Sarah Borst Jarvis

No. Although tempting, I will not name my next daughter Eve Altra. I just wanted to show you my new favorite shoes . I fell in love with them back in February, when I saw them on Leslie's feet. Right away I knew I needed a pair. But they were not for sale yet. Leslie just happens to be married to one of the founders of Altra . How convenient! I was hoping to get my hands on a pair by Christmas but Karl surprised me with a pair of Eves on my birthday! Yay! I am not a minimalist runner. I do have some shoes that are zeroed-out and a pair of Intuitions but I only wear them on rather short runs. I like the idea but I am very cautious and not a fan of change. Some day... Maybe... I love to wear my Eves to the gym . Boot camp, plyometrics, weight training, core synergistics, body sculpt, elliptical... Pretty much everything but cycling and running. I hate socks and shoes. In the spring/summer/fall I wear flip flops , in the winter I wear cozy boots without socks. To the gym I wea

Well, clearly not the head or hand position John would like to see. Just a little 'photo shoot' though, so I hope in 'real life' I can do better than that. Flip turns have never been my forte. Ok. I'll admit: The whole swimming thing is not my forte these days. It never has been. Why not? My form sucks. I get cold. Chatting with friends is impossible. Chlorine gives me a headache. The scenery leaves much to be desired. As I have mentioned before, I grew up swimming. Hard to believe. I joined the local German swim club when I was 6 and swam a few times a week until I was 12. Then I was banned from the pool for a year because of health issues. I think that is when the trouble began. My younger sister had always been a fish and that year she got really good and I've been chasing her ever since. She maybe swims once a week these days but I am positive that she could still out-swim me any day. Who wants to get beat by her younger sister as a teenager? Not me!

It is October ! My favorite month is filled with fun : my birthday, colorful leaves, clear blue skies, Noah's birthday, perfect temperatures, fantastic bike rides, trail runs, pumpkins, fall festivals, and Halloween! Not knowing what to make for dinner last night, I decided to make desert instead. Healthy desert, of course. And since it is October, it had to involve pureed pumpkin . I decided on pumpkin cobbler - without the crust. It was taking way too long in the oven, so... I decided to go swimming . The boys went to Karate . I took a long hot shower. Saw my friend, Jennifer, at the pool. We talked for like an hour. By the time I got home, the kids were asleep and I was starving ! So I skipped dinner (not always a fan of leftovers) and had pumpkin cobbler with banana and yogurt. Repeat once. Repeat twice. Yumminess ! Guess what I had for breakfast this morning? More pumpkin cobbler, banana, and yogurt! Because - why not? Then I hopped on my bike for another shot at trying-

In the picture above I am about to take a yummy treat out of my bento box. Hurray for good nutrition ! I realize that just because I did not have any issues in Vegas does not mean this is always going to work. But for now I have it somewhat figured out and so I want to write it down and remember for next season. And maybe give you some ideas. Only problem: I am already forgetting ... I shouldn't have postponed this post for so long... Starting on Thursday, I put even more emphasis on staying hydrated . In addition to drinking plain water, I took a couple of electrolyte capsules a day. Not a fan of taking pills but I do as Coach says. I prefer MetaSalt because each pill is loaded with the good stuff and that means less pill-swallowing for me. I also loaded up on electrolyte tablets . Can't have enough of those. Drinking plain water gets old sometimes and I like to spice up my drink with these little fizzies. I would drink a bottle of plain water, then reward myself with a bottl

... a Mint/Chocolate GU ! I am in the processing of writing my nutrition report for the Vegas 70.3 ... What? Another post on that race? A month later? ... I know. I know. But nutrition is a big deal and I want to get it right next time. And who knows? Maybe it will help someone else out there. Now I can't stop thinking about my favorite training and racing treat . Looks like I will need to go on a long run tomorrow, so I can get my mint/chocolate fix!

I realize that my arms don't look all that strong. But it seems that they are in decent shape . Well, they're not. Not at all. Turns out that they are pathetic little wimps . I guess I should not be too surprise since I hardly do any weight training , especially during racing season. I do a lot of core and quite a few exercises with my own body weight but I am not a fan of weights. Part of the problem is that I know nothing about weight training. I own a pair of 5-pound what-are-those-these-things-called*. Come to think of it: I don't even own them. I have been borrowing them from a friend for the last few years. Thanks, Jen! * "Karl, what are the weights called that we have in the closet?" "Aehm. Dumbbells. I think. Not sure." Clearly my bike mechanic isn't of much help in this department. After Vegas, I started going to a ' body sculpt ' class at the Y. I went last winter and it's super fun. Everything with loud dance music is

The Soulstice Trail Race , it seems to me, is the most popular race in town. Unfortunately, I have no opinion on this matter. I was not racing. Karl was the lucky one this weekend! (After someone offered me their slot , I considered jumping into the race as well. For fun. But it was going to be complicated with the boys. I don't like 'complicated' in my off-season. So I declined.) See Karl in this picture? Nice move , Karl! He did not hear the gun go off, and the start took him by surprise . Nevertheless, he quickly moved into 3rd position and with 1/2 a mile to go, pushed hard and overtook 2nd . Congrats , on a fantastic 2nd place! It looks to me like his ' minimal training ' approach, is working well for Karl. (Read: Thank you, Karl, for your support!) Unfortunately, he took a bad spill at the beginning of the race. Lots of trail rash and a banged-up knee. Thanks for braving our Sunday hike anyway. We wish you speedy recovery ! PS: Excuse me. Gotta go. Max (3)

Photo: Jamie Pearson A few days after the race, I was getting ready to jump in the water for Masters, when a friend asked me about the race. Our conversation went something like this: She: "How was your race?" Me: "It was great! Super fun !" She: "I heard you did really well." Me: "Yeah. Everything just came together and it went perfectly ." Coach Liz chiming in: "Except for the swim..." Me, laughing: "Yes. Except for the swim . And a billion other little things..." She: "But you just felt good the entire time and it did not hurt?" Me: "Aehm. No. I was in a world of pain for at least half of the race." So I guess a perfect race is relative. I feel like Vegas was as close to a perfect race as I could've hoped for. That does not mean that there is not a lot of room for improvement or that every little detail went smooth. To me, it means that the most important things fell into place, that my mind w

Crush it in Kona, Spencer ! I have had a cold for the last 2 weeks and now I have a nasty stomach bug . Not fun! The cold hasn't kept me from being active and having fun. But after being awake most of the night throwing up, I have zero energy and exercise is the last thing on my mind. I am glad I was able to get dressed. I don't enjoy being sick (who does?!?) but I am so grateful the bugs did not hit last month! Making it to Vegas happy and healthy was a huge blessing ! So, I am not complaining... Hope everybody that is still racing, especially those toeing the line in Kona, is healthy and ready to rip it up!

I have about 20 other things I want to blog about, but this takes priority today: The guy in yellow/white/black is my coach, Heath Thurston . He was running the St. George Marathon today and was on his way to a speedy PR . When Heath was only a few seconds away from the finish, he saw a guy in front of him falter and collapse . He did not think twice but stopped, picked up the other runner, and helped him across the finish line. I am so impressed . By Heath's PR of 2:53 as well as by his great example! Way to make us proud, Coach! You are my hero ! I am hoping he will tell us his story here soon.