Friday Favorites #16 – winter running gift guide

Brr, it’s cold outside. It’s in the teens in the NYC area today and wind chill makes it feel like the single digits. My alarm went off this morning a little after 4AM and I decided I was too cold and tired to wake up. With the weather and missed workout, this day is getting off to a great start… but it’s Friday and a week away from the holidays, so I can’t complain.

In case you’re looking for some last-minute presents or something for yourself, here are some of my favorites that I know will be staples in getting me through another season of the cold.

Plantronics BackBeat Fit Bluetooth Headphones – I’ve been on the market for a pair for a while but with all the treadmill running I’ve been doing recently and my epic clumsiness of dragging my phone off the treadmill, it was time to make the investment. After some research and reading the Wirecutter reviews, I decided on these. I will do a full review in a later blog post but so far so good.

I’ll Have Another with Lindsey Hein Podcast – A good playlist or podcast is essential to help me get through the treadmill miles. I’ll Have Another is light-hearted and easy for me to follow along on early morning treadmill runs.

Feetures Elite Merino+ Light Cushion Socks – Wool socks are my go to for winter outdoor running. I am a big fan of Feetures socks and especially like the merino wool ones for winter use. They keep my toes toasty even when I’m outside waiting for a race to start.

HotHands Hand Warmers – Okay, these are not a lot of fun as a present but they are a necessity!

Oiselle Softshell Gloves – My fingers and toes hate the winter. I usually opt a double layer of gloves and mittens but love these gloves from Oiselle. They are super warm!

L’Occitane Shea Butter Body Cream – This is without a doubt my favorite lotion especially when my hands are super dry from weather. My hands feel so soft afterwards!

Lululemon Runderland Neck Warmer – I love me a soft neck warmer with adjustable sizing. I usually want the neck warmer higher on my neck and even sometimes covering my mouth initially but as I warm up, I adjust the sizing so it falls lower along my neck.

Lululemon Kick The Cold Funnel Neck and Athleta Techie Sweat Jogger – I don’t use these for running but I love lounging around in this sweatshirt (and it keeps my neck toasty, I’m extremely wimpy in my old age) and jogger pant. These are especially great for post long run relaxing or in my case like today, pure laziness relaxing.

Have a happy Friday and stay warm this weekend!

**This is not a sponsored post, rather just a collection of some of my favorite winter running essentials. Some items contain an affiliate link.

Friday Favorites #12 – Bermuda edition

I’m blogging from a cruise ship, the Celebrity Summit while it is docked in Bermuda. We’re in our last hour at port and then we’re on our way back to New Jersey. We’ve been in Bermuda for the last three days and it reminded me how much I love this island. I hope we will be back soon, maybe not on a cruise though (more on that later).

Josh ruined our old DSLR (water spilled on the camera in his bag) when we first got to Athens in May, so we were in need of purchasing a new camera before this trip. Instead of going back to a DSLR, we opted for a point and shoot that provided more functionality. Most of the pictures seen in this post were taken on our new Sony DSC-RX100M II. It seems like a great camera so far with some really neat features that we will need to take some time to learn.

Without further ado, I hope you enjoy some of my favorite pictures from this trip so far.

Sailing detour by the Statue of Liberty.

IMG_3550

Sailing underneath the Verrazano Bridge. Less than 11 weeks until I run over this bridge again.

IMG_3553

First formal night “fancy” selfie with Smartphone Control Mode on the new camera.

IMG_3559

Decorating my own cupcakes at Qsine Restaurant.

IMG_3571

View from Southampton. We hiked up a hill and spent a lovely afternoon at the pool and beach with my friend, Jen and her family.

IMG_3570

Turns out I’m not very good at stand-up paddle boarding because I’m not coordinated enough to paddle.

IMG_3572

I’m much better at paddling when I’m kneeling. I also enjoyed doing yoga on the board. I’m a lazy paddle boarder.

IMG_3573

Self-portrait face detection mode on the camera. The camera detects our faces and then starts the timer to take the selfie. I think it did a pretty good job.

IMG_3569

Morning run around Royal Naval Dockyard. This is an iPhone picture, I don’t trust myself enough to run with a camera.

IMG_3562

The butt of the cruise ship. Sorry, I’m so immature. Another iPhone picture.

IMG_3565

Chickens crossing the road, literally.

IMG_3567

That’s it for now. Goodbye Bermuda, until next time.

Have a great weekend everyone!