Ashley Rodriguez

Winner of Oiselle's Begin contest. She won a kit to get started on her big goals this year. Including Oiselle apparel, training journal, AND goal setting session via Skype with pro Lauren Fleshman.

A few weeks ago, I saw a tweet from Oiselle pop up in my Twitter feed: a contest. Cool. I’m in. The tweet asked what mantra would fuel goal chasing for me in 2014. I replied with, “Run the mile you’re in.”

I can’t remember who exactly told me that, but it was a little more than a year ago when I was training for my first marathon, the Miami Marathon. It was horribly humid and I hated everything. Miles 14-20 were always my crankiest training runs in Miami. But then someone told me to focus on the mile I was in and it got me through the rest of training and race day, through two more half marathons (both PRs), and then another marathon (another PR). All in 2013.

That (winning!) phrase also got me the chance to chat with Lauren Fleshman, pro runner and Oiselle bird. Not to mention some fabulous Oiselle goodies. Cue excitement. Since running Miami, I had moved to the Washington, D.C., metro area. I was feeling cold, like polar-vortex cold, and unmotivated for the past few weeks. But chatting with Lauren was just what I needed to kick start my enthusiasm to run again.

Here are the top three takeaways that I promised Twitter I would share. (And got the chance — on Oiselle’s blog, no less!)

You never regret working out. But always regret not working out.
Truer words have never been spoken. I asked Lauren how to keep myself motivated when I’m not training for a race. Those simple words of wisdom have gotten me out of bed at 6 a.m. to run on the treadmill. (The horrible, horrible treadmill.) And I loved it.

No hills? No problem.
My next marathon is The San Francisco Marathon in July, which is going to require some hill training. Unfortunately, my area of Alexandria, VA, is pretty flat. Lauren suggested hill repeats and even running up and down the levels in a parking garage. Simple, yet effective. She also emphasized that it’s just as important to practice running downhill as it is to practice going uphill.

Use Your Glutes
I don’t have the best form when running up or down hill because I learned to run in South Florida where hills are rare. Lauren suggested getting my glutes to push me up the hill instead of my legs. I plan to try this and will be sure to report back via Twitter with the hilarious results. Stay tuned.

Up Next…
It’s not every day you get to chat with a professional athlete. And it’s even more incredible when you are lucky enough to get to spend time with one, rambling off a list of questions to help you get better at what you love to do.

I’m looking forward to rocking The San Francisco Marathon this summer — fully decked out in #flystyle threads — thanks to Lauren’s great advice and Oiselle’s perfectly-timed tweet that set this whole thing in motion. Thank you!