Confessions of an Amateur Athlete

  2013 was a great year by far.  I have too many fond memories to list them all.  Too many races to review, both good and bad.  But I will say, my biggest triumph, was being a part of an Ultra team for the Ragnar Relay So Cal! 200+ Miles and 24 hours of torturous pavement pouding, divided amongst me and five other guys...  And I loved every minute of it!  The more I challenge myself and push past my limits, the more accomplished I feel.  And that is what has inspired me to really push myself in 2014 and make it a year to  outdo myself!   Instead of setting a goal only focusing on one particular race... I've decided to make one that encompasses the entire year!  I'll be taking on the "Run This Year" Challenge! What exactly am I getting myself into? The challenge--to run 2,014 Kilometers in 2,014.  That's roughly 1,251.4 Miles for the entire year.  A mere 30 miles a week...but... for the entire year !  (and obviously, a lot of math)    I'm focus

  Knocked out 16 Miles today! How did it go?  Well, I finished it.. that's saying something! The weather was amazing! (70 degrees and sunny in the winter time, that's why people move here to the desert!)  I felt great overall, my leg muscles were really fatigued though.  But that happens from time to time, especially when training, so I'm not too worried.  It was slow but I got the mileage in and that's all that counts right now!    Today's run... so awesome!  definitely felt more like Fall than Winter.. but that's a good thing! :)    While running I thought about all the questions a lot of non-running friends and family ask me... as well as some beginning-runner friends.  I thought I would take the time to address some of those now.  So in honor of my 16 miles I picked 16 of the most common questions I get asked! 1.) What do you eat before a run?   I don't have a set thing that I eat before my run.  But I try to eat a little something before I head

  Time for a real confession!  I'm a runner and I can't even touch my toes! courtesy: mensfitness.com/training/endurance/top-10-yoga-poses-for-men   Seriously, my flexibility runs out somewhere right around my knees.  You're probably thinking... so what? Well for us runners, the whole body has to be a well oil-machined or else when one muscle gets tight, it throws everything out of whack.  Causing back issues...IT band problems... the works.   I've read numerous articles about debating when to stretch.. before a run vs after a run.  Tried them both, but I'm just not disciplined enough to stick to it.  Let's face it, I'm in a hurry like the rest of you to get back home and watch the next episode of (fill in any number of tv shows here).  Who's got the time when Netflix is calling?                                                                               courtesy: huffingtonpost.com   But recently, after taking on more mileage, my tight ha

In an effort to make 2014 my year of running better, I want to start EATING better and healthier .  I need to fuel my runs with something other than tons of coffee and peanut butter soaked bagels ( wheat bagels...I mean, come on, that's healthy right?!) http://ehomnick.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/bagel-with-ab-and-coffee.jpg   One of my passions, besides running, is cooking.. baking... and of course, eating everything I make.  Although my skills typically are in candy, cookies, and other sweet confections.  Albeit awesome, I figured if I want to ever SEE my abs... I'd better add some healthier options to my skill set.   So for Christmas this year, I received the Runners World Cookbook .  I've started cooking from it and so far, I love it!   Now, I know that these days you can pull any recipe you want from online, but there's just something about having the tangible pages to turn and flip through that takes me back to cooking in the kitchen with my mom or

Hello Blogosphere!    Where do we start?  I guess I'll begin with the confession that I'm not by any means a professional athlete.  I'm more of what you'd call a "seasoned" runner.  A veteran of many races with tons of war stories, yet still a newbie compared to others.    I can't offer tricks to get faster.  I can't offer a secret recipe to lose weight (I enjoy eating too much for that). But what I can offer you is my own personal stories that will at least entertain you... and maybe, just maybe, you'll get a little inspiration from them.    So what great words of wisdom do I have to share?  First off... hmm... how about just that, "Firsts". My whole running history is nothing but a list of firsts.  First 5K, first 10K, first Half-Marathon, first injury... We runners tackle each challenge and then move on to the next goal.   Ten years after my first 5K, I now feel ready to tackle my first ultra marathon (not counting my ultr