Running, snacking & randomness

Missed posting last week but had a fun weekend hanging out with new friends.  Went to dinner at a new place for us to try and then Sunday we all hung out at our house to snack and watch the Super Bowl.

Made this ham, turkey and cheese ring and it was a hit ... Thanks again Pinterest!  We had a bunch of snack food and just munched during the game.

In January I decided that I need to start using some of my sample beauty products I get free in the mail and in my Ipsy bags.  I have a bad habit of just putting them in a drawer or saving them for a special occasion and then never trying them. I follow a bunch of people posting their empty product and doing mini reviews on Instagram so I thought I would keep my empties and see what I could actually finish in a month.  Not too bad for January ... 

This week also included some FroYo since I had a coupon.  It was lunch on Friday for my friend and I ~ don't judge, this is why I run :)

Speaking of running...the run streak still goes on.  Today was day 76!  I am going to treat myself to a pedicure when I get to 100...not to far to go.

I've been posting a lot on Instagram but trying to stay off social media a little more than I did.  Facebook and Twitter are not being checked as often as they were and I am kind of liking it.   On that note, do we follow each other in Instagram?  Follow me and I would love to follow you in return.

Have a great weekend !

Lots of new things

Hello friends!

This week has been filled with new things.  The thing I am most excited about is that our house is finally all painted.  My husband is an awesome painter.  He painted the bedrooms and bathrooms a few months ago but we waited a while to tackle our great room/kitchen and hallways since they have super tall walls.  Between the ceilings and the walls he used 12 gallons of paint in two days.  We are really happy inhow everything turned out.  Now the house feels more like a home!

I love listening to Podcasts while I am at work and binge listened to one I just found out about.  It is called Nutrition Genius Radio.  It is two nutritionists from Upstate NY that talk about eating real food and things that are good for your body ( and they are really funny).  You should check them out!

Another new thing that I am loving is Sweet Potato Quiche.  I made it last weekend to portion off for breakfasts during the week at work.  Loved it so much I made another one this morning for this week.  If you love sweet potatoes you need to try it.

http://grokgrub.com/2013/06/10/recipe-sweet-potato-quiche/

And lastly, I am excited to announce that I am now a My Soxy Feet Ambassador.  Their socks feel great when running and do no cause any blisters or make my feet feel super hot.  And the best part....they are mismatched and come in fun designs.  Check them out at http://www.mysoxyfeet.com/ and if you place an order use the code SOXYFRIENDS to get 10% off your order.

What's new with you guys?  Have a great day!

~ Tracie

A week full of Pinterest Dinners (recipes included)

All the dinner meals this past week were a success so I thought I would share them with you.  

I get bored of eating the same dinners all the time.  I have gone a little extreme lately and had planned out a new dinner each night this past week from Pinterest.  

Monday ~ Clean Eating Slow Cooker Pineapple Chicken served over white rice

http://www.thegraciouspantry.com/clean-eating-crock-pot-pineapple-chicken/

Tuesday ~ Skinny Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers

http://www.skinnymom.com/2014/05/11/skinny-cheesesteak-stuffed-peppers/

Wednesday ~ Italian Meatloaf with Rosemary Potatoes

http://www.cinnamonspiceandeverythingnice.com/italian-meatloaf/

Thursday ~ Easy Fajita Chicken Bake

http://www.thepinningmama.com/2014/08/21/easy-fajita-chicken-bake-recipe/

Friday ~ Meatball Sub Casserole

(This wasn't my favorite but it was ok)

http://recipeknead.com/meatball-sub-casserole/

Saturday ~ Chicken Noodle Soup (currently in the crockpot)

http://www.cookingclassy.com/2013/11/slow-cooker-chicken-noodle-soup/

What new recipes have you been finding that you like on Pinterest lately?

Glass Slipper Challenge 2016

I have only run one Disney Race so far and it will always be very special for me since it was my very first half marathon.  I loved it!!  

I had saw a YouTube video about the Princess Half Marathon and started crying when I watched it.  At that moment I knew I wanted that to be my first half marathon.  Go Big, right?!?

Loved the whole entire race & getting the medal was the best!  I made it all the way to my husband in the meeting area before I broke into tears ~ happy tears!

If you would like a separate post about the race let me know...

I want to run another half marathon this year but now I have my sights on Disney again ... Another challenge for myself!

I want to do the Glass Slipper Challenge along with the 5k in February 2016.  It will be three days of races ~ 5k, 10k & half marathon ~ 22.4 miles total ~ four race medals!!!

The signups for the races fill up fast so I have already marked my calendar for sign up day ~ July 14, 2014 (six months from today!!!!)

Who else will be doing the Glass Slipper Challenge?

I just felt like running....

Hi friends,

Before Thanksgiving I was running at least a mile a day on the treadmill about five days a week.  I did good that week and ran every day.  Then someone in my running group challenged us all to either run a mile a day or do 30 min of exercise each day in December.  We had a group chat going on FaceBook and posted each time we worked out.  It was a great way to keep ourselves accountable.  It was also very motivating!

After December was over I realized I had been running 39 days in a row!!!  It peaked my curiosity to see how long I can actually keep the run streak going.  I am now posting my daily treadmill runs on Instagram to keep me accountable to myself.  I am a wimp to the cold so a lot of my posts are treadmill pictures but once it gets a little warmer I will have better scenery to take pictures of outside.  

Here is my week of running...

Today's one mile run was day 50 of my run streak so celebrated with a margarita (my favorite) last night and a nice relaxing breakfast & day at home today.

Follow me on Instagram to follow along with my run streak (www.instagram.com/tracieg803).

How do you keep yourself motivated?  

Run, Read & Be Happy

Long time no post!!!!  I know, I slacked on the blogging but I plan to be better at it and try to post at least once a week from now on.

So, how were your holidays?  I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving & Christmas (yes, I haven't posted in so long I missed both holidays on here).  My parents were here from Florida for Thanksgiving so we did a lot of eating, local tourist things and visiting wineries.

Also, the week of Thanksgiving I started hitting the treadmill for at least a mile every day!  Thought it would be fun to do a little run streak through Christmas ~ well, the streak is continuing so we will see how long I can go....anyone taking bets?  Haha!

Christmas was nice & relaxing with a lot of FaceTiming with family ... now we are into 2015.

I did not make any resolutions but I did make a few small goals for the new year.

I have already run my first 5k of the year on New Year's Day and had one of my fastest 5k times yet (must be all those treadmill miles I am getting in).

I love reading but by the time I make time to read at night I am just so tired.  Need to be better at making more time to read and just relax earlier before I am totally tired.  

Also, I used to worry about what I posted on social media and if it would be embarrassing or something.  I have decided to share things that I like and if people have a problem with it, there is always the little unfollow button.  I just need to do things that make me happy and the right people will stick with me and we will all motivate, support & encourage each other with our similar interests.

I would love to know what races you are signed up for or what books you are currently reading.  Please leave suggestions in the comments.

Have a great day!

~ Tracie

Where do you find your motivation?

Motivation....sometimes it is just the little push you need to get yourself to put on your running sneakers and head out the door.  Sometimes you need someone/something in your face to tell that little voice in your head to get up off the couch and move!

When I first joined Instagram I wasn't really sure about it.  Then when I signed up for my first half marathon (Disney Princess Half in Feb 2014) I started following other runners who were training for that race also.  I love seeing people post their outside and treadmill training runs. I knew that if they were running the same race as me, I better get my butt in gear and be running also and compare my mileage to what other new half marathon runners were running.

The longer I have been on Instagram I found more people to follow that like to run as much as I do.

Every morning I am up early on the treadmill on these dark winter days before work.  As I do my cool down walk after my run I check my Instagram page and am happy when I see other people already posting that they are up and working out early too.

Last year I became a Sweat Pink Ambassador.  If you haven't heard, Sweat Pink is a group of women to motivate each other in being healthy and supporting each other's goals. I started finding other Sweat Pink Ambasssadors to follow also and it is great seeing people set and meet their fitness/running goals.  It is fun to know that you are motivating someone too possibly start running too.  It is a great organization to be part of.

If you would like to find out more about being a Sweat Pink Ambassador yourself visit:

http://www.fitapproach.com

I would love to know which Instagram pages are your favorite to follow.  Please comment below or tag the page in my latest Instagram post. 

Also, if you and I are not following each other yet, please use the link on the side to follow me on Instagram and I will follow you back :)