Travel to Honolulu and Race Logistics This unique race spans across Oahu, starting at Alamoana Beach Park and finishing at Aikahi Elementary School in Kailua. Participants typically fly into Honolulu International Airport and can choose accommodations in Honolulu, Waikiki, or Kailua. On race morning, there are no shuttles to the beach park, but ample parking is available, unlike previous years when passes were required.

Pre-Race Activities The pre-race setup was straightforward. Packet pickup took place at BOCA Hawaii, with athlete briefings provided. Parking at BOCA is limited, so arriving early is recommended. Notably, participants had to submit their run bags during packet pickup due to the two-transition nature of the race.

Race Morning Experience The morning focused on the bike ride over the H3 Freeway. The transition area, located a 10-minute walk from parking, lacked clear signage, typical for a local race. After setting up and a quick swim to warm up, I unfortunately hit my foot on the coral reef, a downside of the new race start location.

Swim Start The race began with a water start. The swim course was slightly longer than planned, but overall, I was content with my performance despite the rocky start.

The Bike Segment The bike route was enjoyable and challenging, with a mix of flat sections and a climb up the mountain. Despite potholes on the road, the experience was exhilarating, especially with the downhill segments. I managed to catch up with several competitors, exiting the bike segment in a good position.

Transition Challenges A minor hiccup occurred in transition due to a tightly tied run bag, costing me some time.

Running to the Finish The run, my strongest segment, started with some cramps, but I persevered. I managed to overtake several competitors, finishing the run in 5th place. The encouragement I offered to other runners was a highlight of my experience.

Post-Race Reflections At the finish line, it was a pleasant surprise to be greeted by Janell with my medal. Post-race, we enjoyed local snacks and awaited the award ceremony. The race offers shuttle services for participants and their bikes back to the start line.

Overall Impressions I found the Race to Base triathlon to be a fun and unique local event with ample support and a course that never feels overcrowded. My performance improved significantly compared to two years ago, showing progress in my fitness. I hope this race continues for its great cause and unique experience.

The post Race To The Base H3 Olympic Triathlon Race Report 2019 appeared first on Aj in the Life.

Claiming the Bed During these mornings, I’ve mastered the art of bed-claiming, using my buddy Stitch as a comfy pillow. Just when I’m deep in dreamland, though, I get woken up for photos. Why, pawrents, why? Can’t a girl get some uninterrupted sleep?

Bath Time Ordeal This week also included the dreaded bath time. I’m not a fan, and this time, Dad tried to coax me out of bed at 7:00 pm for a shower – how inconsiderate! In my attempt to escape, I accidentally scratched Dad – sorry, but baths are just not my thing!

Post-Bath Frustrations And then there’s the post-bath photoshoot. Seriously, Mom, do we need pictures every time? I just want to go back to bed. Yes, I know I look fabulous in my towel-dried state, but can we hurry up?

Beauty Sleep Needed Finally, I returned to bed for some much-needed beauty rest. I’ve heard it’s important for a girl like me.

Signing Off with a Selfie Alright, it’s nap time for me. But first, let me try this self-timer for a quick photo – still working on it. Here’s my close-up shot for all my friends!

Until Next Time Stay tuned for more of my adventures, friends! Until then, nap well!

The post Doras Corner Beauty Sleep appeared first on Aj in the Life.

This year, we decided to visit the place where it all began, Disneyland in
Anaheim California.

Disneyland is personally our favorite park.
It is the original, Walt‚’s
park.
There is just something special and charming about Disneyland.
Just
like last year, we decided to go during the holidays.

This year, the Holidays at the Disneyland Resort run from November 9, 2018-
January 6, 2019.
We went during the first weekend, and had a blast!
The Food
Disneyland Resort went all out with their special holiday food and even
prepared a Foodie Guide to 2018 Holidays at Disney Resort! I couldn‚’t believe my eyes when I saw all the options the resort was
offering in 2018.
They also have the Festival of Holidays at Disney
California Adventure and prepared yet another Foodie Guide to 2018 Festival of Holidays.
There was honestly no way for us to eat everything in two days, so we
just enjoyed a few.
Here‚’s a list of what we had:
Disneyland Park
Peppermint Holiday Sundae at Gibson Girl Ice Cream ParlorGingerbread Creme Brulee at Blue BayouChurro with crushed pretzel and peppermint at the churro cart near Big
Thunder MountainCandy Cane Beignets – Mint Julep BarLumps of Coal Beignets – Cafe Orleans
California Adventure
Peppermint Churro at the churro cart near the Redwood Creek Trail
Festival of Holidays
Reuben Potato Tots with Russian Dressing and Rye Toast at Favorite Things
Our ultimate favorites that we would definitely eat again are the
peppermint holiday sundae, gingerbread creme brulee, candy cane beignets,
and the peppermint churro.

The Decor
I‚’ve said it before and I‚’ll say it again‚Äö√Ѭ∂holidays plus Disney is the best
combination.
We simply can‚’t get enough.

I wish we had more time to take it all in.
Disney does it best! I mean just
look at how magical the castle and it‚’s a small world look.
The rest of the
park is decked out too!
If you can, try to visit the parks during the holiday season.
It can get
really crowded, but if you utilize MaxPass and take some time to relax or sit down for a meal, the crowds don‚’t seem
too bad.
Trust us, you won‚’t regret it!
I‚’ll do another post in the coming weeks that shows everything we did eachday! There‚’s simply nothing like walking down Main Street USA toward Sleeping
Beauty Castle during the holidays.
It might even snow on you!

The post Holidays At The Disneyland Resort 2018 appeared first on Aj in the Life.

Festive Preparations at Home At home, the Christmas tree is up, and I’ve noticed my pawrents bringing home intriguing boxes and packages. Naturally, I assume they’re filled with treats for me, their spoiled princess. I’ve been nosily investigating because, after all, Christmas is nearing!

Last Year’s Christmas Memories In anticipation of the upcoming celebrations, let me share what I got last Christmas. There was an attempt to dress me up as a reindeer – quite a mismatch, given that I’m a proud dog. Despite my lack of enthusiasm for the reindeer look, I played along for the sake of more gifts.

Gifts Galore I uncovered a festive collar, a cozy new nap blanket, and a fun toy from my gift bag. Nap blankets are my absolute favorite, especially for nibbling! Then came the posing session – I must say, I’m quite the professional.

Post-Reindeer Joy Once freed from the reindeer attire, I thoroughly enjoyed my gifts. My soft penguin blanket remains a favorite, and the reindeer toy survives in my toy box, albeit with one ear missing. As for the reindeer ears and collar, their whereabouts are unknown, and I hope they stay that way. But, with Christmas approaching, I’m bracing myself for their possible return. I’ll keep you all updated, friends!

The post Doras Corner Week 4 appeared first on Aj in the Life.

The post Doras Corner Week 1 appeared first on Aj in the Life.

My daily routine is all thrown out of whack! Gone are my midmorning naps,
noon naps, and afternoon naps in peace.
I keep getting bothered with
snuggles.
What is happening? I am SO tired!
But, there are a few pawsitives to this situation‚

1.I get to enjoy the air conditioning all day long! Sometimes I just hang
out under Mom‚’s desk (aka the dining table).

I still go outside as I please, of course.

Mom & Dad are my personal door openers at my beck and
call.

2.I am now Dad‚’s supervisor.
I look over his work and make sure he is doing
everything properly.
I also realized that I enjoy being a lap dog!

3. I feel more attached to Mom & Dad than ever! Literally attached.
This way
if they move, I KNOW!

4. We are spending a lot of time in our backyard.
I‚’ve always loved yard
time and sunbathing and now we enjoy it several times a week!
Rolling in the grass is so satisfying!
I don‚’t mind posing for photoshoots as long as I can sunbathe.
Get all my
angles Mom!
Alright, telling Mom what to type is exhausting.
Time for me to take my nap.
Please don‚’t wake me up Dad!
I‚’ll try to keep my posts coming.
Keep bothering Mom to do my typing!
Until next time, friends!

The post Doras Corner Home All Day appeared first on Aj in the Life.

Our adventure started in the back of the shop, where we put on official
Chocole‚’a aprons, learned a bit more about Chocole‚’a and sipped on some
coffee accompanied with dark chocolate beans.

I was very excited to wear an official Chocole‚’a apron!
Then we made our way over to the kitchen where the real fun began.
The
kitchen is usually closed to the public, so if you want to go inside,
you‚’ll have to book a private workshop.
The first portion of the workshop was spent decorating our own chocolate
bars.
A full chocolate bar of Chocole‚’a chocolate? Am I dreaming?
You pick your toppings for your bar and then head over to the warm
chocolate station where you get to pour chocolate into the mold.

First, heat the mold.
Then ladle in the chocolate, and tap out any air bubbles.
Next, decorate your personal chocolate bar to your hearts content! Hurry!
You don‚’t have too much time before the chocolate starts to set.

My bar (left) has macadamia nuts & dried raspberry, marshmallows and
sprinkles and ginger candy & lavender.
Aaron who only has his upcoming
Ironman race on his mind, made a triathlon inspired bar with gummy bears
that are swimming, biking and running!
Once you‚’re done, your bars head to the refrigerator to set.

Time for the DIP portion of the workshop!
We each got our own large Chocole‚’a boxes to fill with our choice of items
to dip (or dunk) into chocolate.
Dip all your items into a personal cup of melted dark chocolate.

And lay them on a sheet to dry.
I also decorated a few of mine with
additional toppings because, why not?
After your tray of dipped goodies go into the refrigerator to set, you get
to indulge in more sweet treats! Hot chocolate! Yes, the seasonal treat
that is usually reserved for the holidays.
Yum!
In between sipping chocolate, you can also decorate your custom box label
if you wish.

Once everything is set, you package them up to take home and share (or not
share)!
We had a blast at Chocole‚’a Dip & Decorate workshop.
We were both smiling
ear to ear the entire time and had a lot of fun with our fellow chocolate
loving participants.

Before leaving Chocole‚’a I just had to get a limited Unicorn Pop! One of my
favorite things about Chocole‚’a is their speciality items! Isn‚’t it just so
cute?
If you‚’re looking for something fun and unique to do for a celebration,
special occasion or triple date night, check out Chocole‚’a Dip & Decorate
Workshop! The workshop will open to the public in May, so stay tuned to Chocole‚’a website and Instagram for more information and updates!

The post Sneak Peek Dip And Decorate Workshop At Chocolea Hawaii appeared first on Aj in the Life.

Finish line views
Held annually on the Sunday of the Martin Luther King, Jr.
holiday weekend
(which was January 20 this year), I participated in the 12th annual M-O-M.

Originally, I signed up for the MOM in January 2019, in anticipation of a
possible BQ race.
However, I was lucky enough to qualify again for the 2021
Boston Marathon in my Big Bear race a few months ago.

So I went into this race with zero expectations, and wanted to just enjoy
every second of it.
That sounds like it is easy enough to do, but for
someone competitive, that can be a challenge.

Travel to Maui
There are a few ways to get to Maui.
You can fly to a different island and
swim (not advisable as your luggage would get wet).
Or you can fly to one
of the airports on Maui.
Personally I recommend the main airport in Kahului
(OGG) as it is newly renovated, has cheaper flights, and is centrally
located.
The Kapalua Airport is much smaller, has more expensive flights, and uses
tiny planes.
It is technically closer to Lahaina, which is where the finish
line is, but I don‚’t recommend it.

Where to Stay
Maui is paradise, like all the Hawaiian Islands.
So there are many
different places to stay.
Since I was running the full marathon, and I like
to make my race mornings as easy as possible, we chose to stay in Wailea at
Hotel Wailea (it was a splurge).
Janell wanted to relax while I ran.
I
couldn‚’t argue.
There are numerous places in Wailea to stay, and they are all within 1-2
miles of the starting line.
Perfect for a pre-race warmup.
There are two post race shuttles 10:30 AM and 12:30 PM that go from Lahaina
to Wailea.
They cost $12, and tickets can be purchased at packet pick up.

Otherwise you could stay in Lahaina, near the finish line, and catch the
shuttle bus to the start line in the morning.

You could technically stay in Kihei if you wanted as well, and get dropped
off or drive to the shops at Wailea.
You would however have to pay for
parking and it is expensive.

The race director recommends getting dropped off at the start in Wailea,
and then having your cheer squad stop at the various turn outs to take
photos.
I saw a lot of people doing this, with the best spots from miles
18-26.

Pre-Race Festivities
The packet pickup is super chill, and very small.
On the Friday before the
race, you could pick up the packet in Kihei, and on Saturday you could pick
up the packet in Lahaina.

I couldn‚’t make it to the packet pickup Friday, so we spent Saturday
driving the course and then grabbing the race packet.

Things that are unique to this race, is that the race director sends out a
ton of emails in the weeks leading up to the race.
In most cases, he will
make an exception to any rule in exchange for a bottle of Merlot.
Even race
morning bib pick up or having someone else grab your bib for you.

This is a local race, but there is a decent international crowd.
That being
said, it is a pretty small race, with less than 400 people running the full
marathon.

There was also a 5K, 10K, 15K, and half marathon which all start at
different points and at different times.
Race Morning
The race starts in the parking lot of the Shops at Wailea.
This is on the
South West end of the Island.
Race start is 5:00 AM sharp (for full
marathon only).
They do have a time limit on this race (12 Noon), so you
can start at 3:30 AM if you need more time.

I left the hotel room at 4:15 AM, and made my way down to the start line.
I
was probably one of the last people to show up to the race, even though I
was 30 minutes early.
The porta-potty lines were pretty long, so I did my
best not to think about it.
There was a Hawaiian blessing, and some words from the race director, and
then we started lining up at 4:55 AM.
The front of the race was for the
largest donators.
Followed by the 50 state racers.
Most of these folks were
too timid to start at the front (thankfully), and I made my way up.
One thing unique about this race is that you are required to have a
headlamp or light of some sort for the first part of the race.
I actually
needed my light to see the road until mile 10, and then for a few
additional miles to warn drivers that I was there.
Personally I used my
Ultraspire Lumen 800 multisport waist light and I was the brightest runner
out there.
The first mile started flat and the quickly went uphill.
I ran this the day
before the race to see how hard the hill was.
It wasn‚’t easy, but it was
short, and at least followed by a nice downhill.
At the bottom of the
downhill, there was a short out and back section.
I used this as my
opportunity to count the people ahead of me.
I counted 27.
I had my work
cut out for me.
I knew the race would flatten out till mile 10.
What I didn‚’t expect was a
headwind.
This forced me to pay real close attention to my pacing, and
slowed me down more than I would have liked.
In these first few miles, I
knew it wasn‚’t going to be a PR type of day.

Daytime views in Kihei
For majority of the race, I was running on the shoulder of the road,
against traffic.
In Kihei, there are some real small or non-existent
shoulders.
In most these areas, the adjacent lane was closed.
I never felt
unsafe, even during the twists and turns of miles 12-17.

At mile 10, there was a mile long uphill which looked worse than it was.

However, the headwind made it tough.
Luckily, there was an equally sloped
downhill back towards the coast right after, which had a tail wind! I was
relieved to get some speed in my legs after that slow uphill section.
Once I hit the coast line, I was treated with 6 miles of rollers.
This is
where the whale watching was the best! I made sure to look out, and
actually did see a few whale spouts in this area.
The sun had started to
brighten up the sky by the start of mile 12, and I no longer needed my
Ultraspire light.

Looking back at Wailea from mile 13
The aid stations were evenly spaced out, and there was a contest for which
aid station was the best.
I liked the ladies dressed in pajamas.
This race
also had two bottle drops at miles 7 and 16 (announced the day before the
race so I didn‚’t use it).
I also saw spectators swapping bottles for
runners.
I don‚’t think this was technically against any rules (it isn‚’t an
Ironman), but it was something I‚’ve never seen before.
At mile 17, I was blessed with one final downhill.
From there, I was on the
home stretch.
There were many moments during this time that I wanted to
just stop running and sit in the water just feet away.
I refrained, but it
was so tempting.

Along this final, almost perfectly flat stretch of road, I was treated to
views of other Hawaiian Islands, calm waters, brilliant blues, and tropical
vibes.

I also encountered the other 4 races of shorter distances.
Those races
actually started at different points on the course, but every race had the
same finish line.
The half marathon started at the finish (out and back),
so they got to see all the beaches twice!
Personally I never found the course too crowded with all of the different
races fitting in one shoulder lane.
There were however a few times I had to
run in the road to go around people.
Thankfully the cars were very
courteous and never ran me over.
Finish
The finish line was welcome.
I was tired, despite not running nearly as
hard as I could have.
I made sure to enjoy as many of the views as I could,
and made sure I didn‚’t end up hurting myself.

I was satisfied with my time considering my effort, and was surprised with
a 2nd place in my Age Group award (first and second place overall were also
in my age group).
Finish: 3:16:09, 20/323 Overall, 4/20 in Age Group
Post Race
The finish line was just steps away from the beach, and I finally was able
to jump in the water.
It felt as good as I thought it would.

I also made sure to take advantage of the free massages they were giving
out!
There were also tables of snacks with bananas, oranges, pineapples,
pretzels, cookies, crackers.

I also checked out the awards table and saw the coolest first place awards
I have ever seen.
Perhaps the highlight of the finish line however, was my new friend Meadow.

She was a 6 month old Australian Shepard/Border Collie mix, and was so
cute.
I spent a long time sitting with her at the medical tent.
I was fine,
but she needed a friend.

We tried figuring out how to sneak her away, but in the end she couldn‚’t
break free.
Final Thoughts
If you like beaches, paradise, whale watching, and marathons, the MOM is
your dream race.
Perhaps you only like half marathons, or shorter
distances, the MOM is still your race.

This was my 7th marathon, and 4th Hawaiian Island I have ran on.
I would
say it was easily the most beautiful.
I don‚’t think this race is a PR type
of race, but it isn‚’t slow either.
The weather was cool (mid 60‚’s at the
start), not too humid because the wind, and started early so it wasn‚’t too
hot at the finish (at least for me).
Highly recommended.
Plus it is an
excuse to go to Maui!

The post Maui Oceanfront Marathon 2020 Race Report appeared first on Aj in the Life.

I woke up today with a continued sense of purpose.
I had a great sleep,
with some weird dreams that included a dinosaur made out of a cloud that
screamed and then exploded into rain…glad I survived the dream.
On our morning walk, I paid close attention to some new aches and pains.

Mainly I had some tenderness from my trail run.
What a grand idea that was.

By the end of the walk, my body had woken up a bit and I was ready to go.
The weather was a few degrees warmer than yesterday with a little more
humidity.
I could feel it.
But this is Hawaii, so I just learn to deal with
it.
I got my Tailwind ready to go, and gulped down a SIS gel for good
measure.
If you haven‚’t had one of these gels, they are my personal
favorite, and what I use for all marathons.

I also brought out some new shoes.
It is important to cycle through shoes
when you are running long distances.
I rotate between 7-8 pairs.
It keeps
the foam cushion from getting compressed too much, so they last longer.
At
least that is what I tell Janell.

Music of choice today was Taylor Swift radio, starting with “Blank Space”.

With my headphones on, I was ready to go.
As mentioned, it was warmer today than on day 1.
So I had every intention
to take it easy.
But after doing a new activation drill from Purple Patch
(my new triathlon program), I actually started hot out the gates.
In fact,
I ran today‚’s 10 miles over 2 minutes faster than yesterday‚’s! Whoops.
I did take the same number of breaks, and my heart rate was only 1 bpm
higher on average, but my stride was a little longer (perhaps from the
activation drills).
I guess we will see how bad an idea it was tomorrow.
26 down.
74 to go.
For my second run of the day, I decided to stay on the road vice the
trails.
As much as I would have loved to be back in the mountains, my
ankles were a little stiff today from all the rock and rolls, so I gave
them a rest.
Despite the weather app saying it felt like 72 degrees, the humidity in the
afternoon made it feel like it was 85 degrees.
I got out another new pair
of shoes, or lightly used pair rather, and put on my cool kid glasses.
I
figured that if nothing else, at least I would be running in style.

Since I listened to only Tay Tay this morning, I switched it up with some
old school (for me) All out 90‚’s.
Nothing like running to the beat of “My
Heart Will Go On” by Celine Dion…
After another round of activation drills, I was on my way.
Surprisingly, my
legs weren‚’t heavy feeling at this point.
I was however still running a bit
quicker than I planned, so my walk breaks were important.

I was getting more and more drenched in sweat, and tried not to think about
the smells that were going to be ingrained in my shirt after this run.

Again my run was quicker than the previous day, granted, it was an “easier”
run with half the elevation gain.

32 down.
68 to go.
I made sure to have a post run recovery shake, treat, and hydration (Liquid
IV).
That GF banana bread was surely pushing me to finish today!
All in all, I was happy with another day completed.
With some aches from
day 1, it will be interesting how long I last tomorrow on my long 15 mile
run.
I think I will still wake up motivated, knowing that I will be half
way through once it is done.
However, I will probably start to feel the
previous 32 miles with each step.
Some of the tools I have been using for a while now for recovery include
the Hyperice Vyper vibrating roller and the Hyperice Hypervolt massager.

After a good 20 minute session with these bad boys, I am usually feeling a
lot better.
Time will tell.
Two days down.
Four more to go.

Thanks for reading!
PrefaceDay 1: Miles 0-16Day 3: Miles 33-47Day 4: Miles 48-63Day 5: Miles 64-73Day 6: Miles 74-100

The post My First 100 Mile Week Day 2 appeared first on Aj in the Life.

Compared to the summer time, today was great.
But compared to the last few
months of “cooler” weather, today got warm.

I got my belongings together, and chose my running vest today for some
extra storage of water and gels.
I use the UltrAspire Spry 2.5 vest which is perfect for 15-30 mile runs.
I also have a gel tube that can hold 5 gels at once, which makes it easy to consume when needed.
After a careful selection of my music, 5 Seconds of Summer radio again on
Spotify, I was out the door with “Good Girls” playing in my head.

My first few steps were refreshing because I didn‚’t feel the fatigue that I
was half expecting.
In my initial post about running 100 miles, I expected that today would be a hard day for me
physically.
However, to my surprise, I felt strong.

In fact, my moving pace for most of the run was quicker than I had
expected, and even with my 30 second walk breaks, my mile times were
comfortably within my goal time.

The views today were also pretty spectacular.
I love seeing the reflection
of the sky in the water!
Bright Suns! What I meant by that is once the sun rises, it is HOT.

Unfortunately, it is rising earlier and earlier too! I should have done
this in the winter time when it stays dark until 7:00 AM.
Next time.

I might have to start my marathon attempt at 4:00 AM on Saturday.
Yikes.
Things got dicey toward the end of the run, and in the last 4 miles my
heart rate started to climb.
It was partly due to the elevation gain back
to my starting point, and partly due to the temperature being 10 degrees
higher than when I started.

47 down.
53 to go.
I‚’ll be needing another ice bath and some food to replenish my soul after
this run.
I ordered a 12 pack of Red Bull from Target yesterday (curbside
pick up was great!) and have one chilling in the fridge.
This is one of my
favorite post race traditions.
Or in this case, post long run.

I also like to lie upside down for 5-10 minutes to flush the legs.
I think
it helps.
Who knows.
I definitely am happy with how I feel halfway through this.
With only three
days left, I am 100% confident I will finish this.
Ask me again how I feel
in the middle of my marathon in 3 days and we shall see if I change my
answer.
Thanks for following along!
PrefaceDay 1: Miles 0-16Day 2: Miles 17-32Day 4: Miles 48-63Day 5: Miles 64-73Day 6: Miles 74-100

The post My First 100 Mile Week Day 3 appeared first on Aj in the Life.