Today I’m  heading up to San Francisco (with a stop in Big Sur) for the Nike Women’s Half Marathon! This will be my third ever half marathon, and my second time running this race in particular.

Because #werunsf was my first half marathon – maiden voyage, if you will – it holds a special place in my heart. Coupled with the fact that I absolutely love San Francisco, this might just be my favorite weekend of the year. Needless to say I’m really excited.

If you’ve been following along, you know I’ve been training quite a bit (you can find my general half marathon guide here) with my dear friend Arielle, who will be running her very first half marathon this weekend! From spin class to buddy runs, and everything in between, it has been quite the adventure the past 12 weeks – we’ve convinced ourselves that working out is super fun.

However… have you ever wondered what you look like when you work out? We did, too. We were recently presented with photographic evidence. The answer?

Total dickheads.

Anyway. Here’s a look at the adventure ahead:

We will be meeting up with friends Amanda, Cheyenne, Mom (she cool), and Shannon. All of us – plus about 25,000 comrades in this jewelry-fueled quest – will be starting in Union Square, making our way west along the Panhandle through Golden Gate Park, up through the Richmond and Presidio, and down into the Marina.

That “up” section is really, REALLY up (You can see a little more about that experience last year here). Miles 9-10 truly make you their bitch. Those red sections? Hills. It’s quite like attempting to scale the side of a building with a beach cruiser.

Once we arrive in SF, we’ll be heading to an NTC workout Friday night at the Embarcadero, a shakeout run Saturday morning, grabbing lots of carbs Saturday evening, and running on Sunday morning. We’ve got a packed schedule ahead, which is both fun and terrifying all at once!

I’ll be packing my race day ensemble (which includes my favorite long-distance shoes, headphones, a stretchy belt for holding my phone & stuff, and the official race-day tank); I’ll be sure to snap a picture of everything laid flat, so you can get an idea for your next race.

Annnd I’ll be bringing my gym bag – which totes all my toiletries, bandaids, supplements, and essentials – plus some of my best workout gear.

And then of course, some outfits for exploring the city, and grabbing brunch with the girls! I’m thinking jeans, converse or comfy sneaks, and relaxed sweaters (that one is 25% off, PS!). I miiiight dress up for brunch if I don’t die during/after the race.. and if I have any energy left. I’m actually most looking forward to less-than-surface-of-the-sun temperatures, and escaping the current heat wave that has been ravaging Southern California. #desperateforfall. Yay, sweaters!

I’ll obviously be taking a sh** ton of pictures over the next few days, so I’ll be doing a total recap of the event. But, for those of you reading this who are running the race and looking for a little “what to expect” section, here’s what my game plan is for the day before/day of (you can also get more info on the event facebook here or website here):

DA GAME PLAN

1. Super slow run (2mi) on Saturday
2. Get bib/packet at the Westin St. Francis / enjoy SF
3. find carbs (Little Italy, presumably) / consume dinner
4. Lay out race outfit and all AM essentials, make sure breakfast foods are available/prepped (mine will be whole grain toast + pb & honey, banana, hard boiled eggs)
5. Set up calming sleep space (I’m a freak but just go with it): oil diffuser – lavender, eucalyptus, jasmine, ylang ylang; sleepytime tea, melatonin, theanine, etc. – I get crazy pre-race jitters so I need all the help I can get.
6. Go to bed early af (make sure phone is charging)
7. Get up early af
8. Fix up hair, get dressed, eat breakfast; grab belt, phone, headphones, keys, ID, etc. Bring a sweatshirt to prevent hypothermia pre-race, and to donate during the race.
9. Find parking near union square if possible – ideally before 6AM. We’re in the slow wave (obvi) which didn’t cross the start line until 50 minutes after the official start time of the race (6:30), so we have some time.
10. Run race / attempt to survive
    (Here’s a link to my playlist on Spotify, if you need some tunes!)
11. Receive Tiffany’s, take many instagrams, revel in glory
12. Eat banana while wearing silver blanket cape, attempt to get massage in finisher’s village, roll out/stretch
13. Take uber/lyft back to start line (my friends said the shuttle was a cluster f last year)
14. brunchbrunchbrunchbrunchbrunchbrunchbrunchbrunchbrunchbrunchbrunch
15. NAP FOREVER

Oh another thing to look forward to: high schoolers handing out orange slices and mini water cups. Those orange slices are SO GOOD. CAN’T WAIT 4 ORANGE SLICES.

Anyhoo, gotta run (get it lol), because we’re starting our road trip in just a couple hours. I’ll be sure to update as soon as I have a Tiffany necklace in hand. You can follow along on my instagram, too!

To conclude, here is a photo of us running.

See you in SF!

xx,
Dominique