Monday, December 21, 2009

Dr and ramblings

It took me a long time to fall asleep last night, and then I had to get up early this morning for a follow-up with the orthopedist. That took all of a minute, so I went to the gym, one closer to the clinic.

I used a new LifeFitness elliptical. Pretty cool; it had a virtual trainer even. I selected an interval heart rate workout. There was no warm-up. It immediately ramped up the resistance to get my HR up to target (155). But it took so long to register my HR that I passed my target and couldn't get it back down even when the resistance lightened. I'd gone up to 165. After 3 minutes I was supposed to let it drop to 125, ha! Fat chance of that happening, so I changed to workout to just a cardio one. Not until cool-down was I able to change the resistance. Once I dropped it from 1 to 0 (!) I was finally able to get my HR down below 150.

At one point I noticed that the 4th toe on my left foot had started to get kind of tingly. Then I realized that the neuroma started a lot longer ago than I had thought, b/c I've felt that tingly/numbness starting at least a year ago. I just thought that something about the way I was standing &/or the shoes I was wearing made that part of my foot go to sleep.

And the results of my dr visit? Don't run, again, and I'm to get a bone stimulator. The dr submitted the paperwork today, and someone is supposed to call me and set up a meeting. I'm tired of this pain. I know that stress caused it to flare up again, and I don't mean running stress, rather life stress. I don't want it breaking my bones! I've been thinking about looking for a PC version of Yourself!Fitness to use on my laptop. We rearranged the bedrooms, so now I have one as an office/study/exercise space. Or maybe there's a way to hook up the PS2 to my laptop? And then I'd have to go back to figuring out what my son did with my disk when he took it out to play one of his games. He never puts the disks away!

Saturday, December 19, 2009

Cardio on Precor on 12/19/2009

Went to the gym today and was able to get on a Precor elliptical. I was going to do a heart-rate workout, but the sensors weren't working, so I switched to manual. Afterward I stretched and did 2 x 15 AF "crunches"
My shin is feeling a little better; calf is tight.

I had been wondering if I should call and make an earlier dr appointment then realized yesterday that my next dr appt is Monday. He's not gonna like that I ran on Thursday.

Gym--walk/run on 12/17/2009

Ellipticals were almost all full (the ones left bother my foot), so I walked a mile (~17min including warm-up). Then I started jogging 1/2 lap, walking 1/2 (9 laps/mi) for 5 minutes, but I was feeling that spot in my left shin--achy, tight. So I spread out the jogging and slowed it down. It's just so hard not to run at the gym! peer pressure 8-

I know, I wasn't supposed to run. It was less stressful to try running than to just keep walking.

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

An old familiar pain

Yesterday morning when I got out of bed I felt that same old pain at the inside of my shin, a couple of inches above my ankle. I didn't feel it during my run the day before or later that afternoon/evening. Not till yesterday morning, faced with my last final exam (of the quarter) and lots of stress. I took some ibuprofen and hoped it would go away after the test. It did subside a lot, but it still aches to day.   :~( I'll walk, rest, and do other cross-training over the next several days and see how that goes.

Speaking of cross-training. I finally have a kettlebel. :~)  It's the Christmas gift I picked out with the money my in-laws sent. Actually my husband picked it out after I told him I wanted a 20lb kettlebell, and he did the rest. It has a skinnier handle than I'm "used to" (see the pink one; it's been months since I last lifted a kettlebell) and smaller (but ~a couple of pounds heavier) and flat on 2 sides. But since the handle is as high as it is, the bell will sit well below my wrist when I clean, so the flat side won't bother me much, and shouldn't bother me at all once I wrap my wrists with an Ace bandage.

Well, I was trying to upload some pics, but the upload keeps failing. In the image above (from Walmart), it doesn't look flat around the 20 like mine is.

Monday, December 14, 2009

Another run/walk workout on 12/14/2009

Another good run/walk workout, but boy were my shin muscles burning! I don't know what the difference was except not waiting another week to work out? It wasn't the shin splint spot but the muscles all along the tops of the shins--a "feel the burn" kind of feeling.

It was a gorgeous day; the sun was out, temps above 50, breezy. I wore capri tights, a short-sleeved tech shirt and a really light-weight hoody that I took off and tied around my waist once I started running. A decent stretch out and snack after. (Chocolate milk, cereal and milk.) Good.

Now BACK TO STUDYING FOR MY LAST FINAL EXAM!!!!!

MapMyRun.com - Recovery: another run/walk workout on 12/14/2009

Stress-reducing run on 12/10/2009

Such a stressful week! Such a stressful day! I'd finished up my programming final the day before and was studying for my math final. I was about to go to the gym when I was reminded that I had church that night. I had to go b/c I was taking some of the food. So I went for the dinner and song practice, but the "baby" wouldn't go in the nursery, and during practice, started getting troublesome and rude (yelling for me to hush--why doesn't he like to hear me sing?). So I packed him up and we went home.

The temps had been in the teens all day with wind chills to the single digits. When I got home, the wind was negligible (relatively at least), so I decided to go for a run. My forehead below the ski mask got cold going into the breeze, and my legs from my hips to mid-knees were cold but everything else stayed (got) warm. I'm not really sure how many laps I did. I forgot to count. Either 4 for an 11.5min mile (iffy) or 3 for a 15.5 min mile (wow! big difference! but that sounds more reasonable since I was walking 2 minutes out of 3.) Yeah, I'd say 3 laps (after the 2-lap warmup not counted here).

I felt much better and energized...and forgot what day it was and thought I had another day before my final. Had a bit of a freak out when I remembered what day it really was and how late I'd stayed up.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

PSF Run #3

After being inspired by Shut Up and Run's comments about what she wears running in Colorado in the winter, I actually didn't overdress for Saturday's run. The only part of me that stayed cold past my warm-up was my face. My "run" was actually 2/3 walking and my legs got a little chilly during the walking parts, particularly when going into the breeze. It was maybe 30deg outside (14deg below average!). If it hadn't been sunny at all, I wouldn't have gone out to run and would've done something indoors instead. I'm glad it was sunny! This was only my 3rd run in the last 2 weeks! I've had tests and homework and now finals. 8-| Anyone good at Fortan? (No, I'm not kidding; Fortran)

Well, my husband says I'm keeping him awake, and it's rare to have him sleeping so "early" so that's it for now!


run 1 min, walk 2 min. A little twinge in the shin last part of lap 5 so ended with that lap. Cold day, good run.

MapMyRun.com - Easy Run / Jog: PSF Run #3 on 12/05/2009

Thursday, November 26, 2009

1st post-stress fracture "run"

Monday the doctor cleared me to start running ("but take it easy"), but I had class and studying for a test on Tuesday, so I didn't get a chance to run. The irony is that I did start having some shin pain again--after none for 2 weeks--as I stressed about the test and dealing with the kids that night. !

Tuesday after my test and taking care of stuff at school, I came home and helped my husband finish cleaning house for my parents' visit. They showed up around 5, so again I didn't get to go running.

Finally on Wednesday, after class I made it to the gym. Yay! I got on a treadmill and did a 10min walking warm-up, followed by 1 min jog, 2 min walk for about 20 minutes. The running felt good. :-) There was a little twinge in my shin about 1/2way through the workout, so I added another minute to the walking for 2 turns. The trick will be to put my stress somewhere other than my shin.

MapMyRun.com - Cardio - Treadmill: 1st post-stress fracture "run" on 11/25/2009

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Power Walk

By 4 this afternoon, the day felt like a long Friday, you know, the ones that don't end? Plus it was overcast and quite chilly and, yes, I stayed up too late again last night, so I was tired. But after my workout this afternoon I was glad I hadn't already done it this morning. In my current sleep-deprived condition I think it would've knocked me out by this afternoon.

So I went to the gym this afternoon and started with some curls, shoulder presses, butterflies, sit-ups, etc. I didn't really pay attention to how long that took, maybe 15min?

After my core/arms workout I did a fast 2 miles--the 1st mile was in 13:20!!!! and my 2nd mile was in 14:32! I used the lap feature on my watch to count the laps for the 1st mile. The 2nd mile I timed as a whole. I can't go back and look at each lap's time with this watch. Wish I could find my old one so I could replace the battery. Anyway, my average time was 13:54/mi! I slowed down some at the beginning of my 2nd mile b/c my shins weren't used to that much walking that fast. Good thing I won't have to do a 3 mile walk fitness test! I don't think my legs are ready for that. :)

I called the orthopedic clinic today to see when I'm supposed to get x-rays done again. They said Monday, which is when my appointment is, but I know it takes at least a couple of days for the x-ray results to get to the drs. If I go to bed right now, I might be able to get up early enough to get the x-rays tomorrow morning before class, though they likely won't be ready by Monday's appt.


Wednesday, November 18, 2009

A Workout Finally!

I had my killer math test today. I'm hoping for 50%. I know I got 2 of the 6 problems (12 pts ea) and put effort into the other 4, hopefully enough for 6 more points! I also know I'm not the only one in this boat, which is nice. The first problem was reasonably simple but my brain was so scrambled that it took me a total of at least 15 minutes to get the answer. At least I finally got it!

So since I didn't have an urgent need to study (I do have physics test on Tuesday, so...), I went to the gym this afternoon. Yay! I did 1/2 hr on a stationary bike that had Expresso on it, so I got to do a 1.5 mi route through a redwood forest (4 times). Not too bad. Then I went to the track and walked a mile, maybe 1 1/9, I lost track of my laps about 1/2 way through. It took me 17.5 minutes, so it probably was just a mile. I had to stop a couple of times and adjust my shoe.

My left foot, the one with the neuroma, was extra tingly and achy today. I kept forgetting to take some ibuprofen b/c I didn't have water with me and kept forgetting about it when I passed a water fountain.

Tomorrow is a group workout--at the gym again. I need to get back to working my core and doing push-ups (they're so boring!) But I feel good for having exercised. Now I just need to get my butt in bed and get some rest!!

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Slump

I've been doing quite poorly in the sleep department lately. I've been up past midnight 3 of the last 4 nights (past 2am for 2 of them!) getting less than 7 hrs sleep on average, and it tends to be disturbed at least once before I get up for the day. I only worked out 2x last week and not yet this week. I'm so tired, plus I have a test to study for. The test is tomorrow, so I plan to go to bed at a reasonable time tonight and for sure tomorrow night. Note: "plan" is loosely defined in my dictionary. :) The kicker is that most of my lack of sleep is all my own fault, so there's definitely no one and nothing else to blame--actually, that makes it harder to whine which actually would use more energy. :P

I haven't had shin pain in a while, yay. The ball of my foot tends to ache though, and sporadically, the outside of it below the ankle. Monday is my next orthopedist appt--I need to find out if I'm supposed to get x-rays before the appt or at it, but I keep forgetting to call the clinic.

I'm SO SLEEPY!!  Gotta study.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Hill (Walk) on Monday

It was a nice day, so I took it outside. I walked down a long hill then back up it on another street.

MapMyRun.com - Hill Workout: Regular Walk on 11/09/2009

I've had a harder time lately getting good workouts in. Elliptical's ok; they even have TVs in front of them but I can't see the screen of the one in front of me &/or I can't get closed captioning to work (never remember my ear buds), so I end up watching whatever the person next to me watches. Usually that person has closed captioning.  Plus I keep going to bed too late, like tonight. I should've been in bed at least an hour ago, but I started watching Terminator 2 on AMC with my husband. I recorded the end so I wouldn't stay up till 11:15 to see the whole thing, but here I am. :~)  I actually got unsleepy for a while. Better catch it while I can--still have to brush my teeth...

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

...and the [orthopedist] said...

No running for at least a month. No running or other high-impact activity, that is. The x-rays showed evidence of healing going on at least in my left leg--a little bump on the back of the tibia. Also, the pain in my foot is from a Morton's neroma. At first I was glad my foot wasn't broken, but after doing some "googling" I'm not so sure a neuroma is better.  :-\  Guess we'll see if it's recurring. I also discovered that my neuroma does not like my Mizunos--too narrow in the toe.  So I'm wearing my Asics, keeping it low-impact while trying to maintain my cardio fitness and keeping my legs used to at least the motion of running. So far that's just been using an elliptical for 1/2 an hour at a time (30 min limit/machine at the gym) and walking some but not hard (now). I need some kettlebells; that's weights & cardio all in one!

I have been working more on my core lately. Monday I think I eeked out 25 situps; today I did an easy 40! (toes hooked under mats). After some other calisthenics and stretching, I did about 10 more with nothing holding my feet down! Now I just need to improve the pushups--they're so boring!

I told my husband he'd have to do the Thanksgiving 5K with our son, but today he said something about football...

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Bone Scan Results

I had my bone scan follow up appointment today. The scan showed some stress-related something or other going on in both legs, I believe it was both bones in each leg. I don't recall if anything showed up in my foot. Also, it turned out I was supposed to have gotten x-rays too. The folks at Nuclear Medicine probably figured I'd take care of that at X-Ray, and the guy at X-Ray, who directed me to Nuclear Medicine to make the bone scan appointment, apparently didn't see the x-ray order in the computer. SO, this morning after seeing the dr. I went and got x-rays. The nice thing about pre-8am appointments is that there's no line anywhere. I also got a referral to see an orthopedist; my appt is next Tuesday.

Well, it's past my bedtime and dang-it if I'm not hungry again. Only got 6 hours of sleep last night--in ~3 hr increments.  Night!

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

So what have I done for me lately...

Last week I completed my 30 miles in 30 days challenge! Yay! After my dr appt tomorrow I"ll see about setting up another one with a few more miles.

Saturday was my daughter's birthday party, and I'd stayed up late the night before doing homework. So I slept late and decided not to go walking with K. When I called her, she said she couldn't go either. The party was at a bowling alley, and it was a good time despite my score of 81. ;~) The kids had fun bowling. My sone and his friend were doing some kind of thing where they ended up on the floor after releasing the ball. Crazy boys. I did get some fast walking in: We thought we needed candles for the cake, so I walked to a nearby store to get some. Turns out the bowling alley provided candles. (It was a party through them, and they were providing the cake.)

So yesterday evening I made it to the gym. I did 20 minutes on the  elliptical (Precor --my fave), 9 or 10 laps on the track (I lost count; 9 is a mile), jogging the straights, walking the turns, trying to keep my shins from hurting more. I iced after I got home, my left foot too as it's been bothering me. This morning my left shin hurts anyway. I see the doctor tomorrow morning for my bone scan follow up. Hopefully he actually has the results! After running I did 20 situps, 10 supermans alternating sides (well, it was left arm, right leg and vice versa) 10 times, bridge at least 5 counts of 10.  At home I adde weights - 5lb: 30 bicep curls, 20 tri extensions, 30 butterfly, 20 finger curls--just letting the weights hang in my hands and closing and opeing my fingers, 25-30 reverse crunches (bringing knees up).

I had so much junk food over the weekend: brownies, cookies, birthday cake, chocolate creme pie (thanks honey!)  I need to make sure to keep weights and core exercises in my routine. Maybe actually having a routine/plan would help. Ya think? I think.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Took DeeDee out for a run

The temp is somewhere in the upper 40's, and it's windy, but even my fingers warmed up pretty quickly once I started running. (Good layering!)

DeeDee is our Beagle; she's named after Dexter's sister in the Cartoon Network show Dexter's Lab. My warm-up didn't get me very warmed up b/c DeeDee kept sniffing all around and stopping to sniff even more. Once I started moving faster, she did too and indicated I wasn't running fast enough for her taste. :)

After going a mile (with quite a few walk breaks--been pretty tired lately), we did a reverse of the warm-up, and I dropped her off in the back yard. Then I went back for another mile (barely made it in 14 min. 8| ). I started a 30 miles in 30 days challenge for myself at MapMyRun, and I'm almost done, just a couple of miles to go--6 more days!

MapMyRun.com - Regular Run: Took DeeDee out on 10/14/2009

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Thursday, October 8, 2009

As Ron Stoppable says... BOO YEAH!

I was SO TIRED this morning when I got up that I almost rescheduled the fitness test. The baby (well, toddler) kept waking himself up last night by coughing. Poor kid's getting what his sister just got over. Fortunately I had plenty of time to eat breakfast and wake up before the test.

I eked out 28 pushups (30 was max) and squeezed out 40 situps (those shouldn't have been so hard, but I haven't been consistent on my ab work).  Then it was run time. That was the part that was worrying me BUT I knocked it out in 16:06!  That's 29 seconds faster than in Feb! Woohoo! :-D I was breathing hard all the way through it, but otherwise the pace felt comfortable. I scored 83.5 points, continuing my upward trend. Fortunately for me, BMI trumps the waist measurement. 8-| I'm working on that though; oh wait, I just said I haven't been, well at least not the muscle tone part. Gotta add that ab work back into my routine!

So far no new/additional pain from the run. I went to the the Dr last week to get cleared for the test today and mentioned the recurring shin pain, and he didn't like the sound of it. So I have an appointment next week for a bone scan. Should be an interesting expeience.

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

elliptical & short walk +

The Lifecycle seemed more resistant even at level 1 than the Precor. I pushed some to keep the speed ~6 to get 2 mi < 30 min. I picked up the pace to 7 a while during the 2nd mile and was almost running on the thing--and my left shin started to hurt! After 29 minutes, walked 1/2 mile (10 min--so slow?!); 10 push-ups, stretching, plank.

Fitness test tomorrow. Hope I can do enough sit-ups! I haven't been doing them.

MapMyRun.com - Cardio - Elliptical: LifeCycle elliptical & short walk on 10/07/2009

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Easy Run/Jog

Did a gentle, easy 2mi run/walk (+ warm-up) this morning. 30 - 35 min. I'd jog until my shins started hurting, then I'd walk a bit, then jog again, etc. I focused on relaxing and affirming liking running to mitigate stress-related shin pain.

I saw two hawks! :) I think one was older than the other, and it wasn't around as much. The other one sat on the fence and watched me run by. Pretty cool.

My Polar watch flipped out again right as I was starting the timing. Not cool. So I took my husband's watch so as not to go too long and be late for class. Later, I discovered the watch emitting a very annoying tone. This was the severalth ;-) time the watch has flipped out (battery?) and the display is messed up too, so my husband threw it out (after silencing it, during which operation he lost track of how all the pieces went back together). Maybe for my birthday next year I can get a new one.

MapMyRun.com - Easy Run / Jog: Easy run on 09/30/2009

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Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Running & Elliptical...& I can't find my Icy Hot

I worked out at the gym today. I wanted to try some running but on something softer than asphalt, so I used the track at the gym. 9 laps = 1 mile.

I started with a 3-lap warm-up (5 min); then I ran 1 mile (12:44!) (hrMax190). My shins ached somewhat most of the time, and my right knee bothered me a little, but the rest of it felt good. I got 2 laps into a cool down (~3min) when I saw an open Precor elliptical--yay--and hopped on for 21 more minutes (HRavg ~164). The sweat was just dripping down my face! (That's a fairly recent phenomenon; is it age related? Of course, when I lived in New Mexico the air was so dry that sweat evaporated right away. Once I'd get back into the house, I'd suddenly get all sweaty.)

I did some stretching, esp calves and shins then did 25 situps, 10 pushups, 10 mod pushups, bridge 30 sec. That was pretty much my max for those today; I'm rather sore from Monday and all the coughing I've been doing lately (the residual effects of all that previously mentioned congestion).

Sleepy, sleepy, sleepy.
It sure would be nice to find that other HR strap. Maybe it's hiding in the garage with my other sports bra that I haven't been able to find since we moved. We really need to clean out the garage; I just get overwhelmed looking at it.

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Family Walk

I decided to take the dog and the baby for a walk. Next thing I knew, not only were the other kids coming too, but so was my husband. Woohoo! :)

We walked to the school and back, then I took the dog around the block too while everyone else went home.

MapMyRun.com - Easy Walk: Family Walk on 09/22/2009

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Monday, September 21, 2009

Cardio - Elliptical: Precor Lifecycle

Ahh, nice to be on the Precor again; it really does have more range of motion for the ankles. The heart rate reading was a little goofy--slowly decreased when I took my hands off the electrodes and took so long to get up to the HR that at first I thought it was broken. Really need to find that other HR strap. I thought about doing a little bit of jogging after the 30min on the elliptical, but my legs were rather stiff, so I went and stretched. I also did pushups (15, 12), situps (25, 20), bridge (3x20ct), and planks (front: 3x20, sides: 3x10 each) (just counting to 10 or whatever, not seconds)

MapMyRun.com - Cardio - Elliptical: Precor Lifecycle on 09/21/2009

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Saturday, September 19, 2009

USAF Marathon: 10K race on 09/19/2009

Oh it was hard to get up this morning! 5am! I realized that, at least sometimes, I relax and sleep more after hitting snooze. Not sure why. So I got up 20 minutes later than I planned to, had a couple of hard boiled eggs and a piece of toast and got ready. I remembered at the last minute that the shorts I'd planned on wearing didn't have any pockets (gotta have my Chapstick), so I had to find another pair. I was so tired, congested and had such a bad headache most of yesterday that I didn't really get my stuff ready before going to bed. At least I made sure I knew where my packet was! I'd put it with my shoes but then forgotten; I was almost at the panic point when I finally remembered.

I drove over to the race (nice to have it local), parked, and caught a shuttle over to the Air Force Museum (or more specifically the National Museum of the United States Air Force) and just followed everyone else out to an old flightline. Hung around, tried to stay warm (temp was in the low 50s); I was glad I'd worn bike shorts under my running shorts and a long sleeve shirt. Eventually I found 2 friends from work, so I had someone to talk to until start time. :)

Finally the race started. I mostly walked the first 10 minutes warming up. The first two miles took 15-16 min each (the big uphill started in the 1st mile and went at least 1/2 the 2nd--or felt like it). My hands were freezing for probably 3 miles! I wished my sleeves were long enough to pull down over them. :) I was in the back the whole way but wasn't dead last, which was very nice. :P

After the first 10 minutes or so I did 2 minutes run, 1 minute walk (approximately) for most of the rest of the race. There were a couple of downhills where I extended the run time as well as at the end. My overall time was 1:24:29, which is 5 1/2 minutes better than my goal and 8 1/2 minutes faster than expected based on my last few run times. :) woohoo! I place 90th of 119 in my age group. 3 years ago I never thought I'd do a 5K, much less a 10K! Then one day I realized I'd done 5K--it was doable! I would definitely do another 10K.

+brick and mortar bathroom near starting area
-no lights in it (there were lights installed but I guess they were on a timer, there weren't any switches. No windows either, so it was really dark)

-The front set of speakers didn't seem to be working. We were between them and the 2nd set and couldn't hear what was going on.

+It wasn't as crowded as I expected. They started the marathon and 10k at the same time, and it didn't feel crowded at all. I would have started farther back if not for my friends, so I was passed a lot at the beginning. Possibly those who started farther back but were faster would disagree with me on this point. At least the road was really wide that first mile.

+Post-race: lots of water of course, Nesquick, bananas, orange quarters, granola bars, La Rosa's pizza being made on site. I think there was more, but I can't remember. I grabbed water, chocolate milk and two Quaker chewy chocolate chip granola bars. I didn't feel like my stomach could handle a banana, much less pizza!

+Right after crossing the finish line, runners were directed to a race appropriate 'chute' to receive their medals. (Behind that were the towel passer-outers and the food tent.)

I saw one other person I recognized before the race and 1 friend starting the 1/2 marathon run as I was around mile 4 1/4--we passed ahead of the starting point there, and the 1/2 marathon started 1 hour after we did, so those of us bringing up the rear saw them head out.

My left knee didn't like going down hill, especially on the curve; my right knee didn't like the flat at the end. I was able to pick it up only a little bit at the end, my legs were tired! :) My shins are hurting now (of course, but it's ok), and I'm very sleepy--but my husband is about to make a Sonic run, so I'll wait a bit before going to bed. ;)

As I was leaving the race site, I passed a poster sitting out: Running for Roz, in memory of 1Lt Roslyn Schutte who was killed in action in Afghanistan, and I almost cried. Not long after I got that under control, the race announcer mentioned that the 1st airplane that the runners passed as they came in to the finish was the Hanoi Taxi, and I teared up again! Is it normal to feel extra emotional after a race? I mean, those sorts of things get to me as it is, but today was more.

MapMyRun.com - Race: USAF Marathon 10K race on 09/19/2009

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Thursday, September 17, 2009

Picked up my race packet

So I went to the Wright State Nutter Center (stadium) to pick up my race packet this afternoon. They make you walk 3/4 of the way around past tons of vendors to get your packet, then the last 1/4 of the way around to get your t-shirt and goodie bag (fliers for fall races, Myoplex, USAF Marathon memorabilia offers, etc). Then you get to walk past all of it again on your way out. Good marketing tactic. And walking past everything again in the opposite direction helped balance out the crick I got in my neck the 1st time past. :-)

I'm feeling better than I was this morning thanks, at least in part, to Aleve, Tylenol and Sudaphed PE. I really should be in bed by now--an will be soon.

Congestion, achiness, Nooo!

Ah man, I feel sick again. I already went through a bunch of congestion a week ago, now I feel kind of achy too. At least I have the chance today to get a little extra rest. Maybe I can even take a nap. Gotta stay well!

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Gym again--Elliptical and treadmill

I did 20 minutes each on the elliptical and treadmill yesterday. There was a Precor empty when I got to the gym, but by the time I got changed, it was taken. :( On the treadmill I inclined to 5% for most of the time @ ~3mph. Still trying to work out that shin/calf tightness for Saturday. After I got home I tried some pushups, but my shoulders were to sore to do full ones. :( (yes, I did modified ones)

Monday, September 14, 2009

Elliptical workout

It's been a while since I've actually worked out at the gym b/c it's always too hot in there. But today, since I've still been hurting, I went and did an elliptical workout. I was hoping to get one of the 3 Precor crossfit(?) machines but no dice. It seems to me they offer more range of motion in the ankle, but I was able to really warm up those lower leg muscles on the LifeCycle elliptical. I tried to do 5 minutes backwards but could only do 2. Well, I might've been able to do more, but with the 10K coming up, decided not to push it.

I stretched a lot afterward, did some push ups, sit ups, planks, and did I already mention stretching? My legs feel a lot better. I also stepped into the shower while the water was still cold. Yikes! I made my legs take turns under the cold water till it got warm. I am NOT a cold shower kind of person! :P

MapMyRun.com - Cardio - Elliptical: gym--elliptical on 09/14/2009

Saturday--walk w/baby

2+ miles at an easy pace. Left groin muscle tight at first (since yesterday); was able to walk it out. Shins still hurting from last 4 runs. :(

MapMyRun.com - Regular Walk: Saturday walk w/baby on 09/12/2009

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Friday, September 11, 2009

Running Happy

On her blog, I Run Like a Girl talked about what made her run happy. What doesn't make me run happy is being hurt. >:( I was telling someone today that I'm really good at resting after I get hurt but not good at cross-training while I recover and not good at ramping back up slowly enough.

But I do like running on cool sunny days where there's lots of green, preferably not particularly early in the morning ... like the USAFMarathon 10K start time. :) I should start preparing for that early start by going to bed now. It's almost 11; should've been in bed at least 1/2 an hour ago, but I've been enjoying the quiet house (everyone else is alseep!) :)

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Longer run (but not LONG) and it hurt!

Man, back to the shin splints and the 15-min miles. :( I even warmed up for 15 minutes. Of course, I'm still sore from Monday's sprints. Heck, my right forearm is still sore from Saturday when my husband and I went shooting, and I threw clays for him!

I didn't get to run as early as I'd hoped (out by 5:30ish). I ended up fixing dinner first and then leaving it for everyone else to eat while I ran. It sure was tasty after I was done though! Orange salmon, rice, tomato, bread and butter (w/honey), chocolate milk. I was almost stuffed, and now I feel hungry again!

I did the 1/3-mi loop 9 times: run 2 walk 1, run 2 walk 2, run 2. Counterclockwise this time which *could* have something to do with slower times--short downhill and long uphill (ok, so really it's nearly flat).

The bottom of my right heel started hurting toward the end, also during my cool-down. I tried just really rolling my foot heel to toe as I stepped; apparently that worked. But oh the insides of my shins. :( I iced them as I ate dinner but not very well really.

10K in 1 1/2 weeks.

MapMyRun.com - Regular Run: Longer run (but not LONG) on 09/09/2009

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Monday, September 7, 2009

Saturday: last minute workout (run) on 09/05/2009

Oops, forgot to "share" Saturday's run. My husband and I had a date at the shooting range in the morning, so K and I didn't go walking (she went walking with her husband) per our plan. Later in the afternoon some friends came over, so I couldn't get out to run until after 8pm. 1/2 mi warm up, 1 mi run, 1/2 mi cool down. I had one of the kids' vitamins shortly before the run w/o thinking about it; came back to haunt me on the 2nd lap. :(

MapMyRun.com - Regular Run: last minute workout (run) on 09/05/2009

Interval Training: 1 mile steady, 1 mile intervals

1st mile @ steady pace 14:45min as usual. Feeling tired. 2nd mile w/2 speed intervals per loop (6 total), just sprinted until my legs were about to give out; not as far as I would have liked, but it's been quite a while since I've done sprints. The 10K is in less than 2 weeks, and the fit test is in 4-6.

I can't tell if I have a cold or if it's "just" allergies. I've been badly congested lately and constantly feel sleepy from the sinus pressure. Saturday, the allergy med didn't seem to make a dent in anything, and the congestion got worse as the day wore on. Sunday I took Sudaphed instead plus Tylenol, and that helped. It's also hard to sleep well when you can't breathe well.

I was supposed to finish my daughter's dress and do homework today too. I slept late, got a load of dishes washed and 2 loads of clothes, so it's not a total loss. I *really* need to get more specific in my planning--what homework when, etc.

MapMyRun.com - Interval Training: 1 mile steady, 1 mile intervals on 09/07/2009

Friday, September 4, 2009

probably shouldn't have done the long route on Monday...

This is Tusday's intramural run, another 3+miler, though not as long as Mondays--this one was right around 5K. Today is Friday, and my left shin still hurts from Mon and Tues. My "run" time was 40:21 for 3.51mi (12:48 pace per MapMy run). There was an older woman, a grandma I've met, who was ahead of me and slowly pulling away the whole time. I think we were the last two runners during the 1st lap, but she past at least 2 other people on the 2nd lap. She had a good steady pace and was able to maintain it.

It was a very pretty day, sunny and cool.

MapMyRun.com - Regular Run: Regular Run on 09/01/2009

Dog-walking

I felt bad b/c the dog wasn't getting enough exercise, so I took her for a fast walk. she hardly stopped the whole time. She also hardly stopped sniffing the ground. :) Rabbits have been running around a lot lately.

MapMyRun.com - Brisk Walk: walking DeeDee on 09/01/2009

Monday, August 31, 2009

The FULL big hill run

So, usually M and I cut off a fairly large loop when we run "the hill" so that we finish around the same time as the guys. Today I ran by myself and decided to do the whole route. At the gym it's labled a 2.5 mile route but the numbers are X'd. It's actually more like 3.4 miles. Needless to say, I took lots of walk breaks.

It was a harder run than I should have done, esp considering the intramural walk/run is tomorrow. It's a 5K run or 1.6mi walk; I'm seriously thinking of walking after today's run. I had some shin achiness around mile 1 even after a 10min warm-up.

I was really hungry at lunch time! :) I'm even still sore from Saturday's run (didn't expect that)--or was it Friday's? I think I might have been sore on Sat. Anyway, I'll be sore again tomorrow after that hill.

MapMyRun.com - Regular Run: Regular Run on 08/31/2009

Saturday, August 29, 2009

'round and 'round (the block)

Trying to catch DeeDee at the end, there, running after her a bit more. Not enough sleep last night; no walking, had to run late. Walked 1 lap, ran 3, lost track of time ~15min mile I think

MapMyRun.com - Regular Run: 'round and 'round on 08/29/2009

Friday, August 28, 2009

MapMyRun.com - Regular Run: 2 mile walk/jog on 08/28/2009

Ran in Mizunos, instep of left foot kinda achy. Ran 2 laps, walked 1; repeated. Increased running distance by 33%

Post rain run, muggy, but cooling and breezy; not sunny. nice.

MapMyRun.com - Regular Run: 2 mile walk/jog on 08/28/2009

Just a walkin' the dog

Took DeeDee for a walk. Every time I tried to walk briskly, she'd get distracted by a smell and stop. :) Around one house she definitely caught the scent of something! Back and forth, up and down, I did see a rabbit a couple of houses down.

I wore another pair of the UA socks, this time with the Mizunos--definitely better, more room in the toe with the thinner socks. :) I could also definitely feel the seams though; I'll be turning these socks inside out a lot.

MapMyRun.com - Regular Walk: Regular Walk on 08/28/2009

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Another mile run, new socks

Wow, great run! Was huffing and puffing at the end (2-step breathing) but was still able to pick up the pace a bit. 12:45min mile. 2 minute improvement in two days! Better sleep, better fuel. Happy run. :)

Bought new socks today at Dick's Sporting Goods. Decided to try out the UnderArmour "heat" socks. I wanted thin ones to wear with my Mizunos since they're narrower in the toes, and all the others I saw were thicker. I wore them with my Asics on today's run. There was more slipping of my shoes as I ran, but the socks feel good even though the toe seams aren't flat. (We'll see how that goes; I turn a lot of socks inside out these days.)

MapMyRun.com - Regular Run: mile run on 08/26/2009

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Recovery workout

By the end of last night's post I was feeling sick. I'd only had ~4oz of lemonade after the run, then did some weights. I took a muscle relaxer b/c I could feel my back tightening up and went straight to bed--burping the potatoes I'd had at dinner. No more running after eating potatoes.

Between the sleepiness of the muscle relaxer and the congestion I was feeling (plus the lack of sleep from earlier in the week) I slept pretty late this morning. I called K (kinda late) to see if she was going to go walking with me, but there was no answer. So I went ahead on out, running late, didn't see her, and did my own workout.

I started just walking for almost 15 minutes then alternated jogging and walking for a total of 43 minutes. My HR was probably on the high side for recovery (150-180) but the jogs were short.

I got some food as soon as I got back to the house, PB&J, 2 glasses of lemonade (still no milk), banana, Cheez-its (best crackers ever :P ) Time to put the baby down for a nap!

MapMyRun.com - Training Log for alystra2

Friday, August 21, 2009

Took DeeDee for another run

I set a goal a couple of days ago to do 40 miles in 30 days. That may have been a bit much for me at this time, but elliptical workouts and such are supposed to count too.

So tonight I finally got my running shoes on, found the leash, and took the dog out again. She was really excited to go out. I did a fast first lap (when the dog wasn't stopping to smell stuff), then walked and jogged the next two laps. I kept DeeDee with me the whole time. The last lap we saw a rabbit or two--she really wanted to chase them!--and a skunk. She didn't try to take after the skunk like the rabbits, but she was definitely curious.

Ugh, need food. We're out of milk, so I didn't get my chocolate milk like I usually do. Plus I'm pretty tired. About to go to bed.

MapMyRun.com - Regular Run: Took DeeDee for a run on 08/21/2009

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Jogging--Finally!

Rather warm for <80degrees! very muggy; so humid from all the rain earlier that it had that stagnant water smell when I first went outside. Walked the first lap with the dog, jogged the 2nd with the dog, let her stop a few times, dropped her home and jogged the 3rd lap. Whew! Only 1.2mi total, but 1st time jogging since I hurt my back, and it felt great!

MapMyRun.com - Regular Run: Regular Run on 08/19/2009

Musings

I just read an awesome post about talking to young girls (7-11yrs) about body image. It's Outlines at the Runner's World Mile Markers blog.

I'm only mildly sore from yesterday's swim; yay! the lower left part of my back (the strained part), my right side, and left shoulder, mostly noticed upon getting dressed this morning. Now if only I could find a hairbrush or comb--these kids! ;~)

I promised the dog I'd take her for a walk yesterday, but I forgot. So I promised her again for today. I was going to take her out this morning, but it was pouring rain. It's finally clearing up, so I should be able to take her during the baby's nap. DH should be able to handle that. :P I can throw in a bit of running too.

Last night I was exploring MapMyRun more and looking at the challenges and goals section. I set up two goals: 40 miles in 30 days and 7 1/2 hrs sleep/night for 15 days. I'm already behind on the 2nd one. I have a hard time breaking away from whatever I'm doing to go to bed, even when I'm really sleepy, just don't want to move. [Guess I understand my husband's sleeping in the LR more than I realized; that's his excuse too.] Then the bathroom light wakes me up as I brush my teeth. Used to use the dimmer shower/fan light sometimes, but it burned out. Gotta plan better, especially as I'm going back to school now and will have to establish my own schedule.

MapMyRun can upload Polar files, but I can't figure out how to get the files in the first place. Of course, mine are pretty empty having just my time since I lost the HR strap a few months ago. Really I just want to get a whole new HRM, the F11. But a strap for the F6 would be less expensive overall, if I can find just a strap.

Oh, and in case you missed it, running is GOOD for your knees!
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18483739 OK, small sample group, but over 10 years!

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Swimming Alone

M and I were supposed to meet at the pool to swim, but she didn't show up. Turns out she got caught up at work. I was the only person swimming and, after ~5minutes, the only person at the pool at all (except the life guards)! That was so weird, being their sole entertainment. (OK, so they're fully capable of entertaining themselves when there's hardly anyone there, but still.)

5x100m slow crawl, side stroke, crawl, kicks, crawl

On the crawls, I was trying to remember the tips I got from active.com's videos about quick strokes and pivoting around the "pulling" hand as opposed to pulling through the water. My arms were tired from not swimming since the tri, but they weren't as tired as they would've been swimming my usual way.

MapMyRun.com - Laps / Swimming Pool: swim at the Prairies pool on 08/18/2009

Oh, and since letting the Dr's office know my availability this week for a follow up appt, I haven't heard back. My back's feeling fine now, so I won't push it.

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Walking w/K

MapMyRun.com - Regular Walk: Regular Walk on 08/15/2009

K and I walked for about 1/2 an hour this morning starting at 11. (It was hot out by then!) We talked about her new job, about getting up earlier than one's used to, etc. I'm hoping she'll eventually be willing to meet earlier for walking. :) After a 1/2 hour I dropped her off at her car and then walked another 40 minutes or so, picking up the pace a bit. Gotta do more cardio: walking faster, biking, elliptical, whatever, anything.

The Dr was willing to refill my muscle relaxer Rx but wants to see me again before making a physical therapy referral. :( I don't know what my schedule will be next week, so how do I make an appt? I just want to recover while safely restrengthening my core so I don't get hurt again. frustrating.

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

A different sort of workout

Today I mowed the yard. It was pretty warm and very muggy! Fortunately not as hot as Saturday and Sunday; with all that humidity, it would've been killer!

Saturday, August 8, 2009

Saturday's walk

MapMyRun.com - Training Log for alystra2
Was supposed to meet a friend, but couldn't find her number. Either she forgot, or we weren't on the same page about where to meet.

Pushed the (big) baby in the stroller. Very muggy, fortunately it was breezy. Still.

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Monday, Wednesday

Monday: All the Crossfit machines at the gym (all 3) were taken, so I went walking outside. 1.6 mi, 30 minutes, then inside to stretch and do some gentle upper ab crunches (just head and shoulders).

Wednesday: Elliptical machine 30 min, worked up quite a sweat! Bicep curls, shoulder presses, tris with 5lb weights 3 sets of 10 each. 5 10-count upper ab crunches like Monday's. Stretching.

1 1/2 weeks since injury. I'm thinking of trying a slow, shuffling, short jog on Monday once I've past the 2-week point. My back feels 85% normal, tight in lower left .

Sunday, August 2, 2009

Friday--still taking it easy

32 min walking on treadmill, 1.5 mi, vertical distance 131 (what are the units? feet?), avg HR 132, max ~147. Stretch.

Thursday, July 30, 2009

Wednesday's workout

Wednesday's workout was a nice easy walk for a bout 30 minutes followed by some gentle stretching. Nice, but I can tell it's going to be hard to wait to run again.

Monday, July 27, 2009

Dx

Yesterday morning my back was still really stiff and sore, but I was mobile. I made it downstairs and then...sneezed. My back seized up, and I was laid up all day long. Occassionally it would start to feel better, but then I would move wrong or try to do something and mess it up again. The only way I could get anywhere reasonably comfortably was by crawling or having my husband hold me up, so that my back didn't have to support my weight. Getting ready for bed really messed it up, and I could hardly sleep for quite a while.

This morning I felt better but was afraid of making it worse again. The stress alone caused more tension. I called the Dr's office and got an appt for 1pm. Finally around 11am I dared stand up..and it worked! Briefly--I got some food and ate and had to lie down again. But I've been able to be more mobile and upright over the course of the day. It's almost hurts more to sit than to stand, except I quickly tire from standing.

The Dr said it was a lumbar sprain (strain?). So I'm supposed to avoid high impact activities for a while, rest, and slowly work back into running. Ah, fun times. I hate this.

Saturday, July 25, 2009

Finally pictures

I finally uploaded pictures to the triathlon post.

Sore back :(

Last Friday (not yesterday, a week ago), in a group workout, we ran ~25 minutes, then did 3 sets of 25 pushups alternating with 50 crunches, then played ulitmate frisbee. Ever since then, my lower back has been hurting to some degree. It was pretty much fine by Monday when I did my long run, but today it's hurting quite a bit again. I had been neglecting my core lately (for shame!), and I think I exhausted my abs, leaving my back to pick up the slack, consequently overtiring it.

Today I did some core exercises and awkwardly carried my daught partway up the stairs hurting it again/more in the process. Stinks.

I really need to do a workout today...haven't done anything since Monday.

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

MapMyRun.com - Training Log

MapMyRun.com - Training Log

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Possibly my longest run ever (4.64mi) and really slow--calculated out to 17+ min/mile. On the other hand, my shins have been hurting since taking a walk last Thursday, so not too bad I guess. I noticed today that at least some of that shin pain was stress related; better than getting a headache I guess, as long as I can tell why. I felt a little faster after each walk break (don't know if I actually was after the 3rd one, but it felt like it :) ) I ran in new-to-me parts of the neighborhood, so I was a little nervous about that. As I crossed the street that's my usual boundary I was tempted to just follow it and do some other run. But I didn't! I also still don't have a working watch, so I went longer than I meant to.

A good run mentally. Ended going uphill and pushed my speed up, felt good (except for the shins and knee). As I walked the rest of the way home, I took off my shoes b/c my feet were hurting. I think it's time to look for new insoles.

Gotta hurry up to bed--my turn to go to Cub Scout day camp tomorrow (I so need a nap one of these days!)

Thursday, July 16, 2009

MapMyRun.com - Training Log for alystra2

MapMyRun.com - Training Log for alystra2

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Took a long walk pushing the baby in the stroller, not a jog stroller, just a regular one. He was getting pretty antsy by the time I got back home after 1/2 an hour.

Monday, July 13, 2009

MapMyRun.com - Regular Run: Area B hill run again on 07/13/2009

MapMyRun.com - Regular Run: Area B hill run again on 07/13/2009

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This probably won't work for anybody; I keep pretty much everything "private." I just wanted to see how it would work, and it can serve me as a reminder of my workouts.

The hill run is getting easier, I just need to work on the downhill part. They way we've been running the loop, the downhill is steeper than the uphill, harder to control speed.

Friday, July 3, 2009

So this is what it feels like...

It's after midnight, and I'm very sleepy, but I want to post this before I go to bed and forget it. I went for a late run tonight (~10pm) and was pleasantly surprised at how good it felt. I ran faster, more easily than before. I still have no endurance, and so took frequent walk breaks, but the running part...I couldn't make myself go slow. My left foot kind of hurt for a bit. Earlier this week it popped weird a couple of times--on the top outside part. I pretty much just kept going, and it stopped hurting after a bit. After running a while I did feel my shins (muscles) start to tighten up, so I walked even more. But, yay, I finally actually enjoyed the running. :~)

I just now titled this post and fear I may be plagiarizing. ;~) I recently saw the end of Sweet Home Alabama, and I do believe that (post title) is what the groom says when Melanie jilts him at the altar. That sounds harsh written that way; she did it as sweetly as I think one can do that sort of thing. (If you can't quite remember the movie, it starred Reese Witherspoon and Patrick Dempsey.) Anyway. I wrote the title and then remembered the movie.

Monday I went to a promotion party and missed my workout. I didn't make it up on Tues. On Wed I did kettlebells for 10 min (5 min long cycle each hand--49 reps ea--8kg/18lb weight). On a side note, I qualified for Rank IV in the women's one arm long cycle per the World Kettlebell Club's requirements. (World Kettlebell Club) Then I walked ~-.2mi and walk/jogged an easy 15min mile and wrapped things up with crunches, planks and stretches.

I didn't get a good time for tonight's run b/c my watch went on the fritz ~3sec into my warm up. :( Hopefully I can replace it soon.

Also, tonight I registered for the Air Force Marathon 10K race (Sept).

Saturday, June 27, 2009

Swimming, biking and running


Well, I did it! the fatrabbitracing tri 4 the
cure @ Columbus, OH. It took me about 1:47hr. They had some results printed out, but apparantly they were printed out before I finished.

Once it was over, the swim wasn't as bad as I feared it would be, and the water was warm! It was almost too warm, but that's much better than being cold! I finished in around 17min (1/4mi). I went waay around the buoy, then waay back in before getting straightened out, so it was seeming really long...and tiring.

The bike ride wasn't too bad b/c I kept thinking I was nearing the end, so I'd get that excitement and extra adrenaline. There was a really awsome downhill part--it was sweet! Too bad it was followed by a killer uphill part! There were some high power lines close by at one point, and they were really buzzing! I never realized they could be so loud! M had a spedometer/odometer, so she knew how fast she was going (cool) and how far she had left (not so cool when your legs feel like they're going to give out).

The run went down along the beach and onto a trail, then a bit of road. The grass was wet, and there were a couple of slippery, muddy spots. I actually felt like a fat rabbit. :P I did most of this part 1min slow jog, 1min walk. I didn't feel like I had anything left for sprinting at the end. I was able to step it up a little bit, but I also (at least) didn't also feel completely wiped out at the end either. I had no problem staying on my feet. I just wish I'd stretched out more afterward.

They had hot dogs, burgers, bananas, grapes, and chips afterward. I had one of each except for the burger (couldn't even finish the hot dog). Then, when we got back home, we went to The Cheesecake Factory (b/c the one in Columbus wasn't opened yet after the race).

Up next, AF Marathon 10K in September.

BUMMER: My race times are not showing up on the results. My number's not there at all! :~(
UPDATE: I found my race times. For some reason, they didn't have my age, and I had been looking under the "age group" results. I found me under "overall"

Swim 17:37, Rank 315, Bike 1:00:29, Rate 12.3, Rank 329, Run 26:53, Pace 8:41, Final 1:47:44.
















Thursday, June 25, 2009

1 More Day! 8-|

The triathlon is day after tomorrow!

Monday I finally swam longer lenths--50m at a time. Tiring! I've gotta get more sleep these next two nights or I'll be walking those 2 miles.

Tuesday I did an easy jog, 1.5 miles at a 16min-mile pace, with a long warm-up and cool-down.

Tonight I'll go to bed early. I just can't seem to get to bed before 10:30. By the time the kids calm down/go to bed and I calm down, it's late. Last night I lay awake for I think 2 hours. I probably did doze off, but I didn't stay asleep. The baby woke up again too, so sleeping between 1:30 and 4 wasn't so great either.

Tomorrow it's off to check out the race course and pick up my packet!

Saturday, June 20, 2009

Waiting for a phone call...

and tired and bored. Too tired to try to read anything for content, starting to get hungry again, and I really have nothing to post. I didn't work out yesterday or today. I was going to this evening, but my husband, who went offroading this weekend, was too exhausted to finish the drive home in time. I was thinking of doing Yourself!Fitness, but the kids stayed up past my bedtime :) and there's too much junk on the living room floor to do yoga. Guess I could be clearing that up while I wait for the phone call.

The insides of my shins are still sore from Wednesday's sprints, and I've been wearing my Crocs all day which doesn't help. They're quick and easy shoes, handy, and in a style that's even kinda cute, but they're very floppy and loose and not supportive at all. I need new sandals; I tossed mine after last summer. They were wearing out on the inside of the heel, and the baby yacked on them a couple of times--sour milk with sweaty feet, too gross for me, so I tossed 'em. But I haven't replaced them yet. Guess I'll get working on that living room floor.

Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there. And don't forget to call your dad tomorrow! :D

Thursday, June 18, 2009

ssoooo tired

Yesterday I woke up tired -- baby stuff -- and the group workout was HARD, at least for my tired butt. We did a circuit of push-up/core/legs excercises then jog/sprints, x 4, nearly an hour altogether! By the time we were done, I had a headache/neckache. I still had it when I woke up this morning. It was hard, but I needed to do the sprints; I haven't been doing any speedwork at all lately. My ankle felt weird afterward, maybe kind of stiff, but it didn't ache like before. Seems to be about healed.

This afternoon M and I went swimming. I think she focused on swimming distance. I was trying to take it easy and, after warming up, did a bunch of 2minute 50m repeats. It'd take me 1:15 - 1:20 to swim the lap then I'd rest till 2min. I did ... 8 laps that way. It was more demanding than I realized; I was shaky even after I got home. Got me some PB&J and chocolate milk--good stuff.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Rough draft

Friday 7 of us got together and played wallyball. I was so tired I was lightheaded. About the only thing I could do decently was serve. And I was on the 3-person team.

Saturday M and I did a half-distance practice triathlon. 1/2 the distances we'll be doing in two weeks: we weren't sure if the pool was 25yds or 25m (it looks short), so we did 5 laps (out and back) for at least 250 yds. Then we biked 6 miles and 'ran' 1 mi. That was my first swim since mid-May! I felt it right away. I was beat by the time we were done! Afterward we went to Chik-fil-A; I'd definitely earned a chocolate milkshake! Fortunately they've added a smaller size to the menu (those large ones are huge!); I got that with chicken and waffle fries. Yum!

Monday I went swimming again and did 9 laps in that same pool. At least the water was decently warm. I took my kids to a nearby pool after work today. COLD! Plus it was only ~75deg outside. We only swam for 1/2 an hour, and my daughter still has a blue tinge to her lips. OK, well, not anymore, but it took her a while to warm up.

I was supposed to run today, but my work schedule got messed up the last couple of days, and the baby woke up more last night than he had been, so I'm pretty tired. I'm pretty sure I need to improve my diet too. Last night I finally managed to do some yoga and stretching...ahh.

Less than 2 weeks till the triathlon!

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Hello again

Well, without looking at my calendar I can't really catch up 'cause I don't remember what I did last week. This week, let's see:
Monday--biked with the baby in the bike trailer behind about 20 min, and then later slow 4yo-speed biking with my daughter (following her)
Tuesday--running ~2mi; it was pretty warm and muggy, and I had only slept about 6 hrs--and not all in one go--2 or 3 nights in a row. Ankle felt pretty good.
Wednesday--circuit training: 30 2-handed kettlebell swings, 10 "burpies", 1/3 mi run x 3; as soon as I took off my boots, before even getting my running shoes on, my ankle started hurting again.
Thursday (today)--8 mile bike ride. Yay! finally got to really ride outside. It was a good ride; I've missed biking and didn't know how much I missed it.
Tomorrow--wallyball?

I need a new sports bra. The underwire has worn through on one of them. On the up side, I was able to take out--HAD to take out---the extender for the bra to fit tightly enough. woohoo!

TOMORROW I need to look at swimsuits. I *could* wear the one I have for the race, but the shoulders feel stretched out and drag. And hopefully I can find one that won't make a sports bra worn under it look so obvious .

I need to go swimming again. It's been too long since the last time--dang pool schedules changing :P Saturday we're going to do a practice 1/2-tri.

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Building back up

Tuesday I wanted to do yoga in the evening, but this school's-nearly-out, big-brother-visiting, late-northern-sunset has gotten the kids wired and up late. So I stay up later. Or run out of time to do things like yoga before bed.

Wednesday I worked out with a new group. We did a running, push-ups, sit-ups (or crunches) circuit workout. Run some, do 10ea pu and su; run 2x distance, do 20ea pu and su, up to 4 then back down. I didn't get very far into the push-ups before having to drop to knees to do them, but the running went pretty well on my ankle. It wasn't till my 2nd 3x run that I had to start walking b/c my ankle started hurting. Indoor track, squishy asics, and I don't know what else--maybe the bike workouts---but I thought I ran a bit faster. Yeah my shins hurt a little, but it was probably stress. (On the up side, I hardly get stress headaches anymore.)

Working out with the usual group tomorrow morning (7AM!!!). If it's wallyball or something like that, I'll go jogging at lunch. Pretty soon I need to sign up for the AF Marathon 10K.

3 WEEKS TILL THE TRIATHLON!! (Gotta get swimming again!)

Monday, June 1, 2009

Gotta get biking. 8|

(and more sleep) Today at the gym I did some new stationary bike that shows you on a track/route. There's even a pacer to follow. I did 6 miles, barely. I was only doing 12mph--nowhere near like last time when I did 10.76 mi in ~30 minutes. (Though I don't really know how the two bikes compare. Then I walked a mile. My ankle was starting to bother me towards the end. I threw in some sit-ups and called it a workout.

I really need to get my bike out and at least air up the tires. I hope I don't need new ones.

Sunday, May 31, 2009

2 posts in 2 days!!

:P My step-son just got here yesterday, so it'll probably actually be harder for me to post since he and my husband will probably be gaming a lot, using both computers.

I took the two little kids to the park yesterday. The other day I managed a couple of decent pull-ups. Yesterday, not so much "up" as before. I did a little bit of strength training last night, like 15 minutes. Just some curls, shoulder presses, tris and abs. I've been sore in new ways the last couple of days what with the Y!F workout and the ankle rolling, etc.

Saturday, May 30, 2009

Ack! Injury!

Ok, well, I think I'll be able to run again by Wednesday. I was playing basketball yesterday and rolled my ankle. It REALLY HURT at the time but is feeling a lot better today. I can walk fine, but I keep bumping it and over-extending it; maybe I should wrap it today. No, I was not wearing basketball shoes. I only have running shoes.

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Food

Man, I have been junking out the last couple of days: cake, cookies, root beer float, Coke... Today especially. This morning I had toast and chocolate milk for breakfast (1% and Hershey Syrup), a piece of chocolate cake with lots of frosting; lunch was a "cup" of Raman noodles. Later I had another piece of cake and took a package of cookies home with me. I did share them with my husband and the baby in the car. Dinner was decent but was followed up with the aforementioned RB float. Fruits and vegetables make small enough appearances in my daily diet; these last two days were even worse.

!!

Saturday, May 23, 2009

(start of) Memorial Day Weekend

So let's see, I posted Monday the 18th. Today is the 27th. On Wed the 20th, I did a slow 20min run--no idea on the distance, I didn't keep track. On Thursday the 21st I did a 3mi race in 34:50. I think I was the last runner. 8~| :P This past Monday I did some walking/jogging, about 2 miles with the first 1/3mi on a scooter with my daughter riding her bike.

Today I plugged in the PS2 again and did Yourself!Fitness. I did the assessment, or 1/2 of it. The baby got a hold of the controller and clicked me through it. Then I did a 30min workout with an upper body focus. Afterward my daughter and I went for a walk/bike ride again. (I walked, she rode.)

Monday, May 18, 2009

What? Bedtime already?

Alas, it is. And once again a certain little Munchkin is still up. At least the baby's asleep. My shins still hurt from Friday. :(

Since the indoor pool was closed and the outdoor one not yet ready, and since I've done any kind of bike work only once this year, I did 30 min on a stationary bike. According to the readout, I did 10.76 miles. I wonder how far I would've gone on my bike--probably 5 miles. :P I need to air up the tires, dust it off and plan a route.

After the bike, I grapped a drink of water and headed straight outside to walk for another 30 minutes. It was a beautiful day for working out outside. I learned a triathlon training word over the weekend: BRICK. This is a bike/run workout. So I did a 1/2 a BRICK: a bike/walk workout. I wore my Mizunos today since I wasn't planning on running; they seemed fine for walking.

I have a fitness test on Wednesday and a 5K on Thursday. Rest day tomorrow. Sleep now. zzzzzzzzzzzz.

Friday, May 15, 2009

Soo sleepy....

I am. I am very sleepy. Been going to bed too late all week. I'd go to bed now, but one of my kids is still awake. (She's supposed to be in bed but is sneaking around upstairs.)

So I was supposed to workout last Thursday. Didn't happen. It was a very busy day: work, parenting class, church. I went straight from one thing to another and didn't really get home till after 9pm. Friday wasn't much better: conference in the morning, work offsite in the afternoon. The most exercise I got was chasing kids around a miniature golf course and pushing the baby in the stroller. Saturday I did get in a brisk walk; I took the dog for a walk, about 1/2 hour I think.

Monday I went swimming again, the last time in the indoor pool. The indoor pool closed today, and the outdoor pool opens next weekend. Brrr!!! That will be COLD! I swam 4x150 again plus some backstroke, sidestroke and kicks. I decided not to do pulls after all. I did get a pretty good night's sleep Sunday night, so I felt good during Monday's swim.

Tuesday was an almost 6K (3.55mi). I hadn't gotten a good night's sleep and was pretty tired. I decided to try the race taking walk breaks every 4 minutes. Good thing or I probably wouldn't have finished. ! My time was ~45 1/2 minutes

Wednesday I did a weight workout: pull-ups and dips (on a machine 'cause otherwise I'd not be able to do any; I was only pulling up about 15 lbs), curl/presses, bench presses, lunges, and a swing the weight up over your head thing--1 dumbell, 2 hands, like a big kettlebell swing.

Yesterday was a rest day, a sore-legs day. Today I did a long run: 3.76 miles. I was supposed to meet up with a group to do sprints after running a hill, but I couldn't find them, so I just kept running around (with a little walking). I couldn't run all the way up the 2nd hill! Time was 54 minutes. The nice thing was that I couldn't feel the soreness in my quads and hamstrings while I was running, and my shins and calves were feeling pretty good too. We'll see how I feel tomorrow! I'm really liking my Asics lately.

My appetite is finally starting to change with all this fitness. I have less appetite for sweets and junky stuff (like DiGiorno pizza). If I do eat sweets, I want the good kind: homemade, or a good brand of ice cream like Bryers, not cheap stuff. I need to find good stuff to take for lunch at work. The cafeteria is heavy on the salt. the breadfast tacos are good though, one on of these days I'll get an omlette. Mary makes a good one, I can tell by the smell! :P

I really need to get my bike out and get it tuned up. Or at least air up the tires! 12 miles! Better start practicing for that 12mile ride.

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

So far so good

Monday I swam (yes, just me) 4x150 yds. I took it easy, focused on form and breathing on both sides (3-stroke breathing pattern), and made it easily the whole way. I rested about 1 minute between each set, and I think each set took about 5 minutes, 5 1/2 or so. I did 100yds in pulls, 50 in kicks and 1 sprint at the end. 3/4 of the way back on that last one and I just rolled over and gently glided -- I was winded!

Tuesday I ran a 5K. I believe my time was 34:55...abt 11.5 minutes per mile. A good steady pace. Would've been a bit better if I'd been better rested. :P While I was running I figured I got maybe 6 1/2 hours of sleep for the 8 1/2 hours I was in bed, what with the kids waking up 2 or 3 times. One's teething, one was coughing. [Actually it was only 2.8miles; so my pace was slower. :( ]

Today I washed dishes. OK, so that's not exercise. It was a rest day; so I have to work out tomorrow. I don't know when I'll do it; it's a very busy day tomorrow! Oh and my legs don't hurt today!! I walked from work to the race start, and back again afterward. Nearly a mile. Is that what made the difference? It didn't work so well after the last 1.5mile timed run. I don't know, but I'm enjoying it! :~)

Sunday, May 3, 2009

I really need to get on here more often!

I just realized it's been two weeks (again) since my last post. Let me get my bearings...

On Tuesday I ran: 2.8mi in 35:23. A little slow, but I also didn't have any kind of warmup. On Wed the 22nd, I did stationary bike, some weights, and some stretching. Friday the 24th was the big run I was fearing, but we got to run at our own pace. We had to run 1.5 miles; it took me about 16:30 minutes (~11min mile). Then we walked another mile to 1.5. Pretty nice. I was pretty sore again Saturday though. I just can't get past these shin splints. :(

Monday, 27th, swim day. I think we did 4 100s, plus some kicks and a couple of laps with other stokes. I was pretty tired; in fact, as I recall, I did quite a bit of the last 100 or two with backstroke. I probably did yoga on Tuesday. I have Yourself!Fitness. I like Maya, the trainer, nicely motivating, down to earth, animated--as in, she's a cartoon--and some of the comments refer to that. I like puns. I also like that the workouts are always at least a little different each time. I hope nothing happens to my disk or my PS2...the "game" is no longer available. I've heard there is a PC Fitness available in the UK, but I'm not there.

Wednesday I walked and ran. It was a 1.3 mile route. I walked the first lap. As I was nearing the first lap, more or less 16minutes, I went to check the time on my watch. As I switched from stopwatch to time, my battery finally died. I jogged the 2nd lap but have no idea of my time. :(
I really need to find my heart rate strap. I find that not being able to track my stats is a demotivator. Friday I played basketball. In other words, I did sprints.

Tomorrow is swimming again, and Tuesday there's an intramural 5K I'll run. Better pack my ice pack and IcyHot!

Monday, April 20, 2009

Catching up--again

So last week I started to update this blog, and this was as far as I got:

Last Monday I swam; I did 3x100 ... (plus kicks, pulls, turns, etc)
Wed -- vacation
Thurs kettlebells
Fri ultimate frisbee
Sat 2mi: 1mi walk 16min; 1 mi run 12.5 min; right lower leg all cramped up; icy hot slathered; shower and tylenol ahhh. Sunday heels ok (I was able to wear my high heels w/o any pain, unlike last time.)

OK, so now it's been *another* week. Monday was swimming again; we (my traithlon 'buddy' and I) swam a straight 400m (yd? I don't really know how long the pool is) and then did kicks and pulls. I'd gotten some advice on kicking from the hips instead of the legs and have been working on that. Tuesday I ran 2.8 mi in something like 35.5 min; I hadn't run that far in a while, so I just kept a steady pace. Wednesday I did stationary bike 20 min and some upper body weights. Thursday was rest day; we took a family walk before bedtime. Friday was another group run, but this time it was 1 1/2 mi at own pace, timed. I finished at 16:50, but I'm not sure how long it took me to get from where I started to the 'starting line'; someone estimated abt 20sec, which would put me at the same time or so as my last fit test. When we finished the run, we walked another mile or so back to start, also at our own, nice slow pace. It took at least 20 minutes, probably more like 30.

I didn't have time to ice afterward; my shins felt fine, though my calves were cramping up. Today my shins hurt, but not too much. I wore flat shoes to church today though. :P

I finally got my Polar HRM data uploaded to my training diary; too bad I can no longer remember what I did to go in and edit it. Actually I should be able to use the information here, but it would take a while. I got 12 files uploaded. The last one was from the 13th. Since then I haven't been wearing my HRM b/c I lost it (again). My swim goggles are hiding with it. Monday's swim was goggle-less; that was a fun drive home! dry, scratchy, sleepy eyes, bright sunshine. Oh yeah! Fortunately my husband found more goggles; now I just need to make sure they get into my bag.

My training buddy, a friend from work, has a friend who's supposed to be training with us, but I have yet to meet her. I'm starting to wonder if she actually exists.... :)

Now if I could just find my latest issue of Runner's World. I got as far as the Beginners stuff and was really looking forward to reading it, when I had to put it down, and I haven't seen it since. :(

Saturday, April 11, 2009

Saturday musings and report

I really should be asleep by now, but, well I'm a big procrastinator, and it's been a week since my last post (again). I just hardly get more than 5 minutes at a time on the computer during the week!

Monday I did a Yourself!Fitness workout, low impact; my shins and calves were still quite stiff. Tuesday night I did Yourself!Fitness (Y!F) yoga, which was nice. Wednesday I went swimming. I did a warm-up lap, a lap of kicks, 3 x 100s, more kicks, pulls, sidestroke, backstroke (~50yds each) and practiced turns. It was a good workout, and I didn't overdo it (which is easier to do in a pool since you don't have to hold yourself up).

Friday I played basketball. That went pretty well once my stiff muscles warmed up. I wasn't exactly looking forward to it, b/c usually it exhausts me aerobically, but this time that was fine. The hard part about the running was the stiffness...until I hit the floor and lost a nickle-sized chunk of skin from my knee. Then the stinging became the hard part. :P

Today, this evening, I finally got out and ran again for the first time since the group <10min>2/3 mile. Then I did a 15:30 mile. I'm back to that again. :( My right ankle felt like it was catching, and my lower right leg felt like giving out a few times. I should've iced when I got back in, but I wasn't able to; I had to finish getting the kids to bed while DH went to get the Easter Bunny's goodies. :| Yep, we'd forgotten about them when we did our grocery shopping earlier in the week.

I'd really like to like running. It didn't use to hurt like this. I rarely even feel the Icy Hot anymore when I put it on. I don't know if I'm used to it, or if it's just to old. I don't think I like my new Mizunos for running. They're stability shoes but have little arch support. I even put my Asics insoles into them, which is better but still low. I guess I'll stick to the Asics for running and use the Mizunos for other activities (walking, basketball, wallyball, ultimate, whatever). I did try on a pair on Mizunos that I liked a lot back in December, but I couldn't remember which style they were when I finally had the money to buy another pair. (They didn't have my size in stock in Dec.)

I've got to figure out this running thing. There's another (fast) group run in 2 weeks and another fitness test next month. At least the test I can run at my own pace.

I lost 2 pounds! I discovered it Wednesday. But then I went back to work on Thursday (after 2 1/2 days off) and gained it back. Why do I eat more and more heavily when I sit in front of a computer all day than when I'm at home? (Because I don't have to carry things, wash dishes--who wants to eat with wet hands?--fix the kids food, we don't have a "snack bar" at home...)

Saturday, April 4, 2009

OUCH!

Friday I worked out with a group led by a very fit, cheerful, sadistic young man. We did running drills: "tinies" (you know how you see people run through rows of tires, stepping in each one? This was like that only instead of tires, it was a small, flat ladder: right in, left in, right out, left out all the way down, on our toes) to the right and to the left; big leaps, twisting grapevine (they call in something else in athletics, but you get the idea, maybe), and so on. We'd do the exercise down and run backwards back to start. We also did frog jumps and duck walks, suicides, and some kind of loopy run drill. When we finished I got some ice for my shins; that helped, and I stretched my lower legs as much as I could.

All those tiny steps and leaping were really uncomfortable; my calves and shins still hurt from last Friday's run. But today my quads are SO SORE! from those frog jumps and duck walks. LOL I did a little bit of quad stretching after I iced, but I had no idea how much they'd hurt today! I know, duh, when's the last time I did those kinds of exercises. I have zero foresight. My right knee feels about ready to give out with every other step...but I wouldn't be able to fall b/c my quad's so tight! And we have stairs in our house, and baby gates to step over (2 I can open, but 1 I can't), ow!ow!ow! Are you laughing?

I had an inkling of this by bedtime last night and pulled on an extra blanket, but it didn't feel hot at all b/c it was so cold here last night. :(

Monday, March 30, 2009

Oh and Friday's run...

Was even faster than a 10-minute mile. Figures. And they ran even faster on the 2nd mile! Why is a 10-minute mile "slow"?

I Like Swimming...

...but my HRM watch didn't. :( I got 3 seconds of data, in other words, nuthin'. It was a good workout though. My triathlon buddy and I swam at least 7 laps (25yd pool) and then lost count, then 5 more doing kicks and pulls. It's been a very long time since I've swum like that--over 10 years! The pulls went surprisingly well; the bouys were more aero--aqua?--dynamic than the ones I'd used before, though they tended to slide. I had to cross my ankles to keep mine in place. As I hooked my left foot behind my right, I pulled that sore left tibialis; swimming of all places to hurt my shin more. Fortunately I figured out what I did wrong and was able to fix it.

Now I'm Hungry again! Sheesh, and I just brushed my teeth for bed, and it's late again. zzzzzzzzzzz. Too hungry to sleep. 8|

Sunday, March 29, 2009

Almost Recovered

Wow. Friday's run really took a lot out of me. I'm sure it didn't help that I did a hard workout earlier in the week, then was sick for a day or so. I've also had this sinus thing going on for over a week now that started, slowly, clearing up on Friday. My whole body was sore yesterday! I was hesitant to take more than a couple of ibuprofen b/c my stomach still felt irritated from taking some too close to the run on Friday.

I got some extra rest today with an extra blanket; the extra warmth helped my muscles recover. Now I just have to loosen up my calves and, yes, shins, again. Tomorrow's workout will be swimming. I haven't done that in a while! I don't even know if I have any goggles. :%

I was really hating running Friday night. Saturday it was merely a strong dislike. Now I'm looking forward to being able to run (pain free, whenever that happens). Sigh. Tuesday will be either walking or running....

Friday, March 27, 2009

Maxed Out

Today I ran my first 10-minute mile in several years. Then I had to turn around and come back. I totally maxed out--almost puked. I'd taken some ibuprofen earlier to help with soreness, but I didn't take it early enough. :( I've felt like crap ever since the run, but there were two good things that happened--aside from completing that first mile--my max HR was about 192, down at least 10 from the last time, so all this exercise is paying off. Also, my shins and calves didn't start bothering me AT ALL until the very end, and then only a little. :~)

Now I just need to get off the computer and go to bed...and eat some more, getting hungry, mmmm.

Saturday, March 14, 2009

Triathlon

I registered for the triathlon today. It registered through the Active Network, so now I have an event on my profile/calendar. And here I was thinking about deleting that profile! :P I use Polar to track my workouts and was only using coolrunning/Active to map routes.

So here's the big date: 27 JUNE!

I still have shin splints (grrrr!) and bought another pair of shoes today. I hope they work out well.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

New Incentive

After my timed run last month, I got bored posting. Suffice it to say, the runs remain more or less the same.

But now I'm looking at training for a (little) triathlon...and still working up to a good 5k run.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Catching up--again

Ok, I'll just summarize, last week was so busy it's all blurred in my head anyway. Last saturday (14th) I ended up not going to the gym after all because my stomach was hurting, and everyone else in the family had had that sort of thing with other unpleasant symptoms. So I stayed home. Plus sporadic stomach cramps don't lend themselves to exercise vey well.

Monday and Wednesday I did pretty hard workouts, though you wouldn't necessarily know it just by looking at the numbers. A teething baby did some serious damage to my sleep early on in the week. Strong workouts, sleep-deprived and possibly not quite well body...

On Monday I did a mile and a half in about 20 minutes, pretty long I know. The first 1/2 mile was in ~7:50, the 2nd 1/2 mile was in ~6:10 for a 14min mile. The last 1/2 mile was in ~5:45.

Wednesday I tried to do some speedwork and lengthening out my stride. I was still pretty tired and was rather shaky at the end of the workout.

Friday I had a fitness test. Fortunately I had pretty much caught back up on my sleep. I ran 1.5 miles in 16:35!! Woohoo! I started off a bit too fast but was able to reign that in to my planned pace; that let me sprint at the end, and the extra speed at the beginning set me ahead of my planned time of 17 min.

Saturday, February 21, 2009

Catch-up

Ok, let's see. Monday was a holiday. Tuesday I worked out with a group. We did lots of push-ups and sit-ups/crunches, kettlebells, and even pull-ups! (I needed a lot of help with those.) Then we did cardio for 15 or so minutes--I found an available cross-ramp machine and used that.

Wednesday--busy; Thursday--busy. Friday I did some running again, not quite a mile. I did a 1/2 mile in 5:42 (11.4min-mi) but I don't know how long I could've kept that up. I still need to go to the gym today. Since I got up to running more than 20 minutes in the walk-to-run plan, I'm going to go ahead and start adding in speedwork. I have a timed run next Friday and am behind on getting ready for it. My legs have been feeling better since last Saturday. Wednesday they didn't hurt at all. I still have to keep my stress level low, though, or they do start hurting again. At least stress headaches are fewer and farther between. :-%

Sunday, February 15, 2009

Friday was bowling...

Friday afternoon, a bunch of us from work went bowling. I could feel the stress of even that in my left shin. I've been feeling very frustrated by all this pain and stiffness.

Saturday morning I went to the gym again. 15 minutes on the crossramp--I noticed that, not only is the foot pad hinged, but it also actually makes your toes go up some each cycle, like walking. On the elliptical you can lift your heels easily but would have to really focus at it to lift your toes. After that I walked 3.5 minutes and started running. Since I was still feeling stiff, I ran for almost 6 minutes before timing a mile. I ran a 12-min mile (woohoo!), but had a hard time keeping my breathing rhythm and was wiped out by the end of it :( . So I only ran about 18 minutes total. I walked for a few more minutes working out some stiffness and then stretched. When I got home, I GOT OUT THE ICE and iced my shins for a good 15 minutes. My legs felt much better and didn't start getting stiff and sore again until around 5 or 6pm. Ibuprofen is a good friend of mine. :)

Wednesday

My laptop is on the fritz, so I have to compete with 3 other people to use the other computer!

On Wednesday, my legs were really hurting since Monday's run. I wanted to use the "crossramp" but they were all full, so I used the treadmill. I walked for 30 minutes at around a 3.8mph pace. Afterward I did quite a few situps and crunches and as much stretching as I had time for. Again, no ice afterward.

Monday, February 9, 2009

Almost done!

Friday, instead of running, I took another day of rest. Saturday I did a 16min warm-up on a Precor crossramp; this time I could tell the difference between it and the elliptical machine--the foot pad pivots slightly and seems to give the front of the leg a bit more workout.

Anyway, after the warm-up, I did the next w3r workout: walk 5min, run 20, walk 5. My run was slower on Saturday--14 min-mile. I didn't get to ice my shins afterward, just took ibuprofen. My left shin has had a sore spot low on the inside.

MONDAY: The gym was like an oven today, so I ran outside. It was perfect, nice and cool. (or warm compared to what is has been) I walked 10min, ran 22, and walked about 5 more. My running distance this time was 1.7mi, 2.2 overall. Again I didn't get ice on my shins, just cold fingers. :) There is a very sore spot about 1" - 1 1/2" long a little above my left ankle.

The next run is supposed to be 25min, and the one after that 30. I think I'll see about doing a crossramp workout Wed or a long brisk walk and spread these runs out a little more. Then I have to add in speedwork.

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Wednesday

Today was 6min walk, 18min run, 6min walk. I did a 10 minute elliptical warm-up first. I forgot to take ibuprofen this morning, and my muscles were still rather tight most of the workout. I ran about a 12:45minute mile covering approx 1.5 miles in the 18 minutes.

My right shin is doing pretty well, but I could feel a tight spot as well as a really tender spot on the inside of my left shin. I took ibuprofen and iced it when I got home. I'm not sure whether to go to the next step on Friday, repeat today's, or do a different workout, like only elliptical or bike instead.

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Skipped a step

Monday I was feeling pretty good, so I skipped a "step" in my program. Last time I ran a 10 min stretch; the next step was 12. Instead, I went right for 15. It had a 10 minute walk first, so I didn't do any extra warm-up either, just started off slow. So it was walk 10, run 15, walk 5, run 5, walk 5. During the 15 min run I did a little over a mile--about a 13 min/mile pace. Afterward I stretched out as much as I could. I could feel a particularly sore spot on my left shin.

Today (Tues) there's some tightness and soreness, but it's not too bad. I'm just not sure how I feel about moving to the next step tomorrow: walk 6, run 18, walk 6! If I get to the gym early enough, I can find an elliptical to warm up on. (That's another reason I didn't do extra warm-up on Mon...all the ellipticals were full.)

Saturday, January 31, 2009

2 for 1: Monday and Saturday

Things have been so busy, what with work and all, that I didn't have time to write up Monday's run.

The next step in the program involved 8-min runs with 3-min walks. I didn't feel quite up to that, so I did 7-min runs but with just 2-min walks. I did that 3 times (not having paid close attention to the directions--the 8/3 sets were just supposed to be done twice) after a long warm-up. I felt pretty good afterward. I didn't ice my muscles as soon as I got home from the gym, but I did get heat on them which helped too.

Wednesday, a winter storm hit, and the gym was closed. Thursday, more of the same. I did some core exercises, and that night ~10:30 I went out for a walk. There was so much light reflected off the clouds and the snow that it was quite light outside. The roads were pretty snowy/icy, so I didn't try to run, just walked almost a mile.

I didn't get to work out Friday either. I was going to go to the gym in the evening, but ran out of time, esp as I had plans to go this morning.

So I finally got to the gym again this morning. I wasn't sure at first what my workout was going to be. I did a 10-min warm-up on the elliptical and stretched a bit. Then started the next workout on the plan: walk 5, run 10, walk 5, run 5, walk 5. It went well. I felt happy running. It helped that there was lots of sunshine coming in the windows on one side of the track. :) There were some kids walking and running too; it was fun to see them run, but when they took off sprinting I felt suddenly slow! 2.1 miles, my walking was getting slow. After the 10-min run, it was almost harder to walk! I didn't have a chance to ice after getting home, just ibuprofen and icy-hot. We'll see how things feel tomorrow, so far so good.

Saturday, January 24, 2009

Same ol' same ol'?

Since yesterday's elliptical workout went so well, I started today's workout with an crossramp warm-up. I did 10 minutes and then tried to run, but my calves and shins were still tight, so I walked 4 minutes. From there I was supposed to run 5min walk 1min, but my muscles were still painfully tight. So I ran (slow jog actually) 3 walked 30sec a couple of times. Then I was finally able to do the 5:1 four times.

I finished up with 5 more minutes of walking and then stretched for several minutes. I was feeling kinda wiped out after this workout. I'd gotten up late this morning and so didn't have time to eat or drink much., just enough to handle some ibuprofen, so I was feeling somewhat shaky after working out. Plus yesterday, before the elliptical, I did lots of pushups and crunches making me sore in the shoulders today.

Friday, January 23, 2009

Walk-to-run--a break

Instead of doing the next step in my walk-to-run program, I did an elliptical machine workout. My legs felt great afterward! No more shin and calf pain! They are starting to tighten up a bit tonight. Tomorrow morning--5 min run, 1 min walk.