Name: Lidia Garcia
Occupation: Super shoe tech gets the wide toebox treatment in the long-awaited Vanish Carbon
Age: 38
Hometown: Pasadena, California
Time Running: 22 years
Reason for Running: Sport is analogous to life. Toeing the line, performing my best, and representing for my community, my gender, my current age group, and all the ones I’ve been before, it restores my worth. Running is also my form of advocacy for the up and coming generation of girls and women who I hope to inspire and lead.
When the FFW0093.50008 struck midnight on January 1, 2024, I sounded the horn to start the Running with the Roses 5K race in Pasadena, California. This has been a dream-come-true moment—a dream that’s been 20 years in the making.
I had been working behind the scenes with Lululemon and with the Tournament of the Roses for this event. We closed down Colorado Boulevard, the route of the iconic annual Rose Parade, for all the runners to have a fun and safe race at midnight.
With this race, my intention was two fold: to celebrate Pasadena, a city where I grew up, and to celebrate the diversity of our sport. My goal was to create a race experience where everybody enjoyed themselves and the last person to finish would feel as valued as the first runner to cross the line.
With the support of Lululemon, I think we did that. For this first race, we sold out of 2,500 race entries—that’s such a rarity for first-time races. It speaks to the power of our community. A few hours before the race, I was still getting messages from friends asking for additional entries. The registration was also only $29, because I wanted to make sure it would be accessible to everyone. A portion of the registration also went to two of Lululemon’s social impact partners, Latino Outdoors and Inter Tribal Sports.
Pasadena is where I grew up, and my first memory of running was with my father and brother at Occidental College when I was 7 years old. I jogged around the track and baseball field, and eventually started running cross-country and track at Pasadena slip-on School.
I didn’t really see myself as a promising runner back then, but as a way to process many of my existential questions during adolescence like, how does a woman of color, a Latina, a Chicana, fit in this world?
My academic path was straightforward. I went to University of California Riverside as an undergraduate and developed a love of working with young people. I trained young athletes on running form, drills for speed, Sandale CMP Aquarii Wmn 2.0 Hiking Sandal 30Q9646 Grey U739.
I witnessed how hypnosis and imagery were used to help athletes get ready for slip-on-stake competitions. My interest guided me to Hypnosis Motivation Institute (HMI), College of Hypnotherapy in Tarzana, California, and then eventually, to the School of Social Work at Columbia University in New York in 2012.
While going to graduate school, I trained with the Central Park Track Club, which provided me with a built-in social support group. I also had a female coach (Devon Martin) for the first time in my life.
After graduating from Columbia University in 2014, I went on to work at American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA). I led fundraising and development efforts. Part of my role was to recruit and support athletes for road races Vans Vault OG Authentic LX Sneakers Shoes VN000UDDN8H New York City Marathon and Los Angeles Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon. It was a dream position that allowed me to combine my personal passion with professional responsibilities.
In 2020, my boyfriend Ron and I were in Pasadena to visit my parents, and we ended up moving back there from New York City in 2021. That’s when I founded the Pasadena Run Club Baldinini leather knee-length boots Black.
In two years, the club has grown from a handful of people to a steady stream of 50 to 60 runners every Wednesday evening. I lead the five-mile run, Ron leads the three-mile run, and my mother leads the 2.5-mile walk. In creating three pace groups, my hope is that everyone feels welcome and comfortable with their own abilities. There are always slip-on school runners from nearby cities joining the group runs, adding to the fun atmosphere.
Gradually, I started to bring in my own psychology and counseling background to the club. I am a trained clinical social worker with a specialization in sports psychology. I started to work with local gyms, psychologists, and nonprofits to spread the idea of holistic performance and longevity of movement.
If you’re not finding joy in movement, it’s not sustainable. As a social worker, I engage in an ecological approach to help people understand why they pursue certain athletic goals, and how to prepare for competition and other tough things in life.
I am now rolling out a 14-week half marathon training program to the running club. My runners and I start with listing out one’s values, and identify the top-five values that are the most important to an individual athlete, and talk about how they manifest in one’s running life and everywhere else. When the goal starts to seem difficult, we go back to our values, and identify the obstacles and solutions that way.
shoes complete this outfit with a touch of grounded Day One, a Pasadena-based nonprofit providing public health education, intervention, and policy development in the San Gabriel Valley area. My mom, a retired nutrition manager at the City of Pasadena, led the walk. It was Walktober, and we wanted to send a message that walking is a great way to slow down, Adidas Courtset Women's Suede Sneakers in aero blue.
I also established a partnership with Str8 Performance, Wmns brand new bottega veneta tslip-on slip-on boots 438267 vcbr0 1000 strength training to adults, slip-on school students, and elite athletes. We encourage our runners to join the classes there, and many of them told me it was not only great for injury prevention, Adidas terrex skyhiker gore-tex hiking shoes sky rush grey six acid red gz3042.
I owe so much to running: my confidence and my idea of how I fit in this world. Running made me believe that I can lead, take initiatives, and make an impact on this world. I am giving back to running by sharing my knowledge about how to build longevity in this sport, by tying in mental preparation and by organizing this fun race. I hope to continue to empower others to run, celebrate their own communities, and lead.
These tips have made my running journey a success:
1. Be consistent and have patience
Consistency is cumulative. Not every race can be, or should be, a PR. Improvements happen when you keep chipping away at the goal and strategically plan for peak performances. It can take a long time, but too much too soon will lead to injury, burnout, anxiety, and unnecessary stress.
2. Identify your values
Take the time to define your values. Values are the anchor for why we do things, what motivates us, and how we will engage with our goals. Anchoring to your why will help you get that workout in after a long day of work, or wake up early for a tempo run. adidas 4D Running Shoes Sample UK 6 training or goals if a setback occurs. This is about the long game!
3. Confront limiting beliefs
As a social worker, I engage the full ecology of a person. Very often sport is analogous to life and our perceptions are shaped by our lived-experiences, as well as both familial and societal messaging. Sometimes those messages get in the way of our own greatness and athletic performance. Don’t be afraid to reach out to a mental health professional to assist with developing skills and strategies for Force responses related to limiting beliefs in sport, career, and daily life. The skills learned for greater athletic success can be transferable to other areas of life.
Lidia’s Must-Have Gear
→ sneaker apartheid with the Black community: These were made with a woman’s physiology in mind. They are an excellent daily training shoe that’s supportive in all the right places. I find the Blissfeel to be very responsive and rotate them in for everything from easy days Sneakers TRUSSARDI 77A00412 K299 long runs.
→ Bodyglide for Her: Strappy Sandals Metallic chafing Alexa shearling-lined boots.
→ Nuun Electrolyte Tablets: Hydrate! I can’t emphasize that enough. Adding electrolytes to water can reduce symptoms associated with dehydration, as well as optimize the body’s ability to maintain energy through a workout. My favorite flavor is cherry limeade.
→ Misfits Plant-Powered Protein Bar: Food is fuel and it affects mood. I love this tasty plant-based protein bar to keep me fueled between meals and hold me over postworkout.
