An example:

Ragnars

Baba Yaga 2019 Open Team

SNAPSHOT

Bonding time within 24 hours, 12 friends, 2 vans, 200 miles, and a win!

Reebok Ragnar Road Wasatch Back

DIGGING DEEPER

The answer was always, “No, I don’t want to join your Ragnar team. You don’t want to be around me when I am sleep deprived.” Seriously, it is not pretty or fun for anyone when I don’t get enough sleep. My boycott held strong until last spring when the leader of Baba Yaga, an award-winning women’s team of 25 years, asked if I wanted to pass the team’s snap bracelet. The invitation peeked my interest; the opportunity to learn from fast wise women. This team has gathered once a year to support, encourage, and run fast together. They are serious. Thankfully, they didn’t pour on the pressure, I could take care of that myself.

Park City, Utah, Running Trip

My training for the June Utah Ragnar race included hills and tempos. I had already started my fall marathon training cycle so my long 3-legged portion (total of 18.5 miles) fit right into the scheduled miles. I would for sure walk away from the experience mentally tougher since most of the race miles would be run at a higher altitude by myself. I felt ready enough as I walked onto the plane.

If I were to share every detail, this post would get way too long, so I will give you the best of many great moments.

Genuinely kind and fast running team. “Seriously, you know who?” “You ran on what professional team?” “Wait, did I just hear you say you are the record holder for the 4x800 master relay team? And now you are going for the fastest 50+ team next month.” Humble and impressive women.

Salt Lake City, Utah

Utah’s mountainous terrain and sunrises/sunsets melted my heart. I could totally live near Salt Lake City, Utah. I don’t mind the 5000 feet elevation level and the burn in my lungs!

Reebok Ragnar Road Wasatch Back

I was super proud when I would finish under my captain’s projected pace for my leg. I couldn’t breathe in enough oxygen but I could belt out, “17 seconds under, save those seconds for my next leg, I will need it!”

Reebok Ragnar Road Wasatch Back

A shout out to my running companion, Corey from SKRT SKRT EAT OUR DRT DRT, on my dark midnight 9.61-mile leg. High school sprinters, who are untrained in endurance, should NOT be able to run 18.5 fast miles in less than 24 hours and at this pace. I begged him to join his Utah cross country team, he obviously had talent! We had a fun reunion as our two teams joined together for a team picture after the race.

Ragnar Team Photos
Park City, Utah

Long roads without a finish in sight can really test your fortitude to finish your third leg strong. Yet that obstacle was a treasured gift as it was easier to preserver when I returned back home to my marathon training.

SOLUTION

Alrighty, I learned my lesson. I can survive a Ragnar. The gained memories were worth the night of lost sleep.

Share your story in the comment section below!

Which event location is the best?

Utah Running Trip

Runner's Phones: How to Become a Better Runner in 30 Days

runners phone apps running coach shelly Minnesota

#14 Runner’s Phones

SNAPSHOT

A Runner and Their Phone

DIGGING DEEPER

Yep, I run most runs with my phone. Either for my children to have quick contact with me, for safety, or just for some audio to get me thinking or learning. I bet you also keep your phone close by when running outdoors or on the treadmill. Well, here are the ins and outs of a runner’s phone.

Photography

Through running we touch upon unseen or unnoticed beauty during our daily excursions. Whether it is glorious beauty or a profound sight, having a camera near to record makes a treasure trove to share or to store up.

The most recent photo I took while running. I was so intrigued by these tracks that just stopped in the middle of a dead end road. I figured there would be some metaphor that I could use the photo for.

The most recent photo I took while running. I was so intrigued by these tracks that just stopped in the middle of a dead end road. I figured there would be some metaphor that I could use the photo for.

The Google Photos Search feature helps me find all the pictures of runners, food, mountains, etc… As long as you have a gmail account and the google photos app, you can choose for your photos to be automatically uploaded into your private account for easy storage and access.

Training

runners phone apps running coach shelly Minnesota

Final Surge- FREE for athletes - Easy to plan, switch up plans, and log training. Love the daily workout email/text feature.

Garmin Connect - FREE - Love ease of viewing and understanding my data

Coach’s Eye -$4.99 - For analyzing runner’s stride and body movements. I use this app when working with a runner’s stride. They send me a 5 second video of them passing by their phone camera and I break down the elements of their running form. Then we have a short talk on the phone about cues that can help them become a more efficient runner. Great tool for all sports.





Podcasts

Use Apple’s Podcast app or Soundcloud or Stitcher to download FREE audio episodes. If you are not sure what podcasts are, you are totally missing out. Youtube how to get podcasts on your phone or find a friend that can set you up.

I often listen to podcasts when running on my own. I turn the volume all the way up and stay away from noisy traffic. Watch out you might find them so interesting that you end up listening to them throughout your day at home, in the car, and while doing “boring stuff”.

Here are my current TOP THREE running podcasts.

The Morning Shakeout - Runner Interviews

I’ll Have Another with Lindsey Hein Podcast - Runner Interviews

Trail Runner Nation - Running Conversations






Audiobooks

runners phone apps audiobooks running coach shelly Minnesota

I LOVE to READ. However I can’t sit for all the hours that I want to read. So audiobooks have been the solution. Just like podcasts, I listen while running and many other hours of the day. The Audible app is makes bookmarking and sharing books within the family easy. They have a monthly membership which includes a free book once a month. If you stop your membership, your audiobooks do not disappear. You still own the digital audio copy and can download it as a MP3 file or still listen to it on the Audible app. Check out their free one month trial.

Also check out your library OverDrive App and selection.

Here are my recommendations for you!

The Sports Gene

Why We Sleep

Spark

Endure

The Captain Class

Peak Performance

Grit

runners phone apps running coach shelly Minnesota

Texting

I don’t recommend texting while running. It looks really goofy! I have tried and I just can’t text safely and as quickly as just calling on the phone.

Training Partners - LOVE getting these types of texts, “Want to run tomorrow?”

Group Conversations - Fun and encouraging but don’t overload the alerts with endless sends.

Safety

Road ID has a FREE app that I am trying out. You can let a contact know when you are leaving and they can watch your movements on a map. Also, there is an emergency screen option where you can write your own message if an emergency responder needed more information when helping you.

Garmin Bluetooth Feature

Texts, phone call alerts, and notifications can be sent to my Garmin watch through bluetooth. That way I don’t have to get my phone out in order to see who is trying to contact me.

Once I save my data on my watch it automatically uploads to the Garmin Connect App, which then uploads the data to my Final Surge app, making everything smooth and easy!

So if your watch and phone have Bluetooth capabilities then turn them on and let your two devices talk to each other.

runners phone apps running coach shelly Minnesota

Weather App

Each evening and morning I check the forecast and temperature to make my clothing and route choices. Right now I am checking to see how much snow is in the forecast. More snow please, I beg!


BLOG POSTS

Any webpage can be linked onto your the home page of your phone creating an easy way to access your favorite blogs or sites.

My favorite running blog for a very long time has been The Science of Running Blog Post by Steve Magness. Magness immensely shares his vast knowledge and influences our era of running!

Social Media

runners phone apps running coach shelly Minnesota

The good and bad of social media. Definitely, good in the way of communication and encouragement. However, bad if you spend too much time sitting and not enough time doing! So find a happy balance and don’t be afraid to remove social media from your phone every once a while.

SOLUTION

“Oh phone, you better not be dropped in the water and die. What would I do without you?” ;)

Please comment below with your recommendations for me!

I am all ears!

All my reviews, links, and recommendations are truly my own words and thoughts. I have no partnerships with any company and receive nothing in exchange. It is just me, a friend, sharing with you.

This 30-day series is a quest for me as a writer, coach, and runner. I promise to write about running for 30 days in a row. In doing so I intend to gain in knowledge and expression of running and daily life. My hope is that we all grow together.

Photography by a Runner, Artist, Me

IT ALL STARTED WHEN…

My early childhood days, the ones you don't remember, were spent alongside my parents in their small photography studio in Columbus, Nebraska. The joy of capturing images was passed down from my father and continues to be a love.

You may have noticed 95% of the photos I use on my website have been shot by me. They are a way of expressing myself not just through words but also through images. The feelings and thoughts gathered by just one photo can sometimes be more meaningful than all the words within a single blog post.

My photography is an art form.  I don't follow all the rules.  I don't create on demand.  I see beauty and have an overwhelming desire to capture it.  Even when I don't have my camera with me, I will stand and stare and pocket every bit of detail worried I will later lose the image in my mind. 


You will not find my photos highly edited.  The only simple editing I do is to bring the light and contrast back to what my eye saw. My aspiration is to catch the allure of the world around me.

Give your visual senses a feast and scroll through my PHOTOGRAPHY WEBSITE. You can even take one or more home for yourself through the shopping feature (new this month). And there is still time to order for a Christmas delivery.


Sail, sail to the ends of the world, to the ends of your neighborhood, the ends of your yard, to the ends of your heart. Sail...

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