Spartan Shape-Up, Day 194:
I saved today, BlogLand. It was supposed to be a CrossFit morning. At 6am, my body decided that was a big "No." I am insanely irritated about the way my body and my brain are fighting on this morning thing. Nonetheless, I'm fighting it, and seeing proactive solutions (I'm really thinking one of those lighted, Sunrise Alarm Clock type things may help). I'm trying to go to bed earlier, and de-stress myself, etc.... all the things that I know I should do, when my body starts into this stupid sleep-crashing cycle (Yeah, I've gone through this before. I know the signs, I know the cycle... what I don't know, is how to NOT let it interfere with my lifestyle at the time. This sunk a semester at college for me, for instance. ). However, at this stage in my life, I refuse to let it win. One day at a time.
So, I admit, I was not out of bed this morning. I slept. And then I felt really guilty, as I wanted to get up and hit up CrossFit, I know I needed to... and yet... I didn't. Argh. However, one must not focus on what one didn't do, but get one's own ass in gear and make the best of the situation. I went to work, and planned my attack for when I got home.
Getting home found me moving some furniture into my place (my roommate has just moved, and I'm having to re-acquire some stuff), and the minutes ticking away (which happens, when you don't get home until 7:30pm). Finally, I was finished. Time check, almost 9pm. It was SO TEMPTING to not get sweaty today. Normal people everywhere were winding down... getting ready for sleeping... I heard Old Me telling me how nice it would be just to chill... and hey, since I'd missed the morning WOD anyway....
HOWEVER. I then paused, surfed around FaceBook for a couple minutes, and saw all the efforts of my Spartan friends, that day. Crazy WODs... Sandbag carries, long runs... all sorts of things. I better do SOMEthing. In like 97 days, I'll be running my first Spartan (*gulp), I need to step it up.
Without a real plan, I threw on some workout gear and just sort of did a couple circuits through the following. It's no impressive WOD by any means, but I did *something*, stayed moving, and got sweaty.
- T-handle Tabata Swings (30#): 8 rounds
- Pull Ups (with stool): 50
- Burpees: 50
- Lunges: 50
- Push-ups: 50
- 10 sec Hangs (for grip!): 5
Like I said, nothing impressive, but SOMEthing. Particularly since many of these movements (Pull ups. Pushups, Burpees...) are my most uncomfortable, non-graceful, frustrating, Achilles Heel movements. Sets of 10. I can feel that my shoulders are going to be angry tomorrow.... thankfully, it's a Run Day!
I am admittedly frustrated with my arms. I just don't see the kind of measurable success there that I have seen with my running, etc. I guess they really had farther to go. Plus, I'm still moving around a significant amount of extra weight. I know that. I'm sure that doesn't make turning my T-Rex arms into beastly power houses any easier. I imagine if I was a mere 145# and trying to work up to doing a pull up, my life would be a little easier!
However, one thing at a time. I've been doing okay with the eating. Insanely better than I was a year ago, but not quite as clean as I was a few months ago. Getting back to that... My emotions play a lot into my eating, and the more aware of that I am, the easier staying on track can be, for me. So, I've embraced the fact that I was stressed, frustrated, upset, and acknowledged that.... not ATE that.
So, here I am. I looked at my training log for the last 4 weeks. I'm disappointed with myself. I've let a lot of "Life" (ie, bad excuses) get in the way. I know I've come a long way from the Old Me of 194 days ago... but, I still have a long way to go, and I'm frustrated I'm not further along that trail.
I think my expectations for myself can sometimes be beyond the Realistic.... but, isn't that how we find Greatness? Push ourselves beyond where we thought we could go?
Lastly, I'd like to share with you something I'm currently in love with, that I've decided I need to have. Hi-Tech gear, made from recycled *coffee beans*. SOLD!
Showing posts with label t-handle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label t-handle. Show all posts
Monday, January 30, 2012
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
"Fire is the test of gold; adversity, of strong men." Seneca
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 188:
Oh, it was a close one today, BlogLand. I rolled over, heard the school closings about the ice and determined there would be no running outside. Hit the snooze. Then I was like OH WAIT, SELF. This is not the plan. After about 5 more minutes of an internal battle over the continued bonding time with my pillow, I did manage to extricate myself from my super comfy bed.
Home workout!! (NO. EXCUSES.)
I didn't have a ton of time, since I did hit that snooze... but that pushed me to be a little more efficient and take lest rests between sets/exercises. It wasn't a killer WOD today, but it was brief and efficient. Quite frankly, I was drenched at the end, so I'm thinking it was effective.
- T-Handle Tabata Swings (30#, 20 sec swing, 10 second rest) x 8 rounds. These are feeling pretty good. I'm going to have to add some more weight to that, soon... I'm thinking that's an excellent reason to get myself one of those Ironskull Kettlebells... HMM.
- Ball Crunches/sit ups: 25 regular, 50 Twists, 25 regular
They're crunches. Not too much to say.
- Planks: 2 x 1 min. This was the devil. This is clearly a weak point for me. I need to be planking daily, I think. Argh. I ended up breaking up these planks (which killed my SOUL, because it was "only" 60 seconds). On my first plank, I managed 45 sec, then 15. On my second plank, I was in bursts of 20 sec x 3. The "rest" time, was real short, I assure you, and the difficulty was high, as I was really paying attention to my form for these. But god damn, these are killer. I MAY almost rather do Burpees, then Planks. Although I have been practicing my burpees.
And that was that, today. A sweaty 30 minutes or so. Tomorrow, I'm up early to go to CrossFit, where they will be sure to try and kill me. hehe
In other news, I am totally scoping 10K races to enter. I think I need that challenge/achievement/training goal, before I go straight to the Spartan in May. I do have the 5K coming up in a couple of weeks, which I'm pretty stoked about, too. Race season is coming on!!
I think that's all I have tonight, BlogLand. Off to spend a couple of quality minutes with my Foam Roller (OW.) and then hit the pillow. CrossFit mornings are SO EARLY.
Oh, it was a close one today, BlogLand. I rolled over, heard the school closings about the ice and determined there would be no running outside. Hit the snooze. Then I was like OH WAIT, SELF. This is not the plan. After about 5 more minutes of an internal battle over the continued bonding time with my pillow, I did manage to extricate myself from my super comfy bed.
Home workout!! (NO. EXCUSES.)
I didn't have a ton of time, since I did hit that snooze... but that pushed me to be a little more efficient and take lest rests between sets/exercises. It wasn't a killer WOD today, but it was brief and efficient. Quite frankly, I was drenched at the end, so I'm thinking it was effective.
- T-Handle Tabata Swings (30#, 20 sec swing, 10 second rest) x 8 rounds. These are feeling pretty good. I'm going to have to add some more weight to that, soon... I'm thinking that's an excellent reason to get myself one of those Ironskull Kettlebells... HMM.
- Ball Crunches/sit ups: 25 regular, 50 Twists, 25 regular
They're crunches. Not too much to say.
- Planks: 2 x 1 min. This was the devil. This is clearly a weak point for me. I need to be planking daily, I think. Argh. I ended up breaking up these planks (which killed my SOUL, because it was "only" 60 seconds). On my first plank, I managed 45 sec, then 15. On my second plank, I was in bursts of 20 sec x 3. The "rest" time, was real short, I assure you, and the difficulty was high, as I was really paying attention to my form for these. But god damn, these are killer. I MAY almost rather do Burpees, then Planks. Although I have been practicing my burpees.
And that was that, today. A sweaty 30 minutes or so. Tomorrow, I'm up early to go to CrossFit, where they will be sure to try and kill me. hehe
In other news, I am totally scoping 10K races to enter. I think I need that challenge/achievement/training goal, before I go straight to the Spartan in May. I do have the 5K coming up in a couple of weeks, which I'm pretty stoked about, too. Race season is coming on!!
I think that's all I have tonight, BlogLand. Off to spend a couple of quality minutes with my Foam Roller (OW.) and then hit the pillow. CrossFit mornings are SO EARLY.
Friday, January 20, 2012
"A falling drop at last will carve a stone."~ Lucretius
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 183:
OH, BLOGLAND. It's been a rough one. Yes, I know, I've been absent. I have no stellar excuse.
Monday, I was out of commission for medical reasons (apparently, I have some sort of virus in my inner ear that pretty much needs to resolve itself... but for the 2 weeks or so until it does, I'm going to continue to experience random bouts of room-spinning vertigo... awesome.).... but Tuesday and Wednesday I have absolutely no good explanation for, other than it was "cold" and my bed was "warm" and my life was a little more chaotic than usual.
It is what it is, though, and maybe some part of me needed the sleep. I tell you, BlogLand, I SLEPT. I think between some unusual stress going on, and workouts and stuff, I think my body might've just been a little tapped out.
Having said that, I'm still struggling a bit to get back on track. Winter in the Northeast (ie., grey, cold.) really takes its toll on me. This year has been better than most, thanks to the consistent exercise and solid goals to chase down... but, I admit, my mood really tanks in the Winter. I get frustrated much more easily and my emotions are a little less sunny. I am working 2x as hard to keep my head in the right place, in the winter, much less the physical things.
This morning, my alarm went off at 7:30am. That is NOT terribly early, in the scheme of things (considering I regularly hit CrossFit for a class that STARTS at 6:45 am). However, I rolled over grabbed my phone to shut the alarm off, and saw that the temp was -3 outside. Immediately, I vetoed the run (not sure that was a "bad" decision, really... negative temps seem excessive), but I should've gotten up and busted out a WOD at that point and gotten it done. Intellectually, I know that my day feels better, I feel better and everything is all around BETTER, if I just get up and do it. However, at that moment in which the decision was made, I was feeling tired, my bed was warm, it was still dark/grey out and a wee whisper from Old Me said, "stay in bed....". And I did.
And all day long, at work, I kicked myself for listening. I KNEW I needed to get back into the swing of things, and if I don't do it in the morning, then that means I have to get a WOD done after I get home from work (7:30pm...), which can get a little rough, when life kicks in and you have to get other things done.
Regardless, on my way home, I thought about running... but it is legitimately a skating rink of ice on all the sidewalks around here right now. Attempting to run, on principle, is not worth the potential injury. SO... what to do instead. An inside WOD, in my living room, was going to have to be the decision.
Getting home, I struggled to put together something... I turn into a raving crazy when there's too much going on in my head, and tonight, I was a hurricane of stress and emotions and thoughts, and... yeah. It was just a mess. So I put together a "simple" yet real taxing workout... I needed to sweat some of this out.
Tonight's Homebrew WOD looked like this:
15 T-handle Swings (30#)
15 Push Ups
15 Pull Ups
15 Burpees
..... Repeat as Necessary, until brain or body gives out.
T-handle swings were the easy part (OOHH, have I mentioned that I desperately want THIS?). I'm definitely going to need to pile some more weight on there next time. 30#, while gave me a good workout, as I was able to swing it faster, was not heavy enough to be as taxing (at least for this wod) as it should've been.
Push ups were on my knees. I was actively trying to keep my elbows next to my sides for a "good" push up... but... yeah. Not experiencing a lot of success on that one. Eventually defaulted to typical wide-stance arm pushups.
Pull Ups... Yeah, also still a work in progress. I did those with a stool under me, with just my toes on the stool (you can't give yourself a whole lot of leverage that way), or sometimes with just one foot. I was mostly concentrating on the "negative", as in slowly lowering myself down from the bar.
Oh Burpees. They're Burpees... I have a blister on each toe from doing them barefoot on the carpet. Oops. Lesson learned.
Having said that, I plowed through 7 rounds, at a good pace.
I wanted to go for 8, just because, but I recognized that my form was going to start to suffer, etc. and I was all set for tonight.
I don't think that WOD had the effect that I intended though... I was pretty ugly when I finished it. More frustrated than anything. I still can't do a push up well (elbows in, etc.), or off my knees. I still can't bust out ONE pull up. I STILL need to take a short breathing break to get through 30 burpees.
I felt pretty discouraged BlogLand. I know it was just today, in a lot of ways, because of a lot of emotions and such in my head... but I had a little meltdown, because this all felt a little bit futile for a while. Like, 183 days of this, and I still can't do a good push up? Not even ONE pull up? I can't get through a set of 30 burpees??? What the EFF am I doing thinking about doing a Spartan Race in May?
My brain just feels like we've been faithfully plugging away at this for quite a while now, and my body should get on board a little bit more. Why are push ups still sucky? WHY can't I master sets of 30 burpees, even though I do them all the damn time? Today my brain went bad with these thoughts. I saw old me in the mirror and perseverated on the still unchanged parts of me. I was angry at my body. I felt like it's never going to come together. I didn't feel good enough. I felt like my goals were perhaps too lofty. I felt stupid for pushing like this for so long and STILL being unable to achieve some of these simple things.
I felt lost. Angry, tired, sad, sweaty, fat, ugly, exasperated, and 400 other things.
I didn't feel strong. At all.
Usually, I have some capacity to at least feel strong. There are many things I can not yet do (run 10 miles, or do a bunch of pull ups), but usually I internally feel strong, knowing that my forte is in other areas (back squats, for example.).... But today, I struggled to grasp onto that thread, even. Being face down on your ugly brown carpet, in your big empty living room, arms wondering how they're going to push your giant body off the floor, is not the place you want to be to start having these discussions with yourself.
So, it goes without saying, BlogLand, that tonight was not one of my best. However, I am holding myself accountable, peeling myself off the floor and continuing to move forward. I ate pretty well today, I downed my fish oil (uuugh), and at least DID the WOD (didn't skip it!), so those are all positives. Every day can't be wonderful, I suppose.
Some days, though, are just a little more draining than others. Today. Ugh.
However, I have some good, mind-refreshing plans for this weekend. On Saturday, I'm headed off to meet a few new Spartan Chick friends for a Snowshoe/hike/other sort of gathering... It will be nice to put some faces to names, and spend an afternoon with some like-minded ladies. I think one of the things that I struggle the most with is staying on the path to chase my own goals, when I always have to go it alone, where I live.
With that, I'm taking deep breath and reminding myself that there is tomorrow. I reminded myself of all the personal reasons WHY I'm doing this, WHERE I want to get to and WHAT I'm committed to doing. It feels a little daunting right now... but I'm thinking a solid sleep and a good breakfast may help with that.
Off I go. Remember BlogLand.... It's not wrong to have a bad day... Just remember to pick yourself up, dust yourself off, learn something, and make the next day a little bit better.
OH, BLOGLAND. It's been a rough one. Yes, I know, I've been absent. I have no stellar excuse.
Monday, I was out of commission for medical reasons (apparently, I have some sort of virus in my inner ear that pretty much needs to resolve itself... but for the 2 weeks or so until it does, I'm going to continue to experience random bouts of room-spinning vertigo... awesome.).... but Tuesday and Wednesday I have absolutely no good explanation for, other than it was "cold" and my bed was "warm" and my life was a little more chaotic than usual.
It is what it is, though, and maybe some part of me needed the sleep. I tell you, BlogLand, I SLEPT. I think between some unusual stress going on, and workouts and stuff, I think my body might've just been a little tapped out.
Having said that, I'm still struggling a bit to get back on track. Winter in the Northeast (ie., grey, cold.) really takes its toll on me. This year has been better than most, thanks to the consistent exercise and solid goals to chase down... but, I admit, my mood really tanks in the Winter. I get frustrated much more easily and my emotions are a little less sunny. I am working 2x as hard to keep my head in the right place, in the winter, much less the physical things.
This morning, my alarm went off at 7:30am. That is NOT terribly early, in the scheme of things (considering I regularly hit CrossFit for a class that STARTS at 6:45 am). However, I rolled over grabbed my phone to shut the alarm off, and saw that the temp was -3 outside. Immediately, I vetoed the run (not sure that was a "bad" decision, really... negative temps seem excessive), but I should've gotten up and busted out a WOD at that point and gotten it done. Intellectually, I know that my day feels better, I feel better and everything is all around BETTER, if I just get up and do it. However, at that moment in which the decision was made, I was feeling tired, my bed was warm, it was still dark/grey out and a wee whisper from Old Me said, "stay in bed....". And I did.
And all day long, at work, I kicked myself for listening. I KNEW I needed to get back into the swing of things, and if I don't do it in the morning, then that means I have to get a WOD done after I get home from work (7:30pm...), which can get a little rough, when life kicks in and you have to get other things done.
Regardless, on my way home, I thought about running... but it is legitimately a skating rink of ice on all the sidewalks around here right now. Attempting to run, on principle, is not worth the potential injury. SO... what to do instead. An inside WOD, in my living room, was going to have to be the decision.
Getting home, I struggled to put together something... I turn into a raving crazy when there's too much going on in my head, and tonight, I was a hurricane of stress and emotions and thoughts, and... yeah. It was just a mess. So I put together a "simple" yet real taxing workout... I needed to sweat some of this out.
Tonight's Homebrew WOD looked like this:
15 T-handle Swings (30#)
15 Push Ups
15 Pull Ups
15 Burpees
..... Repeat as Necessary, until brain or body gives out.
T-handle swings were the easy part (OOHH, have I mentioned that I desperately want THIS?). I'm definitely going to need to pile some more weight on there next time. 30#, while gave me a good workout, as I was able to swing it faster, was not heavy enough to be as taxing (at least for this wod) as it should've been.
Push ups were on my knees. I was actively trying to keep my elbows next to my sides for a "good" push up... but... yeah. Not experiencing a lot of success on that one. Eventually defaulted to typical wide-stance arm pushups.
Pull Ups... Yeah, also still a work in progress. I did those with a stool under me, with just my toes on the stool (you can't give yourself a whole lot of leverage that way), or sometimes with just one foot. I was mostly concentrating on the "negative", as in slowly lowering myself down from the bar.
Oh Burpees. They're Burpees... I have a blister on each toe from doing them barefoot on the carpet. Oops. Lesson learned.
Having said that, I plowed through 7 rounds, at a good pace.
I wanted to go for 8, just because, but I recognized that my form was going to start to suffer, etc. and I was all set for tonight.
I don't think that WOD had the effect that I intended though... I was pretty ugly when I finished it. More frustrated than anything. I still can't do a push up well (elbows in, etc.), or off my knees. I still can't bust out ONE pull up. I STILL need to take a short breathing break to get through 30 burpees.
I felt pretty discouraged BlogLand. I know it was just today, in a lot of ways, because of a lot of emotions and such in my head... but I had a little meltdown, because this all felt a little bit futile for a while. Like, 183 days of this, and I still can't do a good push up? Not even ONE pull up? I can't get through a set of 30 burpees??? What the EFF am I doing thinking about doing a Spartan Race in May?
My brain just feels like we've been faithfully plugging away at this for quite a while now, and my body should get on board a little bit more. Why are push ups still sucky? WHY can't I master sets of 30 burpees, even though I do them all the damn time? Today my brain went bad with these thoughts. I saw old me in the mirror and perseverated on the still unchanged parts of me. I was angry at my body. I felt like it's never going to come together. I didn't feel good enough. I felt like my goals were perhaps too lofty. I felt stupid for pushing like this for so long and STILL being unable to achieve some of these simple things.
I felt lost. Angry, tired, sad, sweaty, fat, ugly, exasperated, and 400 other things.
I didn't feel strong. At all.
Usually, I have some capacity to at least feel strong. There are many things I can not yet do (run 10 miles, or do a bunch of pull ups), but usually I internally feel strong, knowing that my forte is in other areas (back squats, for example.).... But today, I struggled to grasp onto that thread, even. Being face down on your ugly brown carpet, in your big empty living room, arms wondering how they're going to push your giant body off the floor, is not the place you want to be to start having these discussions with yourself.
So, it goes without saying, BlogLand, that tonight was not one of my best. However, I am holding myself accountable, peeling myself off the floor and continuing to move forward. I ate pretty well today, I downed my fish oil (uuugh), and at least DID the WOD (didn't skip it!), so those are all positives. Every day can't be wonderful, I suppose.
Some days, though, are just a little more draining than others. Today. Ugh.
However, I have some good, mind-refreshing plans for this weekend. On Saturday, I'm headed off to meet a few new Spartan Chick friends for a Snowshoe/hike/other sort of gathering... It will be nice to put some faces to names, and spend an afternoon with some like-minded ladies. I think one of the things that I struggle the most with is staying on the path to chase my own goals, when I always have to go it alone, where I live.
With that, I'm taking deep breath and reminding myself that there is tomorrow. I reminded myself of all the personal reasons WHY I'm doing this, WHERE I want to get to and WHAT I'm committed to doing. It feels a little daunting right now... but I'm thinking a solid sleep and a good breakfast may help with that.
Off I go. Remember BlogLand.... It's not wrong to have a bad day... Just remember to pick yourself up, dust yourself off, learn something, and make the next day a little bit better.
Monday, December 19, 2011
"I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can't accept not trying." - Michael Jordan
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 152:
Today was a Crossfit day, BlogLand. Only I got woken up by an energy surge that turned on my blender at full speed at 3:30am (sounds like an airplane in your kitchen), causing me to not fall back asleep... and long story short, I slept through my early alarm.
SO, no excuses, I got up and got in a workout at home.
It looked like this:
Today was a Crossfit day, BlogLand. Only I got woken up by an energy surge that turned on my blender at full speed at 3:30am (sounds like an airplane in your kitchen), causing me to not fall back asleep... and long story short, I slept through my early alarm.
SO, no excuses, I got up and got in a workout at home.
It looked like this:
- T-Handle Tabata swings (20 sec. work/10 rest), 30# - 9 rounds
- DB Thrusters, 25#, 6 reps, 8 rounds
I got sweaty. Got the job done.
Not feeling so chatty tonight, BlogLand... bad day, personally. I think I shall leave it here. Tomorrow, I run.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
“It’s not the events of our lives that shape us, but our beliefs as to what those events mean.” ~ Anthony Robbins
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 118:
WHEW. BlogLand. It was my first Double-WOD day. Yep, that's right... DOUBLE Wod. As in I worked out 2x in the same day. Yep. Crazy-talk, I know... but I swear, this is not an Invasion of the Body Snatchers Moment or anything.... Just... what needed to happen. Isn't that weird how our life-view changes over time? Old Me would've been like WTF?! TWICE?
Anyway... This morning's WOD was a lovely Lifting/Swinging WOD. I was feeling particularly badass this morning; I upped the weight, beasted through it with little issue, and was generally feeling like I could move an entire building if I tried. WAHAHA.
This morning's WOD looked like this:
WHEW. BlogLand. It was my first Double-WOD day. Yep, that's right... DOUBLE Wod. As in I worked out 2x in the same day. Yep. Crazy-talk, I know... but I swear, this is not an Invasion of the Body Snatchers Moment or anything.... Just... what needed to happen. Isn't that weird how our life-view changes over time? Old Me would've been like WTF?! TWICE?
Anyway... This morning's WOD was a lovely Lifting/Swinging WOD. I was feeling particularly badass this morning; I upped the weight, beasted through it with little issue, and was generally feeling like I could move an entire building if I tried. WAHAHA.
This morning's WOD looked like this:
- T-Handle Tabata Swings (25#): 8 rounds (15-16 swings/round)
- DB Thrusters (22# DB's): 10 sets, 6 reps/set
Goal: Not more than 10 seconds rest between rounds. Check! I was a hot, sweaty mess but it felt great. Even though I added the extra weight to the T-handle, I felt like I had more than enough power to accomplish it. DB Thrusters, you'll see I did a couple more rounds than usual - I was just feeling good, and thought, WELL, if I can do it, I should! RAWR.
Then, off to work I went (after an appropriate amount of preemptive stretching...).
After work, I had scheduled a run with a run buddy. Run BUDDY. YEP! WOO! First time I got to run with another person. It was really nice... and actually, I had a really good run. Running with another person (particularly a person who could pretty well hold a conversation while running!) kept my mind busy and didn't allow me to get in my own head. Therefore... guess what happened? I just kept running. Competitive nature wouldn't let me 'rest' when I thought I wanted to... and then, oh wow... I found I didn't need to. I only stopped TWICE in the 3.09 miles that we ran. That was the best I've ever done. And quite frankly, in the scheme of things, I'm not sure I even needed to stop those two times. Maybe next time I'll try not to. Anyway... don't look too closely at the time, because it was slow and steady, but there were other victories. Here's what it looked like:
Time: 36:35 min
Distance: 3.09 mi
Ave. Pace: 11:50 min/mi
It was a bit skewed by the two times that we had to wait for cars to cross the street... but, it's all good. Next time, it'll be faster. And I won't need to walk. I have decided it will be so.
I'm feeling good about things, today. No Bread is getting a little easier, WODs are feeling good, and like I'm making some breakthroughs (I totally just typed BREADthroughs, 2x. Uhm. yeah.), and moving forward. Tomorrow also begins the official regular addition of Crossfit a few times a week. OH my oh my. The only problem with that is that I have to Crossfit at 6:45am. This could be ugly... but, I'm trying to just not think about that, and instead think about how awesome I will feel afterward.
And so... now, me and my tired, but happy muscles, who ALL got worked today I think, are going to bed. It's a good day.
Thursday, November 3, 2011
“It’s impossible.” said pride. “It’s risky.” said experience. “It’s pointless.” said reason. “Give it a try.” whispered the heart.”
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 105:
It was just one of those days, BlogLand. You know, the kind where you're doing what you can do with what you have. It's not impressive, it's not a new PR, it's not the best feeling workout you've ever done, but you DID it, nonetheless.
That was today, for me. My legs are still in some state of unhappy with me, for the punishment I've been dealing them. When I informed them we were going to do T-handle swings this morning, followed by some DB Thrusters, they severely objected. There was no warming up out of it... just stiff and creaky. Not like OW pain... but like uuugghhh.. owww... sort of stiff tightness. (I know, the technical terminology in this blog is amazing, right?)
Regardless, I had a workout to do, I was up early in order TO do that workout, and I was going to make it worth it. I groaned. I sweated, I made all sort of inhuman sounds of exertion. And, happy to say, I completed today's WOD, in good form, despite the fact I that many many fibers of my body were objecting to that.
Today's WOD:
It was just one of those days, BlogLand. You know, the kind where you're doing what you can do with what you have. It's not impressive, it's not a new PR, it's not the best feeling workout you've ever done, but you DID it, nonetheless.
That was today, for me. My legs are still in some state of unhappy with me, for the punishment I've been dealing them. When I informed them we were going to do T-handle swings this morning, followed by some DB Thrusters, they severely objected. There was no warming up out of it... just stiff and creaky. Not like OW pain... but like uuugghhh.. owww... sort of stiff tightness. (I know, the technical terminology in this blog is amazing, right?)
Regardless, I had a workout to do, I was up early in order TO do that workout, and I was going to make it worth it. I groaned. I sweated, I made all sort of inhuman sounds of exertion. And, happy to say, I completed today's WOD, in good form, despite the fact I that many many fibers of my body were objecting to that.
Today's WOD:
- T-Handle Tabata Swings, 25#: 9 round (16 rep per round)
- DB Thrusters, 22#: 9 sets, 6 reps
I was pushing today, to get the those last few sets of thrusters out, for sure. But, I found an apt, related quote today:
"I don't stop when I'm tired. I stop when I'm done."
With that, I leave you for sleeeep. I drank a bunch of SleepyTime Extra tea, and I can feel it knocking me out.... *yawn*...
Which is awesome, because I'm really hoping to wake up and have my legs not feel sore (PLEASE?), so I can bang out a respectable run in the morning.... But hey, there are no bad miles, right?
Incidentally, I started making my grocery list for the No Bread plan that I'll be adopting. Oh dear. I'm going shopping tomorrow, for supplies. OH MY. That's all I have on that right now... I'm a little bit terrified.
Monday, October 31, 2011
"If you want to accomplish the goals of your life, you have to begin with the spirit." ~ Oprah Winfrey
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 103:
Woot! Beat the Morning, today, BlogLand. That's a big victory for me - got right up, when the alarm went off, rather than hitting the snooze a few times. Running that 5K this weekend really escalated my fire and drive to push this process to new limits. It was the first time in quite a long time that I have wanted to turn around to everyone I walked by and say - LOOK what I DID!! I was proud of myself, and saw a tiny glimpse of the person inside of me that has been trapped for a long time. This was the first major tangible step achieved in this process.
You know how I knew this? I showed people PICTURES - bad, sweaty, poorly composed, unflattering, candid, unposed - PICTURES of me, during the race. My hair is everywhere, I can't even comment on the unflattering tummy bulges, or bad angles, you know the drill..... But I showed them to people. Proudly, and without even really caring. Why? Because all I could see in those pictures was Victory. Victory over 65#, Victory over my self-doubts, Victory over lifelong habits, Victory over pain and hard decisions.... Triumph as I crossed the finish line. WHO CARES what the hell you look like, when you have a picture of you crossing a finish line, and know how much more than JUST a finish line that is?
SO, yes, I hopped right up out of bed this morning, anxious to beat my WOD into the ground.
So, in the wee hours of the morning (... okay, 7am.), looking out my giant windows on the Northeast's crazy "Snowtober" weather, I WOD'd:
Woot! Beat the Morning, today, BlogLand. That's a big victory for me - got right up, when the alarm went off, rather than hitting the snooze a few times. Running that 5K this weekend really escalated my fire and drive to push this process to new limits. It was the first time in quite a long time that I have wanted to turn around to everyone I walked by and say - LOOK what I DID!! I was proud of myself, and saw a tiny glimpse of the person inside of me that has been trapped for a long time. This was the first major tangible step achieved in this process.
You know how I knew this? I showed people PICTURES - bad, sweaty, poorly composed, unflattering, candid, unposed - PICTURES of me, during the race. My hair is everywhere, I can't even comment on the unflattering tummy bulges, or bad angles, you know the drill..... But I showed them to people. Proudly, and without even really caring. Why? Because all I could see in those pictures was Victory. Victory over 65#, Victory over my self-doubts, Victory over lifelong habits, Victory over pain and hard decisions.... Triumph as I crossed the finish line. WHO CARES what the hell you look like, when you have a picture of you crossing a finish line, and know how much more than JUST a finish line that is?
SO, yes, I hopped right up out of bed this morning, anxious to beat my WOD into the ground.
So, in the wee hours of the morning (... okay, 7am.), looking out my giant windows on the Northeast's crazy "Snowtober" weather, I WOD'd:
- T-handle tabata swings, 25#: 8 sets (roughly 16-17 swings/set)
- DB Thrusters, 22# DBs: 9 sets, 6 reps
- Push ups: 20
A few notes... You may have noticed I haven't Jump roped before the last few workouts. To be honest, I'm still babying my foot a little bit, as it's not 'right' yet. And, YES, I have a doctor's appointment scheduled, as my new-job insurance has finally kicked in. So, yeah, no jump roping. I did stretch and dance around a bit to get myself warmed up. Yes. At 7am, in my workout zone bubble, I was totally rocking out in my living room, with the curtains open, to the steady stream of traffic filing into the high school near my house. Yep. I'm THAT person.
Second, I'm really beginning to appreciate the Tabata concept. 20 seconds of high intensity effort - in this case, t-handle swings - alternating with 10 seconds rest. 10 seconds does not feel like a whole lot, after about 4-5 rounds. I swear to you, BlogLand, for those that have never tried something like this, I am huffing and puffing and sweaty the same amount if I really push the 20 seconds, and ONLY rest for 10 (not 12, not 15) seconds, as much as when I come home from 45 minutes of running. Seriously.
Then, when I put DB Thrusters back to back with that, it makes for one killer, high intensity, get your blood flowing first thing in the morning in a short amount of time, workout. Particularly because, whether you realized it or not, you just finished using your quads, hamstrings, core muscles, arms, etc. in your t-handle swings. Guess what the Thrusters use? I use a similar principle with the Thrusters. I do them in sets of 6 reps, with as little rest in between as I can manage. I will say that after t-handle swings, the last 3-4 Thruster sets do have more of a break in between. And you definitely learn to think of some real motivating thoughts, or words, or SOMEthing, to help get you from that 'down' squatted position, to 'bursting' up and getting that weight over your head. It is in those moments that I thank the Cosmos for my muscular tree-trunk thighs. They're hard to fit in jeans, but I'll be damned if they don't have a lot of hidden reserves that get me up out of those squats just ONE more time...
Then, just for funsies (since I had exactly 3 more minutes left in my allotted workout time, before I had to start getting ready for work), I busted out some push ups. I totally rocked 20 of them in a row, without blinking, before my timer went off. At the beginning of this all, 3 was a challenge. Hang on to those little victories, my friends. They are what gets you through.
On that note, just because I've been rolling over the No Bread plan in my head, today, I have seen bread and carbs everywhere. No joke, I followed a Wonder Bread truck for a good 10 minutes on my way to work today. That never happens. Then, I begun to think about what constituted "carbs" of sorts, and came to the conclusion, that my work is going to be a huge red flag area. Pre-planning to navigate that mindfield is going to be of paramount importance.
Lastly, tomorrow is Run Day! I'm up early to go for a run before work... It'll be my first training run in the last 2 weeks. Foot is feeling okay, and it felt about 90% okay after Saturday's race....so I'm hoping we should be good to go.... Cross your fingers!
Saturday, October 22, 2011
You must do the thing you think you cannot do. ~Eleanor Roosevelt
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 94:
Just a quick update today, as I'm not feeling in the chatty mode, BlogLand....
Foot is still ouchy. Tennis ball rolled it, took some ibuprofen and taped it up... Hoping for a speedy recovery. Oh, and I took this as a good excuse to buy some new shoes. Didn't get the Pumas that I really wanted, but scored a nice pair of Saucony's that feel much better on the foot. I think for a little bit, while this heals (or gets less inflamed, or whatever the hell is going on) I'm going to have to wear the squishier shoes. Dear Inov8's, I still love you best. Promise.
Today was a Swing/Lift workout. Done fast, no more than 10 sec breaks, and got real sweaty:
Just a quick update today, as I'm not feeling in the chatty mode, BlogLand....
Foot is still ouchy. Tennis ball rolled it, took some ibuprofen and taped it up... Hoping for a speedy recovery. Oh, and I took this as a good excuse to buy some new shoes. Didn't get the Pumas that I really wanted, but scored a nice pair of Saucony's that feel much better on the foot. I think for a little bit, while this heals (or gets less inflamed, or whatever the hell is going on) I'm going to have to wear the squishier shoes. Dear Inov8's, I still love you best. Promise.
Today was a Swing/Lift workout. Done fast, no more than 10 sec breaks, and got real sweaty:
- T-handle swings: 25#, 9 sets (20 sec swing/10 sec off)
- DB Thrusters: 22# DB's, 6 reps, 9 sets
Nothing too major, but got sweaty, got the heart rate going, and didn't hurt the foot any more (You'll note I did skip the jump rope warm up, in favor of some stretching...).
And.... I think that's all. Tomorrow, I'm hiking/rock throwing with a potential new Spartan chick. She thought the rock throwing up a mountain sounded like fun......... WAHAHAHA.
Pictures from the top, promise! :-)
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
“Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.” ~ T. S. Elliot
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 91:
I am happy to report that I'm really back on track, BlogLand. I'm feeling awesome (it was a good day all around, more or less), and physically I feel pretty good - minus the wee foot injury that is still nagging.
It was supposed to be a Run Day for me today, but there's the nagging foot thing. It seems to be on the mend, and it's feeling 'okay'... and I probably could've run on it. However, my logical brain says that one more day of ibuprofen, ice and rest is probably the right answer - particularly because I want to be in tip-top shape in about a week and a half (*gulp* 5k!).
So, in lieu of a run, I decided to go for something also of the cardio-evil nature - so it's Swing Day!
Here's the WOD: (with a 25# t-handle, and 2, 22# DB's)
I am happy to report that I'm really back on track, BlogLand. I'm feeling awesome (it was a good day all around, more or less), and physically I feel pretty good - minus the wee foot injury that is still nagging.
It was supposed to be a Run Day for me today, but there's the nagging foot thing. It seems to be on the mend, and it's feeling 'okay'... and I probably could've run on it. However, my logical brain says that one more day of ibuprofen, ice and rest is probably the right answer - particularly because I want to be in tip-top shape in about a week and a half (*gulp* 5k!).
So, in lieu of a run, I decided to go for something also of the cardio-evil nature - so it's Swing Day!
Here's the WOD: (with a 25# t-handle, and 2, 22# DB's)
- Warm up: 5 min jump rope (only stopped once!)
- Tabata T-handle swings: 9 rounds
- Thrusters: 6 reps x 8 sets
Short and sweet (ha!). But let me tell you, I've come to conclude if you do the swing series right (as in you swing hard for 20 seconds, then rest for ONLY 10 seconds), you are really sweating and heart pumping by the end. I use a timer to keep myself on track. Also, this time, I upped the weight on my t-handle (it could be more like 26-27#, but you get the idea), which caused me to be able to do less swings per 20 seconds (only about 15, rather than the usual 17-18), so I think that was definitely a good move. It was time to make it harder.
Thrusters are everyone's favorite for the same reason. Sweaty and heart pumping in a short amount of time. I keep the 'rest' between sets as minimal as possible (less than 20 sec), to keep the intensity as high as possible. And, again, I think I'm doing something right, because by the last set, I am WORKING to get those damn DB's over my head and my ass out of a squat. Yikes.
That said, I have no philosophic revelations for tonight, or anything important to say. OH, wait, I do!
So, I'm thinking of taking some 'before' pictures. Really, they'd be like 'mid way' pictures, but they're really the beginning of where it's going to get interesting. The last year and a half doesn't need any documentation. I have the picture that started the whole avalanche and realization process.... and I think now, as I get into my real training, is a good time to start taking progress pictures. Although, geesh, that is a daunting feeling. No one ever really wants to document stuff like that.... but it's true, I think to be able to look back on it will be a good thing. Maybe I can get a friend to take some of me this weekend. Not sure I'll be up to posting them, Blogland (no one needs to see that, at this point!), but I'll be sure to report in.
OH, and tomorrow I get paid and OFFICIALLY buy my 5K race entry!!! EEEE!!!
Sleep well everyone, and get ready to get up and chase down your goals tomorrow!
Thursday, October 13, 2011
“If you aren’t going all the way, why go at all?” ~ Joe Namath
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 85:
(Week 13, Day 1)
So, just another day in the neighborhood today... Although I did run across this quote (to the left) that I liked.
Today was a Swing/Lift Day. I kind of love these days, oddly enough. I've missed them, because I've had to sub in my Crossfit OnRamp classes (almost done with those!) for the Lift/Swing days. I've determined that I really do like t-handle and/or kettlebell work though. Swinging just maintains more of an air of "fun" even when I'm working real hard. It is amazing how quickly doing tabata swings can really get you puffing. I was pushing today, to try and work out some of regular work-frustration, while still trying to maintain good form. That, dear BlogLand, is harder than one may think. It's real temping to round your back, etc. when trying to go fast and get in more swings.
Today's WOD:
(Week 13, Day 1)
Today was a Swing/Lift Day. I kind of love these days, oddly enough. I've missed them, because I've had to sub in my Crossfit OnRamp classes (almost done with those!) for the Lift/Swing days. I've determined that I really do like t-handle and/or kettlebell work though. Swinging just maintains more of an air of "fun" even when I'm working real hard. It is amazing how quickly doing tabata swings can really get you puffing. I was pushing today, to try and work out some of regular work-frustration, while still trying to maintain good form. That, dear BlogLand, is harder than one may think. It's real temping to round your back, etc. when trying to go fast and get in more swings.
Today's WOD:
- T-Handle tabata swings, 22#, 9 rounds
- Thrusters (22# db's), 6 reps, 8 sets
Good times. Although, thankfully, I did the Thrusters first as they just kick my ass. If you do those as straight-through as possible - like minimize the time between sets - you will feel the burn, for sure. My quads say, "Hello!". LOL
Tomorrow, is Rest Day. Ahhh.
Although, just a shout-out... My thoughts will definitely be with the Hurricane Heat'ers who are Spartan racing tomorrow night in Chicago - under the pink lights! I wish I could be there (damn real job. grr.). I can't imagine the awesomeness. As much as I'm excited to cross my own Spartan Finish Line ("...You'll know at the finish line."), I'm more sad that I don't get to meet up with all the awesome Spartans that I've met virtually in the last few months. The community feeling is impressive, for a international organization. Really, one of the things I'm looking forward to the most as the races get closer to the Northeast, is going - even if only to spectate/volunteer - and getting to meet and put faces to many of the people who have supported me during tough days in workout land, or unknowingly been inspiration to keep me going.
My heartiest "AROO!" to any of my Spartan's reading!
In homage to the midwest race, I think perhaps I'll have to run around with my rock, or hike it to the top of a mountain this weekend!
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Goals are the fuel in the furnace of achievement. - Brian Tracy
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 70:
May I just start by saying, "Day 70.". Wow. That's a pretty long time. Technically, I've passed the "habit-forming" stage of doing something... and I'm still going. 70 days of 6x/week, focused exertion. I'm proud of that. In case you haven't noticed, or are wondering why I often will mention how proud I am of myself for doing this thing or that thing... well, it's because I need the reminders. If every day I remind myself of even ONE thing that I'm proud of myself for doing, it really helps fuel the fire. I strive to do at least one thing every day that I can say I'm proud of (hopefully more than that, but you get the idea.).
So, Today, I'm proud that I have done this for 70 days, and I'm still going strong. And getting strong. YEAH, Gun Show. lol. I really probably should start taking some progress pictures for posterity... but that is still a really terrifying idea for me. As much as I have embraced this transformation, and am learning to love who I am, there are still many many parts of me that I have not embraced yet. Photo documenting them is... ick. If I could just take pictures of the parts/things I like... Well, I suppose I could? hmm. I don't know. I think I'm going to have to ruminate on this a bit, Blogland. Anyone else have thoughts on taking pictures along the journey? If so, how did you get over a major case of photo/mirror "ick" when you took them? Maybe I don't need progress pics. I have "befores"... and I'll be sure to take a muddy "after". (Spartan Race is only 317 days away!!!)
Anyway, on to today's WOD:
May I just start by saying, "Day 70.". Wow. That's a pretty long time. Technically, I've passed the "habit-forming" stage of doing something... and I'm still going. 70 days of 6x/week, focused exertion. I'm proud of that. In case you haven't noticed, or are wondering why I often will mention how proud I am of myself for doing this thing or that thing... well, it's because I need the reminders. If every day I remind myself of even ONE thing that I'm proud of myself for doing, it really helps fuel the fire. I strive to do at least one thing every day that I can say I'm proud of (hopefully more than that, but you get the idea.).
So, Today, I'm proud that I have done this for 70 days, and I'm still going strong. And getting strong. YEAH, Gun Show. lol. I really probably should start taking some progress pictures for posterity... but that is still a really terrifying idea for me. As much as I have embraced this transformation, and am learning to love who I am, there are still many many parts of me that I have not embraced yet. Photo documenting them is... ick. If I could just take pictures of the parts/things I like... Well, I suppose I could? hmm. I don't know. I think I'm going to have to ruminate on this a bit, Blogland. Anyone else have thoughts on taking pictures along the journey? If so, how did you get over a major case of photo/mirror "ick" when you took them? Maybe I don't need progress pics. I have "befores"... and I'll be sure to take a muddy "after". (Spartan Race is only 317 days away!!!)
Anyway, on to today's WOD:
- Thrusters (21#DBs) x 6 sets/6 reps
- T-handle swings (22#) 20 sec on/10 off
A quick-ish workout tonight (which was just as well, the hours in the day are evaporating!! Yikes!)... but at least I did it. I can't say it was my best work, but it was work, regardless. Couldn't quite get up the speed with this today, that I'd been aiming for. Last time I got around 18-19 swings in 20 secs (good), today I was slower, around 16-17. Still got myself warmed up and breathing, though. I think today, in light of my recent kettlebell refresher class, I was focusing more on my form during this - chest up, swinging higher (more between the legs, not closer to the floor), etc. I'll be interested to see if/how much I'm sore tomorrow, having made sure to do these correctly.
And, as usual, Thrusters kicked my ass. Eff you squat-based exercises. I love you and hate you, all at once. haha.
As a side note, I think it's just about time to up my weights again. HMM. I have to check my weights, but I think that would put me around 24# per DB. BEASTLY, I tell you. LOL. I may be slower than death when I run, but I'll be damn if I'm not a work horse when it comes to moving heavy loads. It's in the genes! (My Great, great (great?) G-Pa was Louis Cyr, a legendary Strongman. How cool is that?)
With that, I think it's bed time. Happy I squeeze in the fast workout today, even though I have 401 things to do. BUT... Priorities are priorities!
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
“Nobody ever drowned in sweat.”
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 68:
So, the original plan for today was to get up at the crack of dawn (6am for me), do my scheduled workout (It was t-handle swing day!), go try and learn something at work, come home and head to a Crossfit skills building class.
Thank god that got a bit derailed my by Insomnia and resultant inability to consistently crawl out of bed at an early hour. Why is that good? WELL, it turned out to be Kettlebell day in Crossfit land, too. Not sure two swinging workouts in one day would've been awesome. Although, whatever. haha. I'm kind of enjoying the constant challenge of seeing how far my body can go before it really hates me.
Anyway, today's class was kettlebells skill building - aimed to be part of a series to get you ready to participate in a in a full fledged CF WOD. Which meant, we did a LOT of moving around of kettlebells. How to do a good swing. How to do a better swing. An over head swing. A KB thruster. A KB clean. KB around the world's... the list goes on. We were only doing them in chunks of 10-15 at a time, for instruction purposes, but if you do it fast enough, or with a heavy enough weight, that adds up over the course of 50 minutes!
All things considered, I enjoy kettlebell workouts, though. Somehow, swinging stuff around still seems "fun" whilst proceeding to kick my ass.
Today's WOD: (I'm going to detail the class, too... this particular trainer made us do a lot more hands-on learning...)
So, the original plan for today was to get up at the crack of dawn (6am for me), do my scheduled workout (It was t-handle swing day!), go try and learn something at work, come home and head to a Crossfit skills building class.
Thank god that got a bit derailed my by Insomnia and resultant inability to consistently crawl out of bed at an early hour. Why is that good? WELL, it turned out to be Kettlebell day in Crossfit land, too. Not sure two swinging workouts in one day would've been awesome. Although, whatever. haha. I'm kind of enjoying the constant challenge of seeing how far my body can go before it really hates me.
Anyway, today's class was kettlebells skill building - aimed to be part of a series to get you ready to participate in a in a full fledged CF WOD. Which meant, we did a LOT of moving around of kettlebells. How to do a good swing. How to do a better swing. An over head swing. A KB thruster. A KB clean. KB around the world's... the list goes on. We were only doing them in chunks of 10-15 at a time, for instruction purposes, but if you do it fast enough, or with a heavy enough weight, that adds up over the course of 50 minutes!
All things considered, I enjoy kettlebell workouts, though. Somehow, swinging stuff around still seems "fun" whilst proceeding to kick my ass.
Today's WOD: (I'm going to detail the class, too... this particular trainer made us do a lot more hands-on learning...)
- 500m ski (OW. ABS.)
- 500m row (Helloooo back.)
- 5 min jump rope (SO glad I've been practicing. Proudly claiming the honor as the only one who went the whole 5 min without tripping. Yeeeah!)
- 50min KB training: swings, overhead swings, squat cleans, thrusters (...and?)
- Official WOD
- 8 min: EMOTM (every min. on the min.)
- 3 KB Thrusters
- 6 KB Around the World's
- 9 KB Overhead Swings
So, today, I got through that hour of stuff with a 22# KB. No problem, at all. It was really gratifying to do that, particularly seeing the lack of strength in many of the other beginners. Not because they are weak (hell, they are in that class, working to change themselves! That is a strong thing to do!), but it was gratifying to remind myself.. of myself. Why I'm doing this, why I continue to push hard, sweat harder (more on that in a min.), and smile through the stiff/sore days. I've come a long way, damnit... and despite having a LONG way to go, I know I won't go back.
Now, we need to digress for just a minute, on the topic of Sweat. I may have prompted a bit of a discussion among the Spartan Chicks on the topic of sweat. Mostly because I want to know why Me and Random Cheerleader Chick (RCC) can be in the same class and a few things happen: I work faster, with heavier things, carrying significantly more weight on my body, but upon finishing the workout am back to normal breathing WAY quicker than Ms. RCC, and still good to go for more. However, *I* am drenched. Sweat Puddle (ew. I know.). I may have blinded the poor man next to me, as my pony tail flung sweat into his eyes. It might've happened. Meanwhile, RCC, who ostensibly 'worked' harder than me - as in doing the same/less work was more exhausting for her (she can't continue) - is "sparkling." I'm toweling. LOL.
Somehow, this seems counter intuitive. However, I have a very limited knowledge base around the physiology of what's happening, and leave that to the educated ones (that's you, GT.) to answer my incessant "... but, WHY.." questions. My theory? It probably has something to do with the added muscle mass I have, the ridiculous amount of water I drink, the fact that I'm still carrying a significant amount of extra "insulation", random genetics, or some combination of the lot.
Today's lesson: I'm a girly, ruffle-wearing, stiletto loving, martini-drinking woman... and I sweat puddles when I exercise. It may not be 'pretty', but at the end of the day, the guns/quads/ass I've got to show for those sweaty pushups/wall balls/squats/whatever, are WAY hotter than your dry brow and still-perfect ponytail.
.... Although, I will still have to consult the great Google Oracle for why exactly that is. Hmm. I'll keep you posted.
Embrace the sweat, Ladies. Consider it a badge of a job well-done.
Monday, September 26, 2011
“Challenges make life interesting, however, overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.” ~ Mark Twain
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 67:
What an intense day today, BlogLand. Seriously, it was like one extreme to the other. The day seemed like it was going to be a sunshiney nice, relaxed Sunday... and then it went downhill.
My two rescue dogs got in a raging, bloody (literally), rip-each-other's-face-off contest... and it was a bit traumatic. I am excellent in or DURING the crisis situation - calm, doing what needs to be done - but as soon as we managed to get them separated, I walked through a puddle of blood, towing my white dog (who looked worthy of a horror movie, at that moment), while realizing I had blood all over me (including my face).... out into the front yard... held it together for t-minus 3ish minutes, to inspect his eyes, gashes and teeth..... then proceeded to shake, dry heave and be nauseous for the next 30 mins, while applying cold compresses to his face. Me and my dog, sitting on the lawn together, must've been QUITE the sight.
I was in a rough place. But, I was just coming off TWO rest days in a row (legs were feeling pretty good!), I thought that maybe the best thing would be to rally and head out on my run. Perhaps today was going to be a good day to attack my hill run. Just vent some of the emotion in that particular way. A healthy outlet, if you will.
(OH! Speaking of outlets, I just found out they're opening an Under Armor OUTLET not too far from my house in a couple weeks! EEEE!!!! I have an irrational love of that stuff.)
So, home I go, suit up, sneakers on and out into the wild I go. Get to the bottom of The Hill, pause briefly to gather some huzpah and plow forward. My tactic is a consistent, maintained pace right to the top, rather than a sprint that I'd have to quit and walk halfway there.
.... And then I had the strangest experience. As I'm running (up the hill that seems like FOREVER), I hear this random applause and stuff, and I check my music, because I'm like DAMN, do I have some weird live version of this song or something...?.. and then I look up. There is a middle-aged woman and her dog, at the top of the hill, cheering and clapping and yelling encouragement at me. Honestly, I was like, uuhmmm, WTF?!.... then (motivated to not look like a slacker) I got to the top, all panting and out of breath, and she says, "GOOD FOR YOU. I can't do that, but that is DAMN good for you, girl."... and turns and walks away, leaving me standing there feeling pretty damn positive, motivated and kind of badass, only able to be like "THANK you!!!"
Moral of the Story: Random acts of Encouragement are too few and far between, but AWESOME. DO THEM.
Seriously, I don't think that woman had any idea how insanely much I needed that extra boost of positivity at that juncture. And really, who doesn't love their own personal cheering section. I'll tell ya, I definitely got up that hill with quite a bit more gusto than usual. So very awesome. A big Thank You, to the Cosmos for sending me Cheering Lady today. :-)
That said, here's today's Run Stats:
Time: 36.22 min.
Distance: 3.12 mi.
Average Pace: 11.61 mi/min (although iMapMyRun seems to think it's 11.40? Whatevs.)
So, as you can see, I am painfully consistent with my mile times. Real slow. BUT. Since I am currently "not worrying about speed on [my] runs," I will simply leave that be with this pearl of wisdom: No Matter How Slow You Go, You're Passing EVERYONE On The Couch.
With that, I feel pretty good today. I think my muscles definitely benefited from the two-day break. Now we dive into the deep end, as the week starts. Tomorrow is what I will now affectionately call my Death Swing workout.... which, out of necessity, is going to get done at 6am. I am not anywhere near being a morning person. We shall see how this goes. I intend to actively try not to fall-asleep mid-swing, resulting in weight-face contact. LOL.
What an intense day today, BlogLand. Seriously, it was like one extreme to the other. The day seemed like it was going to be a sunshiney nice, relaxed Sunday... and then it went downhill.
My two rescue dogs got in a raging, bloody (literally), rip-each-other's-face-off contest... and it was a bit traumatic. I am excellent in or DURING the crisis situation - calm, doing what needs to be done - but as soon as we managed to get them separated, I walked through a puddle of blood, towing my white dog (who looked worthy of a horror movie, at that moment), while realizing I had blood all over me (including my face).... out into the front yard... held it together for t-minus 3ish minutes, to inspect his eyes, gashes and teeth..... then proceeded to shake, dry heave and be nauseous for the next 30 mins, while applying cold compresses to his face. Me and my dog, sitting on the lawn together, must've been QUITE the sight.
I was in a rough place. But, I was just coming off TWO rest days in a row (legs were feeling pretty good!), I thought that maybe the best thing would be to rally and head out on my run. Perhaps today was going to be a good day to attack my hill run. Just vent some of the emotion in that particular way. A healthy outlet, if you will.
(OH! Speaking of outlets, I just found out they're opening an Under Armor OUTLET not too far from my house in a couple weeks! EEEE!!!! I have an irrational love of that stuff.)
So, home I go, suit up, sneakers on and out into the wild I go. Get to the bottom of The Hill, pause briefly to gather some huzpah and plow forward. My tactic is a consistent, maintained pace right to the top, rather than a sprint that I'd have to quit and walk halfway there.
.... And then I had the strangest experience. As I'm running (up the hill that seems like FOREVER), I hear this random applause and stuff, and I check my music, because I'm like DAMN, do I have some weird live version of this song or something...?.. and then I look up. There is a middle-aged woman and her dog, at the top of the hill, cheering and clapping and yelling encouragement at me. Honestly, I was like, uuhmmm, WTF?!.... then (motivated to not look like a slacker) I got to the top, all panting and out of breath, and she says, "GOOD FOR YOU. I can't do that, but that is DAMN good for you, girl."... and turns and walks away, leaving me standing there feeling pretty damn positive, motivated and kind of badass, only able to be like "THANK you!!!"
Moral of the Story: Random acts of Encouragement are too few and far between, but AWESOME. DO THEM.
Seriously, I don't think that woman had any idea how insanely much I needed that extra boost of positivity at that juncture. And really, who doesn't love their own personal cheering section. I'll tell ya, I definitely got up that hill with quite a bit more gusto than usual. So very awesome. A big Thank You, to the Cosmos for sending me Cheering Lady today. :-)
That said, here's today's Run Stats:
Time: 36.22 min.
Distance: 3.12 mi.
Average Pace: 11.61 mi/min (although iMapMyRun seems to think it's 11.40? Whatevs.)
So, as you can see, I am painfully consistent with my mile times. Real slow. BUT. Since I am currently "not worrying about speed on [my] runs," I will simply leave that be with this pearl of wisdom: No Matter How Slow You Go, You're Passing EVERYONE On The Couch.
With that, I feel pretty good today. I think my muscles definitely benefited from the two-day break. Now we dive into the deep end, as the week starts. Tomorrow is what I will now affectionately call my Death Swing workout.... which, out of necessity, is going to get done at 6am. I am not anywhere near being a morning person. We shall see how this goes. I intend to actively try not to fall-asleep mid-swing, resulting in weight-face contact. LOL.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
“Difficulties are meant to rouse, not discourage. The human spirit is to grow strong by conflict.” ~ William E. Channing
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 64:
Hello. I'm Aja's raging back muscles. LOL. Let me just begin by saying that I feel pretty good about yesterday's workout, as I currently hurt like hell in places I haven't been. I'm guessing that means I found a new way to work some muscles. Allow me to describe this to you. Technically, when you do t-swings (or kettlebell swings) you are supposed to work your "posterior chain" (Technical Speak: The posterior chain is the group of muscles that runs from your lower back down behind your legs... These muscles include the lower back, the glutes, the hamstrings, and also the calves.), as well as your core muscles, and to a lesser extent, your chest/arms.
In real person, "I haven't been doing kettlebell swings" Land, what this means is that the next day, EVERYTHING hurts. Especially your lower-mid back and hips. This may not have happened if I had eased into these more, perhaps... but I have real trouble with doing things half-way, or 'easing' into anything. Thus, I went full out yesterday, and today I'm feeling it. In my biceps. Abs. Back. Legs. Yeah. Maybe we should just leave it as "I'm feeling it" today. haha.
I did anticipate this a bit yesterday, and took an ice bath and a bunch of ibuprofen... buuuuut. Ah well. Only downside, I had to sit all day in an office chair, trying to find a comfortable position for a real stiff/sore lower back (this is a next to impossible feat).
On to today's WOD. WELL, Something new... Headed back to Green Mountain Crossfit at The Confluence, for the first of my intro sessions (have to do the intro sessions, before you can do the classes!). Wasn't so sure how that was going to go with the stiff lower back, but I figured a bit of low-key movement might be a good plan.
It was a real mixed class. 8 ladies, of mixed age, ability and coordination. I must say though, our trainer of the day, Shannon (Incidentally, a Dude, who compared Inov8's with me) made it really accessible for everyone. I really like that about this particular gym, no matter who you are, what you look like, what you can do, they encourage you (in a very genuine way) toward your personal best.... instead of some giant meat head looking down at you over his overly inflated pecs.
The class (being an intro to Crossfit), began with a warmup on the SkiErg ski machine (that I LOVE), then was 50 minutes of how-to's on many of the basic moves, and practice of the techniques. It is really helpful to have eyes on you during these things - sometimes it feels like you've got it right, but having a mirror, a video, or qualified eyes on you tells you otherwise!! Anyway, some of the things we learned, re-learned and practiced:
front squats, back squats, press ups, push jerk, split jerk, box jumps (16”), butterfly sit ups.
Things I learned:
Hello. I'm Aja's raging back muscles. LOL. Let me just begin by saying that I feel pretty good about yesterday's workout, as I currently hurt like hell in places I haven't been. I'm guessing that means I found a new way to work some muscles. Allow me to describe this to you. Technically, when you do t-swings (or kettlebell swings) you are supposed to work your "posterior chain" (Technical Speak: The posterior chain is the group of muscles that runs from your lower back down behind your legs... These muscles include the lower back, the glutes, the hamstrings, and also the calves.), as well as your core muscles, and to a lesser extent, your chest/arms.
In real person, "I haven't been doing kettlebell swings" Land, what this means is that the next day, EVERYTHING hurts. Especially your lower-mid back and hips. This may not have happened if I had eased into these more, perhaps... but I have real trouble with doing things half-way, or 'easing' into anything. Thus, I went full out yesterday, and today I'm feeling it. In my biceps. Abs. Back. Legs. Yeah. Maybe we should just leave it as "I'm feeling it" today. haha.
I did anticipate this a bit yesterday, and took an ice bath and a bunch of ibuprofen... buuuuut. Ah well. Only downside, I had to sit all day in an office chair, trying to find a comfortable position for a real stiff/sore lower back (this is a next to impossible feat).
On to today's WOD. WELL, Something new... Headed back to Green Mountain Crossfit at The Confluence, for the first of my intro sessions (have to do the intro sessions, before you can do the classes!). Wasn't so sure how that was going to go with the stiff lower back, but I figured a bit of low-key movement might be a good plan.
It was a real mixed class. 8 ladies, of mixed age, ability and coordination. I must say though, our trainer of the day, Shannon (Incidentally, a Dude, who compared Inov8's with me) made it really accessible for everyone. I really like that about this particular gym, no matter who you are, what you look like, what you can do, they encourage you (in a very genuine way) toward your personal best.... instead of some giant meat head looking down at you over his overly inflated pecs.
The class (being an intro to Crossfit), began with a warmup on the SkiErg ski machine (that I LOVE), then was 50 minutes of how-to's on many of the basic moves, and practice of the techniques. It is really helpful to have eyes on you during these things - sometimes it feels like you've got it right, but having a mirror, a video, or qualified eyes on you tells you otherwise!! Anyway, some of the things we learned, re-learned and practiced:
front squats, back squats, press ups, push jerk, split jerk, box jumps (16”), butterfly sit ups.
Things I learned:
- I HATE my tight hamstrings. While I am a strong squatter, it is a constant challenge for me. Shannon tells me he sympathizes and I must just keep stretching to get them there.
- I apparently do not realize how not-straight my arms are when putting weight up over my head. My head does not seem to understand how to lock my elbows. LOL. Brain, could we get it together, please??
- The weird little wedge-sort of back pad things they have to allow a greater range of motion while doing butterfly sit ups feels *awesome* on a really sore lower back. I'm not even joking about that. I was like Ahhhhh, yeaaah.
- AND, I can NOT preform a split jerk without thinking (to myself, luckily...) "SUPASTAR!!!!!"... Which, let me tell you, really decreases your ability to maintain good form and support weight, when you're giggling on the inside.
After learning time, we moved into the actual WOD. A short one, just to finish out the class, get us used to the format and finish out on a good sweat. Looked like this:
- 1min Ski (for time)
- 1min Push jerks
- 1min REST
- 1min Butterfly Sit-ups
- 1min 16" box jumps
- 1min REST
- 1min 14# Wall Balls
- 1min Jump Pullups (oooo, I can feel a real Pull up coming on!)
Biggest challenge? Freakin' box jumps. Seems simple. Jump on Box, get off box, jump back on box. Repeat. Yeah. I do not find this simple. Why? Because Jumping of any sort is plyometric and is, put simply, exhausting. Two, because I find two-footed jumping a mental challenge. LOL. Why? NO idea. But I am naturally inclined to jump leading with one foot. That is not the idea here. However, I would like to observe that I was actually able to successfully two-footed jump this ENTIRE day (despite my fear of it.), which is a HUGE improvement over the last time I attempted these things (about 6 mos. ago). Woot!
And... then I came home, drank some *more* water (god, I'm sick of water.), and swallowed a bunch more Ibuprofen.
Tomorrow, however, is my first buddy-run! Meaning, someone has actually volunteered to run with me!! I warned her... I am a slow, sweaty mess. And I mean SLOW, sweaty mess, who probably can't hold a conversation and run (although I've never tried?)... So, she has been forewarned, and STILL wanted to go. SO. Okay. I'm thinking that running with a buddy (who is a regular runner) will push me a little bit to keep moving, and take my mind off the potential difficulty of it. Also, we're going to run somewhere I've never run before... so a change of scenery! Yay! I'm psyched.
And so, Another Day closer to Rest Day Saturday... Ahhhhh....
“There is no man living that can not do more than he thinks he can.” ~ Henry Ford
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 63:
Crushed my workout today, Blogland. Oh yeah I did. RAWR. Had to make up for yesterday's mood-crash a bit. Everyone's entitled to a little bit of a rough day, I had mine, I felt the need to come back with a bit of a vengeance.
Today's workout was t-handle swings and thrusters. I've determined that I equally love and hate this workout. This workout makes me feel powerful.... but I REALLY hate it, right about the last round of thrusters, while in the down squat position, with 40 odd pounds of iron waiting (no pun intended...) to go up.
Instructions from the GT for completing this workout were to go REAL HARD and fast. Something about this workout killing me. haha. Whatevs. Not dead yet. (Just feel like it, sometimes.) More concretely, I should be aiming for 20+ swings in 20 seconds. Yikes. A "comfortable" pace for these things is about 16. Seems close to 20, right? Yeah, no. You'd be surprised how hard it is to squeeze in a few more. My abs and triceps are even feeling the burn tonight, from fighting with momentum to get that swing back down.
Anyway, today's WOD:
They key to these seems to be the short (it seems minuscule!) rest time. After this workout, which is deceptively Short & Deadly (I think that's what I'm calling this one, now), I am a real sweaty, panting mess. However, it's good stuff. Blistered my hands to high heaven (even with the taped handles!)... but I suppose one must sacrifice "pretty" hands for tough ones. LOL.
Following that, I jumped in the ice bath. It felt like the thing to do, between yesterday's run and today's swinging... Let's call it a pre-emptive strike. Oh yeah, and the Ibuprofen. LOL. Sometimes, you just need to help nature along.
Sat in my ice bath and took some satisfaction in knowing that I hadn't quit, despite yesterday's discouragement. Old me might've taken a "day off"... which would've then turned into 2... then 2 weeks... and then... well, you know how it goes.
GT gave me an excellent verbal bitch-slap last night (that was much needed...). While spewing about my mile time being the same (slow.) on flat as it is on the hill runs, I was all like: "WTF is with THAT?" .... to which he very matter of factly brings me back down to earth with another simple Yoda reply: "It's nothing, because you're not worrying about speed on your runs."
Touche. I am just supposed to be focusing on time and getting the miles out. A much-needed reminder that I need to slow down, not expect myself to be perfect out of the gate, and just keep building up to the next step. The current step, however, is NOT speed, so I have decided to turn off the speed updates on my tracking app, and put it out of my head. ONE thing at a time. One can not take over the world in a single day.
Tomorrow I'm headed back to Green Mountain Crossfit for a sort of demo-class, to get rolling in the gym, so I have that option for the winter. Excited, but terrified that Tiny Hercules (She's short, is set on kicking my ass, and a riot and a half. Love her.) may try and kill me. LOL.
OH, and it appears that I have a run-buddy for Friday! I've never run with a buddy before... that ought to be a good time. Perhaps the company will keep my mind off the time/distance, and push me through this plateau? Stay tuned, for these gripping adventures....
Crushed my workout today, Blogland. Oh yeah I did. RAWR. Had to make up for yesterday's mood-crash a bit. Everyone's entitled to a little bit of a rough day, I had mine, I felt the need to come back with a bit of a vengeance.
Today's workout was t-handle swings and thrusters. I've determined that I equally love and hate this workout. This workout makes me feel powerful.... but I REALLY hate it, right about the last round of thrusters, while in the down squat position, with 40 odd pounds of iron waiting (no pun intended...) to go up.
Instructions from the GT for completing this workout were to go REAL HARD and fast. Something about this workout killing me. haha. Whatevs. Not dead yet. (Just feel like it, sometimes.) More concretely, I should be aiming for 20+ swings in 20 seconds. Yikes. A "comfortable" pace for these things is about 16. Seems close to 20, right? Yeah, no. You'd be surprised how hard it is to squeeze in a few more. My abs and triceps are even feeling the burn tonight, from fighting with momentum to get that swing back down.
Anyway, today's WOD:
- T-handle swings (20sec on/10 rest), 22# x9 sets. (SO close, I managed 19 swings in 20 seconds! I'll get you next time!)
- Thrusters, 21# DB's, 6 reps x 6 sets
They key to these seems to be the short (it seems minuscule!) rest time. After this workout, which is deceptively Short & Deadly (I think that's what I'm calling this one, now), I am a real sweaty, panting mess. However, it's good stuff. Blistered my hands to high heaven (even with the taped handles!)... but I suppose one must sacrifice "pretty" hands for tough ones. LOL.
Following that, I jumped in the ice bath. It felt like the thing to do, between yesterday's run and today's swinging... Let's call it a pre-emptive strike. Oh yeah, and the Ibuprofen. LOL. Sometimes, you just need to help nature along.
Sat in my ice bath and took some satisfaction in knowing that I hadn't quit, despite yesterday's discouragement. Old me might've taken a "day off"... which would've then turned into 2... then 2 weeks... and then... well, you know how it goes.
GT gave me an excellent verbal bitch-slap last night (that was much needed...). While spewing about my mile time being the same (slow.) on flat as it is on the hill runs, I was all like: "WTF is with THAT?" .... to which he very matter of factly brings me back down to earth with another simple Yoda reply: "It's nothing, because you're not worrying about speed on your runs."
Touche. I am just supposed to be focusing on time and getting the miles out. A much-needed reminder that I need to slow down, not expect myself to be perfect out of the gate, and just keep building up to the next step. The current step, however, is NOT speed, so I have decided to turn off the speed updates on my tracking app, and put it out of my head. ONE thing at a time. One can not take over the world in a single day.
Tomorrow I'm headed back to Green Mountain Crossfit for a sort of demo-class, to get rolling in the gym, so I have that option for the winter. Excited, but terrified that Tiny Hercules (She's short, is set on kicking my ass, and a riot and a half. Love her.) may try and kill me. LOL.
OH, and it appears that I have a run-buddy for Friday! I've never run with a buddy before... that ought to be a good time. Perhaps the company will keep my mind off the time/distance, and push me through this plateau? Stay tuned, for these gripping adventures....
Monday, September 19, 2011
“However mean your life is, meet it and live it.” ~ Henry David Thoreau
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 61:
I am pretty sure my quads, abs and possibly my hamstrings, may be a WEEE bit stiff tomorrow. Allow me to elaborate.
So, today was new workout day. I was pretty stoked to mix it up today and try out one that I had never done. It was supposed to be t-handle (like a kettlebell) swings (20 seconds swing, 10 seconds rest; 5 sets) and then Thrusters (like I have been doing). While driving home from the new job (Yay!), I do the math in my head and think to myself, "hmm... the swing portion will be like under 3 minutes. Total workout time will be like 20 mins. Can that be right?" So, I text the all-knowing GT. He simply asks me if I've done it yet. I say, "Noo....?" and then he just tells me to try it. And if 5 isn't enough sets of swings, do some more. HMM. Okay, I think to my overly-confident self. No problemo. I can follow directions.
So, off I go to workout.
Today's WOD:
T-handle swings: 22#, 8 sets (20 sec. swing, 10 rest)
Thrusters: 21#DBs, 6 reps, 5 sets.
Well, so, I start swinging - minding my form and focusing on the muscles I'm supposed to be working, etc. sets 1-4 weren't too bad, set 5 I broke a sweat, and set 7 and 8 were where I suddenly went... Oh HELLO quads. Hmm. After set 8, I felt that I had gone past the necessary requirement enough to test this maneuver out, and better move onto the Thrusters of Death (seriously, these are my arch nemesis. Or at least, they're in a competition with Split Squats for that title). Thus, I begin a couple of sets of Thrusters, suddenly realize how much swinging has been using my legs. Let me tell you, doing that swinging, then squatting low with 42 pounds on your shoulders and convincing your legs that they are going to "explode" up, is a reeeeaaaally hard sell. Nonetheless, I got it done, 5 sets of 6.
And now I sit here, reminding myself to drink my damn water (WHY is hydration SO hard?), stop opening my big mouth (yes, 25 minutes was pretty good, today!), and thinking some stretching may be in order....
I am pretty sure my quads, abs and possibly my hamstrings, may be a WEEE bit stiff tomorrow. Allow me to elaborate.
So, today was new workout day. I was pretty stoked to mix it up today and try out one that I had never done. It was supposed to be t-handle (like a kettlebell) swings (20 seconds swing, 10 seconds rest; 5 sets) and then Thrusters (like I have been doing). While driving home from the new job (Yay!), I do the math in my head and think to myself, "hmm... the swing portion will be like under 3 minutes. Total workout time will be like 20 mins. Can that be right?" So, I text the all-knowing GT. He simply asks me if I've done it yet. I say, "Noo....?" and then he just tells me to try it. And if 5 isn't enough sets of swings, do some more. HMM. Okay, I think to my overly-confident self. No problemo. I can follow directions.
So, off I go to workout.
Today's WOD:
T-handle swings: 22#, 8 sets (20 sec. swing, 10 rest)
Thrusters: 21#DBs, 6 reps, 5 sets.
Well, so, I start swinging - minding my form and focusing on the muscles I'm supposed to be working, etc. sets 1-4 weren't too bad, set 5 I broke a sweat, and set 7 and 8 were where I suddenly went... Oh HELLO quads. Hmm. After set 8, I felt that I had gone past the necessary requirement enough to test this maneuver out, and better move onto the Thrusters of Death (seriously, these are my arch nemesis. Or at least, they're in a competition with Split Squats for that title). Thus, I begin a couple of sets of Thrusters, suddenly realize how much swinging has been using my legs. Let me tell you, doing that swinging, then squatting low with 42 pounds on your shoulders and convincing your legs that they are going to "explode" up, is a reeeeaaaally hard sell. Nonetheless, I got it done, 5 sets of 6.
And now I sit here, reminding myself to drink my damn water (WHY is hydration SO hard?), stop opening my big mouth (yes, 25 minutes was pretty good, today!), and thinking some stretching may be in order....
Saturday, September 17, 2011
"Everything changes when you change." - Jim Rohn
Spartan Shape-Up, Day 59:
REST DAY! Who doesn't love a good rest day, here and there... knowing you've *earned* it. Waha.
However, I DO have some news and thoughts for today (geesh. Don't I always?).
Today was a momentous occasion. Whilst driving along the Wild Ammonoosuc River, home from the New Hampshire Highland Games (LOVE the Heavy Athletics!), I felt moved to pull over, as there were TONS of happy little stones that just looked like they wanted to come home with me. My friend Holly (who is not a subscriber herself, but supportive of my ridiculousness), helped me make some difficult choices ("but this one's PRETTY... and hard to hold. Damn.") and arrive at a winner:
I am now the proud caretaker of a handily shaped - seriously, it's got perfect hand/shoulder grooves - 17.5 pound Rock of my very own. I even threw it around the river bank a bit to see how it held up and/or flew. I got a beep from a passing car. NOT sure what that means, but I'm choosing to take it as a sign that my new rock is awesome and they were jealous. Incidentally, I also took viewing this picture as a sign that, holy crap, I need new jeans that fit. Just because they are comfortable, when they are 2 sizes too big (thank you, Running!), you must let go. Those have got to go (saggy-ass is never a good look.).
So, in conversing with my GT yesterday, I have my new, updated workout plans for these next four weeks (9-12). I'll be continuing on my running plan (distances, at this point still, not speed), and body weight workout days, but will be incorporating a couple days of swings (with my newly-crafted T-handle... which I've already decided needs some edits. Grr.). I'm pretty excited to try something new, and challenge myself in a different way. I don't have a ton of experience with swing-related workouts, soooooo we shall see. Seems easy, right?? (famous last words.)
In addition, the GT issued the ultimate challenge: Write down what I eat, daily. Not count calories or anything, just write down what I'm eating. My knee-jerk reaction was the desire to have a temper tantrum like a 3 year old. However, I would like to note that I held it together and behaved like an adult, merely warning him that this is a historically giant mental mountain for me. But, we seem to be in the mountain-moving business these days...
You see, friends, I have done Weight Watchers several times in my life (the last time with 40+ pounds of success), of which the cornerstone is TRACKING what you eat. Being mindful of what you put in your body. I get this. I do. It makes sense. And hey, I can even truthfully say that whenever I actually tracked what I was eating, I lost weight. But, each time, I gradually fell off the Tracking Bandwagon, because it is an annoying pain in the butt, and I hated doing it.
HOWEVER. I will say, that does seem like the me of a Lifetime ago. There are a lot of things that that person had trouble sticking with - not the least of which was a solid exercise program. I feel like I've turned a new leaf in the last year, though, held onto my ultimate motivation and CAN do this now. I did not say I will enjoy it, but I AM committing to doing it. Starting today. Immediately after finishing this post, I'm off to log my food.
Why bother logging my food? Well, because I know that has value. I know that you can't work out like a crazy person (... or a Spartan...), and fuel yourself with crap. Your body needs things, and you must make sure it gets them. And, if you're trying to lose weight (...I've got a significant amount more to lose.), you HAVE to be aware of what's going in your mouth. While you may think you eat healthy (which I generally do, for the past year or so), it may not be in the right proportions, or quantities for you. Which, clearly, mine are not, as I seem to be plateauing in my weight-loss of late, despite noticing the fact that I'm toning up steadily. AND, I can't ignore the fact that I've been craving protein like mad (Hello there, new muscles?). Clearly, something is out of balance and needs to be addressed.
So, my blog-peeps... I'm tracking. I won't tell you I want to. I don't. I *will* tell you that I'm going to, because I understand the value and need for it. It's no different than doing burpees, right? No one enjoys that... but it's just got to get done.
Until tomorrow, all... where I tell you whether the toe that I just jammed in the doorway is really broken, or just feels like it, and how that effects Run Day.... da da DA... (Oh, the suspense. I Know.)
REST DAY! Who doesn't love a good rest day, here and there... knowing you've *earned* it. Waha.
However, I DO have some news and thoughts for today (geesh. Don't I always?).
Today was a momentous occasion. Whilst driving along the Wild Ammonoosuc River, home from the New Hampshire Highland Games (LOVE the Heavy Athletics!), I felt moved to pull over, as there were TONS of happy little stones that just looked like they wanted to come home with me. My friend Holly (who is not a subscriber herself, but supportive of my ridiculousness), helped me make some difficult choices ("but this one's PRETTY... and hard to hold. Damn.") and arrive at a winner:
 |
| My Rock, being rescued from it's recently-flooded habitat, in the Wild Ammonoosuc River. |
So, in conversing with my GT yesterday, I have my new, updated workout plans for these next four weeks (9-12). I'll be continuing on my running plan (distances, at this point still, not speed), and body weight workout days, but will be incorporating a couple days of swings (with my newly-crafted T-handle... which I've already decided needs some edits. Grr.). I'm pretty excited to try something new, and challenge myself in a different way. I don't have a ton of experience with swing-related workouts, soooooo we shall see. Seems easy, right?? (famous last words.)
In addition, the GT issued the ultimate challenge: Write down what I eat, daily. Not count calories or anything, just write down what I'm eating. My knee-jerk reaction was the desire to have a temper tantrum like a 3 year old. However, I would like to note that I held it together and behaved like an adult, merely warning him that this is a historically giant mental mountain for me. But, we seem to be in the mountain-moving business these days...
You see, friends, I have done Weight Watchers several times in my life (the last time with 40+ pounds of success), of which the cornerstone is TRACKING what you eat. Being mindful of what you put in your body. I get this. I do. It makes sense. And hey, I can even truthfully say that whenever I actually tracked what I was eating, I lost weight. But, each time, I gradually fell off the Tracking Bandwagon, because it is an annoying pain in the butt, and I hated doing it.
HOWEVER. I will say, that does seem like the me of a Lifetime ago. There are a lot of things that that person had trouble sticking with - not the least of which was a solid exercise program. I feel like I've turned a new leaf in the last year, though, held onto my ultimate motivation and CAN do this now. I did not say I will enjoy it, but I AM committing to doing it. Starting today. Immediately after finishing this post, I'm off to log my food.
Why bother logging my food? Well, because I know that has value. I know that you can't work out like a crazy person (... or a Spartan...), and fuel yourself with crap. Your body needs things, and you must make sure it gets them. And, if you're trying to lose weight (...I've got a significant amount more to lose.), you HAVE to be aware of what's going in your mouth. While you may think you eat healthy (which I generally do, for the past year or so), it may not be in the right proportions, or quantities for you. Which, clearly, mine are not, as I seem to be plateauing in my weight-loss of late, despite noticing the fact that I'm toning up steadily. AND, I can't ignore the fact that I've been craving protein like mad (Hello there, new muscles?). Clearly, something is out of balance and needs to be addressed.
So, my blog-peeps... I'm tracking. I won't tell you I want to. I don't. I *will* tell you that I'm going to, because I understand the value and need for it. It's no different than doing burpees, right? No one enjoys that... but it's just got to get done.
Until tomorrow, all... where I tell you whether the toe that I just jammed in the doorway is really broken, or just feels like it, and how that effects Run Day.... da da DA... (Oh, the suspense. I Know.)
Friday, September 16, 2011
Told you I was Martha Stewart...
It's Arts and Crafts Time, Spartan-Style!
Yes, friends. I am that cool. I made my own T-handle for swings, right out of my own hardware store (Materials: about $20). The instructions I followed are HERE, in case you're interested.
Let me just tell you, when you wander into a hardware store (inadvertently wearing pink, and probably the most ridiculously trendy sunglasses I own), toting a list of materials as scattered as that... WELL, let me tell you, they look at you a little weird.
Not to be deterred, I grabbed a poor high school boy who looked semi-intelligent and enlisted his help. He asked no questions. LOL.
And now, I'm the proud owner of my own, super cool swinging apparatus, As Yet To Be Named.... and living in fear of what the GT is going to tell me to do with it.
Until Next Time,
Yours in all things badass crafty....
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