Jenna, Author at Runs on Espresso

Running Shoes 101

Posted on August 4, 2022July 27, 2022 by Jenna

I’ve been running on and off since 2004, mostly on since 2012 when I entered my first 5k. I’ve put many miles on many shoes. I have always been a shoe lover in general and have decided it’s time to talk running shoes!

I’m not an expert. I did not stay at a Holiday Inn last night either. Although, I do need to ask, what makes someone an expert to review shoes?! I never really thought of it until now. I’m not a fast runner. I will never win a race. I am definitely a middle of the pack, do this for fun and fitness, runner.

So, if you want reviews from an average runner, stick around.

In August I will have two road and two trail shoe reviews ready. After that I will have THREE brand spanking new road shoes I gotta put some miles on before I let you know what I think. We found some smoking deals on some carbon plate shoes, so keep an eye out for those!

But before we get to the reviews, let’s talk all things shoes.

The shoe world offers three types of running shoes: stability, motion control, and neutral. If you overpronate or have flat feet, you may benefit from a motion control shoe. If you pronate a little, you may benefit from a stability shoe. Pronation means your foot falls inward when you walk while neutral is what they call “normal”, neither rolls in or out.

I cannot tell you what you need. I can give you some starting info but you’ll have to do some research and figure out what works for you. Like a lot of running stuff, it really is trial and error. I can only tell you the specs and how they feel for me. For example, I pronate a little and wear both stability and neutral without issues.

If you want more guidance, head to a running store to get fitted.

They will analyze your foot type and gait and pull a bunch of shoes that may be best for your foot and gait type. You get to try them all on and run around the store to see which ones feel best.

I know not everyone is close to a running store but you can check your own foot type at home! You just need your feet, some water, and like a brown paper bag. If you don’t have one of those, you can do it on cement but be quick in case it evaporates quickly! Maybe have someone take a photo right after you walk.

Layout your brown paper (or go to the cement), wet both your feet and walk across the bag/cement. Then look at your footprints and compare them to this infographic. You will either have a high, normal, or flat arch.

That will at least give you a place to start when selecting shoes.

Two questions to ask yourself before you start shopping:

Where are you running? Road or trail?
- If you are mostly going to be running in your neighborhood, get a road shoe
- If you are heading out to dirt trails especially those with rocks or roots, grab some trail shoes
How much cushioning do you want?
- You can feel like you are running on clouds or have more of a ground feel. This is very much a personal preference!
- And you may now know the answer yet, that’s ok! This is why we try on and test out shoes before we commit!

A few more tips when figuring out what shoes to get:

You may need to go up a half (or whole size) for running
- Your feet will swell while running
- My street shoe size is 7.5, I run in 8
You will want a thumb width of space between your toe and the end of the shoe
Make sure it does not slip off your heel when you run
- It should be snug but not tight
- If the heel slides a bit but isn’t slipping off you may be able to change how you lace your shoe to lock it in place
Try on shoes at the end of the day
- Your feet will be swollen and you’ll get a better idea of how they fit
Fit to your larger foot aka TRY ON BOTH SHOES
- My right foot is slightly longer but looking at my feet you can’t really see it
Wear socks you plan to run in
Each brand fits different, try them on, walk/run in them before deciding.
If you have your own inserts or orthotics try your shoes on with them. You may need to go up a size because of them.
Don’t be afraid to run in the store or your home. You want them to fit when you run!
- Also, check the return policy. Some stores/shoe brands will allow you to run outside and return them within a specified time period

Running shoes should fit and feel “right” on day one, run one. There should be no need to break them in. If they don’t feel good right away, they may not be the shoe for you. Running shoes should only be used for running. You should get 300 (minimalist shoes) to 500 (traditional shoes) miles on your shoes before they need to be replaced. If you start feeling discomfort when running in older shoes, that is your sign to get some new shoes and relegate your old ones to around the house/mowing the lawn shoes. If you can afford it, get two pairs of shoes and rotate to help them last a little longer.

What else do you want to know about running and shoes? Let me know in the comments!

And be sure to follow me on YouTube to see the video all about running shoes!

How to Start a Home Gym

Posted on July 28, 2022February 16, 2023 by Jenna

On the Runs On Espresso podcast this month I talked about running and strength training. It seemed like a good time to show you my home gym. Or rather my home gym corners. 🤣 I’ve been slowly collecting items over the years. My gym grows as I do. Plus, then you only spend a little at a time! And that allows you to watch for good deals on equipment!

Not everything I have is something you will need or want. It will give you an idea of where to start. And if you start building a similar home gym you will be able to most, if not all, strength programs. About the only items I really want are a squat rack and Olympic bar and plate. But even with dumbbells, I can do plenty of squats!

I mentioned my home gym corners… that’s because my gym is now in three corners of my living room. It is nice because I can still hang with the family, watch TV, and work out. Several years from now, I will convert our guest room into a gym and get that squat rack and Olympic bar but this will do in the meantime.

Let’s talk about equipment!

I will link to as many of the items as I can. Any Amazon links will be Amazon Associate links and I may receive a commission if you purchase through the link.

In this corner, we have… a stationary bike! It’s great for cardio cross training especially when I don’t wanna go out and run in the heat. It’s nothing fancy because I didn’t want to spend a lot of money if I wasn’t sure I’d use it much. It’s not a bad bike but someday I think I’d like to replace it with a treadmill.

In the next corner, we have the non-weight-type items. Everything from a yoga mat to a variety of resistance bands. My most used items are the yoga mat since I use it as a workout mat for weights and plyo. Yoga blocks are also handy for floor exercises to support my neck. The plyo box is great for jumps, step-ups, a seat, and holder of weights, notebook, or phone.

I also use the different resistant bands and slingshot for a lot of my strength training.

And in the last corner, we have ALL the weights! I have two different weights for kettlebells and medicine balls, which seem to work well for me. I have invested mostly in a variety of dumbbells from eight pounds up to 35 and that seems to cover all my needs. I have purchased these over time, as I’ve moved up in weights.

I also invested in a basic bench and dumbbell rack that holds most of my weights.

And that is my home gym! It’s nothing fancy. The weights don’t match. But I can do almost all strength/weight training exercises with it. If I come across one I can’t do, I can usually find a suitable modification. You don’t need a ton of weights or fancy equipment. You don’t need to spend hundreds out of the gate. Start with a couple of dumbbells and some resistance bands and you can get started!

Then, just add as you go. You find deals at Target and Amazon. All of my equipment came from those two places. If you want to find used equipment, check resale places like Play it Again Sports or, if you’re brave, Facebook Marketplace or Craig’s List (is that still a thing??). Many people buy equipment, use it once or twice, then it sits for a while until they decide to unload it. Ohhh, maybe garage or rummage sales could be a good spot too!

What will you grab first to start your home gym? Let me know in the comments!

Be sure to follow me on Instagram where I share my workouts and YouTube where I talk fitness and running!

Episode 33: Let’s Get BULKEH!

Posted on July 25, 2022July 23, 2022 by Jenna

Last episode I gave four reasons for runners to lift. But now what? It’s time to dig into strength training!

Four our warm-up, we’ve got nothing for admin corner. It’s been quiet around here since I’ve figured out how technology works, and to double-check sound at every step!

Onto our long run! As stated in the intro, we are digging into strength training today. I’m not a doctor. I’, not an expert… at anything. I’m just a runner who likes to read, research, and share what I’ve found. Please check with your doctor or do your own due diligence before starting a weight training program.

Let’s start with some myths. First, you aren’t gonna get super bulky from weight training, unless that’s your goal. It requires a lot of heavy lifting, and diet plays a huge role in it. It can take years, especially for women, to get super bulky. If you plan to do a lot of steroids you may get that faster but I don’t recommend that route for MANY reasons.

You don’t need an arm day, leg day, whatever day. In fact, working multiple muscles two to three times a week is a better way to go. And no, you can’t tone or spot reduce. I know, I know. It sucks we can’t target those bat wings or that stubborn tummy fat. Trust me, if we could, I would be spot reducing the shit outta my stomach!

There are many, many more myths but those are the ones I hear and see most often. What myths do you hear or read over and over?

So, you want to get started lifting. But do you need to join a gym to start tossing the iron around? Nope! You can get in a great strength workout just using your own body weight! If you don’t have access to a gym or live in an apartment, body weight can be a great way to get in a workout and get stronger.

If you want to add a little more to your body weight activities, you can add resistant bands to do some more lifts, such as curls, lat pull downs, and many more. You can also get a pull-up bar for your doorframe but be careful with those! After a while, they can pull away from the doorframe and cause you to fall. That’s what happened to me at least!

I had my pull-up bar for several years and one day I was doing some pull-ups and I could feel the bar pulling out of the metal frame holder. And down I went! Flat on my ass. Of course, I put my arms back to catch myself and most of my weight went into my right arm. Eventually, my shoulder froze up and I had to do physical therapy for a couple of months.

I have not gotten a replacement and it’s been like two years.

You ready to start adding some weight to your collection? You can get a couple of dumbbells, a kettlebell and a medicine ball to add more resistance and moves. I started with an eight and 10-pound dumbbell, 15-pound kettlebell, and six-pound medicine ball. It was more than enough to get me started. The key is to get something not too light and not too heavy to do a variety of lifts with. Only you will know what weights that will be.

If you have access to a gym, you’ll have pretty much everything you need. And then some. Every gym I’ve belonged to has had a slew of dumbbells, bars, and plates, plus machines. I’ve used a little bit of everything at gyms and it all has its place. Personally, I prefer dumbbells, bars, and plates to machines. But you do you boo.

So now you’ve decided what you want to do, bodyweights, free weights – like dumbbells and bars/plates, or machines. But how will you know what to do?

There are soooooo many options out there these days! You can hire a trainer or coach. They can be at a gym or virtual! Be sure to check their credentials or get recommendations from friends for a reputable one. A trainer or coach should be able to listen to what you want and or need and create a program tailored for you! If you can afford it, it’s a great way to go.

If you don’t want to go the trainer route, you can find about a million apps, books, or other programs. There are really endless options out there. Endless! You need to look around, try a few out, and get what you enjoy. There are many free apps or apps that have a free and paid versions. Some have a trial period. Why not try them all?

If you are looking for something specific and you like the idea of bodyweight training you can get you are your own gym app. Nike and Adidas Training apps both have bodyweight workouts as well. For heavier lifting, there are apps like Stronglifts that focus on the big five lifts (squats, deadlifts, bench press, shoulder press, and pull-ups).

Oh, and there are also things like Les Mills or Peloton. They have a variety of exercises from cardio to strength.

Many trainers also have programs you can purchase and are usually a PDF download with all the info you need. Personally, I have bought Jessie Fitness programs and enjoy them but they can be a bit challenging and intense. And some are not compatible with running as much as I do.

It all really depends on what you want and need in a program. You need to know how long you want your workouts to be if you can modify them to meet your needs, and how many days you want to lift.

Some people lift five to six days a week, some two to three. But as a runner, how often do you really need to lift each week? From every source I’ve read, two to three weeks is all a runner needs. So a six-day program may be a bit much unless you are going to take two weeks to do one week. I have done everything from two to three days to six days and everything in between. For me, the sweet spot seems to be three days. Two days doesn’t seem to really give me a chance to be consistent and see changes and more than three becomes harder to fit in with all the running.

I have also done a program that is six days a week and for each week I did a week and a half to two weeks. I still saw results. The program took longer to finish than the standard 12 weeks but it still got results!

Ok, but should you run and lift on the same day or no? Should you run then lift or lift then run?

I usually run in the morning before work and lift after dinner. I do not lift the night before a hard workout, like a track session, or a long run. And if I have to lift before those workouts, I will do an upper body-focused session to keep the legs fresh.

And sometimes, if I’m working from home, I’ll do a strength session at lunch. Since I have an hour it is just enough time to fit in a workout! Gotta get it in when you can, right?

If you can, two separate sessions are best. Run in the morning, lift later in the day. I know that isn’t always possible.

So what if you only have a certain amount of time in the morning and need to do both your run and strength training? Which should you do first? I would start with whatever your priority is. If you are training for a race, run then lift. If you want to focus on your strength, do that first.

What I do is when my coach sends me my running for the week, I put those on my calendar first. Then I look at my planner and determine which two or three days are best for strength training. Running is almost always my priority so that is why it gets top billing. If you are following a training plan for a race, put those runs on your calendar then determine your strength sessions. Easy, peasy.

Lastly, should you train differently in the off-season?

As runners, we usually have race cycles. We train for our A race, run our ass off (or maybe that should be we run our legs off), recover, rinse and repeat. And sometimes we take a little more time off after the recovery period. Or where we live determines which seasons we really want to run outside in. For me, that’s summer when it only gets to 90 degrees overnight. For others, that might be winter when it’s too cold or icy to safely run outside.

Strength training may be perfect for those seasons you don’t want to be outside running! Or maybe when you need a little break from running. Because we’ve all been there.

This year I’ve decided to take a step back from running and focus on weight/fat loss which means more strength training. I’m still running but I’m not doing any double-digit long runs. I’m also planning to try to PR in the 5k in winter so my focus is different this summer than last when I was training for a marathon.

What you decide to do will be dependent on your future goals. If you want to keep your long-distance mileage up, maybe prioritizing strength training isn’t right for you. If you want to focus on fat or weight loss like me, maybe knock your mileage down a bit and increase strength training. If you can, work with a coach to help get all your shit worked out. If not, do a little internet sleuthing and maybe check with your doctor before making any big changes to your training.

We have covered quite a bit about strength training. Hopefully, you found it helpful. If not, let me know what else you wanna hear because there is so much out there! I had to start and end somewhere.

I mentioned a couple of apps/programs during the podcast and I’ll leave you with a few books I’ve used over the years. I’ll put links in the show notes for as many as I can. Please note, any Amazon links will be Amazon Associate links and I may receive a commission if you purchase through them.

A few of these aren’t specifically about strength training but are great resources for runners who want to know their body and get better at running. Those are Anatomy for Runners, Roar (female focused), and Running Rewired. Strength books I’ve enjoyed are Quick Strength for Runners, Strong Curves (female-focused), and New Rules of Lifting for Women. There is also one for men but of course, I am not a man so I haven’t checked that one out yet. I’m sure it’s fine.

Book links (amazon associate links):

Anatomy of Running https://amzn.to/3zsXoCF

Running Rewired https://amzn.to/3vbGWUN

Roar https://amzn.to/3PCAm28

Quick Strength for Runners https://amzn.to/3PQCByl

Strong Curves https://amzn.to/3PxC5pk

New Rules of Lifting for Women https://amzn.to/3PB2L8z

I was thinking about doing podcasts covering each of these books, like a summary and review, if that is of interest.

And that’s our run! Time for our cool-down.

I finished The Silent Patient. It was a three-star for me, a decent read but no desire to re-read or rave about it. It did take me almost to the end to guess the twist. It probably would have been a four-star if the ending hadn’t felt the need to have a character talk down to the audience to explain. I don’t want to go into too much detail in case it’s a spoiler!

We recently went to King’s Canyon and Sequoia National Parks. We camped in King’s Canyon and saw a bear snag a loaf of bread on our first night. We also had the rangers come through at least twice to warn us about the bears. We also saw deer, marmots, squirrels, chipmunks, robins, and blue jays. Oh, and quail. Lots and lots of wildlife and HUGE trees! We also hiked 4.5 miles to the top of a waterfall. Overall it was a great trip and nice to get away. Almost zero cell service! 12 out of 10, would recommend.

Well, that’s it. Have you read or watched anything good lately? Or maybe had a fun summer vacation? Drop me an email and let me know!

Until next time, may your running, weight training, and coffee be strong!

And of course… the usual end of podcast spiel. Maybe someday I’ll sneak in something fun after the credits to see who listens to the end.

If you enjoyed this podcast? Give it a rate, review, and if you want more, be sure to subscribe for future podcasts! I’d appreciate if you shared this podcast with one other person you may enjoy it. Word of mouth really is the way podcasts grow.

Feel free to email me your thoughts and show ideas at jenna@runsonespresso.com

Now for all the social media links…

Instagram https://instagram.com/runs_on_espresso

TikTok for fun videos! https://tiktok.com/@runsonespresso

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/runsonespresso1/

Twitter https://twitter.com/runsonespresso

And of course, home base https://runsonespresso.com/ to read more about planning, gluten free/celiac, and fitness!

Music by LiteSaturation from Pixabay

If you are feeling generous and want to buy me a cup of coffee to keep the podcast flowing or purchase an annual mileage tracker you can do so at https://ko-fi.com/runsonespresso. I hope to have more printables focused on fitness eventually.

You can also send a tip to Paypal palegreenstars9@gmail.com

All optional, the main podcast will always remain free.

June | Runs on Books

Posted on July 7, 2022July 12, 2023 by Jenna

June saw me get back on track for books! I finished four in June! I’m still behind on my annual goal. I should have finished around 26 by now but I’ve only gotten through 21. I think the library’s summer reading challenge helped me get through some books! I love a challenge that has prizes! 😆

How are you coming on your reading goal? Are you on track? What’s your favorite been so far?

Tiny Pretty Things (Book 1) and Shiny Broken Pieces (Book 2) by Sona Charaipotra and Dhonielle Clayton

☕☕☕

High schoolers at a prestigious New York ballet school treat each other like shit to hopefully secure a spot at the company after graduating.

There is almost too much drama in this book. I like some drama, some pettiness but this was over the top. When a second student gets severely injured the school is like ok, we will do something about it but shockingly do very little.

I read book one and gave it three coffees. It’s an ok read. Am I mad I read it? No. Would I read it again? Nope. I did want to finish the story so grabbed book two as an audiobook from the library. I didn’t want to spend money on it. The ending was satisfactory but book two was more of the same drama. They fucked around, found out, and gave no shits.

Will I still watch the Netflix series? Yes. Because I think this would make for a good, over-the-top soap opera-like drama. Would I recommend this book series? Maybe. It’s a little over the top. It’s not one that you can’t put down but you do want to find out who will do what next.

The Bookwoman’s Daughter by Kim Michele Richardson

☕☕☕☕

Years after the events of The Bookwoman of Troublesome Creek we head back to Kentucky and meet Honey, the bookwoman’s 16-year-old daughter. After a series of events, she finds herself alone and needs to find a way to survive. She has the opportunity to start her mother’s old book route up and grabs the opportunity.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I gave it four coffees instead of five because it is very similar to the first book in the series. And the overuse of “much obliged”. After the first chapter, I never wanted to read that saying again! I fell in love with all the new characters and was happy to see old friends show up. I definitely did not want to put this one down and read it quickly.

I would recommend both The Bookwoman of Troublesome Creek and The Bookwoman’s Daughter if you like strong female leads and historical fiction.

Cute Hand Lettering by Cindy Guentert-Baldo

☕☕☕☕☕

Have you ever seen signs at stores or restaurants with cool handwriting and thought, “I wish I could do that”? Well, you can! It takes some guidance and practice but anyone can write like that!

In Cute Hand Lettering, Cindy Guentert-Baldo walks you through the basics to more advanced lettering. It’s easy to follow and has plenty of room to practice in the book. Although, I can’t write in books so I’ve been practicing in a dot grid notebook.

If you are looking for a hand lettering book, this one might be for you! I’ve read a few others in the past but for some reason, it just clicked for me with Cindy’s book (I can call her Cindy, I watch her youtube 😝).

It felt great to read four books again this month! I hope to keep it up in July!

How to Take Better Vacation Photos

Posted on July 7, 2022 by Jenna

We have reached peak time of year for vacations! And we all want to make sure we capture all the fun family time. But how will you get the best photos ever when all you have is a cell phone?

Don’t worry, I got you.

No matter if you have an iphone or android you can use these tips. It’s not about the camera, it’s about how you use it. What makes a good photo? A lot of things.

For a technically good photo you will want:

You want to make sure your subject is in focus. If your family is the subject they will need to be in focus. If you are capturing the dramatic landscape, you will want it all in focus.
Your brightness to be right, not too dark, not too bright.
Watch out for distracting junk. If there’s a stick in the front that keeps drawing your eye, move it. If something is too big (or you don’t want to move nature) try a different angle. Take a step to the side. Go higher or lower.
Make sure your horizon is straight. No one wants to look out into the ocean and have to tilt their head.

And a few tips to create some eye-popping images:

Look for the best light. I know it’s not everyone’s favorite time of day but sunrise has some of the best light for photos! If you can’t drag yourself out of bed, you can always create amazing photos at sunset too! High noon is the worst time for photos so avoid if you can. And cloudy days? The best for shooting all day long!
Make sure your photo, or photos, tell a story. Why are you taking this photo? What do you want it to say or represent? Personally, I like candid shots of my friends and family as I think you get more story than with a posed shot. You can always take those too but make sure to get some of your kids exploring the lake!
Keep it simple. Have you heard the saying from Coco Chanel about putting on whatever accessories you want and then removing one? Think about that when comprising your shot.
And keeping with that simple, find an interesting composition. Don’t place your human subject in the center of the photo. Put them to one side. If you have a big blue sky with no clouds, out it in the top third and let your mountain or flower dominate the frame.

And lastly, we are going to edit our photos! Don’t worry, I promise you don’t need to learn Photoshop! As with accessories and things in your image, less is more with editing. One of my favorite mobile editing apps is Adobe’s Lightroom. It’s free in the app store and super easy to use for basic edits. I’ve also used Google Snapseed in the past and it also works well!

Where to start? Once you’ve opened the app and loaded your photos, tap the photo you want to edit.

Click the auto. It is a great starting point, especially if you have never edited photos before.
Click color next. It will say white balance as shot. If you want you can click the drop-down and try auto. Don’t like that? Go back to as shot (these phones do a pretty great job with white balance).
Click effects and scroll down to vignette. I like to do between -10 and -15. You don’t want too much but darkening the corners a tad really highlights your subject.
Click detail and slide the sharpening over. For people stick to around 35. For landscapes, you can do 45-65.
Optional: Click optics and turn on remove chromatic aberration and enable lens corrections. Usually, Lightroom will do a good job of selecting your correct phone and lens but if it looks wonky, you can change the phone & lens. Or turn it off.

And done! Now you have an edited photo you can save to your phone or share to email, social media, and other places! That’s not so bad huh?

Would you like me to do a video walking through a simple Lightroom mobile edit? Let me know in the comments!

Where are you traveling this summer? Will you try to get some great photos and edit them? Join The Desert Adventurer Group and ask any questions you may have for me and/or share your best travel photos! I can’t wait to see what you come up with!

To School Let’s Go Back. Yes, hmmmm.

Posted on July 1, 2022June 30, 2022 by Jenna

These are the supplies you’re looking for.

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, Erin Condren joined forces with Star Wars to bring a new hope to all planners and young padawans. This collection has it all, light. Darkness. A balance. The Force, it’s calling to you. Just let it in and get some of these amazing back to school supplies!

I’m a Planner. School Supplies are part of my religion.

_{(Ok, that is enough Star Wars quotes… for now. I can’t make any promises that more won’t pop up.)}

Note: I received this collab box from Erin Condren as part of their affiliate program. I was gifted these items but all opinions are my own.

This collection has something for everyone whether you are heading back to school or just going into the office. Because who says our day jobs need to be boring?! Toss those bic pens aside and make room for the new Star Wars rectangle pens. The set of nine pens come in a plastic container you could use to store them on your desk. Each pen is a different color and has a Star Wars icon and saying on it. For example, the black barrel has Darth Vader and Fulfill Your Destiny on it. In true EC fashion, these are all black ball point pens. They are also extremely lightweight and a little awkward to hold at first. They are super cute though and will look great on your desk or when you pull them out of your planny pack or pencil case.

You read that right! There is a Star Wars planny pack! The Alliance planny pack features the rebel symbol as the zipper pull, which looks amazing, too bad they did not add it to the pencil case too! The planny pack font is reminiscent of the 70’s, like a nod to when the original movies came out. This is the new ultimate planny pack and unzips on two sides, has an outside pocket on the front, and two interior pockets. Nothing bad to say about the planny pack! They are so versatile and with the elastic band can go on several different notebooks or planners.

The pencil pouch has the same Alliance pattern as the planny pack but with the regular EC zipper pull. These are usually customizable to add your name in the lower right hand corner. It looks like there is a small spot for your name. Inside is the same as all the other pencil pouches, a flap with five pen loops on each side and a large, open lower compartment for everything else you need to carry. You can put smaller sticky notes, scissors, small iphones, and other items in there!

You can’t go wrong carrying your work or school pens in either the planny pack or pencil pouch. The planny pouch can be used when you only want to carry your notebook or planner since it can be attached to the cover. The pencil pouch is perfect to tote your supplies in your backpack or work tote!

No, no, the red one. Show me the red stickers.

Oh yes, there are more stickers in this release! Who doesn’t need (want) more stickers?! And this time we even get washi! The sticker book is already out but it is still amazing. Any Star Wars planner should have this book. We get a four pack of washi that will be perfect to decorate all your Star Wars notebooks and planners. The four patterns are Grogu/Mandalorian on teal, holographic rebel symbol on burgundy, Millennium Falcon/X Wing Fighters/Tie Fighters on peach, and gold character outlines on black. I would have liked to see a deep blue instead of peach but overall these washis are gorgeous and will be a great edition to your washi lineup!

There’s two more EC standard sticker sheets, one in the Rebel Alliance print and the other featuring Boba Fett. These sheets are perfect for a weekly planner but can also be used in a daily duo. It takes a little work but you can cover two to four days with one sheet. The alliance sheet came in black and a light tan. At the time of publishing, I don’t know if the colors can be personalized. The Boba Fett sheet has a cool ombre effect with green, orange and red. This sticker sheet is gorgeous.

And it goes well with Bobba Fett list pad! The listpad continues the ombre effect and has Boba in the corner. You will receive two packs of 25 each with the signature EC 80lb paper. The only drawback is making sure you have a pen that will show up well on this pad. A black gel pen or dual tip marker will probably show up well. A white gel pen may also work, especially on the darker red at the top. It comes in dot grid, lined, or blank. It should also be available in the notepad size.

The notepad is the alliance pattern in lined and was personalized with choose your destiny. You will be able to leave it blank or add your own. May I suggest I’d just as soon kiss a wookie? THe notepads also come in a two pack of 25 sheets of that gorgeous 80lb paper. You can choose from a medium (6×8.5”) or large (8.5×11”).

List pads are perfect for grocery shopping and errands and can easily fit in your purse. It’s also perfect when you’ve got a lot of extra work and need more room than your planner can handle. The notepads will look great on your desk and are perfect for project planning or writing out instructions for a co-worker.

*Notepad shown with pens, washi & previously released sticky note set*

The new universal snap-in dashboard will fit both A5 and 7×9. You can use wet or dry erase and use it over and over! It is shorter and wider than previous version, which is actually quite nice. The dashboard is a deep green with silver accent, which is awesome! Too often planner items are gold and not everyone likes gold. The front has priorities and to do while the back is the days of the week. It would be nice if the days of the week were on the front instead. It would be more helpful in the daily duo especially if the week was on the front side.

*Snap in dashboard with planny pack, stickers, and pens*

Snap in dashboards are a great way to stay organized at school or work. You can put your assignment or project priorities and tasks on the front and due dates on the back. Or you can keep your personal appointments on the weekly side for an easy glance when planning out work or school projects!

We are finally getting to the main events! Up first, these gorgeous vegan leather notebooks. Notebooks have five interior options: lined (as seen here), dot grid, productivity, sketch, and graph. The notebooks all have the 80lb paper. The Star Wars vegan leather notebooks have a beautiful design on the cover and inside the front/back. You can choose from Darth Vader, his signature red lightsaber ready for battle, or white with the gold outline of all of our original rebel heroes.

Notebooks are perfect for taking notes in class or when watching videos to increase your knowledge base. They are perfect for getting your thoughts out as a journal. Or maybe you’ve got a busy week and need to write down everything you need to do. Notebooks are also great for writing outlines or rough drafts of papers or blogs and videos. You can never have too many notebooks!

New this year is the three-subject notebook! EC offered an A5 three-subject notebook in the last warehouse sale but this one is better! One, it’s Star Wars and two, it’s perfect for work projects or school! This one is 7×9, and check out this fun cover! It is an interchangeable cover so you can swap out covers as you feel like it! And if you aren’t a fan of the cover it comes with you can grab a Boba Fett interchangeable cover! He gets the cool ombre again with some speckling. It feels very 90s-ish.

The pages are Star Wars theme. We start with an R2D2 line page then a tabbed divider. On the other side of the divider is a dashboard! It’s quite similar to the lifeplanner dashboard. After the dashboard is a bunch of lined pages with R2 hanging in the corner.

Next we have Yoda on a dot grid page, an orange divider, and another dashboard followed by several dot grid pages with Yoda. Lastly, we have a graph page with Wicket W Warrick, a seafoam green tab, dashboard, and a bunch of graph pages with Wicket. In the very back is a set of rebel alliance ombre stickers! These should also be the stickers in the back of all the Star Wars notebooks instead of the regular functional flags.

The next item is for all the young padawans out there. It is the first ever Star Wars Kid planner and it is super cute! It comes with ab adorable interchangeable cover. The first section is titled all about me and your child can fill in all the important stuff like name, favorite color, hobbies, and even spots to draw! There is also a reading log, goal tracker, allowance tracker (always important to know what droids you can afford), what I’m saving for, and books I want to read.

Next up is 12 months so young padawans can keep track of their busy lives and training schedules! They are undated but don’t worry! EC has included all the stickers needed to label everything!

Each month starts with a drawing prompt and dashboard followed by a calendar, monthly wrap up and activity. Each sticker page has the month for the calendar and tabs, date dots, functional flags (and holidays), and cute decorative characters that go with each section. They also included a sheet of mini months to help figure out the date dots! The only drawback is the plastic coil. Will it hold up to the wear and tear of young padawans?

Lastly is the Star Wars academic planner. This was actually released earlier this year. It is different because it actually carries the Star Wars design through the planner! It is the theme! This one came with the alliance interchangeable cover, personalized with choose your destiny.

When you open it up, you see the name page with a dot design that is carried throughout the planner. The mini month pages are a gorgeous ombre blue with the dot pattern. We have two pages of class schedule and a notes page. Notice the Death Star? The design is seen on all the notes pages and has a hand-stamped look.

*Academic planner shown with snap in dashboard and sticker sheet*

The monthly dividers all have their own theme and quote. The theme is carried through the weeks in the upper corners. We get the monthly calendar, a dashboard with goals and events followed by a projects and exams page. The weeks are horizontal and each day is divided into three sections, two lined and one to do section. Saturday and Sunday share a horizontal space and each day gets two sections, one lined and one to do. Each month has five total note pages. In the back is a set of Star Wars themed functional stickers pre-printed with academic tasks.

Although this is geared as an academic planner, it could be used for work, project planning, or home projects. It would also work as a regular life planner if you don’t need a lot of room for the weekends. The stickers will not be of much use for non-academic use except the Vacation and Read ones.

Erin Condren has knocked it out of the park with the latest Star Wars collection. It’s geared as back to school but really could be used at school, home, or work. There are always things we won’t like with products but overall this collection is amazing and I’d have bought most of it if I wasn’t sent this box. The only thing I would not have paid for is the kid’s planner because I have no kids. Although, I still want an adult version! I honestly tried to figure out a way I could repurpose for myself and had nothing!

I was planning to order the academic planner because I love the Star Wars interior. Now I need to figure out what to use it for!

What is your favorite item from the Star Wars back to school collection? What are you going to grab on July 6th?

Ready to shop? The new Star Wars line drops on 7/6 so be sure to head over to Erin Condren (affiliate link) that day! I’d love if you used my affiliate link. I will receive a commission when you buy through my link and it won’t affect your experience at all!

Want to see everything in action? Head over to YouTube and watch my matching back to school video!

How to do a Mid-Year Goal Review

Posted on June 30, 2022June 25, 2022 by Jenna

We are halfway through the year! That means it is time for a mid-year goal review.

If you haven’t been checking in with your goals now is the perfect time to do a mid-year goal review. Why should you take the time to pull out that goal list and see where you’re at? Why not wait until the end of the year and see what you accomplished? You know you’re on track. You’ve been writing out your action steps for every month!

But have you been referring back to your original goals and planning based on those goals or are you looking at what you did last week, last month, and then determining what you need to get done?

It’s ok if you’ve been doing the latter.

We all get busy and sometimes forget what our goals are or what needs to be done to achieve them. This is why a mid-year refresh is perfect! Besides making sure we are on track, we want to make sure your goals are still relevant. Life changes and sometimes goals need to change too. Maybe something just isn’t working for you right now and you need to adjust.

The first thing we need to do is pull out those goals we made way back in January. Got em? Great. Look at them and celebrate your progress, no matter how small! We always want to celebrate our wins!

Then, take a look at them and ask yourself, are all of these still relevant? Am I on track with where I’d like to be? What has been working for me? And what’s no longer working? It’s totally OK to drop, add, or change goals as our lives change.

Do you need to set any new goals?

There are lots of programs to help you set goals in all areas of your life. If you follow MakseLIfe or Level 10 Life, grab those sheets and compare where you are at to where you want to be in those categories. If you aren’t following a program, take some time to reflect on what else you’d like to achieve this year. If it helps, re-write the goals you want to carry forward and add any new goals.

Once you have decided which goals you want to work on over the next six months, you gotta determine your action plan. What steps are you going to take to reach these goals? What adjustments do you need to make in your life? For each goal, create a general plan of how you will get from point A to point B. Then start figuring out the smaller steps you will need to do.

Go grab your calendar or planner because it’s time to start putting in the work!

Pick a date at the end of September to check in with your goals. Do the same with December. Now you have two quarterly check-ins on your calendar! Next, plan a time at the start of each month to decide what you will be working on each month. It will make it easier when you plan your week if you have a list of things you want to accomplish during the month. A lot of goal programs have monthly and/or quarterly reviews. Make sure to make time for these reviews as well. They can help keep you on track!

When you are setting up your week, you can decide which days you want to do the action items you came up with. And don’t forget to review the previous week! Do you have tasks that need to migrate to this week? Make sure to add them! Does your goal program have a weekly review? Do that before you start your planning session!

You will want to make sure to review your planner at least once a day. If you check in the morning, review what you want to get done that day. If you review in the evening, look at the next day and note what you have on your calendar. Even better if you can check in a few times a day!

Maybe you only work on your goals on your days off. Maybe you put in a little work every day, on your lunch hour, during your commute, after work, whenever. The point is, put it on your calendar so you are more likely to remember to do it.

What were your goals for this year? Are you doing a mid-year goal review? How are they coming along? Are you making any changes? Let’s chat about our goals in the comments!

Head over to YouTube to watch my latest video where I go through my goals from January, decide what gets kicked to the curb (for now), and what I want to add. Plus, I’ll be sure to update my planner to help keep me on track!

What is conservation photography?

Posted on June 22, 2022 by Jenna

The most basic definition of conservation photography is using photography to advocate for conservation causes. But isn’t that just landscape, nature, or wildlife photography? It can be but conservation photography focuses more on educating and changing behaviors or taking action.

When most people think about conservation they think of saving the rainforest. Or helping an endangered animal but it is much deeper than that.

We need to take care of the humans too.

You may be wondering what social issues and conservation have to do with each other. A lot. And we are only just starting to really look at the intersection of these issues. Marginalized individuals are more likely to suffer because of climate change. How? Drought. Extreme weather. Food insecurity. Loss of land. Loss of biodiversity. Spread of disease. Everyone is affected by climate change but those of us in rich nations, with money, have the resources to better deal with issues.

In poor and/or minority neighborhoods you are more likely to see power plants, toxic waste disposal sites, and oil refineries. Many in these neighborhoods end up sick or dying because of their exposure to these things. John Oliver recently covered a few of these issues on his show. You can watch the clip here.

How does photography help conservation causes?

Photography can open people’s eyes to what is going on around the world. People remember photos. They don’t always remember a caption or article. If someone said, remember that photo of the little girl in Hiroshima? You probably can see that in your mind, it’s impactful.

Helping to tell others’ stories to effect change is vital.

Conservation photography can help start the conversation. It can shock us into working for change. But we have to be willing to really see, to read the caption on that image or the article that accompanies it. Often we blindly scroll social media and like or heart photos that pop up. How often do you take the time to actually read the caption? How often do you take a moment to really reflect on what you’re seeing?

We need to slow down, open our eyes, and step up for the earth.

Will you take the time to really read what photographers are telling you on Instagram or will you keep blindly scrolling? Will you find ways you can help with conservation cause you truly care about? You don’t need to spend money to help. You can volunteer if you have time. You can read their newsletters, and blogs and share them online. Maybe they are looking for donated items.

Take a moment to do something today. It can be as simple as retweeting an article.

You can where I share more about photography, conservation, and other similar topics.

Episode 31: Thirsty… Monday?

Posted on June 20, 2022June 18, 2022 by Jenna

Oh boy, I hope you’re thirsty this week! We are covering all things… HYDRATION!

Warm-Up

I didn’t get any feedback about last episode so either my singing scared y’all off or you decided it was worth pushing through to get to the rest of the podcast. I must say, I really liked the four quick tips style. I will probably keep that instead of only boring you with my training on those short pods. I will probably sprinkle my training in some episodes as it relates to the topic at hand.

Lastly, our schedule will be a little off for July due to the Monday holiday. The podcast will be dark for two weeks, June 27th and July 4th, and be back for our track workout on July 11th. Then it should be back to every other week, at least for July and August. Looking ahead it seems Labor day will also be a day off for me.

Lets head into the long run. We are going to chat hydration. It’s summer, at least here in the northern hemisphere, which means warmer temps. For some warmer is like high of 80. For the rest of us? We get those lovely 115 degree days with overnight lows in the 90s.

To say hydration is important is an understatement!

I am gonna add that even in colder, winter temps, hydration is still important. It might look different than it does in warmer months.

And remember, I’m not an expert and I’m not a doctor. It’s important to do your own research and check with your doctor. I’ve figured out over the years what works for me. But what works for you may be different. It’s kinds trial and error for this kind of stuff. So much depends on your own body. How much do you sweat? Are you a salty sweater? Where do you live? Is it dry or humid? Is it hot? Are you running early or late? I can’t give you an exact strategy because it reall does… JUST DEPEND.

Hydrating starts before you even step out the door for your run. Everything you eat or drink can have an affect on your hydration levels. And staying hydrated is essential to keep your body running, even if you aren’t running!

How do you know if you are hydrated or dehydrated?

The most obvious one is are you thirsty? Do you have a dry mouth or throat? Also, check your pee! Burnt orange color and strong smelling pee, like when you first wake up, is a sign you are dehydrated. Drink a lot of water. Amber means you are mildly dehydrated, drink some more water!. Light beer color? You are hydrated! But don’t stop drinking! And lemonade is optimal hydration. You good. If it’s clear? STOP!! You are getting overhydrated.

What to do before your run?

I know there is all this talk of ideal times and amounts of water to drink before your run. Most articles I’ve read say to have like 16 ounces two hours before. That’s cute. I don’t know about you but I’m not getting up at 2:30 am to drink water two hours before my run. If that’s what you want to do, more power to you!

For me, I get up, drink maybe four ounces of water, have a snack, get dressed, and sip anouth four-ish ounces. This works well for me BUT I make sure I drink water throughout the day and while running, even when I only go out for three miles, I take water. This works for me. It may or may not work for you.

Sometimes, if I have time, I will do a pre-run hydration drink. There’s powders you can buy or you can be real awesome and make your own. Don’t ask me for a recipe because I just buy shit. I don’t have time to be making homemade stuff! The idea of these powders is to prepare yout body for a workout, much like a weightlifter might do creatine or pre-workout.

What to do during you run?

For shorter runs, you probably will only need water. Even in summer. Think anything an hour or less. But you know, you do you boo. When you start getting into those long runs be sure to add in something with electrolytes. There is probably about a billion brands out there. You got the grocery store standards like gatorade and powerade. You can get more speciality ones like honeystinger, nuun, and scratch just to name a few. Some of these brands will also have options with more calories and carbs for those long run days.

After years of running and hiking, I’ve got my plan on hydrating during runs. This may or may not work for you. I have found the easiest way for me to keep up my hydration during runs is to sip every mile. It’s easy to remember because my watch buzes. I started doing this after reading you should drink every 15-20 minutes. Pfffft, like I would remember that. I am not good at eating every 60 minutes either. I need everything in miles, not minutes. And my fastest mile was like 9:50. Sooooo, usually around average 12 minute miles. So yah, a little less than the recommended time but it works!

On longer runs, I alternate sips of water and some kind of drink mix. My hydration plan also works with my fueling plan on long runs. I sip water at mile one and then every even mile after that. I sip drink mix every odd mile, starting with mile three. I also eat every four miles and usually water is recommended with fuel so there’s that. Now, trail running? I fule every three miles (or try to) so I switch to water for all odd and drink mix for even.

This might be too much water for you. Or not enough. Yup, it’s a pain in the ass but you’ll figure it out. I believe in you!

What to do after your run?

Some people do the weigh themselves before and after a run to know how much fluid they have lost. And then drink whatever amount to rehydrate. It’s too much math for me and I never remember to do one of the weigh ins when I act like I’m going to do this. The most basic info I can find that isn’ involving calculating sweat rates is to drink 20 ounces for every pound lost.

I usually drink some water immediately when I return home, maybe four to eight ounces then continue to sip throughout the day. If I’m feeling a little more thirsty, my throat is a little more dry, maybe I have a slight headache, especially after a warm weather run, I will do a rapid hydration mix or even just an extra electrolyte drink. It usually helps me feel hydrated again.

While dehydration isn’t fun in the summer, we also need to be aware of the opposite issue that can cause numerous problems, overhydrating or hyponatremia. Which basically means you’ve had too much water and not enough sodium (hence why those electrolyte drinks are important when you run long!) Who knew drinking too much water could be a bad thing? I had never heard of this until a few years ago. Ok, it was probably longer than a few but it wasn’t something I ever remember learning about being an active person my entire life. We were only ever told to drink water and electrolytes when it was hot.

How do you know if you are overhydrating? Remember that scale trick? Did you gain weight? You may be drinking too much. According to Mayo clinic some symptoms of hyponatremia are: Nausea and vomiting, Headache, Confusion, Loss of energy, drowsiness and fatigue, Restlessness and irritability, Muscle weakness, spasms or cramps, Seizures,

and Coma. Treatment is usually cutting back on drinking. If symptoms are bad or not going away you may need to seek medical help for things such as an electrolyte solution or other medications.

As runners, we will probably need to worry more about being dehydrated than overhydrated. Something to keep in mind as you try to balance between drinking enough and drinking too much!

I mentioned drink mixes. Currently I use a mix of honey stinger, skratch, and nuun. I was previously a nuun ambassador and am currently a honey stinger ambassador so that is why I use those. I decided to try skratch once after getting a coupon to try from a strava challenge.

I am thinking of doing a taste test slash review of these and other brands as a video. But I want to know… what brands and flavors do you want to see me test?? Most, if not all, hydration mixes are gluten free. At least that I have come across so far. I can’t guarantee they all are but if they are gluten free I will try them so you don’t have to. If you have one you want me to try send an email to jenna at runs on espresso dot com.

Whew! Now that we’ve hydrated through our long run we can have a nice little cooldown.

I think fiction books have gotten me back into reading. I’ve finished two books since Run Rose Run and am flying through a third. I’ll probably actually be done with it by the time this is live.

First I read Tiny Pretty Things, which is actually a YA novel. And now a netflix show. I haven’t watched the show yet but I will probably at some point. Tiny Pretty Things focuses on 16 year olds at a prestigious NYC dance academy that feeds dancers to their Company. These children live and go to school at the dance academy. They spend 24/7 at this place. And it’s competitive. Which leads to lots of drama, harassment, and bullying. It starts and ends with drama! (To not give away too much in case you want to read or watch). Overall I gave it three stars which for me is a good book but nothing I would re-read and might recommend depending on the person.

Since Tiny Pretty Things is the first in a duology, I checked the library for book two Shiny Broken Pieces. They only had it as an audio book, which I haven’t really enjoyed in the past. But I didn’t want to buy the book so I thought I’d give it a try. This audio book was actually much easier for me to follow. I don’t know if it was the ADHD meds or the fact that I had read the first book so knew the style and characters already or both. I’ll have to try some other audio books to test the theories. This book was much of the same and the ending was predictable but satisfying.

As of this writing I am over half way through The Book Woman’s Daughter. It’s a fairly new release and the second book in a duology. The first book is The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek. I would definitely recommend the first one and most likely, like 99% sure, I’d recommend book two. It’s a fiction book but the story is based on real life. Way back in the day in Apalachian there was a program where woman would ride and deliver library books and other materials to people that couldn’t, for many reason, go to school or get to town. The main character in the first book has a genetic condition that makes her skin blue. There really is (was?) a family that had the condition. It’s very fascinating. I had to research all the real stuff while reading.

For TV I’ve been watching the new Obi-Wan series on Disney+ and really want to start the new Hulu docuseries Keeper of the Ashes. Oh, and the ending of Barry! Anyone else watching this? I believe HBO has already said there will be a season four. I can’t wait to see where they go from here.

Ok, that is everything I have for you today. What are your favorite sports drinks? What brands/flavors should I try? Lemme know!

Until next time, may your runs and coffee be strong!

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Episode 30: Summer Running

Posted on June 18, 2022June 18, 2022 by Jenna

Episode 30 is all about summer running had me a blast. Summer running happened so fast. I wore a watch timer for me Met a shoe cute as can be. Summer days driftin’ away To uh, oh those summer runs. Well oh well oh,

Uh, ok we are done with that. Sorry, every time I say summer running I automatically think of Summer Loving from Grease. It’s a problem.

Let’s start our warm-up. HUGE admin corner mea culpa. So on March 23rd, I loaded up my podcast app and started listening. And where my podcast should have been… SILENCE. What the heck? I know I recorded it and uploaded it and all that. Well, I didn’t listen to the file I downloaded and then uploaded. Because I was going to listen on Monday like everyone else! And then I kept forgetting to check on it. Until March 28th. I re-downloaded it (like 4 times) until it finally exported everything. I swear sometimes technology hates me. Anyway, if you didn’t listen to it I suggest refreshing your feed and giving it a shot. I am really proud of that one and was so disappointed when I realized it didn’t work. Anyway, I will be sure to triple-check the sound from now on.

We are going to do four laps around the track today for our workout. Today we are talking summer running, in case you forgot since the intro.

Lap 1: Go early. Or late. Here in Phoenix, the morning temps can still be in the 90s at 4 or 5 am but at least the sun isn’t relentlessly beating down on you. In the last few years I’ve switched to early mornings but I used to go at like 8 pm/sunset.

Lap 2: Hydrate. I’m not gonna go into too much detail because hint hint this month’s long run podcast will be all about hydration.

Lap 3: Wear sunscreen. I can always tell the days I forget to put on sunscreen. My skin gets super warm, super fast. Plus I don’t think we want to get skin cancer.

Lap 4: Ignore your pace. You will probably be a minute or so slower per mile than usual. Running slower, more by feel, in the summer will help your speed come fall. Run by feel, not by the pace you think you should be going.

And we are done with our track workout! Great job everyone! Of course, there are many more tips for running in the summer heat. But the point of the podcast is just some quick tips or tricks. What is your favorite summer running tip? Send me an email and let me know and maybe I’ll feature them on a future pod!

Let’s do our cool down. I really love the new Showtime show I Love That For You. It stars Vanessa Bayer and Molly Shannon. It’s a comedy about a TV shopping network, like HSN. Definitely would recommend.

Is anyone watching the last season of Better Call Saul? OMG, the mid-season finale was… Interesting. What do you think will happen to Kim since we know she’s not on Breaking Bad. My first theory is that she is dead but I read a theory that since she is from Nebraska that she goes back there and that is why Saul, as Gene, doesn’t want to leave Cinnabon. It mentioned that on the scene when Kim’s mom picks her up from shoplifting they lingered on the license plate showing Nebraska and when Kim turns around to execute their plan she is wearing the earrings her mom shoplifted. And as we know, almost nothing in Breaking Bad or Better Call Saul is accidental. It’s all done for a reason.

And that is it for now. Until next time may your running and coffee be strong!

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