Fitness |

Race Recap: 2012 Mermaid Series Alameda Sprint Triathlon

Posted on June 12, 2012 by Beth

I finished my first triathlon! I didn’t drown in the Bay. I didn’t freak out in the middle of the swim and have to be rescued. I swam 400yds, biked 12 miles, and ran 2.5 miles, all successfully, and I did it in just over 90 minutes. That’s the short summary, what follows is an (excessively) detailed account of my race. I had packed everything the night before, so I woke up at 4:30 AM to have a cup of coffee and eat some oatmeal with banana and almond butter. I did a final obsessive check of everything I had … Continue reading →

So I’m Doing a Triathlon Tomorrow…

Posted on June 8, 2012 by Beth

So I’m competing in my first triathlon tomorrow, and I’ve kept the whole thing kind of quiet here on the blog. At first, I was afraid I’d chicken out or get injured. Then writing about it made me just a little extra nervous. But now, I wish I ‘d written about the training. I’ve been searching around looking for other people’s first time accounts, and there just aren’t enough beginner triathlon stories out there. So here are some brief thoughts on this training cycle, and also a few things I’m totally freaked out about before the race. At first, I … Continue reading →

Race Recap: Mermaid East Bay Half Marathon

Posted on May 14, 2012 by Beth

So I had nearly forgotten about this race. I knew I was signed up for it, and I was looking forward to it, but I wasn’t scared or nervous. I’ve been doing a lot less running, and a lot more cross training lately. While I remain in search of the elusive sub-2 finish, I knew I wasn’t properly trained to really try for it in this race. The Quarry Lakes Regional Park was absolutely beautiful. The scenery was amazing, with miles and miles of trails, rolling hills, and people swimming in the quarry. I’ll be heading back for some more … Continue reading →

UrbanKick Photo Shoot

Posted on May 7, 2012 by Beth

I started off this beautiful weekend at Lake Merritt on Saturday morning, hanging out with Shane and her UrbanKick boot camp ladies. Boot camp looked like a blast; lots of stairs, hills, calisthenics and even some TRX work. I wasn’t there to participate though, but instead to photograph all the boot camp participants kicking butt. While you mostly see food shots on this blog, I really love taking photos of strong athletes when they’re in the zone, and the boot camp ladies were fantastic subjects. They were able to completely ignore the giant camera in their faces and focus in … Continue reading →

Shimmy Pop

Posted on January 9, 2012 by Beth

I’m always so impressed when I see choreographed dance routines. Despite my gymnastics background, I have positively no dance skills. I quit ballet at the age of five because I hated having to wear makeup for the recital. I also have no rhythm. My piano teacher had my parents buy me a metronome that only barely helped me keep time, and years later when I led warmups for taekwondo, my instructor only half joked that I should pull out that same metronome to help keep a consistent count. So when Rachel suggested I come out to Shimmy Pop, a group … Continue reading →

Race Recap: San Francisco Triathlon at Treasure Island (Olympic Relay)

Posted on July 13, 2011 by Beth

This past weekend I ran the 10k portion of an Olympic triathlon out at Treasure Island. A friend from work did the swim/bike portion, and I ran. Doing the relay was great because I got to be both spectator and participant. This was the first triathlon I’ve ever been to (though I’ve read so many other people’s recaps, I feel like I’ve been to one!). I loved the transition area because you can keep your warm clothes on until the last minute, then ditch them in the transition area right before taking off. I think triathlon has this one over … Continue reading →

Workout Catch Up

Posted on June 26, 2011 by Beth

I’ve been totally reveling in summer these last few weeks. I come home from work or a run in the afternoon and walk straight through my house (past my laptop with my blog and twitter!) and straight into the backyard. I think I’ve kicked back with a book nearly every afternoon for the past two weeks! (I’ve been making joint farmers market/library runs every weekend). So although I’ve spent less time online, I’ve been spending tons of time outside. Working out in the sunshine barely feels like work So here’s a quick recap of the last few weeks in … Continue reading →

a bicoastal adventure

Category Archives: Fitness