The other day, I got a very special gift in the mail from my friends at Mizuno. A brand new pair of Wave Inspires.


These are the Wave Inspire 8s and I think they might be my favorite version of the shoe to date.

I have been running in the Mizuno Wave Inspires since I started running seriously six years ago. They are by far my favorite shoes in the entire world to run in.

The Wave Inspires have gotten me through two marathons, 12 half marathons and a million other shorter races.


Like most shoes, the Wave Inspires change a little bit with each new iteration.

Most of the small changes in the shoes have never been a problem for me. But if you've been reading a while you might remember the epic problems I had with the Wave Inspire 7s. In short, the size I had been wearing for five years no longer fit and there were a couple design elements that just didn't work for me.


I blogged about it and then frantically scoured the Interwebz for a place that was still carrying the 6s and ordered several pair.


The next day I was shocked to find an email from Mizuno's VP of Running in my inbox, saying he appreciated my feedback on the shoes and offering to send me a pair of 6s if I didn't have any luck finding them.

I was impressed beyond words with Mizuno's amazing customer service.

A few weeks ago, I had the chance to meet some of the Mizuno team at an event in DC and I shared the incredible customer service story, about how one little email made me an even bigger fan of their brand than I was before.

As we were talking, I had mentioned that I was still running in a pair of those 6s I had ordered.

A few days after the event, I was gifted with the brand new Wave Inspire 8s. (Full FTC disclosure, Mizuno sent me the shoes for free. All my opinions on their awesomeness are my own.)


I have since taken them on a few runs and they are amazing. I thought I would never love a running shoes as much as I loved the 6s, but the 8s blow them out of the water.

The 8s hug and cushion my foot perfectly. The laces are the perfect length. Everything just feels right.

Oh and the colors are amazing. I am obsessed with the purple, black and yellow combo.

It's like Mizuno made the shoe just for me.

I can't say enough good things about Mizuno as a company. They obviously took all the feedback they got from their customers on the 7s and used it to make a drastically improved version of the shoe. The Wave Inspire 8s are an incredible shoe, and it makes me happy to see a company that I value so much actually listens to their customers.

A huge thank you to the team at Mizuno for sending me the Wave Inspire 8s to try out. I think I have many, many happy miles ahead!

I have a very, very love/hate relationship with lifting weights.


There are times when I think it's the most boring thing in the world and I'd rather blow my brains out then spend time in the gym lifting.

Then there are times when I think lifting is the best thing ever, when I crave the next-day soreness after a good lifting session.

I'm in the latter phase right now.

I've gotten to the point where I have these really strong legs from running (and now cycling too), but my upper body isn't on par. I have skinny little spaghetti noodle arms in comparison.


I don't know if it's because summer is on the horizon and I'll be wearing tank tops more or if with tri training I just want to be more balanced all over, but I've decided to recommit to my lifting.

Luckily, my coworker Emily is in the same boat. So we've decided to lift together during our lunch breaks at work again like we did last year.


Having a gym buddy definitely makes it easier to stick with a plan.

When I lift, I'm all about high weights, low reps. I usually do three sets until I max out and can't really lift the weight anymore.

I hit all the major upper body muscles groups, then moved on to core work.

And because I had some extra time, I rounded the session out with a little bit of the leg work I used to do in physical therapy to help stabilize my knee.

Holy Moses are my arms feeling it today, but it's that good kind of I-just-kicked-my-butt sore. I am super excited to be mixing in lifting on a regular basis again. Strong arms and a strong core will pay off big time in my races.

One of the things I love about running is sharing it with other people. I love running races with friends, I love answering their training questions and I was practically giddy when Tracy and Jason and Emily all started training for their first long distance races.




So imagine my excitement last Friday at happy hour when two of my friends decided to run their race in June and asked me to help them put together a training plan. (Yes I am that person who suckers her friends into athletic endeavors after they've had a few drinks, don't judge.)

Without furter ado, I'd like to introduce you to Lauren and Hadass, who will both be running the Lawyers Have Heart 10K in June. (Ladies, I shamelessly stole these pictures from Facebook).


Lauren is a friend of mine from middle school and high school, who now lives in D.C. and is going to law school.


Hadass is a friend of mine from college who lives in D.C. and is a working lawyer.

Lawyers Have Heart seemed like an appropriate race.

The race is just about 10 weeks away, which is the perfect amount of time to train and get ready.

On my end, I've been looking at training plans with three days of running per week and a couple days of optional cross training mixed in. Given their busy lawyerly schedules, they both need a plan with lots of flexibility that wasn't too demanding, but would still get them across the finish line (hopefully with a smile on their faces.)

Training will officially start for them next Monday and I promise to share periodic updates on how things are going!

I am thrilled to have converted two more friends to the awesomeness that is running. If anyone else in the D.C. area is interested in joining us for the race on June 9, shoot me an email or leave me a comment, we'd be happy to have you!