tunes to help you beat the winter workout blues

so many of my runs for this training cycle have been on the treadmill that i've not downloaded any new music in a while [when i run on the treadmill i watch quality television, gossip girl, ahem].

i'm doing two races this month, the frosty foot [recap here] and the hot chocolate 10k so i was very excited to reward myself with some new music. now i should explain now, when i say new music, it just means new to me and my ipod... i'm not saying it just came out, so don't leave me a comment telling me how lame and dated my playlists are.

johnny cash & tom petty - i won't back down
mumford & sons [the whole babel album is great] - i will wait, whispers in the dark, lover of the light
robyn - dancing on my own
chris tomlin - whom shall i fear
florida georgia line - cruise
one republic - feel again
ke$ha [go ahead and download the whole warrior album] - c'mon, die young, warrior, wherever you are
will.i.am - scream and shout
the lumineers - ho hey, stubborn love
calvin harris feat. florence welch - sweet nothing
kelly clarkson - catch my breath
ellie goulding - anything could happen
flo rida - i cry
anna kendrick - cups
darius rucker - wagon wheel
nicki minaj - va va voom

October Playlist

First of all, thank you all SO MUCH for your sweet, amazing, kind & motivating comments on my last post. They really meant a lot to me and will continue to fuel my fire!

Second, I just realized I haven't posted a new playlist in a hot minute LONG time, so here you go:

taylor swift - red
hunter hayes - wanted
nicki minaj - pound the alarm
mumford & sons - i will wait
chris brown - don't wake me up
eli young band - even if it breaks your heart
josh turner - time is love
casting crowns - Jesus friend of sinners
jason aldean - take a little ride
imagine dragons - it's time
jason gray - remind me who i am
owl city & carley rae jepson - good time
maroon 5 - lucky strike

what are you listening to right now???

Downhill at Dawn Half Marathon Recap::: Ridgecrest, North Carolina::: #5 of 12 in 2012

downhill at dawn half marathon::: ridgecrest, north carolina

half mary # 6

race# 5of 12 in 2012

time:  2:06:10 (PR)

division:  20/31

overall: 207/361

packet pick up:

You could pick up your packet either Friday afternoon or Saturday morning before the race. I had never been to Ridgecrest and didn't know what to expect, so I drove over on Friday afternoon to pick up my packet. It was not crowded at all and it was very easy to find thanks to all the wonderful signs and volunteers. I was greeted at the pick up and got right in and out. Everyone was super friendly! The race shirts are very nice long sleeve tech shirts:

I thought it was really odd to get  a long sleeve shirt for a June race in the South, but it ended up being CHILLY and I got to wear my shirt all day Saturday after the race!

race morning:

My 4am wake up call came way too early! I did not want to get out of my warm bed! I got dressed and had my usual Clif bar with G2. I took care of Riley and headed out. Brad was off this weekend but I get the best wife of the year award for insisting that he stay in bed. It was so early and I wasn't sure how many opportunities he'd have to see me on the course. I was finished and back to the house before he was out of bed!

Ridgecrest is about 30 minutes away so I left the house around 445am. I got to Ridgecrest and parked without trouble. It was really cold outside and I felt like a dummy for not bringing my arm sleeves. Didn't even cross my mind (HELLOOOOO it's June), must check weather in the future! 

One odd thing about the race was that there wasn't a real start line. Not even spray painted onto the road. They showed us where to line up and then told us to go! 

The first 1.5 miles was downhill and then 1.5-3 was back uphill. I was FLYING at the beginning and having a lot of trouble finding a good pace. I didn't really settle until after the first water station (Mile 2). Running downhill sounded like a great idea (and it was really fun!!) but it does jar you and jam your joints. Everything also bounces... think bladder and boobs (Under Armour your bra did NOT cut it today!!). I've never had digestive issues during a race until today and that was NOT a good time. Even after the race I was struggling. Haven't quite figured out what I did wrong there. I almost stopped at the porta potties two separate times. I told myself if they were empty I'd stop. Once it was occupado and another by the time I got to it I didn't feel so bad so I kept going. 

From mile 3 on, the course was mostly downhill. Beautiful views of the sunrise, mountains, creeks and streams. I was in heaven minus my stomach issues. The course was well supported with water stops every 2 miles and GU gels and chomps at Mile 8. 

The course measured a little short on my Garmin (a welcome change after the Flying Pig) coming in at 12.86 miles. Between that and all the downhill, I think this PR is going to be tough to beat!! But I do love a challenge!

Here are a couple pics from the course:

And here's my playlist:

Strawberry Plains Half Marathon In Pictures and my Playlist

Not sure why I didn't post these with my race recap, but oh well. Here you go:

A little snow and a little hill.

My face is frozen!

In the car afterwards... nice hair!

MEDAL!

I had to drive 2 hours home from the race... Even with the heat on full blast I was FREEZING!!! Had to rock the hoodie the whole way. 

Traffic was at a standstill because an 18 wheeler had broken down. I just wanted to get home and shower!!!!!

Just a couple of new ones but I really liked this playlist. Lots of variety and it kept me going! If you ever want to check out any of my playlists, I've made a new tab (it's quite originally called PLAYLISTS) and you can find it here.

What I've Been Listening To In January

I haven't shared a lot of this on the blog but I LOVE music. iTunes gift cards are like gold to me and iTunes 'shopping sprees' are my favorite. I love finding new (to me) music [and pout like crazy when radio gets ahold of it and plays the crap out of it].

I thought I'd start sharing my playlists on here in case you all are interested. I'll try to do one a month and I'll definitely do race playlists. So in true Courtney-like fashion, here's my January playlist (yes I know it's February).


We Found Love - Rihanna feat. Calvin Harris
Internet Killed the Video Star - The Limousines
Helena Beat - Foster The People
Midnight City - M83
Ni**as in Paris - Kanye West & Jay Z
Blackout - Breathe Carolina
Tonight Is The Night - Outasight
I Won't Give Up - Jason Mraz
Kids - MGMT
Even The Losers - Tom Petty
Fell In Love Without You - Motion City Soundtrack
Words Meet Heartbeats - Parachute
Still Not Over You - Gavin Degraw