Selected to be an Ambassador for CLIF! =)
4/9/12
Hollywood Half Marathon
I just came back from a short trip down south for the Hollywood Half Marathon. The race started at Universal City walk, ran out and back down Hollywood Blvd and ended back near Universal Studios. It was a great time... and I love being a part of inaugural events!
I can be such a tourist, so was hoping that I would be able to see the 'Hollywood sign" while running. Lucky enough, I did.
The event went really well overall. They ran out of cups around mile 7. The volunteers had to pour the water into our hands. Some runners seemed really ticked off, but I thought it was all part of the experience. There was plenty of water to drink and if you really wanted some, you could find a way to drink it. Also, most trained runners wear water belts and such, so they were easily able to have their bottles refilled.
They also ran out of items at the Cliff mile. I was really excited to see Clif out on the course, since I was recently chosen as a Clif ambassador. With over 6,900 people running a race, sometimes running out of things is out of the race directors control.
I heard a lot of flack about the race director's lack of planning for the race and such, but I couldn't have a had better time. The last two miles and the hill were killer. The course and hill were talked about for months, so I had no sympathy for those complaining about the hill.
I finished the race while crossing the red carpet and receiving my awesome medal. Shortly after I received a free massage from the students at Everest college. It was a great time! Thanks so much to everyone who helped put this race on. I would definitely do it again. I got to spend the rest of my day checking out the Kodak theater and the Hollywood walk of fame. A good weekend and great event!
They also ran out of items at the Cliff mile. I was really excited to see Clif out on the course, since I was recently chosen as a Clif ambassador. With over 6,900 people running a race, sometimes running out of things is out of the race directors control.
I heard a lot of flack about the race director's lack of planning for the race and such, but I couldn't have a had better time. The last two miles and the hill were killer. The course and hill were talked about for months, so I had no sympathy for those complaining about the hill.
I finished the race while crossing the red carpet and receiving my awesome medal. Shortly after I received a free massage from the students at Everest college. It was a great time! Thanks so much to everyone who helped put this race on. I would definitely do it again. I got to spend the rest of my day checking out the Kodak theater and the Hollywood walk of fame. A good weekend and great event!
3/28/12
Feeling Blessed
Being an only child has its ups and downs. One down is that I don't have any siblings, so I won't get to experience being an aunt. Well, at least that is what I thought when I was younger.
I am very blessed to have become an Auntie twice this year after the births of two of my very best friend's children.
My cousin Elaine also gave birth to Petra this year. I can't wait to visit Scotland soon to meet her!
I love being an Auntie!
I am very blessed to have become an Auntie twice this year after the births of two of my very best friend's children.
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| Brody Nathen Burgess 2/24/12 |
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| Gabriela Lily Torres 3/14/12 |
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| Yes, I 'stached him |
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| Gabriela got 'stached too |
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| Cousin Connor McKay Duke at 7 months |
I love being an Auntie!
Fitness Never Sleeps
Today was my first day at FNS in San Jose. It was an awesome, killer work out...first let me tell you how I ended up here.
I was running the Go Green Half Marathon (on St Patrick's Day) in Campbell. My long runs usually take me a good 4 miles to warm up and get out of the run/walk mode. Around the 5th mile I came up to a water stop. Who was there to greet me and give me water? Ada Wong!! Ada Wong from the Biggest Loser! She is one of the most inspirational people to me that has ever been on that show. I asked if we could take a picture together. See me below, the starstruck "tourist" haha.
As we went to take the picture, she suggested we take it in front of the FNS sign. Seeing her made my day and made me have the energy and "umph" to run faster than usual to the finish-line.
When I got home, I couldn't get FNS out of my head. What is that I thought? After googling, I found it. Everything seemed to click for me. It seemed like seeing Ada was a sign and that this is where I needed to be. I even found a deal on Yelp for my first month. How could I not sign up?
Today was my first workout at 6am. To make things even better, I had met Ada again when touring FNS and she had emailed me about us working out together. Today I got to work out with her! I got to work out with Ada Wong :)! It is an awesome feeling to work out next to someone who you have looked up to for so long. I have had several gym memberships, trainers, have had one on one training at crossfit, and this was by far the toughest workout that I have done. I was exhausted after, and could barely manage to put on my mascara after getting ready for work, but a bit later, I felt awesome. Everyone is motivating, encouraging, and helpful. Thank you Ada, FNS and Brian! I am so glad to have found you!
I was running the Go Green Half Marathon (on St Patrick's Day) in Campbell. My long runs usually take me a good 4 miles to warm up and get out of the run/walk mode. Around the 5th mile I came up to a water stop. Who was there to greet me and give me water? Ada Wong!! Ada Wong from the Biggest Loser! She is one of the most inspirational people to me that has ever been on that show. I asked if we could take a picture together. See me below, the starstruck "tourist" haha.
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| Go Green St Patricks Day Run, Ada at the water stop |
When I got home, I couldn't get FNS out of my head. What is that I thought? After googling, I found it. Everything seemed to click for me. It seemed like seeing Ada was a sign and that this is where I needed to be. I even found a deal on Yelp for my first month. How could I not sign up?
3/13/12
2012 race schedule revised
Sadly, I caught the flu this year. After I had commented several times that "I haven't been sick in so long" it caught up with me. I ended up having a 102 fever the day of the Bay Breeze 10k and could not participate. I was extremely bummed to not come home with that cute squid medal and to participate in my first Brazen race. This race has been added to my 2013 calendar.
After that I decided to re-evaluate my race calendar. My main goal for this year was to complete the Beach Cities Challenge. This was a good idea originally, but out of town races (even just from Norcal to Socal) turn out to be very pricey trips. Sadly, the surf city and OC marathon were removed from my list. I hope to do them someday.
My new focus went to the completion of the California marathon series. I was already signed up for two of the four required races, so I decided to sign up for the other two and earn my extra bling. The Oktoberun is an inaugural race and is sponsored by the company I work for, Zazzle, so this was a great addition. I also added The Race to the End of Summer, which benefits the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Since I did my first marathon with Team in Training, this was special to me as well. I will be presented with this extra medal at the Walnut Creek marathon, after completing the race.
I still have my fingers crossed for NYC this year, but since only 8% of those that apply for the lottery get in, I will try to not keep my hopes up.
My full race calendar: 2012 Race Calendar
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| Swag I didn't receive :( |
My new focus went to the completion of the California marathon series. I was already signed up for two of the four required races, so I decided to sign up for the other two and earn my extra bling. The Oktoberun is an inaugural race and is sponsored by the company I work for, Zazzle, so this was a great addition. I also added The Race to the End of Summer, which benefits the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Since I did my first marathon with Team in Training, this was special to me as well. I will be presented with this extra medal at the Walnut Creek marathon, after completing the race.
I still have my fingers crossed for NYC this year, but since only 8% of those that apply for the lottery get in, I will try to not keep my hopes up.
My full race calendar: 2012 Race Calendar
1/20/12
7 random Rants
2. I am addicted to Pepper Plant hot sauce. It has no calories and it is great on everything. Egg whites and cottage cheese are my top picks.
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3. I signed up for the Disneyland half marathon this year! I will be running with a friend and can not wait.
4. The 2012 Shamrock'n marathon in Sacramento just sold out. I am excited that I signed up in time!
5. This photo below showed up in my facebook feed. I decided that meant that the holidays "yummies" were over (ding ding ding- it's almost February). I have been eating clean all week, and intend to stick with it.
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| The holidays are OVER |
1/13/12
OMG I'm seeing MJ Cirque Du Soleil on Sunday!
I can not wait for this weekend, as I am going to see Michael Jackson Cirque Du Soleil. I love the cirque shows and try to see all of the ones that come into my area. I am amazed with each show and all of the performer's talents. Check out my new page Love Cirque to see recaps of all the shows that I've seen.
I originally thought that this show was sold out, but my Dad, Aunt and Uncle bought some awesome tickets that they gave me for Christmas. I am beyond excited and can not wait for Sunday to arrive!
I originally thought that this show was sold out, but my Dad, Aunt and Uncle bought some awesome tickets that they gave me for Christmas. I am beyond excited and can not wait for Sunday to arrive!
1/10/12
7 Random Rants: Rats, Voluspa, Nbc's The Office and more
I'm borderline OCD with the number 7. I was born on 7-7 and although that may or may not be the correlation, it is all that is the only explanation that I have been able to come up with for my obsession. The number has proven to be mildly lucky in Las Vegas, but equally detrimental. Anyway, I have decided to weekly post "7 Random Rants." .
4. I hate reading but have not been able to put down The Hunger Games trilogy
5. I'm addicted to Starbuck's, The Perfect Oatmeal. I need to start making this at home
6. Grilled cheese and tomato soup can be eaten 4 times in a weeks span and is still enjoyable
7. OMG I'm going to see Michael Jackson Cirque du Soleil on Sunday!
7 Random Rants
1. I think my fear amplifies my exaggerations.
A long story short (and after a few weeks of disbelief) we have rats, in our attic. One day I went into a hall closest (which occupies the crawl space under the house) and saw that my foam roll had been gnawed at. This was the first time that I chose to believe we had some rodents among us.
Then, as if out of no where. I saw something. To me it looked like this:
We shortly after had an exterminator come and set up some special traps with pheromones, but we caught nothing. A friend placed some small traps up in the attic just in case. After about a week he went back to collect them. We had caught something!
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| Clearly not the same as the photo above |
One if three explanations: 1- my fear exaggerated what I saw, 2- I am blind as a bat (yes I wear glasses and they were off that night AND it was dark), and 3- The life threatening, ugly, scary and huge rat is STILL at large. I am voting for anything other than the latter.
2. I love Voluspa Best.Candles.Ever.
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| Santigo Huckelberry is the best scent |
3. I am finally admitting that NBC's The Office isn't nearly as good since Steve Carrel left.
4. I hate reading but have not been able to put down The Hunger Games trilogy
5. I'm addicted to Starbuck's, The Perfect Oatmeal. I need to start making this at home
6. Grilled cheese and tomato soup can be eaten 4 times in a weeks span and is still enjoyable
7. OMG I'm going to see Michael Jackson Cirque du Soleil on Sunday!
1/6/12
The Big Apple- NYC marathon lottery
I told myself that 2012 was going to be the year of today. For the last few years I have felt like several of my goals and accomplishments have been waiting on "someday" and this year I decided to start making this happen today.
This attitude lead me to register for the lottery for the New York marathon. Only 8-12% of runners that sign up for the lottery actually get into this race. Fingers, toes, arms and legs crossed that I get in~!
This attitude lead me to register for the lottery for the New York marathon. Only 8-12% of runners that sign up for the lottery actually get into this race. Fingers, toes, arms and legs crossed that I get in~!
50/50/50
50/50/50....what does this mean? I have decided that I want to complete 50 marathons or half marathons in 50 states by my 50th birthday.
I actually cannot recall who or what got this idea into my head, but the more I began to research, the more excited I became. I read about a girl named Laura who had completed this task and she was 24! Extremely impressive. (About Laura) Since I am turning 28 this year (and the year is basically shot due to a committed California 2012 run schedule), I have 22 years to complete this. I figured that was well enough time to travel to each state. I would love to finisher sooner, but I wanted to be realistic.
My first step was to look online for other runners online who had completed this task, and see where they had run. I checked the 50 States Marathon club site for the "favorites" and recommendations. Yes, if I complete this, I get to be in this club too! 50 states club. Technically the fifty states half club would be my club, as I will be running a mixture of half's and fulls. 50 1/2 club.
Next I began to look up each race. Here were the points I used to make my selections:
There are a few states in which I want to complete two races. Luckily they either mean a lot, or are fairly close to California, my home state. The only state without a selected race is Alabama. Nothing has jumped out to me yet. Here is my working list.
I also found a blog online where a girl mentioned how to save money when traveling to all of the races. She would often rent a car and sleep in the Walmart parking lot. I am not sure if this will be my route, but 2-3 races per year and lots of planning should make things more manageable. I also plan to let all my friends and family know what I am up to and ask that they support me by recommending a relatives or friends "couch to crash on" in any state that I might be visiting. With me working a full time job, several of these will be long weekend turn around trips.
I am also going to be starting an interactive race calendar until it is full. Here is my progress thusfar.
A long way to go, but here's to 50!
I actually cannot recall who or what got this idea into my head, but the more I began to research, the more excited I became. I read about a girl named Laura who had completed this task and she was 24! Extremely impressive. (About Laura) Since I am turning 28 this year (and the year is basically shot due to a committed California 2012 run schedule), I have 22 years to complete this. I figured that was well enough time to travel to each state. I would love to finisher sooner, but I wanted to be realistic.
My first step was to look online for other runners online who had completed this task, and see where they had run. I checked the 50 States Marathon club site for the "favorites" and recommendations. Yes, if I complete this, I get to be in this club too! 50 states club. Technically the fifty states half club would be my club, as I will be running a mixture of half's and fulls. 50 1/2 club.
- Certified race- with course marshall (per fifty states club rules)
- Race must provide finisher medal (I am not returning home without bling)
- Race of course is pretty or challenging
- Race is for a good or meaningful cause
- Race is near landmark or icon in that State that I want to see (killing two birds with one stone)
There are a few states in which I want to complete two races. Luckily they either mean a lot, or are fairly close to California, my home state. The only state without a selected race is Alabama. Nothing has jumped out to me yet. Here is my working list.
| State | Town | Race Name | |
| Alabama | |||
| Alaska | Ankorage | Humpys | |
| Arizona | Phoenix | RNR | |
| Arkansas | Little Rock | Little Rock | |
| CA | San Francisco | NWM | |
| Colorado | Boulder | Heart and Sole Half | |
| Connecticut | Hartford | ING Hartford | |
| Delaware | Wilming | Delaware | |
| Florida | Orlando | Walt Disney World | |
| Georgia | Atlanta | ING Georgia | |
| Hawaii | Kauai | Kauai | |
| Idaho | Idaho Falls | MAD marathon | |
| Illinois | Chicago | RNR | |
| Indiana | Idianapolis | Womens Half | |
| Iowa | Des Moines | IMT Des Moines | |
| Kansas | Olathe | Wickedly fast | |
| Kentucky | Louisville | LSC Half | |
| Louisiana | Baton Rouge | Lousiana | |
| Maine | Portland | Portland | |
| Maryland | Baltimore | Under Armour Baltimore | |
| Massachusetts | Boston | Boston | |
| Michigan | Detroit | Detroit | |
| Minnesota | Minniapolis | 13.1 | |
| Mississippi | Jackson | Mississippi Blues | |
| Missouri | St Louis | Go St Louis | |
| Montana | Missoula | ||
| Nebraksa | Omaha | Omaha | |
| Nevada | Las Vegas | RNR | |
| New Hampshire | Hamptons Smuttynose rockfest | ||
| New Jersey | Cooper Norcross Run the Bridge | ||
| New Mexico | Chips N Salsa | ||
| New York | NYC | New York | |
| North Carolina | Charolette | Thunder Road | |
| North Dakota | Fargo | ||
| Ohio | Cinncinnati | Flying Pig | |
| Oklahoma | Tulsa | Route 66 | |
| Oregon | Portland | RNR | |
| Pennsylvania | Philadelphia | Philadelphia | |
| Rhode Island | Newport | Amica | |
| South Carolina | Myrtle Beach | Myrtle Beach | |
| South Dakota | Run Crazy Horse | ||
| Tennessee | Nashville | WHM | |
| Texas | Austin | Livestrong Austin | |
| Utah | Salt Lake City | Salt Lake | |
| Vermont | Colchester | Vermont City | |
| Virgina | Arlington | Marine Corps-Full | |
| Virginia | Richmond | Richmond Suntrust- Full | |
| Washington | Spokane | Windermere | |
| Washington | Seattle | RNR | |
| West Virginia | Williamson | Hatfield and McCoy | |
| Wisconsin | Kenosha | Wisconsin | |
| Wyoming | Casper | Casper |
I also found a blog online where a girl mentioned how to save money when traveling to all of the races. She would often rent a car and sleep in the Walmart parking lot. I am not sure if this will be my route, but 2-3 races per year and lots of planning should make things more manageable. I also plan to let all my friends and family know what I am up to and ask that they support me by recommending a relatives or friends "couch to crash on" in any state that I might be visiting. With me working a full time job, several of these will be long weekend turn around trips.
I am also going to be starting an interactive race calendar until it is full. Here is my progress thusfar.
1/3/12
2012- A year of running and no excuses
I couldn't be more excited to start 2012 and to get back on my running wagon. These legs have gotten a little rusty in the past two months. Between working two jobs and being tired, I made excuses not to train. 2012 is the year of no excuses.
My mom knows how excited I am about my race Bling and gave me a very appropriate gift for Christmas.
She knows me quite well...7 knobs to hang my medals from and I couldn't be more excited to start hanging!
I already have a lengthy race list for 2012, which is still growing:
Surf City
Bay Breeze 10k,
Shamrock'n half
Go green 10k
Since St Patrick's day is one of my favorite holidays, and green is my favorite color, I snuck in two races with have equally exciting green clover medals.
Hollywood Half
Big Sur
OC marathon
After the OC marathon I will have complete my Beach Cities Challenge!
See Jane Run
SF marathon
Although I did not get chosen as a SF marathon ambassador, I am still looking forward to this race.
Below are 2012 races on my calendar that I have yet to sign up for:
Terrain Mud
Bay Area 1/2
Disneyland 1/2 or Tower of Terror 10k
Giant Race
NWM (fingers crossed that I get in!)
Iron Girl
Happy 2012 and Happy Running!
My mom knows how excited I am about my race Bling and gave me a very appropriate gift for Christmas.
I already have a lengthy race list for 2012, which is still growing:
Surf City
Bay Breeze 10k,
Shamrock'n half
Go green 10k
Since St Patrick's day is one of my favorite holidays, and green is my favorite color, I snuck in two races with have equally exciting green clover medals.
Hollywood Half
Big Sur
OC marathon
After the OC marathon I will have complete my Beach Cities Challenge!
See Jane Run
SF marathon
Although I did not get chosen as a SF marathon ambassador, I am still looking forward to this race.
Below are 2012 races on my calendar that I have yet to sign up for:
Terrain Mud
Bay Area 1/2
Disneyland 1/2 or Tower of Terror 10k
Giant Race
NWM (fingers crossed that I get in!)
Iron Girl
Happy 2012 and Happy Running!
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