How Becky Used Fitness to Triumph Over Insecurity, Obesity, Divorce, and Injury

###### Kevin Chang 2:42
We're so thrilled to be joined by Becky Hernandez, one of the CO captains here of two legit fitness, Becky, I mean be and I have known you for a really long time. But for everybody else, kind of give us a little background on yourself. Tell us a little bit about yourself.

###### Becky Hernandez 3:00
Oh gosh, where do I start? So open ended. So, Becky Hernandez, I am a San Jose. I call myself a native I, my parents moved here when I was like, you know, less than a year old. So born and raised here in San Jose, I just say born and raised in San Jose. Let's see, I grew up in the south. I grew up all over the place. My dad moved us a lot. So different pockets of San Jose. But I think I would say my right now I'm living in alum rock area, and been here. You know, this has been like been here for about over 20 years and just enjoy everything about San Jose. I didn't live outside of the area for a few years in San Luis Obispo to attend college, but came right back home. Because this is where the jobs were. I have two kids, my kids but they're 18 and 15. They're, they're, you know, one adult and one still a child. One just graduated from high school. So we're excited about that. Thank you. Yeah. And during the day I'm a I worked with the County of Santa Clara. I'm really this My first I've been with accounting for about six years and it's it's been just a, a journey, a learning experience. But really I I love San Jose, I love the valley and being worked being able to work from work for the county has just given me a sense of just greater purpose and really enjoy, you know, my job in in the IoT space. So what do I do as a hobby? It is, I guess I would say is my the fitness side of things. I enjoy, you know, ai running is something that I like I'm gonna say I found by accident. I didn't really want to be I didn't want to do it, you know, because I was a group exercise fanatic. Back in 1997 is when I started a weight loss journey. I was at my heaviest probably over I was over 200 pounds, and I'm fine too. So over 200 pounds. It does, you know it does show and my friend I had a co worker and she would always come up with these crazy schemes to lose, she wanted to lose five pounds. I had a lot more to lose, but she'll Just came up with these crazy schemes. And finally one of the schemes was let's join a gym and I said, I can do that. So I joined the YMCA here east valley YMCA and that's where I just fell in love with group exercise and running came after. It wasn't. It wasn't my first choice. It was my it was I had to run because I couldn't take my group exercise instructor with me on vacation. So I found a treadmill at the hotel gym. And I'm like, Okay, this is what I'm going to do. So from then on, I would say that it became something that I enjoyed, and I balanced and was able to do both. And then, you know, met Bertrand in Oh, gosh, maybe 2009. I think it was. Yeah. And it was I think I joined like a dodgeball tournament. And then from there, try Yeah, traveling dodgeball. Yeah. And then it went from there to a warrior dash that was my first obstacle course race.

###### Bertrand Newson 5:58
And then from there, and you crushed it crushed it You made us all look like inferior muscles

###### Becky Hernandez 6:04
Oh, I don't know about that. I just was I think news I wanted to get to the mud like get that over with so I was like I gotta get over there is what to get get over this mud thing but from there that's where it just sort of like I realized running at that point seemed to be like a solo sport right you ran you did that was something you the effort you put in is what you get out of it. But the team aspect of it was something that I was able to realize through to legit was it you This is also a team that team mentality, kind of like cycling right the peloton where the cyclists go together to inspire, motivate and get that lead runner up ahead. That's really you I think what I was able to see with too legit and so now here I am today.

###### Kevin Chang 6:52
I guess were you always into team sports? or how oh why did it

###### Becky Hernandez 6:58
No, I kind of I think because of group exercise. So going back to my experience with group exercise, I was going there for about a year regularly. So my weight loss journey started in 1997, in that first year lost about 30 pounds. And I remember one time I didn't go, I don't know work got in the way. I don't know something happened where I was gone for about a week. And when I came back, the members were like, Oh my gosh, where have you been? We we didn't know what happened. We're so glad to have you back. And it was like, Oh, my God, they noticed that I was gone. You know, it was it was so you that drew me back to that class because it became a family. So the connection was there. And now with running again, running solo. In fact, I when I discovered the treadmill, I ran on the treadmill for like five years straight. I never ran outside. I didn't want to go outside. I didn't feel comfortable. I felt I wasn't I was a fake runner, like, Oh, you know, Who does she think she is? I'm like, I'll just do my treadmill. I'm good. And it wasn't until later that I in 2005 where I started running Outside when I was training for my first half, and then again, solo by myself, even though it was part of San Jose fit, it just didn't click being like a team. It didn't it didn't, that that didn't click, like I joined a team to train for a solo run. To legit has changed it so that it's like, you know, we all have our individual goals. However the team comes together to support the goals in you know, as you as an individual, or you know, or you know, and the group in general so, I always think about that connection, like I feel like we're all in it together. And that's the that's what I feel with with too legit.

###### Kevin Chang 8:40
Well, I was gonna say I want to get back to this. This thought about, you know, not feeling like going outside feeling like, you know, keeping to the treadmill keeping, because I think that a lot of people maybe feel that way have a baby, I'm in my comfort zone. Maybe I don't want to step out of my comfort zone and maybe they're, they're stuck in a rut for for a very long time. I guess what was it that got you out of that comfort zone to, you know, find this new world of, you know, running outdoors or meeting other people or,

###### Becky Hernandez 9:14
um, I have to say something I was going through a divorce. So I was wanting to escape, I guess, you know, feel something different. Since my that was something that was you know, just so disruptive in my personal life. And so I used I said, Okay, well, I need a distraction, I need something to just take my mind off of that. Something that was mine. And not not anything to do with you know, what was going on in my personal life at the time I was a you know, I had my son was two and a half and my daughter was a newborn. So going through that, you know, it working divorce and so that training for a half marathon setting that goal for myself was something like okay, that's, that's my, that's me. I can do that. And then I realized that I got to go outside and so that pushed me because I wanted to feel something different. I wanted to feel you know, something that was mine and and nobody could take that away. So I joined San Jose fit actually that's my first you know, I guess if I go back I was a very first running group that I joined and and that was for a year just to train for the half mile or half for the season for the season. And in fact that's where I met initially meant one of our teammates, Nicole var now she hottie I believe that's Nicole shahidi Bernal she's she connected with to legit earlier this year and it's funny because I'm like you were my writing coach back in 2005. So we're just small circle just show goes to show you how small this community of runners you know, it's a small world but that's how I wanted I that got me out there and that made me and then when I realized, gosh sounds a fit in his, you know, all every every from the fast runners to the walk. occurs and all shapes and sizes and I didn't feel alone. I didn't feel like I was going to be singled out. I didn't feel like I was an imposter. I think that was it. I was fighting imposter syndrome. Like you're not a real runner, you know, you're not so. But yeah, so that that really helped me get out of my comfort zone and run outside.

###### Bertrand Newson 11:22
And Becky, was it the half marathon that was your first distance that you were training for? Were there other races leading up to that in your running journey?

###### Becky Hernandez 11:32
So my first ever like pay I'm gonna pay to run was the Mercury News 10 k in 1999. That was my first race. Yeah. And then after I think I only did like maybe a couple 10 K's and no long distance and nothing beyond that. 10 k was my max. I ran one when I was you know, 18 weeks pregnant with my daughter. I think that was the last Mercury News race. I think so. You know, that was my last was I did do to take And I think I did a five K. And that was it. I didn't race. I didn't run races until 2005. I think when I did my first half so there was a few years there where I was, but I had little kids, so I couldn't see. You know, it was it wasn't it wasn't important at that point. I was like, Oh, you know, when it comes when that time comes? And so it did in 2005. I

###### Kevin Chang 12:23
mean, that's pretty incredible to jump right into a 10. k. You didn't you didn't do the five k first or the

###### Becky Hernandez 12:29
I didn't know. I didn't know any better. You know, it's like I think I'm trying to remember what I wore. Think more like a cotton t shirt. Some like, I don't know, it's probably some like leggings that weren't breathable, some like worn like aerobics shoes. Like I'm like, I'm ready to

###### Bertrand Newson 12:43
go home there, right? leggings. I mean, I haven't wore leggings but I totally get you in everything. So

###### Becky Hernandez 12:50
yeah, I mean, I didn't know like, what time do I go there? Where do I sign up? Where do I go? You know the bathrooms and like, I just I remember just being kind of an all scared but At the same time like wow, this is pretty cool. I really liked it.

###### Bertrand Newson 13:03
I mean nothing like that very first race experience what do you remember most from that day? Getting there the anticipate what does it what still resonates with you the most from that first race

###### Becky Hernandez 13:16
that I that I I didn't expect the time that I got not to say I was like, I mean, I was running on a treadmill and with treadmill, you control the speed. So you always and I always knew like okay, my comfort zone is this and maybe I'll go a little faster you know, so then so I think it was averaging maybe like an 11 minute mile on the treadmill but that was that was like fast for me like wow, you know, I'm hitting this and then when I went out there I was I averaged almost a 10 minute mile like I was like, Where'd that come from? Like, I didn't realize like wow, like you know, now that I have so much information and how that all works you know, training and you know, trading at a low kind of like a you know, recovery pays and then pushing in certain it all that now makes sense, because back then I had no idea what I was doing. Or like get on the treadmill run and then and then I decided to run a 10 K so I think that's what it was. I surprised myself with the time.

###### Bertrand Newson 14:07
Was it a run walk? Did you run the entire distance?

###### Becky Hernandez 14:10
I don't remember. I must. I must have I must have. I think I ran or shuffled the whole time with my daughter because I did it when I was pregnant with my daughter. I definitely did a run walk call with her. Yeah. How's everybody? Feel?

###### Bertrand Newson 14:24
Well, on that note, let's let's toast it. Let's get into everybody's drinking. Race. Mom,

###### Kevin Chang 14:30
happy hour. Right.

###### Bertrand Newson 14:32
RaceMob Happy Hour.

###### Becky Hernandez 14:34
Please, please. Please, Kevin, tell me something spiked

###### Kevin Chang 14:40
mushroom powder. Not what you want to hear.

###### Becky Hernandez 14:45
You are hardcore. I want to know what that's like. That's like, another level there.

###### Kevin Chang 14:52
I think my beers like six months old right now I haven't been out from COVID to like, go on a beer. Right? Yeah, I need to I need to go buy some. Usually we have a big party here in the fourth of July, and we have people over and stuff like that. Yeah, I don't know if it's gonna happen this year. So

###### Becky Hernandez 15:10
I know I did this whole thing. It's everything, everything is just sort of just in a standstill, you know, sort of waiting, you don't want to plan but what can you do? That's right.

###### Kevin Chang 15:20
That's right. So you're Well, one thing I did want to touch on. So you mentioned a lot about kind of this weight loss journey. Was weight loss, a big focus early on, or was it something that just kind of naturally happened because you were having fun or, I mean, talk walk us through it?

###### Becky Hernandez 15:37
Sure. Um, so like I said, I had a officemate, who was always you know, trying crazy diets. Like, we're only going to eat pineapple bananas, like, how's that gonna help us? We're gonna starve that's why we're going to lose weight. You know, that kind of thing. And so finally, you but her idea of joining a gym. It was as much as it was scary. I I was okay with that, because I had been a member of the YMCA and during high school, so I was familiar with the why. And I would have to say that the selecting the Y was the perfect choice for me. I don't because I think that was a safe environment. It was a very nurturing environment. And I was a small environment. So I wasn't like on you know, I felt like if I would go into a huge class with, you know, thousands 30 4050 people, I think I would have just like, no, this isn't for me, the classes were small. And I had fun. I think when people asked like, you know, now now Okay, so today, I am a group exercise instructor, I got certified, because I just enjoyed what that journey and what I was able to receive from it, and what I gained from it, and I'm like, I want to be able to give that back if just even if it's one person that I impact, I mean, because I have so many people that think in my journey. But I think having fun and because people always ask me what should I do I want to lose weight. I you know this and that I said you got to pick something. That's that you Just gonna want to go back to, even if it's hard, even if it's like you're in the middle of the classroom gasping for air, because it's tough, but at the end, you're smiling. That's it. So it could be it could be weight, you know, it could be this class, it could be that class, it can be running, it could be walking, it could be, you know, swimming, bicycling, I don't ever say I don't like when people say, well, that exercise, or they criticize a workout or type of workout, because it's like, everyone's different. So it's, it's picking what works for you. And and it's the consistency at the end of the day, does it you know, are you having a good time? Do you forget that you're working out? You know, and it's, it's something that's going to come back to that you want to go back to? So that's how I felt in those that first couple years. And in fact, that instructor Her name is Bertha. She still teaches at East Valley wide. And I know and I always, you know, every time I get a chance to see her, I always, you know, I just feel this special connection to her because she didn't know that how hurt the influence she was going to have on me. No idea and we don't know, right? We don't know. Until, you know, it's been 20 years, 20 plus years. And I'm just forever grateful for her. And all the all the all the instructors, coaches that have caught that I've crossed paths with, because I think there's always something that you're just sort of like, I didn't think about that, or Oh, I didn't I never I didn't. I didn't I haven't looked at it that way. Thank you. You know, there's something you can take away from that.

###### Bertrand Newson 18:20
What's great is incredible.

###### Kevin Chang 18:21
Yeah, that's incredible. Were you, I guess, consistency was part of like, you know, something that people some people struggle with when they are changing plans completely or changing lifestyles? Were you I guess scheduling things in advance, or was the class happening every day? or How did you make sure that you stayed consistent and didn't, you know, fall off a bandwagon here early on?

###### Becky Hernandez 18:47
Okay, so I'm all about lists, and calendars. I love looking at a calendar and just like filling it with things. That's me. I love to schedule in advance. So I yeah, every day So I would get I worked at IBM at the time over there in South San Jose. So in the class was over here in East Valley by Lake cutting by Mount Pleasant High School. So it would take like 2025 minutes so I would, you know, right at five o'clock, I would just, you know, rush to their, to their, they had like a locker room, bathroom area, change into my clothes, jump in the car and go, but I had to be prepared. So I always had to have my bag, my in and mentally prepare. And I think that's once you do that a couple times or a few times, I mean, it takes time. Was I perfect? No. I mean, there was times where I'm like, I don't want to go, I don't want to go live or life happens right? family obligations, you're tired work. So I would try not to beat myself up. And that's something that I'm still learning, not beating yourself up for a missed workout a missed run. Give yourself that flexibility because life happens and and that's, that's the beauty of when you enjoy something when you know that consistency at the end wins. Just because you missed that one. is not going to derail all the work that you've put in. We're going again, I'm still learning that lesson, believe me, I beat myself up. I'm like, Oh my god, I was supposed to do this. Oh, I'm supposed to run, you know, six miles, but I only got three miles and I'm like, well, it's three miles is better than nothing. So, you're fine. Fine. You know, it's okay. You're, it's okay. So, I so I think just giving yourself flexibility. Don't go. So don't be so hard on yourself. If you do miss it. It's okay to push that say, if you say okay, for these next three weeks, I'm gonna do this. And let's just say you didn't go with plan. I'll say, Oh, wait, let's reboot. Let's try to try it again. And then maybe instead of three weeks, go one week, make it those small wins. Just definitely help. I think that's what's helped me is just like, kind of, instead of looking at the big picture, like where I want to be a year from now, it's like, okay, where do you want to be by the end of the fry by the end of Friday? Okay, that is a win. So that's, I think that's helped me and then you'll see the results and I think the results so that first year of taking just group exercise, it didn't run which is great. Exercise, I didn't really focus on food, unless like 30 pounds and it was again consistency. And then from that I realized, you know, if I stopped drinking like, you know, soda and cut out chips, I could probably lose more weight, you know. So I don't felt I dealt with that later. I, I think if I tried to deal with too many things at one time, food nutrition exercise, I think I would have just been like, I'm done. I don't want to do this anymore. It's not fun anymore. It's not fun.

###### Kevin Chang 21:29
Yeah, I mean, I love what you mentioned. Find something that you absolutely love, and then schedule it in advance or, or write it down, right? Yeah. Your half marathon or you know, your fitness classes, you had a goal. You had a plan, and you were doing it to yourself to kind of execute on it and have fun, have a good time while doing it. That's incredible. That's awesome.

###### Bertrand Newson 21:55
And in that same vein, Becky, you know, being a planner, utilizing the calendar to do lists, etc, etc, which has been very successful for you, sometimes things don't always go as planned. share with us some maybe challenges that you've encountered even if you you know, you had the weekly mileage goal scripted out if you were tracking your your calorie consumption, yeah. But those real time life wildcards Come on as you are working professional, with young kids things along those lines and being able to navigate through the life adversity, and still keep your eye on the prize. So talk through some of those challenges that you experienced during the early part of your writing career.

###### Becky Hernandez 22:36
Um, you know, I, to be honest, like, the early part is a big kind of a blur. But I'll all go back to reading when I was preparing to run my first marathon. I was in 2013. And I think I signed up at the beginning of the year, maybe early in 2012. I forget when I signed up but that was like okay, and Okay, yeah, but schedule right, and all about the my schedule. So so I'm gonna do this, do this. Do that. In April of early April, Bertrand and I, and I think your brother, we all went, we did the rock and roll the San Francisco rock and roll half marathon. And during that run, I experienced pain in my leg and my knee that I've like, what is this? I just had a walk I think the last few miles I had a walk. And I went to the medical aid ice my knee and, and I said, Okay, a couple days and I'm fine a couple days and I'm fine. Well, a couple days pass and I'm like, I am not fine. This is it hurts. Like I can't even I can't run. And so I went, I was seeing a chiropractor. This time. I forgot. I think I put the name of the chiropractor, but he he's like, Okay, this is not true. Because it was located around my knee. The pain was around my knee. So this isn't your knee. This is like radiating from your lower back and it's traveling down. It's like, oh my god. So it was it was much bigger than what I thought it was gonna be better than what I thought. Initially. Well, that ended up being so early. April injured. June 14, the 15th I think was my marathon. So April, May, June, so two and a half months, and I probably put in 40 miles total 40 miles of training in those two and a half months. However, this was truly a running injury because I could still do my group exercise classes. I could do my strength training, I could do my cardio training. I don't know what it was, I did not feel the pain that I did when I would push off. So I devoted my time to at least getting my cardio so I said so I could have easily said oh my god, I'm not gonna be able to run. How do you how do you how do you train for a marathon when you can't run? But I threw myself into my classes I am in rehab, I did elliptical I think I did bike I did anything that I didn't was not going to generate or generate pain. And then I went through but I was consistent with going to a chiropractor, and and the recovery piece of it. And I think we did a half marathon version probably two weeks before that.

###### Bertrand Newson 25:00
So that was a and it was a shuffle. It was a shuffle was it to two hours and 30 minutes and rotation just

###### Becky Hernandez 25:09
right. And I felt Okay, I need my knee was a little, like I felt a little bit of soreness. But I'm like, Okay, this is it, you know, and virgin said, Are you sure you're gonna do this? Are you sure I'm like I'm turning 40 this year I have to do this. Like, here we go. My goal, right? I wrote it down on paper a half to run a marathon before I'm 40 or by the time I'm 40. So I really wanted to do this. And and I did so race day show up. You know, I always you know, everyone who runs our first i want i think a lot of people who run their first marathon they always have like a celebrity time goal. And I'm like, I'm gonna be Oprah or Oprah. She was like for 28 years. Well going in with an injury and not in have only run 40 miles. I'm like, Al Roker. I'm gonna be a broker. broker was like over seven hours. I'm feeling our broker. So but looking back just again recently Being able to adapt, not holding on to what could have been to like, hey, but this is still possible. I can still go out there. And I think I think my finished time was like five hours and 13 minutes. I mean, it was, and I ran. And I ran. I jogged. I walked. I think we danced because there was a DJ. We did everything. I mean, it wasn't I don't look on. It was fine.

###### Bertrand Newson 26:26
I had a blast. It was great.

###### Becky Hernandez 26:27
I remember that last mile, Kevin. I was like, this is it. This is my first marathon. I'm a mile away from the finish line. Slow down. Enjoy it. Just saved Yeah, just like cuz you're never gonna feel this again. You're never gonna have another first marathon.

This is their kids. Were at the finish line.

Yeah, I had friends and my family were down there. So I think again, just getting out of that mind like you were supposed to run this time. It doesn't matter. But I beat out broker I did beat out locally. That was my win. But again, I think adapting don't beat yourself up. Be flexible you know it you know, those that those setbacks can turn into just like being one of the most memorable events of your life and not because I look back and I being that it was my first but I look back I'm like that was fun. And you know,

###### Bertrand Newson 27:13
Father's Day weekend too, was it it was a month earlier than San Francisco marathon usually is because of the America America's Cup race with that same year so you have a great strong and again, yes, I was there when you got injured. Saw you pull back on your mileage significantly on the new year we're still putting in the cardio work which group exercise classes and most people would probably throw in the towel and not even give it a go but you you still had that very strong cardio base. But I think more importantly, you had it right here between the ears, you know that what you took off the pressure where there are no expectations other than putting one foot in funny other enjoying the experience? Yeah, knowing that if you just keep moving forward You're gonna get to the finish line and you did you know what time to spare.

###### Becky Hernandez 28:04
And and I'm gonna bring up another example it's San Francisco marathon did the training

###### Bertrand Newson 28:09
but you're going to say

###### Becky Hernandez 28:11
we burn shredder I show up we know what the group we show up on here we have lining up and we're ready to go. The wheels fell off at mile three mile three we're like, why are we here? Why are we doing this? Like, I actually I think burcham would have continued running you probably would have PR I was like No, I don't want to be here. So again, it mindset like I went in there the date you know, thinking this is gonna be a fantastic day we'll get a course PR which at the time I think it would have been like a 420 or 415.Three It was like, I don't want to be here.

###### Bertrand Newson 28:46
I mean, I mean you

###### Becky Hernandez 28:47
get your I did PR because you know why? I got the my slowest marathon ever five hours and like for people but a PR that's

###### Bertrand Newson 28:59
the common theme is his mindset. And it's when the bite, sometimes the body is going to show up and be ready. And sometimes it's going to fight through adversity. And if you can adjust the mental mindset, because we're both feeling in that now, you know, three miles or six miles we knew was gonna be a lie, and it kind of sucked from from start to finish. At some point, we're like, you know what we might as well go ahead and make the best of it. And, you know, out of all the runs we've done together and marathons we've done together, it's been many. I still see and take a lot of a lot of laughter and positive vibes and good conversation. We made the best of it, you know, it was, it was, you know, so, again, and that was how we look at the remaining 20 plus miles, right. Um, and we know, there were some moments it got a little long, a little, little tough, but yeah, you know, we knew we're gonna get to the finish line. I don't think we ever felt we were in danger of not finishing. And I still enjoyed the experience. We were laughing about it. Right now, you know, so yeah, yeah,

###### Becky Hernandez 30:02
yeah. It's

###### Bertrand Newson 30:03
great.

###### Kevin Chang 30:04
Yeah, I agree. I guess I mean, that's something you have to realize too is your worst time is still somebody like goal. Finish time, right. You know, like, be grateful that you're able to be out there on the course even if your body's not really feeling it, not really grooving with you. I mean, you guys just have the right mindset to just like, continue on smile dance, you know? Yeah,

###### Becky Hernandez 30:29
exactly. And it really, I mean, now, okay, so that was a few years ago, you know, you know, I'm gonna be 47 this year, and my body's changing on me, you know, what, how I might the aches and the pains linger. You know, what I eat affects me very differently than it did five years ago. And so I look back at what I was able to do five years ago, and I'm like, my God, I I should have Why didn't I appreciate that? Why didn't they like, Oh my gosh, I could do that. I could do this. And now I'm like, I my body won't let me And that's okay, you know, it's this, this is where I'm at right now in my, in my journey of life, I don't even want to call it fitness, it's just life. This is where I find myself. And it's now again, resetting and and knowing like that, you know, that was, you know, 2017 Becky, that was 2018 Becky 2019 back, you know, this is 2020 and, and just being able to do things, that I'm able to that my goal is to do things without getting, you know, aggravating the injuries that I have. And just, you know, looking thinking long term now it's like, gosh, you know, I'm going to be entering my 50s and a few years and I'm like, I want to be able to I still want to be in the game. One of our dear friends, Randy, you know, he cracks me up. He says, you know, thank God, I drink my drink my way through my 20s and 30s because it saved my knees. And I crack up with that because it's like, it's true. It's like, it's like, you know, he looks at it that way. Like, I can run because of that, you know, I was doing something that's when I think about like, gosh, you know, I want to be able to preserve and Protect what I have and not take it for granted because there's just you know i get i think i was i think i was there was a time there I was like oh yeah let's go run a mare I think I did you know we're running marathons left and right and running on miles and now I'm like, I can't even imagine doing that I just because of you know what, what I'm going through with you know, with injury and things like that.

###### Kevin Chang 32:18
How has your routine changed or have things changed in the way that you're dealing with your body

###### Becky Hernandez 32:28
it's changed in the sense that I have to just again mental mentally reset what what I'm numbers right you know, I know phone tracking your phone and you always look at the number and you compare it right? You just compare it to what what it used to be, and it's it's letting go of what was the past and just say, we got it, this is what it is now and not compare. So that's, that's probably what I'm dealing with more. In terms of like my routine, you know, shelter in place, the gym is closed that has been closed. Since March, so I haven't been doing my classes so I was getting a lot of my cardio training from my classes. So my cardio was, I was telling Verdun my cardio just is plummeting, but it's okay. I'm not there's no races either. So it's like I'm really not training for anything other than it's more just maintaining a level of fitness that so when the gyms reopen, and I'm going back to my classes, I'm not going to die up there.

In fact, you know, if we could reopen it, you know, very soon, and I'm already like, Oh my god, I'm gonna die.

###### Bertrand Newson 33:31
On timeout. I'm calling a timeout. You said your, you said your cardio is plummeting. It is everyone's battling back up. So this is go to April 2020. That's this year, correct? Yes, I believe you established a personal mileage.

###### Becky Hernandez 33:52
Goal. I did a new PR APR of over 222 39 to 299 Okay to 2019

###### Bertrand Newson 34:03
and that was in April this year, correct? Yes. All right. And you again you say your cardio was struggling. Let's just fast forward one month later may of 2020 which was last month. I believe you establish another mileage PR correct. Did you increase you best that by over 100 additional miles?

###### Becky Hernandez 34:27
Three I ended the month with 329.

###### Bertrand Newson 34:31
Kevin Wow. Do you hear that my my cardio is suffering.

###### Becky Hernandez 34:36
It is.

###### Bertrand Newson 34:40
From like, never getting maybe one time getting to 200 work. Have you had you gotten to 200 before in the past?

###### Becky Hernandez 34:46
No, I've never before that was 191 90 was the most I've ever run into muscle

###### Bertrand Newson 34:52
192 to 9019 to 320 plus My cardio suffering.

###### Becky Hernandez 35:04
Okay, can I just explain what I mean by that?

###### Bertrand Newson 35:07
The audience Okay, inquiring minds want to know.

###### Becky Hernandez 35:11
So, yes, those are monthly prs, and that's probably been the silver lining silver lining of sheltering in place. So I would have had a commute, right. If we weren't sheltering plays were before COVID-19. I would commute to North San Jose, close to a pita. So it was like an hour there an hour back. Being now working from home, I swapped that commute with running. So in the morning, I would go out for a run in the afternoon, I would go for a walk. So that's been my routine. And again, I'm all about writing things down scheduling unit advance. So I have my little schedule. And I realized at the end of March Lina, when children play started, like, wow, I got how many miles did I do? Like I was surprised by how much mileage I had even gotten in March. I was like a Wednesday I think I ended march with 175. And I thought, well, gosh, you know, maybe maybe April will be you know, I can I could do a little bit more. Now. We're going to be working from home. for the entire month and so that's really work so when I say my cardio it's more because it's been no speed work you know I walk when I need to I power hike I go what you know, it's I run I jog and I walk so it's I'm not stressing, am I putting my I'm not my heart rate isn't in that, you know, anaerobic zone or anything like that so and I would get that in my classes so that's what I'm thinking like when I say my cardio I think about my, what I would do in my classes. I'm not doing that right now. However, my endurance I have, I have to say, though, endurance wise, I have been pushing and I'm not pushing pace, but just pushing the miles. And so I really just, I'm still amazed that I'm walking after me being able to do those, but again, it was a common, it's like 20% of those miles were walking miles, you know, walking in the evenings after work. And in the mornings, it was doing team runs, and then on the weekends doing a long run, in fact, we closed may with running a marathon. It was it was a last minute decision and that was me being someone

###### Bertrand Newson 37:06
who does. I'm gonna go invest I'm gonna go ahead and best my previous monthly mileage PR by over 100 miles and on the last day of that month run a freakin marathon. drop the mic See? Right That's what I'm doing right now everybody

###### Becky Hernandez 37:18
nowhat i had i interviews

###### Bertrand Newson 37:23
right there?

###### Becky Hernandez 37:24
Well, I I'm gonna give credit, different inspiration to Nicole and Gloria These are two teammates that were had run marathons the weekend before. And they just made it look so easy. And it you know, and I, I hadn't run a marathon in over a year sowhen I was actually running the marathon, I'm like, what, what? Like, what is this? I don't understand this. Like, what I felt was this like, Oh my gosh, this is don't ever take for granted. I think it

###### Bertrand Newson 37:55
was easy peasy. I don't know about you. Yes, that's true. I was I was there.

###### Becky Hernandez 37:59
The First 20 meant begin mental, because we had originally said 20 miles. And it wasn't until like two days before the day before I said, Let's go for a marathon. And you and Jackie were like, sure my crap. Now we have to do it. So, so 20 miles, I was okay, we're running. Once I hit the 20 mile It was like this wall just fell and I'm like, I'm walking. And then it was just a walk, jog, walk jog the last six. But yeah, I you know, No, I didn't. I survived with minimal psychological damage. And so yeah, it's been it's been, I guess that's probably the silver lining of this sheltering in places, having more time being able to do that because, you know, I, I went before that I would work, go teach a class. And I would be lucky if I get a couple miles in during the week. It was just tough with everything that was going on. So

###### Kevin Chang 38:56
awesome. Do you have any goals that you're working on? Now is going to talk those numbers in June is. So is there anything that

###### Becky Hernandez 39:06
I'm doing these days? Well, so Bertrand and I are run local ambassadors. And that JT service and his great organization rolled out a challenge called California coast. 500. And so there's different target goals, you could do 100 miles 250 400 500 the 500 mile is the challenge that I signed up for. And so it's over the course of three months janee June 8, through September 7, I think. So it's, that's the last day of the challenge. And so 500 miles again, running or walking, and as of right now, this is day 11. The guy have about almost 90, so we'll see it's, you know, it again, yeah, it's it's one foot in front of the other and, you know, I'm not having having just finished off with 300 plus mile month. I'm like, Okay, I think the average is like 165 a month for change. Something like that wants to see. Yeah. So I'm like okay, that seems doable to me 365 so that's that's it and then just if the gyms open up getting ready for that, I think I'm excited to get back to classes I'm and I missed I missed that environment that's been that's always been always joke that it's a second home for me it's the group x group x crowd because that's where I feel like that was my you know, my my that's where my journey started so that's always gonna have a special place for me.

###### Becky Hernandez 40:00
Something like that wants to see. Yeah. So I'm like, okay, that seems doable to me 365 so that's, that's it and then just if the gyms open up getting ready for that, I think I'm excited to get back to classes I'm and I missed I missed that environment that's been that's always been I always joke that it's a second home for me it's the group x group x crowd, because that's where I feel like that was my you know, my my that's where my journey started. So that's always gonna have a special place for me.

###### Kevin Chang 40:33
I'm glad you mentioned the California 500 I'm actually running it too and Oh, that's right. Yeah. Oh my god, I'm doing this in the whole like online competition. I wasn't sure how it was gonna work, but it's definitely motivational for me.

###### Becky Hernandez 0:45
Good.

###### Kevin Chang 40:46
You know, on my couch a lot of the times are doing my group classes which we're doing on zoom with with my gym as well. And now it's like, okay, every day I gotta get out there get out there. I yeah, yeah, run my miles. I'm not doing the 500 I'm doing 250 Okay, that'll be good. That'll be quite a bit for me. I'm glad you mentioned it. I think it's, it's awesome.

###### Becky Hernandez 41:07
Yeah, it is. It's I'm glad that it's, it's an, in fact, our team to legit has 70. So our, our group here has 17 people. So we just got to make sure people log their miles. So I was just saying, like, You know what? I was looking at the leaderboard and I saw less than 70 I'm like when somebody's not logging their miles and miles in. I don't know who it is, but I'm gonna find out.

###### Kevin Chang 41:28
You talked a little bit about the group classes. So which classes do you teach these days? How many how many classes you normally do a week? Yeah. Yeah, I mean, it sounds like fun.

###### Becky Hernandez 41:37
It you know, I am certified in in Les Mills. So Les Mills, body pump, body step body combat. So those are the three formats that I regularly teach. And then there's just a lot of variety in those classes. And it's for everybody. So if your local gym like 24 hour YMCA by the The sport bait club Apple, a lot of the corporate fitness that they offer some of these classes body pump is a very popular and a lot in, I would say probably the most popular class. And I like it because you go in and you see again, all walks of life, everybody in their own journey, and we're all there together to get a workout in. And I always and I go in there thinking, Okay, this is not my workout, this is their workout. So I always you know, I, you know, I beat them, but I Oh, you know, kind of look around and, and just, you know, try to motivate coach. I'm not one to go up in somebody's face. Like, that's just not me, because I don't I don't want somebody coming up to me that way. Because I remember how I remember feeling like don't look at me, don't look at me. You know, I'm in this group exercise, like don't look at me. So I respect that, like, everyone is here and I just kind of give general direction. And it's cool, you know, they come up to me afterwards and oh my God, thank you so much. Or you know, that's a great class where they ask for advice. And I'm like, I'm not a medical doctors. And I'm not I don't know, because they always say like, This hurts when I do this, like well Have a go consult with your doctor. But I try to give him advice like, Well, you know, when I felt that kind of pain, this is what I've done, which is go to my doctor. You know, like, like, I'd make sure to put all those disclaimers, but you know, I think that there's they you know they want to they are getting something out of it and they just don't want to lose out so that's why they're like I'm feeling this how do we get rid of it? You know, that kind of thing. But ya know, it's it's, it's been an amazing experience. And I don't know how many years I have left of teaching i right now I'm teaching well, because before shelter in place, I was averaging about 334 classes a week. Before something, you know, like, a few years ago, I was teaching like eight, eight classes a week, I'd cut back. But now it's, you know, three to four, and we'll see, you know, after COVID-19 that's just changed everything. And we just don't know what the demand is going to be like, Are people feeling safe going back to a gym, all those things are going to play out? Oh, you know, only time will tell how that how that's all gonna play out.

###### Kevin Chang 43:57
Well, I mean, I'm glad that you Do other training as well. I think a lot of runners don't realize how beneficial cross training is, you know, other forms of exercise that aren't, you know, impacting the same body part over and over. I mean, you mentioned it with the marathon training, right? Yeah, we're injured you could still do your group x classes. Yeah. I mean, I think it's awesome that we're just mentioning it here. Like how, how important like doing different things.