Monday, November 14, 2011

Running, b/c it's all I can do for now

Well, the day I made my last post was the day I hit a hiccup. I severely sprained my hand almost 3 weeks ago now...during a soccer game, of course. I was racing a girl to the ball, got tripped, fell, landed on my right hand, and hyper extended the whole dang thing! So, needless to say, my training was slowed down a bit. I still can't really use my right hand...talk about inconvenient!

I have still continued to do what I can do. I went running a couple of times outside the following week, since it was the last week before the time change...I wanted to enjoy those nice evenings before it started getting dark right after work. I hopped in a pool for the first time last week, but hand was still not ready for swimming, ouch! I did get to run a bit at the gym last week.

My first regular 5k race was this past Saturday evening at Lake Lanier. My time wasn't great, but it was my first race of the type. I'm just getting started. I have to remind myself of that. I finished when the clock was under 33 min, but I'm not sure what my start time was. On the treadmill, my 5k runs are around 27-30 min. Room for improvement, for sure.

Last week I also bit the bullet...the big one. I registered for the Iron Girl Triathlon on May 20!
I am possibly interested in a half-marathon eventually, but I want to perfect my 5k time and up the ante to 10k first. I have a ways to go...

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

quick update

Since it's been a while, I figure I should at least update my training progress...especially since I haven't quit! The biggest update is this: I have never been a runner...but guess what, it turns out I love to run. It's been tough transitioning from my instinctive sprint-style shorter distance running to actual miles-long runs, but I like it.

In the past month, I've been at the gym, running, and/or playing soccer 4-6 days a week.

Today is game 4 for my soccer team, so at 4 weeks in, I'm loving it. I learned that I still have a lot of the muscle memory from soccer in years past, but I have a lot of work to do if I want to be at the skill level I once had. Luckily, we now have pick-up soccer happening on Sunday afternoons, so that should provide opportunity for more soccer fun.

Gym-wise, I've stuck w/ a pretty standard strength training about 2-3 days each week (2 more intense days, one light day) and running. I worked my way down to about a 9-minute mile during my 5K treadmill runs. I never thought I would make that! I try to keep it more steady at a 10-minute mile though, since I'm working toward distance and not worried so much about my time.

I never thought I'd enjoy running so much though! It's crazy...I literally randomly have the urge to go run...and I'm not talking about a short jog, I want to run miles at a time!

My adventure race was a little over a week ago, and I had a blast! It was only 5K, and the obstacles were great! I climbed over walls, up ropes, through tunnels... ran through puddles and waist-deep muddy water... crawled on my hands and knees through one mud pit and slid on my stomach through another! I never thought I'd enjoy being so muddy, but it was great... and the weather was perfect! I will be doing more of those...

After my race, I planned to meet up with some people for soccer (kind of last minute), but instead I ended up wanting to run. I ran another 4 miles that afternoon. That may have been the first day in a decade (maybe ever) that I've voluntarily (and for enjoyment) run 7 miles in a single day. I felt great! I kept running the next few days though (lighter 2.5-mile runs), so by soccer on Wed I was worn out.

I decided to take it a little slower this week (which is good b/c it's a busy week anyway), but by this weekend, I plan on stepping it up again. I have a couple more 5K runs on the horizon, and now I'm considering doing the Beltline 10K on Dec 3. That's a lot farther than I'm ready to run at this moment, but I think I can handle it if I learn to better pace myself.

Anyway, that's pretty much how my training has been going... lots of running, and I love it. I feel like I haven't lost a single pound though...I have gained some muscle, but I don't feel that much more toned. It's not about that, though, and I know it... I'm in better shape, and that's all that matters.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Training update...

I haven't totally slacked off on my training. I did take about a 2-week break during which I got moved into the new house and went on a nice little mini-vacation to the Florida Keys.

This week, I jumped back in head-first. Actually, I ended last week w/ a 20-minute run to jump-start some of my motivation. Anyway, I now have my supplements stocked up (CLA, L-Carnitine, and some Powerbar energy gel stuff). I started going to Snap Fitness after work w/ Kelli, and having someone to w/ me to the gym is definitely a good thing. Also, soccer pick-up games got started this past Monday. We got a nice hour-long game this week, during which I did a lot more sprinting back and forth than I realized. We got a cool-down run in as well, so I felt pretty good about that.

Today I have more after work time at the gym than I've had yet, so I plan on doing a decent amount of cardio as well as weights. Tuesday I only got minimal cardio in w/ my weight training.

I signed up this week for the 5k mud run on October 16, so it's happening.

As far as soccer goes, we're going to keep doing pick-up games until it gets too dark too early to play. I will also find out this week whether or not I have been placed on an indoor women's league team to play on Wednesdays. I feel good about it.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Butt-kicked by Kickboxing Class

Well, I survived another kickboxing class. I'm pretty sure my arms are going to give out any minute and I'll be unable to finish typing...it was that intense. Each day seems to have a different instructor, so the classes vary. This one was VERY arms-centered. It was insane! Good insane, but I really was struggling. I pushed myself though b/c I am going to have to be able to a lot more than last through an hour long fitness class. Toward the end of the class, I wanted to give out, but I found something that made me push through. Now, first off, good music had a lot to do w/ it b/c when I heard "All the way Turnt Up" I got a burst of motivation.

Little bursts of motivation only took me so far. When my arms started to feel pumped out, like they used to when I was having an intense day at the climbing gym, I am reminded of the shape I was once in. Then, I am reminded that I did all that before all while I had a tumor growing inside of me! My body was attacking itself, and I managed to push myself back then. I can do it again now that I'm healthy! I just imagined the strong ab muscles I once had, and I know I can get them back too.

Ah yes, I made it through. Now, my arms are soooooo pumped right now. My calves are still sore from Monday, but it's good! I can't wait to go back for more.

Pre-Pre-Training Week 1

As I already mentioned, Monday I did kickboxing class. Intense!

I started my healthy diet on Tuesday, and have been going strong for 3 days (that's a big deal)! I also decided on Tuesday to go for a short 20 min run. It nearly killed me, but it's a start!

Wednesday, I bit the bullet and signed up for my first benchmark race. It's a nighttime 5k on Nov 12, and I've got some other people doing it with me, which is great. I am also going to sign up for an adventure race/mud run 5k on the weekend of Oct 15/16. There are two races, and I'm not totally sure which I'll do...maybe both (haha)!

Today I am returning to kickboxing class for another round of butt-kicking! I was really sore yesterday, but today I am feeling much more up for the workout.

I'm also hoping tomorrow to make it to another kickboxing class. If not, it's no big deal b/c I'll be back on Saturday morning! Woo hoo!

Getting Started...pre-pre-training Week 1

Well, I figure the first steps in training for anything (whether a 5k, 10k, adventure race, or triathlon) is to just get started. I'm not always great at getting started in the best ways. So, I did what I know I'm good at...I made a schedule. I've broken it down into Training, Pre-Training, and Pre-Pre-Training :)

I know that most sprint triathlon training schedules are around 16-20 weeks long, which would get me prepped if I wanted to do a January triathlon. Hmm, timing was a bit off. So, I'm going to do some pre-training for a few weeks prior to training. I would probably have a hard time consistently swimming/running/biking the week-one times right now anyway. In fact, right now, I'd be lucky if I could run a mile without feeling as if I'd been punched straight in the lungs. I haven't biked much since I wrecked my old bike on a major road about 4 years ago. As far as swimming goes, I have never done it for any reason other than recreation! This could be interesting...

This week I decided to boost my motivation by starting with some fun stuff and make myself feel confident about training soon...I'm calling this week and next my pre-pre-training weeks. I recently bought a livingsocial voucher for 2 weeks of kickboxing fitness classes, and last night I went to my first class. I spent about 7 weeks doing the Insanity workout last fall, and it was intense. A couple of weeks ago, I did a few of my Insanity videos just for a good intense workout, and during that class yesterday, I was SO grateful that I'd prepped by doing some Insanity! That was the most intense fitness class I've ever attended, and it was awesome!

I'm sore today, and tomorrow will be worse. So, I won't be back to class until Thursday and again Saturday. After my 2 weeks is up, I hope to have attended 6-7 total classes, which should put me in good shape to start pre-training. The following 3-4 weeks, I will repeat the same weekly training routine, and by the last week, I hope to be consistent with the times and ready to move on to week 2. My light running days just happen to coincide with soccer Mondays, which is perfect! I can easily get a 12-24 minute run in during soccer (or before/after). Now THAT is how you make training fun!

I've also decided to set up some benchmarks along the way. The sprint triathlon I really want to do is not until June 2012. It's the Iron Girl, which just sounds awesome. I have a short attention span, so I need benchmarks between now and then to keep me going and keep me interested. The first is the Muck Run (5k adventure race) on Oct 15th. I'm already getting excited to be in decent shape for that. I am hoping to find a Christmas-themed race (maybe even back home in Valdosta) in December. The next benchmark will be a mid-winter one, so it won't be easy to find a good race. Hopefully, if I've been consistently training, I'll be up for anything by then. With my training schedule, that's when I'll be ready for a sprint triathlon. Maybe I can find a duathlon.

A huge part of training is also diet. I'm not always a healthy eater, especially when it comes to getting all the proper nutrients I need. Today I am starting my training diet. I'm sure I'll waver a good bit from time to time, but the goal is to be as consistent as possible with eating proper, balanced meals.

Next on my to-do list for training is to get the right equipment...bike helmet and tri-suit are really all I need. Getting the tri-suit is cheaper than buying a swimsuit, running shorts, bike shorts, etc. all separately. Plus, tri-suits look bad-a, so maybe I'll even take myself seriously! Now, fingers crossed, prayers raised...I can do this. I will do this.

I'm a dreamer.

I'm a dreamer. Let me just start by stating the obvious. I have a tendency to dream big, but when the time comes to apply myself, I have been known to very rarely actually follow through and accomplish a lot of what I set out to do. Now, I could sit back and say that this is a factor of ADD that I've come to accept, but I won't. It is a very "ADD-like" thing, but it is the one ADD-related trait that I do not intend to just accept. I am going to go ahead and say that now that I'm aware of this tendency, I am sure I can do something about it. You can go read my old blog posts for proof of my dropped dreams. In fact, I have even previously resolved to not be this way. Well, over a year after that resolution, I'm seriously gonna do it this time. I hope.

So, what's different? Well, for one thing, I am finally watching one of those potentially far-fetched dreams come true for myself. Granted, it's not been an easy road. In fact, it's been one of the most daunting, stressful processes, but becoming a homeowner is worth it. I am supposed to close on my house in less than 2 weeks. I can't back out now, so this is for real! Not only is it real, it's also a bit inspiring. So many dropped dreams along the way have led me to believe that it doesn't matter how much I want something, chances are it still won't happen. The first huge example was out of my hands...some know the story of me failing to raise nearly enough funding to be an intern at a campus ministry in Mexico. It's a long story, but basically, that set off a pattern of supposed failure in my life. In the few years to follow, I felt like every time I really wanted to do something (a dream, of sorts), something got in my way and I gave up.

Well, for the first time in the almost 5 years since that happened, I am seeing something huge actually come to fruition. Nearly 4 months after deciding to make an offer on the house, I am finally going to be a homeowner. I still have a hard time believing it myself...I don't think it will seem real until I have the keys in my hand. Until then, I will have doubts. Even now, I have a hard time believing that it's really happening. I keep saying "if" instead of "when."

Anyway, I am a dreamer. For years I have come up with dreams that I wanted to pursue, and nothing ever seems to come of it. I have finally decided that the only reason things don't happen is because I tend to get in over my head. I decide that I want to do something RIGHT NOW, and then I get frustrated when I don't have the resources or whatever it takes to make big things happen fast. This time, I really do want to do it right, but I'm concerned w/ my propensity to take on too much too fast and have extreme expectations. In the past few years I have dreamed BIG...and I still have a heart for a lot of what I went after, but I had to accept that the timing was just not right.

My current dream is that I want to race,and the dream is not just the race itself, the process along the way is the biggest part. I want to do a legit race before I turn 30. I've decided to start training for a sprint triathlon (a shorter distance than regular triathlon), during which time I also want to do some smaller races like 5Ks or adventure races. I don't love running, but I love the feeling of being able to run. I want to be in the kind of shape where if I decide last minute to play soccer or something, I can do it w/o struggling. On top of my training dream here, I've also incorporated my desire to play soccer again. I want to join a league if I can, but to begin with, I have decided to start playing pick-up games w/ some people once a week. That can easily become part of my training if I commit. The reason I think I can make these things happen is b/c other people will rely on me. I will be doing training with at least one (maybe two) other friends. Soccer will involve other people, and we'll rely on one another to show up so there are enough people to play.

What makes this goal stand out even more than the others is because, going in, I know that I can do it. I also know that I tend to give up easily and doubt myself often. Knowing that, I hope that I will be aware if I do fall into the trap of self-doubt. I can do it, and I will. Even if I walk in a race, I will train and work hard. If for no other reason than because I can. Two years ago, I was in great shape (minus a tumor that was kind of killing my strength), and I have yet to get back into that sort of shape since my surgery. However, if I could be a bad-a rock climbing fool even having a tumor and a bad back, I can do this.

I also think I may set up a blog to track my progress as I train...maybe. Not that I think anybody else cares about it, but I think that will provide some self-accountability. I need that. I refuse to add this to my list of could-have-beens. The list of things I've been amped about in the past 5 years but inevitably dropped is too long already...
campus ministry; becoming a teacher; teaching abroad; going grad school (for architecture, structural engineering, historical preservation, education, or psychology); climbing (lasted almost 2 yrs); kickboxing; photography; and I'm sure there's more...

That's a lot of unrealized dreaming in 5 years. Granted, I really did go after a few of those things, only to finally decide that the time just wasn't right. A few of them are still in the back of my mind for if/when the time is right. So, I will not give up. I will not let the devil beat me down when I feel weak. I will be strong because I can. I will continue to dream, and when I turn 30 in 10 months, I will be in better shape than when I turned 20!