Why I kinda miss running (and why I kinda don’t) + CLIF SHOT giveaway

I haven’t been running since getting pregnant. Part of the reason is that it just doesn’t feel good for me during pregnancy, but also–let’s be real–running and I are kinda on a break right now.

It’s not that running did anything wrong…I’ve just been clicking with other kinds of exercise lately. Like barre (any and all kinds). And PiYo. And most recently, my own prenatal circuit creations.

But there’s one big part of running that you just can’t get anywhere else: racing.

It’s hard to compete with the race experience. It’s exciting, scary, thrilling, challenging, fun, hard, and just crazy awesome. (Sometimes more crazy than awesome, depending on the weather…)

If you want to hear me go off about racing even more, check out this post.

After a couple years of racing, I got to the point where I wasn’t satisfied with just doing it for the experience. I wanted to PR, like, EVERY. TIME. Which meant I had to be in my absolute optimal condition (ie not pregnant) to pursue so much as a 5K.

And then there was the money factor…man, those things are expensive.

Turns out that if you take away the racing piece of the puzzle, you’re left with just…running. Without the Garmin and the training plan and the bibs and the race day jitters. In that world, I’m a little lost.

So while I still like the idea of running, I think it’s racing that I’m truly into. The actual feet-on-pavement part is easily trumped by “fun stuff” like torching my quads with tiny little 1-inch movements at the barre or working out with drumsticks.

All that said, I know I’ll run again. Maybe I’ll even win the lottery and be able to purchase a double BOB someday, for optimal kid-friendly running.

But for now, my treadmill usage is limited to incline walking (which, let me assure you, can be puh-lenty challenging for a lumbering pregnant woman).

Which is why, when the kind people over at Clif offered to send me some of their SHOT products, after I’d professed my love for them in this PopSugar article, I politely declined.

Then I said: but can I give some to my readers??

And so, this giveaway was born. Clif even offered to shower 3 WINNERS with Shot product care packages, which include:

– SHOT BLOKS

– SHOT Energy Gels

– SHOT Electrolyte Hydration Mix

– SHOT Protein Recovery Drink Mix

As I mentioned in the PS article, I was so obsessed with the bloks during marathon training. I had Amazon send me a box every month, and my biggest challenge was keeping my hands out of them when I wasn’t running.

In case you’re not familiar, Shot Bloks are carb and electrolyte chews. They have a gummy-bear-like texture, but I personally don’t like gummy bears so I’ll say that they taste much better. The cran-razz flavor was my ultimate weakness.

Also in the winning care packages, you’ll find CLIF SHOT energy gels (undoubtedly just as good, although I’ve never tried them) and the two newest additions to the CLIF SHOT line: the CLIF SHOT Electrolyte Hydration Drink Mix and CLIF SHOT Protein Recovery Drink Mix, which provide athletes with hydration during activity and fast-absorbing protein to aid in post-activity recovery.

And if you win, you get to TRY THEM ALL!

To enter the contest, use the Rafflecopter below. I’ll announce the 3 winners next Friday.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Have a fabulous weekend!

xoxo

Kim