Guest Post -- Erin of Designer Me

Hey ladies! Today you have the lovely Erin from Designer Me. I have been following Erin's blog long before I started my own blog and always looked forward to her posts. Today you are blessed with something she is passionate about, running! Exercise is a must, sorry to me it is a non-negotiable. I haven't talked about this a ton yet but running is something I do 5 or 6 days a week. Plus the added pressure of running when your husband is a asst coach for cross country and track at a university aids in my desire to run. Anyways chit chat from me, here is Erin's post! Thank you so much Erin for putting this together and helping me out!

When Meg posted a request for guest bloggers while she is on her fabulous cruise vacation, I was thrilled to help out!  I am so happy to have stumbled upon her blog.  From recipes to fashion to running, it is always a wonderful read!

I grew up as a swimmer, dancer, and Girl Scout.  Running never even entered my vocabulary until college, when I dabbled in it by running a couple of miles every so often around campus.  It wasn't until a few years later that I really laced up my shoes and got going with it.  Truly, the story on how I got started was that I one day up and decided that I was going to run a half-marathon...in 6 weeks.  I need motivation to run and this was perfect.  My husband went along with my plan and we started with 3 miles, increasing mileage by about a mile a week.  Pretty ambitious, but I wanted to run at least half the total distance before the race.  

The race went well, overall, but after mile 9 or 10, it got hard.  Regardless, I was addicted, already planning for my next race.  Since then, I have done another 4 half marathons with an additional one on the calendar.  I've battled an ankle injury (a posterior tibial tendon tear), finally gotten proper nutrition down, and found a hobby that I love.

Running gear is infinite and I certainly have learned my preferences along the way (socks, shorts, visor, water bottle, hydration, and so on), but one of the most important things is a good pair of shoes.  From my research and experience, I have fallen in love with Mizuno shoes.  After training for and running 2 half-marathons in who-knows-what kind of shoes, I finally caved and got real-deal running shoes.  What a difference it made!  The comfort, support, and even the propel forward motion it provided was like a whole new world.  I have moderate to severe over pronation, so I have gone through a couple different models of the Mizuno Wave Nirvana and will very soon transition to the Mizuno Waze Alchemy.

I am also a serious advocate of women running in a good, supportive sports bra.  It pains me to see someone running in the wrong level of support for them.  For the longest time, I would buy what was on sale.  When I was finally introduced to the CW-X line of sports bras, I was wary of the price, but asked for it for my birthday one year.  Best decision ever.  The Xtra Support Bra is just what the product title says - a great level of support that women need.  This thing straps you in and lets you jog and run without much movement in the area and I am thankful for it.

How many of you out there are runners or triathletes?  What products are you passionate about?