Time for some zzzzzzzzzzzz's

What a day. I'm pooped. I cleaned and scrubbed every inch of our bathrooms today. And when the baby was down for his afternoon nap, I swam for 45 minutes. Even though I'm feeling better in the pool, I know I still have much to work on. I just have to be patient and focus on form when I'm in there. And one of these days I need to get over my fear of open water swimming, and workout in a lake! I like swimming because it feels like such a good overall body workout, and ya' can't beat that! But running is still my first love.

Lastnight before bed I did the CrossFit warm up for some easy core strengthening. Today I was still a little sore from the track workout on Wednesday, but I stretched a lot this evening. I'll take a full rest day tomorrow (no doin' nothin' except more housecleaning, situps and pushups), and get a 10-miler on the books for Saturday.

Big Time Muscle Soreness

Interesting day as far as running goes. I was going to do the Spinning class at the gym tonight but changed my mind at the last minute and decided to go on a recovery run. I had felt a little soreness throughout the day, but nothing too bad. Ha ha ha on me! From the first step of my run, my normal stride was reduced to a shuffle. My thighs were so stiff and tight. I couldn't lengthen my stride at all. It felt like my ankles were chained and my legs had been dipped in cement. That's the beauty of delayed onset muscle soreness. Obviously the track sprints did a number on my legs. I managed 3.2 miles at a very slow pace. I'm even more stiff now. Tomorrow I swim!

TOTAL MILES: 3.2

Track

I have not ran the track in weeks and weeks. I took the baby there today for some sprints and I loved every second of it. It felt so good to run "all out" again. What I did today was actually a CrossFit Workout of the Day.

Run 10 x 100 meters for time. Here's how I did...
1.5 mile warm up jog to track followed by some stretching.
Parked the baby in the jogging stroller at the start line facing the track lanes, so he could see me at all times.

The results:
18.14
18.04
17.74
17.47 (Best)
17.62
17.76
17.65
18.40 (Worst, without the jogging stroller). (I could feel the lactic acid creeping in with this one).
Baby started screaming so pushed him on the final 2.
They were 18:96 and 19.0. (Because I had to push him, I won't count these as all out).
Ran another mile at the track and then 1.5 jog home for 4.5 miles total.

Yesterday I ran an easy 5.3 miles and it was wonderful!

MONDAY AND TUESDAY TOTALS: 9.8

Work

I love my career! Yesterday I had a 10 hour refresher day (mandatory training every 6 months) and the highlight was the driving portion. Not only did I get to drive adrenaline pumping fast and squeal the wheels as I turned corners while pursuing another vehicle, but I got to spin out several times. Need I say it? It was an absolute RUSH!

Anyway, back to normal today. We went to church this morning, visited with my parents over my son's birthday cake this afternoon and then finished the evening with a CrossFit workout from earlier in the week.

The workout was "Cindy": Complete as many rounds possible in 20 minutes of 5 pull-ups, 10 push-ups and 15 squats. I did 9 sets, and I'm getting much better at the pull-ups. Not perfect yet, but I was able to do the first set of 5 all on my own! The rest of them were a cross between kipping and jumping. I did all the push ups in full position. Totals were 45 pull-ups, 90 push ups and 135 squats. Will I feel it tomorrow? Probably. :)

I will finish out the day with 75-100 situps. Looking forward to a run tomorrow.

Into The Weekend

It's Friday night and I'll be outta commission tomorrow w/ work (so I'm taking a rest day). Sunday is my son's 8th birthday and another "rest" day. Can't wait to eat the cake I'm going to bake him! :) I'll be back to the grind on Monday.

Ran 8 at noon today. First 4 miles in 36:40, Second 4 miles in 35:14. It was 83-degrees! Too hot out.

Have a great weekend everyone. Be safe! Happy Memorial Day! Be kind to a soldier or veteran.

TOTAL MILES: 8
WEEKLY TOTAL: 20.4

Busy Week Doing What?

It's been a busy couple of days, and honestly I don't remember what I've been so busy with. I just feel pooped. If I sleep well tonight, I'll get up and run my "long" run of 8 miles at 6 a.m. Lately the baby has been getting up a lot at night, crying. He usually goes back to sleep fairly easily, but it still wears me out.

Wednesday night I took a Spin Class at the gym for an hour and it was a nice challenge. Definitely more intense than the stationary cycling I've been doing on my own. I will take that class on a regular basis, probably alternating it with the elliptical every other week. I like swimming a lot and will probably keep that up every week.

This evening I swam laps for 40 minutes again. Don't know how many laps. I'm just going for time and working on my form. I find I get more tired when I don't roll side to side, or reach well with my arms, or keep the top of my head pointed in the direction I want to go. One of these days I will get my swim stroke assessed, but for now I just need to get comfortable in the water.

On the family front, my older son is getting an award tomorrow for being physically active and setting a good example for how other kids can use their extra energy. I'm excited for him! He's finally realizing that he can't be a social butterfly in class or he gets in trouble, so he let's it all go during breaks by playing basketball, soccer, baseball, etc. with his friends. I wish I was like him when I was younger. I was a social butterly and got into a ton of trouble.

I digress...

Have a great night.

I ran 7 yesterday at lunch. 20-25 mph winds and about 80 degrees.
Here are the splits:
1 @ 9:20 (w/u)
2 @ 8:23
3 @ 7:50
4 @ 7:27
5 @ 7:35
6 @ 7:30
7 @ 10:00 (c/d)

Felt good to speed things up a little, although I was feeling a bit winded I think due to the winds and the heat.

I finished the day w/ 75 sit ups, 30 back extensions and 45 dips as I watched The Bachelor.

Today is an easy 5.4 miler when the baby wakes from his nap.

YESTERDAY'S TOTAL: 7
TODAY'S TOTAL 5.4

Look Who's Walking!

Yaaaaay! He's 17 months and finally walking all over the place! It's about time. :)

Pretty soon he'll be running. Can't wait!

1984 Women's Olympic Marathon

Okay, we all know Joan Benoit Samuelson got the GOLD at the first Women's Olympic Marathon in 1984. But do you remember Gabriela Andersen? Words cannot describe how I feel when I watch the video of her 1984 Olympic Marathon finish. I just watched it AGAIN, and I cried AGAIN. She was amazing, freaking amazing. She REFUSED help until she crossed the finish line. They only let her continue because she was sweating, which was a "good" sign. Watch the video and you'll see what I mean.

When you feel like you can't go on, when your mind is playing tricks on you, just say a quick prayer and then let your body take over. Sometimes our bodies know what to do even when our minds tell us we can't go on.

RUN ON FRIENDS!

Long Shadows

I ran at 5:30 this afternoon. It was hot but bearable, and I actually enjoyed the heat. As I ran, I followed my shadow. It was long and strange. I could see my running form and corrected my posture, pulled my elbows in, and relaxed my shoulders. Then I thought, "I missed that shadow. That's what I love about late afternoon running." My shadow is like my running partner.

Did 6 miles at an "easy" pace of 8:52/mile(53:15). Felt good. I jumped in to the pool afterward. The area outside my right knee aches a bit and is tight, and there's tightness in my right hip. I wonder if this is what IT Band syndrome feels like when it's coming on. Anyone know? I'm going to roll and stretch like crazy!

Lastnight before bed I did 4 sets of 15 sit-ups and 6 sets of 10 push-ups. Tomorrow is a rest day, but depending on the workout of the day, I might do CrossFit.

TOTAL MILES: 6
WEEKLY TOTAL: 16.6

It's Friday

Oh man, the baby either needs to stop waking up to nurse at 4 a.m., or I need to go to bed by 10 each night. I usually rack it by 11 p.m., then nurse him at 4, then sleep again until 7 a.m. But lately he's been waking for the day at 6 and that one hour loss is hurting me! I'm such a whiner...sorry!

Yesterday afternoon I went to the gym for some lap swimming and I got there just as the water aerobics class was starting. Bummer. I decided to go home and swim laps in our pool in the backyard. I have no idea what distance I swam, but I did it for 40 minutes. I felt better than last week, but still need to really master that "gliding through the water" technique.

Today I teach Just Run at the kid's school and we'll probably just jog a mile or so. I might introduce some push ups and sit ups to them (although I know a lot of the kids already do that with their other sports).

CrossFit for today is increasing sets of pull ups for as many minutes as you can handle it. For example, Minute 1: As many sets of 1 pull up you can do throughout the minute. Minute 2: As many sets of 2 pull ups you can do throughout the minute. Minute 3: As many sets of 3 pull ups... you get the picture. I'm going to struggle with this one and will probably have to go to jumping pull ups. I love pull ups though and someday will do a lot of them in a row without assistance.

Okay, have a great Friday! I'll be running 6 miles tomorrow after my son's baseball game. Can't wait. :)

Cross Training Day

I ran yesterday morning and it felt SPLENDID! I'm so thankful to be out there again. I did the same route as the day before and ran it at a slightly faster pace, but still an easy one, (9:21/mile). I'm easing back into the running and will top off at about 15-16 miles for this week. I'll run again on Saturday. My toe is sore for brief moments here and there, but NO PAIN!

Today I cross trained at the gym with 1 hour on the elliptical. I took my heart rate frequently and it averaged between 150-165 bpm. Felt like a very good tempo run without the pounding. I followed it with CrossFit, my 2nd fitness "love."

3 Rounds of:
100-feet of walking lunges (subbed 5 sets of 75-ft. walking lunges)
50 airsquats
25 back extensions

You wanna know something? I'm toast, completely done, wiped out. Put a fork in me!

Gotta do some house cleaning and then I can relax later and find out who gets the boot on American Idol. Oh the drama!

YESTERDAY'S TOTAL MILES: 5.3

I RAN TODAY!!!

I got out there and ran today. I just HAD to do it. I was dreading going to the gym to cross train on the bike on such a lovely day as this! Gorgeous blue skies, warm but not yet hot, very light breeze, just enough to cool you as you started to sweat. PERFECT day for a run.

I had aimed for just 3.2 miles along the canal, but it felt so good to be out there that I ended up doing 5.3. I ran nice and easy, and surprisingly the only thing that was sore for a little while was my lower back. It is so true that running just pounds your body! After not having done it for 2 weeks, my body really felt it.

I finished the run in 50:53, a 9:36 pace. Thank you, God.


Then I did some pull-ups because I need to!


I'll finish with 75 situps tonight before bed.

TOTAL MILES: 5.3

Ouch I'm Sore

I went to the gym today after a nice day of rest yesterday, and I did 45 minutes on the elliptical using the aerobic program (which has you pushing, pulling, using your legs only, going backwards, etc.). My average heart rate per the elliptical machine was ~150 bpm. Honestly, the elliptical worked me harder than I thought it would.

I then did the CrossFit workout of the day:
5 Rounds for Time of -
Power Cleans, 21 reps (I used the 35lb. barbell)
Hand Stand Push Ups, 12 reps

My shoulders were burning by the third round. During the last two rounds I had to modify the hand stand push up so that my body was more at an angle toward the floor rather than straight up and down. I can tell I'm going to have a stiff upper body tomorrow.

Good news is I actually bought a bikini yesterday and am not afraid to wear it. Just don't make me stand next to some Victoria's Secret model and I'll be okay. Anyway, I can't wait to get rid of these funky tan lines I have from my socks and running tops.

Have a good one!

Swim Day and Some Fun Pics

I had a great new workout today. Most of you wouldn't consider this a workout, but since I NEVER swim it was definitely a workout for me. I haven't swam for exercise in months, and the last time I did it I was hurting!

At lunch today I went to the gym and swam 40 laps, which in that pool is equivalent to 804 meters. I did it in 35 minutes, kind of slow because I had to stop frequently to get my breath back. I really worked on form, trying not to kick so much, trying to roll side to side, and trying to prevent my hips from dragging. So I went slowly, and you know what? I loved it! Every minute! I can't wait to swim again next week. I'm hoping to get good enough at swimming that I can eventually give triathlons a try. (Just the mini ones though).

My toe kind of hurt around lap 14, but then the soreness went away and I think it was actually good for it because the swimming forced movement in the area but without the impact of walking on it.

Tomorrow is a rest day. :) Thursday is more CrossFit, and the elliptical for 1 hour.

Here are the pics I wanted to post.

These are the wonderful kids in my daughter's class that I taught the JUST RUN program to. They had just finished their marathon mile and got their finisher's medals. I was SOOOOO proud of them. Can you tell?

Here are the awesome kids in my son's class that I also taught the program too. They're toeing the line to start that last mile! I was so happy for them.

The children that did not participate in the Marathon Mile program lined the "course" and cheered for their fellow students, high fiving them along the way. It was so great to see the support for the runners.

Lastly, here's my little slugger about to connect with the ball and hit it clear over 3rd base to the left field. He's also got quite an arm for being such a little guy!

Thanks for reading.

CrossFit & Cycling workout

Oh wow. I am going to be sore. But I feel pretty good right now. I haven't really done any cardio type workouts in over a week, but today I finally got on the stationary bike at the gym and cover 21.6 miles in 1 hour, at a working heart rate between 155-160, on the hill program. I also did a CrossFit workout today sandwiched in between the first half hour of cycling and the last half hour. It was this:

Complete as many rounds possible in 20 minutes of:
Barbell Thrusters, 15 reps (I used a 30lb. barbell).
Jumping Pull-Ups, 21 reps (I did these very carefully without undue pressure on the toe).
I completed 7-1/2 rounds (fell short on the last set of pull-ups).
Totals were 8 x 15 thrusters = 120; 7 x 21 pull-ups = 147.

After completing the ENTIRE workout with the cycling, I felt like I ran an 8-10 mile tempo run. It nearly wiped me out. I followed it up with half a Turkey and Avocado sandwich from Togo's and their Farmer's Market Salad. Yum!

Feels good to be working out again, even if it's not running. But that'll come soon enough.

A Big Thank You, and a Brag Session

First of all I want to thank you for reading and commenting on my previous post. I really appreciate all your encouragement! You keep me motivated. I am chomping at the bit to run right now, but just a little longer and I'll be pounding the pavement just like you. I hope. I have some blog reading to catch up on and I'm looking forward to reading your blogs this week.

I have to brag about something so silly, but I'm so proud of myself because of this. My inner nerd is coming out now so beware...

Yesterday I finished my very first newspaper crossword puzzle ever! I know many of you probably complete these without any problems everyday, and I applaud you! They have always presented a challenge for me and I have never been able to complete an entire crossword before yesterday. But I finally did it! I feel like an "intellectual" now (but who am I kidding)? I still can't complete a Sudoku without cheating off my husband though.

Man, if this doesn't mean that I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY need to start running again then I don't know what it means! ;) hee hee.

What I Miss About Running

When you're "forced" not to run instead of choosing not to, you kind of miss it and can get a little down about not doing it.

I'm posting this as a pseudo therapy session so thanks in advance for letting me...

WHAT I MISS ABOUT RUNNING, in no particular order:

The first 60 seconds when my body still feels tight and stiff and I take my first deep breath of outside air as I jog easy to warm up.

A few minutes later when I find my rhythm, my body feels warm and I've found my breath.

Looking over toward the sunrise, feeling the cold morning air and knowing I'm starting my day with such a precious gift.

Or looking up during a mid morning run and seeing a few scattered clouds throughout the bright blue sky, and feeling the sun's warmth on my back.

Picking up the pace to whatever the workout prescribes for the day, feeling my breathing getting more rapid and heavy, feeling my muscles working hard, talking myself through the difficult aspects of running and then feeling, "Yea, there's my groove. Just hold on to it."

Then slowing back down and letting my body recuperate from the hard work it just completed and thanking God for the ability to push my body to its limits. I get so excited about pushing the envelope sometimes!

The sweat that pours off my body (gross), guzzling water or sports drink every 2 miles and enjoying the few seconds of walking that I get to do while I drink, feeling the dirt under my feet, or hearing my feet hit the road, feeling the wind rush past me, hearing the wind in my ears, waving thank you to cars that allow me to pass in front of them, smiling at friends and neighbors I recognize on my run.

Catching my breath when the entire run is completely over, thinking "wow, that hurt" and walking through the door to hear my sweetheart husband say, "Hi! How was your run?" And then rambling about how fast or slow or painful or great or all of the above that it was. And seeing him smile at me like I'm crazy for killin' myself out there.

Sharing my daily workouts with you great people and knowing you understand every little piece of the puzzle.

I know I'm missing something and I'll think of it later. But I just miss running. I miss it. But I know it'll be back soon.

Family Fun Magazine Cover Model

Here's another magazine with my niece on the cover. She really is a happy go lucky, sweet girl, just like she looks!

Love you Kam! Miss you and Kayleen a lot!

The DOMS

I've got some serious DOMS today. Otherwise known as Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness. You know, that soreness that comes on about 48 hours after a hard weight training session? Well, I haven't done any weight training (I guess you can count the dumbell swing from Monday), but I am so very sore. My upper hamstrings/lower glutes (they must be magically "lifting" now -- ha!) and my lats and shoulders (pull-ups). It feels great to be sore again, but wow it's hard to sit down or to squat down to the baby's level. I have got to get back into Cross Fit shape.

Lastnight before bed I did manage to get in 100 sit-ups (broken into 4 sets of 25) and 100 push-ups, girl style because of my toe (also broken into 4 sets of 25). Maybe that's why my upper body is more sore. (Gee, I'm so smart sometimes). ;-) I also did some stretching. For those interested, the CF Workout of the Day is a BUTT BURNER! Glute-hamstring sit-ups combined with deadlifts. I think I'll be skipping that one.

It has only been 16 days since Boston and technically I'm supposed to take 26 days of recovery (1 day easy, light cross training, or off for every mile raced). So I'm good. This toe fiasco has forced me to recover properly instead of going out and doing tempo and speed sessions, and racing less than 2 weeks afterward. What was I thinking when I committed to that? At least Pat Tillman's foundation received my donation so that's a good thing. My toe is much better. I think about 70%. If all goes well, I'll try a run next week. I think tomorrow I'll be heading to the gym for some rowing or stationary cycling, whatever doesn't aggravate the foot/toe.

Have a wonderful Wednesday!