To the pool!

I went to my very first water exercise class, Hi-Low, yesterday. Why is it called Hi-Low? I don't know and I don't care. But it was pure awesomeness!

Anyway, I showed up to the pool and felt out of place. I thought maybe I strolled into the Joint Effort or Arthritis Foundation class. There was a group of women already in the water whose median age was probably about 60. But no, I had the right class. The instructor introduced me to the group. Everyone was really friendly. Some of the classmates helped to explain some of the moves.

We did a series of kicks, jumps, side steps, jogging, treading and etc. Having had chisel class the day before, I felt every bit of it. But it was nice being in the water. Water makes everything better like my skin, my hair and exercise. Some things you're not willing to struggle through on land, you'll gladly do in the water..well IF you can swim. They had swim belts and such for those who couldn't swim. But I can't imagine taking that type of class and not being able to swim, especially since the instructor told me that it's best to work out in water that is chest level to avoid shin splints. I don't think the average non-swimmer would feel comfortable in that. But I digress...

I felt so good about the pool last night that I did some laps today. Lord, what was I thinking? I'm still really sore from this week's workouts. Flutter kick and frog kick drills had my quads on fire. On top of that, my swim fitness isn't where it needs to be. When I started swimming a couple years ago, I was at the height of my running. And even then it was hard. Maybe if I was less sore it would have been better. Maybe.

Since I swam today, chisel is definitely off the menu. It just may be permanently. It's just too much if I want to do other things that I actually enjoy throughout the week. Also, one of my classmates told me about another water exercise class that goes down on Tuesdays, the same day as chisel. I may do that instead.

In other news, I'm due for another run this week. I may save it for the weekend. My legs should feel better by then. But I'm skating tomorrow so..we'll just have to see. Until next time..

7/11 - Hi-Low (50min - water exercise)

7/12 - Swim (1000yd - 38min)

I'm Back & It's On!!

So I got home from Alaska last Wednesday. I've been really tired but I'm trying not to let that get to me. I find myself needing an afternoon nap. I'm fine today though. Yay!

Anyway, I got back to being active on Friday. I went skating. Yes, skating. While I was not blogging or running, I started skating on Dec 1, 2010. It's been an off and on thing so I'm not exactly a pro. I'm pretty decent but don't ask me to skate backwards. I'm still working on that. Come Saturday, my inner thighs were feeling it.

Starting this week, I made my way over to the Y for the classes I signed up for. I did yoga on Monday. The instructor figured that I did Dolphin pose pushups too easily. She thought I could handle more. I said, "Oh, you think?" She had me move my feet in. I thought she was trying to kill me. That's when the trembling and sweating started. My arms and shoulders were definitely sore after that. And after that, guess what I did? I ran. Yes, I RAN! I moseyed over to the indoor track, put on Robert Ullrey's Couch to 5k podcast for Week 1 and went to work. I found the 60sec running intervals too short. I ended up running before I was supposed to and not wanting to stop when it was time. I sped up some and started to feel like my old self. At the very end of the run I sprinted. That's something I did with most of my runs. If I have enough juice in the tank to sprint at the end, I know that my pacing is okay.

On Tuesday, I went to my first chisel class in ages. I hated the class way back when and still hate it now. I have a different instructor. She thought of new ways to torture us. Men were in this class too and even they were struggling, so I didn't feel bad. But yeah, I hate it. I was doing some arm exercises that burned my muscles so bad that my neck felt like it was on fire. It felt like someone slathered lye on my neck and let it burn. And at some point during the class, I felt nauseous. That was weird because I ate HOURS before. Anyway, we worked all the major muscle groups from top to bottom and I was hurting bad. But you know what? I ran after. Why? Because I knew it would hurt even worse today.

Okay, so I fast forwarded to Week 3 of Couch to 5k. I'm sure I would have been fine if I didn't set my muscles on fire just minutes before. But when I started running, I felt it in every step all in my glutes and hamstrings. Being that my butt is the biggest muscle on my body, my run wasn't too enjoyable. I started to feel it in my calves too. That didn't happen during the first run. Maybe because the intervals were shorter. Or maybe I was trying to land more lightly on the balls of my feet so that nothing else would hurt. That makes my calves work more since I'm still doing the minimalist/barefoot running thing. I don't plan to ever run in regular sneakers ever again. So I'm sure my running experience this time will be totally different from the first time. Maybe it means I'll burn more calories too.

So today is Wednesday and I have a water exercise class on the menu. I hope that doesn't kill my already dead muscles. I have chisel class tomorrow but I think I'll try to swap that out for some laps in the pool instead. I can't deal with that torture twice a week. No way.

7/6 - Bounce, Rock, Skate, Roll (2:15 - once I'm on skates, it's hard to get me off.)

7/9 - Yoga (35min - I got there late)
C25k - Week 1
Warm up/Cool down walk (10min)
Run/Walk (20min)

7/10 - Chisel Class (50min)
C25k - Week 3
Warm up/Cool down walk (12min)
Run/Walk (18min)

3mi Record

I set out for another run in the 'hood. Today's route took me around the golf course. The park is boring me. And I think it's better that I pick a route so I'll have to finish in order to get home. The more I run, the closer/faster I get to home. We'll see how long I keep this up though. I did end up running my fastest 3miler to date. Also the 2nd and 3rd miles were the fastest miles I've ever run. I'm surprised how consistent they were, 9:26 and 9:27. Go ME!! I was pretty beat when I got home and told myself that I was not strength training. Did I mention that my buns are still burning? Luckily it wasn't much of an issue until I hit an incline. Otherwise I was good to go and just concentrating on my breathing. Yes, breathing was part of today's sound track. That reminds me, I don't even remember what music I listened to. I guess I zoned out. Oh wait. I remember now. Brain fart. Anyway, I sucked it up and strength trained. I didn't want to be a wuss. I did push ups too although they're on the schedule for tomorrow. But according to the plan, tomorrow is a rest day. And that's what I plan to do. Sleep in and lay up. Well, I need to shower and prepare lunch, although I'm still working on my breakfast/post-run smoothie. I'm supposed to be heading to NY today to see a free concert in Brower Park. If my friend doesn't cancel, you can find me there. Peace. Music: Global Underground: Nubreed #1 by Steve Lawler Activity Route: -- Elev. Avg: 42 ft Location: Willingboro, NJ Elev. Gain: -3 ft Date: 07/09/08 Up/Downhill: [+101/-104] Time: 09:04 AM Difficulty: 1.9 / 5.0 Weather: Mostly Cloudy 78 F temp; 79% humidity 82 F heat index; winds Vrbl 3 Performance Distance: 3.00 miles Time: 0:29:22 Speed: 6.1 mph Pace: 9' 47 /mi Heart Rate: 174 bpm (Avg) Calories: 333 199 bpm (Peak) Notes 2x12 Crunches w/Twist 2x15 Dumbbell Chest Press 2x15 Forward Lunges 2x15 Squats 2x15 Hip Flexor 27 Girl Push Ups Elevation (ft) Pace (min/mile) Heart Rate (bpm) Heart Rate Zones Zone Range (bpm) Time In Zone Distance In Zone 1 93 - 111 0h 00m 1% 0.03 mi 2 111 - 130 0h 00m 1% 0.03 mi 3 130 - 148 0h 00m 1% 0.03 mi 4 148 - 167 0h 08m 27% 0.81 mi 5 167 - 185 0h 11m 37% 1.12 mi (none) out of range 0h 10m 35% 1.09 mi Splits Mile Pace (min/mile) Speed (mph) Heart Rate Elev Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 10' 26 +0' 39 5.8 -0.4 158 -46 ft 2 9' 26 -0' 21 6.3 +0.2 181 +13 ft 3 9' 27 -0' 20 6.3 +0.2 185 +30 ft Versus average of 9' 47 min/mile

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Short run with sore buns

This was my first time doing an out and back route. I just needed a change. It was nice. I took it easy. Can't you tell? My heart rate wasn't off the map. Today's run was sort of a leisurely stroll through the 'hood. The schedule was to either run 2mi or cross train. But for the most part I shouldn't overdo it on a cross training day. So that's what I did. The most bothersome part was running on an incline. Yeah, my butt is still sore from those lunges. Other than that it was Kool and the Gang. The best part was I wasn't annoyed by the heat. Well, I'm off for dinner. Today was another day full of snacking instead of actual meals. And I'm starving. Music: At the Close of a Century #3 by Stevie Wonder I haven't listened to Stevie in a while. Everyone can use a little Stevie. Activity Route: -- Elev. Avg: 59 ft Location: Willingboro, NJ Elev. Gain: +0 ft Date: 07/08/08 Up/Downhill: [+85/-85] Time: 07:29 PM Difficulty: 1.9 / 5.0 Weather: Fair 86 F temp; 57% humidity 90 F heat index; winds Vrbl 5 Performance Distance: 2.01 miles Time: 0:21:36 Speed: 5.6 mph Pace: 10' 45 /mi Heart Rate: 161 bpm (Avg) Calories: 225 183 bpm (Peak) Notes Girl Push Ups = 29 Elevation (ft) Pace (min/mile) Heart Rate (bpm) Heart Rate Zones Zone Range (bpm) Time In Zone Distance In Zone 1 93 - 111 0h 00m 1% 0.02 mi 2 111 - 130 0h 01m 3% 0.07 mi 3 130 - 148 0h 02m 12% 0.24 mi 4 148 - 167 0h 10m 45% 0.91 mi 5 167 - 185 0h 09m 42% 0.87 mi (none) out of range 0h 00m 0% 0.00 mi Splits Mile Pace (min/mile) Speed (mph) Heart Rate Elev Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 11' 04 +0' 19 5.4 -0.2 150 -19 ft 2 10' 23 -0' 22 5.8 +0.2 173 +20 ft end ** ** ** ** 183 ** ft Versus average of 10' 45 min/mile ** Insufficient data to calculate this split

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Week 8 Day 2

I woke up so sore today..my calves, quads, inner thighs, and my hamstrings too, I think. And the more I sit, the more sore I am when I do get up. Since it felt better to move, I decided I'd go out and try to run. But first, I did a bunch of stretching. I ran on the indoor track today. Actually, the run went well. I picked up the pace on a good portion of it. I'm sure I ran further today, but I don't have any numbers. 18 times around the track equal a mile. And I'm not doing all that counting. Maybe I should get a pedometer. Do they measure mileage or just steps? I'll have to check that out.

So, am I the only one who makes it a point to chew gum while running? I guess that little bit of chewing helps to occupy my mind a bit. It's funny because music hasn't done that for me yet. I may get pumped up during a song, but never get lost in the music to take my mind off of it. The music is just kind of in the background. And it takes me a while to realize that I'm listening to a song that I usually skip through. I'm not hardcore enough to run without music though. But I'd like to get to that point. Today, I made a deal with myself not to check my watch until I heard a certain song. By that time, I had less than 9min left. Then I made the same deal with the next song. I swear, I think that song is THE LONGEST song on the cd. I kept wondering when it would be over. I had about 2min left when it was done. Finally.

Music: Lazy Dog, Disc 2 by Jay Hannan and Ben Watt
Stretch: 20min or so
Warm up walk: 5min
Jog: 28min
Cool down walk: 5min

Breakfast: Smoothie w/strawberry, blueberry, banana, baby spinach, flaxseed, and soy milk
Pre-run: A few walnuts w/raisins
Post-run: Finished the smoothie
Lunch: PB&J
Snack: Apple
Dinner: Same as last night
Snack: Sesame crunch candy and So Delicious ice cream sandwich