Last week, the Por Vida training participants practiced yoga at Evolve Yoga in La Quinta, Calif. to work on their flexibility and strength. Photo: Courtesy of Run with Los Muertos

Entry 3 – October 8, 2014

JOHNNY FLORES JR/Coachella Uninc

This week marks the third week of the Por Vida training sessions in preparation for the Second Annual Run With Los Muertos 5K on November 1. Naturally, the sessions are growing more intense.

This week, I found myself at Evolve Yoga in La Quinta doing yoga for the first, and perhaps last, time. I had never done yoga before; my only previous exposure comes from the often humorous parodies on television. But I learned that yoga is no joke, and it’s certainly not easy. About five minutes in, I found myself sweating profusely and out of breath. It was not all fun and games. However, at the end of the session, I was more relaxed and my body felt more flexible.

After yoga, we walked to the La Quinta Civic Center Park and ran for a total of 21 minutes. The running took place in seven-minute bursts with two minutes of walking in between. It was a lot of work, but I did not stop at any point. It was even more work navigating the countless newlyweds and quinceañeras taking pictures around the civic center!

I expect the training sessions to continue to get harder, but I think I can do it because of the skills I have acquired over the past two weeks. With each passing day, I grow more and more excited for November 1 – the day I will finally be able to say I ran a 5K.

It’s not too late to join Live Well Clinic’s intensive training program to prepare for Second Annual Run With Los Muertos. (The program is free with your $32 race fee.)

The fourth session is this Saturday, October 11, at 7 a.m. We will meet at the Empire Polo Fields in Indio. For more information, call Run with Los Muertos at 760-777-1622 or Live Well Clinic at 760-771-5970.