A very eventful week 4

Nothing really went according to plan this week, including my blogging, so this might be long. This past Monday was the only Monday in October that I had to work but I was determined to get to Woodland Hills Physical Therapy AND Bar Method. Unfortunately the timing just didn't work out so after PT I went home and did my Exhale Core Fusion DVD. It's not nearly as intense as an actual class, but it's definitely not easy and at least I did something for cross training.

Tuesday was a 3 mile hill run and we ran with Fleet Feet Encino's LA Rock n Roll Half Marathon group for their last run before the race. It was tough but I ran the whole thing and the downhill is always a nice payoff. It was a little more interesting too because they were filming at one of the huge homes South of the Blvd so there were lots of security guys and drivers hanging out. They must have thought it was pretty strange to see a huge group of runners trudging up the hill. One of the security guards cheered me on though and it's crazy how much that helped!

Wednesday I joined Fleet Feet's fun run which was sponsored by adidas. We ran 4.78 miles and I ran with Jim. He has run at least 20 marathons and is full of advice. The miles flew by listening to him talk and he really motivated me for the marathon! When we returned to the store they raffled off a pair of adidas shoes and I won them! I'm so excited because I'm going to use them to raise more money for the Center for Assault Treatment Services. Thursday I skipped yoga because I had dinner plans and Friday is a rest day.

Here I am Wednesday with Jason from Fleet Feet modeling our head lamps. Great for making sure cars can see you and also making sure you can see the ground.

And here I am after winning the shoes!

Saturday we ran 5 miles around Balboa Park. I worked really hard to start slow and it made a HUGE difference! So much of a difference that I ended up running one of my fasted 5 miles ever. And it's all thanks to Trey and Jason at Fleet Feet. Trey has to constantly remind me to slow down and Jason told me about negative splits (running slower in the start and gradually speeding up). I felt so full of energy all the way through the run and never felt like I wanted to walk. Here I am with Andreia, Lauren, Roxanne, and one of our running coaches, Antonio.

And finally, an update on my fundraising. If you can believe it I have raised $400 in three weeks! I am so thankful for everyone who has donated, I'm going to meet my first goal a month early and I haven't even really started yet! I still have the shoes to give away, a yard sale planned, and I'll be taking orders for baked goods. Also I'll be handing out this flyer Mike designed for me:

 I think he did an amazing job, especially since I gave him pretty much nothing to work with. He even came up with all the wording! It was also his idea to add a QR code, hopefully people know what to do with it (if you scan it with your phone it will take you to my donation site). Speaking of which, feel free to stop by my site now and make a donation: http://www.crowdrise.com/crystalarrieta