It's a new year and for many of us that means getting out there and accomplishing new fitness goals. I love social media and I find that it can really help inspire you to meet your goals. I've created a list with my favorite apps, Facebook pages, and Twitter handles and how they relate to fitness, nutrition, and inspiration. Be sure to buy (if applicable), like, or follow them and start on your way to better health and fitness.

Facebook

Fitness

AskCoachJenny: Coach Jenny's life revolves around helping runners reach their goals. Jenny answers questions daily ranging from running your first 5K, to getting the best tips on injury prevention. She is also the creator of the WalkJogRun Training Plans, now available for free on the site. Coach Jenny's Facebook page is great because you can look at questions and answers from other runners as well.

Nutrition

Best Recipes: I like this page because it is a lot like the WalkJogRun Facebook page. The Best Recipes page owners post recipes, as well as facts about different foods that are in season. I like reading occasional news articles related to food and recipes. Best Recipes also has a big fan base, so you can connect with them to inquire about recipes, or ask about one you are looking for.

Inspiration

Runner's World Magazine: I love reading about everything related to running. Runner's World Magazine is definitely a Facebook page to "Like" if you want the latest content related to the running world. They always post interesting things and it always happens to relate to me. If I have some knee pain one day, I'm surprised when I see there is a new post about what to do for knee pain.

Twitter

Fitness

@AshleyBorden: Ashley has over 20 years experience as a fitness trainer. We love seeing her blunt updates telling us to get off our butts and get out there to work out! She gave us a ton of tips in 2011 on fitness and nutrition that you can view here. If you follow Ashley on Twitter, you are sure to get some good fitness tips throughout the year.

Nutrition

@EatThisNotThat: Eat This, Not That finds the outrageous calorie counts in foods you would never expect. For example, I recently learned that a serving of Pasta Roni Fettuccine Alfredo has the sodium of 4 medium orders of McDonald's french fries! All of these tweets are very valuable information. They will definitely help you from unknowingly messing up your diet plans. These tweets are also very useful in learning which foods to avoid!

Inspiration

@RunningQuotes: Running Quotes is great because the quotes can motivate you to get off the couch, and out to run. New quotes are posted everyday and there's always new ones. I love that they simply post quotes. It's very inspirational to spend a few minutes reading the new quotes on their Twitter page. Their description is very simple as, "Quotes to keep you running," and their page is exactly that.

Apps

Fitness

WalkJogRun: Come on, people. Did you really think we wouldn't include ourselves in this list? ;-). The WalkJogRun app is perfect for helping you reach your fitness goals. The app has 23 professionally developed training plans, and the ability to view routes where you are. If you're going on vacation, or looking for a new place to run, the WalkJogRun app is perfect for you! I am currently working through the Beginner Run Marathon Program. I'm only on week two, but my training is going well. Even though the marathon I'm training for will be my third, this beginner plan fits in very nicely with my schedule. I love being able to see my plan right from the app, and set the dates there as well.

Nutrition

Whole Foods Recipes: Most of us have a budget when it comes to maintaining our health and fitness. What I love about the Whole Foods app, is they have a ton of recipes for you to try. It's a great money saving tool because they have a section called, "On Hand," where you can add the foods and ingredients you already have. The app will then show you a recipe based on those things, so you don't end up buying a million things at the store. This is definitely a benefit for those on a budget!

Inspiration

MyFitnessPal: I used this app for two months in the past and it helped me to lose about seven pounds of college weight I was carrying around. Most of us don't realize how quickly calories add up. I would definitely recommend this app for calorie counting. I need to start using the app again, as much as I hate counting calories! The one part I hate about counting calories is having to measure my food exactly. In order for the calories from MyFitnessPal to be accurate, you need to measure everything down to the spread of butter you put on your toast. It's tedious, but it definitely helps with weight loss. There are similar apps out there including Daily Burn, and Lose It!

The holiday season is approaching and many of you are in a scramble to find the perfect gift for your loved one, who just so happens to be a runner. Fear not! I put together a list of some ideas that they will love (or that I would love--hint, Mom). The best thing about these gifts is they are all in some way available online. You can read about how I prefer online shopping in last week's blog post about Black Friday. When it comes to holiday gifts for runners, you won't disappoint if you pick one of the gifts below.

Cold Gear:

If you live in a cold area, warm running gear is a necessity. I love Under Armour's 1/4 zip jacket. You can get jackets like it at any running specialty store. I know Under Armour can be expensive, but it's amazing the number of times you can use these jackets in a winter. They definitely help keep you warm, without weighing you down.

Socks:

Let's face it. Socks seem like a lame gift, but not to a runner. I can't count the number of socks I've had to throw away because I couldn't stand looking at the gross bloodstains from various marathons, or because they had holes in them. Socks are great stocking stuffers. Specialty running socks are great, and a perfect gift because you can never have too many pairs.

Foam Roller:

If you haven't heard Celebrity Personal Trainer, Ashley Borden's thoughts on the necessity of foam rollers, you should listen to the interview with her. These are inexpensive and something the runner in your life will use forever.

Race Entries:

Running can be extremely expensive. If the registration hasn't opened for a race that you know your friend wants to run, get creative! Create a card and write the name of the race on it. Put the amount it will cost to enter the race in the card. The great thing about this gift is it also keeps the runner motivated. If you buy someone a race entry, you're going to ask them how their training is going. This makes it less likely for them to not run the race, since it was a gift.

Magazine Subscriptions:

Men's Health, Women's Health, Runner's World, Fitness, and SELF are all great options. I love reading these magazine for core workouts, recipes, and motivation.

Books:

If the runner in your life is also a reader, there are tons of books with tips for runners. WalkJogRun is raffling off one of Dane Rauschenberg's books, "One Man 52 Weekends, 52 Marathons." E-mail me your favorite running quote for a chance to win the book.

Tech Shirts:

A runner can never have too many tech-shirts. Check out the long-sleeve WalkJogRun tech shirts, perfect for the chilly weather. We have some short sleeve shirts left as well.

iPhone App:

The WalkJogRun iPhone app is best holiday gift for not only runners, but walkers and anyone else trying to get in shape. The January update will have a GPS capability and the ability to view and edit the training diary from the app. It will also allow for the creation of routes in the app. This is the perfect motivational tool for anyone in your life who wants to get healthy. In the App Store, click "Gift this App," or just download it for yourself!

Massage:

Runners love massages. Get the runner in your life a gift card for a massage, and this is surely to be a hit. For the ladies in your life: a pedicure gift card would be a great way to go as well. We may tear up our feet while running, but that doesn't mean we don't like to treat them from time to time.

Medal Racks:

Sometimes runners like to brag. Well, maybe that's just me. Adam's wife, Melissa, got him a great medal rack for his birthday. Jeff helped to create the design with the WalkJogRun logo. We wanted to share these with you, as you'll probably love them as much as we do. They are available from Knob Creek Medal Arts for US $34.99.

Tips:

Runners love new shoes, but it's better to get them a gift card to a running specialty store. Even if you know their shoe size, every shoe is made differently and it's better for them to get fitted themselves.

For even more gift ideas, check out our interview with Fleet Feet Sports Chicago's Dave Zimmer!

If you're a runner, what do you want for the holidays? Do you have any suggestions that I've missed? If you're a runner, what's the best holiday gift you've ever received? Comment below!

If you live in the United States, chances are you've seen ads on TV and your computer weeks before Thanksgiving about Black Friday. I can understand the urge to get great deals, but I've had my own unique Black Friday experiences in the past. These experiences don't exactly make me eager to rush out shopping in the middle of the night.

Unlike years past, this year many stores opened at midnight today. There has been a lot of controversy surrounding earlier openings, as many feel store workers should be spending this extra time with family and not setting up for Black Friday sales. I considered going out into the madness before work, because I like to get my holiday shopping done early. However, I thought about my experience last year and decided not to.

On Thanksgiving Day, it is likely you ate more food than usual. This is especially true for me, as I had a full meal prior to seeing Twilight with my sister. Of course, we ordered a small bag of popcorn and shared some M&Ms throughout the movie. Today, I am still feeling stuffed and guilty from yesterday's holiday meal and snacks.

What happens when I go Black Friday shopping? Well, I went last year with my family and we left the house around 4AM. We got our calorie-filled Starbucks and headed to the stores. By 6AM, we were starving as we had already been up for two hours. We ordered Subway sandwiches in a Wal-Mart at about 6:15 in the morning.

Of course, running through stores and being on your feet all day burns some calories, but it doesn't do much for your body when you are thrown off schedule. My sister and I still talk about how weird it was that we were hungry for actual food by six in the morning. Not just any kind of food, but lunch at six in the morning. At this time on a normal day, we wouldn't even be out of bed yet. According to Harvard Medical School's Health Publications, "Chronic sleep deprivation may cause weight gain by affecting the way our bodies process and store carbohydrates, and by altering levels of hormones that affect our appetite" ("Importance of Sleep: Six Reasons Not to Scrimp on Sleep." Harvard Health Publications. Harvard Medical School, Jan. 2006. Web.).

If we add it all up, there were certainly more calories taken in than burned that day. Typically we won't splurge on a specialty coffee with lots of calories. This year, I skipped the Black Friday deals and plan to do some online shopping after work. Last year, I pushed through crowds and witnessed people fighting for $3 Wal-Mart children's pajamas. The image on this blog is proof of that scene. I'm happy to stick to my regular schedule, and not risk skipping my workout due to tiredness from getting up early for Black Friday shopping. Black Friday shopping can be a fun and exciting family tradition. However, I find that when you have a full-time job or a busy life, scheduling is very important. I don't want to sound like a Grinch, but this year the early holiday sales just weren't for me. I am excited to do someone online shopping and decorate my home for the holidays while listening to Christmas music. And of course, getting a run in at the end of the day!

Looking for a great holiday gift? Check out the WalkJogRun tech tees. These are perfect for running or lounging around on a Sunday afternoon. What better gift for a runner than the WalkJogRun app? Simply click "Gift this App" in the App Store. With our app update coming out in January, this is a great idea for anyone looking to get fit or stay in shape!

Did you go Black Friday shopping this year? What kind of holiday traditions does your family have?

Powered by Active.com, our new Events page is a listing of running, walking, cycling, and triathlon events in the United States. For folks not in the U.S., don't worry, we're adding other countries in the new year. Simply type in your city and state and select the type of event you'd like to participate in.

On your screen you'll see up to 100 of the next upcoming races in that area. Click on an event for a description of the race and registration fees and deadlines. This is how I found the Chicago 13.1 that I'm thinking about doing. Looks like a fun race! See one you like? Most events have a "register now!" button that brings you to the event's registration page.

Courses

We have yet to add a feature that lets you upload a WalkJogRun.net route to the event listing. It's coming soon, though! In the meantime, if you've mapped a race on our site, email the link to Adam. He'll work his magic to put the course on the event's page. A page with a route included looks like the Turkey Trot 8k Adam is running here in Chicago.

Sharing

If you've participated in the event before, share your experience in the comments section on the page. Thinking about a race? Comment on the event page and share it with your friends on social media. I commented on a local Turkey Trot that I was thinking about doing, linked it to my Facebook profile, and within minutes I had some Facebook friends telling me to run it. It's a great way to get that extra motivation to get out and race!

Training

Find a race you'd really like to do but don't know how to train for it? We've got you covered! We have 23 customizable training plans available to download for your iPhone or iPod Touch. Get daily pop-up notifications of the day's plan and training tips for the plans' creator, Coach Jenny Hadfield.

What do you think of our new Events page? We love hearing from our fans!