Amara in Training

Tag: motivation

  • Race Recap: The Athens Classic Marathon

    Lets do this Memento style: start with the ending and then go from the beginning. The giant marble stadium was overwhelming. As I neared it on the last of my energy reserves, I tried to pick up the pace but it was just unbearable. But, as my right foot landed on the soft track, I…

  • Be Careful What You Wish For

    Back sometime in April I had made a conscious decision to put my 30-day-turned-60-day challenge to good use and to give myself some long term goals that were a little less about vanity and a little more about substance. That was seven months ago. I cant relieve the transformation that I have undergone in such…

  • The Big Day Is Finally Here

    After months of preparation, the big day is finally here! The LA Triathlon starts in less than 12 hours. OY! I’m incredibly nervous but mostly excited. I think I finally have all of my effects in order — wetsuit, trisuit, arm warmers, racing belt, bike (and all the things that come with it), helmet, shoes,…

  • Motivation Monday: Cross It Off Your Bucket List

    Again and again, I’ve found a way to stay motivated in my fairly new running habit… Work at crossing off my bucket list races! There’s a very distinct formula I follow for this. I pair a race distance I haven’t yet tried with a city I’ve been meaning to visit. What I ended up with was…

  • Fitness Fridays: Down Times are Good Times (Sort Of)

    Since I’ve started running, I haven’t really thought twice about taking time off. There were a few weeks where things went haywire for me personally. I took time off then because I had to, because my heart wasn’t in to my training and my brain was thinking about other things. (Apparently being mentally tired requires just…

  • Fitness Fridays: Working Through Excuses

    One of the most important lessons I learned while running is how to read. Your body was built to preserve itself. It does everything it can do to protect your energy reserves, so once in awhile you’ll find that your brain comes up with white lies to get you out of running. By learning to…

  • The Disneyland Half Marathon 2011

    Hope you all had a great Labor Day weekend. I spent my three-day holiday at the happiest place on Earth…Disneyland! As much as I loathe big crowds of people and long lines, for some reason this weekend I shoved all of those peeves aside and had a great time. This was my first half marathon.…

  • Recent Read: Kara Goucher’s Running for Women: From First Steps to Marathons

    As you may already know, I hit a bit of a rut with my training a few weeks ago. Before the bout got better, it got worse…by a lot. Eventually I did nothing — no swimming, no biking, no running. I was pretty low on motivation. I couldn’t get friends to join me. I was…

  • Beginning Ocean Swimming Is Not As Scary As Previously Imagined

    After a lot of reticence and procrastinating, I finally attended my first ever open water swimming clinic. I have pretty much been terrified of the water since I started training for the LA Triathlon and since it’s coming down to crunch time, I started doing my research about a month ago. I was unsuccessful at…