Prior to the active lifestyle that I am in now, I led a life of partying in Hollywood on a weekly, sometimes daily basis. Vegas? Sure! Cancun? Why not? I partied hard, but I was also one crazy workaholic. Never took vacations, always caught up on my career, never really “living.” It wasn’t until a running event thrown by Nike called Nike Run Hit Remix that sparked my interest in “running.” Why? Because De La Soul was performing at the end of the 5 miles, and other acts (one hit wonders) performed at every mile, like Young MC, Vanilla Ice, and others. It HAD to be somewhat party/entertainment related for me to do it, because running was NEVER an interest of mine. I mean, back in middle school, I never passed the physical fitness tests that I had to be put in some “special” P.E. group that was easier than the rest of the class. Great. Anyways. when I signed up for the Nike run, the most I ever ran prior to that was maybe a mile… on a treadmill!
What you see above was my very first view of a finish line. That 5 mile run was probably THE hardest thing I’ve ever done! I actually walked a good part of it! I had no idea what to wear, if my shoes were right, or even if I had the right running form. If you look at the photo closely, it was a 1:12(ish) finish for FIVE miles. Hey, you gotta start somewhere, right? Not too long after that, I completed my very first Half Marathon, on Long Beach, and since I didn’t have a real training plan for that either, I was sore for a very, very long time after that. Yes, that was the new, hardest thing I’ve ever done! I was done with running at that point! Forget this! I want back in to the FUN stuff!
A month after, I went on a weeklong trip with my closest friends to NY. I was there mainly for the parties, food, and sightseeing. Halfway through the week, I was walking around Central Park, and accidentally came across the NY Marathon’s final few miles. Little did I know that this exact moment, will be a huge influence to my running career. Little did I know that this is one marathon I’d like to do someday.
Since then, I’ve been addicted to endurance sports. Rock N Roll San Diego was my first full marathon, and since then I’ve been hooked! Not sure if the actual act of running was what I was addicted to, but I love the event! Marathons are full of inspiration, and the energy is always high. It gives me a chance to travel and see cities I’ve otherwise never thought of going to, and it gives me a chance to meet new friends. 10 marathons later, I was looking for something more. Believe it or not, it was crossing that finish line at marathon #9 at Rock N Roll Seattle, where I had the feeling of “ehh”. Was I bored? Yes, I needed a greater challenge.
Enter: The Triathlon. What?! I didn’t know how to swim. I didn’t own a bike – last time I rode one was when I was a little child! So many reasons NOT to do it, but I said, there’s no better time than now. I just had to make it happen, no matter what. So what triathlon did I end up signing up for? An iron distance event. Vineman- 2.4 mile swim, 112 bike bike, 26.2 mile run. Why not do the Olympic, people asked? Why not try that first? First off, I signed up with Team in Training, and I have full complete trust in the coaches that they will get me to where I need to be, so I might as well go big or go home!
UPDATE 7/30: DONE.
Come and visit my now “endurance sports” blog frequently as I will document my endurance sports journeys. Where will go next?