I broke free from the Vinyasa flow yoga this week and got back to the road work (running).  I went out for a 2.5 mile run and then did a short lift.  The weather could not be better-sunny with a light breeze.  Hard to believe that we are past day 200!

I get to post on lucky day #200 for the 365 Day Challenge for We Are One. My younger brother, Alex, had to hit the sack early tonight after a long day of traveling to Camden, NJ for the IRA’s (Rowing Nationals) for his final Collegiate Regatta.

I was able to get to the YMCA and jump on the erg for 8000m. I did a mini workout where every 5th minute was an all out sprint (pulling as hard as I could). Rowing is definitely a full body workout and I highly recommend it for anyone looking to increase lower body strength, core and arms as well as improve their cardio system as well. It’s the type of workout that high intensity for less time combines for an awesome workout.

Hoping to get back to running soon but tired of trying to fight the injury after a week of running so I’m sticking with the cross training for now. Hoping the Celtics can pull this win off but its not looking good.

We are well into summer so I’m hoping everyone is sticking to their workout regimens. Til next time…

AR. NF. NR.

Nick

I have the honor of sitting next to Nick as I write todays blog.  It was a fabulous weekend in Ithaca, NY.  We celebrated Alex’s graduation from Cornell….no small feat!  No day went by without some sort of physical activity.  Clint & Tim  went for a very hilly bike ride & then joined Lauren, Gina, Alex, Nick, Bear & some of the other fine rowers on Al’s crew team for some gorge jumping.  Amazing to me that anyone would willingly want to inflict that kind of stress to the human body.  They were jumping from heights of about 45-50 feet.  The others stood around taking pictures & video.  I’m sure the military families have much more heroic tales to tell than our memory maker.

Today Jay & I swam hard for 20 minutes using our training flippers which get the heart rate really going.  I feel like a bullet in the water.  After that we met with Scott & worked on arms, squats & some core work for 1/2 hour.  Felt strong, felt good.  Starting to train harder in preparation for our first triathlon of the year on June 12th in Merrimack….the 3rd Annual Y Tri.

Day after Memorial Day made me think about all those soldiers, all those families & all those memories.  It’s good to be part of such a wonderful family & all the choices I have to stay healthy.

xoxo Granite Girls

Happy Memorial Day!  I hope everyone had a wonderful three-day weekend and had an opportunity to get outside and get in some activity!  Los Angeles was gorgeous this weekend and I made sure to make the most of it.  I got in some ample beach time at Santa Monica Beach yesterday and had a nice long walk with my roommate’s dog today.

There is a lot that could and should be said on this Memorial Day about the service of our troops to this great nation, but anything I might say would be preaching to the choir.   By taking the WAO365-pledge, you’ve all made a selfless commitment to the men and women of the armed services, their families, and the United States of America.  Freedom does not come without a price and it is the soldiers who pay the debt.  Veterans and families of fallen soldiers remain too often underserved and underappreciated, and WAO is making great strides to acknowledge this.  I’m very proud to be a Team Leader for We Are One 365 and I’m happy that every time I sport my WAO365 apparel, it is for a great cause.   The men and women in uniform have made and continue to make tremendous sacrifices, both on the battlefield and at home, and I am incredibly grateful for all they’ve done.

After more than five months of training, marathon weekend is almost here.  Next weekend it all goes down.  I’ll be wearing my WAO365 dri-fit, running for the troops.  After a 20miler last Sunday, I’ve been tapering off, getting most of my miles in via long walks.  I feel good and strong and ready for the big race.

I’ll be heading down to San Diego Friday night, carbo loading Saturday, and running 26.2 along the Pacific Ocean Sunday morning.  It should be a great weekend.  I’ll have a full rundown of how things go next week in my post.

Until then, happy exercising!

-Derek

We hope everyone is enjoying their long Memorial Day weekend! I am spending my weekend at the beach. There are lots of activities going on down here at the Outer Banks. In the morning I went for a 6 mile run on the beach. It was nice changing it up and running on the sand, there seems to be a lot less impact on your legs with the extra cushion you get from the sand. Later in the day a bunch of us took out some ocean kayaks and paddled for a couple hours, battling the waves and current. It was a lot of fun and it was a great upper body workout.

The beach has been great and workouts have been new and exciting. We hope all of you are enjoying your long weekends as well, but make sure you take the time to remember what this weekend is actually about; the veterans that lost their lives while serving our country and protecting our freedom.

Happy Memorial Day to all and God Bless America!

-Bmore

Great Saturday in Ithaca, NY with the whole Karwoski family. The guys were lucky to be able to take out a boat in the morning and row. We had Kevin, a guy from Alex’s team stroking (in the first seat) followed by my brother-in-law, my Dad, me (Nick), other brother-in-law, family friend, girlfriend’s Dad and Alex. It was quite an experience. Lots of good times and for a few seconds it looked lie we knew what we were actually doing. Great workout. Still doing the whole graduation thing so the Post is short. Hope everyone is having a great weekend.

AR. NF. NR.

Nick

What a special weekend to be part of the WAO team. Please remember why you have a long weekend while you enjoy some outdoor activities with your friends and families.

Despite the rain, I was able to play in a pick up soccer game. The game lasted for about two hours with a 15 minute break in the middle. The numbers were down so it was an extra hard workout.  I followed up the game with some push up and crunches.

Big congrats to sAL Karwoski for graduating this weekend, hats off to you, big guy.

Have a fun and safe Memorial Day Weekend!

Max

Today I returned for another class of morning Vinyasa Flow Yoga.  It was a great session and once again another great start to the day.  It is clear that my flexibility is struggling, but I love getting into the Yoga Lounge early to work on it and get a good sweat.

Somehow the Monday post got lost in the craziness this week. I got a 6.5 mile run in on Monday which felt awesome followed by a leg lifting workout at the gym. Lots of traveling coming up so front loading my workouts this week was a must. Hope everyone’s workouts are going well.

AR. NF. NR

Nick

Today was a good day. Got a 40 mile bike ride in up into Malibu by Pepperdine University. There were a bunch of canyons up there and with the 75 degree weather, got a nice bronze on as well. Cool seeing the surfers doing their thing early on a Wednesday too.

Got to the gym afterwards for a solid core and ab workout. Lots of different drills and exercises on the ball. Pushups with rolling out away from body. Starting on forearms and pushing up to the palm of the hands. Hip rolls while on fore arms. Single leg knee drives while on fore arms. And a few other core drills with the feet on the ball.

Ended the day with an hour of Yoga. Starting to get into this class as I need to work on my hip flexibility for hurdles. Definitely feels like another workout at this point. Heading to NY for my brothers graduation and race this weekend so Saturday will be an East Coast Post.

Til then,

AR. NF. NR

Nick