ellasport

The Perfect Tee Begins With The Perfect Fabric!

ellasport — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 02:10:48 +0000

As I was folding my Charlotte Running Tanks and Park Tees this past weekend, I was admiring the amazing fabric! It has a slight waffle texture to it, which makes it more fun aesthetically and it helps with the breathe-ability. The fabric is one of the most important aspects of technical athletic apparel. It takes me months to chose a fabric for a new item!

Here’s a close-up of the Bright Blue Park Tee:

The fabric is 94% Nylon and 6% Lycra – VERY silky, soft against your skin so chaffing is not an option. In this video Julie Bobek and I talk about the fabric and pieces of the Be Bold Be Brave Be Seen collection! We also talk about the perfect tee – The Park Tee – and the details of the fit!

A photo of the entire Park Tee:

Vital Juice’s Vital Spy – Dec. 16th

ellasport — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 04:27:06 +0000

I made Vital Juice’s (New York City edition) Vital Spy on Thursday!!! Vital Juice is a daily newsletter that is a great resource for staying current on all things related to health and fitness. They have editions that are focused on cities like LA, San Francisco, and Chicago!

Check out Thursday’s write-up, which includes my healthy weekend plans .

http://bit.ly/eLXC2m

ellasport does yoga?

ellasport — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 02:24:00 +0000

While I personally have only done yoga a handful of times, I truly believe in the benefits of a regular practice. I felt them right away! I say every week that I wish I did more yoga. But the fact of the matter is, like you, life pulls me in a million directions and when I can squeeze time in for a workout, I choose to run, Spin, or circuit train like a mad woman!

Yoga offers many perks to the female athlete. Here are a few of the big ones: flexibility for all your muscles – not just the ones you stretch to run; a sense of calm, which enables you to handle everyday stress better; and overall strength from your finger tips to your toes!

SO this past weekend we went down to Past Tense Yoga Studio in Washington, DC to introduce ourselves to their community! Owner of the studio, Kelly DiNardo, was an amazing host! Kelly is a yogi, a writer AND a runner, among other things, and she found herself looking fabulous in the New Power Capris! These pants and the Chloe Long Sleeve Tee were big hits!

ellasport Chloe Long Sleeve and New Power Capris

My friend Aashumi, is the owner of Mirasa Design – eco-friendly, handmade kids toys that are ADORABLE! She was at the studio this past weekend, like she is everyday . Aashumi is a true yogi and loves ellasport! Here she is educating a customer on a Mirasa animal. My favorite is the zebra!

Mirasa Design at Past Tense Yoga Studio

Thanks for a great event Kelly! We can’t wait until next year!

Spin Playlist 11.21.10

ellasport — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 00:58:03 +0000

Here it is – my latest Spin playlist that I also played today to get me through a kick-butt circuit workout. Enjoy!

-Miami 2 Ibiza: Swedish House Mafia & Tinie Tempah
-Animal: Neon Trees
-I Want You: Fefe Dobson
-Up Straight to The Sky: Sandy Vee
-Waiting Outside The Lines: Greyson Chance
-Raise Your Glass: P!nk
-Everything: The Veronicas
-I Gotta Feeling: Black Eyes Peas
-Only Girl (In The World): Rihanna
-Stuttering: Fefe Dobson
-You’re The One: Niamh Egan
-Touch: Natasha Bedingfield
-Raindrops: Stunt
-Quicksand (Thievery Corp. remix): Natalie Walker (cool down)
-Stereo Love: Edward Maya & Vika Jigulina
(cool down)

Marathon First-Timer (Brooklyn Native) Qualifies To Run ING NYC Marathon 2010 with the Elite Runners

ellasport — Sun, 31 Oct 2010 19:20:30 +0000

I sat down with ellasport’s sponsored athlete, Stacey Barron, this weekend and got the low-down on training tips, pre-race meals, and how it feels to be running with the elite runners in her first marathon! (See pics below)

Pamela Oelerich: Running with the sub-elite category for your first marathon is quite an accomplishment! How does it feel? I know you’re probably nervous but is there bliss inside you too about the whole thing?

Stacey Barron: You hit the nail on the head. I’m definitely nervous but there are so many perks that I’m real stoked about. I was very stressed about the thought of starting amongst a sea of people where I’d have to try to pass people to stay on pace. Now I’ll be toward the front of the pack and I only need to worry about going out too fast – a really big concern. The really cool benefits include getting to catch a later bus (since it’ll be part of the motorcade that includes the pros and a police escort to the Fort Wadsworth start on Staten Island), special warm up area, and special recovery area.

PO: Training: I know you’ve been training with Damien Al-Angurli of New York Sports Club (NYSC). Tell me about his training plan for you.

SB: Damian has been my mentor, thankfully! He’s a professional trainer with NYSC but I worked with him (only for a few sessions) outside of NYSC since I really needed him to help me with speed work at the track and hill repeats in Prospect Park (we’re both brooklynites). Damian stressed the importance of hill repeats and incorporating hills into long runs because the NYC ING Marathon is actually quite hilly. He’s been running forever and is so knowledgeable about the sport as well as training in general. I’m following Hal Higdon’s advanced 1 marathon training program that is available online – but Damian has helped me to modify as necessary. Without Damian’s help, I definitely wouldn’t have been able to finish the harder track sessions (8 x 800 Meter) and also would’ve likely overtrained, possibly even injured myself. The training is definitely harder than expected; an 18-week training program is a huge commitment!

PO: Tell me about the warm-up that you’ll do before the marathon.

SB: Good question I’m still researching it. I’m a marathon virgin after all. But I know that I’ll do at least one mile of really slow jogging to warm up, and then will do my stretch routine that targets the standard muscles groups – quads, hamstrings, calves, IT band, glutes.

PO: What’s your energy intake strategy for the marathon? Gels, Gatorade, or whatever drink they’ll have on the course, and/or water, how often?

SB: I’ve recently started to do my long runs w/Gatorade endurance and power bar gels, which is what they’ll have on the course. Again, since I’m a virgin I’m not exactly sure when I’ll be refueling – but I expect to use gels right before the start, and then miles 9 and 18. I’ll have extra on me just in case.

PO: What fuels and heals/repairs your body? Tell me about your favorite pre-race and post-race meals.

SB: My husband has been so good to me. I really appreciate that he’s a chef because I’m a mess in the kitchen. So he’s been helping by cooking up awesome pasta and rice dishes when Damian suggested that my diet was lacking complex carbs to match my increased mileage. He also came up with a modified recipe for amazing all-natural energy bars and will basically make whatever recipe I throw at him. After my long runs he cooks me these fabulous blueberry pancakes that I devour. Pre-race I like oatmeal with blueberries at least an hour prior, a banana closer to the start.

PO: What are you wearing for the marathon? Tell me what you like about each piece. Include your sneakers and sports bra too.

SB: I will be proudly wearing ellasport’s New Power Capris and Charlotte Running Tank in Jet Black, and a simple black Champion double-dry seamless cami sport bra (unfortunately I need zero support but it keeps it simple & cheap!) underneath. And my favorite Asics (GEL-DS Trainer 15) sneakers.

PO: What advice would you give other runners thinking about running a marathon?

SB: I never appreciated nor understood the need for rest days until I started training for the marathon. My training plan includes one rest day, Friday, which is now my favorite day of the week! I also never realized how important sleep is and how much in aids in your body’s ability to recover. As for diet, I naturally tend to watch what I eat and avoid too many carbs. That all changed when I my mileage really started to pick up; carbohydrates are essential not only to fuel work outs, but to recover faster.

PO: How do you balance training with working full-time and time with your hubby, Bob?

SB: It’s been difficult, but I’ve always spent too much time at the gym. It’s been more stressful for sure, because I don’t want to miss a work-out, but in terms of time away from each other, it hasn’t been too much more than usual. Thankfully things haven’t been too hectic at work until recently, so I’ve been able to manage pretty well. I have been sleeping a lot more though, which has eaten into any residual time that I have to spend with Bob. But he’s very understanding so it’s been good.

Here are a couple of photos of Stacey in her ING NYC Marathon race outfit. Good Luck Stace!!

Stacey Barron in ellasport New Power Capris and Charlotte Running Tank

Best Total-Body Workout: 1 Hour, 15 Minutes, 657 Calories Burned

ellasport — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 02:36:14 +0000

This is SUCH a fun total-body workout that will kick your butt! It took me 1 hour and 15 minutes and I burned 657 calories!

Step 1:

Foam roll calves and ITB’s – 30 seconds each

Static Stretch (30 seconds each) – Hip flexors and Adductors (inner thighs)

Step 2:

Core – 2 X 15: back extensions, reverse crunches, cable rotations

Balance – 2 x 10 each leg – single leg balance reach (left hand to right toe, squat with right leg, then reverse)

Reactive – 2 x 8 box jumps – jump up on a stepper with 4-5 stacks, landing with both feet at the same time. Hold the landing for 1-2 seconds.

Step 3:

30-minute interval run - after a 5 to 10-minute warm-up, get your HR up to about 65-70% HRM (max heart rate). Then do 30-seconds to 2-minute intervals of 75% HRM to 85% HRM. In between the high-intensity intervals bring your HR back down to 65-70% and catch your breath. As you get more fit, these recovery intervals will become shorter. Take the last 10 minutes to run at whatever pace you want.

Step 4:

Resistance Training – The following circuit is my favorite! You can do this two or three times in a row in place of a cardio workout. But for this workout just do it once since you’ll have done the 30-minute interval run. Keep the rest between exercises to a minimum – you should be breathing heavy and sweating!

Lunge, Curl, Shoulder Press – 1o reps each leg (alternate) with 7.5-lb. dumbbells

Ball Chest Press – 15 reps with 18-lb. body bar

Ball Leg Lifts - Face down on a ball (ball under your stomach), palms on the floor in front of you, lift your legs off the floor to about head height. Hold for 1-2 seconds.

Single-leg or Bosu ball, Shoulder Dumbbell raises - 15 reps with 7.5-lb. dumbbells

Dumbbell or Barbell curls on a Bosu Ball - 15 reps with 18-lb. Body Bar

Ball Tricep Extensions – face-up on a ball, arms over head with a 12-lb. Body Bar. 15 reps hold extension 1-2 seconds.

Ball Sqauts – I LOVE these! Ball is at your back and against the mirror/wall. With 7.5-lb. dumbbells sqaut while leaning against the ball (it will roll with you).

That’s it – you’re done! It’s seems longer/more complicated than it really is. Print this out, take it to the gym, and give it a shot! I know you’ll love it!

Are Directional Lunges The Way To Go?

ellasport — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 01:06:45 +0000

Lunges are one of the single best ways to tone and strengthen your legs, glutes, knees, ankles, hips, heck even your core gets worked when you do lunges! But I think most of us lunge forward and back. WELL let’s change it up! Julie Bobek shows us how to properly perform directional lunges in this video. And yes, she’s wearing the Charlotte Running Tank .

Julie teaches for Reebok Sport Club/NY and Sports Club LA/NY. If you are in New York definitely check out one of her classes. She WILL kick your butt — in a completely nice way .

Out and Back Runs – Why They’re Important

ellasport — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 23:46:00 +0000

Ever notice that one side of your body (e.g., ankle, knee) is sore or strained after a run but the other side is fine? Well it could be a result of running on a sloped roadway. For drainage purposes roadways are created with a slope towards the outside of the road, which keeps the road from flooding during a rainstorm or melting of snow. A slope of just 1 to 2%, which may appear almost flat to your naked eye, will deliver uneven stress to your body.

To avoid this uneven stress – especially to your lower extremities – run out and back routes as opposed to loop runs (staying on the same side of the street running in the same direction). The objective is to keep the impact to your body even on both sides. Running out and back on the same path (same side of the street on the way out and back) is helpful in doing this whereas loop runs put more stress on one side of the body.

I’ve been running loop runs for the past few weeks and I noticed an aching or strained feeling on the outside of my outer ankle and knee on one side, and on the inner side of my opposite ankle about 1 mile into my run. Not thinking too much of the aching, I kept running, and paid the price when I was finished 4 miles later! Since then I have been running out and backs – out and back on the same side of the street. Though this type of running delivers even stresses to the body, you still have the uneven impact from running on a sloped roadway.

So those roads that flood during a rainstorm are your best bet for running since they should be flat from side to side!

Paula Radcliffe ING NYC Marathon

Marathon prep. – Long-Sleeve Running Tee

ellasport — Sat, 25 Sep 2010 14:56:44 +0000

The world’s largest marathon is just around the corner and it’s here in New
York City! Whether you are in the final stages of training for the marathon
or if you find yourself inspired to run your normal route with a bit more
vigor, you are going to need the perfect long-sleeve running tee to keep you
warm as the fall weather is fast approaching. The Chloe Long Sleeve Tee by
ellasport, is made of moisture-wicking Supplex fabric and features a Coolmax
mesh panel in the back for ultimate breath-ability. The cut is perfectly
feminine and slimming, and it fits nicely over a running tank or by itself.
The Chloe Long Sleeve Tee is the essential layering piece for fall. You’ll
want to wear it everywhere!

The Chloe Long Sleeve Tee is available in Jet Black for $58 at ellasport.com.
It features a contrasting white mesh panel and a bright pink and white logo
uniquely placed on the right sleeve.

Chloe Long Sleeve Running Tee

Another great piece for fall running and other outdoor sweaty pursuits is
the New Power Capris by ellasport. These are made of an amazing blend of
Tactel and Lycra fabrics, which gives a soft feel while providing moderate
compression to give you an overall sexy, slimming effect. The shaping seams
down the side make your legs look longer, and a zipped pocket holds your
essentials while you focus on kicking your butt. The pocket is made with
Coolmax mesh for superior breathe-ability. The New Power Capris are an
essential piece to any girl’s workout wardrobe. You might need two pair!

The New Power Capris are available in Jet Black for $76 on ellasport.com.

New Power Capris by ellasport

Shelter Island 10k – ellasport’s Stacey Barron Finishes 1st In Her Age Group!

ellasport — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 01:12:20 +0000

Saturday June 19th, Shelter Island, NY – ellasport’s Stacey Barron finishes first in her age group and 13th overall for females!!!!

It was my first time on Shelter Island in a really long time! Despite being a native Long Long Islander, I don’t get that far out east very often. It’s beautiful with its hilly terrain, quaint towns, and local restaurants. But I digress – this post is about ANOTHER amazing race finish by Stacey!

Before the race, Stacey wasn’t happy about the hot temperature and high humidity, but with a 10k finish in under 40 minutes I think she did pretty darn amazing regardless of weather!! That’s a 6:27 minute per mile pace, which, for those of you that run or walk on a treadmill know, is SUPER FREAKIN’ FAST!!

The competition was stiff. Some of the female runners Stacey was racing with included amazing Ethiopian runners and former Olympic medalists!

Below are some pics of super-buff-Stacey from the race. I want arms like that!!!

Pre-race Warm-up

Jitters At the Start Line

Stacey and Big Brother Shawn

Yay 1st Place Age-Group Medal!!

Happy Sweating!

Pam