Monday with Kelly

Worked out at the gym with Kelly this morning. As usual she pushed and challenged me to work hard. For the first time every I exercised my shoulders using these huge big heavy ropes. Oh my gosh. My shoulders were so tired after 3 30 sec. -- what do you call it when you wave those ropes up & down? No clue, but I think I'll have trouble raising my arms tomorrow!

So this week is a bit mixed up as far as working out. Tuesday will be a 4 mi. run. Wednesday I'll go back to the gym for some elliptical work and ab work. Thursday will be strength training and a LSR on Friday. Saturday & Sunday will be off days due to sewing guild activities.

Weekend Wrap Up

Thursdays I strength train at the gym. I have enough workouts from my time with Kelly that I can pick & choose which one to do. But Wednesday evening Kelly emailed me a special workout to do on Thursday. Oh man! You're killing me Kelly. She said it was shorter than normal since I would be incorporating some sprint work on the elliptical. I really need to read between the lines better. If I had done so I would have read the words "more intense". Yes, the workout was shorter in exercises and sets, but it was way more intense! I made it through by telling myself it would be worth it in the end. Also, as Kelly knows, there is no way I'm going to quit or admit a workout is too tough. At the end, after I'd recovered a bit, I felt awesome. Thank you, Kelly.

Also on Thursday I visited my podiatrist about my ankle. Her conclusion is that I sprained the ankle in the plain where I walk (vs. the plain where I run. Did you know that your foot had these 2 different plains?) She prescribed an anti-inflammatory medicine along with wrapping the ankle, and ice after exercise. She recommended keeping it wrapped all the time for about a week, then wrapping it after running for another 2-3 weeks. She also said that for the next week I should ice my ankle after I run. She explained that I could do any exercise that didn't cause pain but if any movement caused any discomfort I shouldn't do it. That eliminated step ups at the gym and yoga. Boo-hoo. No yoga for about a month.

Friday I went back to the gym and worked out on the elliptical machine for 46 min. I went at a brisk pace (150 strides/min) for 15 minutes then did 10 minutes of sprints followed by 20 minutes at the previous brisk pace. The sprints were 30 sec. as fast as I could go (200+ strides/min), followed by 30 sec. of recovery. My legs were quivering when I stepped off the machine, but I was surprised at how I really felt like I had worked hard.

And now, Saturday's LSR:
Time: 1:12:25
Distance: 6.0 mi. 
Pace: 12:04 m/mi
Time of Day: 9 a.m.
Weather: 53°F.

What a great day to run! The sun was shining and there was the tiniest cool breeze. Not a cloud in the sky. The temp was awesome!

But, alas, it was a hard 6 miles. I had 3 or 4 short walks to get through. They were all on hills or inclines so that made me feel a bit better. And another obstacle was that my left hamstring really tightened up on me. I've never had that happen and I'm going to talk to The Coach about how to deal with that on a run. (She's off yachting in the Caribbean right now. Lucky her!) But the good thing is I made it the entire 6 miles AND, I'm looking forward to my next long run which will be Wednesday and 7 miles. (I have to rearrange my training this week due to an ASG Conference next Saturday.)

The Week So Far

Monday mornings I work out with my personal trainer, Kelly. I love Kelly even when she kicks my butt with a tough workout. Of course, sometimes I contribute to a challenging workout. Take yesterday for example. The gym has a big new workout contraption. (Seriously, I do not know what it is called, but it looks like an adult jungle gym.) The weight machines were moved around so that in addition to making room for the big new contraption there is also move personal training workout area. I noticed that in the corner the mirrors had been removed from the wall and I asked Kelly why. She said, "It's so you can use these," and she picked up this weighted ball and tossed it high up against the wall. Silly me, I replied, "That looks like fun." She handed the 12 lb. ball to me and I tossed it up against the wall. As I caught it Kelly said, "Now squat, come back up and toss the ball again." OK. No big deal. Yeah, right. She said, "Now keep that up for 30 seconds." Rest for 10 secs. Repeat. Rest. Repeat. Will that teach me to keep my mouth shut? Probably not, and man, do my shoulders ache today!

Tuesday morning is yoga morning. I've started going at 6 a.m. for Sunrise Yoga at the Agape Yoga Studio near my home. I think this class is actually a bit beyond my skill level, but the time is perfect for my schedule so I sweat my way through. The class instructor is awesome and she patiently helps me. Today as my legs were quivering through a pose I asked myself why I was there, but after class I felt great. So that's why I keep going back.

Amazing Run!

Time: 1:54:21
Distance: 10 mi.
Pace: 11:25 m/mi
Time of Day: 2 p.m.
Weather: 76°F. Sunshiny, slight breeze

Did you see the pace? 11:25 m/mi. Did you see that? Isn't that awesome!!!!!!! I have no clue where it came from, but I had an amazing run!

This past weekend I was in Chicago visiting The Coach (and grandkids). Saturday afternoon after soccer we headed out for my long run. I was apprehensive about the distance. I hadn't run 10 miles in a really long time. I left the headphones at home and told The Coach she would have to entertain me. The cool thing about running with her is that because she is in much better shape than me, she can talk while we run and I just listen and make an occasional comment. Cool! Thank you, Coach!!!

She led me down this trail, past a carnival tearing down, several parks, beside the train tracks and then back the same way. It was so awesome! The Coach kept offering to slow down but I just got in this groove and kept going. I'm sure it helped that the entire distance was flat as a pancake, but still…I had an amazing run!

I am really psyched now. I am really looking forward to the 1/2 marathon in October.

I didn't realize I hadn't posted my runs last week. I have run since 9/1. None of them were as a amazing as this run, but here's a brief recap.

9/8: 5.08 miles in 1:02:01. JB Trail with lots of hills.
9/6: 3.12 miles in 37:00 on Telegraph Rd.
9/4: 7.93 miles in 1:40:49 on Grants Farm Trail
9/3: 3.05 miles in 36:39 on Telegraph Rd.

I've also been working out at the gym with my personal trainer. I believe I can safely say all that work is really paying off in my running. Thank you Kelly! 

I Swear I Will Never Miss Another Workout

Treadmill Warmup
Time: 22:20 min.
Distance: 1.75 mi.
Pace: 12:46 m/mi
Time of Day: 6:15 a.m.

I did a 30-sec sprint during my warm up for strength training today.

I have missed a couple of strength training sessions but I wasn't too worried about the new routine Kelly left for me at the gym. But, boy was I wrong. I managed to get through the routine, but man, it kicked my butt. I will definitely be at the gym again on Friday and I'm thinking about going again Sunday and then run on the treadmill for my easy 3 miles.

It's going to be hot the next few days. A heat advisory has been issued from noon Wednesday until Saturday evening. My training schedule calls for 6 miles tomorrow and 8 on Saturday. I might be able to do the 6 miles early tomorrow, but I'm afraid by Saturday the humidity will be too much for me to run outside. As much as I don't like to do long runs on the treadmill, I think that's where I'll be come Saturday morning.

I Got Lost on the Road of Life

Time: 45:07 min.
Distance: 3.76 mi.
Pace: 12:01 m/mi
Time of Day: 6:19 a.m.
Weather: 76°F. humid

I've been running. Honest I have. It's just that a combination of unrelated factors have hindered my blogging here.

First, The Son got engaged and married so I have been caught in the wedding crazies since April. Then, Google did some kind of update-thingy and I couldn't figure out how to access my blog. Anytime I tried to sign on I got a message that said I wasn't "authorized" to "access" this area. Hmmm? But today I was determined and, why, just look at what a little determination will do.

So, back to running…

I'm training for the St. Louis Rock & Roll half-marathon in October. I'm pretty excited. I've made changes in my overall fitness training which are having a huge impact on my running.

First, I am working out at the gym 1 day a week with a personal trainer, Kelly. She's pretty awesome and I love working out with her even when I can't lift my arms the next day. I started with Kelly to improve my appearance for the wedding, but it has been such a positive impact on more than just my fitness level that I'm keeping up with it. It's expensive so it is a sacrifice in other areas, but even The Love thinks it is worthwhile. The biggest area the strength training has impacted is my upper body strength. Even though Kelly works my legs till they quiver, the improvement in my upper body has had a significant impact on my running. I am more upright which helps my breathing, improves my form, and I hunch over less when I get tired. It's awesome! (BTW, I can now do 23 push ups and I just started body weight pull-ups. Oh yeah!)

Also, Kelly has taught me the importance of stretching after I work out. Both with her and on my own and also when I run. That has really helped my recovery after my runs.

Second, I incorporate short sprints in my warm up runs at the gym. I seriously don't understand how 2 30-second sprints 2x a week improves my speed, but it does. My shorter runs are almost 60 sec. faster than last winter. My long runs are still over 13 min/mile, but I am still adding miles at this point and am not worried about the speed.

Third, I went to a podiatrist about all the foot pain I had. My feet reached a point of hurting almost all the time. I bought new running shoes when my old pair had only 250 miles on them because I thought that was the problem. But the aches and pains continued. So I broke down, sucked it up and made an appointment. My last visit to the podiatrist was in 2002. And, you know those whitish-yellow orthotics he gave me back then? Well, who knew they were designed to be temporary, lasting only 6-12 months, not 10 years. The official diagnosis is plantar facsiatis. Oh joy. :-(

So the podiatrist gave me the following instructions:

• No going barefoot at all—not even to the bathroom in the middle of the night.
• Get a pair of Crocs to use as house slippers.
• Give up the floppy flip-flops. (Boo-hoo. I love my flip-flops all summer long!)
• Wear only shoes with an arch in them, or
• Use the "new" temporary orthotic insert until I get permanent inserts, or
• Wear shoes with a 2" heel or higher.
• Do 4 specific stretches before I run.

The immediate good news was that I had to go buy a couple new pairs of shoes to get me through the rest of the summer. The doctor also gave me some anti-inflammatory medicine to help heal the current inflammation. Now I'm taking some kind of mega-strength Advil-type medicine. I go back in 3 weeks to get my feet cast for the permanent inserts.

So all of this sounds old lady-like and ugly-shoe-like and no-more-cute-shoes-like. But it really isn't. I found some cute Crocs to use as my house slippers. Who knew there were like 50-million different styles of Crocs. And, I found a nice pair of Merrell sandals to finish out the summer. And, the absolute most important thing is that my feet don't hurt! At all! Anymore! Oh my gosh-it's a miracle! Well, OK, not really a miracle, but darn close. I love my podiatrist!

So now I am running pain free. My feet dont' hurt and with the stretching I do, my hips feel better. D*** life is good these days!

At The Gym

I had a great strength training workout this morning. I really like the workout Kelly designed for me. Especially those little shoulder moves-the one where I do a total of 80 reps on each shoulder. Yeah, that one!

I meet with Kelly again Wednesday. No clue what she will have in store for me.

On My Own

I had a total bummer of a day yesterday. The thunder was rumbling with flashes of lightening when I got up. No running in the morning. The afternoon forecast looked better and I felt sure that I would be able to run after my Weight Watchers weigh-in. (That was a downer. I gained .6 lbs.) There were severe thunderstorm warnings all evening. We had a tornado close by and it rained up until after 10 p.m. So I missed Tuesday's run.

However, with my workout paper from Kelly in hand I sweat through the gym routine this morning on my own. As I told The Love later, "It's not nearly as much fun when you don't have your personal trainer encouraging you." But I did it and feel really good.

Not every day is perfect I realize, but I'm glad yesterday doesn't happen very often.

Mondays with Kelly

Monday's Workout

Second meeting with my personal trainer, Kelly. I had a great workout! Those biceps are going to be sore tomorrow! I'll workout on my own Wednesday & Friday this week. Due to a business trip Monday & Tuesday, Kelly & I will meet again next Wednesday.

I really like the workout she designed. It uses quite a variety of gym equipment. Free weights, machines, floor work, balance ball, and these little blue unstable disks I stand on to do bicep curls. It's also amazing how much I sweat! Apparently I wasn't working very hard when I was doing weight lifting on my own. I never, ever sweat that much.

This morning Kelly had me doing some side ab work. My right side was burning when she said, "O.k. now roll over and work the other side." To which I replied, "Yeah. I decided I only want my right side to be firm for the wedding pictures". She laughed and said, "Yeah, no!"

I'm Feeling Good About Me

How does Jennifer Hudson sing it on those Weight Watchers commercials? "It's a new day; it's a new dawn, And I'm feeling good." I feel good about me today!

I signed up for 10 sessions with a personal trainer at my gym. I want to work on my core. It's very soft and flabby and I just really dislike it all the time. I know that it's possible to have great abs under a thick layer of fat. So I'm working on the fat issue by following Weight Watchers new PointsPlus program. I rejoined a month ago and I've lost 6.2 lbs.

I was talking to Coach Jeni today and told her that for the first time in my life I am in a place where I am doing this for me and my health. Always before there has been some external motivation, or in some cases no motivation, only guilt. I believe I got to this point by asking a simple question of Jeni in November 2009. "Do you think I could run a half marathon?"

That simple, timid question on an early morning walk became a journey to a more healthy me. While I want to trim down and tone up my mid-section so it looks better, I am primarily motivated by a desire to improve my health. I have experienced the huge positive impact running has had in my life and now I want to experience the positive impact of even better physical and mental health.


It continues to amaze me how running is such a positive influence in my life. Although I struggled last summer and really slacked off during the long, bitterly cold winter, I have never considered not running on a regular basis. Running is one of the top 5 best things I have ever done to improve my life.

So I eagerly wait to hear when my first training session is going to be. I know I will feel sore after those first few workouts, but oh, the end result is going to be awesome!

Trying

Distance: 2.71 mi.
Time: 33:08 min.
Pace: 12:45 m/mi.
Time of day: 6:45 a.m.
Weather: 37°F, sun just coming up; beautiful!


OK. I've not been very good about running or blogging or even blogging about the running I did do. I am trying to get on track.


Here's a summary of the month so far (includes today's run):
Distance: 10.75 mi.
Time: 2:12:05
Avg Pace: 12:17 m/mi.
Weight training: 1 day

Rejoined the Gym

Today was my first day in the gym in about 6 months. I ran about 15 minutes on the treadmill and did some light weight lifting. 


When you are forced to cut household expenses you learn what is really important. The Love and I gave up our gym membership about 6 months ago to save money. He agreed to walk outside 4-5 times a week and I was running. I figured I could figure out a way to lift weights at home. However, cold weather is just around the corner and I am not doing any kind of resistance training. 


We were not quite as successful working out without the gym as we had told ourselves we would be. It was extremely hot and humid this summer which kept us both inside several different times. I just couldn't get my act together to do upper body exercises here at home. And sometimes we skipped because our schedules just wouldn't allow us to workout during the day. Plus, I think we both missed the option of working out at the gym. 


A couple of weeks ago we received a letter from our gym offering "amnesty" if you rejoined on a certain date. That prompted The Love and me to really evaluate our options. We visited another bare bones gym close to home thinking it would meet our needs at a lower cost. But neither of us felt very comfortable there. All the machines were really close together; it felt crowded. 
So we looked at the monthly cash flow and decided the gym membership is important enough that we will economize somewhere else. 

Me and Wii

Rest Day


Since I don't have a gym membership any more I have to do strength training, etc. at home. My fabuloso kids gave The Love a Wii for his birthday earlier this year. We have played around on it so I am looking to it for fitness workouts on my non-running days. 


The strength training section focuses on the lower body, but the Yoga and balancing sections are great. Also, I did the beginner running activity and was smoking! 


I also have a plethora (inside joke) of fitness videos I can utilize for general body toning and upper body workouts. So I think I'm set.

Caught Up At Last

This is a recap of today's workout, actually posted today!

So the whole car repair issue has played a little havoc with my training schedule this week. I ran yesterday and strength trained today.

Another change is in the offing with regard to strength training. The Love and I have agreed to cancel our gym membership. The Love has started walking (and even running a little) on the school track nearby. He hasn't been to the gym in several weeks. If everything is perfect I go the gym 2 days a week. We feel that right now we can put that money to better use. We've been members of our gym for 10+ years. I feel a little sad about ending our membership, but come winter we can always join again. In the meantime, we will have saved some money which is a good thing.

I have some free weights at home. That won't be a problem. I can do lunges and squats in place of leg extensions and leg curls. That won't be a problem. I actually will do more ab/core work at home because I hate doing those exercises at the gym. The issue becomes how do I get in the warm up miles? Do they matter in the overall training schedule? Feel free to chime in here, Coach Jeni!

Tuesday At The Gym

Wow! There's a whole different crowd at the gym on Tuesday mornings.

It felt good to get back to the strength training. I realized that with April and now May being so busy I have sacrificed this part of my training to get in my running. I was surprised to see on my calendar that I only hit the gym 1 time in April. The early part of the month was spent tapering for the April 11th race, then I had a week of rest afterwards, but still I am disappointed that I didn't make more of an effort to strength train later in the month.

May looks challenging as far as getting in all my scheduled workouts. I will be out of town part of next week and then all of the following week. I believe running will be o.k. but I'm not sure about all the strength training sessions. I may have to sacrifice 1 or 2 but I will definitely be more vigilant than I was in April.

Problems with Monday

I'm having a problem with my Monday workouts. They aren't getting done!

I am totally unmotivated to go the gym and work out with the weights. I do, however, find myself longing to be out on the road running. I think I'm going to try switching Monday's and Tuesday's workouts and see if that feels better. Of course, I'll start that next week since I want to run on tomorrow, Tuesday.

Yesterday and Today

Thursday's Run
Distance: 2.29 mi.
Time: 29:51 min.
Pace: 13:01 min./mi.
Time of day: 12:20 p.m.
Temperature: 65°F. (I forgot to log the temperature, but it was close to that.) It was a beautiful noontime run.

My first attempt at running up the hill in front of my house. I have to laugh! I live halfway up a pretty long hill. Coach Jeni told me earlier this week that from the bottom of the hill to about halfway would be good training for my next race. So today I walked out of the house, down the hill and stretched a little. I took off up the hill at a pretty slow pace (about 15:30 min./mi.). I did actually make it to the top of the street. At that point you turn, continue up the hill another block and then the road flattens out. As I said, I made it to the top of my street. That was my goal. I was lightheaded and breathing hard gasping for breath. But I didn't stop. I turned the corner and walked the remaining 1 block to the flat part of the road. My breathing had slowed enough that I started running. (Yes, actually running, with only one foot on the ground at a time.) I ran out of my subdivision and on to my usual 2 mile course.

It took about 3/4 of mile before I felt I have recovered from the hill. But, hey, that was my first time. It will only get better from here on out.

Oh yes. I swapped Thursday and Friday workouts. It was supposed to rain all day Friday so I decided to run Thursday and go to the gym for strength training on Friday. Which I did.

Friday's Workout
An easy 1 mile on the treadmill to warm up, then 1 set of each exercise to ease back into the strength training routine.

I need to increase my upper body strength so I don't slump so much as I tire during running. Besides, it makes me look better. And as I have said to The Son a couple of times, "It's all about the look." He'll understand.

Saturday is my first "long" run since the race. It is 5 miles. It is supposed to rain tomorrow also. But I think I will run in the rain (if it's not too bad) just for the experience.

It feels good to be working out regularly again. I understand that I need to give my body time to recover from racing and I understand that right now that takes me a couple of weeks. But, I miss the discipline of working out every day. I tend to get lazy when I'm taking it easy with the training. It 's a darn good thing I have such a great Coach to keep me healthy!

Rain Rain

Distance: 2 mi.
Time: 26:12 min.
Pace 13:06 min/mi.
Time of day: 9:15 a.m.
Temp: 36°F. 30°F WC. Rainy, cold

The rain and cold drove me to the treadmill this morning for my recovery run of 2 miles. I was feeling a little stiff and sore from yesterday's 10 miles. I'm really glad for the 2 miles this morning. I feel so much better now. I didn't push myself, but ran at an easy pace never going faster than 5.1 mph on the treadmill. It was all good.

Is That Renewed Enthusiasm I Feel?

Distance: 1.17 mi/
Time: 15:00 min.
Pace: 12:49/mile
Time of day: 6:30 a.m.
Warm up for strength training

I was up and at 'em this morning, heading out to the gym around 6:15 a.m. I wanted to really work with the weights today since I had a couple of easy strength training sessions last week. I didn't push myself on the treadmill, just enough work to warm up the muscles. And I had a great strength training session.

This week is a step back week on the training schedule. And, for the first time I really understand the purpose. I ran a total of 28+ miles last week and I'm ready to take it a little easier this week. The weird place I feel it in my body is my ankles. Those bony knobs that stick out on the ankle--my are really tender. But other than that I feel great! And I'm really looking forward to running this week. Is that enthusiasm I feel?

Monday at the Gym

Monday's Stats
Monday is strength training at the gym with a quick 1 mile warm up on the treadmill.

I did increase the weight I was lifting on most of the exercises. I could feel it by Monday evening, but today, Tuesday, I'm fine.