leave a trace

An Asics loyalist tries Brooks

No, I know, it’s literally the name of this blog. But Monday evening, Brooks Running brought their “Best Fest” (details below) to Philadelphia Runner in Center City.

Behind a bright blue table of promotional items-branded medals, coffee mugs, and foam fingers- were shoe racks with samples to try on the weekly group run.

I should note that this was my first time running with a group andin the city…

Looking ahead: my first marathon

This blog saw no love in May and June.

At the beginning of May, I ran my second 10-miler with a time goal of 1:22:00. Last year’s time 1:30:11. I know that seems like a huge jump, but during my half, I hit my 10 mile time at 1:22 so I figured that was a good goal for this race. I finished in 1:18:37!

That time was such a great feeling. I took about a week off from running and just did some light…

Why I don’t follow a training plan

Today, I came to the conclusion that I am horrible at following schedules that are not for work. Because my 9-5 (really with commute it’s 8-6:30) is so controlled, I like to go with the flow outside of those hours.

After signing up for Broad Street this year, I received a free training plan through Run Coach after filling out some basic info about how I planned to train. It didn’t take long to…

How short-term goals can be the best motivation

It’s a catch 22 that winter is followed by race season. You’re excited for warmer days and running in t-shirts, but you also don’t want to push yourself through another treadmill run or a cold morning excursion. This post’s header photo is representative of winter: blah (and weird vests). So how do you prepare?

I keep my running up in the winter but, each year, feel like I’m starting over once…

Treadmill of terror- avoid injury, run happily

My last two posts have been nutrition-focused. Let’s get back to training, shall we?

What’s more basic than Planet Fitness treadmills? Nothing. Listen, I wish I didn’t belong to PF, but it’s close, cheap and not in the city (aka there’s parking). I’ve written about treadmills before, but A Better Way to Run Indoors was more of a complaint about how I, like most others, loathe them and that manual…

Why I’m still drinking in January

A totally non-alcoholic January sounds good immediately after the holidays. You’re looking forward to a slow down in social obligations that came with week-night drinking and an overindulgence of sweet treats.

Your nutrition was thrown off, so you feel like your fitness has been to and, overall, your health goals.

But when you get down to it, Dry January isn’t really that good for you when you’re…

Intermittent fasting changed me- just not in the way you’d think

Intermittent Fasting is up there with Keto and Paleo for 2018 health buzzwords.

However, unlike Keto and Paleo diets, two other recycled fads I will never touch, Intermittent Fasting doesn’t change the contents of my meals, just the time I eat them. Although it has spiraled into better choices that align with my fitness goals which is amazing.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the term, I…

First half marathon takeaways

This is about three weeks overdue now, but I completed my first half marathon well within my goal time! I finished at 1:47:55 (this is the net time-slightly different from my time tracking shown below) and even hit the 10 mile mark eight minutes sooner than I complete my 10 mile race in May!

In the five months leading up to the day, I was so excited at the prospect of crossing that finish line.…

It’s race week

It’s race week! And I feel so ready. It’s been pretty chilly so I’m preparing for the cold weather Saturday monring- thicker socks, full leggings, tech shirt. I’m waiting until the actual day to determine whether I want to wear my facemask or not. But, there’s nothing I hate more than burnt lungs. I have my gels, my drop off plan and am trying not to overthink the day. Here’s the training plan…

Here’s what’s actually going to work if you want to be a morning runner

In the spring I was crushing the morning workout game. I would hop right out of bed and slip into my running gear after my first alarm went off.

Unfortunately, my identity as Kerri The Morning Runner did not last long. By the end of summer I was back to being the queen of rolling my eyes at the sound of my alarm and rolling over. I am past the point of snooze. I now pick up my phone at 5:45 a.m.…

Physical and mental reset- 4 weeks to race day

I have encountered more challenges training for my half marathon in November than I did when training for my 10 miler in May.

It could be that I have more going on this time of year. The weather definitely isn’t an issue, as you will know if you read my last postabout fall. I think I’m just too in my own head. I get nervous about my planned long runs (anything over six miles) even though deep…

Why fall reignites my love for running every year

I’ve written about fall running before, but that was a how-to-transition-running-seasons piece.

What was supposed to be the first day of fall a couple of weeks ago was some of the most humid conditions I experienced in months.

Today, it’s 54 and partly cloudy. Perfect, I thought to myself as I rolled out of bed knowing in a short two months, all I’ll want to do is pull the covers over my head (my…

I became a better runner by…walking?

My whole mindset regarding fitness has always been go, go, go. Yoga is too slow, lifting was boring if it wasn’t compound movements and walking- ha! walking does nothing. At least that’s what I thought.

Sitting in an office all day was messing with me both mentally and physically. I came from a service job, where I was on my feet all day. Before that, I went to a university with a huge campus,…

Waking up early is tough, but it’s better than pooping your pants on a run

Let me tell you a story. I was at my boyfriend’s house over the weekend. He lives near the Chesapeake Bay so I made it my mission to get a run in on Sunday morning. I woke up at 9:30 a.m., drank water and a cup of coffee, walked past the pile of pancakes on the table, making a mental note to use that as motivation, went to the bathroom and hit the pavement at 10:45 a.m.

My plan was for this to be…

Three form mistakes I noticed on a long trail run

Good running form can keep you going for miles and days and weeks on end. Bad form can cause injury, leaving you out of commission for a season.

Yesterday, I had an easy long run on a local trail in Philadelphia. Populated by bikers, strollers, dogs and runners of all speeds, it’s a busy trail, especially at 5 p.m.

I should clarify that I’m not trying to judge people when I’m noticing their form,…