Give Thanks - Give Back

It's that time of year again.  Time to get back into the swing of the academic year and time to find ways to keep pushing to be healthy.  This challenge is not a competition challenge, instead it is a way to challenge all of you to push towards phsyical fitness and be a happy and healthy professional.  Added to this challenge is a little call to action.  This challenge goes from September 9 - Thanksgiving Day.  Set a goal to donate to your professional association of choice based upon your miles.  You name it - you can do $1/mile, you can give $100 if you hit a benchmark goal, you make the call!  Get it - on Thanksgiving Day we can give thanks by giving back.  Not only are we healthier, but we can also make our professional associations healthier by helping supply the funds to do the good work that they do. 

Once again this is a Nike+ based challenge but that shouldn't limit your ability to be active and to give back.  We can use Nike+ as a fun way to see what others are doing, but we also continue to motivate each other using the #SAFit hashtag.  YES - I think it's better to just keep it clean and use a standard tag for the overall concept of SA Pros working to be fit.  Years, seasons, dates, etc. just muddy it up when this is an ongoing process.  For this challenge we can use the add on tag of #gtgb - how about them bag of apples.

To keep it clean we'll go invite only again.  It's a bit more work for me, but it keeps all the random competition surfers from muddying up our fun little graphs!  Send an email to tbrouillard@pacific.edu or to torrybruce@gmail.com and include the email address attached to your Nike+ account (or email you want to use if you want and invite to Nike+).  Yes you will either need the shoe sensor or to use Nike+GPS. 

Here is to getting moving, giving thanks and giving back!

Torry!

100 Days of Summer #safit11

It's been a while since I've put a post on my Big Dude Runs blog, but nothing better to get back in the swing than a new challenge.  To support my colleagues, and harness a bit of the competative spirit, I've started the 100 Days of Summer Challenge.  In the past we've had open and findable challenges, that has allowed quite a few folks not working with the #safit11 hashtag to "infilitrate" our challenge.  To curb that I've made this challenge invite only.  If you want an invite to the challenge just email me at torrybruce@gmail.com with the email address you'd like the challenge link to be sent to. 

I'll log in and send you an invite as soon as I can.  The nice thing is that even if I send you an invite in mid-June the miles you've put on Nike+ beginning today will be added into the mix - it's nice that the system allows that method of back dating. 

So let the fun begin - I can't wait to start seeing emails flood in for the challenge!

HAPPY RUNNING!

@torrybruce

Sometimes you just have to brag

I hit a major milestone in my running this weekend.  On Saturday I eclipsed the 2000 mile mark since I got my nikeplus in January of 2008.  Now, one might think that since I've run so much I'd look like a runner - not quite.  But what I can say is that the joy I have found in running has given me a reason to continually seek to be healthy.  I fluctuate in my weight, but I keep coming back to a nice evening with my headphones, half marathon mix and favorite pair of nikes to get me in the zone for taking care of my self and my health.  So to brag I just wanted to show a snap shot of the Nike+ page - here's to 2000 more (and encouraging others to get out there and put on some miles)

A new tool in our success

This will be the starting point of a weekly blog about running.  As the title suggests, I am a big dude (right now tipping the scale of 300lbs).  I enjoy getting out and running (even though it's a bit rough on the big frame).  I love nothing more than helping others get the itch to want to run - this blog will serve as another resource to fulfill this passion.