Healthy start to New Year in West Palm Beach

Patti Kadis and her dog Lily in the Run and Roll store

While many people were just crawling out of bed Tuesday morning, a dedicated group of about 70 met at the Run and Roll store in West Palm Beach.

The free, 3-mile family fun run/walk started precisely at 10 a.m. on New Year's Day with a countdown outside the fitness wear store in the 300 block of Clematis Street. The event was sponsored by the store and the Palm Beach RoadRunners group.

Store owner Patti Kadis says she also sponsors other fitness activities throughout the week. On Tuesday evenings, a group of power walkers meet at the store. Wednesday evenings are for runners, as are Saturday mornings. Kadis, who has been a runner for over 4 decades, recently moved her story from CityPlace, a shopping and entertainment complex about .5 mile southwest of downtown.

The route

The spread waiting for runners.

Runners took off east on Clematis. I was able to follow two women who were power-walking. When they reached Flagler Drive, they began to run south. I kept them in my sight until they got to the Royal Park Bridge, aka Okeechobee Boulevard that crosses over the Lake Worth Lagoon to Palm Beach. Suddenly they vanished.

I walked up to the bridge and then back down underneath it. I still couldn't find the runners. I was hot and sweaty, so I checked my pedometer. It registered nearly a mile. I took that as a sign that it was OK to return to the store -- I'll need to interview the store owner and the others who stayed behind to put out the food and drinks, I told myself.

The raffle

This baby was part of the run.

As runners returned to the store, they told stories about the bridge opening twice during the run, meaning that the route crossed over into Palm Beach. They were also given raffle tickets for Roadrunners' T-shirts (long-sleeved, short-sleeved and tanks), visors and two bottles of champagne.

One man whose ticket was pulled for a visor, declined saying he doesn't wear them. But when a bottle of champagne was substituted, he quickly agreed to take it.

The RoadRunners sponsor three major races a year, its president Iva Grady said. The next one is the 37th annual Shamrock Run in John Prince Park on March 16.

That race day, held in a park just west of Lake Worth, features three events: a 10-miler, a 5K and a Kids Leprechaun for children 8 and younger. Here's a video from last year's Shamrock race day:

Commitment Day

After I left the Run and Roll Store, I checked my Twitter account on my smartphone and saw tweets from others that said New Year's Day was Commitment Day. The day featured 5Ks around the country where people committed to changing how they live. Palm Beach County didn't have such a 5K, the closest one was in Miami. Even so, I particularly like the idea behind it: "It's not a resolution. It's a revolution of you.'

So what do you say, want to join me in a fitness revolution?

Thai yoga

A Thai Massage Restorative Workshop Part II will take place this Saturday (Jan. 12) from 3-5 p.m. in Jupiter at Limitless Potentials. Cora Ciaffone, who teaches yoga boarding at the Jupiter Outdoor Center and hatha yoga at the Kula Yoga Shala center, will lead the workshop. Cost is $25 per person, or $20 if you register by Wednesday. Email: flex@bodymindsoul.net.

Bring a partner, or they will pair you with someone. The workshop incorporates acupressure, energy meridian work and yoga-like stretching, all designed to support your entry into 2013. Limitless Potentials is at 351 S. U.S. 1 in Jupiter.

Going to yoga? Bring a can

Famed yoga teacher Priyanka Shanbag is collecting non-perishable items at her Tuesday evening and Saturday morning yoga classes at the Mandel Public Library. The items will go to the Extended Hands Community Outreach food program in West Palm Beach. Items will be collected until the end of January.

And now, for my numbers

I have three weeks worth of numbers to report because I was on vacation, but I still wore my pedometer daily. 

For the week ending, Dec. 22, 2012, my best walking day was Sunday, Dec. 16, 2012, when I walked:

Steps: 9.994

Miles: 5.0

For the week ending Dec. 29, 2012, my best walking day was Saturday, Dec. 29, 2012, when I walked:

Steps: 10,585

Miles: 5.3

For the week ending Jan. 5, 2013, my best walking day was Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013, when I walked:

Steps: 11,598

Miles: 5.8