Men's Health Urbanathlon: CHICAGO!!!!!

Hi, Chicago. I think you're pretty great.

I flew in to Chicago this morning to compete in the Men's Health Urbanathlon tomorrow with Nike Field Reporter. I was so excited to finally be in the windy city! Argo Tea across from my hotel drew me across the street before I could even check in. Luggage in tow, I exclaimed to the barista that this was the very first place I ever visited in Chicago! And then I realized he didn't care. :-P

With my Chicago-made soy pumpkin chai in hand I took about 40 minutes to explore the city.

After some exploring I met up with the rest of my relay team to head to packet pick-up!

Meet Gina. She's my spunky new friend and another relay team member!

Be sure to check back tomorrow for the recap from this fun race! Nine miles of running and tons of obstacles... should be fun!

Do you get nervous before races?

Healthy Spirits:New Arrivals

1. Duvel Tripel Hop

2. Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA is back!

3. Dogfish Head Chateau Jihau

4. Biere Trois Dames "Bise Noire" (Swiss Imperial Stout)

cheers,

dave hauslein

beer manager

415-255-0610

Men's Health Urbanathlon: Getting Ready!

Today is what I call a fun day. The morning began with a Panera breakfast with the lovely Gina. I enjoyed a whole grain bagel with peanut butter and a soy chai. What a treat!

Afterward I played fashion show picking out my outfits for my trip to Chicago to compete in the Men's Health Urbanathlon with Nike Women's NFR. I fly out in the morning!

I planned a long swim workout today, but I am so sore from my parkour session the other night that I'm not sure I can pull it off! I would have never thought such short (but intense) bursts of movement could make me so sore! Now I'm extra interested to see how the Urbanathlon leaves me feeling.

Tomorrow I will post from CHICAGO!!

Do you buy new clothes to race in or do you use your regular training gear?

Men's Health Urbanathlon: Midnight Parkour

Last night I met about 15 guys in a dark park behind my favorite coffee shop at 11:30 p.m. Sounds safe, right? :-P

I came out for some last minute parkour training before the obstacle-ridden Men's Health Urbanathlon I am competing in this weekend with Nike Women's NFR. You can check out the list of obstacles here.

Never heard of parkour? Here's a great description:

"Parkour is considered by some to be a way of thinking, a way of training and a method by which to develop one's spirit and inner strength through movement, as taught by the founders in France. The philosophy is considered a main part of Parkour. The main point in the philosophy of parkour is to understand that parkour is not just a sport. It is not just completing a list of moves or vaults. Parkour is a way of thinking and training. It helps you get from A to B as quickly and efficiently as possible. The vaults and jumps used are only by-products of this way of thinking."

I've done a lot of things to sweat, but I went into this late-night parkour meetup with little more than an open mind. We ran about half a mile to the park and then stood in a circle doing basic warm-up stretches. Then we ran in a circle- regular, backwards and sideways! Interesting warm-up, right?

My iPhone's camera doesn't love the dark, so please excuse my choppy photos. Hopefully you can at least get an idea of some of the things we did! In the photos above I was jumping on a huge tire standing upward. The idea was to run, dive toward it, grab it with your arms and then bring your feet up and on through- getting over the tire without your feet ever touching it. I tried about 10 times- including a few falls and me planting my knee into the tire :-P

Another obstacle was vaulting. We'd run toward the obstacle, position our hands and leap over! I tried this many, many, many times and was thrilled when I got it. What was really holding me back was fear of hitting my legs as I pulled them over. Truth is that I had the strength and just needed to overcome that mental block!

When it got really scary was when we took the same vault that we did on the ground to this second-story railing! After about 10 minutes of hesitation and nervousness, I vaulted from the solid ground off the railing two times! I landed on the ground instead of the other side of the railing, but I was so proud to conquer that serious fear of heights.

Funny thing is that I didn't hurt myself during the stints, but I did fall down a set of stairs in the dark! My shins, knees and left forearm are bruised. Hardcore, right? ;-)

The rest are just shots of the other guys being crazy and climbing all over everything! The could scale a wall and jump up and over or down anything!

What workouts have you tried outside your normal routine?

Healthy Spirits: SEEDSTORE event!!!

My Life in 10 Years

I was debating posting this written vision of my life in 10 years online, but as friends on Twitter reminded me, posting it can only help it come true.

Inspired by lululemon's goal-setting culture and tools, here is how I see my life in 10 years:

It's a Sunday, my family's favorite day of the week. The kids push our bedroom open and tackle my husband and me in our big, white bed. The standard weekend morning tickle-fest has begun.

Somehow I escape from the giggling commotion as my feet hit the cool wood floor of our Portland, OR, home. I dance down the hallway, past the kids' bedrooms painted in bright blues and greens, to our spacious kitchen. I pull out the ingredients for vegan banana pancakes, my specialty, moments before six little feet followed by my handsome husband make their way to the kitchen counter.

We enjoy breakfast on our back porch, overlooking the beautiful Portland landscape with our dogs laying at our feet. Acoustic music plays through speakers in the background. The kids are all smiles as we discuss our annual vacation outside the country.

The kids' personalities shine through their colorful, mismatched clothing choices as we get ready for a family hike. We love spending time together outdoors. Date nights usually include my husband and me taking long bike rides through uncharted territory, but we are even happier when we include the whole family.

My husband grabs me by the waist and kisses the top of my head as we leave our red front door behind us. The kids run ahead, picking small flowers along the way.

We rush off to church service upon returning from our hike. Our faith is a priority and is discussed regularly, along with our goals and dreams and opinions. We are quite a talkative, expressive family.

After a quick stop at the farmer's market, the remainder of the afternoon is spent relaxing around the house. My husband chops fresh vegetables for dinner as we reminisce about how we first met eight years ago.

I work on my book and write articles from home, with most of my time dedicated to developing my family. I jot down notes of where the kids and I will travel throughout the upcoming week. I map out my workouts. My fifth Ironman is coming up soon!

I am content with life as it is. My family is my priority and love is the foundation.

Have you thought of where you see yourself in 10 years?

Healthy Spirits: The New Stuff

1. St. Feuillen Cuvee De Noel
2. Alaskan Winter Ale (brewed with spruce tips)
3. Alaskan Barleywine 2009
4. Marin Old Dipsea Barleywine
5. Sudwerk Fest Marzen
6. Lion Stout 6 packs (awesome Sri Lanka imperial stout in cans for just $8.99!)
7. Lost Abbey Inferno
8. Glazen Toren Canaster Winterscotch Ale
9.Malheur Brut Reserve
10.Port Brewing Santa's Little Helper Bourbon Barrel Aged Version
11.Hitachino Nest Ginger
12. Hitachino Nest Espresso Stout
13. De Dolle Oerbier Riserva 2009 (very limited quantities. I only got a little bit this time, trying to get more for the next order.)

NEW GLASSWARE FROM
-Kwak
-Lucifer
-Tripel Karmeliet
-Samichlaus
-Delerium Noel
-St. Bernardus (2 varieties!)
-Weihenstephaner 2 Liter Boot. DAS BOOT!!!

Drink.

dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610

Can You Do It?

Fear comes in many forms. It could be an interview for a better job, a move to a new city or a big, scary athletic endeavor. Regardless, fear, and the act of facing it, keeps us alive.

My two fears of choice at the moment are the Men's Health Urbanathlon I am doing with Nike Field Reporter and the Great Floridian, an Ironman-distance triathlon. Both events push me to conquer obstacles and distances I've never attempted before.

Making it across concrete balance beams without falling off, getting over giant tire obstacles, crawling under nets, leaping over Marine hurdles?

Swimming 2.4 miles, biking 112 miles... and then finishing it off with a full marathon? Ummmm.

These things have kept me up at night. I've had negative self-talk telling myself that there are so many others who can swim/bike/run faster and better than me. I'm unprepared. What workouts I need to do, for how long and how often have stressed me out until I came to a specific realization in the middle of a long run.

I train. I'm dedicated. I believe in myself. So what's the hold up?

It all boiled down to one question: At the end of the day, do I believe I can do this?

Even if my training is less than it can be, even if I miss a run or forget to cover an obstacle, do I believe I have what it takes to finish and conquer the fear?

After long, hard thinking I realized, yes- I know I will finish both events and do my absolute best from start to finish.

Realizing this truth gave me the confidence I needed to relax and embrace my training. I'm going on crazy long runs and bike rides and planning a few parkour classes because it is the territory that comes with such events, but even if I don't do it perfectly, and even if I come in last on race day, deep down I know I will conquer.

What fears are you facing? Have you put complete trust in your ability to conquer them?

Healthy Spirits: New Arrivals

HOLY CRAP!
Today is a good day to work in a beer store. Here's the latest.

1. 1809 Berliner Weisse
2 BFM Abbaye De Saint Bon Chien 2009(we now have a 3 year vertical (07/08/09))
3. BFM Cuvee Alex Le Rouge
4. Birrificio Barley BB10
5. De Dolle Oerbier (one of my all time favorites)
6. De Dolle Dulle Teve
7. De Dolle Extra Export Stout
8. De Dolle Arabier
9. Hanssens Oudbeitje Strawberry Lambic
10.Hanssens Kriek
11. Hanssens Experimental Cassis
12. Hanssens Experimental Raspberry
13. Guinness Foreign Extra Stout (Give it a chance! It's like no other Guinness you've ever tried)
14. Lagunitas Little Sumpin' Wild (Brewed with Westmalle Yeast)
15. Russian River Glassware

Tomorrow I am expecting lots of new glassware, so check us out!

cheers,

dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610

Nike Women and Men's Health Urbanathlon!

Boy do I have exciting news! Nike Women is sending me to Chicago to participate in the Men's Health Urbanathlon this October 16th!!! Be sureto check out the Nike Women Facebook page- I may pop up there!

The Urbanathlon should be a real challenge from the kinds of races I am used to. It seems to be a run course with a ton of challenging obstacles. Their suggested training plan includes a lot of strength and parkour. Obviously I'll be including new things in my training as I've focused on running, biking, swimming and yoga.

I'm so excited for this opportunity. Check out the race website and tune back here for updates on my training. It's going to be a fun journey! Thanks Nike Women!

That is the fun thing I am looking forward to. My birthday is the fun thing that just passed! It was such a perfect weekend I thought I'd share some photos from it!

Saturday my family came to my side of town and took me out to my favorite vegan restaurant, Ethos Vegan Kitchen. Apparently they loved it so much last time they had it that they actually demanded we all go there again!

I have no problem eating my own vegan dishes while my family eats meat and dairy, but it did make my day to have my loved ones be so open minded and give they way I eat an honest try. And the fact that they loved it was even better!

Saturday got even better with my Little Black Dress Birthday Party that night!

Again, everything was vegan! It wasn't my initial requirement to be vegan, but my thought process was, "if we need items with animal products, we'll buy them." Turns out you can have a delicious and filling party spread and still be vegan!

Among the salsas, hummus and other mixtures I made an out-of-this-world bean dip with daiya vegan cheese. Everyone ate this baby up! I simply mixed refried beans with corn and spices, tons of salsa, daiya and black olives. YUM!

Thanks to my friends Cliff and Diana for making me a Peas and Thank You vegan carrot cake from scratch! It was tons of work... and all the hard work paid off. This baby was GOOD!

Recognize this beautiful blogger? :)

No party would be complete without an after-party at my favorite local coffeehouse, Austin's. I'm there almost every night so it makes sense that we brought my birthday party there!

In our little black dresses and party favors we played a civilized game of pin the tail on the donkey :)

Have you tried parkour or any kind of obstacle training? Any tips for me?

Healthy Spirits: New Arrivals

1. Black Diamond Rampage Imperial IPA
2. Avery Dugana IPA
3. Oskar Blues GUBNA
4. St. Feuillen Saison is back!
5. Shipyard Signature Series "Smashed Pumpkin"
6. Gouden Carolus Noel
7. St. Peter's Winter Ale

cheers,

dave hauslein
beer manager
415-255-0610