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Aug 12, 2008    |      0 comments

Promoting My Friends

Since I’m not a current Team In Training participant this season, I’ll try my best to support the cause as much as I can, whether it be the Westside Team or a NY Team. I’ll attend most of the fundraisers you tell me about, and promote my friends’ blogs, experiences, and more… so stay tuned!

Oh, and if you’re in the LA area, the Westside TNT chapter is now recruiting. They practice along the beach through Santa Monica and Venice, and sometimes up Brentwood, Palos Verdes.

Check it out – TNT Westside LA Chapter

Aug 5, 2008    |      0 comments

Back at the Boardwalk

My last real run on pavement was probably a month ago, and I was afraid that I’ll struggle going back to the old TNT training route along the Santa Monica and Venice boardwalk. Surprisingly, I survived the run with no problems! We kept it at a very easy conversational pace (which we should), and did 5:1 intervals. It brought back some memories passing by the small Venice shops, the homeless guys smoking out marijuana, and the smell of food from the small mom n pop shops.

Aug 2, 2008    |      0 comments

Turbo Kick Boxing In The Mix

This morning was my second time trying out 24 Hour Fitness’ Turbo Kickboxing class. I admit, the first time kicked my ass because I didn’t have water, which is VERY important in these high intensity workouts! I figured, since I don’t do as much running on pavement anymore because of my TNT break, I should at least keep up my cardio. The video above is a good representation of the class. I was in the groove of things this time around. I was more familiar with the moves, and was hydrated. I think this will be a good Saturday morning routine for me now.

Jul 17, 2008    |      0 comments

Nike Human Race LA

The Nike+ Human Race is on August 31, which I believe replaced the ever so popular One Hit Remix. Sure, the One Hit Remix was fun, but the acts were all “one hit wonders” or performers who are out of the scene. This time around, Nike went all out and booked some talented acts. It’s going to happen all across the world in cities such as Austin, Chicago, New York, London, Paris, and much much more. Every city will have a different performer. Here in LA, we’ll have Kanye West, partying it up for all the finishers in this worldwide 10k event. I’m now officially signed up. It’s only $35, so hurry and sign up before it’s sold out!

Jul 8, 2008    |      0 comments

The Return of the Spin

24CycleLast week my first spin class, aka 24Cycle, at 24 Hour Fitness in Santa Monica literally kicked my ass! I wasn’t giving up there! Just like my first day at TNT, which I thought was HELL, I was struggling so badly. I know it just takes some dedication and motivation to keep coming back. I always look back at my marathon experiences, thinking to myself, “If I can do 26.2 miles, I can do this!”.

So today after work I returned to the 24Cycle class, very determined to get a great workout, and hoping that I will see (or feel) some kind of improvement. It was a different instructor, so the interval routines were slightly different, but just as challenging. I noticed that we didn’t have to turn up the resistance as much my previous instructor, but focused more on speed bursts and very, very slow controlled movements. I’m not complaining though. It didn’t kick my ass as much as last time, but it was still one great workout. Hydration definitely helped me out (I forgot it last time).

I’m sold. I’m determined to take this class AT LEAST 2x a week, whether it be in the early morning, or after work. I highly recommend this for a high intensity, fat-burning workout!

Jul 7, 2008    |      0 comments

Weekday, Daytime Vegetarian?

Vegetarian?I have come to the realization that I have become a weekday, daytime vegetarian. This was accidental in attempt to eat healthier, since training is over (although I should have been eating healthy during training in the first place). $50 for food is subsidized at work every week, and I’ve tried *most* of their chicken and meat dishes, and well… I’m not a big fan of them. My favorites are: Pear Salad, and Cranberry Salad. I’ve recently changed my Churro (oh, so good) breaks to crudité breaks. When I start to run out of FIM money (the name for our subsidized credit), I walk over to Bristol Farms and get some seaweed salad. Sometimes I get Poki, or some kind of sashimi. I don’t think I can convert to full vegetarian, because I LOVE my sushi! I know vegetarians also don’t eat fish, so what does that make me? I guess I’m just your average guy trying to eat healthIER.

Jun 26, 2008    |      0 comments

Resistance Is Your Friend

24 Hour Fitness Spin ClassThis morning was the FIRST time I’ve ever gone to the gym before work. I slept early with the intention to check out a Turbo Kick Box class they offer at the Santa Monica 24 off Ocean Park and 31st. Only two people were in the Kickbox classroom, so I opted to try the 24Cycle Spin Class instead. It sounded fun, with some house music playing in the background, why not?

I picked a stationary cycle near the entrance, trying to be sneaky. About 15 minutes into it, I was drenched in sweat. Then the instructor said, “Ok, that was the warm-up. Time to step it up.” What the?!? Mind you, this is my FIRST spin class. I’ve always observed the class from the outside, and I’ve always thought that I’m never cut out for this kind of training. Never say never. I’m not sure what the intervals were, but at every interval before the rest period, the instructor would tell us to turn the dial to add more resistance. We would simulate hills by cycling standing up with more resistance, then have one arm behind our back, switching hands. The last part was sitting down with high cadence. She would repeatedly say “Resistance is your friend!”, because she said that low resistance could injure our knees.

Working out in the morning definitely gave me more energy throughout the workday, and I think I will make this a weekly thing for me since I don’t have TNT training anymore. It’s every Thursday at 8am in Santa Monica.

Jun 24, 2008    |      0 comments

San Jose Here I Come!

Call it marathon withdrawals, but I still have the itch to do another race! What did I do? I signed up for the San Jose Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon! Elite Racing had a $15 off coupon, so I just had to jump on it. I mean, after a 26.2 run, what’s 13.1? I think of it as another training day. It’s just another Sunday, or is it? By the time of the race, I won’t have a TNT training plan, but I do have the knowledge of setting something up very similar to it. I just have to be determined and focused. I know that if I do drop off in training, or some kind of cardiovascular training, my risk to injury is increased. I plan to do other small races until the event, so hopefully the San Jose Half won’t be a problem.

Jun 14, 2008    |      0 comments

Top 10 Pub Crawl Mistakes

It’s finally here. Pub Crawl is in a few hours.
Remember, if this is your first Pub Crawl, whether you’re an alcoholic or a lightweight, you should focus on completing the event and not on your speed. For many of you, this will be an incredible personal milestone. Repeat with me now:

1. Not resting the day before.
I’ve already broken this rule, staying up late to do this, but we hope you got some rest. Get your mind off the pub crawl. We know you’re nervous about the big event because there’s so much alcohol. You’ve been training all year. You got this!

2. Eating too much the night before.
Don’t overload on pasta! You don’t want to be in the restroom during the pub crawl. The party may move to another bar while you’re in there!

3. Trying new equipment/food/drink on race day.
Nothing worse than finding that the new beer you’re trying gives you gas, that new shot gives you a migrane, those new jeans chafe, or that new drink makes you sick to your stomach.

4. Going out too fast.
The #1 biggest mistake. Don’t let the adrenaline take over. If you take too much alcohol early on, it can take a long time to recover. No sense getting to bar 2 really fast then struggling for another 2.

5. Not taking your walk breaks early.
If you trained with walk breaks, take them from the start and regularly. You’re going to be excited, so use your mental discipline. Walk around the bar, and meet people!

6. Drinking too much/too little.
Drink as much as you can in an hour. JUST KIDDING. You know your limits. We want to see you at the end. Fill up at the bar and keep tabs on how much you’re drinking.

7. Not maintaining proper form.
Don’t slump over when you’re drunk. Don’t pass out, or else we’ll pose behind you and take pictures.

8. Getting down on yourself if you start to hurt.
You will hurt at some point. Expect it, and know you’ve put the time in to get through it. It’s ok to admit that you’re weak sauce.

9. NOT Drinking with a stranger.
We encourage that you meet new people! There will be a lot of people at the event you don’t know. Feel free to introduce yourself. There is at MOST 3 degrees of separation of the people there. We’ve invited nothing but wonderful people.

10. Forgetting to enjoy the day!
Have fun! Remember why you’re here! To have fun!

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Pub Crawl Details

1:00 – 2:00 pm Hooters (Half off on all appetizers. $3.99 domestic beer)

2:00 – 3:30 pm Ye Olde King’s Head (Happy Hour rates including $2.50 beers, price varying by beer, $5 margaritas and discounted pub snacks.)

3:00 – 4:30 pm Yankee Doodle’s ($1 off on beer, plus they’re hosting us downstairs in their special party room with dance floor and pooltables. People who want to play pool must pay for their own game,though.)

4:30 – 5:30 Barney’s Beanery ($1 tacos – beef, chicken or veggie – $9 Blue Moon and Coors Light pitchers or $3.50 per glass, $17 for 15 wings and a pitcher of beer. They will reserve the whole downstairs area for us.)

May 30, 2008    |      0 comments

Almost Go Time!

I can’t believe that the season is almost over. Four months have past on my third consecutive season with the team, and I’ve loved every minute of it! I’m actually pretty sad to see this season end, but VERY EXCITED for this weekend. I’m almost done packing, and my marathon checklist is almost complete. The remaining pieces will be bought at the Health Expo, which is only just gu, and maybe some running sunglasses.

At the beginning of this week, I was a little nervous, but not anymore. I was overthinking and overanalyzing what kind of strategies I should take, when I should drink my water, when I should take my Gu, what’s a good pace, etc., but you know what? I shouldn’t change anything from my normal training routine last minute. I trust my coaches, and I’m going to stick with whatever I did. I’m just anxious just as I was my first marathon. I already know what to expect, but this time some of my closest friends will be there at the starting line with me, and it’s awesome. I really want to see them complete their first marathon, to really understand why I’ve been coming back for more TNT.

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