Destination Run – Walk Into the Future

2020 Winter Park 10k and a podcast on the side

Podcast March 2020

(Image by Florante Valdez from Pixabay)

“Life is a blank canvas and you need to throw all the paint on it you can”.

(Danny Kaye)

Ventured back down to the Orlando area for the 2020 Winter Park 10k. This race has been on my running calendar the past two years because it allows me to hang out with great friends and family while running a unique course in Winter Park.

Track Shack promotes this race as a fantastic course to run a 10k personal best (PB) and it does not disappoint. There were several runners ringing the PB Bell strategically placed in the runner’s village after the race. Always exciting to see the joy a PB time brings to runners.

Mastering College to Career podcast

Coordinated with an Orlando tree branch to stop on the way down for the race to catch up a bit and record another episode on his Mastering College to Career podcast.

The podcast is Daniel Botero’s way to Walk into the Future and he has added on-line courses, videos and workbooks to go along with the weekly podcast episode. Very proud of his efforts and the difference he’s making with college students transitioning into the workplace.

Daniel provides me with the topic of discussion prior to the podcast and then we get to work. I’ve known Daniel since 2011 so we have a great working relationship and energize each other when we are in the same room. He wanted his students to understand the behind the scenes interactions between on-campus recruiters and career centers. The goal was to provide students with a better understanding how/why employers recruit on their campuses and the work involved to get them there. Was very happy to share my career center and employer relations knowledge with Daniel for the podcast and helping his students.

Found out I’m the first person on Daniel’s podcast to return for a third time. This put a smile on my face, but the smile got bigger because Daniel asked me to cut another podcast episode before I left his recording studio. So, it turns out I’m the only four-time guest on the podcast now. The additional podcast episode was to highlight the recruiting calendar employers utilize when deciding which campuses to visit. What a great way to start my race weekend! Got a chance to catch up with Daniel and cut two podcast episodes to help his students continue to move forward in life. (Both episodes should be live in April 2020).

Left Daniel’s recording studio and headed straight to Track Shack to pick up my race packet. Always exciting to see the Track Shack staff engaging with runners buying new gear. Love they host a spring sale the entire week of the Winter Park 10k race. Always can find some new gear and the sale prices are fantastic. Got a chance to chat with one of the Track Shack owners who I met one morning while running in Tom Brown Park in Tallahassee. Turns out her daughter lives in Tallahassee and works at FSU—small world!

Carb loading

Headed to my favorite Italian restaurant, Café Panuzzo’s with Jayla to carb load and catch up. We normally dine at Café Panuzzo’s or Buffalo Wild Wings prior to my races and Italian dining won this round. Café Panuzzo’s never disappoints when we visit. I stuck to my normal selection of chicken parmesan with pasta and Jayla got adventurous with the calzone. Got a double order of bread since my goal was to get as many carbs as possible prior to the 10k. Most got burned off the next morning, so no harm and their bread is fantastic!

https://cafepanuzzos.com/

Winter Park 10k

The morning started out cooler than expected but was great once we got started. Told several tree branches prior my goal was to run fast this year and wanted to record a good time. Happy to report I ran a 10k PB of 56:41 and felt good during and after the race.

Track Shack does not use the corral format for races so the first mile was crowded with runners of all levels and time expectations. Decided to patiently work my way through the crowd and then pick up my pace once the runners thinned a bit. Made up most of my slow start once the course flattened and went about my plan to go faster this year. Knew my time was going to be good (for me) at the 4-mile mark and got comfortable with my pace and breathing. Decided to pick up my pace at the 5-mile mark to see how much improvements I’ve made in the past year. Was able to pass several other runners and get to the finish line with a smile on my face. Learned to smile crossing the finish line since everyone with a camera is snapping away.

Got my medal, checked my time and rang the PB bell too. Great race, people and after party! Can’t beat drinking a beer and eating donuts at 9 am in the morning. Running is the best way to stay in shape and overindulge at the same time.

Will keep this race on my calendar because it’s fun and they will always have beer at the end! 😊

What podcasts do you listen to? How have the podcasts helped you Walk into the Future?

“Oh, the places you’ll go”.

(Dr. Seuss)

Follow Daniel here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thedanielbotero/

Follow Track Shack here: https://www.trackshack.com/

Run Winter Park

Running fitness—the transformation continues

Transformation

(Image by Kei Rothblack from Pixabay)

“Change is inevitable, but transformation is by conscious choice”.

(Heather Ash Amara)

I’ve been able to experience a lot of new and exciting things during my current Walk into the Future. Didn’t have a complete idea how this walk would transpire but happy to report it is going very well.

I get to travel and experience new places and adventures, see friends and catch up, write and network daily and work on my mental and physical fitness. We will dive into my physical fitness to highlight an important transformation that I’m adjusting to. Not complaining about this transformation but it has a funny side effect.

My normal body weight when I started this Walk into the Future adventure and blog was in the 205 – 207 pound range. Was always happy with this weight range because I concentrated more on lifting weights during my gym sessions to build muscle. I wasn’t a power lifter, but I made sure to add a few additional plates to maintain my muscle volume and fill out my shirts.

My workouts still focus on overall body symmetry with designated days for each body part (chest day, leg day, back, etc.). The big shift with my fitness program is the cardio components I’ve added as I pursue my half marathon goal to finish under two hours.

I’ve documented in multiple blog posts the increased mileage I’m running to improve my endurance and speed for my races. I continue to look for ways to get faster as I extend my runs and weekly mileage. Set a 2020 goal to hit 1,200 miles this year!

The one thing I really didn’t notice was the effect running was having on my body. No, I’m not going to report aches and pains, that comes with running, that’s normal and should be expected.

The big impact the extended running program has on my transformation has been my body weight. I registered 194 pounds on the scale last week. Let’s put that number in life context. The last time I saw 194 pounds on a scale was 1996—my niece Jayla wasn’t born yet! 😊

Believe I should have known the transformation was happening because my belts all appeared to be getting longer. I know this can’t happen—it was me getting more toned because of my running and gym activities. Spent last weekend shopping for new belts because I didn’t want to have that old dude with a too long belt look anymore. Happy to report all belts have been replaced to keep me somewhat fashion relevant.

Never intended to lose a specific amount of weight when I started running more. I realize weight loss and body transformation can and do happen when you run a lot. Figured my weekly cake tasting sessions, pizza and the beer/chicken wing outings would hinder any weight loss goals.

Please read the last sentence again—yes, I still eat cake, pizza, wings and drink beer and still lost weight. Imagine what would happen if I cleaned up my diet! 😊

My disclaimer is, I run and workout so I can eat what I like. It hasn’t hindered me so far. Will look to eat a bit cleaner in 2020 to enhance my overall fitness and race endurance.

What transformation have you had recently? What can you transform in 2020? Thanks for walking with me!

“Transformation isn’t a future event. It’s a present-day activity”.

(Jillian Michaels)

December 2018 (205 pounds)

December 2019 (194 pounds)

(Left: December 2018, 205 pounds / Right: December 2019, 194 pounds)

2019 Orlando Utility Commission (OUC) Half Marathon recap — the Benjamin Button effect

“You know you’re a runner when, your running shoes ARE the most expensive pair of shoes you possess”.

(Anonymous runner)

My 2019 racing schedule ended on 12/7/19 at the OUC half marathon in Orlando.

This was my 5^th half marathon and 7^th race of the year. I started 2019 with an aggressive (for me) race schedule where I wanted to race more and increase the number of half marathon finishes. I also set a goal to run a half marathon under 2 hours—I didn’t meet this goal but did improve my Personal Record (PR) four times this year, so progress has been made. I’m faster now than when I started running half marathons in 2013 (Benjamin Button).

How many times running this race?

I started my half marathon quest in 2013 at this very same race. A UCF friend convinced me to run a half marathon with intent to run it with me for support. She had several half and full marathons completed and thought it would be a good challenge for me to run a half marathon.

Fast forward a bit, I signed up and began training but her husband got a job transfer and they moved to Dallas, Texas before the race. I thought about backing out since I didn’t have a running partner but decided to give it a try on my own.

Had no idea how to train, eat or prepare for a half marathon so simply relied on athletic ability for my first try. This was a horrible idea! I would have quit during my first half marathon but didn’t know how to get back to my car, so had to keep going in order to figure out where I parked. This is not a joke, I finished because I had no other choice.

Ran this race again the following year because I had to prove to myself, I could run a half marathon and appear to be competent while doing it. I improved my finish times incrementally over the years so the pull to come back was there. I skipped the OUC half marathon in 2018 and ran on Amelia Island instead.

The 2019 race was my sixth time running the OUC half marathon. I’m currently 19 minutes faster than the first time I ran the same race (Benjamin Button).

Why come back?

Wanted to test my new training knowledge and program against a course that beat me up in the past. Figured the best way to know if I’m improving is to run the course I wanted to quit on and then move forward.

Happy to report I enjoyed the 2019 version of this race from start to finish! Even found myself with a goofy smile on my face for some reason around mile 9. This may have been the runner’s high people tell me about, but I never experienced before.

No worries just decided to keep on smiling and run my best. This approach allowed me to finish with a PR (2:05:51) and a level of satisfaction with my entire 2019 running program. Can always look for areas to improve but very happy to improve my PR four times this year. As you can see, I’m getting faster as I get older (Benjamin Button). I’m still looking for another gear and project to get a bit faster in 2020.

Stick with the Walk into the Future blog to follow my running progress.

Race recap

Decided not to put an official time goal on this race but wanted to run fast and safely. My top goal was to have fun and complete the 2019 race schedule in style.

Blue is my power color so outfitted with blue from head to toe for this race. Accented my race outfit with orange compression sleeves to represent the Florida Gators as I ran through downtown Orlando.

Miles 1 – 5

Wanted to get out fast but not expend too much energy during the first third of the race. The OUC half marathon also has a 5k race which starts at the same time. Wanted to avoid the extra runners at the beginning of the race so went out with a controlled pace and mindset until the 5k runners split away from the half marathoners at Mile #2. Felt good with my mile splits and knew I had the conditioning to keep my pace going.

Miles 6 – 10

Past races I’ve struggled with this portion of the half marathon. My training, nutrition and mindset have improved this year to where I know how to handle this segment of the race and not slow down much. Was able to stay consistent with my mile splits with no glaring slow miles. This may have been why my goofy smile came out—I knew I was running faster and not slowing a bit.

Miles 11 – 13.1

Realized I wouldn’t break 2 hours at this point but didn’t let that take my smile away. Kept plugging away because I knew I could set another PR by just pressing forward.

Put TI’s song, Motivation on repeat because this is my running hype song that helps me mentally when I run.

The goofy smile was with me the entire time and the miles flew by. There were spectators out helping the runners finish strong; I’m sure they were cheering for me, but I was in my zone and focused on finding the finish line.

Crossed the finish line at 2:05:51 (two hours, 5 minutes and 51 seconds) with a smile on my face and a raised fist! You would have thought I saved the world from annihilation from my reaction, but it was a big deal to me. Ran a smart race with a good time and felt great physically at the end. Trifecta!

After race party

Track Shack does a fantastic job with all aspects of race day.

The vendors, health care and music after the race are first rate. Made my way to the beer truck to get my two beers to go along with my other snacks collected in the vendor area. Yes, runners really drink beer at 9:30 am—we’ve earned it after getting up before the sun rises and running 13.1 miles. LOL. Ran into a few people I knew from my time in Orlando and we celebrated another great Track Shack race.

https://www.trackshack.com/

December 2019 (194 pounds)

“It’s all about the bling!”

(Spectator sign, 2019)

Benjamin Button

So, why do I reference Benjamin Button in this post? Great question!

Most people begin to slow down as runners as they age. I’ve only been attempting the half marathon distance for 6 years now and continue to learn more about training, nutrition (beet juice) and mental focus. I’m just scratching the surface on my running ability and see faster times coming in 2020. So, I’m not getting younger but faster (Benjamin Button). I’m sure the day will come when I can’t keep running faster times but it’s not here yet—so fast I must go! 😊

“For what it’s worth, it’s never too late or, in my case, too early to be whoever you want to be”.

(Benjamin Button)

Goodbye OUC hello San Antonio Rock N Roll (2020)

I will not run the OUC half marathon in 2020. I’m trading this race and experience in for the 2020 San Antonio Rock N Roll half marathon. I lived in San Antonio while in the Air Force but wasn’t a runner then. This will be my chance to run in a great city and experience the culture and the River Walk from a different perspective. I’m sure I’ll return to the OUC race again in the future, maybe 2021.

Project to run 7 half marathons in 2020.

Already registered for New Orleans (February), Nashville (April) and Philly (September). Will add San Antonio and Savannah; looking at San Diego and maybe Las Vegas to complete 7 with the Rock N Roll series. May adjust with a local half marathon but 7 is the number for 2020.

Logged just under 1,000 miles on this running journey in 2019; I’m sure that number is going up in 2020. Who’s ready to run with me? 😊

How many of your 2019 goals did you accomplish? Have you thought about your 2020 goals yet?

Thanks for walking with me!

Merry Christmas! Will see you in 2020! Thanks!

Running, rocking out, and enjoying Philadelphia

Philly LOVE sign

“To travel is to live”.

(Hans Christian Andersen)

My Walk into the Future continues to expand my running tourist experiences. Made a trek to the 2019 Philadelphia Rock N Roll Half Marathon in September. This was race #5 for my 2019 running goals.

The training and additional miles logged over the summer were evident during my race. I was able to post another personal record (PR) time of 2:07:55 (official time) but was happier with how I felt mentally and physically during the race. Past races my legs started to hurt at the 8-mile marker and really screamed at me miles 10 through 13. Fighting the pain and the urge to stop running was always there in previous races but my new training program allowed me to enjoy every mile of the race. Helped the Philly course was mostly flat until the end. I never frown at a PR but will evaluate my training process to see where I can find additional speed to get me closer to my goal time of under 2 hours.

Note: The 2-hour goal does not stop me from enjoying these races. It’s my way to push myself to improve daily.

“The point is whether or not I improved over yesterday”.

(Haruki Murakami)

(After race and Rocky statue)

Philadelphia

Selected this race because I’ve never been to Philadelphia. Also, I have a tree branch (Lauren Apgar) in Philly, and it gave us a chance to catch up. Again, I take the concept of running tourist seriously so let me know if I should visit your city for a run. 😊

We left the airport and headed straight to the Philadelphia Convention Center for the Rock N Roll EXPO. Seeing the thousands of running tourists who trek to a Rock N Roll destination to run the city and enjoy the culture is always a highlight of race weekend.

The positive energy in the EXPO hall always provides extra inspiration to run my best race. People from all over the world converging on a location with the same goal in mind to run their best race ever.

The Philly EXPO was smaller than previous EXPOs (New Orleans and Nashville) because there was not a full marathon scheduled. The Philly races were the half marathon, a 7.6k and a 5k.

This was Lauren’s first Rock N Roll EXPO, so it was great introducing her to the process (check-in, bib pickup, bag pickup, etc.) and attending the EXPO with vendors and products. We got as many freebies as we could and tested out products on display. This is a great way to get a free massage before the race since vendors want to test their products on runners. I’m always down for the free massage! Got a lot of cool photo ops while at the EXPO:

Food, food and more food

We left the convention center and made our way to Iron Hill Brewery (Center City) for lunch to help with my carb loading process. Great location with a huge menu and beer options. I don’t experiment with food prior to a race so ordered the grilled chicken sandwich, fries and the Iron Hill Light Lager. Lots of great food on the menu if you get a chance to dine at one of their locations:

https://www.ironhillbrewery.com/center-city-pa.

What’s a trip to Philly without visiting the Reading Terminal Market? It’s labeled as “one of America’s largest and oldest public markets” and lived up to the reputation. Row after row of unique foods, fare and products. Several vendors had wrap around lines waiting to explore new tastes. We didn’t eat at Reading Terminal Market, but it will be a regular stop when I’m back in Philly:

https://readingterminalmarket.org/.

Dinner carb loading was done at Pietro’s Coal Oven Pizzeria. Stuck with the tried and true chicken parmesan because it came with a huge plate of spaghetti and sauce. Portions were so large at Pietro’s I almost couldn’t finish it all but since I had 13.1 miles to run the next morning, I powered through.

Pietros Pizza

We ventured further out after the race to get cheese steaks. Lauren introduced me to the Philly subway system and the proper way to get around the city. We got an impromptu dance show from a family entertaining everyone on the subway. Great seeing people smile and enjoy themselves as they traveled to their respective destinations. Full disclosure, I assumed Philly was going to be all hustle and bustle like New York. Pleasantly surprised how slow the pace was in Philly and how people interacted with each other.

Cheese steaks on every corner

We decided to take part in the great Philly cheese steak debate: Geno’s or Pat’s. Agreed we would do a taste test to decide which cheese steak was better.

Started at Geno’s and dived right into a large cheese steak. Very good flavor, texture and presentation. Made our way across the street to try Pat’s cheese steak next. Again, very good flavor, texture and presentation. The onions on the Pat’s cheese steak were sautéed more and the steak had more moisture than Geno’s. We agreed both were worth a visit if you’re in Philly—can’t go wrong with either selection.

Seating is limited at Geno’s and Pat’s, so we grabbed seats at Garage Philly and enjoyed the cheese steaks, beer and people watching. They have a DJ playing on the sidewalk, so it was a block party and a great place to relax with good food:

History

Made our way over to Independence Hall to experience some American history. Got a chance to explore multiple buildings on the property to include Congress Hall and Senate Chambers. The Liberty Bell was another historical site we were able to experience. Great being in a place with this much historical contexts—recommend visiting if you’re in the Philadelphia area.

Trekked over to Penn’s Landing to see the waterway and the Ben Franklin Bridge. Great place to people watch and get photos of New Jersey across the river. Lots of boats in the water and people enjoying the great September weather.

https://www.visitphilly.com/things-to-do/attractions/penns-landing/

Philadelphia is a great place—recommend you get there for a visit if you haven’t been. Also, recommend experiencing the great food, history and culture available.

FYI—enjoyed it so much I’ve already signed up for the 2020 Philadelphia Rock N Roll Half Marathon! Will get a chance to test out the Pat’s and Geno’s cheese steak debate again. Can’t wait!

What city have you always wanted to visit? When are you going?

“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all”.

(Helen Keller)

Thanks Lauren for being a great host and tour guide—well done! 😊

The Big Harvest—Collecting Race Bling

‘Any idiot can run, but it takes a special kind of idiot to run a half marathon.’

(Spectator sign, Nashville 2019)

The process of running a half marathon has many layers. You have the training, nutrition, travel to the race site, EXPO and the actual race. Sounds like a lot but each layer gets easier the more you invest into the process of being a runner.

Took me a while to get comfortable with the concept of labeling myself a runner but finally stopped fighting the term and gladly accept it. Hi, my name is Calvin and I’m a runner! 😊 Felt good getting that off my chest. The quote above is from a spectator’s sign I saw while running the 2019 Nashville Rock ‘n’ Roll half marathon. There are thousands of similar and funnier signs at every race. The spectators are there to cheer, motivate and at times make runners laugh to help get through their respective race. I make a point to acknowledge sign holders especially when they display a clever sign. Another of my favorites:

‘Worse parade…EVER!’

The signs and spectators are welcome distractions from the actual process of completing a 13.1-mile race. Music helps break up the miles, but the spectators always make me laugh with their encouragement and clever signage.

‘You know you’re a runner when…bling has nothing to do with jewelry.’

(Runners World)

An overlooked layer to the half marathon is what happens directly after crossing the finish line. A legion of volunteers waits for each runner to cross the finish line and present us with city/race unique bling. I never thought race medals would mean much to me but getting crowned after finishing a half marathon completes the journey. I would feel I accomplished something big without the bling but let’s be honest—what’s the fun in that?! 😊

I always write about races and my training routine to get prepared. The race city and entertainment options are other favorite things I have written about. Decided to invest in a medal holder for the bling I’ve collected over the years to properly display my ‘adult trophies’. Didn’t realize how many medals or how cool some of them are prior to researching the medal holder. I didn’t have much of an organizational system for them either. This will all change since I put in the work to earn the bling—will get these properly displayed on a medal holder where everyone can see them and then must listen to me explain each one—just joking!

Seriously, runners put in a lot of work to get ready for the races and perform their best. The bling is a nice reminder of the race and city. The bling is something we cherish and look forward to seeing what next year’s bling will look like.

The Rock ‘n’ Roll series has a Heavy Medal program that allows runners to collect additional bling based on number of events:

https://www.runrocknroll.com/Programs/Medals/Heavy-Medals

Of course, I’m trying to get the Don’t Worry Just Run medal. I’m sure you can figure out why! Everything Irie!

Had an interesting conversation with a tree branch last month about race bling. He selects race participation strictly on the bling available for the race. Bling not up to par and he will not run in your race! I’m not there yet, if there’s beer at the end I’m probably going to run your race! 😊

How do you display your race bling? How important is this aspect of the race for you? Thanks!

Nashville & the Wildhorse Saloon

Rock n Roll Half Marathon

Made my way back to Nashville, TN for the 2019 Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon in April. This race has become a favorite of mine because it allows me to run Nashville neighborhoods and catch amazing musicians at multiple music venues.

My training approach for this half marathon and all others moving forward has improved tremendously. The Walk into the Future approach has allowed me to increase my training efforts and logging ‘true’ long runs. Long runs for me now routinely cover 10 miles or longer. The longest training run I put in for this race was 15 miles—didn’t run this distance for speed but used it to build mental and physical toughness. Turns out I needed all the mental and physical toughness I could display because somewhere in my love for Nashville I forgot about the HILLS there! 😊

The first 6 miles seemed to go uphill with multiple degrees of incline. My training runs incorporated hills, so I was better prepared than I initially thought. Decided to just put trust in my training and have fun as I made my way up each incline. Slowly found myself enjoying each step with a smile on my face—guess I finally got that runner’s high people always talk about.

Fast forward a bit and I was able to finish in 2:08:21 (two hours, eight minutes and 21 seconds) which is my personal best. Improved on my time from the 2019 New Orleans Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon. I’m still a bit off from my goal of running under 2 hours but I’m making incremental progress towards the goal. I will continue to take small bites from the elephant. Next scheduled half marathon will be in Philly in September.

Nashville after race

Wildhorse Saloon

The Wildhorse Saloon is a place I visit every time I’m in Nashville. It’s a great place to hear live music, dance and get some of the best food in Nashville. Made two visits to the Wild Horse on this trip and heard some great new musicians.

Line dancing lessons take place when the musicians take a break and the dance floor was crowded with folks having a great time learning the steps. The line dance instructor breaks each dance down with step counts and practice for the dancers before turning them loose. It’s great watching people learn the dance and then actually perform what they learned—yes, I include myself since I first tried line dancing at the Wildhorse. Believe this place is a must visit if you decide to head to Nashville.

NFL Draft

The 2019 NFL Draft was also in Nashville for race weekend. This was an extra event to experience while in town. There were over 600,000 NFL fans in attendance for the 3-day draft event. Made my way down to draft central two days to soak in the excitement of the draft and enjoy the crowds. Didn’t realize how many professional football fans were this invested in their team’s draft process. The passion, excitement and team pride displayed was impressive and Nashville put on an excellent show for everyone in attendance.

The Pittsburgh Steelers were the most represented team at the draft. Their fans travel all over the country to show their support.

My current Walk into the Future seems to keep bringing me back to Nashville and I love that fact!

I plan to return to Nashville next April to enjoy the race weekend and live music again—great place to visit if you’ve never been!

What’s your favorite place to visit? How often do you get a chance to visit? Thanks!

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