I'VE MOVED!!

Helllllllo!!!  I've moved to my new site so be sure to check it out. 

http://www.thegogirlblog.com/

Visit me there, and subscribe to see what new things I'm into. 

Hope you like the new site.

:)

missing in action!

In case you haven't noticed, I've been a little MIA here recently.  No worries, because good things are about to happen!  I am in the process of making the switch to Wordpress so as soon as my new site is up and running, you can catch me on the flip side (a.k.a on my new site). 

There are still a few housekeeping things to be done on the new site, so fingers crossed that it will be launched by the weekend!  A friend of mine is trying to help me import all of my Blogger posts to my new site, so hopefully that will happen to.  If not, then we'll just go with the flow. 

I've missed y'all, but don't worry because I've been continually stalking your blogs and drooling over all the sweaty runs and workouts you have been doing.  Keep it up!

Orange overalls are a staple piece for any wardrobe. 

My cousin got married this weekend!!

Fill me in on what's new in your world!  Cannot wait to show you all the new site!!!

Goal Boards and a WINNER!!!

Through a fellow blogger, I was recently made aware of a contest about making goal boards.  The deal was to make a goal board, post your picture online, then rally votes in hopes of winning.  I've had my goal board since December, so I just took a photo of it and posted it.  Lucky for me, I won!  My prize should be in the mail so I'll be sure to share once it arrives.   I'm pretty sure that bedazzled weightlifting gloves are included.

My goal board. Looking a bit crowded.

Thanks to all who entered my Christmas in September giveaway!  I loved meeting new readers!  I chose a winner from random.org and the lucky number was #19 Vanessa from Gourmet Runner!  She will get the surprise box and hopefully blog about the goodies.  Congrats Vanessa and thanks for entering.  Email me: thegogirlblog [at] gmail [dot] com with all your mailing information and I'll get your "present" right to you!



There will be lots and lots of other giveaways coming soon so you'll have a chance to win some other cool things!

Lucky number 19!

How was your Thursday?  Do you have a goal board?  Anybody racing this weekend?

don't make me blow my whistle.

It was sports night at church tonight.  As with anything, I feel it is necessary to dress the part, no matter the occasion.  Tonight was no different, so I put on my ref gear and made Ashley be a faux dodgeball player.  Too legit to quit.

Put me in, Coach.

Setting the standards for sporty muscles.

While I was jumping up and down screaming obnoxious things about how cool it is to be a referee, this 3rd grader simply says "do you do that for exercise?".  Bless you, child.  Yes, I act crazy and call it exercise.  Calorie scorcher for sure. 

Lord willing that I am able to get up out of bed bright and early in the a.m., I'm planning on doing an EASY 3 miles.  Easy, I said.  I make no promises, but I'd like for it to happen.  Except I'm at school from 9-9.  Bummer.  Tomorrow also starts voting for Team Refuel.  Be sure to vote for me, Kelsey G, for awesomeness.  Thank you and God bless America.  (sorry I'm weird)

Triple Tangent Tuesday

1.  I ran today.  Sort of.  I walked more than I ran.  But I moved my body. For 7 miles. And I've lost 6 pounds since yesterday morning.  Who am I??  And no, I did not celebrate with cupcakes.  But my coworker brought these to work the other day, and they look just dandy.

Mmmmm sin.

2.  I bought two new running books today.  They aren't the usual "how to" books I usually buy that just talk about how to run; they actually tell stories about running.  One was What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami.  The other was My Life On The Run by Bart Yasso.  I can't wait to add these to my stack of "must read" selections that I have building up.

3.  John Smartt might be one of the oldest members of Knoxville Track Club.  He loyally comes to almost every 5k with a timex around his neck and his trusty walker.  On Labor Day, he competed in the track club's mile race and even did it in the rain!  Inspired?  You should be.  He even beat my friend Chelsea at a race recently and she is 22!!!  No excuses not to exercise after seeing this man.

Racing in the rain.  Get it, John Smartt

What are three super cool things on your mind right now? Read any good books lately?

Weekend Recap

After doing pretty much nothing on Friday and Saturday (and missing the most EPIC southern runner/blogger meet up everrrr), I was super ready to volunteer at a local race on Sunday.  I was formally titled "volunteer coordinator", but ended up being a finish line attendant and the person who gave out awards.  It was a beautiful morning to run a 15k through a challenging, but scenic course.  This race gave me some behind the scenes, hands-on experience for the race that I will be directing myself in April.  I'm soooo nervous but so excited about it. 

Teeny tiny finish line for a small race.

What a crew!

In other news, be on the lookout for some product reviews and/or giveaways.  I have a few tricks up my sleeve and a slew of products to review.  Yay.  Oh, and don't forget about my GIVEAWAY!!!!  Enter, then tell yo friends!!

Happy Monday!

Christmas in September! (GIVEAWAY)

That's right.  It could be Christmas in September for someone out there because I'M DOING A GIVEAWAY!!!  And since we all know that when Christmas comes, you don't know what you are getting until that morning.  Right??  Sooo, you are going to have to trust that I'm hosting an awesome giveaway and sign up with blind faith.  I pinky promise it'll be something super awesome!!  You know you love surprises!!

So, the rules you may ask?  Gain your ticket (or entry) to the Polar Express by doing one or all of the following:

1.  Leave a comment telling me the best thing you ever got for Christmas!  (+1 Entry)
2.  Become a follower and tell me you did so.  (+1 Entry)
3.  Like me on facebook HERE!!  (+1 Entry)
4.  Follow me on Twitter.  @the_gogirl  (+1 Entry)
5.  Tweet about the giveaway or include it in your blog (+1 Entry)

Remember to leave me one comment with each thing that you did!  I'll be picking a winner on September 15 at 11:59 Eastern Time.  Good luck :)

Race Report: Miner's Mile 5k

When I woke up to pouring rain this morning, it was bittersweet.  Part of me was upset since I had to travel 2 hours to a 5k race this morning, but part of me was happy since maybe I'd have a chance of placing if no one showed up.  My priorities are clearly in line.

My friends Slade and Amanda had planned to run the race with me, but Amanda wasn't feeling well so it was up to me and Slade to bring home gold this year.  Upon arriving, we could tell that it was going to be a small crowd.  The rain kept pouring and my shoes were competely soaked before I even made it to the packet pick up tent.

Soaking wet.

The course was very flat and I didn't have to bob and weave around anyone since it was such a small race.  I knew I wanted to go out slower then speed up, but that just didn't happen.  My splits were:

Mile 1: 9:57

Mile 2: 10:17

Mile 3: 10:00

.1: 58:08

Total: 3.1 miles in 31:12

Not too shabby for barely training and it coming a monsoon.  I'll take it.  If you remember yesterday's post about my race goals then you'll know that one of my goal's was to shatter last year's time.  Mission accomplished.  I beat last years time by 7:48.  Wowzuhs.  Love it!! 

Slade and I stuck around for the awards since we both thought we may have won.  I actually ended up winning a doorprize, which was a gift card for a Road ID.  As soon as I get one ordered, I'll be donning it on my runs and doing a product review of it.  I did end up winning first place in my age group and got a precious medal.  Slade defended last year's title and won his age group too!  Yay for winning. 

Baldie takes home the gold.

I'll let you guess which medal is mine and which is Slade's.

The best part of the race?  The swag for sure.  Being a small race, they were able to provide the best refreshments possble post race.  We really racked up on some awesome goodies including granola bars, Clif bars, smoothies, watermelon, and gatorade. 

Yessss.  Come to momma.

Did you race today?  It was a gret way to spend my Labor Day.

Race Day Goals

Last year, I did the Miner's Mile 5k race.  While I was horribly out of shape then and about 40 pounds heavier, I still managed to do it in 39 minutes.  I haven't trained, and I haven't ran in a few weeks, but I know I can beat that time this year.  Since the race is tomorow, I made a few goals for myself.  I'd be happy with accomplishing at least one of the following. 

A)  Finish the race.  It is only a 5k, but finishing is always the number one goal.

B)  Set a course PR.  This shouldn't be that hard to do after last year's time of 39 minutes flat, but a course PR is ALWAYS a confidence boost.

C)  Break 30 minutes.  NOT going to happen, but that is always my number one goal at any 5k since I have yet to do it.  I'm not trained, and my legs won't be fresh tomorrow, so not accomplishing this will definitely not be a heartbreaker.

D)  Have negative splits.  I'm really bad at setting a good pace for myself and usually start out way too fast then get super slow at the end and can't finish strong.  I'd love to set negative splits, even if I only knock off mere seconds.  Finishing strong would be icing on the cake.

E)  Finish in under 33 minutes.  Since I know that I won't be able to break 30 minutes, I'd at least like to beat the time I had in my last 5k, which was 33:04.  Knocking a whole 5 seconds off would be kinda nice. 

So here is my list of goals for tomorrow's race.  It won't be anything for the record books, but I'll be lapping everybody who is sleeping in on Labor Day.  Wish me luck and hopefully I'll come home with a course PR.

Are you racing on Labor Day??  What other plans do you have??

Mt. Leconte

One thing that I love to do outdoors is hike.  I live less than three minutes from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, so going hiking on a whim is relatively easy.  A favorite hike of mine is the ever strenuous Mt. Leconte.  My friend Chelsea has been wanting to hike this for a quite some time since it was on her bucket list, so yesterday we loaded up and hit the trail.

It is super strenuous and goes uphill for 5 straight miles.  Totally worth it.  Chelsea was a real trooper and we made it to the top in a great amount of time.  Something unique to Mt. Leconte is that there is actually stuff to do at the summitt.  They have basic shelter that they rent but in order to get one, you have to make reservations almost a year in advance.  You can also pay some money and get a t-shirt.  Pretty cool stuff!!  It was my 8th time hiking this trail and each time gets better.

Chelsea and I at the dining hall on top.  It says yesterday's date.

Signing the book to say that I've been there and done that.

We got up close and personal with a deer!!

A little climbing action 

About halfway down the mountain.

Awesome dirt lines afterwards.

I'm addicted to this trail and already have plans to go back next month, if not before.  It is a great way to cross train and really makes my legs stronger.  I'm also glad that Chelsea was able to cross something off her bucket list all while sweating our bootays off.

Do you like to hike??  What's your favorite thing to do in the great outdoors??

Let's pretend for 5 minutes that we are actually our age.

Ashley and I are super good at acting our age.  Like, SUPER good.  Our church just had a kids carnival and the kid's director somehow twisted our arms to get us to "chaperone" the event.  Umm, part of that job description was to check out the equipment, right??

Obstacle course is our calorie burner for the day.

Inflatable wall?  No big deal.

Riiiiiiight.

So after eating only one sno cone each (I pinky promise it was just one!!), we had to chaperone the moon bounce.  Turns out that corraling kids to only go in 5 at a time is a real chore.  We ended up convincing the little monsters rascals to go check out some other attraction so that Ashley and I could enjoy the moon bounce to ourselves.  Real mature, ladies. 

Happiest chaperones you'll ever see.

I'm a sucker for a good sunset. 

Do you ever have problems acting your age?  It's just too fun to be a "kid".