This week I was able to run just twice. Wednesday run was fast and hilly. We ran 7k but most of it was up hill. I guess that my body is still getting used to running after a month off, and that is why, by the end of the run, I felt a strong pull in my inner leg muscle. I was able to finish the run but it hurt really badly. That night I got home, iced it and then put a sports balm on it. I was supposed to run on Thursday but I could still feel the pull so I decided to go to hot yoga instead. I believe this helped. Today we ran 15k with two long hills (one of them was about 2k). Running up hill is part of the training since the Fort Langley Half is famous for having lots of hills. Every time we finish a run we stretch. Today I took a picture of my running group. The guy in the middle is Ron. He is our instructor and our love. We were so lucky to find such a dedicated person to lead us in our runs. We all love him and are very grateful for having him running with us. From left to right they are: Andy, Brook, Laura, Ron, Me (Adriana), Melanie and Oliver. My animal lover note: Last Friday my husband and I went to a fundraiser dinner at 3G Vegetarian for Liberation BC. 3G Vegetarian is a vegan restaurant located on 3424 Cambie St, Vancouver, BC. Their food is amazing! And I was very pleased to see how packed of people it was. Since it was really full, we luckily had to share a table with Joanne and Glenn. They are the owners of Nice Shoes; a vegan shoe store located on Fraser Street & 19th Avenue. I had not met a couple that was so similar to us in so many ways. We had an amazing two hours of great talk and food. By the way, Liberation BC is a Vancouver based organization that works on exposing animal exploitation and promotes a vegan lifestyle.

I had a hernia surgery on December 19th. Because of this I had to take a month off of my running. I ran 6k last Thursday for the first time in a month, and it felt so good, like coming back home. I also felt that the run put everything back in place. Today, Sunday, we ran 13k. My running friends were supposed to run 18k but they decided to join me in my 13k run. That is what I call team support. I love them. I do. In today’s run we had two very steep hills. Oh, I felt the month off running up hill! And I am sore! From now on, and until the race, I will be running three times a week: Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Next Sunday I will have to jump to 18k. It is the only way I can get back into track and ready for my first race on February 17th. I just have a month to get ready. My animal lover note: while I run and enjoy the outdoors, there are some brave friends back in Colombia fighting against bullfights. Yesterday, one more bull died for the “sake of art”. It is still hard to understand how someone enjoys watching an animal being tortured and killed. Isn’t that sick?

What This is all About

One of my favourite pleasures in life is running. There is nothing better than grabbing my IPod and my dog and heading out for a run. Or driving to the Running Room to meet my running friends and going for long, therapeutic runs, in which we have time to share everything about our daily lives: from the clothes that we got during the weekend, to our favourite, well recommended books. Last running clinic we almost had a book club on Fifty Shades of Gray. All of the 6 women of the group had read it, so we spent running hours discussing every single chapter, while the two only men listened “distractedly”, as if they did not care, but never ran too far away from us either. Last year I ran two half marathon races: ScottiaBank and Vancouver Historic Half. This year my goal is to run five half marathon races: Fort Langley Half, BMO, ScottiaBank, Burnaby Lake and Vancouver Historic Half. But this time I want to add an extra ingredient to my running and my racing. I want running to be more meaningful and special. I want it to become a great excuse to spread the love for animals that I have. I am an animal advocate. I have been vegetarian for 15 years and vegan for 9. I have rescued stray dogs (my two dogs being some of them); I have fought against bullfighting and irresponsible breeding. I believe that animals are our younger siblings, so it is our responsibility to take care of them as we would do with our human family.

To be able to put these two passions together, I decided to join “PETA PACK”. This is a group of runners that use their running as a way to advocate for animals through fundraising. If you feel like supporting my cause (which means I will love you forever!), I have opened a fundraiser donations account at http://www.crowdrise.com/theokirunner in which you can directly deposit the money. All the money that you put in there will go directly to PETA. I will also be selling some delicious vegan muffins and vegan cookies (that some of you have already tried). I will be making beautiful crochet scarfs and I will host a couple of exquisite vegan dinners. I really hope you join me on this cause. You have a whole year to let your heart melt for the animal cause. No one can speak for them but us. We are their voice, so please, let’s use it.