Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Winter Warrior!!


Well, our second year of Winter Warrior has come and gone. Basically, this has been our way to put a bit of a competitive spin (in a very, very informal way) into getting your workouts in. We have 2 yoga classes per week (Wednesday and Sunday nights), 1 strength training class (Monday nights), and one group run (Wednesday nights). Every workout you come to, you obtain points and these points get you some free stuff. It starts with $5.00 gift certificates, moves to our "Winter Warrior" shirt, and the TRUE winter Warrior gets a pair of shoes from Brooks!
Well, a few days before the program began, Lenora James came in and said she was going to win the contest. She claimed that she would come to every single workout. And, by gosh, she did. She did it her own way. On her quest to lose weight, she would usually head out before the rest of us left for our run and by the end of the program, she was usually out the longest (you better not have been at a coffee shop, Lenora!!! :)
And, although, she had aches and pains from her new athletic lifestyle, she would do what she could in all of the classes and what she couldn't do, she observed, and would put to use later!
The best news was when she told me last week that she had lost 25 pounds! Holy Moly! She is now able to fit into jackets and clothing that she hasn't been able to get into for years. Very cool.
Coming in 2nd place, was our store mascot, Laura Kantor. As always, her "can do" attitude and her accomplishments are the stuff books are written about and she inspires me daily with her work ethic and her "trueness" (is that a word, Laura??) to herself and her goals. Laura recently ran a tough and muddy 50K. This coming from a woman who has lost over 125 pounds in the last few years. Such an inspiration.
So, cheers to all of you who came down, got the workouts in and kept us company during the quieter months of winter running!
We're all excited that spring is creeping in and the hibernating runners have been wiping their eyes and emerging in the shop again. We're happy to see you.
So, congrats to Lenora and all the Winter Warriors who were able to keep the flame burning brightly this winter.