Running in a Winter Wonderland!

Time to rekindle the blog!

Today my sister and I braved the winter wonderland of Chicago to run the Arthritis Foundation Jingle Bell Run 10K in Lincoln Park, along the Lake Michigan shoreline!  The run started at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, ran north through the park for 3ish miles, looped around, and returned to the museum.  And it was a classic, snowy winter day in Chicago (which consequently resulted in poor traction, which we figured helped burn extra calories)!  Here’s a collage that showcases some of our pics from today:

Jingle Bell Run 10K - Chicago, IL - 12/14/13

Perhaps since I haven’t blogged in a while, I will gradually bring the blog up-to-date with my latest races, as I continue to attempt to run at least one event per month.  With that in mind, my November 2013 race was the Turkey Trot 10K in Valparaiso, Indiana.  It was a bitter cold Thursday morning, but I was super-proud of my time of 1:12:51 (a pace of 11:45/mile), as I was consistent through all 6.2 miles, and I haven’t been running much lately.  I’ve gotten to a point where I was just running my monthly races and not much in between.  Now, I’m committed to running at LEAST twice per week, and am working to get back to my best times!

Turkey Trot 10K - Valparaiso, IN - 11/28/13

In other news, I recently became an Independent Team Beachbody Coach, which means I want to be your cheerleader in you fitness journey!  It also means that if you are in the market for Beachbody products (including, but not limited to: P90X3, Insanity, T25, Shakeology, and more! Learn more at www.beachbodycoach.com/JoanGrott.)  Currently, I’m working on becoming a product of the product through replacing my breakfast with Shakeology daily… so far, I’m enjoying the shakes, and after week 1, I was down a pound (after having previously hit a weight-loss plateau which I could not break through).  Stay tuned as I continue my fitness journey and keep you updated on how improved nutrition with the help of Shakeology is helping me!

For daily motivational thoughts and more regular updates about my fitness and nutrition journey, like my new Facebook page at www.facebook.com/JoanGrottFitness!

Merry TubaChristmas!

For my family, this story begins at Purdue University in West Lafayette, where my sister (a tenor saxophone player) met her now-husband (a tuba player) when they were members of the best darned band in the land, the Purdue All-American Marching Band. Through my brother-in-law, I’ve come to know that tubas are a culture of their own. One of the finest tuba traditions I’ve yet to learn about is TubaChristmas.

According to http://www.tubachristmas.com/, “TUBACHRISTMAS was conceived in 1974 as a tribute to the late artist/teacher William J. Bell, born on Christmas Day, 1902. Through the legendary William J. Bell we reflect on our heritage and honor all great artists/teachers whose legacy has given us high performance standards, well structured pedagogy, professional integrity, personal values and a camaraderie envied by all other instrumentalists. The first TUBACHRISTMAS was conducted by the late Paul Lavalle in New York City's Rockefeller Plaza Ice Rink on Sunday, December 22, 1974. Traditional Christmas music performed at the first TUBACHRISTMAS was arranged by American composer Alec Wilder who ironically died on Christmas Eve, 1980.”

TubaChristmas is celebrated in locations all over the U.S. This year, my brother-in-law participated in TubaChristmas concerts in Dayton, OH (Wright State University), West Lafayette, IN (Purdue University), Chicago (Palmer House Hilton), and Antioch, IL (Faith Evangelical Lutheran Church). Check the TubaChristmas website for a list of locations. Locally, it’s celebrated annually at Valparaiso University’s Chapel of the Resurrection on the first Sunday of December.

I’ve been lucky enough to be a spectator at the Chicago event in both 2009 and 2011. Hearing 300-400 tubas and other low-brass tuba cousins perform all the classic carols is quite a moving experience… you can truly feel it! And TubaChristmas is for all ages of players and spectators. This year, the youngest musicians at the Chicago event were 10 years old, and the oldest was 88!

The TubaChristmas season is likely over for 2011, but I encourage you to find some video footage on-line…though I’m sure it won’t do justice for the in-person show! Be sure to mark your calendar for a TubaChristmas concert next year!

Merry TubaChristmas!

2009 TubaChristmas, Palmer House Hilton, Chicago, Illinois

VOTE FOR ME! Polls close on 12/17.

Just over a year ago I was introduced to the AGCO Corporation’s Facebook page through an ad I saw on Facebook that promoted their first-ever holiday photo contest. I went on to win that contest last year, and now I’m in the running again and could use your vote! Wouldn’t you love to take pride in one of your Indiana  neighbors winning a global contest?!  Read on...