our 2007 Class* They'll be a tough group to follow...but I expect they'll come out and help the new class along its way!

*Photo credits Vanessa Boyd

at Eagle Lake. Super presentation by Shannon on nutrition complete with some tasty zuchinni muffins after class to reinforce her points...and some birthday cupcakes for Kasch.

Denise hung tough throughout the workout and everyone else also seemed to be making progress out along the east side of Eagle. Good to see Shelly and Heather there today helping out. Three new students..including one more recruited by Amanda!

Hope some First Strides students will register and post right here!

Today's class was fun, and the muffins and cupcakes were a treat! Can we get the recipes for those?

I was told that the side of Eagle Lake that we ran on today is considered the "flat" side... it seemed like a hill to me, though. It was nice to find out that 2 of my classmates are from Ellsworth too!

Looking forward to next week, seems like we'll be running through the raindrops this weekend :)
~Diane

With help from 2 very nice gentlemen, one on each side of me!! Thanks, guys! I probably could have pushed myself a little more, but I really wanted to be able to walk tomorrow! Thanks to everyone for their words of encouragement. Here's to a great week!

Let's see if I can get this right. The first time I posted-it went somewhere else!

Ran this morning (6:30) with Roxie and Melanie. Barb joined us for the first 5 minutes. We ran for 10-12-15-10 minutes at Eagle Lake. We ran from the intersection just beyond the bridge to the intersection of Bubble Pond-it's a total of 2.1 miles or 4.2 miles total ( think) with a little more to get the time in. We walked in between our runs. Warm up was a 10min. walk with a 5 minute cool down and stretch. It was tough running up the hill-but took it slow. It was humid this morning.
Next run planned for Monday after the faculty meeting at Eagle Lake (4:15-4:30ish).
Jeanne

I am not an early riser. Got out around 8:30 and ran 40min at Woodlawn. It was TOUGH... maybe a grade C. The fog/mist made it harder to breathe, and I tripped and whacked my knee pretty good on a root. I'm icing it as I write this. I also did some warmup/cooldown walking and a post run stretch.

Yesterday at Woodlawn in Ellsworth. There were places where the trail was completely covered with standing (or rushing) water. I'm going to need to start getting up in the morning to run. Anyone on the other side of the bridge interested in meeting in the morning this week?

I will not be able to make it to class on Wednesday, I have to work, unfortunately. I'm sorry to miss it!
~Diane

Amanda and I ran this afternoon, 4:30ish. Ran for 10mins.-24mins 30 sec-11 mins. The longest segment I've ever run! It was an easy day-cool breeze, low humidity. Perfect day for running. Much better than last Saturday morning, much easier.
Warm up 10 min walk.
Cool down walking and stretches.

Hope you are feeling better Roxie. Sorry you couldn't join us!

Also present were Katie and Lynda M.. Saw Barb at the end.

I ran with Katie this afternoon. We did 10 cycles of 3 minutes (mostly). It was a beautiful afternoon. We even saw all of the Emerson x-country team going the other direction.
Good run but I am a little sore this evening.

Sounds like you're all really doing well and having fun! The support that you all are giving each other is wonderful!

Many thanks to Amanda for her presentation on Goal Setting and Keeping Motivated. She emphasized that as this process continues we'll all find our own important reasons for continuing to run. Very well said..and demonstrated. It was great to have Julie P. join the class today and to have lots of volunteers out running with the group along the Eagle shore.

Fleet Feet Incorporated has generously offered to provide our class members and coaches with "tech" running shirts. They offer a program similar to First Strides through their stores across the nation. It's called No Boundaries. Tell your friends to look for it in their home markets. Our thanks to Tom Raynor and the Fleet Feet organization.

Roxie and I ran Friday afternoon afterschool at Eagle Lake-in the wind and rain!
Also Amanda, Sarah, and Katie were there running.
We ran 2 x 12 minutes with a 1 minute walk in between. Warm up-10 minute walk, cool down 5 minute walk. Stretching at home. Felt good.

Ran with Roxie today-nice breeze! Humidity was lower at 5:30 pm.-thankfully!
Ran 11-12-7-12 minutes today at Eagle Lake, with 1 to 2 minute walks in between. Warm up 10 minute walk. Cool down walk of 5+ minutes. Stretching at home.
Saw Amanda and Katie along the way.

Very informative talk this afternoon by Dr. Dave on a variety of issues related to trying to find the balance between stressing the body enough to improve fitness, without developing injuries that will interrupt this process. Thanks, Dr. Dave!

Lots of progress being made out there along east Eagle. I caught up with Melissa and Sarah as they were heading in. Both managed to run at a steady pace for 25 minutes. Good work!

And Zoe and Adria rescued my water bottle!

I ran all the way around Witch Hole today without stopping. Definitely an "A" run today. I didn't even huff and puff.
Lynda

The group enjoyed Mary Dudzik's presentation on the many health benefits of running and the importance of making a regular exercise program a priority - no excuses! We then headed out for 28 minutes of run/recovery cycles along the east side of Eagle Lake. Next week -Core Strength for Runners. Come join us!

Some good running along East Eagle including a few breakthrough runs. Go Rochelle! Many thanks to our volunteers tonight - John M. stopped by to see what it was all about, Mark, Shannon, Missy, Amanda, Bob, Vanessa, and Don B. You all bring lots of energy to the program. Amanda offered us the use of her First Grade classroom for Judson's core routine presentation. This worked out great and allowed us to get out of the rain. Judson did a super job taking the group through a challenging routine. Fortunately we were in a classroom where careful counting is rewarded!

It was nice to be back with the first strides crew tonight, my run felt great! Maybe I'll bring my headlamp next time : )

Julie, I'm still waiting for that cupcake recipe... and Shannon's muffin recipe too!
~Diane

I'm back from my trip, and still struggling getting a run in before work in the morning. Let me know if you'd like to get together sometime for a morning run (6:30ish) on this side of the bridge.
~Diane

Robin Emery and Don Bell both gave very inspiring presentations tonight on what they have learned over their decades of running. Robin was then kind enough to stick around and head out with us along East Eagle for the workout. Thank you Robin and Don! I believe everyone covered between 2.7 and 3.2 miles tonight. Good work! It was dark by the time we all collected back at the bridge for the stretching routine. Next week we're meeting a little earlier and getting right in to the workout. (5:15 P.M.) Vanessa will be leading an advanced stretching/yoga workshop after the run. Come join us!

How's everyone's running going this week? I had a great sunset run yesterday at Woodlawn, definitely an A. The evening before, I had a crappy run at the Ellsworth track. I really don't enjoy running on the track, and it was tough to keep going.

I saw Sabrina (and her mom?) running Friday afternoon on the Christian Ridge Rd. Anyone on this side of the bridge want to run this week?

See you all Wednesday! Happy trails...
~Diane

I just ran the "flat 4" this afternoon without stopping this time! It took me about 40-45 minutes, I wish I had taken a watch with me. Oh well, but definitely an A run. It felt great to get out there after a little break from being away over the long weekend (and after straining my achilles... ouch!). See you all tomorrow!

Glad to hear you had a successful run along East Eagle and that your achilles is feeling better. Hope you'll ice it some tonight while cheering the Red Sox on to victory.

An early start this afternoon and some impressive runs along East Eagle. A few folks who are nursing colds came out to walk along the lake with us. Everyone else ran at least three miles. Sarah, Missy and Barb ran before class started and logged impressive efforts. Sarah and Missy ran to Sign Post 8 and back in 56 minutes while Barb ran along East Eagle for 38:30. Bob took Peter to sign post 7 and back. I call that 4.2 You all are really making progress! After the workout we reconvened at the Conners-Emerson gym (home of the Champion Tigers!) for a yogo workshop gracefully led by Vanessa Boyd. Thank you Vanessa!

We had the honor of presenting Lynda M., Diane K., Katie D., and Peter V. with their First Strides Class of 2008 shirts this morning. The group then did an out and back on East Eagle for a total of three plus miles. They all managed to do a fairly good job of maintaining an even pace over this run. We then stretched a bit and Bob B. sketched out a good plan for the group to follow next week right up to (and through) race time. Thank you Bob! I'll ask Bob to give this presentation again on Wednesday afternoon when we hope to see a few more of you.

It was great to have Don and Jean join us this morning before they head off to DC. Good luck at the Marine Corps Marathon, Don-Jean!

I love my spiffy new shirt... I've really enjoyed being a part of first strides and am looking forward to the rolling bones!
~Diane

A few more Class of 2008 shirts were awarded this afternoon to Rochelle S., Jeanne G., and Roxie B. Congratulations, Ladies! We then did a quick warm up walk and a short run along East Eagle. After the run we assembled in the Conners-Emerson gym and Katie D. did a wonderful job leading the group through a yoga session. Thank you Katie!

Look for our entire group at the Rolling Bones 5k on Saturday!

Thanks to all the volunteers, to the YMCA for the loan of their tables, Fleet Feet for our cool new shirts, Michael for our many special awards, and to Bonnie M. for her pumpkin muffins! (They all made it to the race this morning)

It was great to see all the First Strides class members coming down the final stretch to the finish - running under control and with the awareness that a 5k is now just a starting point. They are a great group and I look forward to seeing them all at more club events in the future.

Good to have some speedy Emerson X-C runners on the course today and to have Carlos K. representing the Mustangs of Mount Desert. The First Strides runners and the middle school harriers have one thing in common - a new found passion for running that is fueled by the knowledge that they've only just begun. Keep it going!

Will there be pictures posted online soon from First Strides? I know Vanessa took some shots of us all during practices, and got a couple group shots. Someone else was taking pictures at the 5k race too... will those be available to us at some point?

Also... will we be having one more class?

A good group showed up tonight for a little run, a yoga session at the gym, and a toast at Jack Russell's. We were joined by more class members as the evening progressed. It's great to see that the 2008 class members seem quite determined to keep running. I hope we'll see all of them out there! Thanks to Vanessa for leading the group through the full yoga session and to Amanda and Barb for allowing us access to the gym.