Saturday, I was really excited, albeit very tired, to run The Canton Road Race for Team Reebok and FitFluential.  Cooper has been really sick for the past couple of days and has had a fever over 103 for the past three nights in a row.  When we brought him to the doctors they said it was a virus (that has now turned into an ear infection) and we would just have to wait it out

So when my alarm went off, I literally crawled out of bed and to my car to head down to Canton.  I have to say though, I was pretty excited to be wearing some new clothes Reebok sent to wear for the race.  The clothes were comfortable and flattering (and really helped in finding my fellow FitFluential Ambassadors).  I was a little nervous my capris would slip and slide down a little while running, but it wasn’t an issue at all.  Everything was perfect.

Top: Play Dry Short Sleeve Top in aubergine
Bottoms: Play Dry Skinny Capri in black
Socks: Reebok CrossFit No Show Socks

When I first arrived it was pouring but Reebok’s campus is beautiful and full of inspiration.

Each pillar calls for a different exercise to the next!

On of the most interesting things  I have recently found out about Reebok is how well they treat and inspire their employees. Reebok’s mission as a brand is to “Empower People to be Fit for Life.”  They fully embody that message, realizing if they were going to tell other people they should get fit and show them how, we need to be doing it themselves.

So to do this they instilled a wellness program in the building where:

• Employees are encouraged to workout daily – there is a drop-down menu to schedule “fitness” in employees outlook calendars just as one would schedule a meeting
• Healthy eating is encouraged – the cafeteria has been altered to give Reebok employees healthier food choices and have eliminated many unhealthy foods; offering nutrition seminars for employees
• Employees are healthier, more productive and company morale has been raised – one employee has not only lost weight but now has greater control over her diabetes having lowered her daily insulin injections 
• It has also broken down communication barriers – people are meeting more people, interacting with people from across the business in ways they could not have before
• Other aspects of the fitness culture include – monthly company-wide fitness events, walking meetings, quick hallway workouts, competitions such as “beat the elevator”

Reebok also even has it’s own CrossFit Box where over 500 employees take classes.  AGAIN SO JEALOUS.  I wonder if my school will spring for our own box…oh right…we don’t even have math books…I going to go with a “probably not.”

Anyhow, the rain cleared about 20 minutes before the race was about to start. I decided to run the 5k today instead of the 10k.  Strangely enough, I have never run a normal 5k race.  I have run multiple 10K’s, Half Marathons, Obstacle Races, and even a Sprint Triathlons, but somehow never a 5k.  I was kind of excited to see how I would do on this race (I was hoping to go sub 25) and decided to push it all the way through.

The course was more challenging than I expected, due to a lot of hills but a new playlist I downloaded last night helped me push through!

I swear I am not 12

I ran my best through the race and decided not to stop for any water since the race is short and I knew it would mess me up.  Through the last mile I just concentrated on passing each person in front of me one by one.  The strategy paid off , and I ended up finishing 6th in my age group and under my 25 min. goal!

 This is my first race I have gone under 8 minute miles and I am really excited about it!  One of my fitness life goals is to place in my age group in a race and I am getting closer than ever!

This race is definitely a  must if you live in the Canton area.  I had so much fun and it was so nice to meet some of the FitFluential girls! Next up…Tufts 10k where I will be running for Team Reebok again!