Disclaimer: I received an entry to Hot Chocolate Charlotte as being a Bibrave Pro. Learn more about becoming a Bibrave Pro(ambassador), and check out Bibrave.com to review, find, and write rave reviews!”
Super excited to be heading back to Charlotte to run the Allstate Hot Chocolate 15K in 2020. I’ve run this race every year since it began so it will be that much sweeter becoming a legacy runner. You become legacy and get a special medal after you run it 3,5 and 10 years.
It most certainly is not a easy course, matter of fact it is rather hilly but still fun. They changed the course between the 1st and 2nd year to help, so interested to see if there will be another change this year. The weather is also unpredictable. The first year it was kinda warm and rainy, and last year it was down right cold. So much that most runners are huddled around heat towers before the start.
Why should you consider joining me?
Distance: it’s only 5K or 15K, so you won’t be super tired like you would after a half or full marathon. Trust me, the 4 less miles make a difference.
Treats: The post race treats are amazing. All the treats you can think of that are good for dipping in chocolate. Rice krispie treats, Graham crackers, and marshmallows to name a few. Not to mention all the other good food available from sponsors.
Medals: The medals are specifically designed for the city, so always cool to see what they come up with.
Swag: Some of the best swag around, usually some type of half zip pullover or jacket.
If you want to join me, use code BRHCHARLOTTE19 to score a free hat. Hope to see you there
There has been one hiccup during training, I caught a stomach bug the had been going around. My whole house had it at some point. Not fun and it derailed one of my long runs. I did go back a few days later and try to do the run. I cut it short because although my pace was ok but my heart rate was high, so I knew I was working harder than I needed to. Aka i wasn’t fully recovered. ALWAYS LISTEN TO YOUR BODY AND BE MINDFUL OF YOUR HR. Majority of your training runs should have your HR in Green or orange zone, of you’re in red, slow down/stop.
The forecast for race morning had changed a few different times. Up until friday, there was a 60% chance of rain on saturday morning but it changed friday night. The rain was supposed to hold off until around 11am, which would give me more than enough time to finish and get back to my hotel. I stayed at Aloft and the starting line was like a 4-5 block walk, so not bad at all BUT it was low 40s. It was cold but I still opted for shorts and short-sleeve shirt because I knew I would warm up pretty fast once the race started. The starting line area(also the finish line area) had booths already set up for the finishers. Huge shoutout to Allstate for being the only booth that though to bring heater towers. They had 3 and a lot of the runners gathered around them to stay warm before the race start. The 5k began at 7:30, and 15k was scheduled to start 15 minutes later. We started 3 minutes later than scheduled because some of the 5k runners arrived late so we gave them time to get out on the course. The 15k started and within quarter of a mile, we had already hit our first hill. As with the whole route, it was full of uphill and downhills. The crisp temperature helped keep me refreshed throughout the battle with the hills. About halfway through the race, it began to drizzle. Thankfully it wasn’t a downpour, but the drizzle wasn’t bad enough to really cause any issues outside of making it hard to see out of my sunglasses. The volunteers maning the water stops were great and were constantly yelling their support. The police officers controlling traffic were also a huge help. You had to fight through 1 last uphill before crossing the finish line. I finished about a minute and a half slower than 2018, but I was satisfied seeing how the course had more hills than last year.
No brainer, Allstate Hot Chocolate 15K/5K Charlotte is a must run. Yes, it is challenging but it is still a fun race and very well-managed. Did I fail to mention, FREE RACE PHOTOS. Hopefully I will run it again in 2020 to make it 3 years in a row.
The Brooks brand is well-known throughout the running community, whether you have used them or not, is a personal preference. I personally have loved Brooks since I stumbled upon them when I first started running. When I began running, I was clueless to the idea of running shoes. I was running in some Nike Shox and was having severe shin splits. I started doing my research and had a gait analysis done at a running expo for which Brooks was sponsor. After that day, I bought my first pair of Brooks and haven’t looked back since. Needless to say, I was all smiles when I saw Brooks gear in our swag bag from The Running Event. I was given a pair of Brooks Ghost 11 and a Brooks Canopy running jacket.
I love this jacket! Not only does it keep you warm on those crisp mornings/evenings, it is water-resistant. The water-resistant aspect is what I have been lacking with other jackets I have tried. Others brands I have tried have either been too light, thus not keeping you warm, or not breathable, thus you are sweating heavily because no air can get in. This Canopy jacket merges both worlds together perfectly. Extra benefit with the Nighlife color I received, is it has the neon yellow accents as well as built in reflective areas so you can easily be seen at night and pre-dawn. I took this jacket out for several runs and loved that it wasn’t too heavy, as well as, the option to use the hood or snap it back. The last and probably one of my favorite features is it is packable. That’s right, the whole jacket can pack right inside the left hand pocket, zip up, and has a nice band you can use to attach to your arm. I was able to put this to the test during one of my recent long runs. The temps were in the high 30s when I started out but pushed its way into the mid 40s halfway through my run. I was able to take off the jacket, pack it into the pocket and continue my run without having to worry about the hassle of securing the jacket around my waist.
I mentioned earlier that Brooks was one of my favorite brands, well their Brooks Ghost are one of my favorite shoes. In all I think I have had at least 3 or 4 pairs of Ghost, dating back to the Ghost 8.
Prior to The Running Event I had never heard of activated hemp being used as a recovery or performance aid, nor had I ever heard of the brand Arcanum. We received 3 of their products in our swag bag for TRE, but I don’t think any of us actually knew what to do with them. The following day when we got to visit The Running Event, the Arcanum booth was the first one we visited and we learned a lot of great information. If you read my previous posts about TRE, you know what I mentioned that the Arcanum representative was by far the most effective speaker. She delivered valuable information, without overselling her product. After speaking with the representative, I was eager to give them a try.
When hemp is heated at high temperatures, it’s bioavailability increases, meaning it is able to enter the circulation in the body and have an active effect. This activation creates an increase in the effectiviness of the cannabinoids and other healing ingredients in the Arcanum formulation. Activated hemp has been shown to support recovery time and performance by upregulating your cells, allowing them to communicate and carry on the reactions necessary to help the body recover faster and smarter.(via Arcanum website
First product I tried was the Sarco Breeze, which is a moisturizer and sports massage oil. Its features:
I took the Sarco breeze with me when I traveled for my last race of the 2018 calendar year, The Kiawah Marathon. It was a marathon so I figured I would have a good amount of soreness to give the product a good test. After finishing my marathon and showering, I broke it out. My calves were really sore and I had cramped up after I finished the race, so I decided to start there. I am not exaggerating when I say, I felt an immediate difference once I applied the Sarco Breeze. I am not saying the soreness, immediately disappeared but I could feel the tingle letting me know it was starting to do its thing. I would say about an hour after applying the product, my calves felt like new. The soreness had subsided and I could walk around with that looking like I just ran a marathon(you know the walk. Lol) I later applied to my quads and hamstring areas, to get them back fresh. I was impressed with the response. This is also good to use if you are receiving and giving a massage to/from your significant other.
Next up, was the Sarco Freeze. Some of its features/benefits:
Last up and Arcanum’s newest product was The Quill. This seemed to be the product the representative was most excited about, since it is really an item that could be used on a daily basis. Features/Benefits:
I think all three of these products are worth a try. I know you may not know a lot about activated hemp but the stuff just works. Do your own research if you must, Arcanum even has some good information on their websites and you won’t get popped for using performance enhancing drugs. Lol. If I had to pick a favorite of the products, I would probably go with Sarco Breeze. I think the fact that it could be used all over your body and works great for massages, won me over. Give Arcanum as try and get the Arcanum Edge.
In my previous posts about TRE, I told you about a few pros doing a Zwift run on the first day we were in Austin. The rest of us got to watch and cheer them on. On December 18th, the Pros that didn’t get to run during TRE weekend finally got there chance to test out the Zwift Run. Before I tell you about the run, let me tell you what items you will need to get started.
I must admit the setup was pretty cool. Bibrave already had an event sent up for the date and time, so we just had to log into it. Once you log in, your virtual character appears at the starting line. The starting line header shows how much time you have left before the run begins. As more people sign in, their characters appear at the starting line with you with their name. There is even a message bar that you can communicate with everyone. Once the countdown reached zero, we were off. Based on what pace you entered when signing up for the event, the zwift app tells you what to set your treadmill at. We did a tempo run, so the pace changed several times during the run. Each time, the app would tell you what to set the treadmill(for instance, “increase treadmill to 6.2”) As you are running through the virtual world, you see all our friends running along with you. We even had a santa clause sighting in the middle of our run. Your friends can give you “thumbs up”, and after you finish the workout, you get a workout summary. There is even a saved screen shot of your character in the middle of the run. In addition to group runs, Zwift also has training plans you can use.
Full disclosure, I have never been a fan of compression socks. I have always ran with compression sleeves, part of reason is probably because I like certain socks and sleeves still allow for some freedom with your sock color, etc. Nevertheless, I wanted to give this trail socks their fair shot. We were given the yellow color so they pretty much will go with any color. I headed out on one of NC’s 30 degree mornings to give them a try. At first they felt strange on my legs, mind you I told you I have never been a compression sock wearer. I was doing a 10 plus mile run, so it should give me plenty of miles to see how the socks perform. Halfway through my run, my legs still felt fresh and no signs of fatigue. One slight issue I noticed around mile 8 was my left leg began to get numb. This has only happened one other time and that was when I was wearing some sleeves that were a size too small. I don’t know if my left calf muscle is slightly larger than my right, but once I stopped and rolled down the sock, the numbness went away and I finished the run.
TMilesAndRunning 