Hey guys, hope everyone is doing well and is ready for the holiday season!  I know I am!

Worked hard at amping up the mileage and shaving seconds off my time this past week.  Ran 6-miles tonight at an eight minute pace.  Best I’ve done in a while.

I’m always a little slow on the pictures, but here’s one of me in the Santa 5K from a couple weeks back.  It was a great run, and I had a lot of fun, which is apparent in the big old smile on my face.

Happy holidays to you all!

-Derek

What’s up everybody?!  Hope everyone has been working hard and enjoying the holiday season!  I ran a 5K Santa run last Saturday and had an absolute blast.  The course was from Santa Monica to Venice here in beautiful sunny Southern California and was filled with all sorts of colorful characters in hats, costumes, and ugly Christmas sweaters.  I was about a minute off of my PR with a time of 23:17, but was still very happy with how speedy I was.  I attribute it to all the running and healthy living I’ve been doing.  There will be no added Christmas weight for me this year!

Keep working hard gang!  I know you are!

-Derek

Hey guys!  Happy Monday to you all.  Hope you had a great weekend full of lots of activity.   It was raining here in Los Angeles, but still found time to get out and run.  I’m gearing up for the Santa Monica to Venice 5K Santa run this Saturday, so been getting lots of jogging in.  Ran up and down the Beverly Hills trail for five miles today.  Even on muddy/rainy days it remains my favorite city path.

Keep working hard everyone, I’ll let you know how this weekend’s run goes!

Hey Team Monday, I hope everyone had an awesome Thanksgiving! As Americans we all have a tremendous amount to be thankful for, much of which is due to the great history of military service that our troops continue to uphold. It goes without saying that we all owe a debt of gratitude to those in uniform this holiday season. We would be nothing without them.

While I did stuff my face Thursday, I also found plenty of time to get outdoors and enjoy the warm Los Angeles temperatures. I am running a 5K Santa run next weekend, so attempting to stay fit for that.

keep working hard gang. Don’t let the holidays be an excuse for laziness!

Sorry for the late post gang, had a late one at work tonight.  My delay certainly isn’t for a lack of effort, that’s for sure.  I’ve made a point to workout everyday since my half marathon, and I’ve been good to my word.  Getting in lots of good running and I even started lifting again.

Also as promised, here’s a photograph from on the sands of Zuma Beach after last weeks race.  You can see Ma and me repping the 365 shirts.

Keep working hard everybody, we’re starting off the new year of blogging on a strong note!

Catch you all next week!  Happy Turkey Day!

-Derek

Well, yesterday was the day.  After a summer’s worth of blog post’s talking about it, I finally ran the Malibu Half Marathon with my mom and my good friend Sarah.  As it had been the two years prior, the run yesterday was a great one with beautiful weather, amazing scenery, and good company.  Stretching 13. 1 miles of the Pacific Coast Highway and finishing on the sands of Zuma Beach, the Malibu Half Marathon is always a highlight of my year, but having my mom join me this year made for a really special day.  We both wore our 365 shirts in honor of WAO365 and Veterans Day. My mom snapped a couple of race pictures, so I’ll be sure to get them up once I get my hands on them.

Running the race with my mom, and spending the weekend with my family and friends really made me appreciate all that I have in my life.  I have a wonderful family, a great group of friends, a nice apartment, a good job, ambition for the future, and a desire to always do better.  Sure there are always going to be difficulties, but there is always so much more to learn and experience.  I know that if it weren’t for the men and women who have or are currently serving the country, I wouldn’t have the glorious life I lead.  Not everyone is as lucky as I am, both in this country and elsewhere, but I certainly know I wouldn’t have all I do without the sacrifice of so many.  Thank you to all those who have served, are serving, or have family members who were in the United States military.  Thank you for fighting for my freedoms, allowing me to live the life I choose.  Your sacrifice means a great deal and is certainly recognized.  Not only on Veteran’s Day but 365 days a year.

This is it everybody, Day 365!  We’ve made it!  It was one year ago today my good friend Nick Karwoski started blogging and this awesome movement kicked into full swing.  The tremendous amount that has been accomplished this past year is truly astounding and I am incredibly proud to have been a part of it.

Commitment to the We Are One cause has never been difficult for me, but I’d be lying if I said making time and finding the energy to work out every day has always been easy.  I’ve had my ups and downs, bouts of laziness and apathy, but my commitment to the cause has never wavered and I’ve had a great time sharing my workouts with you. Having made the WAO365 pledge has kept me motivated and accountable and has helped me in leading a healthier lifestyle.  Everyone who reads the blog is truly making a difference in the ways and reasons Americans get exercise, all the while helping raise both money and awareness for the men and women in the military services.

I hope you’ve enjoyed my blogs this past year; I know I’ve enjoyed reading the other team leader’s entries.  Whether it be what upcoming races Emily is in, what latest rec league Team Baltimore team is involved with, where the Cornell Crew team is ranked, how Lauren and Donna are continuing to get in shape, or how Nick is running around in some exotic locale, the other entries have kept me entertained and on track.

While today is Day 365, tomorrow is Day 1 again.  I’m excited to keep working hard and getting into shape.  This Sunday is the Malibu Half Marathon I’ve been training for the past few months, so I’ll certainly have plenty to write about in the weeks to come.  I went out running tonight and I plan to continue to do so every night until Sunday.  My mom, who is running the race with me, plans on wearing her WAO365 shirt Sunday as well, so with any luck, I’ll have a nice new picture to kick off year two.

Keep working hard and donating to the cause.  There’s always more work to be done, so don’t stop now.  We Are One.

-Derek

Happy Monday everybody!  I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend and all the East Coast 365-ers were able to batten down the hatches in time for Frankenstorm.  It is easy to take for granted the talent and dedication of our first responders and service men and women here in America, but when a storm like this hits undeveloped nations without the infrastructure we have here it really reminds you how lucky we are to have these heroes risking all to save lives.  Let’s hope the casualty rate, both here and in the Caribbean, does not raise any higher.

On a much happier note, I ran my “mini marathon” yesterday!  It was a beautiful day in Los Angeles and I had a lot of fun.  I didn’t quite hit the time I’d hoped for in last week’s post, but I had fun and I have a new goal to aim for.  The start line was at LA Live, looped down to USC, and then finished off at the Staples Center.  It was a great course and made for a really nice Sunday morning.  I’m running the Malibu Half Marathon with my mom in two weeks, so there is still work to be done!  Went out first thing this morning and logged some miles in preparation.

Stay safe everybody!  Especially you out there on the East Coast!  See you all next week!

Hey gang!  Happy Monday!  Fourteen days until the old blog hits 365 Days!  And only six days until I run the Los Angeles Rock N’ Roll Mini Marathon!  It is only a 5k run, but I’ve been training hard and I feel good.

Tonight I ran the Beverly Hills Trail; a 4 mile jaunt up and back Santa Monica Boulevard.  It is one of my favorite LA runs, especially on a crisp Autumn night like tonight.  My personal best for a 5k was 18 minutes, so as long as I’m in that ballpark this Sunday, I’ll be a happy camper.

Next week I’ll let you know how the race went and offer up some reflections on the past 365 days of working out.  Until then, stay strong, keep pushing hard, and have a great week!

Twenty more days until this blog reaches its first birthday!  Exciting stuff!  In that amount of time I will have run the Los Angeles Rock N’ Roll mini marathon and will be gearing up for my third Malibu Half Marathon.  I’m overjoyed by the tremendous success this organization has found in such a short amount of time and incredibly proud to be a member of such a great cause.

I’ve been working out hard everyday in the name of the troops and their families, and today was no exception.  Put in a solid eight miler after work in the sweltering Los Angeles heat.  I came home and took a long dip in the tub to relax the tired muscles.

Keep up the good work 365-ers.  We’re almost to the finish line!

-Derek