Join us on a fun conversation and introduction to the fun we have in store for the community! With a sparkle in our step, we take you through a transformative journey backed by the power of our mighty Mod Squad and the introduction of our awesome team members.
In this episode you'll learn about how to dress for maximum fun and good feels with Kimba, how to be mindful with your miles with Lynn, how to add a bit of "trivia" knowledge while in pursuit of health and happiness with Sally, and how to go faster, harder, better, faster with Erin.
Finally, we share the secret sauce: the power of community.
From movie nights with Sally to themed race recommendations from Kimba and Lynn, along with Erin's Dopey Challenge triumphs, we examine how togetherness fuels our endurance both on and off the run.
Whether you're chasing down a new personal best or just enjoying the breeze on a solo run, we invite you to lace up and join our extraordinary league of runners. Here's to chasing joy, setting audacious goals, and, most of all, keeping that sparkle alive with every step you take!
Have questions or want to chat? Send me a text!
Join the newsletter list for updates, special offers, and exclusive behind-the-scenes content.
Join fellow pod and running enthusiasts at The Stride Collective community on Facebook or follow us on Instagram.
Join us on a fun conversation and introduction to the fun we have in store for the community! With a sparkle in our step, we take you through a transformative journey backed by the power of our mighty Mod Squad and the introduction of our awesome team members.
In this episode you'll learn about how to dress for maximum fun and good feels with Kimba, how to be mindful with your miles with Lynn, how to add a bit of "trivia" knowledge while in pursuit of health and happiness with Sally, and how to go faster, harder, better, faster with Erin.
Finally, we share the secret sauce: the power of community.
From movie nights with Sally to themed race recommendations from Kimba and Lynn, along with Erin's Dopey Challenge triumphs, we examine how togetherness fuels our endurance both on and off the run.
Whether you're chasing down a new personal best or just enjoying the breeze on a solo run, we invite you to lace up and join our extraordinary league of runners. Here's to chasing joy, setting audacious goals, and, most of all, keeping that sparkle alive with every step you take!
Have questions or want to chat? Send me a text!
Join the newsletter list for updates, special offers, and exclusive behind-the-scenes content.
Join fellow pod and running enthusiasts at The Stride Collective community on Facebook or follow us on Instagram.
Time for Brunch. Empower, inspire, connect, ignite your journey.
Speaker 2:Hey there, brunch Crew, welcome to another exciting episode of Time for Brunch, your go-to podcast for all things running and a whole lot of fun. I'm Coach Christine and today is a very special episode. Why, do you ask? Well, it may just be our final podcast under the Time for Brunch name. I'm not going anywhere, but don't worry, we've got some big things in the works. They're quite extraordinary, if I say so myself, and today we want to share a lot of fun that we have in store for you. So let's get right to it. Today we're going to feature the fabulous the one, not only the Mod Squad. You'll get to meet the incredible individuals who bring their unique awesomeness to the podcast and to the training team, the Extraordinary League. We have some amazing fun plans and we can't wait for you to get to know these fantastic folks. I want to also take a moment and acknowledge and thank every single person who applied.
Speaker 2:I do plan to expand the Mod Squad, just first want to make sure that we bring them on that you guys get to know the current members and before we get into diving into the conversations with all of these incredible individuals, I want to tell you about the fun that we have been working on behind the scenes, the Mod Squad and I have been chit-chatting, and there's just some brilliant fun in store. First and foremost, I want you to mark your calendars, because next Friday's episode is going to be a full fun run. It's going to be an episode lined up to pair perfectly with the Run Disney Summer Series we're going to do one every month perfectly with the Run Disney Summer Series we're going to do one every month. So next week's episode is going to have games and trivia and a whole lot of laughs, both on the podcast and in our Facebook group. So if you have not joined our Facebook group, this is the time to do so. We're not done, though. We're so excited about that that we're going to have a live, in-person run on Disney property a big community run on June, the 1st. If you're here, local or visiting Disney, we would love for you to join, but if you're not, don't worry. That's why we're having the fun run. I want you to pop in your earbuds and join us for the long run audio session. I would love for you to join us on June 1st for your long run, because I want you to hop into our chat. It's going to be monitored by myself and the Mod Squad. We're going to rack up those miles and smiles together and, yes, we'll be talking some Mickey waffles. I will be involved and, again, we're going to keep that series going for this entire summer. So we can't wait for you to get involved. We definitely want you to check out the Facebook page that's in the episode notes, rsvp for the event and, again, be ready, because it's gonna be absolutely spectacular.
Speaker 2:Now, if that wasn't enough, we are gonna keep the fun going. We're gonna roll right out of that into Global Running Spirit Week, because global running should be definitely celebrated for more than just one day. So we're gonna start the celebration on June 3rd. We're going to go all week long to June 9th and I'm asking you to pledge to run or walk a mile each day and join in on the themed fun.
Speaker 2:Monday is going to be Mouse House Monday. We're going to do some Disney bounding or wear your favorite Disney gear, maybe pay homage to your favorite Disney character or movies. Tuesday's going to be tacky Tuesday. We want you to rock those clashing colors and those bold patterns. We're going to have way back Wednesday for you to throw on some of your retro workout gear, those little leg warmers. Tease your hair a bit if you'd like. We're going to roll right into Tropical Thursday. We're going to get beachy with it, with tropical vibes and all of our gear in our run and walk. And, of course, we are going to finish up the work week with a favorite color frie. Wear your favorite color with a whole lot of pride, saturday and Sunday. We know you're a superhero, so dress in the gear that makes you feel like the superhero that you are. Now, again, we're going to ask you to be active in the Facebook event page and the group page for the podcast, because we're going to have pop-up challenges and prizes to keep the excitement going. So much I take a breath. All right, my friend, hopefully you're taking a breath.
Speaker 2:First up, let's get to know our Mod Squad. I can't wait for you to meet this guest, affectually known as Kimba. She's the first member of the Mod Squad and Kimba plays she's the first member of the mod squad and Kimba plays a pivotal role in our online community, acting as a moderator, a hype gal cheerleader and an outstanding ambassador. Her infectious enthusiasm not only keeps our community supported and engaged, but she also spreads positivity and fun in every single interaction, both virtually and in person. If you ever have the good fortune to meet Kimba, she's a huge fan of Star Wars and Harry Potter and a whole lot of other fandoms that she's going to explain to us. But Kimba brings her passions into the mix, creating a unique and inclusive space for every runner, fan and brunch enthusiast out there.
Speaker 2:Ok, friends, I could go on and on and on talking about how great Kimba is, but how about we just bring her into brunch, and you can understand why. Welcome on in Kimba is. But how about we just bring her into brunch and you can understand why. Welcome on in Kimba. Hello, so excited to have you here. When I first thought, you know it'd be great to get more of the online community involved with the Mod Squad, you were the very first person that came to mind, because I do get the privilege of running with you not as early as you do for the most part, but you're just always positive and super encouraging, and it translates online as well. So thank you so much for taking on that role so seriously. And, kimba, let's get into a little bit of a brunch question. If you could have brunch with any celebrity, who would it be, and would you do a long run beforehand and what would you want to make sure it's served Like? What would you want to have for this brunch?
Speaker 3:Eggs Benedict Absolutely needs to happen. Any variation, I love all variations, be it a surf and ham or turkey, or even some spinach artichoke, all of it, just yes.
Speaker 2:You officially made everybody hungry. Now everyone is ready to head home and either prepare some eggs benedict or make some brunch reservations, that's for sure. But who would you want to do a long run with, if anyone at all?
Speaker 3:A long run A celebrity.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I'm always curious who's like strategic with this? Like, are you picking someone based off of who you would really want to meet, or somebody that you know that like you could actually like kind of slow down and have conversation with, or if it's somebody that you're going to be chasing after because they're so much faster? So I was wondering if there's strategy that comes into play with this particular question.
Speaker 3:I don't. You know, it's hard to say. There's just so many great people out there that are such huge inspirations. Wow, I just went blank with that.
Speaker 2:Okay, we'll come back to it. You'll think on it a little bit. How about we make it a little bit easier? Okay, if you could possibly go to brunch with any of your Harry Potter favorite characters or Star Wars favorite character, who would it be that you would do a long brunch with that, with a character specifically? I thought that one would be easier, but maybe not. Maybe that's like asking you to choose your favorite child or your favorite running skirt, which for you, is pretty much the exact same. How could you do that?
Speaker 3:Okay, so I was looking for the person's name because I saw a vision of them. So one of my favorite iFit trainers is Sally McRae, and she's probably who I would love to run with. I've done many programs with her and she just seems like the coolest person, like just like your best friend, almost like that you're running with and you've been running with forever. She just seems so humble and so fun, so I would definitely choose her.
Speaker 2:I just pulled her up so I guess she's a trail runner and she does seem so down to earth. Oh yeah, I bet that would be a lot of fun. I'll have to look more into it. So I'm inviting myself to brunch so I can get to know your new bestie. But I'm also curious. Now, as I mentioned, you're all about really being welcoming and supportive to folks. I know that that is something that you do both in person with the runs here locally and online. But how about we first dive into a little bit about you, how you got started with running and the running community that you are part of?
Speaker 3:Oh, my goodness, I've been running on and off for fun since I was in my twenties. I would say Nothing serious, like I would get on a treadmill and run a couple miles here and there, but I never was like, oh, I need to have these kind of shoes, or oh, I need to do this or that. Then in 2010, oddly enough, I got a postcard from Leukemia and Lymphoma Society team and training to run a half marathon and fundraise $1,500. I'm like these are two things I've never in my life tried, so why not? So that's exactly what I did at the same time.
Speaker 2:So a little bit of an overachiever there.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I'm like why not? I've never ran over, I think, three miles or so and I've never done fundraising like this, so I'm going to go for it. Which race was it specifically? Yeah, sure, it was Wine and Dine, and it was in 2011. It was when it was still a night race with Disney.
Speaker 2:I feel like that's both our first Wine and Dine. I'm almost positive. Mine was 2011 as well. Okay, okay, I did not. I was not as adventurous as you were. I did not do it through fundraising. I didn't start fundraising until much later on, I'm just because I was already. I was so overwhelmed by the sheer concept of running, endurance and training. But again, go big or go home is your style. So tell me about. How did you get involved with your training? Did you follow their training plan? How did your training?
Speaker 3:kind of progress. Yeah, so they had a coach. The very first thing I did was, I remember I went to the local run store and I remember when my training run started to get a bit longer and my bottom of my feet were hurting and I'm like, is it these shoes I'm wearing? I don't know. So I was like the coach was like, yeah, go to this run store and, just you know, have them help you. So I went to the run store and I was running in, I guess, adidas trail shoes that you should not be running in, and this is why the bottom of my feet are not doing good.
Speaker 2:Did you choose them because they were cute or because they were on sale? Because I know that's how I got my first pair. It's like these are the cutest pair of shoes.
Speaker 3:It was some outlet jam. It was outlet jam and cute, so it was combination Like I didn't know what.
Speaker 2:I was doing. I mean definitely not going to shame here because I know we've all been there done that when we first got started. I think I started running specifically with like just whatever weightlifting shoes I had at the time because I was weightlifting before I started running. But okay, you go to the, which we do suggest around these hair parts is one of the very first, most foundational parts of your running journey is to go to your local running store and get fitted. So you had that happen and then you follow the training plan. Tell me about your first wine and dine experience and expo and running that night race.
Speaker 3:So with the training, I trained virtual I didn't actually train with a group and I met up with a local running group, which is the same group where I met you, christine, and because I was like I'm running and I need to find people that are running that I can run with because I don't know what I'm doing, so I did that as well. But anyways, yeah, going to the expo, it was very overwhelming and also fun. I remember a week or two before I did a 15K just to try it out and see how that went, and it went well. They used to have a 15K in downtown Orlando called the Miracle Miles and that was the race I did. It was my first distance of 15K.
Speaker 2:I feel like our running journey. We must have been running all of the same things together, because I loved that 15k. It's no longer in existence. Yes, it was so good, Okay, I love Orlando.
Speaker 3:It's so pretty, so running downtown is just it for me. I love it, but anyways, yeah. So I was absolutely terrified of these things called the balloon ladies. Oh my goodness, I started in the last corral and I remember I was running like a crazy person. And then some of the people that I met, because when you do the fundraising with team and training with the Human Lymphoma Society, they have a special dinner for you. So I did get to meet and connect with some people, thankfully, and I saw them out on the course and they're like you can relax and slow down and have fun Like you are so far, can relax and slow down and have fun Like you are so far. But it was just like I was terrified. And then I was like, oh, and then I just, you know, I had fun from then on out and it was.
Speaker 2:I had a good experience, it was really good, so. So I feel like you were already ahead of the game, because I didn't even know balloon ladies existed. For the record, like if you would have asked me going into Wine and Dine weekend if there were balloon ladies, I would have said, sure, in Main Street they usually sell balloons. I mean, I don't know if I'd call them balloon ladies, but there's always a person, a merchant, out there who will sell you some balloons. I had no clue they existed, which maybe is a good thing, because it was one less thing that I had first official half marathon. What's next for you after you conquer it? You have the night race party. What do you decide that you're going to dabble into next?
Speaker 3:I had signed up for Princess and I did that race and I had a good experience. It was a lot of fun, a lot different. I felt a lot more relaxed, still was not comfortable enough to start taking pictures with characters and stuff, but I had. You know, I did stop more and do a few more things that I didn't do for the first one. So you know, after getting my feet wet it was a lot of fun. And then after that I was like I'm going to sign up for the Disney marathon because, why not? That's how it progresses.
Speaker 2:So you were all in from the very get go. Basically, yes, Now would you have considered yourself a big Disney fan before this?
Speaker 3:Oh, absolutely yeah, I've always had annual pass Like this, just added to it.
Speaker 2:Okay, so you were definitely in for 100% with Run Disney, but at this point I didn't live in the area, so I was driving into town to run with that run group occasionally. But I feel like your run journey still was evolving in terms of run groups you were doing. You even moved at some point and maybe joined another run group. Where did you start dabbling out with runs outside of the Disney-verse?
Speaker 3:Also with that group, the one that I met you with the person that ran it put other races out. So I started to do a lot more of the local races and get involved with the local running store and the races they put on and stuff.
Speaker 2:And the group for friends. If you guys are local and you're curious, it's Center for Florida Women Runners. Anne is incredible. I'll go ahead and give her a shout out. She's actually in the community too, so you guys could always say hello to her. But it's a great running community and I definitely enjoyed my time with them as well. I think for me when I first started running, it was just like I didn't even know that there were this many races or different ways you could spend your money on. This hobby of running is really what it comes down to. So getting into the run club life allowed me to understand and see people and kind of look forward to it. There's something about like that little cluster of knowing that other folks are going to be there with you, even if you're not necessarily running it together. Like I know you like run Disney, but I feel like whenever we talk about maybe your favorite running experience, it's not necessarily a local race, from what I understand. So how about you share it with the brunch community? What is your favorite race experience?
Speaker 3:So just to expand a little more. As I said, when I was all in I found out that there was this club called Half Fanatics, and so I was like this is fun. I was like I want to see how many halves I can run. And so that is the next thing that escalated I wanted to run 40 halves by the time I turned 40. That was the current goal that I wanted to do, which I did, and my 40th was Princess. And then I was like well, what can I do now? Just recently I did my 50th for Dopey and now it just became a milestone how many races can I do?
Speaker 3:But outside of that, where I really expanded is when I was doing local races. I started to see what there was also just in the US really, and I looked up, you know what are the best marathons? And one of the best marathons was Big Sur, and it was a climb the entire time. You're climbing and I'm like so I did a local race it the public's half, I believe and I saw Jeff Galloway and his wife, barbara on the course and I was talking to them about training for Big Sur and he's like you could do it, you know. Yeah, because I ran most of this public's half with him and his wife and I stayed with his wife, barbara so sweet. I even crossed the finish line with them. I think one of the years they made that picture like a sign up picture for registration for a few years.
Speaker 3:But anyways, I ended up doing Big Sur with I can't remember what it's called. It's a marathon tours company, because you can there's a couple of different ways you can sign up for Big Sur and I think they do a couple of lotteries. But I was like I'm doing this, make sure I have a guaranteed entry, I'm doing this. So I signed up with Marathon Tours and I trained for it and, as you know, florida, especially where we are, is quite flat, has zero hills. So every weekend I would drive Saturday and Sunday to Claremont and I had friends bless them, I put them on bikes and everything and they would run mileage with me out there up the hills, all the hills we have.
Speaker 2:That is true friendship there, there's no doubt on that Okay.
Speaker 2:So you tackle Big Sur. If I could think of one race that reminds me nothing of run Disney, Big Sur would be it, because it's a much smaller course in terms of. Of course, the distance is the same in terms of marathon, but in terms of the people who start off, they have a pretty different way of approaching their waves. There's different distances even within it, but it's all in the same day and it's such a different course entirely. So what made you fall madly in love with this as your favorite race that you've done to date?
Speaker 3:The coastline. Like those views. I was just in awe as I ran that coastline. It was so tough and so challenging but so gorgeous. And then, before I started really climbing I think when I hit about mile 10, I saw Jeff Galloway up there yet again and I was like I'm running with you, I'm not going to get swept if I run with you. So I'm running with you. So I stayed pretty much the entire race with him until, I think, about mile 23 or so. Somebody, when it was running with the group of us got a cramp and he stayed with them to kind of help them work it out. And I told some of the girls I'm like I have to go, we have to finish, I cannot stand here, I'm going to start falling apart. So one of the girls set her watch and a couple of us finished together. So it was amazing.
Speaker 2:I love that. That's such a great and that's what I love about the running community is that you get to create so many wonderful memories, be it local or from afar. So at this point you've kind of added some more diversity to your running. You've tackled more of like, or recently went on to tackle, more of speed and strength with shorter distances. How would you say that the shorter distances vary in comparison to your endurance training time?
Speaker 3:It's a lot different because the races are a lot quicker. It's hard to switch to that, to the realization of the endurance that you need for 13 miles. You don't need that because you're only doing three, so you could push yourself a lot earlier. So I'm still trying to get a handle on that because it is so different. But that's the main thing I've noticed with that.
Speaker 2:I think I mean that's 100% right. The mindset of it is night and day. I think it's also why I always say that I have such a harder time with the shorter distances, because you've taught yourself over the years to be a bit more conservative at the gate, and with those shorter ones you need to be like strong, hot and heavy out of go, and a little bit harder for us folks that tend to maybe also have a membership or had a membership, of the Half Fanatic, so I feel you on that. I love, though, that you've tackled it. You do a local series that allows you to kind of string together a lot of fun local 5Ks and 10Ks. It's really expanded how you tackle it, but you still get out there and do tons of miles with your local community, so let's talk a little bit about that.
Speaker 2:Now. You are really active with she Runs this Town, and you also are part of the Dark 30 crew in terms of getting up like a ridiculous time of day. How do you feel like having this running community has helped you and how do you feel like you kind of give back to it as well?
Speaker 3:I definitely feel like it has helped me stay active, obviously accountable. You know there's a lot of accountability there and, as far as giving back, we all help each other out, like we're always. It's such a good group to just lean on, you know, just outside of running If you need anything. It's such an amazing group of girls that just take care of each other. So it's huge. But then also, too, if somebody's training for a marathon and somebody's not, you know we've done where. Okay, we'll tackle this five or 10 with you and at this time we'll come and meet up and tackle this five and 10. Like, we always get it done all together. It doesn't matter who's doing what distance or even what pace. You know somebody is like I'll slow down for you. You want to speed up? It's just amazing. It is extraordinary.
Speaker 2:I love what the group does for each other and I feel like, of course, you're being a bit humble. You don't really necessarily talk about how great you are with it. When I first moved into the area, I reached out because we had run together with the previous run group and I'm like who are you running with nowadays? And you immediately like, just put me in touch with this group and quite a few others that we have here locally. So you are definitely continuing to pass that torch in that light of how people can stay engaged with the local community. Which brings me to my next question Outside of Run Disney and we are going to circle back to it, but outside of Run Disney, what is the one must do race that you would suggest? Somebody who is maybe considering like half the 50 states and they want to tackle a distance race here in Florida, which is the one that you think people should maybe check out, or that they're sleeping on a little bit outside of run Disney.
Speaker 3:Obviously celebration half. I love celebration half. I would not do the marathon. I do say the half. It is such a great local race you do, I was going to say that and it is a phenomenally beautiful race Marathon.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I've done the marathon as well. You have to go into it with the expectation and the mindset that you're going to do a loop course that can make you or break you sometimes when you're out there.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and you know, just depending on what your goals are. My favorite marathon that I've done in Florida is Donna hands down in Jacksonville. Such a great cause. Just the people cheering you on the support during the race, the entire race is just absolutely amazing. Yeah, I fell in love with that huge.
Speaker 2:So it feels like you have such a really good wide variety of what speaks to you in these races because with Big Sur, crowd support's minimal, if very much. I mean, there's like just a couple places, but it's gorgeous scenery. Celebration is kind of a little bit of core support, but again it's a really pretty location and Donna's really all about that big core support. So what do you say are some of the traits that some of your favorite races have, or some characteristics that people should take into consideration when they're looking at tackling their own races or signing up?
Speaker 3:Location is definitely one, and then you know other. I mean I still have a lot of states that I need to do and I need to get back on board with that. But for example, I've done Vegas the Strip at night, and again that's location. You know, if you've ever wanted to go there, it's a great night race. You don't have to get up early, boxes checked, you run right by the Las Vegas sign, you run by Pawn Stars, you run, you even get a little bit of Fremont in. I mean. So for me it's either views or course support or a combination. I've done Denver.
Speaker 3:I did one year and you know it was a city and I ran everything and passed everything that I would want to, the same way when I did New Orleans. So I just say, with your research, like, what is it that you want? Is it? If you're starting out, it might be that support. You know you might want to make sure you have the support. But once you get a little more seasoned and you're running and your races, you might be like, ok, I want to check out the sites and the views, I want to run the city, you know. So I just think it's dependent on that and what you want.
Speaker 2:I think you just nailed it for the record. It's kind of having a little bit of an accounting with yourself, like what speaks to your own soul and heart, and also knowing that it's likely going to change, because what I needed when I first started setting up for races to what I care about now are vastly different. For me back in the day, if it didn't have incredible bling or swag, likely wasn't going to go on my to-do list, and now it just doesn't speak to me in the same way. It's all about more of the experience. So and there's nothing wrong not judging either way it's just kind of knowing like what speaks to you at that point. So let's bring it back to Run Disney, because I do feel like you are quite the fan of all things Disney and, of course, universal as well, and Harry Potter. If you were to have a specific Run Disney weekend that you would suggest to folks, which one would it be?
Speaker 3:Marathon weekend.
Speaker 2:Okay, what do you feel like? The vibe with marathon weekend is different than the others.
Speaker 3:There's a lot of energy with marathon weekend and just a lot of excitement. That, I feel like, is just a well-rounded, good experience, okay.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you're telling people to put pencil that in and, as we've already experienced recently with that registration process, clearly the word is out because it sells out within a couple of hours. So take that into consideration, friends, and maybe that might be your foray into fundraising, which brings me to the next question. So you've tackled getting into races. It sounds like every way there is possible, from fundraising to lottery, to go to old fashioned registration queues, signing up probably the same day, and marathon tours and everything in between. Let's talk more about your fundraising experience. What would you suggest to people that are on the fence a little nervous or trepidatious about fundraising for race? What are some of your thoughts regarding it?
Speaker 3:I mean it can be daunting depending on the amount you need to fundraise. I got really creative. I had a lot of friends help out that I didn't even know, Like I had a friend that baked cupcakes for me. I had people baking cinnamon rolls for me and selling them outside of garage sales. I found this one lady and I volunteered, and even a bunch of my friends came with me and we volunteered at the International Speedway for like the Pepsi 400 or something like doing bag check and stuff. Like it was so random the things I did.
Speaker 2:I love that, though, seriously Okay. So basically don't get too like. This is an opportunity to kind of get out of that box and not think that it all has to be. Maybe social media posts where you're asking the same folks all the time. It sounds like tackling a few different other options is always the way to go. If you were to like an official hype gal and cheerleader and supporter from again and every aspect of how I know you, from encouraging me to actually get out for those early morning runs which, again, there's been the occasion where I've been able to do it thanks to your support or to encouraging folks on the community page to post and share about themselves, what is something you would suggest for people to take into consideration when they're having difficulty motivating themselves to get out there for a run or a walk or any other physical movement or activities?
Speaker 3:I mean the obvious is, you know people are always like, oh, you'll feel better after. But sometimes for me it's just about getting dressed and getting out the door. You know, get dressed, get out the door, give yourself okay, five minutes. If I'm still not feeling it, then adjust from that Perfect example.
Speaker 3:Yesterday I didn't get a lot of sleep Sunday night and I was going to do a run. I didn't run with the girls early, I go, okay, I'll run after work. I set up the treadmill, I got on it the first mile. I was not feeling it, so I stopped and I changed and I walked and I still felt really good after because I walked a couple miles and then I did you know that mile and it was what it was, but I still felt a lot better than doing nothing. So I say just do something, just lace up, get out the door. If you have a machine, get a machine. Even if you're like I want to lift weights but I don't feel like it During your lunch, go down and do a set of something you know, just something.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I love this. So there's a little bit there, maybe cliche, but true, it's like to focus on progress versus perfection. But also you're talking a little bit about exercise confetti, which I'm a big fan of, and it's basically a little microburst of activity within our day. Usually, most people will find that once they get that little bit of confetti going, they'll find a way to continue 10, maybe 15 minutes and get in a little bit of a longer routine.
Speaker 2:Sometimes not I'm the first one to say that there are days where I'll get out there, especially come summertime here in Florida, where I'll give myself the opportunity to go out and suggest to myself that, you know, just give yourself a mile and see if maybe you get into it. And there have been some where I got to the mile and I'm like no, I'm good, I am 100% ready to go back home at this point. So, or to the halfway point, I should say. So, kimba, again, you've had such a long running journey and career, both with not just running but in a lot of varieties of moving your body and fitness For somebody who's just getting started, besides going to their local running store and getting the right shoes so they don't have pain. What are some of the other tips that you would encourage them to take into consideration?
Speaker 3:Every day is practice. Again, you know you're practicing, one of the things that actually motivates me. You jokingly say I have all the skirts and stuff. Yes, oddly enough, that's something that motivates me Putting out my clothes. Okay, I'm gonna wear this cute skirt, I'm wearing this cute top, I'm wearing this cute hat. You know, I have shoes to match. You know, if you're able to and that's something that gives you joy, then yes. And even when I meet up with the girls, sometimes I'll get them involved. I'm like, hey, let's dress princesses, let's dress sparkle, let's do this. You know, just something to keep it motivated and fun.
Speaker 2:My favorite photo from the local run group, I think forever. I just actually commented on it a couple of days ago. Just because it still brings me joy Every time I see it is when you guys coordinated, dressing up in all the different colors of the rainbow, I think for a local pride virtual race, I think I don't know if that was exactly it, but I know that everybody was dressed. You guys formed a beautiful, perfect, like arc of a rainbow. It was so happy feeling just seeing that.
Speaker 2:I'm going to touch on that a little bit because, friends, if you ever did need fashion advice when it comes to running, you are going to absolutely want to check out and talk to Kimba, because I do believe she has every sparkly visor known to mankind, every fun top you could ever hope for and all of the different running skirts. But it's called dopamine dressing and it's like finding little pieces of articles of clothing that, for us, releases that dopamine and makes us feel joyful. I usually utilize that with my sparkle visor. So I don't have quite the running skirt collection you do, but sometimes when I have difficulty getting out for my runs, it is just putting on a fun sparkly visor or a pair of gooder sunglasses. How did you come to that? Do you feel like you do that in your regular day-to-day life, or is running where you get to express yourself a bit more?
Speaker 3:Well, I'm working from home today and I have on a little ground skirt and I dressed up a little bit today, so it just really depends. And I love cosplay. I'm into cosplay as well and I like dressing. Like you said, Star Wars I do a lot of her universe dresses and stuff and I just like that.
Speaker 2:Okay, so do you think that that's where it's also been really fun for you to dabble into some of the local races, where you do get to dress up for them, and do you have a favorite costume from previous years?
Speaker 3:I wouldn't say I do costumes full on, but I do like to coordinate and, like you said, I like wearing the sparkly skirts or the fun tops and I just like doing that sort of thing.
Speaker 2:And we love it as well. Every time you post a photo, I think I hear somebody talking about how much fun your shirt is, and it really does bring us all a smile. So with that, again, I want to thank you so much for being part of the Mod Squad, for sharing your joy, because you don't just keep it just for the online community, though. I'm so grateful that you share it for the brunch community. But again, you really are all about paying it forward and increasing that motivation to get people moving With that before we leave, if you were to suggest for someone who is having difficulty maybe breaking out of their shell and they want to try a little bit of that fun dopamine dressing, what would you suggest for them to dabble into for their first fun? Maybe a little sparkly outfit fun.
Speaker 3:Maybe a little sparkly outfit? Oh, I don't know. I like sparkle athletic because you can wear the skirts over if you're not completely comfortable with wearing a whole, because, like the crown I do, they have skirts underneath and then tops. I do one of the local raw threads and then also my friend designs by Michelle Lynn. I obviously support her only because she pulls out different designs and then you can choose what color and style you want. So there's a huge array of things you can choose from there. Something that makes you feel comfortable, and definitely that too. Just try a bunch of different stuff and find what you're comfortable in, because at the end of the day, you want to be cute but also comfortable and functional. These are all the things that need to happen.
Speaker 2:So I feel like, after this, that we need a little bit of a blog from Kimba on some of the hyperlinks to all of these amazing places that you suggest. So, friends, be on the lookout for that. I will work with Kimba to make that happen, because she just dropped in some really great suggestions and I really do highly recommend that you consider adding in a little bit of fun and joy into your running gear, like Kimba does. Kimba, thank you so much for joining us. Thank you so much for having me. When we first recorded the episode, I thought I should do a blog about dopamine dressing, because Kimba has inspired so much of that joy and infectious positivity through all of her sparkle and fun and her costumes. And then that's where this June celebration came into play. Kimba single-handedly speared each day's themes to really bring to life dopamine dressing, which again is utilizing our running gear to bring us joy, to help give us a pep in our step and, of course, help us to go the distance. So I do hope that you say hello to Kimba, thank her and, of course, join us in that entire global running spirit week so that you can have a little bit of extra sparkle in your day. Now, my friends, we are going to meet the next incredible member of the Mod Squad. Without further ado, let me welcome her on in.
Speaker 2:Lynn is a key figure in our Mod Squad and you'll see her mostly over in our training group, the Extraordinary League. Lynn isn't just a devoted wife, mother and grandmother. She's also a licensed clinical social worker who brings a wealth of knowledge and empathy to everything she does. Brings a wealth of knowledge and empathy to everything she does. Known for her fantastic themed runs, her vibrant social perspective and, of course, she organizes some incredible fun themed runs for us here locally and within our virtual group. Lynn embodies a spirit of community and spirit. Her commitment to promoting mindfulness and movement and intentional self-care makes her a cherished pillar of encouragement.
Speaker 2:I could go on and on and on, because truly Lynn is such a sunny spot in all of our lives, but let me just go ahead and bring her on in so you guys can meet her yourselves. So grab your running shoes and your superhero capes, because you're going to learn more about that here as well. Let's get to know the fiercely fun and competitive Lynn Lynn. Welcome to Brunch. Thank you for having me. Let's get to know the fiercely fun and competitive Lynn Lynn welcome to Brunch.
Speaker 6:Thank you for having me. It's a pleasure talking to you.
Speaker 2:It feels great because we get to talk to each other when we're out for runs and, of course, when we're working together. But I think that this will be a lot of fun because I want to get to know you, maybe on some of these conversations that we haven't quite yet had. So let's do our traditional icebreaker, but with a little bit of a twist. I know you are a run Disney and a Marvel fan. If you could have a long run and a brunch with any of the Disney or Marvel characters, who would it be and what would you want to make sure that you guys are having for brunch together?
Speaker 6:Oh, my goodness, you threw me on that one. I've been, yeah, I've been thinking who would I have brunch with, because I know that comes up, but I have not thought specifically with marvel, but, um, I would probably actually go with a marvel character, um, I'm probably gonna have to stick with Black Widow because, I don't know, I just maybe because I dressed up like her you know, and just she overcame a lot of trauma.
Speaker 2:So is it Black Widow, specifically the character, or would you want to actually have that long run and brunch with the actress, with Scarlett Johansson?
Speaker 6:Okay yeah, the actress, okay Okay. And then, of course, if she embodies a little bit of the Black Widow vibe, you wouldn't.
Speaker 2:And brunch with the actress, with Scarlett Johansson, okay, yeah, the actress. Yeah, yeah, yeah, okay. And then, of course, if she embodies a little bit of the Black Widow vibe, you wouldn't hate that as well.
Speaker 6:I would not.
Speaker 2:What are you guys having for brunch?
Speaker 6:Well, I've recently. I have a good friend, clady, who always orders Eggs Benedict and I had never had them until maybe a few months ago and I, like you, know she always orders this and I love them. So I think I would have eggs Benedict, but because I still have that sweet side, I would have to have at least one pancake on the side with some syrup, because it just keeps me you know, yeah, it's all about that balance and sounds delicious, exactly.
Speaker 2:Okay, lynn, let's talk a little bit more about what got you in to this incredible world of not just running, because, again, as I mentioned, you are a seasoned Ironman triathlete. So how did you get involved in triathlons and running your journey a little bit here.
Speaker 6:Well, I was thinking about that story as I was on a run the other day and basically back in when I was a I don't remember what year it was, but when I was getting close to turning 40 and I was well over 200 pounds at that time and my husband and I both watched the Biggest Loser and we were sitting on the couch eating chips watching the Biggest Loser, thinking this, this is not right, this is not great. So we decided to go on a health journey and I just started moving, walking more, being more attention to what we were eating. You know eating, you know planning our meals. It wasn't anything crazy, and so I, you know, we both lost a significant amount of weight weight. But because I always have to have a goal, once I got to the weight that I wanted to be, then I'm like well, I have to do something to keep me motivated, because that's just how I work.
Speaker 6:So I signed up for a 5k mud run was my very first venture, which is perfect by the, because you only have to run like a quarter mile, then you stop and do a thing, and then you run a quarter mile and you stop and you do a thing. So that actually was lovely, I didn't feel overwhelmed. And then, from there, I've always liked swimming and I've liked biking. I actually do not. Running has not been my favorite. So I have to say, but I'm like, well, I could do triathlons, but I'm going to have to learn to run because, you know, that is the third discipline and the other two things I felt very confident about but that I did not. So that was kind of what got me started with running was the fact that I wanted to do triathlons and so and that was about 13, 12, 13 years ago.
Speaker 2:And yet I've come to know you specifically as a runner. So for me it's wild to hear you say that, because I feel like running is the discipline that you tend to do the most often, and maybe that's because you are more confident in the other disciplines. Also, it could be just the season you're in. So it's been so fabulous to get to know you from that running perspective and I think that anyone who's delving into triathlons should know that most triathletes in my opinion and you please correct me if you're wrong if I'm wrong on this it feels like most triathletes feel a certain way about there's always one discipline that they feel a little bit weaker on. For me it's swimming. So I think that if you are considering diving into the world of triathlons, don't let your concern about being weaker in one of those movements keep you back from making that happen.
Speaker 2:So I think your story parallels a lot of us in terms of wanting to get healthier and moving our bodies and becoming more intentional, which brings us quite a bit to what you really do with the Extraordinary League and as part of the mod squad. There you really are helping us all to have more intentionality between mindfulness moments, especially with our movement and intentionality with our health focus. So how do you feel that that plays into what came first for you chicken or the egg? Is this something that you gravitate toward because of the fact that you're an LCSW and maybe we should let folks know what that is a little bit more? Or do you feel like it's kind of you like to incorporate it now because of the fact that you love movement quite as much as you do?
Speaker 6:That is a very good question. I would say both, okay. I mean it's kind of a both and versus an either or. So an LCSW is a licensed clinical social worker, which means, you know, a lot of people hear the word social worker and they have a certain, they have a certain um thing of you know somebody rescuing right, rescuing children from unsafe homes or those types of things. So as a clinical social worker, I am more of a.
Speaker 6:I function currently as a therapist, so, um, I've worked in the medical side as well. But even in my practice and it's so interesting, the marriage of the mindfulness and the movement and all of those things and the mental health benefits. So I'm, you know, every time I meet a new client, we always start with their sleep, their nutrition and their and their movement and we talk about that. So it's been sort of a natural progression to marry the two. And also, I feel like, because it's important to practice what you preach, so to speak. So I feel like, if I'm telling other people they need to prioritize their rest and their nutrition and hydration and those things just for their mental wellness, that I need to practice those things.
Speaker 2:And I love that about you because I do now see time and time again when we have our monthly challenges within the group, that you do absolutely practice what you preach. You help to steward and lead other community members by your actions, and a lot of that is driven because you are a little competitive, which I would have never assumed upon first blush. Which, goes to show, never judge a runner by the cover of their sparkly gear, because Lynn is quite the fierce competitor. But talking about sparkly Gear, you love themes and that's actually, I think, how we really connected was you had themed a fun virtual run and while we had known of each other in our local run group, it was really all those themes that kind of brought us together. So how did you get started in creating these really fun, fantastic social events and why do you tend to gravitate toward them?
Speaker 6:Well, I think I've always enjoyed just being silly and not taking my. My job is very serious, as you can imagine, you know, working with people who have fairly intense issues and having to listen to those. I just need the opportunity to not be grown up sometimes and not be super serious. So things that just can be fun are helpful. So I have I've enjoyed. Once I moved down here, I think you know the first fun thing we got to do was a Halloween fun run. So you know, oh good, I get. So I bought my little Darth Vader costume for that. You know there's a thing. So it's like oh, halloween, we can dress up and run. That's fun. And I think it really when COVID happened is really when it amped up, because I just had a Facebook post come up during COVID.
Speaker 2:I dressed up full fairy costume just to run by myself and take pictures along the way. Just because I did the same thing, I dressed up in a unicorn an inflatable unicorn costume during COVID, to take pictures and have fun along the way. And so see, friends, why we obviously gravitate towards each other, even in isolation right.
Speaker 6:And then I think it really got full-fledged when, um the in 2021, when they canceled dopey, um and one of our friends here locally, tr Tricia, who you've had on the podcast before. She's a perfect dopey. I didn't want my friend to not get to have her perfect dopey, so I turned into a race director and we kind of created all these photo stops and I actually got to do the bride from Haunted Mansion because I wasn't running, I was, you know, photo stop. So we were haunted mansion photo stop and um, but we had all of the photo stops and we oh gosh, we had so many people come out who were big Disney fans, had somebody that built a boat and did a Moana and then got their whole family out there dressed up, and it was incredible.
Speaker 2:It was intense. It was intense, it was fun. We did fireworks and everything.
Speaker 2:It was so much fun that's, I mean, absolutely extraordinary, which, of course, is what I feel that you bring to the group as well, because there is so much fun, support. And I love how you're talking about approaching our fitness goals, because, again, being goal-oriented is something that we both gravitate toward, but approaching it with a sense of joy and lightheartedness to keep it going, because there are times that it can be quite the drudgery of those intense weeks. So I kind of want to bring the focus back to that because, again, you got into fitness along the way. You started with a mud run, but from a mud run you've graduated into some pretty big titles when it comes to the world of endurance. So how did you decide or how did you feel when you first said, yeah, I'm ready to tackle this?
Speaker 2:Was it something you always had? I call them those big, audacious goals? Were wanting to be an Ironman or wanting to be a marathon, or something you always knew that you kind of had wanted but never thought it was for you? Or did it just evolve after being in it and meeting others?
Speaker 6:A little of both. I mean, it's kind of like with runner, and triathlon is similar to runners in that you're around other people and they're always talking about the next thing. And for me, because running was so weak the first time I signed up for a half marathon, I'm like if I can run that far, then I can do a half Ironman. I was like so it was always about if I can do that, then I can do the whole thing, because the bike and the swim never worried me, right. I was like that was just putting the time in and it would be fine, but I don't know if I can run a half marathon. So once I ran a half marathon I was like, well, I can do a half iron, that's fine.
Speaker 6:So the funny one was the transition from that to the Ironman, because I had that same mentality and I actually saw an interview with somebody it was a local person in a local paper who was an Ironman athlete that said their first Ironman was their first marathon. I'm like what I can do an Ironman without having to run a marathon first? And then I was about to turn 50. And then so it was sort of that I'm turning 50. I have to do something big.
Speaker 2:Oh my gosh. Okay, so I did. I don't think I realized that, or put that together and I love and I want to call that out again. So your first Ironman distance was your very first marathon, correct? Wow, incredible. What fears did you have going into it? Um, I actually didn't. Okay, give us your, your Jedi.
Speaker 6:Well, I had a, I had a coach, um, so I followed the training, I did everything. I had maybe a little bit of a about the run, because my longest run before the race was 15 miles. Okay, so I had never run more than 15 miles before I checked. Now, to be fair, in the whole weekend I had run over a marathon distance, right, because I had, like you know, an hour run one day and then 15 miles the next day and a five, you know whatever. So cumulatively I had run over 20 miles, which is exactly what I was going to bring up.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so for folks again, I've never made the mention that I'm a triathlon type coach by any means, but in terms of endurance sports in general, you don't necessarily have to run the distance because there is the principle of cumulative fatigue which, when you're talking about three disciplines of endurance, it makes sense. So, since you're doing a lot of transitions and brick work, when the brick workouts are usually when one discipline follows the other usually it's bike then run for the traditional bricks that I'm aware of yeah.
Speaker 2:So again, the endurance was there, which is the most important part, but I could still feel I could. I would have a sense of trepidation when you're first starting it off, but it went haha, pun intended a little bit swimmingly, clearly, because here you are, it did, and you are embarking, that we didn't stop, because you're still embarking on some really big, audacious goals as you continue to move forward. So what, what does propel you? Because, as you started this conversation off, you like to have goals. What about those really actually speak to you and how does it motivate you to keep going to?
Speaker 6:keep going. Well, again, it's figuring out for me. You know I'm, you know how old am I now? I don't think I'm like 57, I think something like that. But so as I get older, you know, I also recognize that we slow down. So I have to readjust and, you know, have some honesty with myself of what the goal needs to look like. It's not always getting faster, it's not always going to be being at a certain weight or being able to do so. It is, it has.
Speaker 6:I've had to be more creative and I know we've talked quite a bit about the goal thing and how to narrow that down. And so you know, and as you know, my current goal is to get my half marathon time at a level where I can put in a proof of time at Disney so that I can get better corral placements, so that. So I have to have a reason for the goal. It's not like I'm just going to push for no reason. So figuring out that under that overarching why goal has become more important as I've gotten over I think the 50 was just I'm turning 50. I have to do something big. That wasn't necessarily.
Speaker 2:You're what you're saying. It has so much. There's so much powerful stuff. I want to kind of talk a little bit about that.
Speaker 2:First and foremost, I too have difficulty with processing that I am older than I once was when I first started my endeavor with running. And having to have that conversation of looking at the times that I had before to what I have now may not always be a possibility and that's always a bit harder to take into consideration and looking at different ways of still reaching our goals. But setting we connect the way that originally will shift as we continue to move forward, because that proof of time at Disney means a lot in terms of those fun corral placements. So it doesn't always have to be a super deep connection, introspective. It can be about really trying to work hard to have a lot more fun in our lives, which is essentially what I think of when I think of those corral placements and proof of time type goals, right. So I do love that.
Speaker 2:I do love that you spend a lot of again. You practice what you preach. I hear quite often where you will spend some time in introspection before actually responding in terms of things that you are looking at for yourself in your own journey, and I think that that's where that mindfulness and intentionality comes into play. So, when you're thinking about that in terms of mindfulness and intentional self-care, about that in terms of mindfulness and intentional self-care, how do you feel that we can maybe shift our focus from the here and now, really quick, kind of fixes that we all want, those little dopamine rushes, into more of a longer journey of mindfulness, a longer journey of mindfulness.
Speaker 6:Well, I mean, I think for me is just going back to having it. I know we started at the beginning of the year with the vision boards and I haven't done them a lot in the past. I do like them because it puts it in front of you, for, oh, how is this thing that I'm wanting to do right now helping me towards that goal that I have set? You know is it is know mindful in the moment, or, you know, I also like the mindful movement, probably more so than the quietness. I have a tendency to have a busier brain, which is a way I like to word things. It's a more positive way of saying that. So I find that often, with busier brains, sometimes finding something else to focus on, to be mindful, which is why I gravitate towards more the action, mindfulness, versus the just sitting. I mean, I do try the silence, but, yeah, that is more challenging.
Speaker 2:Again. You have so much snippets here. So, friends with in the Extraordinary League, we kicked off January where we talked about big, audacious goals and one of the first things before we actually set our goals was to have more of a vision board, just to kind of have a visual representation of maybe things that we gravitate toward before declaring our goal, which I think is really important, and I'm glad you reminded me of that because I think it's time for me to revisit my vision board a little bit and see how I'm coming along. It's a great time to check in across the way.
Speaker 2:But I also love how you're talking about how mindfulness doesn't have to look the same for everyone, and I think for a lot of us that do gravitate towards endurance sports I'm gonna use that phrase instead of specifically running but a lot of this is because we do have busier brains and this is a sport that helps us in terms or a habit that helps us in kind of creating some space for mindfulness. So I think that there's a lot to that and I love how, basically, what I'm hearing you say is it's not a skill that we can just turn on and off. It's kind of a practice of that mindfulness, especially if we're going to try to do it with mindful movement. So you are one of the most consistent athletes that I have the privilege of working with. What's your secret sauce?
Speaker 6:Well, a lot of it is habit.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 6:Honestly, you know it's the same way of developing any healthy habit. It's gotten to be such a practice now that you know getting up at whatever time in the morning. You know, we've been in the book club, we've been listening to the book and she talks quite a bit about that too, like she gets up at the same time every day and she runs and or she does her workouts and it's just become a part of. It's not that I have to think of, oh, I need to get up and exercise, it's just what you do. It's like getting up and brushing your teeth. You know it's when you have to think about it or figure out what I'm going to do.
Speaker 6:I think it's more challenging. But and I know, this week I think I had put in the mindfulness moment about habit bundling. So it's attaching it to an pre existing habit to create it and, like this week, I've actually been doing it with the book because I have it on audio book. So I've been actually working on adding the habit of reading more or listening to the audio books and so, but I only allow myself to listen to it when I'm out for my walk. So I'm like, oh, I want to hear what happens next.
Speaker 6:I'm going to walk a little further or whatever. So it has really.
Speaker 2:I agree. Actually, that's something that I talk about with folks too, with athletes, where I suggest that if they're having difficulty getting motivated to find a really incredible book or a podcast or a series, something though that where it kind of leaves a bit of a cliffhanger so that they can only listen to it when they need to get back out there, so let's talk about that Cause I think that's a pretty practical tool that's utilized, that can be utilized to help, um, keep motivation's going to wane, but how to stay focused and consistent. So what are some other tips and tricks, because you have plenty up your sleeve that you use to keep yourself getting out that door. It's habit. But I also know that you are a big social runner as well, or a social athlete all the way around. So what are some of the other things that you have used along the way that have helped you to form such a strong connection to your habit?
Speaker 6:Well, and I think you know, obviously signing up for races, having a thing that you're going to show up for and you know you want to do well at that, that's always helpful. And back back to I know it's you know, back to basics. We kind of talked a little, I know, in some of in the training group about the back to basics kind of things.
Speaker 6:I go to bed at a good, I go to bed at 9 or 9 30 yeah, yeah so we turn the tv off and we go to bed, and so then I wake up between 4, 30 and 5 an alarm. I do set my alarm just in case, but I don't need it most of the time because I go to bed.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think that there are some foundational habits and, as you mentioned, when you talk to your clients and part of why you do practice what you preach with your clients is because of the fact that there are some foundational habits that really you can build on.
Speaker 2:As you preach with your clients is because of the fact that there are some foundational habits that really you can build on, as you mentioned, with habit bundling or, if anyone's familiar with James Clear's work, he calls it habit stacking. It's essentially the exact same thing, but basically it is where, like, one foundational habit will have so many great opportunities for folks to feel better when they wake up, which means that likely you'll get out for your run or your exercise or your intentional movement for the day and it kind of just sets the entire day with a different tone. So I love that you're talking about that. But now I want to talk about all the fun that you incorporate because, again, there's tons of fun. Can you give us an idea of, maybe, someone who's looking, maybe they think they're listening and they're like okay, I get what you guys are talking about. You have Disney there. That's tons of fun in your backyard that we can, that you have planned a lot of our fun get togethers at.
Speaker 2:But how do the average individuals maybe, who don't love fitness and intentional movement as much, make it more fun and engaging? What would you suggest for folks that are kind of listening and trying to think about ways to make it a bit sillier, lighthearted or a bit more motivating for them to get out that door?
Speaker 6:Well, you know, to be fair, I started running when I lived in Tennessee, so my first four or five, whatever, before we moved down here. So I had five or six years of running and triathlon with no access to Disney. But still, you know, finding a different route to go on the mud run was an excellent starter, because you're like crawling, ducking under logs, getting in the mud, you're filthy, dirty. There are bubble runs, there are color runs. There are all these different're filthy dirty. There are bubble runs. There are color runs. There are all these different themed kind of things. There's zombie runs. Have you ever seen the zombie?
Speaker 2:I've done a zombie.
Speaker 6:The zombies chase you and you have to. You can sign up to be a zombie and chase the runners, or you can be a runner.
Speaker 2:So, basically, do a little bit of hunting, spend a little bit of time with Google, but you know what One thing that I think that again you do and I'm going to bring it back to you have to know yourself, like so for individuals, that if zombies aren't your jam, then that's not going to motivate you ever. Maybe you do love the idea of a bubble runner, do love the idea of a bubble runner that have inflatable 5k obstacles, or you kind of want to live out your life as um, I don't know more of OCR type things. So basically, it sounds like have a little bit of a get to know yourself and do a quick accounting as to what makes you excited and then figuring out ways of how to incorporate that into fitness. Does that sound pretty much like what you're saying? Now? How do you feel that?
Speaker 2:What would you say to women who are at the point where they, as you mentioned, having to deal with maybe they're changing and feeling like they are, that society expects them to slow down and I'm using air quotations as I say that because I don't see when I talk to you. They are, but society expects them to slow down, and I'm using air quotations as I say that because I don't see when I talk to you or see all of your incredible stats come through. I don't see a woman who is letting society tell her that she has to slow down. I see you actually kind of figuring out ways to really ramp up and focus on a little bit more of me time. So what would you say to other women that might be in similar shoes?
Speaker 6:Well, that's so funny that you say that, because you know, as I was thinking about the other, the question about the brunch thing and who I was actually thinking of was a woman called the Iron Nun. Oh, okay, and she's written a book now, but she is 92, she's still running. She actually has a Nike commercial. She made it into a Nike commercial because she's done Ironman. She's the oldest woman to have completed an Ironman race. She didn't start running until 47. Yes and yeah. So I'm curious about reading her book.
Speaker 2:I think that's a book club. For sure, we're gonna have to make that happen, cause that sounds incredible.
Speaker 6:Yeah, about her motivation, about the gifts that you've been given as a person and that it's your responsibility to take those gifts and share them with others, and and you know. But yeah, they've had to add age group categories to Ironman races just because she kept living longer than the age group category.
Speaker 2:Oh, my goodness.
Speaker 6:I love that.
Speaker 2:I love that. So, friends, if you're not familiar, we are speaking of Sister Madonna. I believe the last name is Booter. Booter Okay.
Speaker 2:Okay and yes, absolutely. When I think of an extraordinary individual, it is absolutely individuals like herself who are defying the limits of what we may have perceived previously. I think, for me, what I see too is it's almost a gift, as we may have a different point in our lives where that season of you don't have maybe quite the same type of responsibilities I'm not gonna say you don't have as many responsibilities but they're not quite the same in terms of raising littles or having a little bit more opportunities to really kind of use all of the years of wisdom that we've accumulated to throw into endurance, type sports. So I think there's a lot of it's about that reframing, which I know that you talk a lot about when you do your mindfulness post as well, and it's reframing that mindset, that it's just how we choose to look at it and what we can make happen during that time. So I want to invite myself to that brunch. I would totally invite myself to the brunch with Black Widow as well, but I think I would really really want to talk to Sister Madonna. She sounds incredible.
Speaker 2:Okay, lynn.
Speaker 6:She does.
Speaker 2:You are incredible as well and again, I can't thank you enough for everything that you do in terms of supporting others. But I want to highlight, before we officially finish up, I kind of want to highlight a little bit more of, maybe words of encouragement that you would have, just for people who are listening, as to getting a little bit of that mindful movement habit in place.
Speaker 6:Okay, well, I mean, I think it's starting small with the mindful movement. You could sign up for a triathlon. No, the reason I say that is with triathlon you actually aren't allowed to have headphones or any music, so you truly have to learn how to, especially on the longer ones. That is a big challenge. You really have to learn mindfulness to be able to do a distance triathlon. Because there's no, there's no listening to your music or whatever Right.
Speaker 6:So I do think, as far as my exercise, mindfulness, my movement, mindfulness, doing it without any sound sometimes I think is a good helpfulness. I know that's a stretch for people and people complain about it when I bring it up, but it really helps you work through things In, whether it's just stress or things you need to think through, because sometimes we can just keep our minds so much noise that we don't ever deal with things and they can build up. And you know, sometimes you have to actually process a thought or a situation and spend some time there. And I know another one and you and I have talked about this a few times as well is because I have a tendency to do all of the reframing and going to a positive place and I tend to stay fairly positive most of the time. Sometimes it's okay to not. You know, it's obviously okay to not always be okay. If that makes sense, it's fine to have there are.
Speaker 6:You know, I had that race a few weeks ago. I was very grumpy. I had a lot of things going on and I just needed to be grumpy and that's okay. It was a grumpy day and I didn't stay grumpy all day. I got through it and then I was fine. I had some brunch after you know, we had a nice thing at a little place to eat and then everything was good. But I was very grumpy and even tearful and things like that and had a lot of emotion. And that's okay and I don't have to change that immediately. It's okay to sit with those harder feelings and sometimes a good run or a workout endurance workout can kind of let that emotion come to the surface.
Speaker 6:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 2:I love everything you just said. I feel like you're speaking all of my love languages, because I came to running to literally, literally run away from my thoughts. So it wasn't until I kind of became a bit more seasoned in both my journey as a runner and in processing emotions that I let myself actually go distraction free, and it has been quite the game changer. So I agree, starting small, so maybe don't, maybe not signing up for an Ironman for your first one out for your intentional movement and mindful movement, but maybe at least a short walk up to the mailbox or down the street might help. So that's always a great way of approaching it.
Speaker 6:That's where I started. I mean, all of my first six months of my fitness journey was walking and I even had a walking program. So it had some things like walking a little faster, walking a little, so it had intervals, but it was walking intervals so it was like these power walks and then a walk, and then a power walk and then a walk. So it started very. You know, that was where it started.
Speaker 2:It's literally just with one single step. So, friends, if you are thinking that you want to join Lynn and maybe making some of your big audacious goals happen with all of this fun, then you know where to find her and find us. You can find her at the Time for Brunch community page and also over at the League. But thank you, lynn, for sharing time with me. It's so much fun. Can't wait to also have you back with the, your fellow mod squad, for a brunch conversation here.
Speaker 2:Thank you for having me so much, and that's exactly what we're going to do. We're going to bring back Lynn and, of course, mod squad members for the fun runs this entire summer. So Lynn will be orchestrating and leading our in-person summer series virtual on June the 1st, but we've got tons of fun in store. She's come up with some really great ideas, so we want you to definitely RSVP and participate, no matter where in the world you are. Now, my friend, we're going to keep the fun going.
Speaker 2:Next up is Sally Wyant, a treasured member of our mod squad. She's a mom a fur mom as well and she's our trivia leader extraordinaire inside of the training group. Living in Pennsylvania, Sally's life is a vibrant mix of running trails, guiding trivia nights for the league and nurturing her family as an avid runner. She not only conquers the roads and trails herself, but she also brings energy and enthusiasm to our online community, always ready to support and cheer on her fellow runners and she kind of leads those mileage challenges as well. Her love for trivia brings a unique flavor to her interactions. She also hosts our movie nights and she makes conversations both enlightening and entertaining. And today we're going to find out more about Sally's running adventures, her trivia talents and how she balances her busy life with humor and grace. So grab that favorite brunch or run snack. Let's get to know more about Sally's journey through running, trivia and life. Welcome, Sally officially here.
Speaker 4:Hi Christine, hi everybody. It's such a pleasure to be on here today.
Speaker 2:I'm so excited. I actually feel like you may have been the very first person to listen to the podcast, so I'm going to give you that credit. Can I go ahead and give you that?
Speaker 4:Sure.
Speaker 2:Okay, yes, so I'm excited that now we have you and the chance to talk to you. So, as you're likely aware, I want to get to know you a little bit more. But we're going to start with a bit of a brunch icebreaker. So if you could have a long run followed by a brunch, with any celebrity running, non-running, whoever it may be, who would it be and what would you order for this brunch?
Speaker 4:Well, besides you not a celebrity. But you're a celebrity with the brunch group. But I would have to pick either Chris Twiggs or Joan Benoit. I don't know if I'm Benoit, you are Samuelson, samuelson. It's a tie between both of them because they have so unique aspects in their running journey that I find that it would be interesting just to have that long run with either one of them. And then I would have to say my go-to brunch would be like French toast, bacon and fruit cocktail type of mix. That would be my go-to breakfast.
Speaker 2:That sounds delicious and what a fantastic I'm going to say you could probably have them both. That'd be such a great conversation and that would definitely be some delicious foods to order. Oh, friend, with that said, you have an amazing long run in brunch and order. I want to know, though, how did you get involved with running and this is actually. I'm super excited to learn about this, because I don't know when you started running. I don't know much about your running journey and I can't wait to learn more about it.
Speaker 4:Well, it's kind of interesting. So I've always, when I was younger, in high school, I always wanted to join track or cross country, but I never had that push from anyone in my life to go go try it out and see how you like it. So when my husband but boyfriend at the time we started college together at Mount Elisha's college and they actually started a cross country the very year that we enrolled in the college, he ended up signing up for it. I did not do it the first year and with watching him and with the encouragement from him and all the his teammates and the coach, I ended up joining the cross country team the following year and that kind of sparked my running journey and I've been running ever since. And with running in college, with achieving all my goals of PRs at cross-country meets, finishing that first 5K, all that it just kind of sparked me to continue that running journey of half marathons. I did do a marathon before my kids having, but it just kind of sparkled it.
Speaker 2:So you've always been about the endurance life. If you got into cross-country and then you kind of continued in that. So it's evolved a bit, but I feel like you still make it a very big priority or it's a big aspect of your life, is that?
Speaker 4:pretty true. Yes, that's definitely true. With me it's. I enjoy that long runs, even if it's just three or four miles. It's just that time alone of thinking clearing my head. It's just that time alone of thinking, clearing my head, thinking what do I plan on achieving with this run today, or what are my goals for my future runs, and I just, it's just pure me time during those runs.
Speaker 2:So it's like your little time to be able to say, okay, sally, it's just me, you, my headphones and my footfalls, and kind of process what's going on, or to also think about the future, yes. So let's talk a little bit about that. What do you have on the horizon for your incredible running journey, since it has evolved over the years?
Speaker 4:Yes, so right now here in a couple months, I'm actually in the training for a fall marathon, for Veterans Marathon in November, with the aspect of doing the Pittsburgh Marathon in the spring. So I'm really excited for those two races coming up. And also with my kids, they're actually with me doing all my runs, they're getting inspired, so we're actually working with them on their running journey of trying out for cross country track.
Speaker 2:My goodness, I love that. So you are quite literally changing how they come to their own aspect of running. Now I'm curious do they join you for some of the runs, or do you still try to carve out my run time and then maybe only meet with them for like warm ups and cool downs?
Speaker 4:Yeah, so it's mostly with them, since they are just starting out. I kind of do like either warm up or cool down with them and then the main part of portion of my run is by myself, because I want that time to focus on what I'm doing, my intentions for that run, whereas with the warm up and cool down it's kind of that fun time where we can join together with that.
Speaker 2:So I love that you're making it family time but still really preserving, as a method of, like, your self-care. So is that, I guess what I'm asking is for folks that are listening in and it can feel you're making it sound easy to balance all of the different roles, but in reality, how do you balance all of these different hats that you wear?
Speaker 4:Sometimes it is not easy at all.
Speaker 2:I know I'm thinking specifically a couple of weeks ago, where you posted about your day and I think you got out for a run pretty late in the evening. I don't know if it was on the treadmill or outdoors, but you definitely had quite the day. So I can't imagine that every day it's as smooth sailing as it sounds.
Speaker 4:No, it's not. But with me it's just that I am all about the scheduling, like I try to have a schedule time of when my runs are what, the family time, everything that it makes it easier for me. Of course there are going to be those days where it's not going to follow my schedule of what I have planned, but I try to schedule of, like, my runs, my family time, my time with my husband, everything like that. I try to do a carve out a schedule for this is what I have planned for the week and my days.
Speaker 2:I feel like we probably could use a masterclass for Sally and her scheduling, because that sounds incredible. I love how you're quite literally talking about all the different roles and how you figure out time for everybody in that, including time for yourself. So what would you say have been some of like the most challenging aspects of running that you have had so far and maybe some of the ways that you overcame them?
Speaker 4:Well with me. It was when I had my kids. So I actually finished a marathon and then I sustained a little injury. It wasn't anything major, I believe it was just tendonitis. So I took some time off just so that tendonitis can heal in my foot. And then I first found out I was pregnant with my first child and of course, the pregnancy I had her I had an emergency C-section with her.
Speaker 4:So that time off was significant because I couldn't jump right back into running. It took so much time for me just to heal from that. And then about a year after I had my first one so right when I was starting to get back into running again, I had that I was pregnant again and I had to have another C-section. So it was like I had back to back C-sections within two years of each other. So with that it took me a while to get back into running, to heal from that. And then, as being a new mom, I felt like taking that time away to go for a run was taking time away from that for my family time with them being so young. So it was for me. It was just trying not to have that guilt of this is me time. I need to find that balance and, of course, with me finding that balance, it inspires them to go try out things like running and stuff inspires them now.
Speaker 2:I love that so much but, goodness gracious, let's again thinking back to how hard right now we know this hindsight 2020, but in the moment I could feel the angst of one having running be such an important part of your life and then not being able to do it for a couple of years, or just getting back to it and then having the aspect of not being able to again and then coming back from healing and, of course, as you mentioned, dealing with that guilt of taking away time from the family and the kiddos. So, back then, what are some of the things that you may have used to convince yourself? Or did you try at that point, getting a jogging stroller and just bringing them with you? How did you balance that aspect to get over if you could actually ever get over the guilt, but maybe to minimize it or to make it a little bit more quiet?
Speaker 4:So the one way I tried to minimize it was I ended up buying a double jogging store stroller. Oh, that was such a workout with both of them. They were the people that do jogging store strollers. I have to give them credit, because that was hard to go for run, it was more of like speed walking I'm going to be honest with it, yeah, because it was so challenging with that.
Speaker 4:But that was one way of of how I tried to find that balance of like, all right, I, even though I may not be quote unquote running and might be speedwalking, but I'm still getting out there, still trying to achieve my goals and spending that time with both my kids at the same time of getting out, getting out in the fresh air, enjoying our time together. And that was one way. Another way was all right. I sat down with myself and spoke with myself why, why am I feeling this guilt Like how I try to take a step back of, why am I feeling this way? And when I thought about it, it was just. I had to find that balance of with everything. And when I thought about it, it was just I had to find that balance of with everything and I had to make notes of what. What was my plans, what was my goals with running and what was my goals and plans with my mother, with being a mom, like balancing the two roles together.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah. I love how you sat down and had like an introspective discussion with yourself, because I think that that's obviously at the root of it all is trying to figure out like how to convince ourselves that this is something that's worthwhile by looking at the long term, and it sounds like you did. You looked at the long run. So I love this jogging stroller. You know how I feel about them, sally. I feel like they should count for like quadruple miles, because moms that are pushing these jogging strollers are absolutely extraordinary in my mind. I can't even fathom it. Just because I can, I can barely get myself out there for a run a majority of the time, but getting your kiddos involved, I think it's so healthy and so wonderful but also deserves a lot of kudos. So double thumbs up for me on getting that done for yourself and still returning to running the way that you have, which leads us to the next thing.
Speaker 2:You are all about the thumbs up and encouraging and supporting, and that's why I'm so excited for you to be part of the mod squad for both of the groups. But specifically, you do a lot of stuff for the training group and I think it started where you decided. You know we need a little bit of extra element of fun while still connecting virtually with everyone. So one of the very first things that stands out in my mind is that you started hosting a movie nights. What made you think of that? How did it go down Like? Give us more details about why did you decide to do movie nights and how much fun it's been.
Speaker 4:Well, it's kind of started with the Crown and Conquer challenge and it was with that. One was like we dealt with all the different princesses with that challenge. However, with the Velen's challenge, that's whenever the Haunted Mansion came out and it was one of those movies that I want to see in theaters but unfortunately I did not get out. It came out on Disney Plus and with all of us doing the Village Challenge, I thought this would be a great way to pull us all together and to have fun with, even though we are all spread across the country and other continents. This will be one fun way to try to gather together and have a little fun together.
Speaker 2:And it was. It was seriously. So I'm going to boast about Sally for a little bit. I'll brag on her because she's not going to herself, but what she does is generally she sets up the movie poll in terms of what works for the most amount of people. She set up not one, but two actually viewings for the folks that weren't able to come to the first one, and then she figures out ways for folks to stay in contact when to start it. So it does feel like you're actually in I would say even better than being at a movie theater with friends, because you're actually able to chat a little bit more with communicating via messenger or communicating via the chat, and getting to kind of feel that.
Speaker 2:And you broke out trivia that night and I feel like I am the Haunted Mansion aficionado, but you broke out trivia that night for that movie that I had no idea, no clue. So you definitely did your homework. So how, what made you think of? Not only are we going to have a fun connecting movie night during this Villains Challenge and the Villains Challenge was pretty intense because we had a team face off but you were able to connect our teams with the movie night. What made you also add this really fun trivia aspect to it.
Speaker 4:Well, I've always found it fascinating when I watch a movie is like the final little tidbits of stuff, that's bloopers or behind the scenes of the movies, and I always enjoy that. So when I hosted the movie night I was like, well, a lot of us with me going into a movie, I miss a lot of stuff in it. So I thought, well, this will be a great way to say, hey, did you guys see this or that during the movie? Because I know I will miss it. I'm just kind of engulfed with the movie aspect of it. So that's how it started.
Speaker 4:And then I also did for the Slay, the Holidays, the Home Alone, and I'm a big fan of that movie. I watched it as a kid growing up, so that was so much fun and there was stuff in that movie that I didn't even know and I thought I was pretty knowledgeable about the Home Alone movie and I found out stuff from that movie that I didn't even know about. So that was interesting, yeah. And after that I was just like you know what Everyone seems to be enjoying all of these the movie night set. I kind of continue it, although I did take a break in January and February just because my schedule was kind of we were either battling illness or one thing I know like for the entire month of February. One of us was sick with something, either strep or the flu or whatnot.
Speaker 2:Yeah, In your household.
Speaker 2:Yes, well, I've mentioned it as well for the pretty much month of February and March, I feel like for me, like for four weeks, it was just constant being sick and not.
Speaker 2:It was an interesting season, but we're getting healthy, we're getting back to it and you're back at it, encouraging folks with these fun trivia themed days and with movie nights. So I love it. I want to thank you so much publicly because I do think it's such an element of fun, because, while the challenges are very fitness or wellness focused, it's really great to be able to bring that camaraderie with that aspect as well. So I do want to bring it also back to kind of your running, because you've touched we're touching on that how one of the big things that pulls us together in the training group is that we all most of us share a true passionate love affair with running. And then we look at all the other aspects of our lives as kind of feeding into being better runners. But how has running influenced other aspects of your life? I know that we look again as to how we can be better athletes for our running, but what would you say that running has helped you with in other arenas of your life?
Speaker 4:I think for me it's just it inspired me to kind of push myself into other roles of where I might not have done it if I wasn't running. So for me I kind of opened myself up to like going to my children's school, volunteering there. More of doing library days, once a month they have a chapel day of me doing a Bible lesson with them. So it kind of opened myself up to where doing more public speaking, where because when you're running a race you're kind of surrounded by tons of people and you're attending off to where it's people and you tend to not worry. It's like I'm in this for me, and that's how it inspired me in other aspects of where I do not like to be the center of attention and this kind of pushed me to be okay, I need to step out of my comfort zone and broaden my horizons in other fields as well.
Speaker 2:Oh, that's so special, sally, seriously, because actually I feel very similar to running in that way as well. I feel like before running I wouldn't call myself necessarily a wallflower, but I was okay with kind of just being quiet, and now I feel like running has boosted my confidence to tackle things that I may not have tackled in the past.
Speaker 4:Yes, yes, that's how I feel totally Like. And then, even where I'm not necessarily like the fastest runner, you know like I'm the back of the pack or middle of the pack it actually got to me to the point where I helped out one with cross country they were in between coaches at the time, the one left and they were trying to find a replacement where I hosted for the kids for a week of cross country training because it was during my training and I thought, well, why don't I help the kids out along with myself with doing speed intervals of long runs, of far glutes, and it was so enjoyable for them and for myself as well. It was so enjoyable for them and for myself as well. So with running, it definitely has boosted my confidence where, if I wasn't running, I doubt I would even have done that with the kids.
Speaker 2:Oh, that's so exceptional, though, and I love how, again, I mentioned earlier on and we talked about juggling different, wearing different hats, but for me it feels like you have found ways to kind of really wear them all at one time, so taking the love of running to again being there for the kids in a different way and then even stepping out into these brand new horizons with being in leadership positions and really kind of leading by example for your children, which is so exceptional.
Speaker 2:So you know, sally again, as somebody who's listened to the podcast, clearly that I am a pretty hardcore Florida runner since I was hatched here, have run here a majority of my life when I started running, so I call myself a Goldilocks runner, where I run when it's not too cold and I like it when it's not too hot, though that's very rare here in Florida.
Speaker 2:But you, on the other hand, are what I would consider a trued and tried I mean tried and true 100% all season runner, because you do get real, actual changes of seasons. So what are some of your favorite tips that you would have for folks in terms of different seasons, with running gear specifically, and how to take that into account from spring going into summer, because we're in a lot of fluxes here, here in Florida. Literally it's you just put on one long sleeve shirt and you're good to go, and then the rest of the time you're in tank tops. So tell me more about some of your go-to running gear or some tips that you would have for folks that have more seasonal type running.
Speaker 4:I am all about talking to other fellow runners that are in your area that what they have tried with running, with what they wear, what they don't wear. I tend to be of. I dress in all layers and then I like to pull them off, just because with our area it goes from one extreme to the other, like last week was literally flooding, or maybe two weeks ago it was flooding, we had rain, we had sleet, we had hail and had snow in one week's time. So it's all about figuring out what works for you and with the weathers.
Speaker 4:I tend to look at the weather forecast and say, okay, if it's going to be this weather, I'm going to dress and I have underarm compression clothing. I'll wear my long johns and then I'll have another layer of a little bit warmer and then I'll have a coat or jacket to wear, and then, of course, I'll have my headwear of whatever, depending on what the weather is either a visor, I will wear my I'm having a moment, I can't think of it of toboggan or whatever you might want to call it and stuff like that where I can kind of shut it off when I get warm. I do not like to run in extreme cold weather, even though I live in Pennsylvania and it does get pretty cold here it's too extremely cold I do break up my long runs between the treadmill and then I'll go outside for the rest of the, where I am getting that exposure, but I do utilize the treadmill during the winter months when it's too extremely cold.
Speaker 2:Well, let's also give you credit, I mean, for the fact that you're extremely cold is very different than my extremely cold. I think my extremely cold is about 50 degrees, where you're actually probably negative 50 degrees. I love that you use your treadmill. That's another thing I'd love to chat about, because I feel like for most runners they have almost a hate-hate relationship with their treadmill, where I feel like you use your treadmill in a way as it is a great tool to have. So can you give us some tips as to, kind of, how did you come to have a better reframe or better mindset about using your treadmill, or is it one of your favorite tools that you have for running?
Speaker 4:Well, when I first started running, I didn't utilize the word treadmill because I did not like it at all. However, as I got to the age now, as I am now, I actually enjoy it because when I look at races that I'm going to do or long runs, I'm able to control the settings where all right if I'm doing this. When you sign up for a race where you or anyone lives, you're not going to get the exact same elevations or inclines as compared to the treadmill. So I do like that. Where well, I'm only going to be here for X mile miles. I can break it up of looking at okay, I'm going to break it down each segment at a time of okay, I'm going to do this at 2% incline and then I'll do it at 1%, I'm going to do that 3%. So it's nice to kind of break it out up like that.
Speaker 4:And then I do utilize the podcast. Those really help to break up it. And then TV I'll kind of put the TV on as background noise, or even having you know something where it plays classical music, or maybe those outdoor sounds where, even though we might not I might not be outside, I try to simulate what it would be like outside and I look at it as another little trinket or tool in the toolbox of running and I just kind of get on there and just set the mileage and just try not to focus on oh gosh, I got another 10 miles to do on this thing.
Speaker 4:Or another 20 miles, incredible.
Speaker 2:I'm going to give you like a huge shout out there that, like we're talking about double digits on the treadmill. I love, though, you gave some really fantastic tools and I'm going to call it back from the very beginning. So, dressing in layers from different seasons to utilizing all the tools at our disposal, like with the treadmill, and really reframing it by varying your inclines or your pacing, helps in terms of those longer miles not feeling quite so long. I also love that you allow yourself to kind of find ways to entertain yourself in so many incredible ways. I think you may be the first person that I've heard of using like nature sounds to immerse yourself in the outdoor type feel.
Speaker 2:I know a lot of folks talk about putting on a fan to help circulate air, because I think that's a big complaint for folks when they don't love the treadmills and it feels a bit stagnant. So that's amazing. I could feel like a little bit of like maybe some beach sounds and feeling a little bit of that breeze, with the ceiling fan to help create it. So, of course, kind of transporting ourselves to where we want to be, even if we can't physically be there. I love that. So you talked about the fact that you're going to be tackling a couple of marathons right around the corner. What are some of your bucket list goals or dreams that you have, and would you be willing to share them with us here?
Speaker 4:Yeah, so I do have a few bucket list of marathons that I would love to do sometime in my life. It's either going to be within the next 10 years or maybe 20. I feel like with my kids at that ages right now it's more of like harder to get off of school, but one of them would be to do like the Celebration Marathon, space Coast Marathon, big Sur Marathon. There is a local ultra marathon that I am possibly going to try to do the next year or two Within the next two years. That's when my big locations goals would be to complete an ultra marathon and then also try a triathlon. I feel like that's going to be a one and done thing of just to say I did it and that's because that's too much to do.
Speaker 2:It was most definitely a one and done for me, but just because, again, as I mentioned, I don't like packing a lot of things, so the fact that I wanted to go out my front door and go out for my run versus needing all the gear.
Speaker 2:But I love these goals.
Speaker 2:I love these big, audacious goals and I love that.
Speaker 2:I do want to call that out because I think that for a lot of us, we hear, when you're on social media, people that are tackling these really big, audacious goals and it sounds like they're doing them back to back or maybe they even are, but there is nothing at all wrong about pursuing it in a way that works for our life and, looking at the long game, if we are truly loving running and all the different assets that it brings to our life and aspects that we get to enjoy with it, then having these big, audacious goals maybe take 10, 20, 30, 40, plus years to achieve.
Speaker 2:There's nothing wrong with that, as, again, it's looking at the whole journey of our running. So I love you sharing that, which brings me to if you have a message that you'd like to share with the listeners here about finding joy in the things that you do, because I feel like that's something that you really do, whether it's your fitness, your running, supporting others, wearing all these different hats in your day-to-day life with your family. What are some of the ways that you would? What's your message you would share with folks about finding joy in those things?
Speaker 4:I would say if you find something that sparkles that joy of like running, like you're hesitant about trying running or trying a triathlon or biking or anything or an instructor, just try it. It may not bring that joy to you that you thought it would, but it might open the door to something else, something another possibility that might sparkle that joy in your life and other aspects. So it's just getting out of that comfort zone of I don't meet that ideal person of certain things, but just trying it out and see what doors that that may open up in your life.
Speaker 2:I love that. That's such a great way to end this conversation seeing how people can spark and all the doors that they can open through experiencing and getting out of their comfort zones. So with that, thank you so very much, sally. I can't wait to continue having you chat with us and continue inspiring us and, of course, adding in those little nuggets of trivia, because they're so much fun. We might have to actually bring one of these trivia to the podcast experiences so people can get a good idea. So thank you so much for joining me. Thank you so much for having me today. Sally is bringing so much fun into our Extraordinary League. I absolutely love the fact that she's created a fun movie night to go with trivia nights. I love it. Thank you so much, sally. Again, mod Squad has been so incredible in helping to really grow and foster community, and our next individual Mod Squad is doing exactly that as well. So, without further ado, let me introduce you to our fourth of our fabulous Mod Squad members.
Speaker 2:As a vital member of the Mod Squad, erin plays a pivotal role in our online community, acting as a moderator, a cheerleader and an outstanding ambassador. Her infectious enthusiasm not only keeps her community supported and engaged but also spreads positivity and fun in every interaction. She's a huge Rent Disney fan I'm sure you guys are not surprised by that and Erin brings her passion for all things Disney into the mix, creating a unique and inclusive space for all runners, fans and, of course, brunch enthusiasts. We're gonna talk about that as well. Apart from her magical duties within the community, erin is also a mom, a wife, full-time employee, and she has some of the coolest hobbies I think I've ever heard, seen and can't wait to dive into them with her. She's also a huge fan of Daft Punk, so we're going to talk a little bit about that too. Okay, without any further ado, let me go ahead and say hello, erin. How are you Hi?
Speaker 5:Christine, very good, thank you, nice being here.
Speaker 2:So excited to have you along with the crew. It has been so much fun getting to know you and all of the positivity that you spread throughout all of your interactions. So, with that said, let's just start a little bit about you. How'd you get into running, or run Disney in general?
Speaker 5:So when I turned 40, so we're going back a few years now. My sister is a huge run Disney fan. She had done the Tower of Terror 10 miler I think it was and she was going on and on about doing Dopey and she really wanted somebody to run with. And I had done some casual running here and there, a few 5Ks. And I said to her you know what I'll go I'm always supportive of my sisters and I said totally, I'll run with you, maybe I'll just do you know a 10K and whatnot. And of course, as she was hyping it up and getting really excited about it, I'm like well, maybe I'll do five and ten, and then maybe I'll do five, ten and a half. And then I went well, I'm just going to go all out and I'm just going to do it. So, really, my first run Disney race was dopey and it was a wild, wild experience. You know something I didn't know I would enjoy as much as I did and how much it actually pushed me as a person. It was really amazing.
Speaker 2:So that's how I got into running. That's extraordinary. I can't fathom going into. Would you have considered yourself a non-runner prior to that?
Speaker 5:Yes, absolutely Okay.
Speaker 2:So essentially going from a non-runner to a dopey finisher. That's just mind blowing and, friends, you guys obviously can't see, but I want to just describe that behind Erin sits her really beautiful mix of both a lot of run Disney with medals, and it's on a metal hanger. That is like an ode to Daft Punk in the best song ever when it comes to anything that you need. But is it harder, better, faster, stronger? Is that your mantra? Officially, that's it. Yeah, yes, it is so, friends, I think that's the perfect mantra for us all to kind of invoke a little bit. So how did you fall madly in love with Daft Punk?
Speaker 5:Oh, I've liked them from the beginning, from when they first started in the late 90s. And when I got together with my husband, he was very much into it and it just kind of progressed from there. For me, I've always liked EDM and French electronic music, so it's just yeah, they're strange.
Speaker 2:And I like that. So how have you, besides the metal hanger where you have all of your run Disney medals and of course a lot of other medals as well, with Daft Punk, how have you kind of merged those two hobbies or bands?
Speaker 5:Well, yeah, I listen to a lot of Daft Punk when I run. Surprisingly, I find the tempo and the beats really good, and their last album, which has a lot more disco funk in it For me, I really like that often as just a way to relax music. I use it in everything I use to study, I use it sew, I use it to do all the fun things I like to do and when I really want to focus. I find Daft Punk is really good for that. It just got a really good cadence to it.
Speaker 2:There's been a lot of research done recently, like in how certain EDM songs really do, are like more compelling to certain populations. Like for me as somebody who is ADHD, like EDM tends to be something that I can utilize as focus music. So I can totally see that and I think that when we're talking about running, there's always that ability to help focus on form and cadence and having a great playlist, which leads me to the next thing. Friends, we put together some playlists occasionally, of course, around these parts, especially for the league, but Aaron is truly the master of all playlists. So, aaron, I am going to put you on the spot and say that I feel like we have to, in conjunction, roll out like one of your special playlists, and maybe Daft Punk will make an appearance there a little bit as well, because, again, she finds different ways of incorporating her love and a lot of fun into what we do with our running. So tell me some of your fun hobbies outside of running, because you kind of already touched on a couple.
Speaker 5:I do. So. One of my other hobbies that takes up most of my time is I'm part of a medieval reenact well, recreation group medieval recreation group because it's called the Society for Creative Anachronism and it's a worldwide organization. There's lots of groups in the States, we have quite a few groups in Canada and there's some in Europe and Australia and so on. So basically it's like-minded people who like to research, understand, get to know the periods from 600 to 1600. And we all get together and hang out and nerd out and geek out. So my specialties are I do sewing, embroidery, gold work, embroidery, illuminations and calligraphy, and cooking. I love historical cooking. So yeah, I do a lot of things.
Speaker 2:You're like a Jackie of all trades.
Speaker 5:Yeah, I kind of like the challenge of different things. So for me, I like to have lots under my belt. I always say I want to be a vampire so that I could learn forever and just be in school constantly and have like a million degrees. That's what I would love to do.
Speaker 2:Oh, that speaks to my heart and soul. So let's get into that and how you have learned so much. What are some of the lessons that you think that you've learned from your running journey? Maybe how has it applied to other aspects of your life?
Speaker 5:For my running journey it's the consistency of making yourself go out and do the miles. If you don't do the miles it makes it really difficult to achieve and it plays with your brain. So when you're doing that, for me for those long, long distances like 10K is nothing now because I do that fairly consistently. But if I want to do the bigger miles I have to make sure I put the time in, and it's that preparation to the goal that has helped me in my other things is getting projects ready or getting different items I want to work on is giving myself enough lead time to get those things done, and running has helped quite a bit with that. No-transcript For me, nutrition is the hardest when I'm doing my long distances.
Speaker 5:I haven't figured that out yet and I think that plays very heavily in how your brain lies. To you at that 17 mile range when you're in the marathon, it's like, oh no, you're tired, you're tired. But if you have a good, comfortable program and that you are consistent in following that, including your strength, how you're going to feel yourself when you're running, and hey, you just need to do 16 minute mile. If you can keep consistent that level, you can do this. And what I should have done in the last one, which I didn't finish the marathon in, is I should have stuck with the balloon ladies. They came up to me and they checked in on me and they're like come with us, come with us. And I let my brain say no, but I should have. I should have just said yes, yes, I'll follow you as far as I can and get that just over that hump of your brain. So for me, I like big challenges. It's not for everyone and that's OK too.
Speaker 2:Right, ok, I mean we can tell that you love big challenges, because anybody who does, as you said, kind of couch to dopey is definitely somebody who's all in is definitely somebody who's all in. Do you also feel like you have a different mindset? Maybe around when you say be willing to try and then maybe not actually what quote unquote succeeding? Do you have a different mindset regarding that?
Speaker 5:Yeah, it probably took me about two weeks to really start thinking about it, because I didn't finish my last OP. I was really hard on myself and I said, no, actually it's a learning opportunity. I understood what my brain was doing to me. And then how can I counteract it for next time? Because there's for me, there will be a next time, because I'm crazy that way and I want to say you love it.
Speaker 2:You can't resist it. You're coming back. I can't help it.
Speaker 5:Well, and for me, is that I've done it, so there's no reason why I can't do it again, and is that I've done it, so there's no reason why I can't do it again. And the fact that I didn't do it last time kind of was a kick in the pants for me. So it is okay to fail, because you learn from the failure and that's important in everything and take the time to reflect. And when you and I had our chat, what was it the next day after the marathon, it really helped me think well, no, yes, hey, actually that was an accomplishment. 17 miles of the marathon is still a great accomplishment. I may not have met my goal that I thought I personally should be able to do, but I still did four days of running.
Speaker 2:Right, exactly, with four very early wake ups and very minimal sleep and a lot of miles on your feet outside of the actual runs and races. Yes, I love that you said it was a little bit of a kick in the pants, because it reminds me immediately of Walt Disney has an infamous quote where he said that every now and then we benefit from a good kick in the teeth, and obviously it comes from an individual who failed, and failed spectacularly frequently. So I think it goes back to kind of like failing forward, knowing that we're going to have some setbacks, and just kind of trying to course correct it a little bit as we move forward.
Speaker 5:And not be afraid of it. Not being afraid of it is the biggest right. You know, my daughter is afraid of failure. She it's just something in her head. So I always try to show her when I do so, that she can learn that hey, it's okay, it's okay, this is how we progress, this is how we progress, this is how we learn, how we move forward. Fear is normal. That's a part of life. So right.
Speaker 2:I think that that's such a valuable lesson that we need to take away. If we are, especially when we're like tackling big, audacious goals which you know, I'm not my big fan of saying that, because I think it's like it takes audacity it also takes a willingness to be able to fail, because if it is big, if it's audacious, there is a big chance that it may not actually go the way that we have planned. So, with that said, you said one of the biggest things you would tell somebody to do if they were thinking about doing couch to dopey would be to find somebody who did couch to dopey. So tell us more, my friend.
Speaker 5:Well, I'm always willing if somebody wants to chat about that. Totally, I was very lucky in my first dopies. There was a couple of runners on the run disney face groups and they were like, hey, I've got a plan together, this is what I'm doing for my challenge. And I had reached out to one of the guys and I was like, would you be interested in doing a couch to dopey? And he was totally willing.
Speaker 5:So there's lots of resources out there and it's just making sure you give yourself enough lead time, because essentially you're doing couch to five and then you'll be working your five to ten and so on. So you're just progressing in your mileage. So the closer you get to your dopey time frame, you're going to be doing your big mile chunks and your big running stints time frame. You're going to be doing your big mile chunks and your big running stints. So I started in February of that, after registration basically, and then did it.
Speaker 5:So I had two days of straight tanking and then three days of running, and the three days of running would alternate. I'd have like two days one week and then I'd add an additional, you know, like cycling or something else, just to kind of break it up and that's what I did. Unfortunately for me, I got injured at one point. So you've got to be really careful about injuries and stuff like that when you're new to running, because it's very easy to do, especially if you're not giving yourself enough recovery time, enough fluid, like there's just so much. But our, you know that time for brunch like that's what we all here for right, to support and help out and that's what you do.
Speaker 2:You're helping out with that training aspect of it, which is why I love what we do. Yeah, I think we are very lucky, and definitely, but I will also say that you had a lot of nuggets of wisdom there. I love that you started in February, because I did talk about leeway time, which was going to be my next question is when you say leeway time, how long would you give yourself? Did you find that? If you're willing to talk about it, what do you feel like led to the injury that you wish that people? Besides trying not to do too much too soon, is there something that sticks out that may have been like something you would suggest people avoid or kind of be more judicious about tackling it?
Speaker 5:So I'm a fluffy girl, so I'm on the larger side of runners and for me it actually it was a back injury and it stemmed from being pregnant and it actually just threw out my back. And when I actually run and walk fast because I come from family of fast walkers as well I just have a very heavy left foot and I think the combination of that and the extra distances was just pulling my back enough. So for me, I need to strengthen my back more and my abs and work on those pieces and make sure I have any type of support I can for my back to make sure that I can do it better. But I noticed I was getting numb at the bottom of my foot once I hit the 10K time frame. I was like what is going on? Why do I feel numb?
Speaker 5:This is really strange, and so I've been working for the last. I was like what is going on? Why do I feel numb? This is really strange. And so I've been working for the last, because that happened in 2017 is when I got injured and then I still did dopey while I was really injured. But my physiotherapist I've been with them for six, seven years now and that has made a big difference as well Finding people to help support you in, you know, doing your physiotherapy, getting those pieces set up so that you're not walking hunched over like I was.
Speaker 2:So much there, okay. So I think I'm going to just kind of recap a little bit of what I heard as my takeaways is to, of course, set yourself up for success by trying to have a little bit of an innate knowledge of your body and what your body's needs are, but also for listening to your body, cause it sounds like your body was pretty much telling you around that 10 K mark like hey, maybe something's up. Let's get this looked at, and I think a lot of us, with runner as runners, it's a difficult balance because a lot of the times you kind of have to quit listening to your mind when it starts to play tricks on you. But you also have to listen to your body and you're trying to figure out which one's actually telling you the truth. So usually trying to listen to your body as that number one voice is the best way of attracting that.
Speaker 2:But I also love that you found yourself a team because I do talk about that a lot with athletes where I personally have a chiropractor, a physical therapist and a massage therapist that I use, and I feel like when we get into endurance miles, it's really important to have that kind of that team at your standby. So, looking at that and asking your fellow runners in your community to what recommendations they have, because it's important that they understand that these are your big goals and that you're a runner. So, with that said, how do you feel? Like you attack running or approach running as opposed to, maybe, your sister? Has it been a bonding experience? Is there a bit more of a? Does it drive you guys closer? Is there a little bit of competitiveness?
Speaker 5:It actually drives us closer. She is a faster runner by nature. She is much faster than I am and I tend to like the solitude of running, so I find it sometimes really difficult to run with others. I have that's something I have to learn and also identify when I need to run with others to keep me going, because there is times when that's actually needed as a solo runner.
Speaker 2:Beneficial yeah.
Speaker 5:Yeah, like you just need that extra person to help you through the tough miles. But for us she's always willing to do whatever I want and I'm always willing to support her in whatever running she wants to do. Like, really, if she said to me, hey, erin, I totally want to do 100 miler, I'd be like I'm in, what do we need to do? Right, because that's kind of how.
Speaker 2:I am Okay. So basically you're the official. You're the meme like where you're pretty much signed up for anything as long as there's a free banana and maybe a t-shirt at the end.
Speaker 5:Absolutely. Bling is always the best part, yeah.
Speaker 2:I love it. Okay, so there's that definitely a sense of adventure. There's so much that you have like that you're espousing a knowledge of. I wanna touch on being a solo runner specifically because I do think that there are, as much as I love community running, I do think that there are some workouts and some points in our training that we do need to focus on solo running so that we're prepared mentally for those later miles where we may be running our own race solo. So tell me a little bit about how you balance solo running and you said that you're kind of working on being a better with group running and what would you say would be beneficial workouts to tackle with somebody else versus on your own and your experience.
Speaker 5:I don't know if I have enough experience with running without somebody. When I'm training I'm really the only one If you can get into a running group and I know where I am in Ottawa there's lots of different running groups, beginners and whatnot is trying maybe to connect with different people who are going out. I need it more for when I hit those longer mileage runs, simply because my brain will say, hey, you don't want to do this, this is crazy. So for me it's trying to connect with those who are willing to do it. But because I'm a slow runner, I'm always worried that I'm going to hold somebody else up, so it's really hard to find people who are kind of the same pace as I am. So my sister is better for that, but she's in Florida now, so it makes it a little more difficult. And that's the challenge I'm going to have this year is trying to figure out how to best work with that.
Speaker 2:Okay, I feel like we have someone in our community who might be reaching out to you to try to bring you along to some of his run groups, because I know that he's a big fan. He's a big fan of social running up there as well. All right, my friend, let's get into some of the maybe more less running focus, but still very important. Let's talk about brunch, and I already feel like we know that you would definitely, without a shadow of a doubt, your brunch date is going to be daft punk. But aside from that, what are you hoping to have as your brunch like of the day? Are you savory, sweet? Do you want like a little bit of everything?
Speaker 5:I love savory. I do like sweet but I try to limit my sweetness stuff. But I will never say no to sausage or bacon with maple syrup, like that's a must have. But I'm an omelet girl. I love eggs and omelets and lots of vegetables and those kinds of things. So all you can eat brunch, absolutely.
Speaker 2:I'm in A little bit of everything After Jopie. What do you suggest is the go-to reservation people should have? If you're willing to share, because we know that you want to make, you want to make your reservation before everybody else snags it.
Speaker 5:Yeah, oh, I'm not actually. I don't know if I have a favorite place at this point, because for me it's having a cider at the end of the race.
Speaker 2:Hey, that's literally what gets me through those miles. I am not kidding, I think a couple of springtime surprises I had, I was kind of grumpy, it was very grumpy and I think around mile six it's like I'm just going to finish this up, Like I just want to finish this up so I can get to the cider, and at that point it was just about getting literally to the cider. So it definitely no judgment here, my friend, that is part of the experience. It's amazing and why we do love that after party at Run Disney as well. So with that, what kind of words of wisdom would you like to leave folks with? Or maybe words of encouragement as part of the Mod Squad?
Speaker 5:For me, it is don't be afraid to do a big, audacious goal. Don't be afraid of that challenge, but don't feel like you have to do it. There are crazy that's crazy people on one side, and there are those who are not, and that is okay and that is legitimate. And those of us who are crazy will always encourage you, even if it's just one small race or as crazy as we are Like. For me, just having the community and all of us together enjoying each other, that's the important piece for me.
Speaker 2:Oh, I love that. I love it, be true to yourself and like what you want. I love that. Thank you, erin. We are so excited to have you as part of the Mod Squad and can't wait to be able to run with you in person, even if you do love solo running. But friends definitely do stay in touch with Erin because she is this positive force to be reckoned with in all interactions. So thank you so much.
Speaker 5:Oh, thank you.
Speaker 2:Yay, truly so much fun. And we could not continue growing this community without you, my friend. So please, please, please, jump into the Facebook group page. Post your selfies after your workouts. Let us know where you're doing, where you're running. Show us where you're at.
Speaker 2:This Mods Club is ready to cheer you, support you and, of course, add a little dash of fun and sparkle to all of your fun runs. And, of course, add a little dash of fun and sparkle to all of your fun runs. Again, we want you to join us for our first summer series virtual fun run next week, june 1st. Whether you're in person or virtual, I cannot stress enough how much fun we have in store.
Speaker 2:And, of course, on the heels of that incredible podcast and, as I mentioned, that wasn't it we're going to celebrate Global Running Spirit Week. So bring the fun energy, add that commitment to run or walk a mile for the entire week from June 3rd to June 9th, and definitely stay tuned to the group for some big announcements, lots of pop-up challenges and, of course, some incredible prizes. With that said, I want to thank you all for participating, for being part of this community, for continuing to grow it, and I also want to let you know how much I appreciate every single one of you. Until next time, I'm gonna tell you please keep running, keep smiling, keep having a whole lot of fun. This is Coach Christine. I'm signing off and reminding you to stay extra sparkly.
Speaker 1:Thank you for joining Time for Brunch. If today's conversation sparked your interest, be sure to join our supportive online community. Don't forget to sign up for our weekly newsletters to keep the inspiration flowing. It's packed with insights, stories and tips to fuel your journey of growth. Follow us, subscribe and stay connected. Until next time, keep smiling and let your journey shine.