by Natalie on March 17, 2010
When I first started doing running races, I raced to participate, to experience the race, and that was about it. Let me first say that there is absolutely nothing wrong in racing with that mindset. My perception of racing started to change as I learned more about running, form, training techniques and drills, and my own potential. My perception of races also started to change the first time I adopted a real training plan which was for my first half marathon in October 2008.
I distinctly recall that race being the first time I set a hard goal that I hoped to achieve. For that run my goal was to finish under two hours, which I just barely did. That race pretty much set the tone for how I’ve been running, training, and racing which is goal-oriented. [click to continue…]
by Natalie on April 14, 2009
If you were to dig through my drawer of running gear, you’d either be shocked, disgusted, or entertained by the variety of sports bras in the drawer. I played volleyball in high school and wore only cotton Columbia sports bras probably because that is the only brand I knew of at the time and there are still a couple of them in my drawer, albeit at the bottom of the pile. I like to stick with what works and what I’m comfortable in and for a long time those cotton bras with their now disintegrated elastic served me well.
Around the same time when I realized I should replace those old bras I also started to learn of the alternatives to cotton and the benefits of technical fibers designed for wicking, compression, and performance enhancement. While I understood the need for a better sports bra, I was essentially lost in finding the next best bra. For a long time, years, I was on the hunt for the perfect sports bra and the variety of brands and styles in my drawer is evidence of my search. [click to continue…]
When I first started doing running races, I raced to participate, to experience the race, and that was about it. Let me first say that there is absolutely nothing wrong in racing with that mindset. My perception of racing started to change as I learned more about running, form, training techniques and drills, and my own potential. My perception of races also started to change the first time I adopted a real training plan which was for my first half marathon in October 2008.
