http://www.deenakastor.com New Blog Post Updates from Olympic Medalist Deena Kastor en-us http://www.deenakastor.com Hi Runners,

May is skin cancer detection and awareness month. No matter our level of running ability we are all motivated in an Olympic year to get the most out of our running. Summer is approaching and if you are going that extra mile under the hot summer sun you better be protecting your skin. Check out www.melanomamonday.com to find out how early detection can save you. On this site you will find tools for self examination as well as other helpful information on having the healthiest skin possible. Browse the website and take the survey to find out how “sun smart” you are. This photo is of my coach and I running on the beach in Southern California. I took precaution of wearing a long sleeve ASICS top with sun protection of 50 in the fabric as well as wearing glasses to protect my face. I have had success with a product that has actually reversed some of the skin cancer on my face and chest. Although Psoria-Gold is a bit pricey, I consider it better than a knife taking out these spots. You can find this product on its own website www.psoriagold.com. Take care of your skin- it’s what holds you together!
Click Here to go to Deena's Website »]]>Mon, 05 May 2008 11:16:58 -0400by Deena Kastor Blog Posts http://www.deenakastor.com/blog_posts.php?id=45 http://www.deenakastor.com Hi Runners,

The Marathon Trials are finally over and we can now focus on the Beijing Olympics. Magdalena Lewy-Boulet, Blake Russell and I are all from California and grateful to join the Ryan Hall, Dathan Ritzenhein and Brian Sell as the first 6 members of the US Track Team headed to Beijing this summer. All of us girls are from California. Ryan Hall and I share ASICS as our sponsor, Mammoth Lakes, California as our home and Terrence Mahon as our coach.

Ryan Hall and I were grateful to have such a close support team helping us prepare so well for the trials. we dreamed of making this team, but ideally wanted to win the trials and represent our Running USA team well. Terrence is not only a great coach, but an amazing motivator, healer and friend. Our goals for Beijing are lofty, but we are grounded to the training it will take to get us on the awards podium at the Olympics this summer. As a team we are pushing pollution and politics aside and preparing to run the race of our lives. I look forward to sharing the preparation with you.

To see more great photos of the Trials or The Boston Marathon check out Victah Sailor’s website http://www.photorun.net


Click Here to go to Deena's Website »]]>Tue, 22 Apr 2008 09:43:44 -0400by Deena Kastor Blog Posts http://www.deenakastor.com/blog_posts.php?id=43 http://www.deenakastor.com Hi Marathon Fans

I spent the last 12 days at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista to get away from emails, phone calls and chores that linger around the house. It is a welcomed time after all the work is in and I shorten my mileage and lengthen my naps. After a challenging winter in Mammoth of wind and snow we were greeted in Southern California with temperatures close to 100 degrees. This provided a great excuse for a midday gelato or to soak our legs in the ocean off Coronado Island. These hot temperatures call for extra sunscreen and are plentiful with rattlesnakes. Paranoid about skin protection I applied three layers of sunscreen on me prior to my morning runs. On a run in the canyon near the training center Andrew, Mike and I had to abruptly change our course because of an angry rattler who was two times larger than any rattlesnake I have ever seen. He was coiled and ready to strike and we were not willing to challenge him.

Now, here we are in Boston for the Olympic Marathon Trials. Finally. We had a great run this morning along the Charles River and commented repeatedly that this is the nicest weather we have ever experienced in Beantown. With Mammoth’s cold winter and San Diego’s hot taper week, this is the perfect in between. These trials have me excited as it looks as though we can run fast in these conditions.

Thank you to everyone that has sent good wishes. I appreciate your emails and the support you have given. Just in the day I have been here I have received a lot of encouragement from passersby, so I’d like to say thanks to you also. All the best to marathoners here in Boston who are running Marathon Monday. I look forward to being on the sidelines cheering for you on Monday!


Click Here to go to Deena's Website »]]>Fri, 18 Apr 2008 16:55:59 -0400by Deena Kastor Blog Posts http://www.deenakastor.com/blog_posts.php?id=42 http://www.deenakastor.com Hi Friends,

As the Olympic Trials get closer, I am emphasizing rest as my high volume weeks of training begin to mellow. I decided to share some of the places on the web in which I frequent. Here are my favorite non-running websites to help your running:



http://www.petfinder.com Do you need a training partner? I am a dog lover and cherish my evening runs with my chocolate lab, Aspen. She is almost 12 years old and I got her at the animal shelter in Arkansas where I went to college. This website will allow you to adopt a dog to share your active lifestyle with. I feel strongly about avoiding breeders and saving the life of a dog that needs a home before it’s too late. With petfinder you can get a pure bred or mixed breed of any age. Sporting dogs make the best runners but all dogs are good companions. Oddly enough I am not looking for another dog, but I get lost on this website looking at all the dogs that need homes.

http://www.powells.com There is no better way to recuperate after a hard day than to curl up to a good book. Reading is a chance to relax your physical body and exercise your mind. Powell’s book store in Portland, Oregon is the best book store I have ever been to. I spend hours among the tall shelves of books reclaiming used books or browsing through the latest best sellers. If you don’t get a chance to visit Portland you can at least visit Powell’s online store. For running enhancement try The Wharton’s Stretch Book.

http://www.epicurious.com Nothing balances out a great workout like a good meal. This is a fun website to inspire a new favorite dish. If you are going the extra mile in training make sure you are also going the extra mile in eating well. Along with great recipes Epicurious has fun ideas on party menus. Make an impressive table with a theme for someone who is traveling or to parallel a holiday coming up. And if you are traveling and can’t be in your kitchen, this website has a restaurant guide so you can eat well on the road!

I hope you enjoy browsing these sites as much as I do.


Click Here to go to Deena's Website »]]>Wed, 02 Apr 2008 18:26:36 -0400by Deena Kastor Blog Posts http://www.deenakastor.com/blog_posts.php?id=40 http://www.deenakastor.com Hi Runners,

One month until the Olympic Trials in Boston. Last weekend in Jacksonville, Florida we raced in the windiest conditions I have ever competed in. Two nights before the race (while tornado warnings were in effect the entire day) I met the local “weather guy” and he told me not to worry about the conditions because the bridges we race over can only withstand 45 MPH winds. Well, I am sure the wind gusts were greater than that on the Hart Bridge. I was being tossed from one side of the bridge to the other and ran the entire length of the bridge holding the hat on my head.

I have decided to forgo the half-marathon in Lisbon, Portugal. The boutique hotel I am staying in prior to heading home for my last few weeks of marathon preparation has a photo booth in the lobby. I am revealing a great obsession. Photo booths. Whenever a photo booth reveals itself anywhere in the world, I have to jump in and capture the moment. Train stations, malls, airports, city streets and now hotel lobbies. Always spontaneous and to Andrew’s apprehension, I drag him into these cozy closets for a four-photo-strip of black and white pictures. Our collection is quite fun and full of memories.

If I am in the flow of revealing myself I will also share a few other bits of information. I collect French presses because it is my favorite way to drink coffee. These coffee makers are easy to use and make a thick, rich coffee. This is the type of coffee that has you chewing your last couple sips and is a great match to the scones on my recipe page! Yum.

Although Andrew incorrectly calls me “the bird lady” I have taken to feeding one of Mammoth’s local birds, the Clark’s Nutcracker. This woodpecker loves unsalted peanuts in the shell. On my morning walks with Aspen I throw a hand full of peanuts onto the snow and the birds come from every direction.

I know you are probably wishing that along with throwing peanuts to the birds I was throwing in proper punctuation in my blogs. I can’t fix it. There is certain punctuation marks that just won’t transfer once I post my blog. It’s a mystery to me. Somewhere in cyberspace are a lot of apostrophes, dashes, quotes and colons. If you find them they belong to me!

On the training side of things, this is a very exciting time. The Olympic Trials are right around the corner and I can’t wait to be a part of it. I have the chance to make my third Olympic team. Making this team is a stepping stone to get closer to my dream of a gold medal. It takes a lot of HARD work and even more SMART work. My friends Susan and Mary gave me a bracelet before the Athens’ Olympics that I continue to wear. It is my lucky charm. If you notice that I am wearing a bracelet in my races, it has a bead on it with the Chinese character for “Destiny”. In an Olympic year we work extra hard to fulfill our goals. Why not throw in a little LUCK too? Gotta run.


Click Here to go to Deena's Website »]]>Thu, 13 Mar 2008 18:10:59 -0400by Deena Kastor Blog Posts http://www.deenakastor.com/blog_posts.php?id=39