Confessions of an Amateur Athlete

Lately I've seen a ton of negative reviews coming from the San Francisco Marathon.  Such as THIS one. However, every race is an entirely different experience for each individual runner. And I'm here to tell you that I LOVED the San Francisco Marathon!  I had bad plantar fasciitis, was in pain the last few miles, but STILL had a great time.  So that says a lot.  Pictures are worth a thousand words, so I'll keep the PROs and CONs short.  Then we'll get to ALL the awesome pics. ;-) Now, here's a quick rundown of the PROs: --The weather was PERFECT!   Overcast, foggy, slightly chilly but perfect for a full marathon.  The sun DID come out a little later but not until about mile 20.  -- The start was practically right under the Bay Bridge and since we were staring early, it was still night.   The Bridge was all lit up and made for an awesome start! --The scenery! I wasn't the only one snapping selfi...

People ask me a lot "do you ever have 'bad' runs"?  The answer is yes, absolutely.  If you only ever have easy runs, you're not doing it right.  My long run yesterday, was anything but fun or easy.  It was  a 20-miler, so I knew going in that it wasn't going to be a piece of cake.  But I also knew I'd pull through.   However, what I wasn't anticipating was the fact I was still getting over my cold and I was zapped of all energy.  My pace was super slow but I was determined to finish my goal.  By mile 17, I thought my knees would buckle. By mile 18, everything ached and was seizing. By mile 19, I was near tears.  But by golly I made it to 20! The pic snapped of me a few weeks ago is only partially what I must of looked like chugging along on the canal!   Luckily, I had a friend running with me for the last really tough part (15 miles worth in fact).  Had it not been for him I might still be out there trying to finish. ...

 Hello everyone! Besides myself, there are so many other runners with unique stories that can help inspire or entertain everyone. So I thought I'd take the spotlight off myself and use one Friday out of every month to feature a different runner and get some insight into what makes them tick!  Let's meet my first ever Friday Feature victim... Phoenix's own CBS 5 News Anchor and 3-time Boston Marathoner Catherine Anaya ! Q. So a little background info. Where are you from and how long have you been with KPHO, CBS 5 News? A. I'm from Orange County, California...I've been at KPHO for.... 10 oh.. gosh 11 years this month!! Q. How long have you been running competitively? A. About 7 years. Q. You've ran Boston three times...what was your best time/PR in Boston? A  .3:29:58.                           ...

Running an 18-miler this weekend!  It's going to be tough but it's all part of the thrill !  On one of my previous posts, I answered a lot of questions from friends and family about my running.  I received lots of great comments and positive feedback on that one, so I thought I'd answer another big question a lot of people ask about my really long runs. WHAT DO YOU DO THE NIGHT BEFORE YOUR LONG RUN? Well, I mostly stick to the basics.  But here's my typical checklist: Drink plenty of water throughout the day. Eat a carb and protein loaded meal.   (such as pasta with chicken and broccoli) Make sure to eat early, no later than two hours before bed. Do some light stretching. I'll use my foam roller to loosen up my tight IT band, and lately I've been doing a little light yoga as well.  So far, that's been really helping. Go to bed early!!  courtesy: mankipedia.com (This is a big one.  I know you don't want to take...

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 ...