The Biggest Loser 10K Recap

My friend Lauren and I met when I moved to Davenport, Iowa in May of 2006. She and I both worked at the same news station, she as a reporter/anchor, and me as a producer, and lived down the hall from each other in our apartment building. We were fast friends for many reasons, both around the same age, single, similar college and family background, and mostly--neither of us liked Davenport!

We spent every day trying to make the most of our experience there though; pedicures, shopping trips at the tiny excuse for a mall, road trips, nights out dancing, and many nights in watching bad tv and whipping up meals while sipping Moscato D'asti wine. We coined ourselves the "old ladies" because of how we gallivanted around town together, and often provided our snarky commentary on many things to each other, much like the Old Men in the Balcony on The Muppets.

Old Ladies, Alexa and Lauren, at the World's Largest Truck Stop in Walcott, Iowa

Lauren left Davenport in October 2006, and I left in April 2007. We've kept in touch through the last seven years, but never been able to actually see each other. Lauren moved to New York City, got married, and is now a Nurse Practitioner (talk about a career change!) and you know my story. When I moved to DC, we knew it would be easier to see each other being a four hour drive apart, but had yet to do it, this past weekend, that changed.

Lauren and her husband came down from New York Saturday morning, and spent the weekend with us. We had such a great time seeing them, and I was so excited to finally meet her husband Ryan, and have her meet Ben and Austin. Part of our trip, was Lauren, Ryan and I running The Biggest Loser sponsored 10K race.

Saturday, we met them at Union Station, went to pick up our race packets, and then had a great lunch at District of Pi. Their gluten free pizza was delicious, and I've been wanting to try there forever, and am glad I finally did.

We then headed back to Northern Virginia and took these New York City dwellers out the suburbs where we relaxed, had a great dinner, went to Sweet Frog for frozen yogurt before trying to get to bed early for the race.

The race didn't start until 9:00 a.m., which I knew could be trouble with a high of 91 predicated for Sunday, and the DC humidity. The heat, humidity and sun were blasting, much like I predicted, when we started the race just after 9:00.

Seven Years Later: Two Tired Looking Old Ladies Pre-Race

The race was inspiring in many ways. It was all about getting out there and being active, no matter what your athletic ability or size, and I never felt pressure like I was going too slow, or it wasn't OK to walk. There were also several Biggest Loser Alumni at the packet pick up, and throughout the race, including Michael (below) from the latest season, cheering people on on the course.

Michael from Biggest Loser, Season 14

I was disappointed that the race was basically loops through the RFK Stadium Parking Lot. I'm sure this made it cheaper for the organizers, because then they didn't have to get street permits from the city, but running on the black top with no shade was SO hot, not to mention boring. They also didn't have good organization to tell runners exactly which way to go doing these zig zags and loops, especially for 5K vs.10K. At one point I stopped and asked someone which way I should go.

I know they are doing a Biggest Loser race series at various spots throughout the nation, and honestly, I wouldn't recommend it. I thought they really did things on the cheap, besides the tech shirt, for this race, but didn't pass on that frugality to the participants, as it was $50 for a 10K entry. 

That said, I was so glad we ran the race, and it gave Lauren and Ryan further reason to come down and visit us. After the race, we had brunch at Logan Tavern with a couple of their friends who also live in DC. I had a great post meal race there-a chorizo omelet, delicious! I don't get to the Logan Circle neighborhood often, and would surely go here again. Ryan and Lauren enjoyed their Build Your Own Bloody Mary offerings.

I left brunch to head home to Austin and Ben where we hit the pool for some much needed refreshment. All in all, it was a great weekend with wonderful friends, food, exercise and feeling exhausted by the time Sunday night hit.

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