2015 Fit Foodie 5k Weekend Recap

Disclosure: As a Fit Foodie Ambassador, I received a complimentary VIP pass to the weekend’s events.  However, all opinions are my own.

If you follow me on Social Media, then you know that this past weekend was a very exciting weekend.  Fit Foodie Weekend was filled with lots of delicious food, running a 5k, and most importantly, time with friends.

As an ambassador for the Fit Foodie weekend, I received a pass to the entire weekend’s events.  I also received a complimentary pass for a friend, and was so happy when my lifelong friend Becca was able to come down from Baltimore to join me for the weekend.  I also received a number of “Acts of Kindness” gifts from some of the race weekend’s sponsors, including foot care items from Lather and a Canadian maple syrup package from Pure Canada Maple.

All of the weekend’s events were held at the Mosaic District in Fairfax, Virginia.  Our fun weekend kicked off on Friday evening, when Becca and I headed to Target to pick up our race bibs.  Bib pickup was held in the lobby, and was a super easy process.  We were in and out of Target with our bibs and shirts in less than five minutes, and we both managed to not spend a dime at Target.  Score!

After dropping our bibs and shirts off at the car, we headed around the corner to the VIP Cocktail party, which was held at Gypsy Soul.  During the two hour party, we had the opportunity to mingle with editors from Cooking Light and other bloggers, sample plates made by Gypsy Soul chef RJ Cooper, and enjoy a cheese and meat spread courtesy of Fit Foodie sponsor Satrori Cheese.  There was also an open wine and prosecco bar courtesy of Cupcake Wines.  While I didn’t partake in the wine drinking I did eat plenty of the Gypsy Soul samples (the chilled red pepper soup with bacon was absolutely delicious!), and ate plenty of cheese to make up for the lack of alcohol that I had at the party.

We were treated to such a delicious spread at the VIP party!

Other than the food, the highlight of Friday evening’s party was getting to hang out with fellow Fit Foodie Ambassadors.  I finally got to meet Lauren (aka Salt) and Amy in person, and it was equally great to see Courtney, Mar, Erika, and Sue.

With Mar, Amy, Courtney, Erika, and Sue

As we left the party, we were spoiled with a gift bag full of Sartori Cheese.  I think I currently have enough cheese in my fridge to last me for a year!  Many thanks to Sartori for the generous gift!

Saturday morning Becca and I woke up bright and early to head back to the Mosaic District for the 5k.  Our goal was to arrive and park by 7:00 a.m. since the race started at 7:30, and we pulled into the parking garage right at 7.  However, as I pulled the key out of the ignition I realized that I had forgotten to put my Garmin watch on my wrist.  Although I didn’t go into the Fit Foodie weekend with any time goals in mind for the race (my one and only goal was to have fun), I’ve never run naked.  I began to panic, but then realized I could use my backup option, RunKeeper on my phone.  Though its not as reliable as using my Garmin, RunKeeper was better than nothing.

The start line

After leaving the car we made our way to the Finisher’s Village to get on line for the porta potties, only to find that there wasn’t a line!  Score!  After quickly taking care of business we made our way back to the start line, stood around for a few minutes, and before we knew it runners started lining up at the start line for the start of the race.

Before the start of the race

At exactly 7:30, we were off and making our way through the Mosaic District and the surrounding neighborhood.  Despite there not being a wave start, I didn’t find the course overly crowded, but boy was it hilly!  Part of the course doubled back, but I found the signage very clear, and it wasn’t confusing at all to know where I was supposed to run.  The only bad part of the course was that we ran past a very smelly dumpster behind an apartment complex twice, so I hope in the future that the race directors are able to find a way to avoid having runners run past that dumpster.

Photo Credit: Fit Foodie

Since I didn’t have my Garmin I had to run my intervals based on feel.  I ran the first 10 minutes without any walking, and then realized that because of the 100% humidity, and the hills, that running this race straight wasn’t going to be a great idea.  About every five minutes I took a brief walk break and also drank a sip of water (I decided that being pregnant it would be best to bring my handheld water bottle with me instead of relying on the water stops), but because I wasn’t wearing a watch my walk intervals were of inconsistent length.

I crossed the finish line at 31:53 (10:16 min/mile pace).  Given the humidity and the fact that I ran the race naked, I’m more than okay with my finish time.  Did I run this race anywhere close to my current 5k PR?  Absolutely not (and no, its not because I am pregnant, as I ran my current 5k PR when I was 5 weeks pregnant).  I’m actually shocked I ran this race as fast as I did, especially given how hilly the course was and how inconsistent my run/walk intervals were.

Becca and I post race

After the race I met up with fellow ambassadors Mar, Courtney, Erika, Amy, and Lauren.  We wandered around the Finisher’s Village, enjoying a variety of food samples.  Some of my favorite samples included a salad from Sweetgreen and more cheese from Sartori (there’s no such thing as too much cheese!).  We also received a water bottle with infuser from Rove.  We also made our way through the Cooking Light tent, where we were treated to an endless array of Aveeno samples, flavored popcorn, and energy balls.

Post race with Erika, Courtney, Mar, and Amy
Photo Credit: Erika at MCM Mama Runs

A sampling of all the delicious samples in the Finisher’s Village
Photo Credit: Erika at MCM Mama Runs

Lots of samples in the Cooking Light tent!

Although I had planned to head to the final event, Yoga and Barre class followed by brunch, on Sunday, I woke up Sunday morning with very swollen feet.  After standing in heels for a couple of hours Friday evening, followed by running a race and remaining on my feet following the race, I made the decision that it was best for me to stay off of my feet that day, and sadly, didn’t attend the Yoga session.

Many thanks to Fit Foodie, Cooking Light, and all of the amazing sponsors.  It was such a fun weekend, and an incredible experience.  I hope that they come back to Fairfax again next year, though I might suggest that they not choose Father’s Day weekend, as its usually a very busy weekend for families and many friends who wanted to participate couldn’t because of Father’s Day plans.

QOTD: Would you want to participate in a future Fit Foodie weekend?