Walk a Mile

 

It has been a busy 4 months. Four marathon majors and two half marathons between September 4 and now. The last event was the NYC Marathon. It was a great weekend full of running energy. I met Ken Rideout. Search his name and you will find a guy who runs really fast for his age of over 50. In fact he is the fastest right now. I ran with the Believe in the Run crew and about 300 others for a shake out run. Finally I did my work for 7 hours in The Bronx. In 1998 the first Rock n Roll Marathon was held in San Diego. The selling point was a rock band ever mile. It was a great idea and great selling point. That said there is nothing like the party atmosphere at the NYC Marathon. The city fully embraces the event and instead of tolerating it, the city joins in the celebration. If you want a different NYC experience be there on the first Sunday in November. 

On Tuesday Mary and I went to watch a ceremony with a former student of hers. Juan was brought to this country by his parents. Four years after arriving he walked into Mary’s classroom. She saw something in this kid. Although the chips were against him she invested her time in him. He blossomed and became a leader in her classroom. Long story shortened for this, Juan is a member of our family. Not officially of course but he refers to Mary as his White Mom. The ceremony was held on the campus of San Diego State University where Juan attended and graduated with honors. The school opened a resource center for kids like Juan who are part of the DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) program. DACA kids can go to college here in the US but their immigration status is always up to politics. The resources available to them to navigate college life are limited. There were none when Juan went to school so instead of complaining he got to work and organized a support group. That support group turned into this officially recognized resource center. Juan spoke about his dream for the students in attendance. He talked about his success but admitted it was not easy and that he could not have accomplished it without the help of people like Mary. Juan is married, owns a home and became a US citizen earlier this year. Just walk a mile on Juan`s shoes. It is a story of persistence, love and grace. 

Shoe of the Week 

I am behind in my shoe updates. In May of this year Saucony sent me the Ride 15. I had scene a couple pairs in the Boston Marathon and was impressed with the visual update. The shoe feels better than it looks. I put a great deal of running in this shoe in May and June then I set it aside for other shoes. When I nearly broke my ankle in July I knew it would take a special shoe to allow me to run. When the swelling went down and I could run again I reached for this reliable trainer. It did not fail me. My foot and ankle felt great running in this shoe. 

Why? It a dynamically designed one piece midsole. It delivers mild support and a great deal of soft feel under foot. There are shoes you where because they make you feel fast or they over protect you from the road. Then there are shoes that feel like home. The Ride 15 is just one of those shoes that feels like home. I felt so good about the shoe I bought a pair for our son. He half joked that I sent him a Saucony Ride. Then he started running in it and felt what I felt. He is 30lbs of chiseled steel heavier than I am and is hard on his running shoes. The shoe stood up to his sub 6 minute/mile pace mile after mile after mile. 

Resolutions

I was in a Starbucks yesterday talking to the two Baristas. They asked about my resolutions and told me there plan. The younger one said" I've made mine but they usually fall away after a month". The older one said "I didn't make any, I don't want to fail".

I work three different jobs. One of them is more passion than job because it doesn't pay to well just yet. I work these three jobs because of one big part of my life our Son Marco. I made a commitment 2 years ago to spend the most quality time with him I could and enjoy his last two years of high school with him.

With that I really only have one resolution with a huge amount of action items.

I want to run once a month with Marco until he ships out to the Marines.

The action items:

1. Continue to hack by body. It's been used and abused and although it's not broken it's of the age that stuff happens. 
2. Give Mary the first priority attention she deserves. Believe me when I say the relationship with Marco is great when the relationship with Mary is great. 
3. As my friend at work said to me just the other day "Dave, I have one thing to say to you, Breath Mother Fucker" I've been following the Wim Hoff breathing method for a few months now. I've tried all kinds of mediation and I've found this to really work. I test stuff daily and the two metrics that get tested are HRV (Heart Rate Variability) and Stress level. When fully engaged in the Wim Hoff method my HRV goes really high and my stress goes away. In fact yesterday the stress was a complete flatiline that barely registered on the graph. On  a side test I test blood glucose each morning. Wim sasy the breathing changes your body chemistry. Three times after crappy food the night before my blood glucose has been super high upon waking. All three times I did the deep breathing and dropped by blood glucose by as much as 20%. I'd love to find out if this is a fact. 

It's a good life....

2 Reminders this Week

One: You can feel the signs, you can ignore the signs and you can pay for it. For two weeks I've had good runs and crappy runs. Yesterday it got to real crappy. Then I went to the chiropractor and he said yep you are off 3 degrees. Duh! 

Two: Our son has grown more this summer than any other time in his life. Not grown in size although he is ripped right now but emotionally. He said to me "If I trained last winter like I am right now I keep thinking of how the track season would have been different" I said "you know the saying, you can lead a horse to water? I've been nudging you for years because your talent is so evident but it was up to you." "I hope it's not too late" he said Oh how I feel for the other kids. They've been racing a kid who's been at 80% for 3 years. Maybe he gets to 95% of his talent this year as long as he stays healthy. 

It's a good life.....

NFQ

Where do you get your motivation? Our son spent 8 days with the Air Force PJs.  This is what one of the PJs drilled into his head. It had such an impact that Marco pasted it to his wall.

He was on a long run today and the boredom started to get to him and then this came into his mind.

It's a good life....

Hard Work Plus Talent Pays Off

This week has been a reminder that hard work and talent pay off. It started last Sunday and it remains a constant reminder through the week.

Last Sunday we did the World Famous Tuesday Run loop. I was reminded just how hard that run was. It got me thinking about our regular three day adventure when I was young, had no family and only worked 35 hours a week.

Tuesday - The Tuesday run - A super hilly run on horse trails with the best triathlon had to offer. There was always a race during the Tuesday Run and there were those of us who used it as a workout. In other words I followed whatever Paula was doing for the day. Generally the total run was 80 minutes. Sunday we did it in 94 minutes and it was hard. We would eat breakfast then hop on our bikes for the 12 mile ride to the pool and noon masters. I'd ride home after masters, Shower, eat and be at work by 2:30. Depending on which job I was working, I'd close the store at 11:00 or 9:00pm.

Wednesday - The World Famous Wednesday Ride - Up the coast to San Clemente and back. Once on the Marine Base the pace would pick up all the way to San Clemente. We'd make it back to Carlsbad in time for noon Master's Swim. I'd get home eat and be at work by 2:30 to close.

Thursday - Master's Swim in the morning. Work all day. Track Workout at 7pm. More hard running.

That work along with long runs and rides on the weekend made me strong. I made it to Kona on that work. I made it to Hilton Head on that work. I won my age group often on that work. I was tired most of the time.

Our son is 16 and a very talented runner. He works at it but he doesn't work very hard. He's allowed his talent to take him each season to success. He knows to get to the next step he has to work hard. He's fighting that thought. 90 minute runs alone at 16 simply are not fun. I can't imagine doing that, but that's the missing component in his running and he knows it. Only he can decide if he wants it. If he chooses it will be worth a lifetime of memories.

It's a good life....

A Week Worth Repeating..........

Long ago when our son Marco chose running as his sport I was in shock. I said "You know running really hurts." He said he wanted to do it. He was 11. On Friday at the age of 16 and in the middle of his Junior year he received his first letter of request from a University. It said "We've been watching your running and you had a great country season last fall. We would really like you to come run with us.

On Saturday we watched him run his first track race in almost 2 years. He sat out the entire track season last spring because of a broken hand. The day was really hot on Saturday. Coach told him to sit in and don't go out with the early leaders. The early leader was too fast for anyone to hand with. He ended up running 4:43. Marco sat in third place for three laps. He looked relaxed. His face showed no strain. With one lap to go he surged ahead. The guy he passed stayed with him, as the two pulled away from the rest of the field. With 200 to go there was a gap. At 100 to go there was no gap and the guy was pulling along side. Dead sprint. They exchanged places twice in the final 100. Marco go him in a lean. We talked afterword and he said "Man that hurt" I asked "the entire race or the last 200" he thought about it and said "The last 200". I smiled and said "You have no idea how fast you are do you?"

Shoe Ranger got off to a great start. If your favorite shoe has changed, check it out. It works!

There is a guy I've seen at the pool for years. He's one fast 50+ dude who is fit as anything. We always have a good conversation. He's currently training for Boston. For the longest time he wore everything Zoot. Last week when I talked to him I told him I was no longer at Zoot. We talked about Shoe Ranger and my contract gig with New Balance. Today we walks into the pool wearing a New Balance.

It's a good life.....

Running Shoe Wear Testing

I was contacted by a company to test a new race flat. I put them on the faster Jewell for some testing.

I will let the brand announce them when they are ready.

 He's suffering from a major cold which explains the Breathe Right Nasal Strip. 

 All the boys running a metric mile time trial. 

 Lap #1 is done

Those are some strong legs.

It's a good life.....

Long Run Pacing

The picture above is from the McMillan Pace Calculator and is set for a runner running 4:30 for the mile. I fully understand that most people reading this can't run 4:30. The reason for the time is this topic came up in conversation with The Runner of the family. He's capable right now of throwing down quite close to 4:30.

It's rare to see a runner these days wearing a simple watch. Most are wearing some form of pace monitor. The problem with the monitors is you become slave to the pace and forget the end goal. Pace really doesn't matter until it matters. But because everyone has these things on, it really matters.

Meeting up for the Sunday run I heard the conversation between The Runner and his senior running partner. The pace would be 6:45/mile for 45 minutes. Looking at our calculator above this pace is somewhere in the middle of the long or easy run pace. I told the boys they should be stretching their run out to 90 minutes and the senior quickly shot back "I'm not ready to run 90 minutes". I said under my breath, you are not ready to run 6:45.

Jack Daniels says your #1 run to start the week is your long run. That's not too much different all the best coaches in running. Sure they will talk often of Tempo, Fartlek and track work but that's with the assumption that #1 is taken care of. The reason for the long run is to build endurance and strength. With those two you can do quality Tempo work and faster. Without it, you can't.

Which brings me back to the pace/run the boys did. It makes no sense to me. I know inside knowledge that the senior is listening to the pacing of the #1 runner in the county. Which is fine as long as you do the work around the pace. With the long run being the most important.

If you look at the paces above you will notice a range. The range is based on your current fitness. If you are The Runner entering track season after a 3 week break than your paces should be to the right of center. I gave The Runner this example.

The 90 minute long run. Run 90 minutes at 7:00 - 7:05 pace. If you look above that's faster than the far right number but that's because it's where the fitness is. Run the 90 minutes. If it feels easy or when it begins to feel easy increase the pace for the next week. Don't change the 90 minutes. Do this regularly and you will build strength and stamina. Eventually you will get to your 6:45 pace or probably much faster. Your goal should be 5-6 90 minute runs between now and the middle of the track season.

So if you are starting back to some serious running after the New Year, don't jump into pacing you ran last October. Get back into the long run and keep in in a comfortable range until the exact same run becomes easy then either increase the pace for the exact same run or increase the distance and the current pace. Because our runners are high school runners, 90 minutes is the max they need to run.

It's a good life....

Five for Friday: 2015 the First 90 Days

I'm fairly sure that this was the first Cross Country Race for our son Marco. Today he's set his sites on the California State Meet in November 2015. Before we know it, he will be on his way to bigger and better things post High School. My first 90 days of 2015 are focused on that day when he walks out of the house or we drop him off after he graduates.

1. Marco was born 9 weeks early. 99.9% of him was perfect. We've known over the years that he has an issue with his eyes tracking together. He's been through a couple rounds of vision therapy and he's at it again. My focus is to work with him for 10 minutes a day for the next 90 days. I told him this morning that if he did that his last 3 semesters of High School would be way different. School would open up to him rather than it being a daily fight. 
2. Men - Marco like any boy needs men in his life. He needs his father but he needs other men who can mentor and show him how to become a man. Over the next 90 days it's my hope to find another mentor for him. We think we have a lead right now one one. 
3. Risk - Boys need risk in their lives. They need to do scary things. We are going to do risky things over the next 90 days. Still trying to figure those things out. If you have anything you did as a kid that scared the heck out of you, let me know. 
4. Income - I have had income since August. That's not exactly true, our investments are always (virtually) making money. But I have no regular flow of income. Over the next 90 days that's going to change. Either my businesses will take off or I'll accept one of the offers I have. 
5. Strength - Physical and Emotional it's been my weakness and it will not be any longer. I will be strong. 

It's a good life....

Running Pace

I was talking with my friend Greg the other day about Swimmers. He is amazed at how much swim training swimmers do for what amounts to fairly short events. He wonders why? I told him we runners would do the same thing if we could but because running hurts so much we can't.

On the same day I was talking to Marco about his running. He has a running partner who lives by his Garmin and wants to up the pace of their easy runs because he heard of another high school runner doing that. I told  Marco "That's crazy talk, the worst thing you can do is follow another's training".

I also told him "This is preseason, the only reason you need to know your pace is to slow yourself down, your goal is to build strength and stamina through frequency and length not pace. The only time pace matters is on the track"

Then I went out and practiced what I preached. Poor recovery is either from poor rest, poor nutrition or going too hard too often. As I've said I've struggled with recovery. I preach to Marco and other runners, go slow and easy when your workout is meant to be slow and easy. Go hard when it's meant to be hard. Don't mix them up. (Another thing Swimmers do is go hard day after day, because they can). I thought good and hard about my own workouts and realized I was mixing it up. So Tuesday I wore my heart monitor and stuck to it. My max allowable Heart Rate was 135 which is the top of my Aerobic Capacity or MAF. My run was painfully slow.

I'm confident that when I wake up on the day of my hard running, I won't be tired and I will be ready to lay some hard running down.

It's a good life....

The One Thing that Worked

I was on a long run with a buddy the other day. He's a father of a six year old boy. They will not have another child. He asked me what  I thought was the one thing I've told Marco (an only child) that had the biggest impact on him.

Regularly I feel like I talk in circles with our son.
Regularly I feel like he doesn't hear me or that I'm doing it all wrong.

But this reminds me daily that maybe we have done it right.


We made a decision that is so counter intuitive as a parent or at least is counter intuitive to me at times. Kids are going to explode. They need to break down and have their moments, get mad, throw tantrums etc. We made the decision that we wanted those breakdowns to occur at home where he was safe. We embrace the tantrums. As a teenager they get a bit louder and a bit hairy from time to to time. He never gets in trouble for the tantrum. He simply gets his time to let it all out and then we try to give him his space. It's hard when the tantrum is directed at us for something we did or did not do but I've grown accustomed to it.

It's counter intuitive because the home is supposed to be the quiet zone. Outside is loud and crazy and home should be quiet and calm. Our house is anything but quiet.

At the same time we have taught him or more preached to him how to act outside our house. Most importantly we talk about how to treat others. He generally brushes these discussions off like "yeah right that's how the world works." Or talks about others with annoyance and disdain.

It doesn't matter who we talk to or where we go, and what we observe. The kid that is so annoying is getting full attention from our son. The parents all tell us he is "The nicest boy". The coach simply nods to me that all is good. The teachers love him.

It's important for me to remember that he's going to throw tantrums. If he can't throw them at home he's going to throw them outside. We see it all the time but it's not usually in the form of a tantrum but in the form of aggression.

There are instances with the Slam of a door that I just want to run up stairs open that door and give him a strong peace of my mind. That slamming doors is not how we act. That your Civil Air Patrol voice does not belong in our house. That you treat your mother with the respect she deserves.

Those instances are always washed away when we see him do something like he did on Saturday. He had the race of his life but his running partner did not. All seasib the running partner was on track to make the state meet easily. Then over the last two weeks something happened and it came unraveled. Marco passed his teammate 1/2 way through the CIF Championship and beat him by a large margin. When Marco saw his buddy cross the line and collapse, Marco ran up to him, gave him a hug and then proceeded to remove the chip from his shoe. In that instant nothing else mattered to Marco but taking care of his buddy.

It's a good life....

Success - A lesson in Opening Eyes

The start - 84+ runners lined up across the start line. That's 14 6-man teams. This is the Championship course used in the Footlocker National Championships. It's roped off the way a championship should be roped off. There is a nervous energy as the 84 boys (ages 14-18) line up. The starter calls them to the line and holds them. It seems like a long time to us watching and the the runners it was an eternity. They all begin to lean, Bam the gun goes off. Both Marco and his running mate slip on the wet grass needing their hands to keep from falling flat.

84 runners sprint off the line up over the small hill and then quickly funnel into the dog leg loop. It's important to get out quick or else you are caught in the loop. Marco comes through the dog loop in the lead back of 30 runners. The eventual winner is already setting pace 400 meters into the race. Around the pool and then down the hill to the technical section of the course. Marco is composed and running tight with a group of 5-6 runners.

At the 1 mile mark it's straight up the first of two trips on Upas Street. Off the hill and it's rolling back to the start finish. Marco is in 20th place at the half way point and a gap to 19th is forming. This has been his MO for the last couple races. Back down the dog leg, around the pool and he's holding steady.

He runs by my friend and uber coach Greg. Greg knows Marco well and yells to him to catch the boys in front on the downhill. Back up Upas they go and then I see from a long distance Marco hitting the down hill like he was doing a downhill mountain bike race. No breaks and charging he goes. He catches the two boys by the bottom and then turns on the jets. He's chasing hard.

To finish this 3.1 mile course you have cross the street and go straight up the start hill. At the start it's a mere nuisance. At the end of the first lap it's just another hill on this tough course. At the end thought it looks like a wall. Marco hits the bottom of the hill in 17th place but is looking gassed. He's muscling up and over and it's easy to tell that he's done. He lets one runner pass him as they race to the finish.

18th this year 36th last year.
40 seconds faster this year.
He's the first runner at SDA to medal in CIF in two years and only the second over the last 4 years.

At the Mary and I get to the finish corral just after he crosses the line and see him talking to his math teacher. The math teacher who only days earlier says he expects struggling students to seek him out. (that was not a good meeting). But here is the math teacher giving our son a high five. He says "I didn't know you were a runner" Eyes wide open to the success of a runner. The math teacher was at the race to watch his daughters who are at the other high school in town run. He saw Marco running and ran to greet him at the finish.

Next up was the top runner in San Diego. He walks up to Marco and shakes his hand. He had won his race just 30 minutes before and now he was there acknowledging the effort Marco put forward.

On to the awards where the top 20 are called out to receive their medal and recognition. The race was absolutely stacked. In the team competition there were 4 teams with in a very small number of points. They were all bunched at the front. The rules are 3 teams qualify and then the next 5 racers not on a team qualify. The only stipulation for them is they have to finish in the top 14. Marco was the 5th non team qualifying member across the line but because he was 18th he doesn't get to go. But his eyes were opened for the future. It's like a switch went on. Who knows where it leads but clearly success is an eye opener.

It's a good life.

Nothing to Lose

It's early Saturday morning CIF cross country day. The stakes are this: the best 2-3 teams will qualify to move on to the state meet next week. The next 5 best runners (not on a qualifying team) who place in the top 15 also go to state.

Marco is not on a Strong Team.

He has the talent to be one of the 5. This is true of about 10 runners.

I was thinking about words of wisdom and I came up with:

"You have nothing to lose"

But then I tried to rationalize why.

I find myself often thinking about what I have to lose with a decision. Way too much time. I really have nothing to lose. My family is tight and secure. Everything else is not a need it's a want and losing it would be hard but can be replaced.

My advice to Marco: You have reached more in running than most could ever dream of. If running ended today, you would end it as being one of the best runners in the county over the last 7 years.

Today is going to hurt like no other race ever: Love the pain, wrap your arms around it, cherish it:

You have nothing to lose........


It's a good life...

The High School Runner: An Update

It's been quite a while since I updated anyone on the High School Runner. The season started slow for the boy but he's gaining steam. If you remember way back when he broke a bone in his hand the day before track practice was to start last Spring and missed the entire track season.

Cross Country and Track feed off each other. In Cross Country the runner builds strength and stamina. The races are usually hilly which ensures weekly hill repeat training sessions. With longer races they build stamina which carries greatly into the shorter faster track races.

Track builds speed. Hard training efforts are not on hills during track season they are all done on the track. The races themselves are not tactical in nature they are managed sprints even if it's the 3200. It's here where the runner gets fast and that fast carries over back into Cross Country.

Because Marco missed this past track season he was missing pure leg speed. He started the Cross Country season a bit slower than he finished it last year and this frustrated him beyond belief. He was not a happy runner for most of the early season. Recently though things have begun to change. He was equal to his time on a known course two weeks ago which is great at this stage. Last week he raced in an invitational on a really hot and dusty course. With 1000 meters to go he was in 5th place about 10 seconds behind 4th. On the last hill he caught the 4th place man and then proceeded to drop him on the final downhill section. Finishing a 5K faster than you started it is a good sign that your leg speed is coming back.

One more regular meet then it's the two and maybe three meets they work all season for. League finals is for bragging rights, CIF is mostly for individual glory (they don't have a strong team this year) and if CIF is outstanding then there's one more race Thanksgiving weekend at the State Finals. Only time will tell if we are in Fresno Thanksgiving weekend.

It's a good life...

Learnings

Some interesting things on the way through life:

1. My wife and I have done well raising our son so far. He ha  his moments of rebellion but for 90% of his life he has his life together. 
2. Meditation on a board a few 100 yards off the coast at sunset might be the most peaceful thing on earth.
3. Having a Chocolate Lab follow me around the house a  I work is extra special. 
4. Our son the runner asked me to take him swimming this week. On day 1 he swam 400 yards and struggled. On day 2 we adjusted his stroke and he swam 600 yards. On day 3 we worked on his kick and his pull. He swam 1400 yards and is beginning to understand the mechanics. 
5. I set up three interviews last week. 

It's a good life....

Dave

That First Pair of Running Shoes

I love Pandora - Songs I've never heard before hit me.


My first pair of running shoes: After a few weeks of running in my beat up Nike shoes I bought my first pair of real running shoes, a pair of New Balance. Those shoes became a part of me. I ran in them every day and I wore them to school every day as a badge. Yes, I'm a runner. There is a  picture in my senior year yearbook of me in my Izod shirt, jeans and my running shoes (those running shoes). I ran in those shoes until the sole was worn off. They had cost me so much  that there was no way I could really afford another pair.

Last night was the Fall Sports meeting for parents at the School. Sign in, pay the donation and then listen to the AD and the CC Coach talk about the life of a student athlete at SDA. I talked to the parents I knew. The Dad of the #1 runner on the team. He's not a runner, and he's so excited to watch his boy run. We have that bond of talking about what if's for the season. By the CIF meet he and I will probably be holding hands in nervousness for our boys. That meet determines who moves on to the State Meet and both boys are aiming for State. Getting to the State Meet in this huge state is quite an accomplishment for a runner.

I met a father on Friday at the team Time Trial. He had never seen his son run and wanted to watch his son run the mile. He had these questions:

1.  What's a good time for the mile
2. How many boys make the Varsity Team
3. Wow your son looks like a runner, how long did that take

I told him the mile time doesn't matter. What matters right now is that he finishes, feels good about himself and has fun. The Varsity boys are a select group but they are an inclusive group. If your son accepts running and shows he really wants to learn, the Varsity boys will encourage him and include him, When my son was a freshmen a Senior Varsity runner took him under his wing and showed him the way. It's how this team operates.

Last night I asked this Father how his son felt about his mile on Friday. His answer:

"We went out Saturday and bought a real pair of running shoes"

It's a good life....

The High School Runner - Ironman Training - Long Running and Family

Do you remember high school when upper classmen would graduate and move away? Our son Marco since he was a freshman has made friends with the upper classmen mostly through running but in other ways too. On Saturday he and another gave a farewell send off to one of their buddies. They did this by inviting him on a 14 mile run. Now the Boost Boys (as they were called last year) are down from 5 to 2. It was sad for Marco to say goodbye. It is awesome to watch him grow in front of my eyes.

That's Marco on the right and the graduate on the left before the run.

 

Here they are 14 miles later. Happy to be done, a bit tired and a bit bummed to be saying goodbye.

 

 

That afternoon my friend Shawn who is training for the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii asked me to ride with him. I'm never one to shy away from a long ride especially when it's helping someone prepare for the big race. The only problem was Shawn couldn't go until noon, on a very hot Saturday afternoon. But ride we did and 5 hours later we were wind blown and exhausted. Highlights included putting Shawn in the front in the big wind and saying "this is Kona wind". We got flipped off by a woman on the back of a motorcycle. I guess she didn't like our skinny butts in the middle of the share lane (You know the lane where bikes have right of lane). Then we hooked up with another rider for about 5 miles. It was nice for me to get a break from being in front most of the day. The only issue is he was a big boy and when he pulled I could see nothing but his back in front of me.

 

 

Quick change and Mary, Marco and I were off to Hillcrest a funky fun community of San Diego where  we had dinner with a former student of Mary's. We had a great dinner at a Spanish Tapas bar and then had outstanding Gelato to cap the night off. I was so hungry I ate three Tapas on my own.

We were playing around with Mary telling her hair was messed up. I took this picture while she was using my phone as a mirror. She is just as stunning today as the day I met her.

 

Sunday is long run day. I've been meeting a group to start the run and as I showed up I was trashed and not really looking forward to run. But then my friend Greg showed up and everything was good. We had run the previous week together and we were both happy to do the same run again today. Solid pace but easy enough to talk, laugh and have a general good time. The run went by fast and it was good to get it done. It's hot in San Diego county right now and what is typically a moderate temperature run was filled with heat and humidity. I drank three bottles of water after the run to cool down and hydrate.

 

Sleep was simply outstanding Sunday night.

 

It's a good life... 





Five For Friday: Five Tips to Raising a Son

As our son turns sixteen in the next month or so I thought it would be good to put some time into 5 things I've learned in raising him.

1. Be consisten with your values - Since day #1 we have been consistent with teaching him not through force but through example what we value. He's a great example of what we hold dear. 
2. Listen intently to his stories - His perception is amazing. He often is trying to tell you his stories as he is simply trying to get you to engage. He can change your mood and thought process through this. It's quite magical when you recognize this. 
3. Let him choose - We introduced him to a great deal when he was young and then we let him choose his path. To my amazement he chose running. 
4. Be Stern - There is no need to be easy with him. As long as you regularly show love and he feels that love, he actually appreciates course correction from time to time. I believe course correction without love is a disaster. 
5. Risk - Boys need to do things that feel risky. The more you show you are willing to do the same thing, the more he will be comfortable with risk. 

It's a good life…..

The High School Runner: Triathlon Starts Now

Well maybe:

Saturday he road my road bike for the first time. He road from Cardiff to the top of Torrey Pines and back. He loved it.

Sunday he asked if he could do a workout with Jim Vance and Formula Endurance

On Monday I set it up.

This Sunday he'll do his first Bike/Run workout with a team. It's just about all he can talk about.

I only hope he has fun and meets a bunch of people he likes. The rest is up to him.

It's a good life…..

20 Things that Shape Me

There is only so much room on the About Me section I think from time to time it's worth going a bit deeper. Otherwise you can read this daily or weekly and get lost in what I'm trying to do here. So I'm going to take a deeper dive into what makes me tick.


Family

1. My wife Mary and I committed to each other for life. That was 20+ years ago and the only thing I know is that if you don't work hard on the relationship every day then it won't last. 
2. 15+ years ago our son Marco was born and it changed our lives forever. There is nothing better in life then raising a child. He is his own man but at the same time he carries our values and our drive to succeed. He's a runner by choice and that's why he is fast. If it felt like a chore he wouldn't be fast. 
3. My sister Cyndi is my confidant. She has quietly guided my values for my entire life. Sometimes out of pure fear but mostly out of love. 
4. My brother Bob has ALS and it sickens me every day. It drives me to stop caring so deeply about my job and to start caring about the next 25 years with 1 & 2. 
5. What would Papi Do? I'm not sure how my Dad still influences me but he does. He calms me down and keeps me thinking straight. He passed away almost 5 years ago. 

Running

1. I started running because my brother Bob ran and my high school girlfriend ran. 
2. I decided shortly after I started that I love running shoes. 
3. I'm 100% committed to helping others enjoy what I feel when I run. It's such a beautiful sport that it's simply awesome to share. 
4. Running got me into Triathlon and that changed my life. Before Triathlon I was shy and not very confident in my ability. I went from Saying "No fucking way those people (Ironman Hawaii) are crazy to doing the race 2 years later and having a total out of body experience on the Lava fields. I went from running fast, to running between aid stations, to running the aid stations and walking between and then back to running fast over the last 6 miles. I still can't explain it. 
5. I owe Triathlon and the people in it my career. Paul Huddle asked me to sell shoes, Murphy Reinschreiber taught me the business side of the sport and taught me to go after what I want. 

Travel

1. I was born in Bogota, Colombia
2. When I was 3 I ended up in Sao Paulo, Brazil
3. I've been on every continent but Antartica. 
4. I've run in every country I've ever visited and there are a host more countries I want to run in. 
5. Work Travel is not glamorous. I won't miss it when that part of my life is over. 

Lifestyle

1. I believe in constant learning and my learning is personal (how to be a better person). The trend word is bio hacking and I've been doing that for a really long time. I read a ton and listen a ton and try a ton but when I'm lost or confused I go see my friend Chris and he sets it all straight. If he ever decided to write a book it would change the face of what we all know but he won't. 
2. I love technology and hate what it's doing to our society.  
3. I was once a vegetarian and although I didn't realize it at the time it's when I was in really poor shape. Then my friend Chris came along after his education and changed my diet and I got faster again. 
4. I relate better with dogs than people. Dogs trust me and I'm not sure I trust people enough. So if I'm forcing myself into a conversation it's because I'm working hard on that fact. 
5. California is best at slow speeds. In fact it's really amazing to Cycle, Run, Walk and most of all to get into open water. 

Running Shoes

1. There are too many running shoes on the market today. There are more shoes than retail space available which means there are more shoes than runners can actually absorb. Something will give soon. But this opens the door for me to educate on the tool that is a running shoe and I love to do. 
2. There is no running shoe if there isn't a runner to run in them and a running store to sell them. 
3. The most innovative shoe I've ever been a part of is the Nike Free. I was lucky to be brought into the project really early in concept and it was a total blast to work with scientists and engineers on that project. The cool thing is that darn shoe really hasn't changed and yet it is still way beyond the expectations of the concept. 
4. My favorite running shoe ever has yet to be built. But my 5 favorites are Nike Pegasus (90's), Mizuno Wave Rider (early 2000's), Nike Free 5.0 (the first one), Asics Gel Lyte 98, adidas SuperNova Classic (by the way I'm also the one who killed the SuperNova Classic) 
5. I love Hoka so much I hate them. Hoka became an answer to something nobody could clearly identify. Originally designed as a down hill mountain running shoe, Ultra Marathoners found it made running 100 miles "Painless" and then runners in pain found them to take the pain away. Simply something you have to love. 

It's a good life…...