This is a crosspost from my own blog... But just in case you missed it it is here. Don't forget to follow me at Latina and Tri-ing
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| The Mermaid Club |
I'm pretty sure you have read or have seen on my social media that over the last couple of months I've become an ambassador to a few movements and brands. Always towards the end of the year typically, movements or brands come out with their ambassador or team applications. Sometimes it is overwhelming because there are so many to choose from and that are so cool that it makes it hard to pick or even to start thinking about applying. I've taken the back seat for the last couple of years, observing what type of people these movements or brands pick. A lot of times, they pick the top athletes, or people that have something that really makes them stand out. More often than not, you find the weekend warrior as myself on those lists. Of course, as a brand, you want to be represented by the top athletes (be it Age Grouper) or someone that has an interesting story. While my story, in my own eyes, is interesting, it might not be as interesting to others, and it has lead to deceptions because there are a couple of brands which I really love and would be more than happy to represent but haven't made the cuts. Of course, you move on and use those to learn and help you make your story more interesting (without lying) and also try to make it so they see in you an ambassador for their movement/cause or brand. This year I decided to apply to the following movements: Sweat Pink and The Mermaid Club, these two I think are pretty awesome movements which without being the same these 2 have very similar vision/mission statements:
The Mermaid Club is a diverse and vibrant community for women. We promote good health, fitness, well-being, inspiration, motivation, positive vibes and positive change. Our goal is to provide a fun and safe environment for women to connect with each other across the globe to empower, motivate, and feel alive. Our stories are real about real women who train hard and race, both for fun and competition. Our mission to is to…
- Empower, motivate, and feel alive
- Promoting good health, fitness, well-being, inspiration, motivation, positive vibes and positive change
- Participate in local and globe events and give back to the community
- Connect with each other across the globe
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| Sweat Pink |
In Sweat Pink we believe that kicking ass is best done in pretty shoes (who doesn't like shoes). We’ve learned that real women sweat, and sweat hard. We know that assertiveness, strength, and ambition are the ultimate feminine qualities. We concede that sometimes it takes hours to get ready, but we’re also no strangers to just rolling out of bed and going. We’re convinced that we run faster in pink shoelaces. We believe in pushing ourselves, and we believe in giving ourselves a break, too. We’re all about the rush of endorphins and the thrill of the challenge. We’re all for looking great and feeling even better. We’re committed to finding our best fit, and making it stick.
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| Sporting my #SweatPink tank at the underpants run in Arizona |
As you see, these two movements have something in common, kick ass while empowering and motivating others. That also is in line with the vision I had of my blog when I first started. I wanted to motivate other women, and particularly Latinas to start living a healthy life by simply trying to be active. I am not saying everyone has to do ironmans to prove it, getting off the couch and living a healthy lifestyle is enough. It is something magical that happens once you start that.... it's like you always want more and end up pushing your limits... the hardest step is always the first one. :) When it comes to brands, it isn't any different, the only thing that is added is that you of course need to be a user and enjoy using it. it doesn't make sense to be a brand ambassador when 1. you don't use the brand, 2. it doesn't work for you. In my case (well our case with Felipe) I'm a brand ambassador for a couple of brands, clothes and nutrition. Of course, the brands also want something in return for being an ambassador, you buying and using the product and getting a discount code isn't just that, you have to be a spokesperson for the brand. Today with the use of twitter and instagram is a lot easier to do that, so you probably will see some of my posts of the brands we use.
For example, I use
DonaJo Fitwear, love these pants and how they fit. They don't only have pants, they have skirts, shorts, headbands, and other cool stuff. You can use code Adrilene20 when buying from them for a 20% discount.
We started using
Boom Nutrition back when we were training for Challenge Atlantic City. We found out that they were going to be the nutrition provider during the race and also we were looking for something else. We were getting tired of the GU's, PowerBar gels and others that are out there. Don't get me wrong, those are awesome too, just weren't working for us anymore. So we ordered a sampler to give it a try, before we knew it we were hooked and they are as awesome if not more than the other ones. They are made with real fruit and have a high ratio (11:1) of complex carbs (maltodextrin) to simple sugars, superior taste, and no added sugars, and no artificial flavors, colors or sweeteners, which makes them pretty easy on the GI system, on top of that they are GLUTEN FREE - DAIRY FREE - SOY FREE - VEGAN - for instance Felipe can't consume much dairy during a normal day, much less during race day, so having that dairy free gives him peace of mind that he won't have any GI issues. If you want to give them a try, you can get a $5.00 discount when ordering by using code
YATCNH.
The last one we just got, is
Base Performance, not only they are super cool and supportive, they hooked us up at Ironman Arizona. they were giving their Electrolyte Salt Samples on the run and they did wonders. At that point of the race that day our bellies wouldn't take much of anything, soda and some solid but at that rate you are not recovering the electrolytes, so when Matt gave us the tubes it was like let us give it a try... what's the worse that can happen, a few hours later we were using them every mile like he instructed us. When they opened the ambassador program we were excited to apply. We totally stand behind the brand and like with Boom we know it works for us. We are really excited to share it with everyone else. I owe you the code for another post... haven't received it so as soon as I get it I'll be posting it. So of course, I think I've got enough branding to make through the year. However I believe in these causes and brands and will be glad to do it. Of course there are some perks but more importantly is try to make these brands successful. They create these to help us during our training and races and why not help them back. Yes, we pay still for all of our nutrition, we are not pros and we are far from it, we like the jobs that pay for all of these, so we are not quitting those anytime soon, but we know we need any help we can get when it comes to performance and nutrition. While I was sad I didn't make the cut to some brands or movements, I am happy to be with the ones I am with right now, I wouldn't change it for anything and I'm looking forward for the 2015 season representing them and continuing to be badass with them. :) Till next time
