Kristen Morin

"My Story: When I walked into NWPT for the first time two years ago, I didn't know I was destined for future medal glory. I was there to hear a nutrition talk given by Derrick and Allison on plant based nutrition which is a passion I share. "

Medal Monger AKA The Rocket

Evolution of a Medal Monger An Autobiography By Kristen Morin AKA “The Rocket” Authors note: I am so glad this month’s topic is SPEED. As Sherri says, it is very important to incorporate speed into our training program as we age. You don’t necessarily have to be the fastest, but you definitely don’t want to be the slowest. (If you don’t believe me watch the nature shows on the animal planet!) Think of all the potential threats we face in the modern world where moving swiftly might be advantageous. I’m thinking of aliens, zombies, hungry bears, police, amorous suitors in nursing homes or even just outrunning your children so you don’t have to be always be IT when playing tag. My Story: When I walked into NWPT for the first time two years ago, I didn’t know I was destined for future medal glory. I was there to hear a nutrition talk given by Derrick and Allison on plant based nutrition which is a passion I share. After attending the lecture, I decided to sign up for a training session with Derrick. My initial goal in coming to NWPT was to obtain some upper body strength so I didn’t appear scrawny and weak when I talked to people about nutrition. I also hoped to one day complete a half marathon. Well last year I ran in the Vancouver Half Marathon and achieved a respectable time of 2:04 42. I continued my sessions with Derrick and told him that I would like to repeat it in 2013 but finish in less than 2 hours if possible. He seemed to think a strong core would make me faster so I did lots of hovering and of course push-ups, pretend pull-ups and hill sprints. I entered the race this year in June and reduced my finish time by 18 ? minutes with a time of 1:46 06. This pleased me tremendously and I wore my medal for an entire week until my coworkers suggested that I might want to stop. Justin then urged me to sign up for another race and I just completed the Battleground Harvest Hay Half Marathon with a time of 1:44 30 and a pace of 7:59. This may not seem impressive to all the 20-somethings out there (or to Derrick who would probably finish in 1 hour flat while carrying 50 pound dumbbells) but it was enough for me to place second in the 40-50 year old female division and I was thrilled to collect two medals for one entry fee!! However, it was disappointing that the incessant clanging made wearing them together impossible. I was fortunate to receive lots of valuable race day strategies from Derrick such as swish and spit Gatorade, pretend you’re running a 10K and my favorite…have a strong looking back and everyone will be scared to pass. Justin instructed me on how to drink water from paper cups while moving at high speeds. These words of wisdom have served me well so far. What I have found to be consistently true in these half marathons is that the faster you run, the sooner you are done and then you can do something more fun like polish your medals. Acknowledgements: I am so grateful to all the folks at NWPT. I feel better than I ever have in my whole life (except that day after running the half marathon). I could not have achieved this on my own without their know-how. This has been a great gift and lots of fun. He also reports feeling better than ever. Please look for him in a upcoming installment of NWPT Client of the Month??