Brooks Pure Cadence 2 | REVIEW

Once I was cleared to start being active again postpartum, my husband and I made a trip to REI to peek at running shoes. I was ready to finish the Couch to 5k training I started in October 2011, the month I found out I was pregnant with Ben. My feet had also grown an entire size through both pregnancies.

We left the store with a pair of vibrant purple shoes… I was way excited about the color, they were comfortable and really only time would tell if they were my running shoes or not. (REI has a great return policy if you’re not satisfied with your items long term.)

The Brooks Pure Cadence 2 shoes came with lime green laces which I was completely sold out for. I love running in neon anything! The color I chose is pretty fabulous… purple and teal. I feel pretty when I lace them up!

They aren’t minimalist style shoes exactly, but there is less padding which I’m a fan of. My husband is a bit of a minimalist shoe snob, so he really wanted to get me into a pair close to that for my 5k training.

The shoes are very light which is a plus and there is this feature called the Progressive Diagonal Roll Bar that helps prevent overpronation (which leads to certain foot complications, ouch). The shoe’s tongue is attached to one side which I thought was going to be weird but was actually quite comfortable.

All in all, this shoe gets a 4/5 from me. As my first real running shoe, I don’t have much to compare it to. I can say though, after consistently running for 5 weeks, my feet have had no issues and I plan to wear them out with my new hobby! The Brooks site says they should last me 250-300 miles or so.

Love 'Em! What are your favorite road running shoes?

Fist Pumps & Roasted Leg Quarters

I just finished week 4 of couch to 5k and I am so excited to start week 5. I'm finding that a major perspective shift and attitude change has really affected my runs. I used to say "I'm scared of the next week. I don't know if I can do it", and guess what? It made me dread running, even though after every run I felt incredible and victorious. I've started looking forward to the next week as a challenge I KNOW I can overcome. I bet you can guess... That's made it more enjoyable. Its hard to find excuses not to go run because I really enjoy the challenge each new week brings.

So on Friday... I'm running, and nearing the end of my first 5 minutes running stretch and I'm battling those voices in my head: "There's only a minute left, it won't hurt if you stop", "you can't do this anymore". (I really believe the enemy is afoot anytime I'm close to victory and breakthrough. He doesn't want us to win! He wants us to live in the "I can't" "I'm too fat" "I'm too sick" "I'll do it tomorrow" mentality).  I'm so close to succumbing when I look up as a car drives by. The man in the car is smiling, dancing, and fist pumping for me. I couldn't contain my laughter and pushed through the pain and praised Jesus that last 60 seconds for sending me some relief. He knew he looked ridiculous, but he took a risk and it made the difference to me.

You see, guys... God did not create us with this negative "self talk". We were created to be victors in Him. People flinch and shrink and maybe even roll their eyes when we talk about Satan's lies and his tactics to bring us down, but its real. When I say NO to the enemy, I'm saying YES to Christ, to abundance, to victory, and to being an overcomer. It just took a couple fist pumps for me to remember that I have the power to say "NO, I will not fail, I will not stop, and I will finish the race."

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On another, lighter note... I'm going to share one of my FAVORITE recipes with you! I love roasting leg quarters. SO MUCH! So here we go! You'll need...

3 tbs EVOO
Juice of 1 large lemon
Your favorite spice blend
S&P
Chicken Leg Quarters

First, take your leg quarters (drumsticks work too!) and rinse them off/pat dry. (OPTIONAL: brine them in pickle juice for a couple hours beforehand. They get super tender and don't taste like pickles, I promise) Next whisk 3 TBSP of Olive oil with a combination of your favorite spices. (for me its, garlic, paprika, and lemon pepper.) Squeeze 1 large lemon into the mixture and whisk.

Lay out your chicken in your roasting pan, Cover generously with sea salt. Take the olive oil mixture and pour all over the chicken, making sure the skin is covered with it. If you add paprika it should be a GORGEOUS orangey color. Turn the legs skin side down and cook at 350 for 45 minutes. The flip them back up and cook for another 45 mins at 350. The juice coming out of them should be clear! Then look at the skins and decide if they're crispy enough for you! If not, broil on low and check every 2-3 minutes.

They SO yummy served up with the pan juices drizzled on top and served with butternut squash mash and sauteed sesame spinach! Enjoy :)

Jaci
Chasing A Hundred