On Sunday, Ali and I relayed the Around the Bay 30k race with spatulas in Hamilton. For those who don't remember, Ali, Jamie and I ran the 3 person, 10k relay with spatulas! We were all going to do the full 30k this year, but due to Ali's injury and my fear of the long distance, we were thankfully allowed into the relay. Best. Decision. Ever.

I was supposed to carpool with a friend from Toronto, however she got Sick on Friday and was unable to race.

Contrary to what everyone was expecting, I was up on time on Sunday, and out the forlorn as planned, with just enough time to pick up my morning coffee. I was a little nervous that I would take the wrong exit, but I just followed the mass of cars, and was fine. I parked in the same lot as last year, and made my way to Copps to meet up with everyone. I was there by 8:40, only 10 minutes past when I was aiming for!

I found Ali, Colin, Jamie and Mike easily enough once I got into the stands, and met a few other Daily Milers before going to the bathrooms. The line was long, but moved fast.

Shamelessly stolen from Running with Spatulas

We gathered our stuff, and I headed for the relay buses while the rest of the crew went to the starting line. We rode on the buses for what felt like a reeeeealy long time, and finally arrived at our destination.

The Canal Lift Bridge

 I realized when I got here that I'd made a rookie move not bringing any food or water! I had hydrated really well the day before, but I was feeling thirsty. I looked up where the nearest water station was, and thankfully it was just a short walk from where I was waiting! I stole took a few glasses, and am still glad that I did.

Water Station at the 15K mark

It always fascinates me how quickly the elite runners go! We had a really nice place to watch from! Though I wanted to watch everyone running, I knew it was important to use the bathroom, so I went, and I'm pretty sure that's when Mike ran by, because I didn't see him at all. I did spot a few Running Maniacs when I got back from the port-o-potties though!

Running Maniac!

I also saw Jamie, but I didn't get her picture because I was fiddling with my phone, and only saw her because she yelled at me as she was going by. I'm glad she did! I also saw Colin, and managed to snap a pic as he was running by.

Thumbs Up!

I decided it was smart and was going to be less stressful for Ali if I stood right at the front of the line of the 2nd leg runners. After seeing a girl run up and down the changeover area yelling "Andrea!!" I knew I didn't want to be a partner like that! I spotted Ali and her spatulas really easily, but my camera wouldn't turn on before she got to me, so again, no photo. Sorry Ali!

After a quick chat and a handover of the chip and spatulas, I was off.

Shamelessly stolen from Running with Spatulas

I decided before I started that I was going to run 14 and 1s. I know that's a little weird, but it's what I did for my longer training runs, and it divided the time nicely into quarter hour sections.

I was feeling good!

I was feeling so good, that when I looked down at my watch, I had already run for 20 minutes! So much for my plan! I walked, ate one of my gummies, and facebooked...


At this point some jerk told me to get off my phone and get running. I wanted to tell him that he should get off his a$$ and into the race if he was going to say stuff like that. But instead I smiled and started running again, because my minute walking break was up and it was time to run again!

This is about the time my knees started to twinge. It was about the same spot in the race that it happened last year, except last year I only had about half a kilometer to go, and this time I had 11.5... I stopped in at the washrooms at the 19.5k relay handover, because I really had to go again (probably because of all the water I drank at the 15k water station!) and after that, my knees went from bad to worse. I ran up all the hills, including this one (which, it turns out, you can't really see all that well...)

Valley Inn Hill

Just before the Valley Inn Hill.

I kept putting one foot in front of the other. There wasn't much else to do at that point. I was really mad, because my cardiovascular system, which is usually what gives me trouble, was feeling great, but my knees, which admittedly have also given me trouble in the past, were having none of it.

It will sound strange, but I was very happy to see the Grim Reaper!! I knew he was coming up, and couldn't wait to stop and take a photo with him!

Spatula Grim!

As we ran along York Boulevard, I was amazed to see where I had run from. Look closely, it's hard to find!

From whence I came

I had a bit of a chuckle when I saw this 60km/hr speed limit sign, since I was already moving so slowly.


At some point, a girl behind me yelled "I can see Copps!" And she was right. It was visible, although still unbelievably far away!

It's there, I promise

Just before I nearly fell

Finally done!!



My route



I recently moved to a house heated by electric baseboards (yikes!), which means my house is exceptionally dry. When I ran out of my hand cream and the cracks in my knuckles started bleeding where they were cracked (double yikes!), I knew it was time to get on with my plan of making my own. So I started with Minimalist Beauty's DIY Hand and Nail Care recipe, and made a few minor changes.

The recipe calls for equal parts of shea butter, cocoa butter, and grapeseed oil and vanilla absolute oil for the smell.

I did a small bit of research (aka reading reviews of the products from New Directions Aromatics) and decided that I didn't want my hands to smell like cocoa for fear I would constantly be craving it, so decided to substitute aloe butter instead of the cocoa butter. Even though I requested they use as little packaging as necessary, I still felt there was way too much. Especially for a box full of plastic containers!

I also substituted lavender essential oil rather than vanilla, because it was something I already had in my possession, and therefore didn't need to buy. Less waste and less money!

I also went to my local thrift store and got a lovely super thick walled small pot to use. It cost me a whole of $5, and means I don't need to worry about mucking up my cooking pots with these types of experiments.

As per the directions, I put the butters and oil into the pot and put it on the lowest setting to melt.

Butters and oil in the pot

 Once they were melted, I turned off the stove, and let it cool just a bit.

All melted!

I added the lavender, then split up the mixture into small screw top aluminum containers that I got for this purpose. I needed something I could throw in my bag without worrying that the top would come off!

Individual container of liquid hand butter

I then let the containers cool overnight. When I woke up, I had two containers filled with hand and nail butter! No more need to buy hand cream!


After using the hand and nail butter, I decided the formula was too oily for my liking, so I scooped up all of the butter from the containers and put it back into the small pot to melt it down again. I then added another 1.5 oz of each butter and another 10 drops of lavender once the new mixture was cooled.

I am very pleased with the final results, and will continue to make this instead of buying hand cream! It still feels a little bit oily on my skin after putting it on, but it's much better than the first iteration.

Materials to make this cost me $7.37 for 7 oz or approximately 210 mL. Less than half the price of the body butters at the Body Shop, and I have control over the ingredients.

P.S. The containers I got only hold 2 oz each, so I put the remaining 3 oz into a washed out yogurt container. Not as pretty nor transportable, but much better for reducing waste.

Since University I've been a pretty active person, but more with sports like Ultimate Frisbee. My old roommate was an avid gym goer, going nearly every day. I've had a few gym memberships over the years, but they've always ended up being a waste of my money, in my opinion. I always swore that I'd never get one again. I guess there's a reason that people say 'never say never'.

I couldn't pass up this groupon for $22 for 2 months at the Wynn Fitness near my house. Seeing as I slacked big time with my running training, and I'd like to have an option to run on a treadmill when the weather gets to bad to go out. They also have some Yoga and Spin classes that work with my training schedule.

If you're in the GTA, it might be worth checking out!

Coming around the corner at the 3k mark

I was sooo happy to walk for water at the 7.5k mark

Nearly done! Look at that heel strike!

After watching the Toronto Waterfront Marathon, I put it out there that I wanted to do a half marathon next fall. I also mentioned that Ali, Jamie and I had so much fun running the Around the Bay relay last year that we planned to do the same thing this year. Except by the time we went to register, it was already sold out!

Ali and Jamie, being the hardcore runners that they are, have already signed up for the full!  I am less confident in my ability to run 30km in less than 4 months, seeing as the furthest I've ever run is 10K! But I put an Around the Bay Training plan together and have been sticking with it so far. More than that, I've really been enjoying the training. I've even noticed time and speed improvements, albeit small ones, and my ability to just keep running when I want to stop is also much better.


I sure do wish I could get my legs to look like this! source

To support my plan, and keep me motivated, I've signed up for two races; the Santa Shuffle 5K in Guelph on December 1st, and the New Year's Day Resolution Road Race 10K in Brantford on January 1st. I've even got some time goals, which I never really had before!

Now if only Runner's World would bring back their "What to Wear" page, I'd be golden! It was my saving grace in figuring out what clothes work best for me in the changing weather.

Hooray for tap water!

This got me thinking of a radio interview I heard in the summer time. The two creators of the App Quench were interviewed. Quench is a mobile app for iPhone, Android or Blackberry that finds the nearest water fountain or Water Re-fill location in Toronto. It looks like there are lots of places to re-fill my water bottle!

Source

Blackberry App World, here I come! At the time of the radio interview, there was no Blackberry version.

With the remnants of Hurricane Sandy going through here for the past week, I've discovered that I am a three season commuter cyclist.  I'm planning for four seasons, but I'm waiting until the middle of January to decide for sure!

Arriving Home

Some of the things I've found work well for me while riding in the rain:

• Rubber boots (mine are aubergine Wellingtons, and I LOVE them)
• Wearing dresses with running leggings with a change into leggings/tights at work
• A jacket with a hood

Arriving at work, mostly dry

• Awesome running glove/mitts from Nike. Waterproof on the top, soft and breathable on the bottom. They're pricey, but one day in and I already think they're worth it. I got mine at MEC.

Nike Running Tech Index Mitt (source)

• Front and rear lights, so that I'm more obvious to drivers in dark conditions. This adds to the visibility of my eggshell blue Bobbin Birdie bike.

Front and Rear LED lights that snap on and off easily

• A panier to keep my change of clothes in. I've got the Basil Jada Shopper XL, which I adore because of its capacity and long shoulder straps and the Timbuk2 Shift Panier Messenger for my Laptop.
• Fenders!

Fenders ensure your backside stays clean

• A cloth to wipe down the seat/handles if they get wet while parked, like mine did yesterday while at class. Thankfully my work has secured bike storage in the underground parking, so I don't have to worry about wiping down my seat most days.

Wet seat