ON THE RUN

Are you registered for the 117th Annual YMCA Turkey Trot?  Are you ready to run five miles?  Here's some tips from an experienced runner to help you train for this year's race.

To prepare to finish the Turkey Trot, it is important that you begin a walking/light jogging program that builds slowly toward completing five miles.  In the beginning, start slow and be happy to complete 10 - 15 minutes of activity (walk, run combination).  Start by walking briskly and every couple minutes pick the pace up to a light jog for about 30 seconds.  Do this every other day for about a week to 10 days and then begin to add time and distance.  

Each week, add five minutes to every other day, building up your activity time to an hour.  Keep the alternate day at around 20 minutes. This should be done over several weeks, and you won't reach an hour of continuous activity for about eight weeks.  While doing this progression of added time, also add to the frequency of running breaks, and try to make each segment of running a bit longer.  Eventually you will reach a point where you are almost doing it all at a continuous jog.

I think the real attraction for Turkey Trot is the fun and excitement it offers for almost everyone at every level.  It's sort of a continuous participation parade down Delaware Avenue and an excellent way to kick off your Thanksgiving Day.  The sheer number of people doing it makes it an attraction in itself. 

I've been running since September 1976.  I was over 200 pounds, and started running to lose weight and get myself back into shape.  I was only 23 years old and was having a hard time completing two flights of stairs.  I began my program much like I outlined above.  Within a year, I started running, lost over 50 pounds, and completed my first marathon!  

----------------------------------------------------

Tom Donnelly ran his first Turkey Trot in 1977 and completed 25 Turkey Trots before becoming the race director.  This years 117th Annual YMCA Turkey Trot will mark Tom's 10th year as race director.  Tom resides in Buffalo with his wife Julie.

WORKOUTS THAT INSPIRE

I have the greatest job!  I have the opportunity to help people work toward their health and fitness goals as a YMCA Fitness Instructor at the Southtowns Family YMCA.  It is an incredibly rewarding job and I often feel that I should be paying the YMCA for allowing me to do it!

As an instructor, my number one intention is to provide something useful, motivating, or uplifting to the members that attend my class.  I am there for them.  In each class I teach, I have had members tell me that I have made a difference in their workout.  It could be something as simple as a song on my group cycling play list that really inspired them or teaching them a new breathing technique in yoga.  It is great to know that I can have a positive impact on someone’s health!  Being a contributing member of the community fills me with a sense of purpose and inspires me to want to do more.

This summer the YMCA and Independent Health partnered to bring Fitness in the Parks to Buffalo.  I am proud to say that I am a part of this program, bringing FREE group exercise classes to the Buffalo community all summer long, while enjoying the weather in our area parks.  I teach Pilates at Canalside every Wednesday from 6:00 – 7:00 pm.  The setting there is perfect and such a great way to get your workout in and still be able to enjoy the outdoors after work.  Even on those really hot nights we have it is much cooler near the water and there is always a breeze.  My favorite part of the workout is in the very beginning of class when we lie on our mats and practice deep breathing.  Many nights there are sailboats floating down the canal as we lay under the shade of two full trees.

The Y is a place for families.  My husband and I work out there and my three year old son just loves going to see his friends in child watch.  It is also great when he can burn off a bit of energy in the Adventure Room and he has learned a lot in the other pre-school classes that are offered there.

I am proud to say that I am a part of the YMCA team.  Just being there puts me in a good mood because I am surrounded by health minded, happy people (that includes employees, volunteers, and members)!  The YMCA is an organization that brings health of the body, mind, and soul to people of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds and cares about the community. 

If you haven't tried Fitness in the Parks yet this summer, there's still a few weeks left.  Download the schedule.  I hope to see you there!

-----------------------------------------

Kelly Williams’s involvement with the Y began as a YMCA volunteer and has grown ever since.  She was hired as a YMCA fitness instructor in 2010.  Kelly can be found teaching group exercise classes such as yoga, group cycling, and Pilates.  She most recently became a FitStart Coach and looks forward to becoming a SilverSneakers® instructor this fall.  She is passionate about heath, whole living, and having a positive impact on the community.  She loves long distance running and has completed many half marathons.  Kelly resides in Lancaster with her husband Andy, son Jameson, and their boxer Brewzer.  

SUMMER ADVENTURE STARTS HERE

From the field trips, to the swimming, to the long lasting friendships made, camp is by far my favorite time of the year!  The first day of camp is filled with emotions - children are either really excited to return or skeptical of the “unknown”.  Parents are either really excited to have their child back at Y Camp or really nervous about being away from their child.  My absolute favorite part of camp is seeing that fear, anxiety and nervousness subside and turn into “Mom I don’t want to go home yet” and “What did you do to my kid?  They were sleeping by 6:00 last night!”  Camp is about the experience and that feeling you leave the campers and parents with at the end of each day, wanting and eagerly waiting to return the next day, week or year!

I recently had a baby last August and my outlook on camp has changed.  I’ve always run safe, quality, fun camps, but from a YMCA professional perspective.  This year I’m looking at it as a YMCA professional AND as a parent.  This new outlook will allow me to relate to the parent’s fears and anxieties about trusting our counselors, who are complete strangers to them, with their children.  Having a child means I have to ask myself, “If my daughter were in this camp, would I have peace of mind knowing she is safe and she is having fun?”  It allows me to respond to parents questions with confidence that YES you can trust we are keeping your children safe and that they are forming friendships in a positive social peer group environment!  Our camp is a place where children’s differences are considered unique and respected by everyone.  Our camp is a place where parents can go to work and know that their child is safe in our care.   Our camp is a place where memories are made, friendships are formed, and lives are positively changed!

------------------------------------------------------

Maria Solomonidis started her Y career eight and a half years ago as a camp counselor and School Age Child Care coordinator in Rochester, NY.  In 2006, Maria came to the YMCA Buffalo Niagara association, and held the program director position at the Niagara Falls Family YMCA and most recently at the Northeast Family YMCA.  She holds a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education and English literature, and has a teaching certification for age’s birth through grade two.  Maria is passionate about making a difference in the lives of children and loves seeing the progress a child makes over the course of the summer.  Her favorite camp activity is baseball week, when campers and staff get to form teams together and play against each other.  When she’s not at the Y, Maria is spending time with her 10 month old daughter, family, and dog, and playing softball.