4 posts tagged “fitness update”
Saturday morning, I decided to go for a jog. I planned for my usual route, just under 3 miles (my house to Swami's and back). Since I didn't have anywhere to go immediately afterward, I didn't try to run fast... I just went for a leisurely pace. As I passed Swami's, I felt energetic so decided to keep going.
I ended up running 5 miles, the farthest I've ever run. And it's also the distance of my next race... so, yay, I've met my goal of being able to run the entire thing!
Going with a slower pace and not having to return by a set time really helped me appreciate the meditation of running. It takes a while for me to get into the pace and get to that point where I open up to the quiet reflection that you can get while running. It really is like meditation. Of course, the view on my path also helps:
It was a beautiful day, and I ran along highway 101 looking at the beach to my left. Eventually the 101 turns into the main street in encinitas so I ran through town down to Moonlight Beach. Ahh, paradise.
Oh, and my strategy of signing up for races to keep myself motivated to exercise seems to be working pretty decently. I think I'm going to sign up for the Iron Girl in Del Mar in June.
Yesterday I ran in the San Diego Mud Run with a couple of girlfriends. The honey was originally slated to run also, but due to a slight injury, was our cheerleader instead.
We were team GLOM - the Gorgeous Ladies of Mud (credit to the honey for conceiving the name).
The honey made the best cheerleader ever (although he couldn't do high kicks):
The race was held in Rancho San Diego, and started at noon. It was about 95 degrees and dry as a bone. We were a little afraid. However, during the race you get hosed off a number of times and the mud was cool, so the temperature wasn't a problem. Here we are pre- and post- mud pit:
I don't care how old you are, there's nothing like playing in puddles! My friend K has been an athletic superstar lately, and finished the 5k in under 31 minutes (including all the obstacles and having to walk certain parts where the track was crowded). That's K propelling herself over the last hurdle.
I'd recommend the race to anyone. It wasn't super-competitive, so if you are, get in the front. But for slackers like me looking to get back into shape, it's perfect. There was a 500-foot ascent in the middle of the track that was pretty tough, even for the super-athletes. I walked it... and didn't really have much choice because everyone in front of me was walking anyway.
The best costumes I saw (besides our super-cool GLOM shirts) were the rainbow crew (rainbow tank tops, knee socks, and shorts that said LOVE across the back) and The Wizard of Oz crew (yep, you guessed it, all men... Doroty had a beard). Little Toto was caked with mud. Props to the tin man for wearing the silver lame pants through the entire race... he looked hot. Hot as in 95 degrees.
Here's our super-strong finish:
For a couple months I was doing great, but in the last three weeks I've been starting to lag. :-/
Three weeks ago the clocks changed, and it was dark in the morning, which made me want to stay in bed... and not run in the dark. I ran twice instead of my goal of four times.
For the last couple weeks, I've had a lot going on. (Hapa Excuse #1). Working late because I have a tradeshow coming up, and a few nights out with friends, making it hard for me to get up early.
Must.... get....back on the horse! I AM going to run tonight.
This week started out tough. I decided to work out my legs on Monday. When I was in great shape, that was my weakest part, mainly because I figured I would need a lot of upper body strength to get through my border patrol P.T. So when I work them out I get really sore.
I said to myself, "I'll just do really light weights." And I did. But the workout still kicked my ass, it just kicked in a day later. The soreness rendered me unable to do my running training for the first half of the week. So the next day I worked back & chest, and got a little sore from that; nothing bad though. On Wednesday morning, I was trying on a pair of skinny jeans, and as I was trying to get them up, pulled a back/neck muscle. Ouch.... damn skinny jeans!
So Wednesday I'm walking funny, can't turn my neck, and generally just feeling old and broken. Lol.
By Thursday the soreness was evaporating, and I took an evening yoga class and stretched my legs. Today I'm 95% back to normal. Ahh.
Lessons learned....
- Work legs out on Friday or Saturday (more recovery time, since I mostly work out during the week)
- Always have whey protein after a leg workout (really helps keep you from getting sore)
- Go into a prone position when attempting to try on skinny jeans. Or slow down.
