Chobani special delivery!

It's a snowy day here in Pittsburgh, so I worked from home. Good thing I did! I was here to receive one more prize from the Healthy Holidays Challenge... An entire case of Chobani Greek Yogurt!

I had completely forgotten that this was part of the winner's package, but what a delightful surprise on a Friday morning! Coincidentally, I had just written "yogurt" on my grocery list dry-erase board this morning... Now I've got a dozen cups of Chobani with my name on them!

I love the creamy, delicious goodness of Chobani. It's my yogurt of choice these days since it provides me with a source of protein in addition to calcium, and the flavors can't be beat! (My absolute favorite is pineapple!) I haven't tried the passion fruit or cinnamon apple flavored yogurt before, so this prize is, again, exposing me to new and wonderful things!

If you haven't tried Greek yogurt, I urge you to try Chobani. It's the best out there in terms of texture and flavor. The plain yogurt is great as a substitute in a number of different recipes. Personally, I love the fruity flavored varieties and, when I can get it, I eat it every day!

Needless to say, I'm stoked to have such an awesome prize delivered to my door. Thanks, Chobani! I'll enjoy every bite!

I won the Healthy Holidays Challenge!

I won in the Muscle Building category of the Healthy Holidays Challenge! :) It was a real boost--reaffirming my workout goals, reclaiming my nutrition goals, and renewing my basic commitment to myself. The Healthy Holidays Challenge was just the beginning, though. I'm committing to a more focused approach to my physical health in 2013, and I look forward to sharing my journey with you as I continue to learn!

Becki over at Fighting For Wellness ran the Challenge via Facebook. It was a pleasure to get to know the group of ladies and gents that came together to be part of the challenge. Some were working towards weight loss, others towards losing inches off their waistlines, and then there were a few like me who weren't looking to lose weight or inches, but, instead, to build muscle. Whatever these folks were working towards, they did it with grace, perseverance, and humility. We all patted each other on the back and cheered each other on, but we also encouraged each other when we "fell off the wagon" or even got run over by said wagon, haha... and kept everyone going. It was a great group of people.

Each week of the Challenge, we emailed Becki our measurements. Sometimes I was reluctant to measure myself because I wasn't sure I was going to like the result... But I knew that my fellow participants were probably facing that same struggle, so I did it for solidarity when I couldn't do it for myself.

Outdoor Research Facemask review

I knew there would come a day when I would need to face the elements and learn to run outside in the winter. When I first started running, I built my endurance during the winter on a treadmill at the gym I joined, happily logging miles to my favorite tunes in a climate-controlled environment. My lungs were happy too.

My racing experiences taught me that my lungs needed to be exposed to a variety of different air types in order for me to do well in races that, well, weren't on a treadmill. (And unless you're doing a virtual race, it's likely that you're not racing on a treadmill.)

My asthma actually got so much worse in the summer's humidity (hallmark of western Pennsylvanian summers) that my race times suffered significantly. I even had to not attend a one-miler because the humidity was so bad and my asthma was bothering me so much... So I knew that the cold weather, the opposite extreme, would be a challenge. I just wasn't sure how to handle it.

Cue running coach: he recommended that I buy a face mask. I had been using a neck cowl, pulling it up over my nose and mouth when I felt like I needed to, but its fleeciness--albeit warm--got damp with my breath and the inconsistent temperatures for my breathing actually seemed to make things worse...

The local running store didn't have what I was looking for, so I had to look somewhere hardcore. I went to the outdoor enthusiast's store and--behold!--I found the Outdoor Research face mask for $26.

I ran a 5k for this trial. It was 20 degrees Fahrenheit with a windchill of 7 degrees in St. Louis, Missouri, on New Year's Day. This was the coldest weather I ever attempted to run in... but I did it!

$26 might seem like a steep price for such a dainty thing, but when you first wear this, if you struggled to breathe before, you will thank your lucky stars to have found it and you will feel like you stole the thing for the price that you paid...

The technical composition is stellar--Windstopper fabric pulled gently across your face, shaped to cup your chin and nose without rubbing, secured at the nape of your neck with Velcro. Awesome.

It does not:

• Restrict your movement
• Feel like a turtleneck two sizes too small or grandma squeezing her shoulder into your throat as she hugs you.
• Allow you to suck in cold air. (Clutch for asthmatics with cold air-induced bronchospasms!)
• Restrict your breathing*.
• Increase your likelihood to be scoped out for a fashion magazine. It's functional, but you're not going to be mistaken for Kate Middleton in it.

 It does:

• Have a thin inner fleece lining that will brush against your face as you bounce along in your run. 
• Collect a little bit of moisture inside the front near where your nostrils or mouth are. 
• Move a bit if you dip your head towards your chest (like you're looking down).
• Wash well! I put it in a gentles bag with my running socks and sports undergarments. It goes in the dryer on low, too. Easy wash, easy dry.
• Help manage breathing by providing consistent air temperature.
• Come in different sizes. (I wear a small.)

All that being said, I would definitely recommend the Outdoor Research face mask to my fellow asthmatics! I think you'll be satisfied with the relief. For others struggling with cold air intake during the winter, this might be a good bet for you too if you find that you're frequently breathing out of your mouth.

*I did not have an asthma attack during this run, so I was breathing as I would normally during a run. That is what I mean when I say that it did not restrict my breathing.