Runner Survey: 20 Things You Didn't Know About Me

Happy Hump Day! I saw this questionnaire floating around the interwebs and thought it looked pretty fun to do. Plus it will give you some insight into some things you didn’t know about me! Play along and copy/paste the questions into your own blog! 🙂

1. Would you rather run along a beach path or on a mountain trail?

I love hiking and I love the beach. But if I have to chose one, I pick the mountain trail. There’s something simply serene about running under the canopy of mountain trees and listening to the leaves rustle in the wind.

2. If you could choose the flavor of Gatorade at your next race’s aid stations, what would it be?

I’m not really a Gatorade kinda gal. I also don’t know the flavors. Ha! So I’ll indirectly answer this by saying, “Blueberry Peach NOOMA.” Does that count?

3. If I gave you a $100 gift card to a running store, what would be the first thing that you would purchase with it?

Oh lord. For realz? Shoes. Or socks. Or a sports bra. Maybe some shorts? I do need a new tank top. And what about those awesome tights? I should probably get a handheld water bottle…

4. Do you prefer to follow a training plan or wake up and decide then how far and how fast you want to run?

Definitely a plan if I’m training for a race. If I’m not in training, I let my friend Julie decide. We usually end up running 4 miles every other day. 🙂

5. Would you rather start your run with the uphill and end on the downhill or start your run with the downhill and end with the uphill?

UPHILL first!!!!! If you’re my client/athlete, you know this to be true. And if you’re my training partner, you also know this to be true. 🙂

Source: RnR Marathon

6. When you can’t run, what type of cross-training do you choose to do?

Unfortunately I don’t have a gym membership, I don’t like riding on the roads, and I don’t have an elliptical or bike trainer at home. SO! I don’t really cross train. (Awkward silence.) I do my fair share of yoga, though. Which I used to hate and now I totally love. But I don’t really like it while I’m doing it. More like, after.

7. What is your preference: Out and back, point to point, or loop runs?

They all have their place and benefits. I like all of them for different reasons. Out and backs are great because on your way back you know where you are so it’s easier to gauge how much farther you have left. Point to point is nice when you have the world’s longest run ahead of you and you don’t feel like making a new route. And loop runs are fun to run in the neighborhood where you can kind of go wherever your feet point you.

8. If you could recommend any running-related item to a new runner, it would be a:

New pair of shoes, fitted by a footwear professional. If you’re in the wrong shoes, a whole bunch of stuff could go wrong. The style I started out in were not the ones I needed to be in 3 years later, and I faced a few months of injury because of it. And helpful hint: don’t ask your friends on the internet what their favorites are — it’s a really personal purchase. Get fitted by a pro. 🙂

9. Do you ever see any wild animals while out on your runs?

Yes, I almost ran smack into two baby deer on my run just this morning! Cute little buggers but not when their mamas chase me!

10. Ever gotten lost while out on a run?

Technically, no. But just the other day I was out running trails with my friend, Noemi, and we were quite a bit off the course we thought we were on… oops!

11. If you could have one meal waiting and ready for you each time you got home from a run for the next 30 days, what would that meal be?

This is a totally unfair question. I’m not going to answer it out of principle. Because anyone who knows me knows that I love #allthefood.

12. Capris or shorts… what do you run in most often?

Shorts. Capris are okay. They’re kind of uncomfortable around my calves sometimes. Plus my favorite time to run is the summer and part of the reason for that is so I can wear shorts and a tank.

13. At what mile (or how many minutes) into your run does your body start to feel like it is warming up and ready to go?

I don’t know why I have to think about the answer to this — I guess I’ve never really paid that much attention. Maybe like, half a mile? Or a full mile? Not too long.

14. What do you do with your key when you run?

Usually the little pocket in my shorts or sometimes my belt.

15. If you could relive any race that you have done in the past, which one what it be?

Iron Horse Half Marathon. Bar none my favorite race of all time. It’s coming up in October and I so wish I could go this year, but it’s not looking likely. I’ll be there in 2016, though!

16. What type of run is your least favorite type of run?

I’m not a huge fan of long, slow distance, but I know it’s necessary for optimal performance. I do cherish the time I have with my friends on the long run, though, so it’s worth it.

17. What has been your biggest motivation lately to get out the door to get your run on?

I’m in training!

18. When you go for a run, do you leave right from your front door or do you drive somewhere to start?

Yes.

19. When running in daylight are sunglasses a must or an annoyance?

Must.

20. When you get tired, what keeps you from quitting?

“Winners never quit and quitters never win.” ~Vince Lombardi