Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Can Do

Hey Ladies. After Manda's heartfelt post yesterday I had a good ole chat with myself. I have been pretty lackluster since moving to Georgia, a lot of having to do with what we all chatted about yesterday. The only thing I've consistently done is Bootcamp...once a week...far cry from my previous 6 days a week workout schedule. Last night I decided it was time to stop feeling sorry for myself because of these three things

1) As much as I want you to... neither of you will be moving to GA.
2) If I keep feeling sad about it, I'll never ever workout again.... and that's just no bueno.
3) I always feel better about myself and have a better attitude about life in general when I'm taking care of myself.

I made a goal to workout today for an hour and half no matter what. My alarm clock went off and I thought I hit the snooze button...nope... when I my babe started crying at 8:30 I grumbled (only slightly, cause sleep is divine) and told myself if I just put on workout clothes then I'd eventually workout. And you know what? I did.

I did a 30 minute DVD in my front room --with my girls. It was fun for them for the first 5 minutes and then it was a whole bunch of Jaylee saying "Moooooommmm how LONG is this?" and everytime I told her she could do it with me she'd stand up and say "I'm not old, I don't have to exercise!" Oh my silly kid. Reagan was all into working out. She was shaking her booty and laying down on the ground with me. When I started the ab portion, however, she decided it would be MORE fun to crawl ON my stomach and my head. Then Jaylee got into the mix and they were both jumping on my stomach (mind you, while I'm still doing abs). I got frustrated and didn't do the cool down section. I was still in my workout clothes and thought... okay... that was a half an hour... what now?

I strapped on my cycling shoes and went for a ride. I haven't been out since I messed up my hand in April. It was HARD but a very worthwhile workout. Because I had chosen to sleep in I was cycling about 11am... in the heat... I rode for about an hour. I came back dripping sweat, my muscles freaking, and my wrist throbbing but it felt SO GOOD to get out there again. So yay for me. I got up. I did my hour and a half of working out and I didn't cry. Alllll very good things.

Go Tres Amigas.

Monday, July 27, 2009

Good Grief!

Oh Manda your post made me sad it makes me want to RUN to O-town and go race around Ogden High's track...let me rephrase that- chase you around Ogden High's track cause your so FAST! I think those two years in the town house are my some of my favorite memories for lots of reasons and one of those reasons is your and Lori's friendship when I drive up the hill on Monroe I always smile and think of the many morning we raced up and down that blasted thing in heat in cold in happy and sad I think of the excited stories each of us shared during those morning and the struggles and trials facing us.
I don't know if I shared this before but while working graves at the Center for Change when I would leave in the morning at 5:30/6am all of me was sad, sad cause I knew you too were just greeting each other off to start your day, in the dark, on the silent pavement... not to get too mushy but thanks for what each of you shared with me, thanks for the distance we have covered, and most of all for your friendship! I treasure those time, with the best of times in my life! lets all grieve together :) It is a sad time, motivation will come we are too hooked but its OK to be sad

Trying to Find New Motivation

Hey ladies. Let me answer your burning questions. Yes, I am still running (lack-lusterly, but still doing it) and yes I will blog here again...apparently today. Tee hee.
So let me tell you about running lately. It's hard. I'm not feeling it. I haven't felt this off with running since I started 5 years ago. I don't know what to do about it. I HAVE however come to a conclusion as to why I think it is that it's so hard. It all has to do with how running began for me. I started running because I was asked to be on a marathon relay team with some ladies that I worked with at the hospital. They wanted me to run 5 miles, and the farthest I'd ever run was 3. The thought of 5 scared me to death. I happened to mention that to my friend Lori, and she immediately started writing me a training plan. I thought, "Seriously? A training plan? This girl is nuts." Then not only did she write it for me, she became my running partner to make sure I did it. I ended up breaking my toe playing soccer and couldn't run the race, but I really liked running, and the whole 'training plan' thing was growing on me, so I decided to keep with it. When I started running I couldn't even run an entire mile without walking. About 5 months later we were running 6 miles without stopping pretty easily. That's when Lor mentioned that she was going to run 10 miles to her mom's house one Saturday and I said that I'd like to tag along. That run was insane. I didn't have good shoes. I think I killed 3 toe nails. It was longer than I'd EVER run before, AND we got caught in a blizzard during our run. I got home and Jared looked at me and told me that I looked like a homeless bum. I was soaked, tired, and freezing cold. I was also hooked. I loved it. Even with all the craziness. The way I felt was like nothing I'd ever felt before. I loved running long distances.
After that run Lori convinced me to run more and more. A race here and there. I commited to a half marathon. Then I figured she couldn't run her first full marathon alone, so I'd better tag along...and our running partnership was cemented. Running became therapeutic, physically, emotionally, and many times spiritually. Lori and I went from being friends to being best friends. Then Erin came into the mix. We loved having someone new in the partnership. She just slipped in and wormed her way right into our hearts. Thus the tres amigas were born.
Then 2 years ago, school took Erin away from us. She's not far, but 2 hours is too far for a 5:30 run. I was sad, but it was back to Lor and I, and we just kept running. Then 1 month ago, school again (evil schools. what's with this education thing anyway?) took Lor 2000 miles away. Do you hear that? It's my motivation for running deflating. My partners in crime are gone. Pfffft.
I have had wonderful people step up and let me run with them since Lor moved. I have convinced other people to run at 5:30 in the morning with me at times. But my heart's just not in it right now. And I don't know what to do. Bleh. It's not that I'm not grateful to have the people to run with that I do. Because I AM grateful. If it weren't for them I wouldn't be running at all. I know I wouldn't (because on the mornings I'm on my own I haven't gone). I think I'm in mourning. I've been left behind. I hate feeling like I've been left behind. Grrrrr. So the question now is what do I do from here? Do I keep running because that's what I do? Or do I revamp? I'm thinking maybe some time spent focusing on weight training and speed training. All I know is that right now running makes me sad. And I hate that.

Sunday, July 26, 2009

Oh My Quads

Soooo yesterdays BootCamp class. Yup. It was fun. It was cardio centric-which excited me cause I'm much stronger in that dept right now. Get excited, here was our workout. (done at a track...with bleachers)

Warm up of .75 mile, slow jog.
The following stations going around the track for a repeat of 3 times
100 meters high butt kicks
200+ meters of forward lunges (it doesn't sound that far...but oh. my. it really really is), 2nd time around backward lunges
100 meter sprint
50 jumping jacks
100 meter sprint
jumping jacks until every one has finished
repeat.

Oh I was burning just by THAT point. Then we headed up to the bleachers. Say it with me now with a twinge of dread: the bleeeeachers. She had us run up and down a section, back out to the track, do 5 explosions (you crouch all the way down, jump up with arms and hands extended) and then sprint 100 meters out, 100 meters back and back up the bleacher steps. Three times.
By the last time my legs were so jelly-licious that my sprint was pathetic. I truly felt like I was running on two sticks of butter through a forest of gummi bears. Sigh.

THEN

We did 100 bicep curls, 30 bicep rotations, an awesomely excruciating ab workout (planks for 60 seconds amidst other grueling things), some push ups and then we all laid on our mats and wanted to die.

Good time, girls, good time. I'm telling you --this type of working out is really starting to get addictive. Only downside... this morning my abs, butt, quads, and hams are on FIRE. I woke up feeling like I'd been run over by a truck. But it's a good pain, one I'm glad I have.

Saturday, July 25, 2009

I AM BACK

Thanks for not taking away my rights as a writer on our neglected running blog. Hopefully I can quickly make my way back in your hearts! BUT today was the day I did it I got my tired achy body out on the pavement. I told myself all day yesterday I was going for a run in the morning. When I got up with Hayden at 1 am and 4 am I told myself the same thing. When I got at 6 am with her and could watch all the bikers/runners going by from the nursery window I told myself...
I WAS GOING! but once I got her back to sleep it was a tough decision not to curl back in bed myself, obviously you know the outcome I went some where deep down inside me I knew I really, really wanted to go- and go I did. My running watch's batteries were dead after its nine month slumber, so was my ipod, pretty sure my shoes have given up the ghost and have no road wear left in them either. But the important parts my joints, bones, lungs and heart pulled through for me in amazing strength and color! It made me realize how unnecessarily hard I can be on my body- I don't always eat the best or stretch like I should, every once in awhile I look in the mirror and pick it apart from head to toe, but as I ran I just thought about all the amazing things I have done and all the amazing places I have been because of my body and particularly what my body has done over the last nine months. I became so overwhelmed with gratitude I almost wanted to give my belly fat a big hug!
I only went two miles, but I am now two miles stronger! Somewhere over the last little while I heard, "runners who run with their ipod are runners who can't be alone with their thought." or some thing like that. I usually never have a hard time running, listening to music and thinking at the same time- but nonetheless my first time back I am glad I was completely alone. Now maybe in a week I will be ready for the fun running group in my hood.

Saturday, July 18, 2009

Re-Boot

Hey Ladies. I think we should really start writing on here again. Manda, you're training for a half... I want to hear about your fun long runs in Ogden. Erin, you're getting back into it, I want to hear about how much stronger you're feeling and what it's like to be at it again. Me, I need to start blogging for accountablility and to let you know how it is to workout here in the humidity!!!

First off, I LOVE LOVE LOVE sea level. Pretty sure I'd do cardio all day if I could. It's amazing the difference. No lung burning. Your legs give out way before your lungs do. Although, on a hot, sticky, wet day your lungs feel like they are drowing... like you're breathing in a sauna room. But I'll take that over the buuuuurn.

The last two weeks I've been doing a boot camp my friend (see I have friends, yay) Bridgette is in charge of. She kicks our butt and proceeds to hand them to us in a nicely wrapped package. I couldn't stand up and down for a good 24 hours after last Saturday. Here is the basic break-down of our first Boot Camp day:

Cardio:
1 mile warm-up
Hill sprints with circuits of power blasts (jumping jacks on speed) and lunges in between
lunges, lunges, lunges
Hill sprints with jumping jacks and power lunges in between
.5 mile run

Strength Training:
Circuit Training (jumps, forward lunges, burpees, sprints)
Biceps
Triceps
Lats
Chest
Back
(all done while balancing on our shoulder blades holding our bum in the air...it huuurt)
Abs

I was soooo sore. I worked out again on Monday and Tuesday and it seemed to stretch it out a bit.

Today's Bootcamp was easier for me. We did a lot of cardio circuit work. Then we did bleacher work... bleachers....bleeeechers. Guh. It hurt. After we worked on arms by balancing backwards on the bleacher steps. We did a tri, bi, combo with a total of 80 pumps. GAH. THEN we did the leg workout from hell. We held our lunge position for forrrreeever. Then abs.

Man. Alive.

I'm grateful for a friend who is crazier than I am and can push me but you two better watch out. If I workout this hard for the next 30 months I'm going to come back even crazier than I was. You two ready for that?

[cue clap of thunder]

Monday, July 13, 2009

New Plan.

You two can just move out here.

You can fly home on the weekends and say hi to your husbands.

We have an extra play pen, so bring the kids.

You in?

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

ATL Run, Numero Dos

First off, let me just tell you how EXCITED I am to have my little sister Ashley here for a few days. She's one of those mega-runners...ya know the kind that kick your trash at the local 5k...you see them at the start and at the finish but during the race...ummmm?? Super duper fast, my little sis is. However, despite her speediness she likes to go running with me she calls them her "slow distance runs." whatevs. I'm all about the company!! She decided to come with me this week and explore ATL. It's amazing how much safer you feel with a running partner. I really need to get one of those, quick. Hmmm. Craigslist?

The run started off with Ash SUPER DUPER WAY excited about the fact that I drug her out of bed.... can't you tell? She was even more excited that her butt was going to be the prominent decor for all my running pictures today.
This run was much more enjoyable then the first run. I think it had a lot to do with the fact that my sister was with me, but I was also not as nervous and knew the streets a teeny bit better. We decided to skip off the main roads and check the neighborhoods out... I took lots of pictures of alll the many many many cute houses, get excited....









The run was gorgeous. I loved the neighborhood we ran through. It was only about a 45 minute run but I was grateful. It was super hot and I was suuuuper sweaty. One neat thing I've noticed on the runs is the amount of runners/walkers that are out. TONS. We passed many many runners this morning. I feel very safe here, which is a huge blessing. Everywhere we drove today I just kept remarking on how many cute houses there were and was writing street names down so I could remember to run different routes. (within 6 miles or so of my house...) Ashley said something that pretty much sums up how I feel about my direct surroundings:

"It's as pretty as Ogden, but it's like Ogden on EVERY. STREET. Not
just a section, everywhere you turn is OGDEN!"

Maybe that's why I like it so much.
Thanks for the run lil sis. I'm totally crying when she leaves Friday.