Race Prep

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Hi friends! 

As I've mentioned many a time before on here, I've been training for an upcoming 5k. Well, tomorrow is finally the day. Actually, tomorrow and Sunday. My mom and I somehow got it in our heads that we can totally do back to back races... we'll see... 

In lieu of my fast approaching runs, I thought it would be fun to share with you some of the things I've done in the last weeks as I finish up my race prep!

I've really been shaking things up and doing things I normally wouldn't do. Previously, I've been timing and monitoring my runs to make sure I can actually do 3.1 miles (I can, thank the Lord). Not only was I doing this to make sure I could go the distance, but I was also using it as measurement of how long it would take me to complete the race. This is something I did in all the months leading up to this past week. In the chaos of finals and trying to pack my room up, though, this has become really stressful to me. It made me frustrated when I wouldn't hit a certain time, or if my body just didn't feel like going the distance. So I quit.

"It does not matter how slow you go, as long as you don't stop"- Confucius

I quit timing myself and it's honestly made all the difference. It made me fall back in love with running, which is something I sort of lost sight of in the midst of trying to get my best time. I've found that by doing this, I not only do better, but I feel better about the way I'm running. The other day I ran with my mom and I tracked our progress for the first time in over a week, and I was surprised by how well we had done- especially with me not being concerned about it over the past few week.

Another thing I've done is make a playlist so that I have to run against the music. While I haven't been loving timing myself, I really can't stand listening to the same song twice in one run. To combat this, I've created a playlist using Spotify to push myself. Nothing motivates me more than some killer music, and the songs in this mix get my pumped up for any run. You can listen to it below!

Because I genuinely love running, I also like to keep up-to-date on races happening in my area. This can be a somewhat difficult task when I'm at college because I'm in such an academic bubble, but Eventbrite is a great way to amend that problem. Their website allows you to look up events going on in your area, and you can even plan events of your own! They have everything from music to food events (need I say more?) so it's really like a one stop boredom buster. I highly recommend browsing through their categories of events if you're in need of something fun to do this summer- there's tons of great things listed! (I'm also a fan of the classes the promote there, as I'm always looking for ways to stay active!)

Have you ever used Eventbrite? I would love to know things you enjoy searching their site for!