One Month and Eight Miles Later

My first month of training is complete - and what a month it's been! We started training on August 1st with a 30-minute run and closed out the month with eight miles. I still have a long way to go before Honolulu, but I'm really excited about how much my team and I have improved in such a short amount of time.

Our next step in training begins tomorrow with 60 minutes of speed work. I don't really know what to expect, but if it makes running 26.2 miles easier, then I'm all for it.

Three months to go! If anyone in Internet land has recommendations for Honolulu (food, shopping, food...you know, the important things), please send them my way. Thanks ;)

Cupcakes for a Cure

Satisfy your sweet tooth while helping a great cause! On Saturday, August 29, I will be hosting a bake sale benefiting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society at the Harrison Way garage sale. Six delightful cupcake flavors will be available for $2 each. Flavors include:

The Original - a dark chocolate cupcake filled with marshmallow creme and topped with a layer of chocolate ganache

The Classic - a yellow cupcake topped with a chocolate buttercream frosting and sprinkles

The Mocha - a dark chocolate cupcake topped with a fluffy mocha buttercream frosting

The Red - a smooth red velvet cupcake with a hint of cocoa, topped with a cream cheese frosting

The Lava - a decadent dark chocolate cupcake with a molten truffle filling

The Black and White - a dark chocolate cupcake with a vanilla buttercream frosting

The sale will take place at 8540 Harrison Way in Buena Park. If you can't make it to the sale, but want to buy some homemade goodness, email me at jmalicse@hotmail.com to place an order.

Hope to see you there!

A Million Thanks to My Donors!!!

My donors rock! In just three weeks, my family and friends helped me raise over $1,000 for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Your support means the world to me, my teammates, and the countless patients and their families who are faced with the daily challenge of living with cancer.

I also want to thank Carissa at Shaklee for generously donating items to the End of Summer 5K Fun Run/Walk! It's not too late to help out - if you'd like to sign up for the 5K or donate items for the goodie bags, let me know!

Thanks again for all of your support and well wishes! I really appreciate it <3

Join TNT at the August Fundraising Events!

Team In Training Long Beach has four great events coming up - have fun AND raise money for a wonderful cause!

Strike Out Cancer
Sunday, August 23
AMF Valley View Lanes
12141 Valley View
Garden Grove, CA

* Tickets are $16 per person and include three games and shoe rental. Tell them I sent you!



Dine For A Cure
Tuesday, August 25
Buca di Beppo
7979 Center Drive
Huntington Beach, CA

* 20% of all dining receipts will be donated to LLS. Print out the flyer and present it to your server to ensure your donation is received.

End of Summer 5K Fun Run/Walk
Sunday, August 30
Belmont Plaza Pool
4000 E. Olympic Plaza
Long Beach, CA

* Registration is $20. Sign up on my fundraising page and include "5K Registration" in the comments section. Click here for more info.

Jamba Juice In-Store Fundraiser
Sunday, August 30
4923 E. Second Street
Long Beach, CA

* 20% of all purchases will be donated to LLS. Print out and present this flyer to ensure your donation is received.

Hope to see you there!

Week Two Update

Can you believe just two weeks ago, I wanted to stop running after five minutes and now I can handle an hour? Woohoo!!!

Week Two ended on Saturday with a great run in Cerritos. We did a little over three-and-a-half loops around Regional Park (each loop is supposed to be two miles, but I think it might be less) in 60 minutes. Some teams started doing run/walk intervals, but I decided to run the entire hour...felt pretty good the entire time =)

More updates: With fall just around the corner, TNT Long Beach is celebrating the end of summer with a 5K Fun Run/Walk in Belmont Shore on Sunday, August 30. There's still time to sign up! Pre-registration is $20 - you can sign up on my fundraising site - or pay $25 on the event day. We are also looking for donations for our goodie bags, so if you or someone you know has 100 water bottles, snacks, t-shirts, anything, PLEASE let me know!

Last but not least, thank you to everyone who has made a donation to The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society! Your contribution will help fund necessary programs and services for people living with cancer and their families! So on behalf of my honored teammates and LLS, thank you for your support!

My Newest Running Toy...

On my latest shopping adventure, I came across the Nike + iPod Sport Kit. Never thought I actually needed it, but boy was I wrong.

With a small transmitter in your shoe and a receiver on your Nano, Nike's handy dandy device turns your iPod into a running computer - it tracks your distance, pace, time and calories, tells you how much time you have left in your run (in a friendly male or female voice), and when connected to your computer, uploads your running history to Nike's website. It's the coolest thing ever!

It helps me tremendously to have someone tell me how much time I have left in my run for a couple reasons: a) I don't wear a watch because I don't want the tan line and b) I still get bored while I run, although yesterday I channeled ABDC when a Ne-Yo song played so that made the last few minutes easier =)

Four months and one day 'til Honolulu!!! Woohoo!

Week One - Success!

We just completed our first week of training and so far, so good! Our team did a 40-minute run on Saturday, which took us from the Long Beach Yacht Club to the beach bike path. It was nice to see other groups training as well - everyone was very encouraging and kept our spirits up!

I don't think I've ever done more than 20 minutes of running, so I'm still facing a bit of a challenge staying focused. My music selection has definitely kept me going, so I'm hoping (fingers crossed) that I'll get used to running for extended periods of time.

On a much more positive note, I got my FIRST donation!!!! Woohoo! I can't begin to tell you how stoked I was to receive an email notifying me of the donation. Plus all the support I've received from family and friends has done wonders to keep me motivated. Thanks everyone <3 I really appreciate it!

Stay tuned for details on the bake sale and don't forget...the End of Summer 5K Fun Run/Walk in Belmont Shore is coming up! Register today!!!

Meet My Honored Teammates

Today I did a 35-minute run...so glad I charged up my iPod because running by yourself sucks. I realized that I need new music...my beach cruising playlist isn't very conducive to running, so if anyone in Internet land has recommendations, please send them my way. I was thinking screamy music might work, but anyway.

My boredom gave me time to reflect on why I am taking on this challenge: to help people with cancer. That said, meet my honored teammates, Alyssa and Celeste.




Alyssa (left) is five years old and was diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) in 2007. One year after her diagnosis, she suffered a severe case of encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) which caused her to lose her eye sight as well as movement in the right side of her body.

Celeste (right) is also five years old and was diagnosed with ALL in 2008. Her mother, who completed the San Diego Marathon with TNT earlier this year, shared her heartbreaking yet hopeful story with our group.

Through the years, I've conducted numerous tours of Childrens Hospital Los Angeles' oncology unit. I knew all the stats - the survival rates, divorce rates, sibling and behavioral issues...you name it - but it wasn't until I met Celeste's mom that I realized how difficult a cancer diagnosis is for the entire family.

Giving hope to these kids and their families is the reason why I am training, fundraising and promoting The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. And I am so honored to have the opportunity to make a difference.

5K Fun Run/Walk - August 30!

On Sunday, August 30, Team in Training Long Beach is hosting an End of Summer 5K Fun Run at Belmont Shore to raise money for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Registration is $20 - you can sign up through my fundraising site! When you make your $20 donation online, simply leave a comment that it's for the "5K Registration" and bring your receipt to the registration booth on event day.

For complete event details, please visit TNT Long Beach's End of Summer 5K Fun Run site.

Hope to see you there!

Kickoff! Woohoo!

Today was Day One of the four-month adventure. First things first - waking up at 6 am is not fun. Most people know that I am NOT a morning person, so the wake up call was the first struggle of the day.

Once I arrived at the TNT meeting spot in Long Beach, we did some quick intros and started to run. Our goal for today was to run for 30 minutes - we started at the Long Beach Yacht Club, ran passed Mother's Beach and Second Street, and turned around at the marina once we hit our 15 minute halfway point. I think we ran about 2.5 miles today.

It makes such a big difference to run with a team, because I know for a fact that I would have stopped running about five minutes into this. My body felt fine throughout the entire run, but I usually get really bored, so having the rest of the team around definitely kept me motivated.

So overall, Day One was a success! Can't wait to start fundraising...maybe my first event will be a bake sale!

Go Team!