My Happiest 5K - Charlotte Color Run!

I found out about the The Color Run last year when someone in our running club put a link on Facebook. It looked like so much fun - an un-timed 5K with lots of powdered color. It is touted as being the Happiest 5K on the Planet. And now that I've experienced one, I can honestly agree. It was 100% happiness.

My sisters and I decided to do it together, in Charlotte, NC. And in the end, two of my nephews also joined us. Along with 12,000 other Color Runners. Yes, Twelve Thousand!

The event was held at the Charlotte Motor Speedway:

Originally, the advertised date was set for October 2012. When registration opened, the date had been changed to Nov. 17, 2012.  Ah, the same date as my Tryon Running Club's first 1/2 Marathon. Bummer.

Well, next year will be my year for the 1/2. I'll be 45 next year, and will celebrate with 13.1 miles of movement.

Most of the Color Run was delightfully flat. There were two hills, the last one on the long side just before the finish. One of my nephews (he is 11) was a little upset at the fact that no one would actually win this race. He wanted to run the whole thing, so I told him I would run with him. Thank God we reached the first Kilometer and first Color Station. My nephew was a little bullet. Weaving in and out of the crowd, sprinting and glancing back to make sure I was still there. I ended up getting much more of a workout than I expected, but was running much faster than I really can while still being able to breathe.

At the first color stop I told him we had to wait for the others since this was supposed to be a family event, much to his utter dismay. "You mean we have to stop and WAIT? We just wasted all that time running??" He was none too pleased. But honestly, I needed to catch my breath!

We all went through the Blue together. The volunteers had buckets and bottles full of the blue powder (cornstarch) and threw it at us as we jogged on. There were clouds of blue everywhere, the path was covered in blue. Some of the volunteers wore masks and hats, but they were also completely covered. Some got in my mouth and it was chalky and dry. With no water to rinse out, we just spit it out the best we could. Then my nephew was back at it, wanting to run. So he and I took off again. I slowed to a walk on the first hill, and he jogged back to me. I told him to go ahead and wait for me at the bottom of the hill. After I met him there he said "Aunt Caroline, since you've had time to walk, do you think you can keep up with me now?"

"No, baby. I can't keep up with you, you've already worn me out!" I replied. So on we went - he sprinting off, then jogging back to where I was, then running at a nice, even pace. We went through the next 3 color stations together - leaving the others to come on along.

At the finish line my sister Mary, of Forty By Forty, and I were greeted by our blogger friend Aubrey, of High Heeled Love. What fun to finally meet in person!

At the finish line - before Color Bombs

They threw out color packets to the crowd

In everyone's swag bag was a packet of color to throw at the finish line. Every 10 or 15 minutes there would be a color explosion and everyone would throw their packets up in the air. 

I was completely bombed with a green one. It landed on my head and then exploded. I slightly resembled a happy looking Grinch ..and I had to wash my hair 4 times. I gave my packet to one of my nephews so I could take pictures of the sight:

Going up in colored smoke!

After Color Bombs - a green packet exploded on my head.

There was loud, fast music everywhere - at the start, at the color stations, and at the end. The kind of music that has you swaying, then dancing and loving life. You know - the kind of music you run with!

It was a super fun day. The Color Run was great, and benefited Habitat for Humanity. The exercise was wonderful but doing it with my family was priceless.

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90 Day Challenge - 30 day update

So I'm 30 days into my 90 day Challenge. Time for some results!

To recap - for exercise I have been doing a Beach Body program called Chalean Extreme, and running 3 days a week. The program is divided into phases. There are two ab DVD's in the Chalean program, and I've been doing those as well. I've tried one of the two cardio DVD's, and liked it but am depending on running for cardio right now. 

For nutrition, I'm using Shakeology for one meal a day and following  a lower-carb, lower fat, higher protein diet. I'm not counting calories, exactly, but I am logging my food into My Fitness Pal for accountability. 

I have a Beach Body coach, Lindsay, as well as a Facebook support group with other challengers of like minds and similar goals. The Facebook  group is really awesome. Our Coach Lindsay is attentive and supportive. She really wants to see each of us succeed in our health journeys.

I enjoyed the first month of Chalean Extreme. The first phase is called "Burn".  There are three Burn Circuit programs for each week. And most of the exercises certainly do burn - in  the best kind of good way. I splurged and bought a set of adjustable dumbbells.

These are the ones I ended up getting:

Power Block  SportBlock 24

They adjust from 3 pounds to 24 pounds, had great reviews and were mostly in my price range. I got them just in time. to up from 10 to 12 pounds, and they worked great. I like them very, very much.

My running has improved - the squats and lunges have really helped me with hills and endurance. Our running club is hosting a Half Marathon in November. I will be doing a Color Run the same day with my two sisters, but am still training for the 1/2 because I want to improve both my distance and speed.



So, Results!

I weighed, measured and took update photos.

30-day Weight loss - 3.5 pounds
Total weight lost from start of 10 day challenge - 7.5 pounds

30-day Inches lost - 4.5
Total inches lost - 7.25

Photos: I can see a slight difference, hopefully next month will be more, uh, "dramatic".

The main thing is my clothes are fitting better than they have in a long time, and that's a great feeling.

At the beginning of our challenge we had to come up with 30, 60 and 90 day goals. My 30 day goal was to PR (get a personal record) in a recent 8K race. And I did it!! You can read about that HERE. Meeting a goal like that is so empowering!

We have to come up with "Can, Will, Did" goals each week. The last two weeks my goals were about the number of sweets I would/could eat each week. It helps to have the goals because they keep us focused and accountable, and sugar is one of my weaknesses.

This week we had to come up with a theme song that described our life at this point. My song is "On top of the World" by Imagine Dragons.

This is one of the Color Run 5K theme songs. The first time I heard it I loved the happy music beat. Then I listened to the lyrics and realized they spoke to me where I'm at right now.

"I’ve tried to cut these corners
Try to take the easy way out
I kept on falling short of something

I coulda gave up then but
Then again I couldn’t have ’cause
I’ve traveled all this way for something

Now take it in but don’t look down

‘Cause I’m on top of the world, ‘ay
I’m on top of the world, ‘ay
Waiting on this for a while now
Paying my dues to the dirt
I’ve been waiting to smile, ‘ay
Been holding it in for a while, ‘ay
Take it with me if I can
Been dreaming of this since a child
I’m on top of the world."

With my weight loss journey, I have definitely tried to cut corners and take the easy way out, but kept falling short. And that way may work in the short-run, but in the long run it really does take focus, discipline and hard work to become a healthier version of ourselves.

I've learned a few things this month.

• I've been crushin' on my calves lately, which is funny because I've never liked them. Thought they were too think, too stubby. But now I just really like them. I like standing on my toes and seeing definition in them. Muscles! I don't really know if they look any different, or if I am seeing them different. When I look at them now they look strong. I'm still courting my thighs and my upper arms, but I think we might have a thing going on by the end of 90 days.

• I really can control what I eat. It's hard sometimes, especially on those days where I think I deserve something, or when I think food is going to help me feel better or comfort. But it really is in my control. I am learning to eat to live, and not the other way around.

• Lifting weights is awesome. I was one of the people who thought I would bulk up with heavy weights. Not true. Building muscle helps you burn calories longer...muscles burns fat.....bring it on!

• Having a support system of people who are doing the same thing is invaluable. It's  wonderful to have support of friends and family. But being able to converse with others about temptations, successes, ups and downs really makes a huge difference! I have never met any of the girls in my support group face-to-face (except my dear sister), but I feel like I've known them a long time. Some of the most helpful, supportive women I've come across.  And, by the way, my sister is blogging her experiences too over at Forty By Forty.

If you are interested in joining a similar challenge, please contact me or check out Lindsay's website by clicking HERE. She is starting another one on Oct 22. Lindsay lives in another state, so you do not have to be close geographically to be involved!

I'll post again in 30 days with my 60 day update. Hopefully my results will be as good or better than these first 30 days.

Do you have fitness or weight loss goals? Have you written them down? Do you have a plan to achieve them?

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Friday Confessions 7.6.12

This has been a long week, and I confess that I am glad it is almost over!

I confess that I wanted to eat many of my Oreo Peanut Butter Brownies.......in one sitting. Thankfully I gave (most of) them away.

I confess that I will be running  The Color Run with my sisters after all! I am so super excited! Here is the video again, if you didn't watch it last time - it looks like so much fun! The song is by Imagine Dragons "On Top of the World."

How did this change happen? Well, we experienced a death in my husband's family last week, and it changed my perspective. I want to do this with my sisters, and who knows what may happen next year. We all got registered just in time! It's all sold out now!

I confess this run and other future races I have planned should keep me on track and running. I was derailed this past week, but will still be participating in the Coon Dog Day 5k tomorrow. Yes, and entire festival dedicated to the beloved Coon Dog. I've run this route one time - it's hilly, but lots of my TRC buddies will be there, and that's always fun.

Last but not least I confess that I love my sister's new blog 40 by 40. She is on the brink of 40. She wants to do 40 things she's never done before, before she turns 40. She has about 3 years to do this, so it will be a fun and interesting blog. She's an even newer blogger than I am, so give here some blog love, if you are so inclined.

Her very first adventure is going to be to bake a layer cake from scratch (my suggestion ; ) ), and she will be making my Red Velvet Heaven. 

What are YOU confessing this week??


Confessions are being hosted by MAMARAZZI. Click the button if you'd like to join in.

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Friday Confessions 6.22.12

Well, here it is Confession Friday again. Check out the link at the bottom if you want to join in confessing. It's being hosted by Mamarazzi at Dandelion Wishes.




My confessions are many this week....
I confess....that I am so happy that it's Friday!! And that I am off, not just today, but for the whole next week too. We had a big trip planned to CA, but things happened, are still happening, that changed all our plans. So looks like we will stay home instead. I was sorely disappointed and out of sorts at first, but now, I see that things are working out as they should.
I confess.... that I have signed up for another race - the Coon Dog Day 5K, held in Saluda, NC. It's good to have something to look forward to - something that keeps me out there running. I'll be running the course for the first time this weekend with a friend. Saluda is a hilly little town, so I'm sure it will be a challenging course. And I can't wait to see the T-shirts!

I confess....that I was thoroughly bummed when I received my email telling me the registration for The Color Run date had been changed from the advertised date. My sisters and I were planning on running it together, along with 2 of my nephews. And now the date is the same as the TRC's first event as an organized running club. And I'm planning on running - it will be my first 1/2 marathon. I am so conflicted! 
You must check out this video - because even if you don't run, you will want to run this race! And if you are wondering, the song is by Imagine Dragons "On Top of the World".

I confess..... that the Red Velvet Cake I made last weekend was as close to divine as anything I've baked lately. And when my friend asked if the rest of the cake was hers to take home, I confess that I wanted to say "Are you kidding? Of course not!", but instead I said "Of course - it's your birthday!" This made her immensely happy.
Since I will more than likely be home for most of next week, I confess that I have a few things I would like to do. I found a couple of recipes that look interesting, and if they are, then you will seem them posted here. I'd also like to get my thrift divided so I can have even more of it next year. 

Of course, I confess, there is a lot I don't want to do, and most of that includes cleaning. Certainly not on my favorites list.
What are you confessing this week?



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