Weekly Recap: More BIC Bands and Cheering for TCM 2014!

Happy Sunday! I'm checking in with you quickly for my weekly recap of what happened last week in fitness and fitness fashion.

Let's start with fitness!

Monday: 11 miles with 8 hill repeats with the Calhoun Beach Running Club. It got pretty dark while we were at the hill. Next time I definitely need to bring my knuckle lights...So sad that it's already so dark so early!
Tuesday: 4 easy miles with Matilda- I was too tired from the big run the night before that I couldn't get up to run in the morning. Yet I had plans after work, so I had to squeeze in a short one where I could.
Wednesday: 4 trail miles at Hyland park at one of the Salomon Autumn Trail Series Runs. This was a super fun trail race! I am definitely signing up for the next one (on 10/15). The race was 3.6 miles (a 6k I think) but we did a short warmup beforehand for just 4 miles total. If it weren't for the mosquitoes, this would have been a perfect night for a run.

Thursday: 7.5 miles easy with Matilda. I was supposed to do a tempo run this day, but since I had a "harder" effort the night before at Hyland, I figured that could count as my tempo workout.
Friday: Complete rest
Saturday: 20 miles with the Calhoun Beach Running Club
Sunday: 4 mile easy run with Matilda

This was a bad week in terms of balance- all running, no strength, and no yoga Not good! It was also my 3rd week in a row at 50 miles, so I'm not surprised I have been experiencing more aches and pains. My goal for this week is to do a much better job of balancing running with other workouts- yoga, barre, and definitely more foam rolling. Writing my goal here on the blog in hopes that it keeps me accountable!

But running is the theme of the week, with the highlight of course cheering for all the awesome runners at the Twin Cities Marathon!  Here are just a few of the pictures from spectating today:

We cheered at mile 5.5, mile 16.5, and mile 24.

What's happening in fitness fashion?
As for fitness fashion this week, I will have to go with those awesome CBRC Bic Bands. I saw a number of them on the course!

My friend Jill who works for Athleta (and is a Corepower Yoga sculpt teacher) met Sandy, the owner and founder of Bic Bands at the San Jose Marathon expo this weekend. She told Sandy how much we all love our CBRC headbands. This is definitely true, since they made several appearances on the race course. Thanks Sandy!

with Sandy the owner of BIC Bands

Before I end this post, I'd like to say congratulations to my sister Erin who ran the Lakefront Milwaukee Marathon this weekend. She finished feeling great and I'm very happy for her. Way to go, Erin! I'm trying to convince her to come run TCM next year....maybe I'd have to join her? I haven't run it since 2008!

It was hard not to get inspired today- lots of PR's and strong races out there. I'd also like to say congrats to Nathan from Minneapolis Running, (my cohost of THESE webinars for first timers.) Way to go on your BQ!

Did you run a race this weekend? If so, how did it go? Please let me know in the comments!

Right Fit Giveaway: The Winner of the Two Minnie BIC Bands...

I put all your names in a bowl and had Dustin draw one.

The winner of the two minnie BIC bands is....Alli P.!

Alli's answer: "I love to read Chocolate Covered Katie's blog - all of her desserts are so good and whenever I have made them myself or for others, no one ever guesses they are "healthy" desserts. My go-to favorite is deep dish cookie pie!

Also, despite the fact that I've seen you rave about BIC bands on your blog for a while now, I have yet to ever get any myself, but if I did I would definitely sport them running and perhaps even try them as a hair accessory to work in my classroom!"

Congrats Alli!

Please send me an email at right.fit.sisters@gmail.com with your mailing address and I'll ship your new BIC bands right away. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

Thank you to the rest of you for entering and for giving me the names of so many fun new blogs to follow.

Right Fit Giveaway- Two BIC Band Minnies for YOU!

Great news! I ordered 25 more Calhoun Beach Running Club BIC bands for my running club. Sandy at BIC bands kept the custom material on hand so that I could order more as I needed them. Since she already had the material, I placed my order just over a week ago and they arrived on Friday. So fast- amazing service!

Send me a message if you want to buy one, runners!

BIC Bands is a great company- here is a little bit of background information from owner/founder Sandy from their website:

"These amazing headbands started all as a fundraiser for my run with Team In Training. I was looking for a way to raise the necessary funds to run my first half marathon. I had started to make some handy dandy headband that didn't slip because I was cheap and crafty~ friends said they'd buy them, so I decided to try my hand at making and selling them. My small little venture began and I started sewing. I donated the profits to The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society....Because B.I.C. Bands were been such a hit after my race, I decided to keep making and selling the bands, and keep giving back to those in need!

From the beginning days of making B.I.C. Bands for my run with Team In Training, giving back has been at the heart of the business. Each month we donate from the sale of every band to a different charity. Check out the facebook page to see who we're helping this month!

These bands don't slip- SERIOUSLY!!! The magic lining of these little guys stick to your hair. And as an added bonus~ they're soft and stretchy, working hard to not give you a headache

YES! B.I.C. Bands are washable. It's recommended that you hand wash it. Or, you can wear it straight into the shower after your workout! Rinse it out and hang it up to dry!

Go like BIC Bands on facebook: facebook.com/bicbands 

I have BIC Bands in my own collection in all different sizes- thick, thin, skinny, and minnie; I'm wearing a minnie in the below picture.

The "minnies" are my new favorite BIC bands. I only have a couple, but I am reaching for the minnies more frequently than the others when heading out for a run (and if you read my Race Gear post, you know that I can't run without a BIC Band!) I'm grabbing the minnies for no particular reason- they all work the same, but I am especially liking the look of the minnies lately!

And I hope you are liking them too, as Sandy from BIC Bands was nice enough to give me two extra minnies to give away to one of you!

One is a sparkly minnie in light blue and the other is a striped pink/black/green one.

So how do you win? Comment here on the blog and tell me two things:

1) Tell me about another blog that you read (it doesn't have to be fitness related, but I'd love hear about those of course!)

2) Tell me where will you wear your new minnie BIC Bands if you win- a run? a barre class? a walk with the pup?

The winner will be chosen by random drawing a week from today. Post away!

Weekly Recap: A Killer Kettlebell Workout and Goodbye to July...

Can you believe July is coming to an end? This summer is going too quickly. Don't get me wrong, there's lot of fun stuff to look forward to in August, but I am still sad that this was our last July weekend.

We packed a lot into our Saturday, with a long run in the heat, a work party at a lake in New Prague, and a housewarming party for one of our run club friends.  Today has definitely been a lot more low-key, with lots of errands and work around the house. But enough on that, let me fill you in the past week at the Right Fits!

What's happening in fashion?

JCrew had a "swim & short" sale going on online, so I picked up THESE shorts that I saw on "Classy Girls Wear Pearls" (<-- I love everything she wears!)  

Such a fun pattern, and I think I ended up only paying just $30. I wore them for a work party on Saturday- perfect for an afternoon of sun and social.

What's happening in Fitness Fashion?

BIC bands are what is happening in fitness fashion. An oldie, but a goodie. I basically live in these things most of the time, and always have one on when running. 

What's happening in Fitness this week?
Monday: Crazy HOT day. I ran 5.5 miles easy by myself rather than do the hill workout with the club (Looking to incorporate hills into your workout? Be sure to check out THIS POST!)
Tuesday: Hill workout in the AM with some gals. Managed about 3.5 repeats for about 7.5 miles total.
Wednesday: Torchlight 5k (with about 2.25 mile warmup)
Thursday: 1 hour kettle bell strength class at Balance Fitness *see below for workout details
Friday: Easy 4 mile run with Matilda

Saturday: 16 mile long run with the CBRC Man, oh, man was it humid for this run! I think a lot of us struggled yesterday in the heat and humidity, and unfortunately, not all of the water pumps in the city are working yet. We had one volunteer support stop around mile 7.5, but honestly, it wasn't enough for such a hot day, and I was pretty beat up after this run.

Sunday: 1 hour barre class at The Barre- I met Susie and Penny at The Barre in Wayzata (same owners as The Barre Edina where I usually go). The Wayzata studio is gorgeous, with a view of Lake Minnetonka while you lift, tone, burn! It was a really great class with instructor Jaclyn.

Summary: 5 days of running, 1 barre class, 1 strength day

Since a lot of run club members were at the Torchlight 5k on Wednesday, the instructor for the Calhoun Beach Club strength conditioning class skipped this week's workout. Instead, I got in a strength workout by heading back to Balance Fitness for Sarah's class. It was a solid workout, where we did the following:

That's about it from me from the Right Fits! I hope you all had a wonderful last weekend in July. 

Fitness Fashion: Sweaty Bands!

I have posted on the blog multiple times about my love of BIC bands which are fitness headbands with velvet on the underside which keeps them in place. They are really awesome headbands, and I had a really great experience working with the owner on our custom Calhoun Beach Running Club bands a few years ago. Aren't they lovely? There's still 2 left if you want one!

In addition to BIC bands though, I also recommend Sweaty Bands, which is a company that makes a very similar product.  I have ordered several bands from this company for myself and for friends over the past few years online, and I also often pick one or two up at race expos.  

One thing I really like about Sweaty Bands is that they really offer quite a fun variety of styles for all different types of occasions. Recently, I ordered a few for a bachelorette gift for a fellow runner. I selected a few different patterns- peacock, polka dot, and the reflective neon striped one.

But I also added a "bridal" one to this order for the bachelorette! Its pretty subtle, but it has a few "bridal" type quotes on it, and is a pretty "bridal" blue color.

 I also picked up a few Sweaty Bands for my fellow Flying Pig runner (Kelly, not Dustin, ha!) They actually had customized bands for a few different marathons. They had Chicago, Boston, and other "big" marathons, but I was surprised to see Flying Pig bands, so I snatched them up!

And, I may have stocked up on a few "Baby on Board" Sweaty Bands, just in case one of my friends has a bun in the oven in the future....you never know!

Go check out all the different Sweaty Bands  online, and I bet you'll find one you like - for a friend or for you!

The Olympics, A Goodbye Party, and Another Fitness Themed Basket!

Hi all!

I hope you enjoyed your weekend. Mine was pretty busy. Friday night, we went to a party to watch the opening ceremonies for the Olympics. We were encouraged to dress up in our best Olympic outfits, so Dustin wore his best old school ski attire, and I wore pretty much every red, white, and blue piece of clothing I had. (That Chinese Crested dog in the picture is a sweet rescue dog named Vegas!)

Saturday morning of course was the usual long run (a little over 16 miles), a trip to TC Running Company for those awesome Craft pants I wrote about yesterday, and plenty of other errands. 

Saturday night, we said goodbye to one of our run club friends. She's moving to New York City for her job. We're all sad to see her go, but wish her the best of luck in her new adventure!

We met up for an awesome dinner at Marin downtown, and she actually was able to get us the private barrel room for our group. 

I really loved my dinner there- I had the kale salad, and the papperdelle with roasted cauliflower and sage pesto. It was all really tasty- I highly recommend this restaurant!

My group of girlfriends wanted to said goodbye in a special way, and to give her a few items to remember us by. I enjoyed creating the birthday gift basket for my friend's 30th back in December, so I suggested that we do something similar again. Creating a gift basket is a great way for a group of friends to all chip in a little bit in a fun way, and you end up with quite a gift! 

This basket included a lot of running related items- some Body Glide, Nuun, an iTunes gift card, Honey Stingers, GU's, and more.

I also gave her one of the last Calhoun Beach Running Club BIC Bands...only three of these left!

We included some lululemon undies- light as air!

This friend is a barre-ista as well, so the gift basket needed an extra pair of grippy socks:

The basket wouldn't be complete without one of the Gear Running store's RUN MSP t-shirts. Softest shirts ever!

We included a framed picture from a Capital Run that she was a part of. Ah, remember when we were running in shorts and tanks? The good ol' days...

The basket came together nicely, and I think she really liked it.

It was a fun evening, and I'm glad we had the opportunity to send her off in style. 

Good luck in NYC, running buddy!

Weekly Recap and a Rekindled Love for Pure Barre.

What happened last week in the Right Fits' world in Fitness, Fashion, and Fitness Fashion?

Well, let's start with Fitness.

Last week was a pretty solid week in fitness.

Monday: Ran 7 miles in the AM with some friends, Balanced Barre BarreAmped Bootcamp in the evening

Tuesday: Ran 5.5 miles in the AM with some friends, 75 minute yoga sculpt at Corepower Yoga in the evening

Wednesday: Ran 7 miles in the AM with some friends, concert at First Ave in the evening!

Thursday: Complete rest. Happy Halloween!

Friday: Ran 5.5 miles in the AM with Matilda (the dog)

Saturday: Ran 11 miles with the Calhoun Beach Running Club

Sunday: Ran 4 miles with Dustin and Matilda, then barre class at Pure Barre

Total: 40 miles, 2 barre classes, and 1 yoga sculpt (3 strength)

The highlight in fitness this week was actually the Pure Barre class. I used to be a tad obsessed with Pure Barre (as you can read about HERE and HERE), but then I fell off the Pure Barre wagon for a little bit as I tried out other barre studios in the area. Pure Barre recently had a sale on a 5-class package, so I decided to head back there for a little bit. It really took me by surprise on Sunday, as it was a pretty tough class! The teacher incorporated a double exercise band like this one:

That double band was the devil!

We used the band for some of the leg work, core work, and even for stretching, and I felt like it made a lot of the moves quite a bit more challenging.I could feel it today in my abs and thighs, which is always a great feeling.  I took the Pure Barre  class with two girlfriends, one of whom is an experienced barre-ista, and one of whom had never taken a barre class before. I think that the first-timer really enjoyed the class as well! One challenge at Pure Barre is that its sometimes difficult to see the correct form for the moves. They are so small and subtle, its difficult to know if you're doing it correctly. But when you do it right, it burns!

What's new in Fitness Fashion?

I have a few reflective BIC bands that I am loving right now. It’s been in the mid forties on my runs, so I don’t yet need a hat or ear warmers. Therefore, these reflective BIC bands add just enough extra “see and be seen” on the early morning runs.  You can never get enough reflective power. Why not add some to your headband?

You can find them HERE. FYI, in my opinion, BIC bands and Sweaty Bands are both awesome, though BIC bands are usually a few dollars cheaper, while Sweaty Bands offer a bit more variety. These reflective bands are BIC brand. Go check them out!

Fashion:

The highlight this week in fashion was definitely the arrival of my first Stitch Fix, which you can read about here. I’m excited to wear my new polka dot skinny jeans soon!

The rest of my weekend included a date night to see Prairie Home Companion at the State theater, a pre-dinner drink at Marvel Bar, dinner at Bar La Grassa, Dustin’s wardrobe consultation (which I hope to share some more detail about soon!), lots of dog park time, and plenty of housework and errands. 

Here's what I wore for running errands: 

Sunglasses: Tory Burch- gifted; chambray shirt: JCrew similar, blazer: Banana Republic, find it here, and Banana Republic skinny jeans similar 

This pink blazer is my current favorite, (did I mention it has leather patches on the elbows? Love!) I have become such a Banana girl since my wardrobe consult with A la Mode. Move over JCrew, you may possibly have been replaced by Banana!

All in all, it was  lovely week in fitness, fashion, and fitness fashion!

I hope you all had a nice week as well. 

What was your fitness highlight??? 

What about your fashion highlight??? 

Please share in the comments!

Friday's Favorite Fit: BIC Bands!

By Cool J in Minneapolis

Happy Friday friends! Today's edition of "Friday's Favorite Fit" is an oldie but a goodie- BIC bands!

I wrote about my love of BIC Bands ("Because-I-Can") last May as well, in this post but I think it's time to bring it up again for any new readers. These awesome headbands actually stay in place, and they keep your hair back, just the way you want it when running. I wore one last night for the TC 1 Mile (race review to come!)

Sandy, the owner of BIC bands was so great to work with last year, when she helped me to design custom BIC bands for the Calhoun Beach Running Club.

 Custom Calhoun Beach Running Club BIC bands

A bunch of the ladies wore their CBRC bands last night with pride! They looked awesome!

*FYI, I still have more Calhoun Beach Running Club BIC bands if anyone wants one- just $10!

In addition to the custom CBRC headbands, BIC bands come in such a wide variety of colors and patterns. Whatever your taste, you will find a BIC band for you!

And right now you can purchase a limited edition "Boston Strong BIC band." 100% of the price is donated to the One Fund.

http://www.bicbands.com/thin-boston-strong/

So, that's my favorite fit for today. If you hate having your hair fly in your face when working out, I encourage you to try out a few BIC bands today. You won't regret it!

More About BIC Bands:

From Sandy:

"These amazing headbands started all as a fundraiser for my run with Team In Training. I was looking for a way to raise the necessary funds to run my first half marathon. I had started to make some handy dandy headband that didn't slip because I was cheap and crafty~ friends said they'd buy them, so I decided to try my hand at making and selling them. My small little venture began and I started sewing. I donated the profits to The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. OVER $1000 was raised through the sale of B.I.C. Bands! B.I.C. Bands~ Because I Can Bands ~We raise funds because we can…for those who can’t so that one day they will!

Because B.I.C. Bands were been such a hit after my race, I decided to keep making and selling the bands, and keep giving back to those in need!

From the beginning days of making B.I.C. Bands for my run with Team In Training, giving back has been at the heart of the business.

Each month we donate from the sale of every band to a different charity. Check out the facebook page to see who we're helping this month!

Go like BIC bands on facebook: facebook.com/bicbands 

These bands don't slip- SERIOUSLY!!! The magic lining of these little guys stick to your hair. And as an added bonus~ they're soft and stretchy, working hard to not give you a headache

While the major majority of customers fit perfectly into a 20" B.I.C. Band, a small handful of customers need a larger size (21") or smaller size (19"). The beauty of these is that they are all handmade and can easily be custom made to fit you! (Kids love B.I.C. Bands too!!)

If your not sure which size to order, measure your head where you'd wear your B.I.C. Band~ you're looking for an inch to two inches of stretch (i.e. head measures 21.5", order a 20") If you don't specify a size in the notes at checkout, your band will be a standard 20” B.I.C. band.

YES! B.I.C. Bands are washable. It's recommended that you hand wash it. Or, you can wear it straight into the shower after your workout! Rinse it out and hang it up to dry!

Favorite Fit: BIC Bands!

By Jessie

In the past, I had tried several different methods for keeping my hair out of my eyes while running or working out, and nothing seemed to work. Clips, bobby pins, other types of headbands...they all seemed to slip off, and I would be left with annoying fly-aways distracting me during a run.

Then, about two years ago, I discovered BIC bands. These headbands have a velvet interior, which sticks very well to your hair, meaning these babies don't slip off!

They come in different sizes- skinny, medium, and thick, and there are all kinds of fun prints to choose from.

Over two years I have accumulated quite an array of different bands:

I am sure I have mentioned BIC bands many times on this blog. This brand was started by a woman in California, who first start selling these on Etsy. There are other similar brands out there (i.e. Sweaty Bands) but a nice thing about BIC bands is that $1 of every band goes to charity. 

BIC stands for "Because I Can". i.e. I run because I can, while others cannot. And $1 of each band goes to helping those who can't. Read more at the end of this post about this cool company!

Sandy, the owner, has grown her business exponentially, but I was fortunate to find out that she was still willing to make customized bands for our running club. She sent me a few examples of font, etc, and we decided on simple white wording on a red background.

The actual color on the bands is more of an orange/red, but I'm still quite pleased with the results!

I only ordered 25 bands to start, and will sell them for $10/piece.
Let me know if you're interested, CBRC'ers!

More About BIC Bands:

From Sandy:

These amazing headbands started all as a fundraiser for my run with Team In Training. I was looking for a way to raise the necessary funds to run my first half marathon. I had started to make some handy dandy headband that didn't slip because I was cheap and crafty~ friends said they'd buy them, so I decided to try my hand at making and selling them. My small little venture began and I started sewing. I donated the profits to The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. OVER $1000 was raised through the sale of B.I.C. Bands!

B.I.C. Bands~ Because I Can Bands ~We raise funds because we can…for those who can’t so that one day they will!

Because B.I.C. Bands were been such a hit after my race, I decided to keep making and selling the bands, and keep giving back to those in need!

From the beginning days of making B.I.C. Bands for my run with Team In Training, giving back has been at the heart of the business.

Each month we donate from the sale of every band to a different charity. Check out the facebook page to see who we're helping this month!

facebook.com/bicbands 

These bands don't slip- SERIOUSLY!!! The magic lining of these little guys stick to your hair. And as an added bonus~ they're soft and stretchy, working hard to not give you a headache

While the major majority of customers fit perfectly into a 20" B.I.C. Band, a small handful of customers need a larger size (21") or smaller size (19"). The beauty of these is that they are all handmade and can easily be custom made to fit you! (Kids love B.I.C. Bands too!!)

If your not sure which size to order, measure your head where you'd wear your B.I.C. Band~ you're looking for an inch to two inches of stretch (i.e. head measures 21.5", order a 20") If you don't specify a size in the notes at checkout, your band will be a standard 20” B.I.C. band.

YES! B.I.C. Bands are washable. It's recommended that you hand wash it. Or, you can wear it straight into the shower after your workout! Rinse it out and hang it up to dry =)