NYC Marathon in the Morning!

Happy New York City Marathon Eve!

Today has been a whirlwind day so far in The Big Apple filled with so many wonderful things. Ashley and I have had an amazing day.

We started off with a little yoga action at Lululemon. They were having free classes for runners at their NYC locations this morning so we hit that up bright and early.

 

It was an amazing class. I went into it feeling a little stressed and tight and went out of it feeling relaxed and fresh. It was the perfect way to start the day!

 

After stretching it out we headed to the New York Marathon Expo.

Going to the race expo is one of my FAVORITE things about big races. They are always so amazing and fun to walk around.

We got there about 10 minutes before the expo opened and there was a big line, but luckily it moved fast as soon as the doors opened up.

 

I loved all the “Welcome” signs in different languages. There were so many international people there today. The word on the street is there are actually more international runners than US runners, which is a crazy thought!

 

I went straight to the Green section of the packet pick-up line to get my bib! Receiving your bib always makes everything more real.

 

Ashley had to go the Support area because since she just got married her name on her license was different that the name she is racing under. They were very strict about everything!

 

After we got our bibs we headed straight to try out all the samples. We started off with some lovely sparkling water.

 

Did a little posing in front of the Runner’s World booth.

Played for a bit at the Power Balance booth.

 

I picked up a Power Balance bracelet. I have seen them at every expo and I am interested in the concept. They are supposed to have some sort of performance technology built in which helps with overall balance and efficiency. It might be all mental, but if it works, then that’s good enough for me.

I will be wearing it tomorrow, so I will let you know how it goes! Anyone else ever have one or try one before?

Tested out some new Gatorade

Tried out some new Odwalla

 

The Pumpkin Protein and the Pink Poetry are amazing.

  

We then made our way to the Power Bar station. The new Energy Bites in Oatmeal and Chocolate are to die for! Yum!

  

I then had my picture taken with the 2009 NYC Marathon winner – Meb. We pretty much are in love.

(Have I mentioned that I love expo booths that take fun pictures?!)

One of the most fun parts about the expo was all the fun advertisements.

 

There were lots of signs similar to the Chicago Marathon expo!

It was also really fun to check out all the T-shirts. All the marathon slogans were so cool.

   

I must admit, I wanted to buy EVERYTHING, but somehow I held myself back.

There were so many people there, but it was so fun to walk around and bask in the gloriousness that is marathon eve excitement.

 

 

Ashley and I had a blast. It’s so much fun to attend a running expo with a running buddy!

After the Expo I had my first Equinox experience at the juice bar there. It was pretty good!   

 

With our juice in hand we walked around the Madison Square Park area and took in some gorgeous views.

 

After yoga, the expo, juice and a little NYC walk it was time for lunch. Ash and I were both hungry for some sandwiches so we decided to try out Press. It is sort of like Subway except they have lots of different types of dough which they press out for you.

 

After your dough is pressed you get to pick you veggies to add.

 

I went with a little of everything.

 

We took our sandwiches home and enjoyed them with our feet up on the couch – with a side of fries, for carbs, obviously! 🙂

 

After filling up our bellies we decided to check out all our expo loot.

Here is the official NYC Marathon technical tee. I got one of the last ones in my size – thank goodness!

I also purchased this tee. I enjoy the bridge on the shirt.

 

At the Expo Ash and I posed for Runners World Magazine with Ryan Hall and got this sweet picture.

We totally look like we can hang with him, right?!

As part of the rest of our loot we got lots of samples a cool Mizuno water bottle and a random Neti Pot along with lots of coupons and other paperwork information.

 

I am so excited to have my bib in my possession! It’s so exciting to lay out all my race day clothes with my official bib!

 

I am Green Wave 1 – Corral 20  – Number 035 – all that together means my bib is #20035 if you are planning on tracking me.

For this race you have to pay $2.99 to track runners, but you get to track up to 3 of them, so its like $1/each, which isn’t much, but in al my racing experience the tracking has always been severely delayed, so I am not sure why they are charging people.

Either way, its worth the $3 in the off chance it does work!

  

I am off to enjoy the rest of the day in NYC on the couch!

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Tomorrow I will be wearing this – so feel free to say ‘Hello’ or cheer for me if you see me passing by!

My Superfans will also be in their shirts in the crowds so if you see any of them, say ‘Hello’ to them too!   

26.2 miles through the 5 boroughs of New York City in the morning!

Wish me lots of luck!