In honor of this momentous occasion, I wanted to take a moment and reflect on five things I love about living here. Before I get to it, I'm linking up with the Friday Five link up hosted by Courtney at Eat Pray Run DC, Cynthia at You Signed Up for What and Mar at Mar on the Run.
Here are five reasons why I love living in San Diego:
1. The people. I have met some amazing people and made some amazing friends. You may be surprised to know this, but my first friends here weren't runners at all but fellow moms of multiples. Before we moved here, I joined the North County Mothers of Multiples to connect with some local moms. It was the best decision I made. They welcomed me, my husband, my then 5-year old son and my then 4-month old twin girls with open arms and helped me acclimate to a whole new world: living here and dealing with twins + one! In addition to those wonderful mom friends, I've met some other amazing people, both runners and non-runners alike. With no family here, I would be lost without them. Friends that are like family make living here better. Thank you. There are too many people to name individually but you know who you are :)
2. The running community. When I first moved here, Running Skirts had a shop in Encinitas and had a group run during the week. I went one week and instantly felt part of the running community here. Everyone there was friendly and welcoming. I was so out of shape from having the girls that I couldn't keep up with everyone but one of the employees stayed with me. I'll never forget it! From there, I joined the San Diego group of Moms Run This Town and have made some amazing friends. Not to mention the Dirt Devils, San Diego Ultra Running Friends and Run North County. Personally, it's been amazing but professionally, as a running coach/sports nutritionist/personal trainer, the fitness community here is like no other. There is no better place to work. I have loved every minute of working with my San Diego clients!
3. The trails. I have to admit, I was a pretty novice trail runner when I first moved here. There are only a handful of trails near where I lived in the DC area and while they are beautiful, they aren't very technical. It was quite a shock to start running the trails right outside my door. But I have loved learning the trails here and love that I can take my pick from technical, steep climbs in the mountains to soft lagoon trails that lead to the ocean. While I don't love the critters we encounter from time to time, I absolutely love everything about running the trails here in San Diego! And I must give an honorable mention to the coast. I am able to run along the Pacific Ocean coastline any time I want and it's pretty fantastic. Between the coast and the trails, I am in a runner's paradise!
4. The weather. I mean, really. San Diego is known as much for its beaches as it is for its weather. You can run here year-round and get your fair share of Vitamin D on the regular. Granted, we have issues with drought and wild fires in especially hot and dry conditions (like this week) but overall, it's an amazing climate that you quickly get used to! I have lost every ounce of my ability to withstand cold weather. I'll never forget the first winter we went back to New York after moving here, I had become such a wuss. I couldn't understand how I ever survived an East Coast winter and it had only been a year since living through one!
5. The races. We are lucky here in SD that there's usually a race every weekend somewhere within a 30-minute (or less) drive. I've done quite a lot of the local races and have loved getting to know my new county through them. I've also loved being able to easily travel to places I've wanted to race such as Los Angeles, Arizona and Las Vegas. And as my kids get older, it will get easier to explore even further. I can't wait!
While I will always miss my East Coast roots, friends and family, I have loved getting to know San Diego. I know how lucky we are to live here and I feel so grateful to have made San Diego my residence for the last 5 years. Whether we stay here forever remains to be seen but for now, it's home.
What do you love about where you live?