Women’s Health: Are You Game?
If you missed dancing on the beach at the Women’s Health Beauty and the Beach event this year like I did, my favorite women’s magazine still has one last party to throw this summer. The Women’s Health Are You Game? event will be held on May 19, Saturday, 2pm at the Bonifacio High Street Amphitheater. (That’s next Saturday, girls.)
Are You Game?
You’ll have six unique workouts to participate in: Cardio Mash-Up (hiphop and house fusion dance), TRX Body Blast & Rip Training (suspension training), FTX Urban Rebound (jumping up and down in Kangoo shoes), Techno Rave (dancing to techno music), Partner Yoga, and the Model’s Runway workout. You’ll also be able to experience 360 Fitness signature workouts such as circuit training and kettlebell training to boost your metabolism and strength.
If you don’t feel like working out on a Saturday you’ll still be in for some fun activities and sessions, such as a healthy food preparation demo, a surf machine, a bull ride, and a bungee trampoline. You’ll also have the opportunity to sit down and consult with Women’s Health pros. If you aren’t already living a healthy lifestyle, Are You Game? will make you want to make that change.
To register for the event, just bring the Women’s Health May 2012 issue on Saturday. If you want express registration, or want to bring a friend, you can also pre-register:
- Email your full name, email address, age, and name of friend to whareyougame2012@gmail.com
- In the email subject line, indicate where you saw the event announcement. Example: “WH Are You Game? – Kikay Runner”
- An email reply from Women’s Health will confirm receipt of your details. You will receive the official pre-registration form (an Excel file) that will enable you to get express registration on the day of the event.
I’m already excited to get my groove on. See you on May 19!
Vibram Five Fingers Summer 2012 Collection
I know it’s midway through May already, but for those of you who haven’t been to a Vibram Five Fingers store in a while, they launched their Summer 2012 collection last month with new models and new colorways. I was invited to their press launch just before I went to Boracay for Skyathon.
getting fitted for a new pair of VFFs
The Summer 2012 collection has updates on classic styles as well as new styles for different needs.
The Fresca updates the Classic model for women with a new colorway and sole. The Bikila has been rebuilt on a new sole that distributes forefoot impact better, and also offers a women-specific model (Bikila LS) that fits women’s feet better. VFF now also has a trail running-specific model, the Spyridon, with a tread design that gives a sure-footed grip no matter where you’re stepping and rugged protection for all the challenges a trail may bring.
Summer 2012 VFF models
We were treated to a capoeira demonstration which showed how mobile and agile you can be wearing VFFs. Then various Filipino celebrities and personalities spoke about how they used VFFs in their chosen sports (triathlon, running, surfing, dragonboat, mountaineering) or in gym fitness, or even as a castaway on a reality show.
Sinha Bahia de Capoeira
They also used the press launch to announce the winner of their “I REELy Love My VFF” video contest. I’m so proud that my friends and Endure teammates Sid Apolinario and Gerard Cinco won third place for their entry.
At the press launch I saw how VFFs have penetrated deep into the Philippine fitness and wellness industry. That’s how versatile VFFs are.
Runner’s World First Anniversary Issue
My favorite running magazine Runner’s World Philippines celebrates its first anniversary as a stand-alone publication by spotlighting the relationship between running and weight loss. On the cover is Coach Ani de Leon-Brown, who has managed to shed plenty of baby weight by running and training for triathlons.
Runners’ World April-June 2012
Runner’s World editor-in-chief Marie Calica says, “We hope to give you even more training information, nutrition, up-to-the-minute studies, and uplifting stories to keep you running stronger and longer.” I’m glad there’s a resource like Runner’s World to help fellow runners train smarter.
Running in the Summer
I’ve been following conversations by runners on Twitter lately. The trending topic for runners (okay, I just made that up :P) is how to train in this heat. Yesterday Metro Manila temperature hit a whopping 34 degrees Celsius, making it the hottest day this year.
Mmm, runners burnt to a crisp!
The cop-out is, of course, not to train at all. But I know runners, and we can’t go a few days of no running without going a little bonkers.
So here are a few tips from my personal experience and from browsing other running websites about how to continue running in the summer. Continue reading »
This Ridiculously Photogenic Guy is a Runner!
I appreciate when photographers (amateur or professional) take photos of runners during races. Still, I’m pretty picky and rarely find one that captures me going fast yet looking good while doing so. Chalk it up to me not training hard enough to make the run look effortless.
But have you heard of the Ridiculously Photogenic Guy? It’s a meme that went viral on the Internet this week.
Ridiculously Photogenic Guy (photo by Will King)
See that adorable guy on the left smiling at the camera and barely breaking a sweat? After the photographer Will King posted race day photos from the Cooper River Bridge Run, his friends dubbed the guy in the photo “Mr. Ridiculously Photogenic Guy”. King then posted the photo on Reddit, which spawned the meme where the photo is given humorous captions. Captions such as:
Goes out for a run. Puts Kodak back in business.
Gets made into a meme. So everyone can keep looking at him.
My personal favorite is this one:
Runs a marathon and wins… my heart.
So let’s talk a little about the subject of the photograph, the actual Ridiculously Photogenic Guy. Thanks to the Charleston City Paper (also reported on by the International Business Times) for doing the stalkery stuff, we now know his name is Zeddie Little. He ran 10K (not a marathon) in 47 minutes and 16 seconds. He’s 25 years old and moved to New York City last year. He works in PR, and he’s the 4th in his family line to carry the name.
I did my own little search on the New York City Marathon website and didn’t find his name in the results, so I’m going to assume he didn’t run it. I wonder if, given his Internet fame, he might be given a slot for this year’s marathon. Or hopefully the luck of the draw will favor him so he can grace the race day photos. Hahaha! (UPDATE: Ridiculously Photogenic Guy confirms he will run NYC Marathon.)
In any case this meme brought a smile to my face and a skip to my step. Just thought I would share it with my fellow runners in the Philippines. Do you have your own ridiculously photogenic running photo?
The Hills Are Alive
It’s always interesting taking your running shoes out of town and making your way about on foot. The best part? The different terrain. Running about within Metro Manila, the routes start getting familiar and unexciting, and you start looking for a way to challenge yourself.
I was in Baguio last month on a family trip. We had just enough time on our second day there for a morning run at Camp John Hay. I ran with my brother-in-law Michael of The Red Runners and my mom. It was cold (summer hadn’t fully kicked in yet) and the air was thin, so we found ourselves struggling on the rolling terrain. Still, hill training is great for improving speed, and in the end I found myself enjoying the additional challenge.
During my training at Pico de Loro for the Next Step Tri camps, I also found myself attempting to conquer steep hills one after another, some at a 14% gradient. There’s something about facing such intimidating terrain that makes past challenges seem trivial. I used to fear McKinley Hill and the flyovers along Roxas Boulevard. Now, I attack them with glee.
Hill training makes you a stronger, better runner. What hills have you run lately?
I’m Back!
If you’ve been trying to access KikayRunner.com for the past few days and have been getting nothing but a blank page or an error, I’m sorry. My hosting provider decided to do a little housekeeping, and my blog was affected. I moved my blog to a new hosting provider, which hopefully will be better.
I’m praying that no more service interruptions will occur because I’ve been itching to write! Check back here later this week for a new Ask Kikay Runner and my shoe review for the Mizuno Wave Mercury Aura. Ü
Summer at Sea
ANG INIT! is the refrain you hear from most runners lately. Even with the recent spate of rainy weather, there’s just no respite from the heat.
In my daydreams, I’m usually at the beach sunbathing or floating on a surfboard. (I love being ON the water, but not IN it. Something I need to work on as a triathlete…) My breaks away from running involve the water and I’ve been blessed to continue to indulge my fantasies about being a surfer girl. Last week I was invited to Aloha Boardsports Surf Bound: Bali press launch. Want to escape to Bali this year? Every purchase worth P2,500 at Aloha Boardsports stores entitles you to a raffle ticket. The grand prize is a three-day paid trip to Bali for two. Read more about this on my other blog.
I’m surf-bound to Bali!
The Next Step Tri Camp
Posted in Blog, FYI, Multisport
There are seven weeks to go until the Subic Bay International Triathlon, where I’ve chosen to make my standard/Olympic distance debut (*gulp*). After a year in triathlon doing the short distances (minisprints and sprints), it’s time to level up. To use a running analogy, after 3K’s and 5K’s it’s time to do a 10K.
Tangent: yup, the Olympic distance is the triathlete’s 10K. If the full Ironman distance (4K swim, 180K bike, 42K run) is the pinnacle of triathlon achievement just like a marathon is for running, then the Ironman 70.3 (2K swim, 90K bike, 21K run) is the 21K. The Olympic distance is half that of a 70.3. Coincidentally, those are also the distances in their respective run legs.
I’ve had an extremely long tri off-season, though. After recovering from my elbow dislocation in July 2011, I just didn’t feel compelled to continue training as I did in the first half of that year. When I went into The Next Step Tri Camp 1 (Getting Started) last February 25-26, 2012, I hadn’t gotten on my bike in three months. I was also scheduled to attend Camp 2 (Sprint/Standard Weekend) two weeks later on March 10-11.
New Shirts! I RUN LIKE A GIRL and RUN LIKE A MAMAW
Kikay Runner in cooperation with SAFETEES Premium Reflective Clothing brings you version 2.0 of the “I RUN LIKE A GIRL” T-shirt. (Check out version 1.0.)
Wear your running girl power with pride with this stylish reflectorized print on strategic areas for better night visibility. Also, it just looks really cool and kikay. Ü Available for P560.
Now if you run like a “mamaw” or just want to run like one, wear your wish on your sleeve (or literally on your chest) with the new “RUN LIKE A MAMAW” T-shirt! Boys and girls, this post-workout cotton shirt is designed to bring out the monster runner in you with its fierce reflectorized print. Available for P600.
About SAFETEES Premium Reflective Clothing: At Safetees, road safety is our priority. Every year, millions of people suffer from road traffic injuries, but the good new is, this can be prevented. Born out of a need to make streets safer for pedestrians is the first premium reflective clothing line, Safetees. We bring the market everyday wear that’s not only in style but designed with road safety in mind. Each piece is a work of art, crafted with reflective material for visual attention at night. With Safetees, now every pedestrian wearing one can be safe on the road. With Safetees, you can now be seen!
SAFETEES also accepts custom shirt designs. For more information, contact SAFETEES.
