Runner Quiz!

                                    

Hey everyone! HAPPY HUMP DAY! I hope this blog finds you well! I've never done something like this so I thought it would be fun to implement every once in awhile to my blog posts! Thanks Jessica Spivey A.K.A @Tampamomruns for posting and encouraging others to do so!

1. Would you rather run along the beach path or a mountain trail? Although both are a little extra strenuous on the body, I would prefer the beach!

2. If you could choose the flavor of Gatorade at your next race aid stations, what would it be? What is the blue flavor? Cool blue or something like that... Whatever it is, I love it and they NEVER have anything but Lime at the Gatorade stops :(

3. If you were given $100 gift card to a running store, what would you purchase with it? New running shoes... although I just got new ones, but I will act like I got the gift card before I made the purchase ;)
4. Do you prefer to following a training plan or wake up and then decide how far or fast you want to run? When training for my first marathon I stuck about 65% to a training program... When training for half marathons... lets just say I didn't train. I would wake up and say 'this is how far I will run today.' Now that I am training for my second marathon I cannot seem to get into the groove of training!!

5. Would you rather start your run with the uphill and end on the downhill or start your run with the downhill and end on the uphill?I would rather go uphill first and finish going downhill which is exactly what I do when I run in my neighborhood because there is a big hill that I strategically run so I go uphill first and finish downhill. 

6. When you can’t run, what type of cross training do you choose to do? I like to just walk sometimes (I know that's not really considered cross-training) as well as spin-biking, and lifting weights.

7. What’s your preference—> out and back, point to point, or loop runs? I used to like point to to races, but then a good seasoned runner friend helped me see the good in out and back races because you can see all those ahead of you as they come back, usually the person in first place, but then you can also see all those behind you! I have learned to enjoy that more!

8. If you had to recommend ANY running related item to a new runner, it would be……?  I would recommend the proper shoes. I thought I picked out the right kind because they were Brooks, but I realized I needed to be fitted at the store to have the proper shoe. That helped a ton and saved me from losing toe nails and having other issues from wearing the wrong size shoe.

9. Do you see any wild animals while out on your runs? I have seen dogs (acting wild) and deer out at Starkey Park. 

10. Ever gotten lost while on a run? Nope, thankfully!

11. If you could have one meal waiting and ready for you each time you got home from a run for the next 30 days….what would it be? Pizza!!

12. Capris or shorts? What do you run in most? Shorts!! 

13. At what mile (or how many minutes) into your run does your body start to feel like it’s warming up and ready to go? I usually run way too fast the first few miles... so by mile 4-5 I am finally getting into a good pace and feeling "warmed up".

14. What do you do with your keys when you run? I take the car key itself and stick it in my running belt or a pouch in my shorts.

15. If you had to relive any race that you’ve done in the past, which one? 2012- The Inagural Tower of Terror 10-miler at Disney. It was my first time running 10 miles and it felt great and I was in the best shape of my life at that point I think. I don't think they offer this race any longer :(

16. What type of run is your least favorite? LONG runs... but they have to be done! They just take so much time and mental preparation. I would rather go out and run a few miles and be done! Why am I a long distance runner again? LOL

17. When you go for a run, do you leave from your front door or drive somewhere to start? Most of the time leave from my house. Sometimes I will meet up with others to run somewhere else. 

18. When running in the daylight are sunglasses a must or an annoyance? I prefer a visor to help block sun and it keeps the sweat out of your face!!

19. When you get tired, what keeps you from quitting? I think about how excited my buddy Zane will be to see I ran for him when I post my workout to Facebook as well as how good I will feel after being done!

Copy, Paste, and then Post so others can learn more about you as a runner!
Until next time!

Oral Health: The Very Basics

scottsdalefamilydentistry.com

So here I sit wondering what I should blog about next. I've been wanting to incorporate my love for dental hygiene into this blog because I feel it is something that I should educate my readers on. I have been having a difficult time deciding what to speak about though since oral hygiene care is such a broad category. However, perhaps my education over the past 2 years has put me ahead of the 'Average Joe' in this department. So here I am today sitting on a balcony in Cocoa Beach, FL with fireworks going off wanting to talk about the topic of oral hygiene...

The health of your mouth is directly related to the health of your overall body. The average human swallows a total of 6,000 times a day! What a mind-boggling fact, huh? Think about the mouth. It's earned the title of the dirtiest orfice of the body! There are millions of bacteria that are apart of the "normal flora" of the mouth and will not cause harm to you. However, there are many other bacteria called "opportunistic bacteria" that will see a chance to cause harm when the environment of your mouth presents a perfect ~opportunity~! Now put those two facts together. The mouth which has millions of bacteria in it and the fact that we are swallowing those bad bacteria many times throughout the day can present a problem to your entire body- a major organ being the heart. This is why I am so passionate about dental hygiene because it is all about educating people to PREVENT DISEASE!

greatoralhealth.com

Periodontal Disease, otherwise known as Gum Disease is a a very sneaky disease since evidence of it does not appear in the form of pain like many other diseases or conditions. Most people think that nothing in their mouth is hurting, therefore there can't possibly be anything wrong. THINK AGAIN! Many people state "my gums bleed when I brush/floss my teeth, but that's how it's always been. I'm here to tell you that is NOT normal and that is called Gingivitis. If you break that word apart... "gingiva"-means the correct term for your gum tissue and "itis"-means an inflammation of. Therefore, if your gums bleed when brushing or flossing this is evidence of gingivitis, in other words, the beginning stage of Periodontal Disease.

The good thing, if there is a good thing, about Gingivitis is that it can be reversed! It would be ideal to not have Gingivitis in the first place, but we all have times in our life when we are more diligent with our brushing and flossing then other times, therefore we are bound to have a little Gingivitis here or there. This can be PREVENTED by brushing and flossing daily. Rinsing your mouth out after you brush and floss with an Antiseptic type mouth rinse will also help keep away the bad bacteria. But it is not just about the act of brush, floss, rinse, that will keep away Gingivitis... it's the effectiveness of your plaque removal that will keep your gums from becoming puffy, inflamed, and bleeding.

Plaque is a combination of food particles, bacteria, and water that form on the surface of your teeth throughout the day. In fact, within minutes of brushing your teeth and removing the bacteria biofilm or colonies of bacteria begin forming again on the tooth surface. As you can see it's a never ending battle that needs to be fought!!

When brushing your teeth it is important to make sure you are brushing with the bristles of the brush angled toward the gumline (the space where the gums meet the tooth). This space is where I constantly see my patients miss removing the plaque since most people brush their teeth with the bristles flat against the teeth. See the below picture for a demonstration of how to angle the tooth brush toward your gums for effective plaque removal.

glisci.com

Flossing is a whole different topic. I will let you in on a secret... I don't like to floss! Yes, I said it! However, despite my dislike of flossing, I do it! It HAS to be done! When you floss, take a strand the length from of your hand to the crease near your elbow. Hold the floss with your thumb and middle finger on each hand. Begin wrapping each side of the floss around your middle fingers. Once you have a space about an inch between each middle finger you can begin your task with using your thumb and pointer fingers to maneuver the floss from in and out of the in between the teeth. When pushing the floss down in between the teeth you want to bend the floss making a C-shape around the side of each tooth and actually scrap the sides of the teeth to remove the plaque. This will take some practice and patience. If your gums bleed when you floss chances are, if it's just some Gingivitis going on and not a later stage of Periodontal Disease, it will take a normal schedule of flossing morning and night for a number of days for this to improve along with seeing your hygienist to have a dental cleaning if it has been some time since you have had one. See the below diagram for an illustration on how to floss.

albrightdental.net

I know this blog was pretty lengthy, but it was so difficult to decide where to start off the "Dental Hygiene" section of this page. My future Oral Health related posts will hopefully be shorter and not as broad. Comment below if there are questions you have or topics you would like to be covered in future blogs! I hope you learned something from this post and hope you can use it to make positive changes in your home care and oral health! Until next time...

Spinning Vlog!!

Hello all! I am super excited to write this -brief- blog because along with it I have my first vlog/workout video! I recently found a spin bike on Craigslist that was very affordable and in great condition! I love it!! View the workout video and I hope you join me! Let me know what you think!

Dental Hygienist- A Great Career Choice!

Hey everyone! I am excited for where life is taking me at the moment... actually I think I am just excited that the hardest part of dental hygiene school is behind me so I feel like I have my whole life ahead of me finally!! When in a rigorious full-time academic program such as dental hygiene it is difficult to work a job and have any sort of normal consistent schedule like you when having a full-time job. Let's admit it, being in school full-time is worse then having a full-time job! You could say it's like working a 40 hour work week with 20 hours of overtime!!! The work you do outside of school really adds up! I'm sure many of you remembers those days or can currently relate. I am so glad I made the decision to go to school though! Despite the difficulties (I had plenty), I feel like I have made it even though I am not yet done!

Did you know to become a licensed dental hygienist in the State of Florida you must take 5 board examinations?!? (1) National Board, (1) Local Anesthesia Certification exam, (1) State Computerized exam, (1) Clinical exam (when I actually have to clean someone's teeth), and (1) Juris Prudence (fancy words for FL State Laws exam).... INSANE, RIGHT!? I have completed (pending results) on the first 3 exams listed! The last two exams will be taken during the month of April and May. According to U.S News, dental hygienist was ranked #4 on a list of Best Health Care Jobs of 2015! I believe this post was going based on salary (avg. 59k-85k annually), however there are many more benefits to a career as a dental hygienist then just money. Yes, we need money to survive and it was a motivating factor for me to continue my education, but it is really a great job. I wanted to work less and make more- that's what everyone wants, right? That is why I decided to continue my education from dental assisting to becoming a dental hygienist! 

Dental hygienists generally work Monday-Thursday since many dental offices are closed on Fridays. Granted there are many offices now open on Fridays, nights, and weekends to accommodate the working person. Hygienists usually work an 8-10 hour day and get to care for patients over all needs (not just their teeth!). When patients return to see you on a 3-6 month basis you really get to develop a relationship with them and get to know them and their families. You become apart of their lives. I love helping people and people in general, so to be able to develop these relationships is very important to me. As a dental assistant you are not the main provider for the patient so you don't develop the same sort of relationships. Dental hygienists also have a little more flexibility in their schedules then a dental assistant does. Many hygienists are able to work for multiple doctors spending as little as 1-2 days in a particular practice. For a person who likes variety and change, this may be the position for you!

So as a dental hygienist you just "clean teeth'" right? FAR FROM IT! As a dental hygienist the main focus of your education is examination of the head and neck of your patients, however we are also trained and educated to do much more then that! Many people don't know that the mouth in the opening to the rest of the body and that you can tell a lot about a person's overall health based on the health of their mouth. We have been trained to be able to spot abnormalities in our patients as we treat them. I have seen visible signs of diabetes, hypertension/heart disease, and active herpes virus. I can tell whether a patient is taking a medication that is effecting their mouth and can consult the patient to help them combat these nasty oral side effects by means of a dental product that I have researched.  We are health care providers and are many times the first provider to note signs of oral and skin cancer along with other overall health care changes since our patients see us so regularly. 

Needless to say, being a hygienist involves much more then just "cleaning teeth". We are the first line of defense when it comes to spotting and treating Periodontal Disease (Gum Disease). Early diagnosis and treatment of Periodontal Disease is so important if we are going to prevent further break down of the periodontium (bone and gum that support the teeth). I will be blogging further in depth about Periodontal Disease- the cause and prevention later down the road, so come back for that!

I truly feel that becoming a dental hygienst is a great way to be able to work less, make more, help people/touch people lives, and still have a life beyond the job. I am a spiritual person with many spiritual goals. I intend to use the flexible schedule that becoming a hygienist has given me to serve God more fully!

Think you might be interested in joining  the ranks of a great profession of people who want to make a difference in people's lives? Google search to locate a local college with a Dental Hygiene Program or:

For more information about the Dental Hygiene Program at St. Petersburg College click the link HERE

Are you currently a registered dental hygienist? Considering continuing your education? St. Petersburg College offers an ALL ONLINE Bachelor's Degree Completion Program. Click HERE to learn more! 

On a little side note before I go... I purchased a MacBook Air and I am super excited to be carrying this little device around more often (it's SOO light) in hopes to have more convince for blogging! I also have a little more time on my hands since studying for school will be minimal from now on!!

What are your educational goals? What do you currently do for work? Do you love it?! 
Leave a comment below! I would love to hear! 

Marathoning for Mortals

Hi all! 

Thanks for stopping by today! Life has been busy, but isn't it always? I wanted to share my marathon experience with you all. If you are just an average person -a mortal- you CAN run a marathon just as I did! 

As you may have read in a previous post of mine, I was having a difficult time with training. You really do need to stick to the training plan in order to feel confident at the start like that you could actually do this! The training program I chose to go with was an intermediate 1 runners plan by Hal Higdon. I went with this plan because I am an experience runner ( 6 half marathons along with many other distances). The plan seemed reasonable with what is required of me to do and it seemed to fit well with my busy school schedule...so I thought. 

I did well with the first 1.5-2 months of the training plan, but as the weekend "long runs" got longer, I began to fade in my dedication to the plan. Thankfully I had a few people who were there to encourage me. First and foremost my buddy Zane who I run for. Zane and his family have been a HUGE support to me and my running. They have so much confidence in me and that I can really do what I put my mind to and for them I am forever grateful! Right next to Zane and his family, I have my great friend Rebecca who was training for the same race as I was and this would also be her FIRST MARATHON! We spent many days together over the past 4 months (we go to school together) so we were a constant reminder to each other that we HAD to run! I will be honest, I had times where I wish I had never signed up for this race. Rebecca and I would turn toward each other and say "were we smoking crack when we signed up for this race while in school full time??" Of course we weren't but we were so weighed down by life, school, and family at times to where we questioned our reasons for running a marathon, but let's face it... there is never an "ideal" time in life to run a MARATHON! I always kept in mind why I was training for 26.2:

1. Zane- plain and simple
2. To say 'I DID IT!'
3. To push myself to see what I am capable of
4. To never have to wonder 'what if'
5. The feeling of the finish line & accomplishment

About 10 days prior to race day I received a message from my great friend Run Jodi, who is an amazing runner, dental hygienist, and person. She asked me how training was going and if I was ready for 26.2. I was nervous... NO I WASN'T READY AT ALL! The longest distance I had ran at this point was 13 miles! I told Jodi my concerns and she gave me a few wise recommendations. She suggested I run 16 miles that coming Friday, consider that my longest training run, and then spend the next week recovering. She said that since I didn't train as well as I could have, I could at least do a few things to make the a great first marathon experience. Jodi said to avoid sugar 1 week prior, drink WATER ONLY (I was doing a gallon a day for about 5 days leading up to the race), get a good nights rest up to 3 days prior to the race, and begin carbohydrate loading 1-2 days prior to the race. I took these suggestions and 'ran' with it since I know I had not put in the training miles needed to feel confident about the race, so the least I could do would be to listen to these suggestions!

It was finally race weekend! My family and I drove over to Melbourne, FL on Thursday to hang out and relax for the weekend. We love visiting the Space Coast! We spend our days driving around Historic Cocoa Village and Cocoa Beach, walking on the pier, checking out condos, pretty much any mindless wandering thing that will fill up our days- we just enjoy it :) Saturday night prior to the race a bunch of runner friends an I (along with family) all went to the race expo to get our packets/bibs and then headed to an Italian restaurant to "carb load"! I order a big bowl of pasta with meatballs... it was DELISH! I finished every last piece of pasta from that dish! That's not normal for me because I usually get full pretty quick, but I think my body knew I needed every last bit of carbs for the big race the following day.

Well here we arrive! It's race day! 3:15 wake up call! I was so unhappy about the early wake up call- to be honest, I wasn't looking forward to this day at all. I was nervous, scared, and quite frankly, a little mad at myself for putting myself up to this. I kept it moving though. I got dressed, had a bagel with jelly for breakfast and began drinking more water. Christy got dressed and went with Rebecca and I to the race start. Dad so kindly drove us at 4:45a to the race area.Rebecca and I got to meet with our "I Run 4" friends and take pictures!! I LOVE meeting our I Run 4 family at races! After our photo-op we went to the port-a-pots to 'take care of business' and then we headed to the start line.

Christy walked toward her set-up spot where she would photograph Rebecca and I .2 miles into the race and then at that same point on our way back which would be the 13.1 or half way mark! The start line was EMOTIONAL to say the LEAST! Rebecca and I stood at the start line together, smiling, shaking(it was cold), praying.... we couldn't believe what we were about to do, but it was going to happen. The race was the "SPACE coast marathon" so they stuck with the space theme and there was a video screen with the recording and audio recording of the Space Shuttle Discovery's last launch. Something came over me and when the countdown began "4, 3, 2, 1 and lift off!" I started to ball my eyes out... THIS WAS IT! Rebecca and I hugged each other and off we went!

At the beginning of races it seems the trend is (at least with me) that I start out too fast! There is so much adrenaline and excitement happening that you take off like a bullet and that's what happened to me! For the first .75-1.00mi. I was running under a 9 minute mile, which is SUPER fast for me!! I finally slowed and found my 'happy pace' around 11:30/mi!

Around mile 3 my right knee injury started to act up. It felt like my tendons were ripping! I had to slow and walk many times during the race to give myself some relief from the pain. I spent time with some of the pace groups that were holding up a stick with their expected finish times on it. They were "Jeff Galloway Pacers"- following his run/walk method. Run a minute, walk a minute was their strategy. I never really researched that method, nor did I train with the method, but for the sake of my knee injury and wanting to make it to the finish line I followed some pace groups throughout the race. I grew to really like it! Moments where I had to stop stretch and work out my knee pain I looked down at my bracelets and Zane's name on my leg and I remembered why I had to keep pushing forward!   

My face at 13.1mi looking back at Christy as she is telling me "KEEP GOING! YOU CAN DO IT! ONLYYYY 13 more miles!"

I stayed fueled throughout the race on Powerbar's Raspberry energy chews and Stinger's Pink Lemonade chews. I trained with them and that's what I felt comfortable with. I altered Gatorade and water at each water stop. Around miles 18 I ran past a friend who was already heading back toward the finish line and he gave me some Tylenol for my knee and no more then 2 miles later I felt like new! I was like a different person- I had caught my second wind and was feeling good! In training I had never ran/walked more then 16 miles, so reaching the 17+ range felt amazing to me since that was like uncharted territory! Although I still had 9 miles to go I could envision the victory and I was on my way back toward the finish!

At a mile and a half to go till the finish I ran into the 6:15 pacer... I was finishing with her, no question about it! We continued a walk run into the park where the finish line was. The stretch to the finish was about a half .25mi. in a circle around a park. Everyone is screaming and cheering for you- it's an amazing feeling. I started to cry as I saw Christy and Cody as I first entered in the park. Cody ran out in front of me and ended up finishing the race before me! LOL I ended up finishing with the 6:15 stick in my hand, but my official time was 6:20!! I wanted to finish before the cut off of 7 hours, so look at that!!

The finish was overwhelming- so many emotions! I was happy, accomplished, satisfied, humbled, thankful and so many more emotions all wrapped in a ball. I was so thankful and happy to see my family and friends at the finish line to support me. That day will forever live in my memory as a

I know this was a LONG play-by-play of my marathoning events, but I wanted to give the average person who has never experienced a marathon the "inside scoop" on what it's all about!

Before I started to train for the marathon I bought a book called "Marathoning for Mortals" recommended by my cousin Erica who has run 2 NYC marathons. What I gained from this book is something I want EVERYONE to know who has a desire to run a marathon: YOU CAN DO IT! There are so many training plans out there for beginners, for people who have never run a mile in their life! This book brought out that in the 80s when running races got big, it was more of an event that only elite athletes participated in. NOT ANYMORE! Running has evolved into someone that people of all ages, races, and genders partake it. People run for themselves, others who can't, causes, and to raise awareness. This is no longer a sport for elite runners, but for the average person who has a goal to go the distance and cross that finish line! So I want to encourage everyone who has a desire to run 26.2- DO IT! Set a goal, plan for it, and then DO IT! Comment below with any questions or you next fitness goal!