The Weekly Pep Talk, Week 4 of 2010 – You are doing it! January 25 - 31, 2010 This week is dedicated to Cathy D who, with her buddy Pat G, is training to walk her first half marathon. Keep it up! You’re doing great Cathy!  Dear WOW Members and Interested Readers, The weather didn’t cooperate during the week but, our weekend workouts were all relatively dry. And you ladies were out there pounding the pavement! Good work! I heard that Tami, Joanne, Pat, Cathy, Jen, Jessica, and Coach Rob put in their time at Arbolado Park while Kathleen, Gini, Mayra, Heidi, Ellen, Kerry, Marlene, Helene, Sara, LyFranshua, Claire, Jennifer, Sarah, Yelda, Lauren, Rachel, Susan, Kara, Julie, Marly, and I met at the Emeryville Marina to do our miles. If I missed your name I apologize. You didn’t sign in, that’s all! Thank you to Kara Waltz (Alive Chiropractic) and Jessica Medsger, PT at Sutter Health who, along with yours truly, talked about common injuries and prevention. This was our third in the series. Next week we’ll talk about breathing, pacing, and hills. Each week we try to bring you additional information that can help you cross that finish line or up the fitness level without injury and with a smile on your face! The ladies did anything from 40 minutes to 7 miles and all looked super. By the way, our Saturday group ran at the Presidio in SF. Sarah, Kim, Kerry, Filomena, Lizzy and I welcomed new member Brynden who did a great run along the Embarcadero over to Green Street and back. It spit a bit, off and on, but compared to the weekdays, the weather was Perfect! Bookmark our new website at http://gowowteam.com. We are adding more details and useful information every day. Please be sure to look at what’s happening this week with our workouts. We list track details, locations, routes, times, etc. all on that same site. You’ll also find training programs and payment options, and more. This week’s workout details are all there, waiting for you to check them out. Mark your calendars! - On the calendar tab you can view ALL WOW WORKOUTS for the entire Bay Area. Remember that, once you join the WOW Team you can come to any workout, anywhere. http://gowowteam.com/calendar  By responding to the workout write up for the week you can also RSVP if you aren’t a member of meetup.com  Our 4^th week of training already – Believe it or not, this is our 4^th week already in 2010. If you have been actively participating you should be noticing a difference. If you are slacking off, DON’T! You can do this! Believe in yourself! Let The WOW Team help. In the next few weeks we have several special workouts. Please try to come to each of them:  February 21 – WOW Fun Run/Practice in Walnut Creek with a brunch afterward sponsored by lululemon. Come out and run your workout from 50 minutes up to 11 miles and celebrate that we are HALF WAY through our training for The Oakland Running Festival Half Marathon and 5K! This will be the ONLY workout site for the day. February 28 – WOW Members will do their 12 miles, 2 hours 40 minutes, or 60 minute workouts at Sawyer Camp, San Mateo. This site is a great place to check your pace, speed, and stamina on a gorgeous out and back route. Coach Rob may also offer a WC workout but this location will be the “Inner East Bay” location for the day. I chose it because it is fun, safe, and a great place to put in the time and check your pace with mile markers along the route. March 7 – All WOW Members will meet in Oakland to practice on the actual half marathon course. We will meet up with the Lake Merritt Joggers and Striders to practice on the real thing – the actual Oakland Half Marathon Course. Come on out and join us! Afterward, anyone who wants to “splurge” on the seafood buffet at the Lake Chalet (on Lake Merritt) can certainly eat without guilt and partake of the delicious seafood! This will be the ONLY workout site for all members. Weekly Workout Information - This week’s current workout information will be confirmed and posted on the main website and on each local geographic site.  http://meetup.com/gowowteam - Inner East Bay http://meetup.com/go-wow-team-mc - Marin County http://meetup.com/go-wow-team-sf - San Francisco http://meetup.com/go-wow-team-oeb - Outer East Bay/Walnut Creek http://meetup.com/go-wow-team-sobay - South Bay Let us know if you have any questions: CoachStephanie@gowowteam.com CoachRob@gowowteam.com jmedsger@gowowteam.com – re injuries karawaltz@alivechiropractic.net We try not to cancel even if it rains! However, I think we did the right thing last week. Check the main website about 2 hours in advance for any possible changes. http://gowowteam.com/home There is a charge for WOW workouts. For pre-paid members there is no extra charge. For drop-ins, the $7 fee includes any presentation, followed by the running or walking workout after. We hope to see you there! WOW is a happening thing, because of you! You make the difference! Go for it!  To Fitness! Coach Stephanie go@gowowteam.com -- Coach Stephanie Atwood Road Runners Club of America Certified Long Distance Running Coach National Academy of Sports Medicine Certified Personal Trainer Subscribe to Coach Stephanie's Bay Area Women's Fitness Column at Examiner.com Follow us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter With long distance running, sports nutrition, and personal training certification, Master's Competitor Stephanie Atwood is the ideal trainer and coach. Stephanie also speaks about being "Fit for Life", a story of tragedy and triumph that ranges from winning races, climbing Everest, death, cancer, and growing up as a DeBolt - the family that inspired the Academy Award winning movie "Who Are The DeBolts and How Did They Get 19 Children?". The WOW Team is an official club registered with Road Runners Clubs of America

  The Weekly Pep Talk, Week 3 of 2010 – Believe in You! January 18 – 24, 2010   Dedicated to those women who made the commute and came out in inclement weather to stick with fitness in 2010. Make the effort and believe in yourself. You can do this (but you do need to show up)! Dear WOW Members and Interested Readers,   Training for The WOW Team is moving right along. Last week, in addition to 3 track workouts, we had a low-key tempo run in San Francisco on Saturday, a talk about Chi Running in Alameda from certified instructor Hazel Wood and from knowledgeable Coach Rob in Walnut Creek before setting out for our workouts on Sunday. The rain mainly held off and we all had good workouts.   Thank you to Hazel for the informative session. Hazel is offering full and half day Chi Running and Walking sessions throughout The Bay Area. You can reach her at http://stridebystride.com for full details on all the programs she offers. Hazel is offering WOW Members a 10% discount. Be sure to mention the WOW Team when you sign up.   Bookmark our new website at http://gowowteam.com.  Not only is it fun to look at but there is information about almost everything you need to know to be a part of The WOW Team. We also welcome photos and put up new ones all the time. Take a look…   WOW Potluck on Friday, January 22, in San Leandro You are invited! Please RSVP on meetup or http://gowowteam.com/potluck . This is a wonderful time to socialize with women in the group and introduce your friends to The WOW Team. Women and men are welcome. Directions will be sent when you RSVP.   Time: 6:30 to 7:00 Arrive  Bring: A dish of your choice for 4 plus a beverage for 4 Who: All Members and interested friends or family, men or women   Our Famous WOW Team Silent Sport Stuff Auction At our potlucks, you are invited to bring new or slightly used sporting goods (shoes, clothing, watches, etc. for our world famous auction. We set a base price no lower than $5 that WOW keeps in its kitty and any other amount bid higher goes to the seller. It’s fun and you can get some really good deals. I’m offering new, black warm-up pants (L) and a new “Body Tech” T-shirt (XL). Both are musts for the sports enthusiast’s wardrobe. Bring your own stuff and set your own starting price for the auction.   As a Member of WOW You are Welcome to Join Any Workout, Any Time.  If a Saturday works better some weeks, and you are a runner, come on out. The calendar has all Bay Area Workouts for the entire WOW Team. If you want to check out other workouts, look here. The link is http://gowowteam.com/calendar . One note, if you are looking ahead, please check back the week of the event, just to make sure that no details have changed. Thank you.   Lost Members  Oh I hate it when we miss people! This usually happens when they don’t find us at the start of our workouts. A note of caution, please do not trust Google maps or any other general addresses (including GPS)  because they don’t always work for where we meet. Follow the directions on our website or ride with someone who knows how to get there. It’s really a shame to go to all the trouble to work out with WOW and miss us because of getting lost. Equally important, please check the location wit the date. You don’t want to show up at the right spot on the wrong date! (At least you can still get in your workout…)   Not too late to sign up for the Oakland Half Marathon and 5 K Training Program  There is still time for both. However, the group is almost full so don’t wait much longer. Please talk to me if you want to join. Let’s find out where you can pick up the lost weeks. Talk to me.  Walnut Creek WOW Group has Runners, Walkers, and Run/Walkers This entire group is training for the Oakland Running Festival Half Marathon or 5K. Some of the half marathoners are walkers and continue up in pace from there to relatively fast runners. This group meets Thursday and Sunday in Walnut Creek. http://meetup.com/go-wow-team-oeb  There is still time to join!  Two Weeks Down! 10 Weeks to Go! If you are training for The Oakland Running Festival Half Marathon or 5K and need anything from WOW to keep you going strong, contact us. We have training programs, surveys, track workouts, and a vast amount of positive energy and determination coming from our members. Take advantage of all these resources. The WOW Team currently meets 5 days a week throughout The Bay Area. As a member you are eligible to participate in any of the workouts, anywhere!  Currently our schedule goes like this:  Tuesday – Track in SF  Wednesday – Track in Piedmont  Thursday - Track in Walnut Creek  Saturday – Long run in San Francisco/San Mateo  Sunday – Two locations - Long run, walk/run, walk in Inner East Bay, Long run, walk/run, walk in Outer East Bay  Weekly Workout Information This week’s current workout information will be confirmed and posted on the main website at “This Week with WOW”. Follow this link http://gowowteam.com/wow-workouts/ for this week’s info. It is also posted for your geographic region on meet up. WOW offers 5 meetup groups to accommodated different geographical regions in The Bay Area. Our sites include: http://meetup.com/gowowteam - Inner East Bay   http://meetup.com/gowowteam-mc - Marin County   http://meetup.com/go-wow-team-sf - San Francisco   http://meetup.com/go-wow-team-oeb - Outer East Bay/Walnut Creek   http://meetup.com/gowowteam-sobay - South Bay  Training Programs If you have not received the daily training program for your chosen goal, please contact me or look on the main site. We are in the process of uploading training programs. The first three programs will include: Intermediate Training for The Oakland Half Marathon on March 28 Novice Training for The Oakland Half Marathon on March 28 Novice Training for the Oakland Running Festival Twilight 5K Race Around Lake Merritt on March 27 Please work from this schedule and let me know if you have questions.  When you show up at the workouts, it is great when you’ve reviewed the week’s information. There are also assignments on non-group days for you. If you are not completing them, it will be tougher to accomplish your goal. Let us know if you have any questions. Gowowteam@gmail.com  We don’t cancel even if it rains!  February 21 WOW Picnic/Brunch after our Sunday Workout  Hosted by lulemon Mark your calendars for this celebration of our training and a chance to eat after a long run/workout. Hosted by lululemon, WOW Members will all meet in Walnut Creek for our Sunday workout and a brunch afterward. Sounds like fun? Join us! Mark your calendar today. We try to host an event once a month throughout the WOW Area which includes the East, North, South and SF Bay Areas. If you would be willing to host a group of 50 persons maximum please let me know. We all share in the food. Any month, should be a Friday or Saturday. Contact gowowteam@gmail.com.  The WOW Team Challenge It’s Here! When you reach 10 hours of workout time with The WOW Team you will receive a reusable shopping/ carry-all bag with the WOW Logo and confirmation “I met the first challenge”. The next prize will come at 50 hours. After that, you will need to accrue 150 hours for the next prize. WOW is in the process of getting sponsors for this program but you can start logging miles at your first workout in 2010. Join The WOW Team Challenge and get fit too! If you don’t have your data sheet yet, check it out on the main website at http://gowowteam.com/wow-team-challenge   Third Week’s Workouts  The details for this week’s workouts, with times, locations, and descriptions are on the website at http://gowowteam.com/home. Please RSVP. It really helps us with our staffing and support for you. You may also check on your local regional meetup site for details. Get those addresses above.   Paperwork  Please bring your applications and payments with you this week. If you have any questions, contact The WOW Team at 415 682-8819 or E-mail us at gowowteam@gmail.com.   There is a $7 drop-in charge for WOW workouts. For pre-paid members there is no extra charge. We hope to see you there!   To Fitness! Coach Stephanie   CoachStephanie@gowowteam.com

The Weekly Pep Talk January 11 - 17, 2010 continued... Weekly Workout Information This week’s current workout information will be confirmed and posted on the main website at “This Week With WOW”. Follow this link http://gowowteam.com/this-week-with-wow for this week’s info. It is also posted for your geographic region on meetup. WOW offers 5 meetup groups to accommodated different geographical regions in The Bay Area. Our sites include:  http://meetup.com/gowowteam - Inner East Bay http://meetup.com/gowowteam-mc - Marin County http://meetup.com/sfrunners - San Francisco http://meetup.com/gowowteamoeb - Outer East Bay/Walnut Creek http://meetup.com/gowowteam-sobay - South Bay Training Programs If you have not received the daily training program for your chosen goal, please contact me or look on the main site. We are in the process of uploading training programs. The first three programs will include:

• Intermediate Training for The Oakland Half Marathon on March 28
• Novice Training for The Oakland Half Marathon on March 28
• Novice Training for the Oakland Running Festival Twilight 5K Race Around Lake Merritt on March 27

Please work from this schedule and let me know if you have questions. When you show up at the workouts, it is great when you’ve reviewed the week’s information. There are also assignments on non-group days for you. If you are not completing them, it will be tougher to accomplish your goal. Let us know if you have any questions. Gowowteam@gmail.com The Main Calendar of All WOW Events  is posted on the WOW site at http://gowowteam.com/calendar for you to review at any time. Because this calendar is dynamic, it can change! Please, always check back within a few days of the workout. The date and time should not change but, sometimes we have to change locations. In the 3 years that we have offered more than 600 workouts and have canceled less than 5! We don’t cancel even if it rains! Potluck - Friday, January 22 Potluck in San Leandro at 6:30 PM – Members, Guests or Those Interested in WOW are Invited! Mayra M is hosting the next potluck at her home in San Leandro and you are invited. Please try to come. You are welcome to bring friends, family, boys and girls. All are welcome. Bring a dish for 4 and a bottle of something to drink. RSVP's are required. Details are posted on our website and you may RSVP on your local meetup site, at http://meetup.com/gowowteam, or E-mail us. We try to host an event once a month throughout the WOW Area which includes the East, North, South and SF Bay Areas. If you would be willing to host a group of 50 persons maximum please let me know. We all share in the food. Any month, should be a Friday or Saturday. Contact gowowteam@gmail.com. The WOW Team Challenge It’s here! When you reach 10 hours of workout time with The WOW Team you will receive a reusable shopping/ carry-all bag with the WOW Logo and confirmation “I met the first challenge”. The next prize will come at 50 hours. After that, you will need to accrue 150 hours for the next prize. WOW is in the process of getting sponsors for this program but you can start logging miles at your first workout in 2010. Join The WOW Team Challenge and get fit too! If you don’t have your data sheet yet, check it out on the main website at http://gowowteam.com/wow-team-challenge Week 2 of 2010 Workouts The details for our second week’s workouts are on http://meetup.com/gowowteam with times, locations, and descriptions and also on the website at http://gowowteam.com.  Please RSVP. It really helps us with our staffing and support for you. Shoe Clinic with Time Ketron last Sunday I hope you learned something from Tim about running shoes. He has a lot of information and it was great to hae his expertise right on site! As I mentioned Tim is offering a discount to any of you you WOW Members who buy your shoes from him. You will also get expert fitting. Remember to pay with check or debit or cash. No credit cards for the discount price.  10% Discount on Running Shoes and Equipment Tim is offering WOW Members a 10% discount when they mention The WOW Team. Bring in your old shoes and pay with check, cash, or debit. No credit cards, please. Athletic Outpost is located at 1528 Bonanza Street, Walnut Creek, CA 94596-4524 (925) 943-6453. http://athleticoutpost.com Thank you Tim!  New Website It’s up and running but still needs more content. Leave your comments and know that The Weekly Pep Talk will be posted on the site for your reference in addition to your getting this e-newsletter through your mailbox.  Track Etiquette Please remember when you are on the track that the fastest runner has the right to be in the inner (first) lane. You must move to your right when you hear someone behind you or they call out “TRACK!” Paperwork Please bring your applications and payments with you this week. If you have any questions, contact The WOW Team at 415 682-8819 or E-mail us at gowowteam@gmail.com. Chi Running Intro on Sunday Morning before our WOW Workout in Alameda As part of the first 6 weeks’ orientation to racing, WOW has invited Hazel Wood, a certified Chi Running/Walking Instructor to talk to us about Chi Technique. At our Alameda workout site. Many people have questions about preventing injuries, barefoot running and whether modern running shoes are creating problems. Hazel Wood, Certified ChiRunning Instructor, will be present on Sunday morning from 8 - 8:30 to speak about ChiRunning, to help WOW Team women learn how to achieve your best running and walking form.  This brief talk before our group workout will include Hazel's introduction and explanation of the Chi concept and will then be open to questions from the group. This clinic will happen immediately before the group takes off on its workout.  Hazel will be teaching several half and full day Chi Workshops throughout the Bay Area in January and February and offers a 10% rebate to all WOW Team members. Contact Hazel with questions at http://stridebystride.com. P.S. WOW has also invited Hazel to run with us along the Bay Trail so you can get another chance to speak with her during or after the workout.P.P.S.  There is a charge for WOW workouts. For pre-paid members there is no extra charge. For drop-ins, the $7 fee includes Hazels' presentation, followed by the running or walking workout after. We hope to see you there! P.P.S. Now that’s a lot of information! Take it in bits and pieces. In the interim be sure you get in those weekday workouts. And remember, you are going through a great journey. WOW is here to assist. Have fun, sweat a bit, get fit…with WOW! To Fitness! Coach Stephanie

The Weekly Pep Talk Week 2, January 11 - 17, 2010 - Rockin' and Rollin' Dedicated to each of you who made the 2010 commitment to get fit. WOW is here to help but without your follow-through it can’t happen. Stick with it! You are going to LOVE the results!   Dear WOW Members and Interested Readers, What a crazy, wonderful first week of 2010 for The WOW Team! What an incredible bunch of women!  Between Tuesday, January 4 and Sunday, January 10 I attended 5 workouts with totally motivated women, ready to rock and roll! There is a lot of material to cover this week and I want you to go to the new website at http;//gowowteam.com to check it out. Follow the various links in today’s Weekly Pep Talk or, if you prefer, read all the details right here in this E-zine version. I had a great time speaking with and running or walking with many of you. I want to thank my helpers, Lauren G, Heidi H, Christy G, Kerry S, Kim L, Sarah T and Rob and Jessica (The WC Coaches). Thank you toTim Ketron who came on Sunday from his store, The Athletic Outpost, in Walnut Creek to tell us about shoes and also run with us. I want to thank each of you returnees for showing your confidence and support of The WOW Program. We’ve grown haven’t we? I also want to thank each new woman who joined our group and has made the commitment to fitness. The WOW Team is an innovative group of women who know that they want fitness in their lives. With your participation, The WOW Team finds ways to make fitness happen!  Each of you plays a part in making that occur. Go WOW Team! You Rock! Not too late to sign up for The Oakland Half Marathon and 5K Training Program There is still time for both. However, the group is almost full so don’t wait much longer. Please talk to me if you want to join. Let’s find out where you can pick things up. New Walnut Creek WOW Group is Very Cool Between Lulumen ladies and Pat, Cathy, Tami, Britney, and Elke, we had a super track workout at Las Lomas Track last Thursday. Rob and Jessica Medsger headed up the coaching team and the rest of us got a chance to run a timed mile. This helped us get a base for our Oakland Running Festival training. This groups has runners, walkers, experienced, and novice athletes so, come on out and join us – Thursday and Sunday in Walnut Creek. http://meetup.com/gowoteamoeb . One Week Down! 11 Weeks to Go! Training for the 2010 Season and Oakland Running Festival got off to a sweaty start on Tuesday, January 5 when the first workout of the season took place at 6:30 AM in San Francisco. The WOW Team presently meets 5 days a week throughout The Bay Area. As a member you are eligible to participate in any of the workouts, anywhere! Currently our schedule goes like this: Tuesday – Track in SF Wednesday – Track in Piedmont Thursday – Track in Walnut Creek Saturday – Long run in San Francisco/San Mateo Sunday - 2 Locations Long run, walk/run, walk in Inner East Bay Long run, walk/run, walk in Outer East Bay Questions provide the key to unlocking our unlimited potential - Anthony Robbins