… as a cute little boy
turned into a handsome young man
We love you, Charlie!!!
Today’s Running Tip: Give you hair to charity!
Tired of your long hair getting in the way of running? Is your long pony tail holding you back and slowing you down? Cut it off and give it away to a charity that uses hair to make hair pieces for disadvantaged children struck by cancer.
This past weekend one of my best friends from Santa Barbara came for a visit. Wendy and I both worked at Fielding but it was actually Michael whom I met before I ever got to know Wendy. Michael and I hit it off immediately during a business lunch over whole wheat pancakes and talks of our dogs. Eventually I did get to know Wendy and during the years we both worked in the same office building we became close friends, and so did our respective husbands after we introduced them. Wendy and Michael are the type of friends that you love to have around and we always look forward to their long weekend visits, only wishing they could stay longer. This past weekend the temperatures were perfect for fun times around the pool and the good times rolled:
Pool Jump from Chris Boardman on Vimeo
Super Soaker
Wait a minute…! Is that… a Palin cap???
The Face of Happiness
Charlie from Chris Boardman on Vimeo
The Game of Life, featuring Coco
Life is tough around here
Wambo
Sweet Julie Jane
Godesses
We love you, Hess Family!
Today’s Running Tip: Deep Water Running!
If you happen to have a pool at home you can take advantage of the benefits of deep water running. Running in water is a great form of cross training and an excellent way to deal with and prevent injuries. Water running can insure that you don’t lose your fitness while fully recovering from an injury. It can also improve your running form and decrease your risk of sustaining injuries by getting you off of running on hard surfaces!
This past weekend my good friend Dilys came to visit us. Dilys is another friend I met through Fielding. She started working there two years before I resigned and we got along immediately. Shortly after she started her job her profile was posted in Fielding’s Focus Magazine and when I read she had previously been employed at Claremont McKenna, where Adrienne went to college, I contacted her and over time a friendship formed that remains strong to this day and I have no doubt will remain so well into the future. One of the things I like about Dilys is her knowledge of other cultures. She grew up in South Africa and has traveled the world extensively. When I look at the people I am closest to they all have one thing in common: world travel and experiences in foreign lands, either by visitation or by actual living there. I always say that seeing the world and experiencing the richness in diversity it has to offer opens your mind and gives you a unique perspective on life. I truly believe that if every person had the chance to travel to and live in foreign countries extensively the world would be a better place!
Just in time for Dilys’s visit the temperatures rose and the smell of summer filled the air, and with the start of Daylight Savings Time, we got to enjoy the extra hour of daylight in the balmy evenings. Dilys arrived Saturday afternoon and after much catching up over wine, pasta, and caprese salad we finally watched “The Hurt Locker”. I can certainly understand why Kathryn Bigelow won the Oscar for Best Director but I also realize that this movie only touches on the reality our brave men and women in uniform face daily in war torn Iraq and Afghanistan. I don’t need to experience the front lines personally to know that the reality an Army Bomb Squat Unit in combat faces is unimaginable to us civilians and that the men disposing of explosive devices are probably lucky enough if the bomb does not go off in their face let alone have time to put on a safety suit. But, having seen it I am glad this movie won Best Picture.
On Sunday we did what we do best: relax and read by the pool and we even went in for our first dip of the year. It is still cold and can only be enjoyed in moderation but soon enough it will be as warm as a bathtub and we will wish back the days of an ice bath. Since we had the extra daylight we went on a late afternoon/early evening hike. Unfortunately we found out only when we got to the trail head that the “Bump and Grind” (our favorite hike) is now closed to dogs because Big Horn Sheep have moved in and made it a sanctuary. It was a bummer but we hiked the Earl Henderson Trail instead which turned out to be perfect. This is my favorite time of year for hiking. The late afternoons are just the right temperature and the light is incredible, not to mention the feeling that summer is near. Of course “summer” also means that our hiking days are numbered.
The highlight of the long weekend came on Monday when Dilys and I went to Indian Wells for the BNP Paribas Open!
I used to play tennis as a teenager and young adult and my grandpa and I used to watch all the tennis greats on their way to their Grand Slam titles. When I moved to the States running definitely took a priority but I still love the sport and always like to watch a good game. We went to the courts where the players warm up before their actual matches and whom do we run into but the ranking Number 3 player in the world, Rafael Nadal, who is not only an amazing tennis player but really easy to look at as well. See for yourself:
We then ventured forth to Center Court…
…and watched the first game: Philip Kohlschreiber vs. Novak Djokovic
We then went on to watch a women’s double, which is always a lot of fun: Black/Huber vs. Amanmuradova/Kustova
After a very fast game we went back to Center Court for the day’s highlight: Rafael Nadal vs. Mario Ancic…
… a game that ended in a 6:2 6:2 win for Rafa and was one of the most amazing games I have seen! WOW!
We ended this amazing day on a good note with a long and leisurely Mexican dinner at our house with one of our neighbors.
A perfect ending to a perfect weekend!
Today’s Running Tip: Play Tennis!
Tennis is a great alternative to running and one of the best full body work outs you can get. In addition to excellent aerobic activity tennis requires alertness and technical thinking, something runners often lack as they go into their zone.
January! The first month of the new year! New beginnings, fresh possibilities and the prospect of spring! I have always liked this month even if it means we are still in the middle of winter. And we definitely had to deal with some weather conditions that reminded us that even here in Southern California we get to enjoy our version of winter.
David and I had a busy one. We went back to the Bay Area for a few days (THANK YOU, Chris and Greta for making us feel welcome again!) and a couple of weeks ago spent a long weekend in Santa Barbara. A few of my former students whom I stayed in contact with over the past two years (Facebook ROCKS!) graduated and I did not want to miss the ceremony and party.
We stayed with my dear friend Dilys, someone I also met at work when she was hired as the Director of Alumni Relations, a job she had previously held at Claremont McKenna where Adrienne went to school. While David met up with his best friend and business buddy Nelson and I had a great time hanging out at Winter Session. It was really like old times and I almost felt as if I had never left my job. A job I loved every day!
Before we left to go back home we met up with some of our best friends for breakfast:
I spent some of the best years of my running life with these people and love them beyond measure. The Mullens, who are a gazillion shades of awesome, live in New York City now so it was extra special to have them present for our little reunion. And I had not seen Becca, who has the biggest heart of anyone I know, in four years! Four years!!! She is a nurse (I am so jealous!) and two days after this photo was taken she traveled to Haiti with Project Hope to volunteer her time and services on this ravaged island. And then there is Analise whom I had last seen at Adrienne’s funeral. We all met through Ana, someone who has an almost uncanny ability to connect people, not to mention that her fashion sense puts us all to shame and that she kicks my butt on the track. That girl is one awesome runner and definitely helped me step it up to the next level. We trained and ran San Diego in 2005 when we both qualified for Boston and then trained and ran Boston together as well. I could not have wished for a better partner in running. And boy did we run! Hard! And solved many a problem on those long, endless routes. Problems that shall remain unwritten!
Some of my best memories include the people in this photograph and I am positive we will remain friends forever no matter where life will take us (although Nick and I have been dreaming of becoming neighbors for years!).
A few years have gone by since we all first met and we have definitely been through changes, some minor, others major, in our respective lives but in the end we have remained the same. Good people, who can just pick up where they last left off!
Through it all I ran of course. I do like to get out of town for a lot of reasons but one of them is definitely the chance of running different routes and exploring new trails. In Santa Barbara I took the opportunity and ran hills for all three mornings I was there. One of them in an hour long torrential down pour. If nothing it made me feel alive.
| Total Distance: | 225.71 miles |
| Total Time: | 50:37:33 min |
| Run Distance: | 152.5 miles |
| Run Time: | 18:58:33 min |
| Walk Distance: | 73.21 miles |
| Walk Time: | 23:39:00 min |
Shortest run: 4 miles
Longest run: 6.1 miles
Average speed: 7:28 min/miles
Strength & Endurance: 3 hours
Weight Training: 2 hours
Yoga: 3 hours
Today’s Running Tip: Mix it up!
Once you’ve made running a routine it is easy to get into a rut and run the same route every day. To keep challenging yourself and improving your endurance it is important to mix things up by running different distances and terrain at different speeds. That way your body can never get used to your workout.
