It was a jammed-packed three days but it was all worth it.
On Thursday afternoon, I made the 2.5 hour drive to the Charlotte Running Company - Promenade location. This was a somewhat last-minute event to put together so I was grateful to have a small group of local runners, fitness enthusiasts and triathletes in attendance. A big thank you to Leyla and Kelly and Meg Fillnow for promoting (and attending).
On Thursday afternoon, I made the 2.5 hour drive to the Charlotte Running Company - Promenade location. This was a somewhat last-minute event to put together so I was grateful to have a small group of local runners, fitness enthusiasts and triathletes in attendance. A big thank you to Leyla and Kelly and Meg Fillnow for promoting (and attending).
To start the event, I gave a short motivational talk discussing how to get more out of an exercise/training journey with becoming obsessive, rigid or extreme. I then followed up answering several nutrition questions and had my first ever book signing. While my intention as an author is to write books that are helpful, inspiring and educational, it was a great honor to sign books and to connect with my readers. I even had one female who has used my sport nutrition book in her dietetic practice - the book was filled with post-it notes and highlighted sentences.
After the event, I drove down the road to stay the night with my friends Kelly and Meg Fillnow. We spent the next hour or two chatting, laughing and snacking before a later-than-normal bedtime of 10:30pm. It was great to hang out with these two exceptionally fast, humble and awesome athletes/humans.
The next morning, I slept in until 7am and had a cup of coffee and pre-workout snack (2 slices cinnamon toast w/ peanut butter) and then went to the Y with Kelly and Meg. We had an awesome swim workout, which was extra fun in a new pool for me. There's something so fun about swimming in new locations - every pool feels different! Kelly is recovering from knee surgery due to a bike accident so she used the buoy for the entire swim but she was great company as we held the same paces throughout the entire set. 4400 yards later we were done and it was time to eat.
The next morning, I slept in until 7am and had a cup of coffee and pre-workout snack (2 slices cinnamon toast w/ peanut butter) and then went to the Y with Kelly and Meg. We had an awesome swim workout, which was extra fun in a new pool for me. There's something so fun about swimming in new locations - every pool feels different! Kelly is recovering from knee surgery due to a bike accident so she used the buoy for the entire swim but she was great company as we held the same paces throughout the entire set. 4400 yards later we were done and it was time to eat.
I enjoyed a delicious egg and veggie scramble at the Fillnow house w/ 2 slices toast and then it was time to hit the road to Roanoke. It was cold and wet outside but to my surprise, the rain turned into snow as I was driving! Luckily it wasn't sticking so it was a smooth and safe drive up to Roanoke Virgina. This is me trying to take a selfie to show Karel that it was snowing. ;)
About 3.5 hours later, I arrived to Ally's house - who was putting on my next event.
This was my first time traveling to Roanoke and it was neat to check out the area since we will be racing the innagural Ironman 70.3 Blue Ridge in June. After unloading my car, we headed to Run About Sports (the run store that Ally owns) and did a quick promo video for our event on Saturday. I received a few gifts from Ally - like a soft hoodie that I will likely wear all the time as it's so comfy.
We then drove back to Ally's house where I was welcomed by her two energetic kiddos and adorable dog.
I was able to get a little work done on the computer before it was time for dinner. Ally made a delicious black bean and sweet potato enchilada dish which was the perfect meal to end the day.
After chatting with Ally later in the evening, I went to bed a bit early (8:30am) as we had an early wake-up call.
We then drove back to Ally's house where I was welcomed by her two energetic kiddos and adorable dog.
I was able to get a little work done on the computer before it was time for dinner. Ally made a delicious black bean and sweet potato enchilada dish which was the perfect meal to end the day.
After chatting with Ally later in the evening, I went to bed a bit early (8:30am) as we had an early wake-up call.
My alarm got me up at 5:30am and after a pre-workout snack (2 slices cinnamon toast + PB) we drove to River Edge Park to run on the Greenway. Ally and I ran a few miles before the group run at 8am. She ran me to the downtown area of Roanoke and showed me some of the popular places - like the best ice cream in town (note to self - make sure to take Karel there afer the half IM). While I didn't see the bike course (although I heard it will be very hilly - yippee), I covered the entire run course for the half IM and I love it. It will be very spectator friendly and scenic with parks and river views throughout the run. It was nice to chat with some of the local runners and triathletes - many of which will be doing their first half IM in June.
After the run, we made a quick stop at Kroger to get some snacks for the events, and then did a quick change before my speaking event. The event had a similar flow as Thursday's event but with a much larger crowd. I had a lot of great questions and met a lot of awesome people.
After the run, we made a quick stop at Kroger to get some snacks for the events, and then did a quick change before my speaking event. The event had a similar flow as Thursday's event but with a much larger crowd. I had a lot of great questions and met a lot of awesome people.
After the event, I went back to Ally's house, packed up the car and headed home around 12:30pm. It was a smooth and easy drive for the next 4.5 hours and ended the day with dinner at my mom's house - while being entertained by my three nephews who were in town for the weekend.
