran was back in 2010- the Hilton Head Turkey Trot.  I knew going into this 10K that I basically had almost zero hope of a PR because that 10K was during marathon training, I was in much better shape, and I wasn't contending with any injuries.  Oh, and it was a flat out-and-back course.

Really, until Friday, I hadn't made up my mind about whether I'd even run the Racefest 10K, because of my ankle issues after my 5 miler last Sunday.  I'd spent the week feeling like my whole left leg felt off and the only run I'd done since the 5 miler was one mile on Wednesday night that also felt crappy.  I had also felt some hamstring tenderness all week, so I knew this race might be a bad idea.  I decided to give it a shot though.

Saturday morning, I got to South Park for the race and picked up my packet.  I found Jen and Kelly via text before the race.

Jen and Kelly were on the fence about which race they were doing- the 10K or the half marathon, even though they were both registered for the half.  Jen decided to do the half and Kelly decided to drop down to the 10K at the last minute (she ditched her chip so she wouldn't throw anything off), since she's had some hip flexor issues.  This ended up being awesome for me because Kelly ended up running the entire race with me, which really helped me.  In fact, the entire distance really felt like no big deal- it was just a leisurely run with Kelly.  We talked and kept each other going the whole time.  Around mile 3-4 I had a little bit of discomfort in my left leg (various places), but it wasn't enough for me to need to stop, I just kept my easy pace going.  Kelly motivated me up a couple hills near the end, and before we knew it we had the finish in sight and were crossing the line together.

My time was 1:02:16 (chip time), almost 7 minutes slower than my PR, but you know what, I was really happy with it considering the year I've had and being semi-injured last week.  Plus, I'm pretty sure that's the longest distance I've done since my marathon!  My friends will tell you that I was pretty giddy on my runner's high after, and it kept me smiling for hours.  This is why I run :)

The race was followed up with breakfast at Flying Biscuit. 

I went with the bacon and eggs breakfast with poached eggs, potatoes, turkey bacon, and of course the biscuit.  So delicious after my 6.2 miles.





After breakfast I headed to Trader Joe's to stock up on stuff for Folly Beach, then headed home for a while to pack.  This was interrupted by my friends forcing me encouraging me to accompany them to Menchie's for froyo.  I couldn't say no...



Cindi, Caitlin, Kelly, Sara, and I enjoyed heaping cups of the cold creamy stuff with countless candy toppings.  It's a wonder I even had room for dinner later!

Clyde and Cindi's daughter had fun examining each other.

It was great to see the girls.  With all the babies, moving, work, and busy stuff we all have going on, it's been harder to find time to get together lately.  All in all, a great race and great Saturday in Charlotte! 

More to come on my Folly Beach adventures...  :)



Mid-Week Highlight

Thank you guys for all your feedback on my running/racing debate post.  I am obviously still very conflicted about the whole thing, and still haven't made any firm decisions on whether I want to run much or train for a race.  I'll keep you posted!  Oh and here's some proof that my friend Alison ran the Marine Corps Marathon with a jacked up ankle, as mentioned in my last post.

Yeah, OWWWWW!  Thanks for the pic Alison ;)

So it was a pretty normal week for me in Charlotte.  I did do a little running (about 2 miles one night), I walked Clyde, I made Emily's potatoes.

The highlight of my mid week was meeting Cindi and baby Molly for pizza Wednesday night, followed by an impromptu froyo outting with Caitlin, Beth, and Katy at Menchies.

I had seen Beth tweet that she was in Charlotte this week and asked if she had plans or would like to meet up.  Froyo at Menchies quickly became a plan!  Last time I saw Beth was at The Healthy Living Summit.  We chatted while at lunch the first day.  I also briefly met her at our meet-up after The National Marathon in DC/VA in the spring.

I like this girl!



Anyway, I brought Clyde, of course, so then this happened:

Caitlin and Clyde have this trick they like to do where Caitlin puts Clyde's entire snout in her mouth.  He loves it...  No dachshunds or humans were harmed, no worries.

I had a mix of Red Velvet, Cake Batter, and Chocolate Hazelnut froyo with assorted chocolatey toppings and some strawberries and bananas so it wasn't all junk food.

Clyde had his own little cup of PB froyo.  He gobbled it up in about 5 seconds.

I had a great time with these girls!  Lots of laughter that night.  It made my week a lot more enjoyable.

Yesterday Greg and I hit the road for a little getaway.  I'll give you the rundown on our trip next time, but here's a hint, and the view I'm enjoying.

Ahhhhhh :)



Proof That I'm Addicted To Fro-Yo

Howdy!  So it's been another busy week for me, but staying busy has helped me to keep my sanity, so I really don't mind.  Although, I'd take more of the social type of busy and less of the work type of busy if it were up to me!  Anyway, I got in some fun outings this week, so here they are.

Tuesday night I met up with Kelly at 131 Main in the Dilworth area of Charlotte. 

I've only ever been to their south location before and it was a couple years ago for drinks and appetizers, so this was my first full on meal experience.  I'd say it was a success!  We happened to go on half price bottles of wine night.  Um, don't mind if I do!  We split a nice Sauvingon Blanc, which hit the spot on a hot day.  We also had some unpictured deviled eggs as an app.  Yum :)

I chose the crab cake salad for my entree and it was totally delicious.  It came with two kinds of dressing on the side- a whole grain mustard and more of a vinegarette and they were both delish.  I also loved the texture of the crab cake.

Oh yeah.  One more time...

131 Main happens to be right near Menchie's, and it was decided that we should grab some yummy dessert over there after dinner.  We were within walking distance after all!



As far as fro-yo goes, I don't really discriminate.  We have quite a few fro-yo places in Charlotte.  It seems that the big chains have noticed the fro-yo craze we have going on here and want in on the action.  I pretty much like them all.  Each has something unique that I like about it.  With Menchies, it's probably their chocolatey options and their HUGE topping area.  I think they have the most topping choices of all the fro-yo places here.

Now, I usually go one of two routes: 

1) Chocolatey: chocolate/cake/sweet flavors, with hot fudge, oreo crumbles, choco chips, etc...

2) Fruity: fruit yogurt flavors, with fruit toppings.

Sometimes I mix the two, but usually I'm more in the mood for one or the other.  At Menchies I had more of a chocolate night.

I did add a bunch of fruit on top though, so I guess it was a mix of both.

You'd think that fro-yo one night this week was enough, but when I got another invite for fro-yo on Wednesday, I could not pass it up!

This time I met Diana, Jen, and Katie for fro-yo at Yoforia. 

So good to see these girls!  We've all been through a lot lately (just check our blogs out to see!), so some female bonding and fro-yo was a welcome diversion!

Oh and Clyde came too, and he enjoyed his own little sample cup of PB fro-yo that Katie went in and got him!  Lucky dog!

When at Yoforia, my favorite flavor/combos is their fruity yogurts- Taro, Pineapple, Pom, combined with all their fresh fruits and some coconut and mochi.

See how I made the two fro-yo outtings totally different experiences? 

You too can mix up your fro-yo options :)

What's your favorite fro-yo combo?

I leave you with this artsy photo of Clyde.