Joshua Wang

Rome Marathon Update Updates are still pending. Perhaps I'm just waiting for the perfect time to write an epic post about an epic trip. Nevertheless, the entire experience from Rome remains burned in my mind and heart. In the meantime, for those of you who have me on facebook , I have photos uploaded. I even took the camera along the race, snapping photos along my run! Here's a photo from a friend's album snapped of me (above). Qualifying for Boston As I crossed the finish line in Rome (at 4:24), I was in excruciating pain, muttering to myself, "never again!" After 3 ice baths and the runner's high kicking in, I lay on my bed the next day craving more . In fact, I could not sleep from all the excitement. Upon my arrival in Toronto, I immediately looked for opportunities to run. An opportunity opened up to be a Pace Rabbit for the Toronto GoodLife Marathon (I'll be the 4:30 Pace Rabbit). I have paced a Half Marathon (2:30 Rabbit), but I was just getti

Hey friends! I'm back from Rome and had a great experience! I will be updating my blog in the next few days with some post-marathon reflections. At present, I'm catching up with some school work. Stay tuned! Josh

Hey everyone! I just finished running my first marathon and I'm incredibly grateful to all for your support and encouragement. I'd like to share with you the opening speech from the President of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Canada. It reminded me of the importance of what I do and gives you the bigger picture of how your money is helping change lives. I took the time to type it up, so I hope you read it! :) Hello, I am Nancy Allen with Team in Training and President of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Canada. I would like to say Welcome marathons to your Team in Training Inspiration Dinner in ROME, ITALY!!! We are here to acknowledge and thank you all for your efforts and to further motivate and inspire you for your event tomorrow as you prepare to celebrate the culmination of your training and fundraising efforts. Let’s start by making a little noise to show we are here – on the count of three let’s get a big GO TEAM from y’all. LLS has become the leading North Ame

I came, I saw, I conquered! Those were the words that ended our Inspirational Dinner tonight. After the talk, we had our pasta dinner, which was our opportunity to carb load for our race tomorrow. But let me back up a bit :) This morning, I was supposed to meet some other people at 9am to go for a run. I arrived at 9:10am, later finding out they left at 9:05am :P I ended up grabbing some water and fuel and went for an adventure. This morning's adventure lasted a couple hours and involved wandering around Rome, seeing the Colosseum, the ancient ruins, and the National Museum. As I mentioned, I'll upload the photos when I have better access to Wi-Fi (currently limited on downloads and time). However, here are two photos that I picked up: The first one (top) is of the Colosseum, with the Arch in the background, and the second one (bottom) is a shot of the ruins. I feel fairly ready for tomorrow. Adequate energy levels, injuries under management, and excited for the big day! I'

** Note : Apparently Internet at this hotel either costs $$ or has limited / sporadic service in the lobby. So while I'll try to keep this updated, content will be limited based on time. I'll upload photos on facebook when I have access to more reliable Internet. The flight from Amsterdam to Rome was 2 hours. Most of us barely had any sleep - perhaps an hour at most on our 8 hour flight from Toronto. However, en route to Rome, we passed over the Swiss Alps. This was an absolutely breathtaking sight. Unfortunately, the picture does not do it justice. Upon arriving in Rome, we dragged our tired bodies to the hotel, desperately hoping for some sleep - even a quick nap. My tired body definitely needed it. But we were in Rome! In Italy! Our minds were deceiving our tired bodies. So we decided to see the Expo. While we already had our race packets delivered to us at the hotel, we made the trip via the Metro to visit the expo. And wow ... I'll let facebook do the talking, since e

I just arrived in Amsterdam after a most amazing flight on KLM! Despite being in a squishy area, I had an aisle seat and had ample opportunity to walk around. The food was delicious - the best airplane food I've had! The pasta, salad, ...., they even served complimentary wine (I had the merlot). The picture above is with one of our mentors, Kathy . We just arrived at our gate in Amsterdam, having tried to get some sleep, but managing to get almost an hour of sleep? I'm in the Netherlands ! I'm incredibly excited to be here and the airport is so cool! I didn't have my camera handy, so the webcam photos will have to suffice for now. The photo below is Nasim with her cup of coffee. While it smelled delicious, that medium-sized cup cost $5 USD ... and I'm off coffee for the next while :)

Sitting in Terminal 3, excited for my flight to Amsterdam. I'll be arriving around 8am (i.e. 2am in Toronto) and will arrive in Rome around 11am (5am Toronto). Some captions that come to mind when I see that picture: "Rome! SWEEET!" "Amsterdam! Europe! Rome! :D :D :D" "Gahh! Thesis!" ... yes, my wonderful "friend" will be joining me along for the trip. Thank you all once again for your incredible support, encouragement, prayers, and smiles =)

"Crazy" as in Crazy Awesome! Men's breakfast : Good as always. Tasty poached eggs on rye bread. Kelvin, Bang, Elliott -- good times. Light Run : Last run before my trip to Rome. 10k around Hart House track with Kelvin. The run was definitely invigorating! The New Korean Restaurant : Yes, I would have to say their Pork Bone soup is better than Seor Ak San. Additionally, they have purple rice served in a hot stone bowl and the best Kimchi I've tasted! Thanks for the introduction, Kelvin! James Bond Shower : Zap! I'm awake! FYI: James Bond Shower involves a hot shower and ends with a cold shower =) Coffee-free : Last week I decided to get off coffee so that I would have real energy for my first marathon. I've been getting caffeine from more natural sources, such as the amazing Green Tea I had at the Korean Restaurant!

Out for a run I went A bit past midnight In well-worn runners My footsteps faded into the dark A marvelous complement Of night mist and mild weather The aura ethereal The run serene The scatter of my thoughts Coming to a standstill Heart mind body and soul To Rome ready to roll Recovering health One slow step at a time Finding renewed energy In this break from coffee Allowing my body to sense Sickness and pain To naturally find real energy Real smiles and real joy

Hey friends Thank you so much for your support so far, be it through your encouragements and/or donations. To-date, I've raised $3,789 and have received donations from 80 sponsors! With your help, I've reached 63% of my big fundraising goal of $6,000! If you were planning on donating, it's still not too late! You can donate online here and follow my blog here . Here are some updates: 1. I leave for Rome this Thursday, March 17! My flight departs at 6:45pm from Terminal 3. I am incredibly excited! 2. My first marathon will be this Sunday, March 20. The marathon starts and finishes at the Coliseum! I feel like a Gladiator! I've never run 42.2 km before. While the distance is a bit daunting, I've done my best to prepare. 3. I have a bit of time for sight-seeing and photos. If you've donated or supported my cause in any way, I would love to send you a postcard as a small token of appreciation. Please send me your address by this Wednesday, 5pm, if you would like a

I went to Shoppers Drug Mart and picked up the following: Puffer (Ventolin) - for exercised induced asthma Protein Powder (bodylogix) - for quicker recovery after workouts Super Echinacea - for respiratory health Daily-One Multivitamin (Life Brand), formulated for men! haha - for energy and health So after I talked to my doctor today, she said I likely have exercise-induced asthma (I thought I grew out of it). Haha, just what I need before my first marathon! =) I'm also not drinking coffee from now until I've run 42.2 km in Rome. I want to derive my energy naturally and not take shortcuts. It's definitely going to be hard, as those who know me will know. Nevertheless, I will do it. And that's that =)

How do you be happy? Where does a lack of happiness come from? I've been reading books of people I admire to learn from them. One of my "virtual mentors" is Billy Graham . I admire how he pursued his vision with laser-like tenacity. He is one of the men I aspire to be like and one of the men who inspire me to be more like Jesus . In a Q&A, Mr. Graham mentions one of the secrets to happiness by referencing King Solomon from the Christian Bible . In the book of Ecclesiastes , chapter 9, verse 10, it starts by saying, "Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might..." This, Mr. Graham notes, is one of the secrets to happiness . What better way to learn about life's secrets than to learn from older and wiser individuals, people who have weathered the storm. It's the difference between hearing about the war from a young scholar and a veteran with battle scars. The book of Ecclesiastes was written by King Solomon towards the end of his l

The purpose of this post is 1. To record the past week's workouts 2. To develop a consistent regimen to reach my fitness goals 3. To note areas for improvement for the upcoming week Monday (Feb 28): Lower Body @ AC - Warm-up run - Squats: warm-up + 3 x 10 reps (135 lbs) - GHD: 3x10 (develop back, hamstrings, core) Tuesday (Mar 1): Circuit Training @ HH - Hart House Circuit, Bronze, 34:22 Wednesday (Mar 2): Speed training @ AC - 4 x 100m sprints - Training partner: Arnold Thursday (Mar 3): Swimming @ AC Friday (Mar 4): Biceps / Back @ HH - Pull-ups, 3 x 10 (only 1st set was completed without rest) - 1 km tempo run - Bicep barbell curls, 4 sets (2 inside grip, 2 outside grip), 10 reps (~80 lbs total) - Dumbbell curls, 3 x 10 (25 lbs) - Training Partner: Kelvin Saturday (Mar 5): - Hart House Circuit, Bronze, 31:20 - Training Partners: Kelvin (32:45), Bang (33:40) Sunday (Mar 6): - Rest

I just came back from shopping at Lucky Moose for some groceries. I am not sharing this just because I have an obsession for grocery shopping. Rather, I find it is important to be mindful of what we eat. The things we consume (food, media, friends, ...) have a strong influence on who we are. It just so happens that my groceries have no meat (I just went around the store and picked out foods that I thought would make me feel happy). For those considering vegetarian diets, Matt Frazier's blog, No Meat Athlete , and Brendan Brazier's book, Thrive Fitness , are both excellent resources. Now ... for today's shopping list: Fruits 5 California Seedless Oranges (these are pretty big and look juicy!) 6 bananas (2.63 lbs) 5 Gala apples 1 bag (2.43 lbs) of sweet clementines 250g package of figs (great source of quick energy) Fats 2 bags of dry roasted almonds 3 avocados Other Carbs 3 big yams (total: 2.53 lbs) 1 loaf of bread (Country Harvest, Ancient Grains) Awesome 1 Jar of Nutella

Levels: Intro I Intro II Bronze - Current Level (Cutoff Time, 28:00) Silver Gold Platinum Bronze Times: 34:22, Tue Mar 1 2011, 4:30pm 31:20, Sat Mar 5 2011, 7:45am 29:35, Sat Mar 12 2011, 10:00am 27:45, Sat Mar 26 2011, 8:15am 27:34, Sun Apr 3 2011, 7:45am Bang: 33:40, Sat Mar 5 2011, 7:45am 32:00, Sat Mar 12 2011, 10:00am 30:58, Sun Apr 3 2011, 7:45am Kelvin: 32:45, Sat Mar 5 2011, 7:45am 30:35, Sat Mar 12 2011, 10:00am 27:50, Sat Mar 26 2011, 8:15am 27:42, Fri Apr 1 2011, 11am 27:15, Sun Apr 3 2011, 7:45am Log: === Sun Apr 3 , 2011, 5pm === This morning was incredibly refreshing! We moved our Circuit to today because I was volunteering yesterday with the Harry Rosen Run-Off, which was superfuN! Kelvin and I officially beat Bronze, and Bang has made tremendous progress, with his incredibly explosions of power. His deadly attack comes at the second set :) Anyways, we all worked incredibly hard today and were very tired. After, we went home, took a James Bond shower, did devotions toget