Winter is Here: Walter’s Run in West Roxbury

ImageThe cold New England air set in this morning as we made our way to West Roxbury, Massachusetts for a great 5K called Walter’s Run. Walter’s Run was the final Grand Prix for the Thirsty Irish Runners and fortunately the race started at 11AM to allow a little bit of warming up to take place.

Walter’s Run starts at the YMCA in West Roxbury and is put on by the Parkway Running Club. In 2004, PRC started Walter’s Run   to honor a very special friend and member, Walter Burgess. Walter passed away suddenly in November 2003 at the age of 40 shortly after having completed the Great Floridian Ironman Triathlon. Walter was an active PRC member, Club Secretary and Newsletter Editor. He was an amazing athlete, forever working out either at the Y, on his bike, or running on the roads. More importantly, Walter was an incredible friend and inspiration. He was always there to run the slower members into the finish line, to organize the marathon long runs or group ski trip, to cheer others on, or to give us a big smile after a training run or race no matter the length.

The Boston Globe Santa fund was one of Walter’s favorite charities that he donated to regularly, even as a child. To more fully demonstrate Walter’s love of community and running, they have expanded the organizations receiving proceeds from Walter’s Run to include the YMCA Reach Out Campaign and a fund to send deserving young runners to running camp using Walter Burgess Scholarships.

The course for this race is a nice 5K loop that takes runners through residential neighborhoods of West Roxbury. Along the way, even with the cold temperatures, some spectators cheered runners along including City Councilor Matt O’Malley and Suffolk County District Attorney Dan Conley. Between miles 2 and 3 is a monster hill that runners trudge their way up before heading back into another residential neighborhood before hitting a nice downhill finish. Though I have run this race and this hill before, the uphill today took its toll and it was tough getting up the hill with the colder air entering the lungs on each breath in.

Overall, not a bad day of running at Walter’s Run with a finishing time of 24:24 or 7:52/miles. Thanks to all the Thirsty Irish Runners for making it another great year of Grand Prix racing!

Register Today for the Hogeye Marathon

ImageThe Running Griffin is proud to be partnering with the team from Hogeye Marathon and is happy to announce discounted race entries for readers of The Running Griffin.

The Hogeye Marathon, Half-Marathon, Relay and 5K will be held on March 30, 2014 in Fayeteville, Arkansas. This year will be the 38th running of the Hogeye.

The Hogeye Marathon & Relays, Inc. is a non-profit organization. The event is put on by volunteers and has always had the mission to give back to the NW Arkansas community, while promoting healthy lifestyles through running.  In 1977, the first marathon started at the University of Arkansas and went to the small town of Hogeye where it turned around and came back, making the 26.2 miles. The course has since been changed to be more runner-friendly and covers the most scenic parts of Fayetteville. The Hogeye has a reputation and gives participants a pride which is unmatched in Arkansas and beyond.

 

The marathon begins off the Fayetteville Square and continues through several historic scenic areas of the city. It promises to be scenic as well as safe, thanks to help from the Fayetteville Police, University Police and the Washington County Sheriff’s Department. Water and aid stations will be located throughout the course. Maps will be available at the packet pick-up, or here on the website.  The marathon will start at 7:30 a.m. on Sunday, March 30, 2014. The race will begin on the Fayetteville square and finish in the Entertainment District. Timing will end 6.5 hours from the start. Participants may start early if this is not adequate time. There will be one early start at 6:30 a.m.  Keep in mind you must know the course as it will be unsupported until 7:30. The 26.2 mile run is open to male and female participants 15 years of age and older. All participants under the age of 18 must have parent/guardian’s signature. No one under the age of 15 will be allowed to participate in the Full Marathon.  Runners may participate as part of a 4-person relay team for additional fees.

To register for the Hogeye Marathon or Half-Marathon, please click here. The Running Griffin readers can enter code MTENOFF to receive 10% off the marathon race entry or HTENOFF to receive 10% off the half-marathon entry fee.

Be sure to also “Like” The Hogeye Marathon on Facebook by clicking here and follow them on Twitter @HogeyeMarathon.

ProDermix Joins The Running Griffin

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The Running Griffin would like to welcome our newest sponsor ProDermix! As runners, we all know that athlete’s foot is a risk we take on every time we lace up our sneakers at a race or hit the showers at the gym after a day of training. The good news is that thanks to ProDermix runners need not worry about burning sprays or gooey pastes to help to try and eliminate athlete’s foot and other runner ailments such as toenail fungus.

ProDermix® is a safe, effective and powerful probiotic supplement that exceeds other probiotics in numbers of ways thanks to its advanced formula — which addresses symptoms from head to foot. This superior probiotic supplement brings results:

  • Eliminate athlete’s foot
  • Eliminate dandruff
  • Relieve yeast infections
  • Acne relief
  • Eradicate UTIs
  • And much more!

The term “probiotic” relates to the healthy, friendly bacteria in your digestive tract that you want to multiply in your gastro-intestinal tract for the well-being of your health. Everyone wants these friendly bacteria to remain alive and healthy and to multiply, hence the term “PROBIOTIC.”

I have been taking ProDermix’s Supreme product for the past month and can attest to the fact that skin health certainly is better and the fact that merely taking capsules with water and food makes the process easier than anything else on the market. This formula contains four very potent probiotic strains including L Rhamnosus and L Acidopnilus. Supreme supports your skin health, colon health and helps to fight against Candida. This formula is great for probiotic maintenance.

For more information about ProDermix, check out their website by clicking here. If you are a runner suffering from athlete’s foot or toenail fungus, throw away the sprays and cremes and use ProDermix today!

Cause for Paws 5K

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Pictured here are local politicians Margaret Laforest, Rep. Bruce J. Ayers, Rep. Tackey Chan, Fox 25 morning
anchor Sorboni Banerjee & Bourne Officer Lee Desrosiers with Quincy Animal Shelter Alum, Bourne K9 Officer, Dutch!

Hey there readers! It is Mrs. Running Griffin checking in with a race recap of the Cause for Paws 5K. As many of you know, The Running Griffin ended up in a walking boot after the Hartford Marathon therefore it was up to me to run the previously scheduled Cause for Paws 5K.

The race started in beautiful Marina Bay in Quincy.  Before the race started most of the parking lot was filled with dogs and cats with everyone’s pets dressed up in their Halloween costumes.  The race started in Marina Bay and went out of the residential complex and into the Squantum Point section of Quincy.  For the most part the race was relatively flat with a couple of rolling hills mixed into the course. The weather was probably the most difficult part of the race as there was substantial winds rolling off the Atlantic harbor that morning which certainly added an autumn feel to the race and made the post-race latte all the better!

The race benefited the Quincy Animal Shelter.  The race raised $27,000 for the Quincy Animal Shelter.  For more information about the work the Quincy Animal Shelter does, please visit their website by clicking here.

I finished the race with a time of 31:04, which is good for 10:01 per mile.

Athletes Go Pink and Green for Breast Cancer Awareness Month

ImageOctober is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and athletes across the country are doing their part to raise awareness. The Detroit Red Wings goalie, Jimmy Howard recently wore pink goalie pads during their game against the Philadelphia Flyers and the Seattle Sounders soccer team wore pink T-shirts during their Vancouver Whitecaps game. Meaningful as these efforts are, a staggering $6 billion is still being spent every year on breast cancer research with no medical cure in sight.  Is it possible we are looking in the wrong place? ENERGYbits® thinks so.

Research has consistently shown that eating green, alkaline foods prevents breast cancer 82% of the time. The only problem is most people don’t like greens.  So, ENERGYbits® has come up with a solution. They sell tiny spirulina algae tablets called “bits” that you swallow to get all the alkaline and green nutrition you need.

The scientific community has long known about the healing and cancer preventing powers of green, alkaline foods, as the following excerpt from The European Journal of Cancer illustrates “not only did a high vegetable consumption reduce the risk of breast cancer by 75 percent but micronutrients like beta carotene reduce the risk of breast cancer by 82 percent.”

With cancer rates not slowing down, and with not enough people eating vegetables, ENERGYbits® decided to take a different approach. Four years ago they launched a line of algae tabs to replace anyone’s need to eat greens. Parents and children have been rejoicing ever since over this remarkably simple solution. Just swallow and go.

The nutritional evidence is compelling. Algae has more chlorophyll than wheat grass, more beta carotene than carrots, more iron than spinach and more protein than steak. It also has over 60% protein, Omega 3 and forty vitamins and minerals. In fact, algae’s nutritional pedigree is so deep, there are 100,000 studies documenting its health benefits including its ability to improve mental focus, increase endurance, fuel athletic performance, reduce breast cancer and more. Just as impressive, algae helps reduce hunger, fatigue, blood pressure, depression, obesity and type 2 diabetes all without caffeine, sugar, gluten or drugs. All for one calorie per tab. Olympic athletes and NASA astronauts have used algae for decades. In Japan, where they take it every day, there are 75% fewer incidences of breast cancer. Could it be the algae? ENERGYbits® thinks so.

With all of this scientific evidence and fifty years of use to back up its safety, the only problem with algae seems to be that no one outside of Asia knows about it or its health benefits. ENERGYbits® decided to change that. It’s taken four years to build their momentum but they have finally succeeded in making algae fun, easy to understand and easy to take. The results are encouraging. All across the USA and Canada, women, children, families and pro athletes from the Olympics, NFL, NHL, marathons and other sports are seeing their health, mood and energy improve naturally, all thanks to their algae. ENERGYbits® goal is to have everyone taking algae. A lofty vision indeed. But the stakes are high. There are over 200,000 cases of breast cancer being reported every year, and if 82% of them can be prevented with green nutrition like algae, 164,000 lives could potentially be saved every year. Not to mention significant improvements in one’s quality of life.

Unlikely as it seems, could something as natural and simple as algae be the breast cancer cure we’ve been waiting for? ENERGYbits® thinks so. Algae makes health possible. ENERGYbits® makes it easy.

During the month of October, in support of Breast Cancer Awareness month, visit www.energybits.com and enter discount code “pink” to receive a 25% discount off your purchase. Your body says thank you.