George is My Reason

Ever have someone so small change your life in so many ways? George came to us abused. He was found in a barn chained by his back legs.  He was rescued and brought back to health before he came to his furever home with us. When he was brought to us, he came scared, shaking and not wanting to get to know his own family.... More

26.2 Miles at Home

I've always been very proud to say that I am a "true" Bay Area native. I was born in Oakland, have lived here all 39 years of my life and don't see myself moving away anytime soon, if ever! I know my hometown like the back of my hand and have worked and played in San Francisco as often as possible over the years. ... More

Real Food on the Run

While training for my first (and only) 50k last year, I started seeing visions on my long runs. White clouds suddenly turned into hamburgers dancing through the sky. Pine trees were now hot dogs doing a comedy act, nestled in the dirt were all different styles of cooked eggs yelling at me to eat them. It was then that I had the epiphany that I should probably eat more protein.... More

The Gift of Running

I get asked many times why do I subject myself to running. Isn't it painful? Don't you get bored running so long on the weekend? My short answers: yes, it is sometimes painful and no, I don't get bored on long runs. In all seriousness, here is my story. In my twenties, I caught the running bug. I completed various 5ks and 10ks races. My doctor told me that it was too risky to keep running due to my weight and high blood pressure. Heartbroken, I stopped and became a couch potato who developed diseases like diabetes and high cholesterol.  It was a low point in my life and my health paid a price for my inactivity. ... More

Because I Can

"The good Lord gave you a body that can stand most anything. It's your mind you have to convince." — Vince Lombardi I spent a lot of time writing and re-writing this blog. I tried to be funny, creative, smart and inspirational all at the same time, but it just sounded so phony. If there is one thing I pride myself on, it is my authentic nature.  So, I hit delete and started over. Here’s the deal.  When I weighed over 300 pounds, I was constantly telling myself two “truths”.... More

The Second Time Around

When I decided to train for my first marathon back in late 2011, I wasn't at all sure there would ever be a second one. I loved running; I'd run several half-marathons, and I'd been kicking around the idea of training for a full for a while. But running 26.2 miles seemed a little nuts — I'll be honest: it still does! — and I wasn't sure I'd like it enough to want to do it again. ... More

Enjoy the Climb

Hills, you either love them or you hate them!  It really comes down to how you look at them.  Respect the hills, they train your body like nothing else.  Some refer to them as speed work in disguise.  I love them because I get to use my muscles in a different way, and the pay off is huge:... More

Try

I've been training for months now---losing track of just how long it's been, because it feels like forever ago that I started this journey into ultra-marathon running.  I decided to try to tackle The San Francisco Double Marathon for a few reasons--to raise money for a charity close to my heart, to push myself, to see what my body and ... More

Eating Healthy

Like many people I started running as a way to help lose weight.  After I got a heart rate monitor I quickly realized that I burned just as many calories running for 40 minutes as I did doing an hour long cardio-kickboxing class.  It wasn’t until I ran my first race that running became something other than a means to an end. Running was ... More

Laughing While Running

Well Hello There!  This is Carmel, SF native and Boulder, CO transplant and 2014 marks my first year as an SF Marathon Ambassador.  I am so excited to have been chosen for this group and have really enjoyed reading the blog posts written so far. This is my first post and I wanted to talk about a movement that is quickly spreading to all sporting events with spectators that I’ve really fallen in love with: HILARIOUS SPECTATOR SIGNS.... More