Someone I watch and learn from..

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*guest post at Team NOW

Hello Friends!

My parents have always taught me to surround myself with positive people who inspire me. So I try to hang around people I admire. These people are friends, family members, authors, speakers, professional athletes, etc. I “hang around” them by spending time with them, reading their books, listening to them speak, or watching their videos.

Heather Jackson is one of these people. She’s a professional triathlete and a local hero of mine. Even though I only met her once, I do continue to read about her in news articles and follow her progress as a competitor.

This picture was taken earlier this year in May during a local triathlon we were both competing in. She spent a bit of time talking with me. I appreciated how encouraging she was and I also enjoyed watching her win the next morning.

This week I read an article about Heather on Triathlete.com. It talked about how she is competing in the Ironman World Championship 70.3 in Las Vegas this Sunday. I read that she has been doing some really intense training in Colorado for the past month to prepare. She seems super focused. I was surprised to read she lost 20 pounds in order to improve her run time. I also liked reading about how she’s been working on her mental training. Sometimes it seems like you can be the best athlete, but if you don’t believe you can do it, you can easily be beaten by other people who may not be as fast or as strong as you, but have a stronger mind. Even professionals continue to work on these skills.

I am so excited to see how her race goes on Sunday. I have also been doing a lot of cross-training and will be competing in a Socal Series Championship Triathlon on the same morning. I’m looking forward to the race and I definitely plan to go all out like Heather on race day!

Until next time, have an awesome weekend!

 

 

 

 

Triathletes ROCK.

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Last weekend, I met a super cool, very inspiring, and incredible triathlete named John Hatala. He is a retired Marine who competes in various triathlons including IronMan and XTerra races. Since I love competing in triathlons, I was so excited to be able to ask Mr. Hatala questions about training, races, and expert tips.

I learned that he is the 2011 Western Region XTerra Champion. I had never heard of the XTerra races, and as he talked about them, my eyes got bigger and bigger. It’s basically an OFF-ROAD TRIATHLON where the run and bike is OFF-ROAD. That means like dirt, rocks, streams, and mountains.. and a DIRT BIKE! So cool.

I had no idea there were such competitions and now I have it on my list of things I want to do when I am old enough. Mr. Hatala had all kinds of stories from his experiences that really showed how brave and dedicated he is to the sport and to always improving.

He is a bike enthusiast so I learned about the importance of bike maintenance, weight considerations, and training methods. He talked about the importance of monitoring his heart rate during training so he could improve the efficiency of his heart muscle for endurance. He talked about pacing, nutrition, pre-race preparation.. so many things.

One time during a triathlon, he said he had a panic attack during the first few minutes of the swim. The water was freezing cold and it sort of took his breath away. He had pre-race nerves and when he entered the water, he found that he simply couldn’t move. So he floated onto his back and just slowly waved his arms back and forth to stay afloat until the panic attack went away and he was able to turn over and start swimming. I thought this was really amazing because he is a well-trained athlete and I learned that something like that can happen to anyone at anytime.

I was most grateful that he would take an hour and a half out of his weekend to talk and share tips with me. He said that triathletes as a community are pretty laid-back and enjoy a sense of comraderie(sp?). Just by sitting with me, I felt like I got to experience a piece of that community! Thank you, Mr. Hatala!!!!

Coolest care package ever!

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*guest post at Team NOW

Hello NOW Friends!

Look what came in the mail:

Cool—thank you, NOW!! I love my NOW bars. Honeycomb with Chia and Raisins are my absolute favorite.

Today was my first day back to school. I’m in 5th grade. The day was great but I forgot how long the days can feel without an afternoon snack. I never go to a practice or race without water and a NOW bar, so I can’t believe I totally forgot to do the same for school today. Never again!

I’m excited for my 2nd day of school and my workouts after school. I’ll be doing a running workout (1000 meter repeats at threshold pace) followed by a swim workout. Yeah!

See ya!

 

 

 

Soccer on the brain

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I love playing soccer, but I’m fairly new to the competitive side of it and learning the technical/ foot skills has been a new challenge for me. This year I am excited to be on a team with great players and a great coach. I learn sports best by watching other people and then practicing like crazy. It’s how I learned to skateboard, break boards in tae kwon do, and even run.

Several weeks ago, I got to spend some time on the field with a friend and track teammate who is an exceptional soccer player. He was nice enough to give me some basic tips and practice drills to work on. I learned so much that I started practicing every day on my own. While I have gotten better, I still have a long way to go 🙂

I think the skills required to play soccer can be so helpful in other sports. I’ve noticed I am quicker on my feet and more on my toes. So fun!

Last weekend, our team played in a tournament. We played four games and ended up being finalists. I was really proud of our team and how much we’ve learned in just a short time together. I believe we will continue to get better and better and it’s just the beginning!

 

NOW = No Opportunity Wasted!

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I’m so excited to be a NOW energy bar athlete and part of a team of athletes who also live life to the max! If you’ve never heard of NOW, definitely go check them out: NOWenergybar.com

 

This picture was from the USA Youth Outdoor Track and Field Championships in June in Arlington, Texas. I won the 1500m event and it was my last race of the season. I had a blast! Right after this picture was taken, we went straight to Six Flags for some more high energy thrills!

I’ve been having a great summer running and cross-training, getting ready for the cross-country season. I’ll be sharing more of my NOW adventures here and over on my blog at NOW.

See ya!

 

 

 

PS – In case you are wondering about my intention to break the national record in the 1500m event, I did my absolute best but was unable to do it. After my last post, I did manage to cut another second off my time, but breaking the record proved to be 1 more second out of reach. I don’t regret pushing myself to reach a higher goal. That is probably the reason I continued to PR with every race. Don’t be discouraged if you try for something and you don’t get it. There is always next time!

 

 

3.3 Seconds

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I have 3.3 seconds on my mind.

Sometimes I think- that’s so short. Some roller coaster ride drops are around that long, and I think they’re way too short. On the other hand, 3.3 seconds can seem like forever, like if you had to stand in an ice-cold shower for that long. Brrrr!

3.3 seconds…

Last weekend, I ran a new personal best time in the 1500m run at the LA Jets Track and Field Invitational. I reached my goal for the season which was to beat 4:47 by running 4:46.97. Since I had been working really hard and getting faster each week, I was really happy and proud of myself.

When I saw the official results, I discovered an interesting fact: the national record which was set back in 2005, is 4:43.70. And I realized…

3.3 seconds is how far I am from breaking the national record.

AND I REALLY WANT TO DO IT.

So, as it turns out, I reached my original goal and already have a new one in place. There are only a few more weeks left in the season and I know they will be difficult and painful. I am choosing to believe that in this case, 3.3 seconds is on the short side and I’m going to go for it 200%. Everything I’ve been doing is going to get taken up another several notches. I’m ready for it and I’m excited about the possibilities.

I have a new motto: Train insane or remain the same.

Until next time…

 

 

 

 

2012 Encinitas Sprint Triathlon

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Yesterday I did the Encinitas Sprint Triathlon at Moonlight Beach. It was my first non-youth triathlon with longer swim, bike, and run distances. It was also my first ocean swim. I was pretty nervous about the swim since I’d never really swam straight out into the ocean before. The water temperature was super cold, too. It was 60 degrees! Brrrrrrrrrrr..

I wasn’t planning on wearing a wetsuit because I don’t like having to take it off during transition, but at the last minute, I decided to wear one and I’m glad I did. I did a full body plunge into the water before the race and it took my breath away. I spent about 15 minutes jumping around in it until I started to get used to the temperature. Man was it COLD!!!

It was a 375m swim or a quarter-mile. Once the horn sounded I just went for it. Whenever I am in a big race or facing a really hard track practice, I always think of the Nike slogan: Just Do It. It will eventually be over and the sooner I finish, the sooner it will be done. Those three words always get me through whatever craziness I have to do.

So I bolted for the water, got in as far as I could before I had to actually swim, then started diving into the waves. It was choppy and there were a lot of people around me, but I just kept going. I am the weakest at swimming so I was really happy and relieved to have it behind me when I finally came back to shore.

Next was the bike. It was 10k or a little over 6 miles. My legs felt like they were red hot. It was a different kind of burn than I get from running.Halfway through the bike, I looked up and saw my friend’s dad riding alongside me. It was weird seeing someone I knew. He took some video of me with his phone, which you can see on the video of the race (below). Pretty cool!

My favorite part was the run. The triathlon runs are very different for me than my road races or track events. I think because you’ve already done a swim and bike, your body is in a different kind of state. When I run, it feels like I’m going at a “warm-up” pace even though I’m not. Also, unlike in track events, when I pass someone, I’ve noticed they don’t give much of a fight like I see in track. Anyway, I had a ton of fun at this race. I will definitely do it again!

The “Field”

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I am just starting my 2nd season of Track and Field where my usual events are the 1500m run and the 800m run. This year I wanted to add the Field part of Track and Field to my schedule.

I decided to try the Long Jump. I have no training in it, but who cares? It is sooooo fun! All you have to do is run up to a white line and make sure that your foot doesn’t pass it when you take off (otherwise the jump doesn’t count.) Your goal is to jump as far as you can. You get 3 tries and they take your longest distance.

It sounds pretty simple, right? The idea of it is, but it can be hard to make sure your foot doesn’t go past the white line. You want to get as close as possible to the edge, though, so you don’t lose any distance in your jump. And you want to run fast so you have a lot of momentum going into the jump. Finally, you don’t want to fall backwards when you land because they measure from the first body part marked in the sand. So if you fall back onto your hand, they’ll measure to there instead of to where your foot landed. It’s a lot of things to think about and do at the same time.

These photos are from this past weekend’s meet:

I got so much sand in my ear after that jump! Ha ha ha

I’d love to hear from anyone who trains in this event. Any tips you could share with a beginner?

Results.

End of the year thoughts…

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I heard that a picture is worth a thousand words.

This picture was from an 800m race in May 2011 during the final 100 meter stretch to the finish. That’s me and my good friend, Willie. We became friends after racing against each other practically every single week during track season. He is an incredible competitor and amazing runner. I love his spirit and HEART.

I think this picture is so cool. I remember that moment very clearly.

And in the photo below, we are just being buddies 🙂 This was taken in New Orleans at the AAU Junior Olympics in August.

I was the only person from my team there and I also didn’t have my coach. It can be a little scary being all by yourself.

The cool thing was, Willie and his teammates and even his coach helped me feel less “alone” out there. It makes such a big difference when you are surrounded by thousands of competitors from all over the country.

Any familiar faces feel like home no matter whose team they’re on.

Here are a few photos from throughout the year of friends old and new who have inspired me in so many ways (that a thousand words could not even describe!):




It’s been a really fun year. I feel so lucky to have met and made so many amazing friends this year. They taught me how to win and lose gracefully, how to break through personal goals, and how to never give up. What champions! Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. 🙂

I wish you all a joyful and blessed new year!