It's New Year's Eve, and I'm writing to you today from Northeast Ohio, just outside of Akron. My boyfriend and I haven't decided what we're going to get into this evening, but I'll tell you -- whatever it is, it'd better be warm! It's so strange going from the 70 degree weather we've been experiencing in the DC area to the actual winter weather in this part of Ohio. It snowed this morning! Now, I'm not complaining that it's winter here. It actually wasn't wintery at all when I was here a few weeks ago, so it's refreshing; nonetheless, I am a total sissy when it comes to dealing with the cold, so I just want to make sure I don't turn into an icicle when I go out this evening (if we go out). I have my super warm coat, hat, and gloves that I brought with me from DC yesterday (to much side eye at the airport, by the way), so I'm as prepared as I can be! This year has been an interesting one, including the weather. I have don...

Since one of my biggest goals for 2016 is to lose a significant amount of weight, I know that I will need to make sure I keep myself hydrated. On days where I'm playing volleyball, I don't usually have a problem getting a good amount of water in my system. Unfortunately, it's on days where I'm not playing, or where I'm sitting at my desk all day, when I am not getting enough water. I know that I am motivated by competition, so what better way to challenge myself than to have a water bottle that will tell me when it's time to get my drink on? What's more, these are infusion water bottles, so I can add a little extra somethin' somethin' to my water while I'm at it! I'm getting ready to order an infusion bottle from my friend Diatta over at Femme Fitale Fit Club , so I thought, why not host a giveaway so that one of my wonderful readers will get an opportunity to have one of these awesome water bottles as well? ...

And I couldn't be happier! One of my 2016 blogging goals is to attend my first conference for my blog, and I have now officially registered for one! I am pumped! The 2016 IDEA World Fitness BlogFest is the third annual conference. This year's BlogFest will be held in Los Angeles, California. I was selected to go with Sweat Pink , along with a group of other Sweat Pink Ambassadors. I'm going to be checking out posts from people who attended last year to get a good sense of what to expect, and what I should and shouldn't bring with me. Most importantly, I need to start figuring out my accommodations. I live in Maryland, so it's not like I can drive between my home and the hotel that's hosting Blogfest! If you've attended in the past, please feel free to leave suggestions in the comments down below! If you live in LA, or travel there often, I would love to hear your hotel recommendations! ...

Can you believe it's almost 2016? I don't know about you guys, but this year really flew by for me! I set a lot of goals for myself, and I hit more targets than I missed, so I would say I have had a pretty successful 2015. What I can't say is how I managed to squeeze so much into such a whirlwind of a year! As I've mentioned before, I've set some running resolutions for 2016. I really, really  want to focus on dropping weight this year, and I have a game plan for that goal. Fortunately, I have plenty of tools to help me along the way. One tool that I recently acquired is this really awesome scale that I want to chat with you about today. Let me preface this review by saying that I received this scale from Beets BLU for free in exchange for an honest review. ...

Happy Friday, friends! I'm currently sitting in the Charlotte Douglas Airport, waiting for my connecting flight to Cleveland to pick up my repaired car. Why am I flying from Maryland to North Carolina to fly to Ohio? You can ask American Airlines that one (side eye). I could've flown direct with my trusty domestic carrier Southwest, but it cost way more than the corporate discounted price I was able to get for this flight. It's all good, though. Now I have time to write a post and linkup with the DC Trifecta ( Mar , Courtney , and Cynthia )! This week's Friday Five theme is about your holiday wish list. This one was a little tricky for me, since it's always tough for me to come up with my wish list! My mom put together a gift exchange for my youngest sister, oldest younger brother (I didn't know how else to say it!), my mom, and me. I had to come up with a wish list for my "elf," and it was not easy! Let's get to it, now, shall we? ...

Is it just me, or does this week feel super slow? I was really thinking tomorrow was Thursday, and was a little sad when I learned it wasn't. Dang it! Without my car, I feel like I've been shuffling all over the place, living out of a couple of bags. Some days, I have to bring my volleyball gear; other days, I have to bring my volleyball bag and a bag with a change of clothes; other days, I just have to bring myself. I forgot what it was like to figure out a commute that was not on my own time! (I recognize that this all makes me sound like a big baby, so I apologize!) Speaking of my own time, I really need to sit down over the next two weeks and map out my marathon training plan and schedule. USAV season for volleyball is really going to start taking up more time in January, so I want to get a jump start before that time comes. Training for a marathon is my main running resolution for 2016, so I have to take it seriously! ...

It has been a loooooooooooong time since the last time I linked up with the lovely DC Trifecta ladies  ( Mar , Courtney , and Cynthia ). In fact, the last time I linked up, I probably hadn't met them in real life yet! Fortunately, I had some time this week to get back on the linkup bandwagon! Speaking of this week, it has been a rough one for several of my friends and family members. There have been quite a few surprise losses of wonderful people, which has really put things in perspective for me this week. At the risk of sounding cliché, tomorrow isn't promised. As I've gotten older, I've really tried to keep this in mind as I plan for the future, particularly as it pertains to travel -- a passion of mine. It's tough to stay optimistic about setting and achieving goals when you think you may not ever reach one (depressing, I know), but it's an important part of living, in my humble opinion. Excitement about future plans keeps me going, as opposed to fear an...

Hello, hello! It's almost Friday! YAY! I have had a long and exhausting week, so I am definitely looking forward to the weekend! Being without a car right now is a bit of a bummer, though I acknowledge things could be much worse. I have a linkup post in the works for tomorrow, so I thought I'd just post something short and sweet for you today. After fooling around with the thought for a little bit, I finally decided to sell my first t-shirt design on Flecks of Lex! I love  brunching in DC, so I thought, why not make a shirt to honor my love for brunch? You can check out all of the different color and shirt styles and purchase a shirt here . The shirt is available to purchase for the next 12 days, so act quickly! If you end up picking up a shirt for yourself or for someone else, please let me know! Thanks in advance for your support! If you want to check out where I brunch in the DC area, stay tuned to my Instagram , where I happily overshare pictures from brunch, when I...

That's pretty much how my Thanksgiving can be summed up. There was a lot of turkey, and a bit of chaos! I traveled with my boyfriend up to Ohio to spend Thanksgiving with his family. It was definitely difficult to be away from my family, but I took one for the team. (We'll be spending Christmas with my family.) Relationships are about compromise, right? Back up... Chaos?! In between houses #2 and #3 on Thanksgiving, we had a deer JUMP into my passenger door, and BUMP all over the passenger side of the vehicle. :-| Fortunately, neither of us were injured, but my poor car... No bueno. If all goes well, I'll be picking it back up from the Cleveland area next weekend. While I'm not thrilled about the impact of being without my car for two weeks, I am happy that the damage was not substantial, and that we made it back home safely.  I must warn everyone out there in an area with lots of deer to beware! Male deer are literally chasing tail this time of year (wher...

I did it! I did it! I ran my first half marathon! The whole thing! I have a recap forthcoming, which I am excited to share, however, the purpose for this post today is to tell you about this awesome bath I took after the race, which helped relieve some of my muscle pain after the race. I'd heard about Epsom salt from my mom, as well as from more hardcore runners than myself. According to the instructions on the packaging, all you do is put two cups of Epsom salt in the bathtub while you draw a bath, and you're good to go! Noting that the bag of Epsom salt I had in my trunk for the last year or so had a hole in it, and was probably only good for throwing down when it starts snowing or something in the next month, I made a stop at CVS after the race. There, I picked up some Epsom salt, but also spotted a couple of extra ingredients I wanted to add to my relaxation and recovery bath. ...

As I can't stop telling everyone, I'm going to be running my first half marathon on Saturday! That's right: The Annapolis Running Classic is finally here! I can't believe that I will finally be able to stick a 13.1 sticker on my bumper! My fellow A-Team members are also getting pumped, and I can't wait to slap a big ol' grin on my face for our group photo after the race! Wait a second! Did you register? If you haven't yet, but you want to, get on it RIGHT NOW! Today is the last day to register, yo! Register HERE  and use the code ARREF15  to get an additional 10% off. Okay, now that we're over that minor detail, let me tell you about this app, and what it has to do with the Annapolis Running Classic. You may have noticed that I'm a RunGo Ambassador . That has been pretty sweet  for me so far, but it just got a little sweeter today. You see, the lovely team at RunGo put together two guided routes for the race. They have one for the 10k, and ...

This week, I am tapering (mostly) in preparation for my first half marathon EVER! As many of you know, I will be running the Annapolis Running Classic Half Marathon this Saturday! I have met several of my fellow Annapolis Running Classic A-Team members over the last few months, and I'm looking forward to meeting the rest on Saturday. Judging by the weather reports, the race will be about 20 degrees warmer than last year , and it should be sunny on top of that. Woohoo! If you haven't signed up yet, make sure you hurry up and register ! The last day to register is November 18! Be sure to use my discount code ( ARREF15 ) to take an additional 10% off the registration price! Speaking of cold weather, it is that time of year where most of us starting to get a little cracked around the edges. The cool air can really take a toll on your skin, so I know I definitely have to give my skin a little extra TLC to help it survive the fall and winter. I'm always on the lookout for go...

While I normally read political nonfiction, I have been focusing on reading other genres this year -- particularly other genres of nonfiction. I have been inspired to read the stories of other athletes, which is why I jumped at the opportunity to read The Accidental Athlete: How Running Changed My Life  by Stephanie Atwood. Reading the stories of athletes can be both inspirational and motivational, while challenging you to examine the role of sports in your life. The Accidental Athlete  was a quick and easy read about how Atwood became a runner, and grew to love running even more than she did as a child, despite a series of heartbreaking life events. I'm a bit torn on how I felt after reading this book. On the one hand, I love reading about how different people reach self discovery, and was interested to see how Atwood came to call herself an athlete. On the other hand, the writing style left much to be desired. ...

Yesterday, I had a wicked long volleyball tournament. Our region hosts these tournaments called fellowships, where you basically practice with your team, and try out new players who might want to join your team. You get "rated" as a scorekeeper or referee at these tournaments, so they don't count for anyone, and you can't get upset if there are scorekeeping errors or new refs who don't necessarily know all of the rules. I think of it sort of as a preseason for the USA Volleyball season, or practice tournaments. My volleyball team has actually expanded quite a bit over the last two seasons, so much so that we actually added a second team, and formed a club. We had several players who are new to our club who came out yesterday and played with us. We ended up playing in both the morning and afternoon sessions, which means that we played 5 volleyball matches yesterday. Fortunately, they were shorter-than-usual matches, so we weren't as exhausted as you would n...

Nom nom nom! That's the sound I made when I tasted my soup after it had been cooking in all of its veggie goodness overnight! In my totally humble opinion, this is my best lentil soup recipe to date! I have been fiddling around with different flavor combinations, and I think I finally achieved exactly the flavor I was looking for. As I may have mentioned on here before (maybe not?), lentil soup is absolutely my favorite type of soup. I'm pretty picky about my lentil soup, and while I should maybe be a little embarrassed by how picky I am, I'm really not. You see, lentil soup has been my favorite soup since I was really young, so I've tried so many different types of lentil soup, and have pretty much settled into what I expect out of my soup. First and foremost, lentil soup cannot be runny. I need it to be thicker, almost like a stew. The vegetables are crucial to the flavor. I don't care much for lentil soup recipes which require celery, or those which requi...

I have been on a super wacky schedule lately; however, I have managed to (generally) stick to my modified Mediterranean Diet and lose a few more pounds. Eating more vegetables and lean protein is definitely helping my clothes fit a little looser, and my belly look a little slimmer. I'm not losing crazy amounts of weight, which is actually why I am encouraged. I know that this diet is sustainable, as long as I stay motivated. Since I've been feeling more confident, motivated, and focused on my wellness, I came to the conclusion that I want to work on training for a marathon next year. Of course, this was inspired by all of the amazing speakers at the National Endurance Sports Summit , which I wrote about previously. I'm running my first half marathon in just a few weeks, so I know, with a bit of dedication to training, I can actually complete my first marathon. There's just one problem... ...

This month, I had my first experience with attending an event as an ambassador. I woke myself (and my boyfriend) up super, duper early and drove up to Princeton University. What a gorgeous campus! I actually wanted to apply to their urban planning program a few years ago, but talked myself out of it (wuss). After walking around the historic, Ivy League campus, I felt inspired to consider applying some day. Maybe... But, I digress. The real reason for this post is not to tell you all about all of my hopes and dreams, but rather to tell you about the wonderful 2015 National Endurance Sports Summit (NESS 2015) I attended on behalf of RunGo. NESS 2015 was a two-day sports summit hosted by Team U , an intercollegiate fundraising endurance team. I attended the first day of NESS 2015, which featured a variety of speakers with various backgrounds, but all with fascinating stories to tell. ...

That's how I would describe last weekend. You know how you can get a runner's high? I think I had a parkour high! Last Saturday morning, early, early early in the morning, to the point where I beat the sun up and out the door (which almost never happens), I drove up to Princeton University for the National Endurance Sports Summit . I attended on behalf of the RunGo App , as a RunGo Ambassador. I learned so many things, and met so many interesting people at NESS 2015. I can't wait to share a more detailed write up about it! I learned a ton about nutrition, motivation, and what it takes to be an endurance athlete.  One of the coolest things I took away from the experience was learning about parkour , and actually taking a lesson in parkour out in the lawn in front of the Frist Campus Center. I'd never actually had in-person exposure to parkour. The limited exposure I had was a ridiculous scene in The Office , and seeing videos of crazy guys jumping and flipping ov...

Last Thursday kicked off the 2015-2016 NFL season. I am competing in fantasy football for the first time ever, and I'm actually doing two leagues -- one with my family, and one with my buddies from work. I'm doing surprisingly well considering I have no idea what I'm doing! In preparation for watching my first Sunday football games yesterday, my brother agreed to come over and watch some football with me while I made us some vegetarian snacks. Unfortunately, I am a slow cook, so I was unable to finish prepping all of the different dips I made before he had to jet. Nevertheless, I knew I would be meeting up with him and my parents later in the evening to watch some more football and Fear The Walking Dead , so I knew I still had some time to work it out. ...

In May, I completed my very first relay race . I loved the physical challenge of the relay, and I also loved getting the opportunity to bond with 5 other women in a van over 24 hours. Because I loved it so much, when I learned about running Ragnar DC for Girls On the Run of Montgomery County, Maryland, I jumped at it! I gathered up a group of friends, and we've really taken on this challenge! We will be running Ragnar DC from Cumberland, MD to Washington, DC (approximately 200 miles) as Team #LikeAGirl. Because Girls On the Run is a charity to which Ragnar donates, we were given the chance to run the race for free, in exchange for fundraising for this wonderful organization. My fundraising goal is $500 , and I am slowly  chipping away at my goal. To date, I have raised enough to provide running shoes for 4 girls. My $500 goal will be enough to support full-season scholarships for two girls. If you're interested in making a  tax-deductible donation  to Girls On the Run, I...

As you may have read in my last post, I absolutely love grains! Not only that, but I fell in love with freekeh after giving it a try this summer. One of my favorite ways to eat grains is by taking chicken and vegetables, creating a sauce, and pouring these ingredients on top of the grain. Freekeh is no different for me. When I got to thinking about flavors that would go well with freekeh, I decided that stir fry definitely had to be at the top of the list. I learned how to make stir fry -- mostly through trial and error -- when I was a kid, and I've modified my recipe a bunch over the years. Fortunately for you, I actually wrote down the ingredients as I went along, that way I could share a quick, easy, and delicious meal with all of you! ...

Flecks of Lex Fun Fact: I have always been a grain-eating fool. Give me some chicken and vegetables in some kind of sauce, and I will use it to smother some grains like nobody's business. When I was a kid, I used to eat rice and soy sauce as a snack, religiously. When I learned about rice cookers in high school, it changed my life! I had a friend from Liberia who used to always have rice at her house, and she would make sure she had a bottle of soy sauce to go with it when I was coming over. Like I said: I have always been a grain-eating fool! When I found out that Sweat Pink Ambassadors were being given the opportunity to try out a grain with an amazing name, and that I had never heard of, I jumped at the opportunity! ...

My Friday evenings... they're pretty lame. Usually, I just do a little Netflix and chill, or OnDemand and chill. It's pretty lame. If I want to mix it up, I might get something for dinner, or drink a glass of wine. It's seriously unimaginative. A couple of weeks ago, my coworker Bertha told me about a yoga class she's been attending on Fridays after work. She told me that the classes were great, but, perhaps most importantly, they only cost $5. That's right, people! A $5 YOGA CLASS! Who knew they existed? I decided to do a little research online before making up my mind on whether to break my super exciting Friday tradition for yoga. The studio is called  Extend Yoga , and they have a great website, which made it pretty simple to conduct some preliminary research on their Friday classes. ...

The past week, I have had a couple of opportunities to do things I loved as a kid, and never thought I'd get a chance to do as an adult. I am really just a gigantic child at heart. I can't help myself, and I don't want to! Yesterday afternoon, I got to play in a ball pit in the middle of a museum, in the middle of DC. A BALL PIT! Can you believe that? It was freakin' awesome! On Friday, I had my own Carrie Bradshaw moment during perhaps the greatest yoga class I've ever taken. On Thursday evening, I got a chance to participate in a scavenger hunt called The Adventure Run. It's hosted by Road Runner Sports , and my local store hosts one on the first Thursday of every month in the summer. I ran with a group of friends, got my sweat on, and got to try all kinds of goodies in the process. I'd call that a win-win-win! ...

I did it! I did it! I finally built up the courage to apply to be a FitFluential Ambassador! And... I was accepted! WOOHOO! Runs up and down the street, cheering loudly, and banging on a portable gong.  (That's a thing, right?) I know what you're thinking, because it's like I have ESPN or something.  What the heck is a FitFluential Ambassador?  FitFluential Ambassadors are people like me: We love promoting health and fitness, and sharing that love with all of you beautiful, wonderful people out there! We also connect with different fitness-related brands to keep you up to date with what's going on in the world of fitness. There are two main reasons why I'm super excited about this news: ...

I absolutely LOVE making bingo boards for TV shows! They're especially fun for season finales, and can give you something to chat about during the commercials. (Plus, there's the added fun of checking to see who's paying attention!) Last week, I watched the premiere of the new AMC show, Fear The Walking Dead . I'm torn on how I felt about the premiere, but I also felt the same way upon watching the series premiere of The Walking Dead . I, of course, continued watching TWD , and now watch it regularly with my family on Sunday nights after volleyball. It has become a ritual! Tonight, after my coed volleyball playoffs, I'll be watching Fear The Walking Dead  with my parents and youngest brother. I love munching on yummy snacks while watching the show, and it's always fun to watch the reactions of everyone in the room. Now, for your Sunday Fear The Walking Dead  pleasure, I bring you my Fear The Walking Dead bingo board! Enjoy! ...

It has been a crazy week, and it's only Wednesday! I have been getting very, very little sleep, and I think tonight is the night where I will wind down and head to bed soon. But first, I want to remind you about an awesome giveaway! Let me back up a second. Are any of you readers out there football fans? This year, I'm going to be participating in my first fantasy football league EVER! I have absolutely no idea how to do it, but it's all good because I'll figure it out, as I fully intend to kick everyone's butts! So I bring up football because this giveaway, hosted by Fit and Flirty , is called The Ultimate Fitness Fashion Touchdown Giveaway. This is the first year they are hosting this giveaway, which serves to commemorate the beginning of the NFL season. Fit and Flirty wants to show everyone that there is a fierce female fan base for the NFL! ...

When I first started dating my boyfriend, I discovered something unusual about him. Dude cannot go to bed before eating at least one bowl of cereal! He is obsessed! When we went on vacation with my family last week, he actually located a grocery store nearby, and bought himself some milk and cereal. Now that's dedication! As I've mentioned on Flecks of Lex many times, I am really bad at eating breakfast. It's not that I don't love breakfast foods; rather, it's that I always struggle to give myself enough time in the morning to get a meal together before running out the door. This summer, I've taken it upon myself to focus on breakfast. It really is the most important meal of the day, and I'm getting too old to neglect it and expect to be energized in the morning on an empty stomach. When I accepted the opportunity to write a sponsored post on behalf of Special K Red Berries, I was really excited! Now I could really focus on getting a bowl of cerea...

Thanks to my Sweat Pink Ambassadorship, I was able to test out my first Bulu Box! What the heck is a Bulu Box, you ask? Well, it's a monthly subscription box that allows you to test out health, nutrition, and weight loss products. Each box comes with four or five product samples for you to test out, with a little info card describing the product and telling you how much it costs for the full size. There are regular Bulu Boxes, and there are also weight loss Bulu Boxes. You can subscribe to the service on a month-to-month basis, a three-month subscription, a six-month subscription, or a 12-month subscription. Each of the boxes costs $10 in all of the subscription boxes, with the exception of the 12-month subscription, where each box costs slightly less (as of my blog post). You can learn more about Bulu Box on their website . For the purpose of this review, I received the weight loss version of the Bulu Box, and received 5 samples in my Bulu Box. Which products did I recei...

If you've been following me on Instagram , you might have noticed that I have been trying out different flavors of a vegan protein shake called Vegan1. I have tried out banana, chocolate, vanilla, and chai flavors. (Who knew protein shakes came in chai flavor??) They have been absolutely delicious! Okay, so let me back up a second, because you know I'm always getting ahead of myself. I was contacted by Nutrition53 , which is a health and fitness company based out of California. They specialize in nutritional supplement drinks, of which the Vegan1 protein shakes are just one. Vegan1 shakes are just that -- vegan. Each serving provides you with 20g of plant-based protein. There are all sorts of fruits and vegetables each serving, which you can check out here . These shakes are allergen and gluten free, and contain no dairy or soy. There are also no artificial sweeteners, colors, or flavors, which I especially appreciate. So many products on the market now have all sorts of ...

Hello, lovely readers! Just popping in with a super quick and easy summer salad recipe. It's been a while since I posted a recipe on the blog, so I thought it was time for me to step up my recipe game. Since I'm currently training for my toughest races of the year, I have been trying to cut back on calories, increase my running mileage, and just be more health conscious, generally speaking. I really wanted to focus on losing weight and getting stronger this summer, and I'm finally at a place where I can say that I am actually moving in the right direction. Cooking meals makes me instantly so much healthier. I don't really know how to cook the bad stuff, but I sure know how to choose it off of a menu! So, when I drag my tired butt to the grocery store, and nearly run over slow people in the store, or almost get run over whilst walking through the parking lot, I tell myself that it will all be worth it in the end. ...

Last month, I ventured over to the very fancy, very new Pike & Rose development in Rockville, Maryland. (Or White Flint. Or North Bethesda. Or South Potomac. Or whatever the heck they're going to be calling that area once they redevelop the mall!) The Sport & Health in Pike & Rose has been hosting free outdoor barre classes -- called Pike and Tone -- throughout the summer, and I had an opportunity to participate in my first one back in August. It was amazing! I had been wanting to try barre ever since I heard of its existence. I danced ballet as a young girl, and have a yearning to try it again as an adult. When I learned that barre is essentially ballet meets pilates , I was all, "sign me up!" Except... I didn't sign up. I procrastinated. :-| ...

Hello friends! Just popping in to remind you to hurry up and register for the Annapolis Running Classic! There is a half marathon and 10k in November, and you should totally come run it with me! I'm on the Annapolis Running Classic A-Team , which means that I get to share a discount code for you all to use! If you use the code ARREF15 when you check out, you get an additional 10% off the race!...

Yay! I'm a RunGo Ambassador ! But... what does that even mean, you ask? Well, that means I get to spread the word and tell all of you wonderful readers about this cool app called RunGo . RunGo is an app that allows you to map your running route, or follow the route created by another runner. It gives you voice navigation during your run, and allows you to perform other tasks on your phone while you're actively using RunGo. -- all for free! Pretty sweet, right? I think so too, which is why I'm out here spreading the word on this cool app! The best part for me is that it is available in Google Play , in addition to the Apple Store . (I have an Android phone because Androids are better, duh!) ...

Well, it's officially August! If you were here with me this time last year , you would know that I ran an Awesome in August Instagram Challenge to celebrate my wonderful readers. You guys are awesome and inspire me to keep pushing myself to stay motivated, even when I just want to pack it all in sometimes. Thank you! Since the Awesome in August Challenge was so successful last year, and so many of you participated, I thought I'd run it again this year. So, here we are! I have a number of giveaways I will be running throughout this month, but I'm going to keep them on the down low until it's time to give them away. :-) So, how can you participate? ...

For starters, I acknowledge that this race recap is 2000 and late. I ran this race almost two months ago, and am just now getting to this. Sorry! But you know what? At least I wrote it, right? ;-) In all honesty, I never thought I would run The Color Run. From the pictures I saw, I thought it looked corny, and like I would be walking the entire time. Deep down inside, however, I knew that I wanted people to throw stuff at me. Is that weird? (Don't answer that.) By now, you've probably heard of The Color Run, and know the basics. You run a 5k with a group of friends, and people throw colored powder at you. You smile, you get awesome pictures, and you get totally dirty. Okay, so now, let's get to this recap! ...

Happy Monday, friends! Today, I'm just dropping in with a quick post to tell you about an e-book I'm reading. My fellow Sweat Pink Ambassador from Snacking in Sneakers  shared her latest e-book with me, and now I'm passing on the word. The e-book is called Journey to Healthy Eating: 28 Day Nutrition Challenge.   The book serves as a guide to help you eat healthier and be more conscious about your nutrition in 28 days. It is packed with tons of information, and I've really enjoyed reading it. I like that Chrissy is an actual registered dietitian, so she doesn't try to sell you on the latest fad diets, and instead focuses on the science, which I really appreciated. I don't want to give anything away, so I'll just tell you that it's a good read, and I highly recommend it! Chrissy is running an incredible offer where you can pay what you want for the e-book all day today and tomorrow!  Jump on it while you can!...

I love being a Sweat Pink Ambassador! The Sweat Pink community has really helped me with blogging, and I've learned about so many great products and companies through their many partnerships. This summer, Sweat Pink and Fit Approach are running a campaign called #1MillionMinutes, where they are encouraging Sweat Pink Ambassadors to track their fitness, while also encouraging different themes for blog posts, Instagram pictures, and tweets. It's been pretty fun so far, so I'm trying to kick it up a notch by participating in some of the writing prompts! This week, there is a mad lib style prompt for Puritan's Pride , a company that sells all sorts of protein shakes and nutritional supplements. Since I'm actually in the process of trying out a bunch of different protein shakes, I thought that this was the perfect opportunity to jump in! ...

Today, despite having a knee that looks like I fell off a tricycle (totally skinned and gross), I went for a 30-minute walk with my colleagues during lunch, and decided to do a timed mile on the track after work. I've been trying to focus on my speed and form as of late, and the timed mile was definitely a test to see where I am. Unfortunately, I was not terribly motivated after work today, and almost didn't even go to the track. I took forever changing into my running clothes, leaving the parking garage, and driving to the high school located less than a mile from my office (it's on the way home, and the weather looked suspicious, okay!). Once I figured out where the track was located (this was my first time there), I asked a gentleman at the school where the best place would be to park. He informed me that I was in the best parking lot to access the track, and showed me how to get down there. I thanked him, and found myself a decent parking spot. ...

UPDATE: Use the code ALEXIS16 to take 10% off the 2016 races! As you may have already read, I am a member of the A-Team (a race ambassador) for the 2015 Annapolis Running Classic! I am super excited because this will be my first half marathon, PLUS I get to meet a new group of people, and I get to promote a race and a city I love. What's not to be excited about? I have a lot of hard work to put in this summer and fall in order to prepare for the race, but I am ready to take on the challenge! ...

Hello, hello! I have literally  been running all over the place, friends. I have run more races in the last two months than I ran all last year! When the year is up, I will have run two relay races, a 10 miler, a 15k, and my first half marathon... at least! It's amazing what a difference a year makes! I owe you all two race recaps, but I'll owe you three after Saturday. I have had almost no time for blogging the last two weeks because of all of the running I've been doing! Nevertheless, I have been pretty active on social media, so make sure you're following me on Instagram , Twitter , and Facebook if you want to see what I've been up to. Oh, and a special note! Remember when I did Yoga on the Mall last month? Well, Sunday is the inaugural International Yoga Day, and I believe I am going to head on down to the National Mall (weather and sleep permitting) to celebrate! Are you going to be practicing yoga on Sunday? If so, are you going to any special events?...

I cannot say enough about how great race volunteers can be. They can help motivate you when you're having a rough time, pick you up when you fall, and celebrate with you at the finish line. My initial introduction to racing was actually through volunteering. My dad used to run 5ks every so often when I was in middle school. I volunteered back then, mostly at the water stations, and I loved it. I didn't care much for running, but I had a blast handing out water to the runners, and always treasured my volunteer shirts. It had been a long time since the my last race volunteer experience, but I fixed that a few weekends ago when I volunteered for the Girls on the Run (GOTR) of Montgomery County 5k. ...

If you've been off social media all day, you might have missed that it is National Running Day ! There is a lot  going on today, so I'm going to try not to overwhelm you for once! First, make sure that you check out the official National Running Day website . They have all kinds of cool info and images there for your viewing pleasure. Next, check out my fellow Sweat Pink Ambassador/one of my favorite bloggers Cynthia at You Signed Up for What?! She has some pretty cool running-related discounts up on her site. Check it out here ! Today, I am linking up with some of my fellow Sweat Pink Ambassadors for a National Running Day "interview." A special shout out is in order for Kristen from Jonesin' for a Run for putting this together! Finally, I have some big news to share, but I'll save that for the end. :-) ...

Greetings, beautiful readers! Today is June 2, which means that you should be celebrating with SIX:02 ! (Heck, they are running 20% off today, with no minimum! Just use promotion code IP265662 at checkout.) If you're lucky enough to be located near one of their stores , be sure to check out the schedule for their in-store events ! Unfortunately, there is not one in the D.C. area, otherwise I'd be on it! I am planning to buy a couple of things for the Nike Women's 15K in Toronto next weekend, however. Don't know anything about SIX:02? Check out this throwback post from when I was first introduced to this awesome company. Since then, I have made several purchases, and have these items in my regular workout rotation. They carry the best brands, and have really cool ideas for putting together workout outfits when you have a square fit fashion sense like I do. :-) ...

It has been a while since I've done a review, so I thought I would hook you guys up this week! A few weeks ago, I stopped by the Under Armour store near my house. Usually, I just order Under Armour online, or pick it up in another store that carries multiple brands; however, this time I decided to check out the UA store. Okay, sure, I had a coupon for some free drawers. That's what made me go to the store. :-) BUT, I did need to pick up some new HeatGear running shorts anyway, so why not? So I went to the store, loaded with my little coupon booklet I received in the mail, and sought out these free underwear. The sales associate showed me the underwear section. I was actually pretty impressed! There were so many different colors, and a few different styles, and they were all in these little boxes. Super cute! I settled on the  Under Armour Women's UA Pure Stretch Thong   (affiliate link) , since I'm a volleyball player and don't need to appear to have four bu...

If you've been following me on  Instagram , you know that I posted a flurry of photos May 1-2. What was that all about? Well, I ran in my first relay race! As a member of Team Bloggin' & Joggin', I participated in a 200-mile relay race from Gettysburg, PA to Washington, DC called the American Odyssey Relay! For two days, our 12-blogger team ran through mountains, battlefields, farmland, cities, and parks, day and night, without giving up. I am so proud of my team for this accomplishment! In this post, I'll explain how this relay operates, who participated in Team Bloggin' & Joggin', what I thought of my legs (both types), and how awesome our sponsors were. *Now, I'm going to fast forward a bunch through this review, just so you know, so that this post doesn't become a novel, and I can spend some time in other posts going into some more specifics about things like safety when running at night. Also, this took months of preparation, and I&...

Namaste, lovely reader! On Saturday morning, I ventured out to the Washington Monument on the National Mall for Yoga on the Mall Day. I ended up going all alone because friends had previous engagements (or they flaked out on me in the morning -- whomp whomp). It happens! If you're a regular reader, you know that I can sometimes get a little nervous when it comes to group workouts with strangers . I usually end up getting over it, but I can still be a wuss up until that point. Bending and stretching in tight clothing in the middle of the National Mall at the sunniest, hottest point in the day, with strangers... I'd say it was a little fear inducing, to say the least. Fortunately, yogis are super nice (probably by virtue of practicing yoga), so I wasn't so petrified once I claimed out a spot. ...