When did you first learn people run for fun and a runner’s favorite sign to come across;)

A nice Monday morning run in one of my favorite places.

The combination of Andrew and I getting engaged in St. George and it being the home of my favorite race… running here is my favorite (unless I am doing it in the middle of the summer and it is 110 degrees).  I also grew up here and I have a million great memories in this city with my family in our swimming pool (pretty much the only thing you can do in the summer;) and riding my bike next to my brother on the running trails during some of his runs when he did cross country.  Oh I also have fond memories of my mom taking me bowling there whenever I had an early out day from school.

I was going to do 8 but decided 10 would be a good idea because Monday running always feels great after the rest day.  I used to really fear rest days (and rarely took them many years ago).   Now I love them for many reasons, including the fact that my runs the day after a rest day always feel the best.

Always a fun sign to come across while out on the trails.  Ouch.

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Red dirt is my favorite dirt.

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The morning started off snuggling with Brooke.   Andrew has a class now online every morning from 6- 8 a.m. so until Knox comes back it is just the two of us in the mornings.

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She is in a stage that she really loves being ‘twinners’ (a stage that I never ever grew out of) so she was happy about our matching hair.  She pulls off the top knot a lot better than I do though ha.

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Later on in the day we grabbed some bananas for snacks and we were off to rock climb with the boys.

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Pretty crazy slot canyon.  The kids explored and dug for dinosaur bones.

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They got to work climbing.  I was a great cheerleader… someday I won’t be a wuss.

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Brooke practiced some yoga while we were out too.

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After climbing we went to the restaurant that Andrew worked at when he was a teenager.  PS I have 7 different restaurants on my resume… I was a server for many years.  My favorite restaurant to work at was a sushi restaurant mainly because it meant I got free sushi every day of my life for 2 years.  The chefs loved making all sorts of weird rolls for me because I was pretty much the only one that would try anything and everything sushi wise.

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More breadsticks for us (we had these on Sunday too) with our pasta and salads.  It was delicious.

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After that we were right back on the road again to get home.  It got dark at around 5:30 pm while we were driving which was strange.  Day light savings is a weird thing.

We got home and it had been a few days since my last grilled cheese so I bet you can guess what we had;)

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Beretta was missing us like crazy of course and she was happy to have us all home together.

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And an interesting video—>  Marathon Chemistry: The Science of Distance Running from Health

Just a few days left to get your Sorry For What I Said At Mile 20 hoodies!!!

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Where did you grow up? Have any favorite memories from the city you grew up in?

Do you remember your first introduction to seeing/learning about people choosing to go out and run for fun?

-My brother and his cross-country meets… when I would ride my bike with him during some of his Saturday runs I remember wondering how in the world running straight for miles on end could be entertaining?! It wasn’t until a few years later that I actually tried out going for a run with my sister and that is when I started understanding why my brother chose to go out and run.

Who else has ever been a server?  What restaurant(s)?

Are you adventurous with trying out new foods?  

-I will try pretty much anything but I am really good at eating the same exact things that I love over and over again.

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43 comments

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I grew up in Tennessee and the first time I saw people running in the Smokey Mountains in running clothes and Nikes I was amazed. I remember looking at my Mom and saying that looks so HARD but why are they smiling? And she said, ‘because they are having fun’ and so I tried it and I was forever addicted. And the rest is history. :)

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I honestly had NO IDEA people ran for fun until I started my blog! I knew it was a common exercise, but I didn’t have any runner friends, I had never been a runner and I didn’t even realize races were a big thing for casual runners (I thought they were just ultra competitive events for pros to make money).

Actually, your blog was the first running blog I came across so I guess finding your blog was the first time I realized people run for fun! :D Thanks for showing me the light!!!

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NO WAY!!! Oh that is awesome Kristina! I’ve loved keeping up with you over the years! I hope you are having a beautiful day!!!

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I grew up in Texas not too far from where I live now. When I go back on Sundays to visit my parents, I often pass by places that bring back a lot of memories of growing up there and adventures I had with my friends and family.

I should probably try more foods than I do, but I’m a pretty picky eater. I know what I like and what I don’t, so I usually stick to what I know is good. By the way, that bread on your grilled cheese looks really good!

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Janae! What type of bread is that you used for your grilled cheese? It looks like a bread i used to get at home called “marathon bread” but I haven’t been able to find it anywhere else!! Let me know, love ya!!

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I could be wrong but I’m pretty sure she uses “Dave’s Killer Bread” =)

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YES YES YES!!! That is what I use. We are completely hooked! I can send you some:)

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I learned this summer about red dirt and how it destroys the look of new kicks. I now have a designated pair of Brooks Glycerins just for red dirt ;)
I grew up exactly 1.2 miles from where I live now. Staten Island NY. Woot!
And I want to run for run but I am a race junkie. I love the energy of big marathons, half marathons.

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Around our house THE 70’s SHOW is on repeat. There is an episode where Midge and Bob meet Red in the driveway while wearing velour “jogging suits”. (Or warm up suits as they called them…) Red asks Bob, “What in the world are you and Midge wearing?” and Bob replies, “Midge and and I going out for a jog…these are our new warm up suits”…..Which Red then states. “What are you warming up for Bob?”

Bwahahaha….yea, that’s the extent of my humor….I loved it!

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Bahahaha I love it!!!

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I grew up in San Diego until I was forced out by my husband and the Navy. ;-) I miss running there so much! I would escape to the trails all the time…boy do I miss that desert dirt.
I guess I didn’t realize people ran for fun until HS cross country. That was never fun for me, so maybe it didn’t click until I went to college and actually started running for fun myself!
I used to rock climb. It started out as a way to get over my fear of heights. Until I fell and broke my ankle. No judgement here if you never join them. Although I will say, there was something satisfying about conquering a hard climb, until I looked down. Then I would have a panic attack.

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I was a server in high school! It was hard!

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I grew up in new York and have yet to leave (and probably never will lol). so many memories growing up here and spending every weekend in the city with my family. nothing better!

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I always saw my dad running at races but he doesn’t ever run with people. I don’t think it was until I actually started running that I knew people “ran for fun” and ran together. Now I work at running store so I can’t get away ;)

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I moved around a lot growing up, but I liked each place for different reasons. We lived in 6 different cities in Texas, Louisiana, and Tennessee. I don’t remember seeing anyone run really until my high school decided to start a cross country team. I joined that first year (my freshman year) and was one of the first girls to run all 4 years in high school!
I have never been a server (don’t think I have the patience for it!) but I worked at a grocery store during high school.
I will try new foods within reason…………….I hate mayonnaise, not a big fan of bacon, and anything that is weird and deep fried (oreos, twinkies, etc) I don’t think I could stomach.

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I grew up and lived in northern New Hampshire until I left for college (returning back each summer). My favorite memories are swimming in the cold rivers that run down from the mountains. It was so rocky, but there were always good ledges to jump from and sometimes natural water slides too.

That video is awesome! Thanks for sharing.

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I am totally with you on the food thing. I like to try new foods but I am just fine eating the same thing day after day…. my husband sure loves that about me. ;)

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Who watches Beretta when you go off on trips? Curious if you also have good doggie daycare out where you (it is great here near Boston) are or if you rely on family.

I am the same way – I’ll try any food but stick to my regular rotation that makes me happy.

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Hey Amanda!! We usually just have one of our neighbors take care of her while we are gone. We need to find a good daycare though for her!!!!

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My mom is a runner and triathlete. Some of my earliest memories are of my mom heading out for a daily run around the neighborhood or my dad taking us to watch and cheer for her at her races. We live in a cul de sac, and I remember that before cell phones we designated turning on the front porch light as our “signal” to grab our mom’s attention if we needed something during her run. Mostly it ended up being tattling on a sibling for something silly – whoops! But, every time she looped around our cul de sac she would look for the light and stop if it was on. I am very proud that my mom set an example of healthy living and taking care of yourself for us at a young age. It is now instilled in all three of her kids!

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I tend to eat the same things most of the time. I don’t like ordering new things, because then I’m stuck with it. My favorite way to try new things, is off of my husbands plate. :-) I have always ran for the pleasure of it, never for races. I do the small town 5K’s, but that’s usually because I do them with friends for fun, or because of what the race is supporting, since it’s usually stuff in our community. So my running so solely for me, to feel good, to stay healthy and I love it. I never do long distance. Just around town.

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This is totally random and not running related. But I love your ring. In pictures I’ve been trying to get a good look at it. Is it rose gold? Or is that the light reflecting making me think that? Is there a band with it? And last, do you wear your ring to workout? I have a qalo ring I Crossfit and run in, not sure I could wear mine because my hands swell when I workout (maybe that’s a bad thing)!

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HEY MEGAN!!! Yes, my ring is rose gold! Andrew designed it so that the band is soldered to the ring so it just stays put! I do where my ring when I workout… I bet if I did something like Crossfit I would have to reconsider that though ha!

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Liar #IsraeliFood ;)

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That doesn’t count.

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But seriously. St Geezy is my favorite. I know exactly where you are at on your run. Pretty sure I have taken my picture my that same hill grade sign to show Ross how amazingly awesome I am . I love that slot canyon and, of course, Pasta Factory. Their bread sticks are even better than Pizza Factory. I used to eat there all the time when I was at Dixie. Maybe Andrew waited on me as a young lad. Glad you had a good time and got home safe. I hate how early it gets dark. It’s the lamest.

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Can we all go to St. George together. Yep, you know where I was… that 10% is no joke. Okay so I think pizza factory breadsticks are better. Andrew doesn’t agree!

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I grew up in STL and lived there until I got my real job that moved me out to Denver. I love the mountains and don’t think we’ll move again! I was never a server, throughout HS and College, I was a lifeguard (to an indoor pool) and swim instructor at the YMCA, and i loved it since I also got a free gym membership!
I didn’t know people ran for fun until I joined the cross country team… which I also didn’t realize that it was JUST running… But we had a huge high school team (~60 girls on the team) so I made a lot of friends where we just talked while running. Obviously we weren’t the fastest and called ourselves the pack in the back. Starting senior year, I found that I actually enjoyed running outside of practice and have been running ever since! Kinda funny that I’m now much faster than I ever was in high school!
I am a picky eater… so I wouldn’t say I will try anything… but if I like everything in the ingredient list, then I will give anything a try! I love trying out new recipes! But at restaurants I’ve been to, I almost always order the same thing… I know what i like!

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I grew up south of Detroit — which meant my folks were pretty paranoid about all the potential crime in the area. We didn’t get to go outside unsupervised until we moved to a nicer suburb when I was in the 6th grade :(

I knew that people run for funsies — but I also knew that people swallow fire and eat bugs, also things that don’t really relate to my life. Ha!

My stint as a server was brief (less than a month I think). I had aptitude for it and loved leaving with cash in hand — but the late nights didn’t work with my early morning nature (and college class schedule). I worked at this local place that served all kinds of college kid favorites — but also greek food. Which meant I learned how to do the Saganaki OPA! and light cheese, sausage, or even steaks on fire table side. Yeah… I still have my eyebrows (thank goodness) but that was so scary!!

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The city I grew up in is now half way across the country from where I live now. I have lots of good memories there. I think I’ve been back twice and it’s so different experiencing it as an adult instead of the nine year old when we moved.

I’m up for trying just about anything once. If I don’t like it, at least I’ve tried it.

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My friend was on the cross country team in college and LOVED it. I think that’s when I realized she was crazy. I was a horrible runner but slowly started actually trying at it. Now I’m going to do my first marathon soon and I’m SO EXCITED!

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I consider myself to be semi-adventurous with food. I’ll try anything once, but it’s not something I necessarily seek out, the way I seek out good pizza or the best pho. I’ll never be that person who is thrilled to try duck embryo, for example.

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I like to be adventurous within the context of Americanized food and vegetables. I learned that I really don’t like tripe or other unamericanized authentic Chinese food.
I learned that people run for fun in high school when I started running for fun after cross country (like later in the day/or at night). Before that I thought I was just weird and would say I was taking th dog for a walk and then run as much as I could while I was out.
I grew up all over the place. I’m still growing up.
I was a server at a breakfast restaurant named Baileys. I worked there while my husband and I dated during a summer break in college. I loved it most days.

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No one in my family or circle of friends likes to run. Honestly, I hated it until I started playing indoor soccer a couple of years ago. Then I started to realize that i was playing soccer so I could run, which made mE think that just running might be fun. I like to research things pretty in depth before jumping into them, so I looked up every running blog, site, and magazine. When I came across your blog, I realizeD running can be fun and life changing. Thanks for sharing your love of running with me and the world!

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Where are you guys rocking climbing?

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Hey Diana! We were just at Pioneer Park down in St. George! Do you live there?

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I’m lucky and got to grow up all over. I lived in California, Indiana, Washington, and Wyoming before moving to Montana when i was 12. I’ve been here ever since and I love it. I still love to travel, but Montana is home now.

I pretty much have the taste buds of a 10 year old – I’m super picky. I’m trying to expand my horizons slowly now that I’m older and I want to teach my son to try new things.

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This story will give away my age (because of the old school approach to parenting) but I always knew that people ran for fun because I can remember my parents running in the mornings before it got light. Some of my earliest memories are of one or the other of them coming into my room to say they were going for their run and then a quick check in when they got back. They only ran about 3 miles so they were 30 minutes at most.

I also remember my mom getting worried one time when my dad never came across the finish line for a marathon. It was before they knew people needed a lot of water and nourishment on runs so the run didn’t have any aid stations and he collapsed of a heat stroke. But it’s a happy memory – they gave him IV fluids and let him take a wheelchair home for a day and he gave us rides.

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Oh WOW Amy! That is crazy about your dad getting heat stroke because of ZERO aid stations. I can’t imagine! That is a good memory going on rides with him! Thanks for your comment and I hope you are having a beautiful day!

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I know what its like to have a hubby taking classes online!! Mine is in the middle of studying for his CPA!!!! You know what that means. . . more running for me! I have to find things to keep me busy. So I have upped my miles and started a blog! Since he has started I have run over 400 miles!! I have my 1/2 marathon this coming Saturday!!! This will be my 4th one that I have run! Can’t wait!

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Oh Jarrelle that is AWESOME and good luck on Saturday! You are rocking the running. Tell your husband good luck!!!

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I was a server for two hours. I didn’t have the patience to wait for people to decide what they want. I didn’t make much in tips.

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I grew up in Omaha, Nebraska :)

What brand of tomato soup do you use? It looks delicious!

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