Greetings from Lake Tahoe!

Lake Tahoe - one of the most beautiful and fun places to be in California. Regardless of the type of person you are; nature lover, dig lover, runner, skier, border, you name it, this place likely has something you'll enjoy. Fortunately I love all of the above, so it works out (minus the skiing, I'm a boarder).

Milo, the family Chesapeake bay retriever and the dog that started it all, is on his way here as well in my parents' car. He always loves coming here because of the long walking trails and open space for him to explore. Pictures to come, of course.

I'll be doing some altitude training and posting on the trails, so look out for some ideas. It's a great time to get away from it all and connect with nature, so I'm looking forward to it.  Let me know if you have any trails to recommend, I'd love to hear it!

Milo loved his home-made treats with fruits, veggies and peanut butter,so I can't say enough how much I recommend trying it for your own pups. You can control what they eat, give them some delicious treats and save money long term. Yum/woof!




Hope everyone is being safe out there. Take time to care for yourself as well as others!

Easy dog treats to make at home!

It's almost Christmas and if you haven't checked out our online store for great gifts, then perhaps you're interested in some healthy dog treats to make as gifts for dog-owners. All told they took me about 35 minutes to make the dog treats and 25-30 of those minutes were while the treats were baking in the oven.

I made two different types of treats and I have a suspicion that the dogs will favor the peanut butter enhanced one... but I guess I'll have to test it first :) These are also great kid-friendly recipes to make and bake. Doesn't matter if you get a little messy! Click here to get to our recipe page.

1. Peanut butter and banana treats from Whole Foods which I've also listed on our recipe page. You mash up banana, peanut butter, oats, 1 egg and bake them on a sheet in the oven.
2. Apple and carrot treats from My Baking Addiction which is also listed on our recipe page. Here you grate a carrot, add apple sauce, oats, an egg and baking powder. Same deal, mash and put on a baking sheet in cookie or treat form and bake until golden brown.

I recommend grabbing some jars and filling them with the cookies and adding a simple ribbon for decoration. I calculated that per jar of cookies you're only spending around $3. That's a great deal and not a lot of effort! Not to mention, these are all natural ingredients and healthy for your pup.

Here's some pictures of my baking adventures and the final product. Enjoy!

The final product! Who wouldn't want one of these treats?

Ingredients for the carrot and apple treats.

Mush! Kid-friendly baking :)

Ingredients for the peanut butter treats.

How was your #GivingTuesday?

Greetings from Bergheim, Germany! It is mighty cold here. There's snow and ice and it is making running a bit more interesting than I was used to in Namibia. I'm here because much of my family is German and I love coming back to go to Christmas markets and catch up on German beer. The best thing I have seen so far is VERY MANY happy dogs in the streets and out in town. It is great to see them out of the apartments and calmly enjoying towns.

So what did we do for #GivingTuesday? If you don't know what it is, it is the Tuesday after Black Friday and Cyber Monday and focuses on giving back to the community. I love it and have giving a little extra through Trot with Spot to the organizations we support (Naankuse, SF SPCA and WCC) in addition to Charly's bakery as they do great things for kids in the community through food. Thanks to a very kind soul at the airport who let me go through without charging me at least $160 USD, so I decided to pay it forward through TWS. It feels great!

While I was in Cape Town I got to experience a fantastic running adventure through Run Cape Town. I saw the activity in a running magazine. It is a woman named Philippa, local South African, who loves to run and show people around Cape Town. She has a guiding certificate and has picked out some first class places to take you running which are off the beaten track. We went to a wonderful town called Darling and did a 10k trail run. After that she drove us back to Darling proper and we tasted locally grown olives, wine and beer. It was absolutely great and a wonderful day of activities and getting to know locals. The best was that I got great gifts for home along the way! Highly recommended and a fantastic deal at roughly $35 USD (depending on the exchange rate). Link to the Darling tour here.... Here are the Facebook pics! One last thought on Cape Town - RIP Mandela. We are forever indebted to your leadership and kindness.

We have some wonderful designs going up in the store for the holidays so we hope that you get your gear in time for Christmas! The best thing of course is that the profits go straight to worthwhile charities around the world. 

Darling Brew in South Africa

Time to taste the local beer!

 
 Finished the 10km trail run!

New design - more to come!

Getting ready for Giving Tuesday!

This week Trot with Spot joined with Giving Tuesday to start changing the way people think about the holidays, particular to the Thanksgiving Black Friday/Cyber Monday time. How about adding Giving Tuesday? It's a day to give to charities, large and small, and we're all over it. What a fantastic concept. Check out the full website here: http://givingtuesday.org/

As we're getting ready for Giving Tuesday, we've expanded our inventory and designs! Very exciting news. Loving the inspirations from others and the support we've gotten so far. We may be a small organization, but every little bit counts in the desire to make this world a better place :) http://trotwithspot.spreadshirt.com/

Training this week went well also. Tonight I'll just need to go on a short run and do some strength workouts so that I have earned my grilled cheese. It will be my last grilled cheese Sunday in Namibia so I am looking forward to it. Next week I am hosting a Thanksgiving dinner here to celebrate the giving season. Woot!

One of the more important running tips I reconnected with yesterday was never to doubt your body. If you go into a 5 mile run worrying about whether or not you'll finish it, you'll be miserable the whole time. Just focus on the run itself, the joy of running, and the surrounding/music you have around you. Be positive and trust your legs!

Here are some pictures from my week this week, as well as the new designs.

 

 

Sick as a dog!

Well I kicked off my first week of training for the 10k with a 50% success rate. I made it through 3 runs (4 miles, 3.5 miles, 4 miles) with surprising ease and then got my one and only, worst ever, cold. I had a fever and am still sucking on cough drops and blowing my nose at least 35 times per day. The good news is I'm on the mend and feel confident that I can restart the running this week! Right now I'm hoping to do some yoga tomorrow to stretch out the muscles then either bike or run on Tuesday, depending on how I am feeling. Wednesday will be a fartlek workout, so it will be tough! What on earth is a fartlek? It's a 'speed game' where you change your speeds throughout your run. It helps with a lot of things, but I find it helps me the most with mental toughness.

Alfie, grabbing a drink during our run.

This week I also restarted running with Sabu and Alfie. For Sabu, I felt a happy medium where we can run part of the way on the leash and the other part off, so that worked out well. It just so happened I saw cheetah tracks that day and within a day the cheetah was collared and released for research purposes. Awesome!!

Big ole German Shepherd!

Today I also met the HUGEST German shepherd I have ever seen in my life. Also the sweetest. Very gentle creature, helping to take care of the kids of the household. When I got back from town, I dribbled some water on my fox who looked a little toasty and later that day experienced a very weird 10 minutes: wild baboons very close to the house, one baboon that was tame who came to visit, and then an orphaned animal dropped at the house by the owner of Naankuse. Everything is sorted now, but man it was weird! 

We've got some new designs today, check them out! You get 20% off until November 12th so it's a great deal. The savings don't affect how much Trot with Spot gets, in case that worried you.

It's time for me to go finish watching Indiana Jones and get ready for taking a baboon tonight. I'm moving back to the states for some new adventures in a few weeks and I want to get as much baboon time as possible. (Since my cold is on the mend it shouldn't affect the baboons.)

Tips for runners and dogs: 

• PEANUT BUTTER. Cheap, nutritious and filling.
• Positive reinforcement: Look at what you have accomplished in addition to what you still have to do. Make sure you acknowledge how much you've already done on the way to your goal!
• If you have a cold, sit out a round and let your body recover. :)

Don't let obligations get in the way of the joy of running

I learned a valuable lesson this week: Don't let obligations in life get in the way of the joy of running. What do I mean by that? Running is a way to relax, re-energize, and be healthy. It isn't something to feel pressured by. This week, I had a tough week with the dogs - they both wanted to run 16 different directions at any given time and I came back from 2 runs feeling down, as opposed to my normal post-run cheer. It sucked! So I went for a bike ride to switch things up and took some time to reflect. I realized I was putting too much pressure on these runs to be perfect and wasn't allowing the dogs to be dogs. So this week, I'm going to start small again and be thankful for the ability to run.
In that thought, I looked around for some inspiration for my runs and found 2! Hopefully you'll enjoy these as well:
Run Cape Town - This is an opportunity to combine sight-seeing tours with running, guided by a running guide. I am so excited! The tour I am doing will be a bit more of a social one and will include wine and beer. What a great idea!
The Coyote Hills 10K on January 25th, 2014. It has a canid in the name!! Of course I am going to sign up. It's at a California Regional park that I grew up near, so it feels nice to be a part of it. Can't wait. This will be my first race 10K!

To help with the 10K planning, I looked up some training guides and will start those this week. As I don't want to work against my resolution to relax a bit more this week, I'm going to stick to the week 1 amounts, even if they are lower than what I would normally run.

We had a great week leading up to Halloween! Hope you enjoyed our special Halloween products. We'll be working on Fall/Thanksgiving ideas soon, so look out for those.

Have a great week!

Duathlon was a success and Trot with Spot raised over $300 in the process!

Well I was pleasantly surprised by the event itself, despite being small. It was a lot of fun doing the race with a friend of mine (Augusta, left). She was incredibly positive and we encouraged each other along the way so that's about the best way to do a race! The race itself was designed by top Namibia Triathlete Charmaine Shannon, who started the company T-Rex Triathlon Training Tribe which helps kids get involved in Triathlons for a healthier future. Considering we raised over $300 for Trot with Spot and the race fee went to the children, it was the gift that keeps on giving. Charmaine came to one of the fundraising challenges I put together earlier this year working at Naankuse, so it was nice to come out and support her efforts as well.

In terms of overall speed, I was pretty happy with the runs - 10:45 per mile for the first 2.5 miles and 11:22 per mile for the second 2.5 miles. The bike in between was a bit chaotic... so I'll just say we finished the course we knew! ;)

One fun side effect of running ONLY hills for so many months is that I didn't feel bad on the hills. Woot woot! Normally those are the worst part but I actually pulled ahead of people during the hills so I was thrilled. Short steps all the way!

After the race my race partner and I met up with my sole support at the race (Cila) and went for a lovely brunch at a botanical garden-type thing. Absolutely delicious. Later, it was watching a bit of rugby and taking it easy, my favorite type of day!

So what did we accomplish for our fundraising? Well, we raised over $300! The figures are still coming together, but we've already exceeded the $300 mark so that's great. The money will towards the African Wild Dog project - towards a Wild Dog sponsorship which helps out with food and camp maintenance costs, as well as a nice new tire! Can't drive with only 3 tires, so this is a big help to the research team. Thank you to everyone for your support!

Now we switch back to splitting the proceeds between Naankuse (40%), the Wolf Conservation Center (40%) and the ASPCA no-kill shelter (20%). Buy some gear

or donate your designs to help out! 

1 week until the Duathlon, fundraising for the Wild Dog Project!

Well it's been a hectic last 10 days! With a quick 4 day trip to Etosha National Park of Namibia to see some Elephants, Rhino's and Lions, it was immediately time to get in some last minute training with Sabu and Alfie. Fortunately, it's all gone to plan so far. I also got my gear embroidered here so I'll have some Trot with Spot gear for race day. After humming and hawing back and forth, I'm going for the 5km run - 12 km bike - 5km run. It will be challenging to complete the second 5km, but I'm sure it will be great fun! So far Trot with Spot has raised $74 of the $200 goal, so here's to hoping a few more orders come in to help reach the goal. While it doesn't seem like too much, $200 can buy a new tire for the research team and that is huge. They go through a lot of tough terrain and the tires take a beating out in Namibia. Having a spare tire can mean the difference between success and failure.

We've also expanded our clothing line for this month, and continue to add new ideas. If you'd like to be a part of it, please do! We'd love to showcase your work. Store link: http://trotwithspot.spreadshirt.com/

Tips from this week:

PEANUT BUTTER. It is satiating, nutritious and cheap. Don't go overboard because it is high in calories, but it is a fantastic recovery food and great for keeping hunger at bay.

ICE. If you're feeling a twinge here or there, ice can often help. Ideally you cool the area for 20 min on, 20 min off and make sure to stretch. It can really help you stay out of the red zone of injuries.

SMILE. Don't be too hard on yourself if your run or walk didn't go as planned! You're enjoying some endorphins and helping your health. It's a little counter-productive to be worried about your run, because too much worrying isn't good for you either!

Pictures from Etosha:

Ride with Spot, it's crosstraining!

So I've decided to take part in a duathlon (Run, Bike, Run) in Windhoek on October 19th to fundraise $200 for Trot with Spot, particularly for the African Wild Dog Project at Naankuse. I love mountain biking and I love running, so I am pretty stoked.

Since most of my runs have been dedicated to running with Sabu (large black mut du love), I thought I would change it up with my other favorite dog here - Alfie. His full name is Sir Alfred Biscuit and he is actually Noodles' brother. In other words, a total Jack Russel, full of energy. I strapped on his harness and attached the leash to my bike.

TIP: Make sure that you attach it to the frame, NOT the handles. Not only does this let the dog have a better range of running, but it helps you with your stability. If he's attached to your handle, one little move could send both of you flying.

TIP: Use the app "MapMyRide" to help you log your distances and time. I use the Nike+ app for my runs, and this is the equivalent for running. It shows you elevation and everything. Love it!

For this bike I just focused on having a good time and making sure Alfie was feeling alright. He's obviously going a lot faster and further, so it was important to take Hartebeest is? It's a type of antelope out here and there's a video of one taking out a moutain biker. The guy was ok but it was a hard hit! I did see these guys on my bike but fortunately it was sans any type of collisions.....
a few breaks. Fortunately, we both had a fantastic time and got to see a few animals. Do you know what a

Fartlek Workout - Don't worry, it's not another way to pass gas!

Today Sabu and I tried out a Fartlek workout and it was great fun! Despite the fact that I felt ridiculously sore from my brief weightlifting the day before, I enjoyed the unique workout and feel great now.

I'm fundraising for the N/a'an Ku se Foundation for my next race (October 19th in Namibia), a duathlon in Windhoek. My goal is to raise $200 USD to help purchase a tire for the research which is done for the African Wild Dog here at the Foundation. If you could donate $5, that would be great!

So, what the heck is Fartlek workout!? It's Swedish for a speed changing workout and slightly different than other speed changing workouts like a ladder or a tempo run. This one is great for groups or more than one person, though I enjoyed it with my four-legged friend as well. You warm up for 5-10 minutes then keep a steady pace and decide random times to sprint (to the tree, to the sign, etc.). It helps to rev up the body and can be a really nice change to the every day run.

How did Sabu do? Well, we're working on "sprint with me", but he was getting better and better at increasing his speed to match mine. I alternated between looking ahead and not tripping over a rock, and turning back to encourage Sabu. While I don't think I hit a full-on sprint, we did go very fast and got a great workout in. Hopefully the next few times we do it, Sabu will understand more about it and get more into it.

Highly recommended workout! Here is a link to a comparison of Fartlek, Tempo and Interval workouts for your perusal by Active.com.

While we went for our run, we passed a water hole and saw tracks from the local Giraffe. I snapped a picture of them the day before and got it edited by KromePhotos

to help with the brightness. Enjoy our long-legged friend!

Meeting new puppies in the desert!

One of the best things about living in Namibia, is learning all about the different dog types here and what their uses are. Namibia is largely farmland and agricultural, with a lot of conservation land smooshed in between. This weekend I went to a farm where I met 2 types of interesting dogs. Previously, I didn't really understand the appeal of a Dachshund (no offense), but this weekend I got to spend time with quite a few. Most excitingly, I got to spend time with 2 Dachshund puppies! Absolutely adorable. It was pretty funny to see them jump up stairs and stuff with their shorty-short legs, but they were excellent watch dogs and can really move when they want to! I also discovered they have vibrant personalities and are very loving. The two puppies (in the picture), were absolutely adorable. Little furry hotdogs if you ask me!

The second pair of dogs I met were also very lovable, but had a work-based purpose. They seem to just know it from birth, as they were never trained but can herd sheep and goats instinctively. They are known as 'Kelpies" here, more generally known as Australian Kelpies. Unfortunately I couldn't get a good picture of them standing still because they were so excited to see us. With natural threats like leopards, jackals, and cheetahs, it is important to have simple, sustainable, and non-deadly ways of keeping large carnivores away from the livelihood of the farmers. Dogs like these not only help keep the sheep and goats together, but also make sure that other animals are discourage in doing anything sneaky

. Obviously, the shepherds help also, but dogs have many extra handy senses. These dogs know exactly when to slow down for the sheep and goats and will naturally wait to continue. They are a hardy breed and have few health problems. That's really important for terrain like Nambia, where it is VERY hot and VERY cold, depending on the time of the year. Crazy cool dogs!

Back from the Desert!

After a week in the Namibian Desert at a Winery, I am totally exhausted. For the benefit of African Wild Dogs, I organized a mountain bike race at Neuras: Wine and Wildlife Estate, a partner of Naankuse. It turned out absolutely great, much to my relief. The racers had to do 36.5 km of terrain, and every 5ish km they had to do a group activity. One of them was to dance Gangnam style which then one of the researchers put together in one of the funniest videos I have ever seen. I will make sure to share it when it is available.

At Neuras they have a dog named Noodles, one of the cutest and funniest dogs I have met in Namibia. He is a stout Jack Russel with energy for days. When I was too scared to cycle on my own through Leopard territory, this little squirt came with me for 20km! What a rock star. I took a picture with him as he sat on my lap in the evening. Enjoy!

Pyramids of fun

Whew, what a day! Sabu the dog and I worked out on our pyramid running today to spice up our run, work on speed changes, and rev the calories. Definitely fun and worth it: 3 min intervals of slow, medium, fast (somehow the 'fast' was always on a hill...). Along the way I focused on staying off of my heals, and making sure Sabu was feeling comfortable at that particular pace. It's interesting to get him used to different speeds, because he's mostly used to "walk" and "trot". Some tips for this run with your dog:

1. Great time to work on communicating so that you can sync up on your speeds. Positive reinforcement is always a good idea!
2. Don't be afraid of hills! This is a great workout for hills, not to mention that it gives you something else to focus on.
3. Don't worry too much about your average. Focus on the changes in speed, how your body feels, and that you're syncing up with your running partner.

Good luck on your next run!