Nice day today! After a leisurely breakfast of yogurt and banana, I went to the gym for body pump class and a swim. I managed to navigate all the stairs without hurting myself as I left and proceeded to the school bookstore to pick up my books for the semester. They were expensive, but what can one expect? Then I went to Border's to pick up Jared Diamond's new book Collapse. It was on sale 30% off and I had a $10 gift card to bring it down to a very nice price. So of course I ruined the whole deal by buying a few magazines, a calendar for the office and another book that was not on sale. When the young man at the register asked if I had found everything I needed, I told him, "Yes. Too much. Get me out of here and don't let me come back!"
I then went across the street to Whole Foods to scout out their deli. I got Dan some spinach-mushroom enchiladas and for myself a big box of stir-fried and grilled veggies with a piece of sesame tofu. I also got us some Mexican chocolate bread pudding for dessert. Shame on me! But it was sooooo good!
And hey, I worked it off tonight on the elliptical trainer. Right?
Tonight we were a little concerned by a bit of red soiling on Tidbit's tail. We think she just got into something because her social behavior hasn't changed, nor have her eating or... er... other habits. But all the same, a bunny's health can change so fast. Lots of good-health karma for Tidbit, please!
Today's Workouts
Body Pump class (1 hour)
Swim (1000 yds)
Elliptical (1 hour)
Thursday, December 30, 2004
Wednesday, December 29, 2004
A Relaxing Week
So far this week has been pretty relaxing. I've slept late every morning, taken naps and gotten a massage (thanks, Mary). I've been to the gym and I'm starting to clean up around the house a bit. I washed some new pillowcases and blankets we got for Christmas, deposited a Christmas check in the bank... just little things like that. Oddly, it all keeps me pretty busy.
Yesterday I managed to twist my left ankle while leaving the Y after a workout. I guess having very flexible ankles is a good thing because this could've been a pretty serious injury. I have some soreness to the ankle and top of the foot today, but no swelling. The moment my foot slipped off the step and I felt my ankle twist almost perpendicular to my body I had visions of this one moment of carelessness (I was fussing with my cell phone) ruining the marathon for me. But now I think I'll be pain-free by the weekend. Thank goodness! Considering that I'm the sort of gal who can twist an ankle while walking in flats on level ground, you'd think I would be more careful!
As for my Christmas, it was nice. I didn't get most of what I asked for, which irked me a bit, since I didn't ask for anything expensive and now I have to go buy those things myself because I need them. But I still got some good stuff, including tennis rackets, which were something that I did ask for. Yay! There are tennis courts just about everywhere I look and I've been thinking for a couple years now that hitting a few balls around would be a nice activity on days when I don't want to train but I do very much want to be able to burn a few calories so I can eat some cookies and not feel bad about it. So thanks, Mom and Dad, for the tennis rackets!
My mom was very excited about the Elizabeth R series I gave her, and Dad seemed pleased that I found the out of print book he had casually marked in a magazine. He also seemed to like the two old postcards I found for him on ebay and framed-- one is a postcard map of the Santa Fe Railroad's Harvey House system, including the one in San Marcial, my grandparents' now-defunct home town. The other shows the Santa Fe State School for the Deaf (where Dad works) in its original 1930s construction. I gave my brother some Beatles and Rolling Stones memorabilia, as usual. And I gave my sister a silk sweater for work, an antique childrens' book about rabbits and a DVD of Dominique's Circus Cats. OMG-- this guy is so weird but his show is hilarious! I know what I'm doing if I ever go to Key West!
I gave Dan some shoes, a couple shirts, a book about Monhegan Island and a book about the life of a domestique in the Tour de France, which was as much a gift for me as for him, I think.
Our furry friends were quite generous this season. Pixel gave us a new blanket and Tidbit gave us some new pillowcases, probably to replace the ones she has chewed on. Thanks, kids!
And finally, on the subject of generosity, anyone who has not yet donated to the tsunami disaster relief-- what are you waiting for? It's easy. All the newspapers have instructions how to give and even our friends at amazon.com are now set up for you to make a donation quickly and easily. Most of us in this country are blessed with good health, cheap food and easy access to jobs. Even a small donation that seems insignificant to me or you will go a long way in Thailand or Sri Lanka. For the cost of a couple of Starbucks lattes or a deli lunch (or fast food, if that's your preference) you can save lives. So give a little bit now. We have over 200 million people in the United States. If everyone gave just a dollar, think how much help we could give! So don't think any gift is too small. Thank you, and may God, the gods, the fates or whatever you believe in, bless you a thousand times for every penny you give to this relief effort. It is only by accident of birth that it wasn't me or you in the path of those waves.
Recent Workouts (since this is supposed to be a triathlon blog)
Christmas Day: 2 hours, bike - Spinervals 9.0 Have Mercy
Sunday: 15 mile run (left quad cramped badly or I would've gone farther)
Monday: 1 hour slow elliptical (no hard workouts on massage days)
Tuesday: 1 hour body pump, 1000 yds swim
Today: Spinervals 5.0 Mental Toughness (1st hour only)
Yesterday I managed to twist my left ankle while leaving the Y after a workout. I guess having very flexible ankles is a good thing because this could've been a pretty serious injury. I have some soreness to the ankle and top of the foot today, but no swelling. The moment my foot slipped off the step and I felt my ankle twist almost perpendicular to my body I had visions of this one moment of carelessness (I was fussing with my cell phone) ruining the marathon for me. But now I think I'll be pain-free by the weekend. Thank goodness! Considering that I'm the sort of gal who can twist an ankle while walking in flats on level ground, you'd think I would be more careful!
As for my Christmas, it was nice. I didn't get most of what I asked for, which irked me a bit, since I didn't ask for anything expensive and now I have to go buy those things myself because I need them. But I still got some good stuff, including tennis rackets, which were something that I did ask for. Yay! There are tennis courts just about everywhere I look and I've been thinking for a couple years now that hitting a few balls around would be a nice activity on days when I don't want to train but I do very much want to be able to burn a few calories so I can eat some cookies and not feel bad about it. So thanks, Mom and Dad, for the tennis rackets!
My mom was very excited about the Elizabeth R series I gave her, and Dad seemed pleased that I found the out of print book he had casually marked in a magazine. He also seemed to like the two old postcards I found for him on ebay and framed-- one is a postcard map of the Santa Fe Railroad's Harvey House system, including the one in San Marcial, my grandparents' now-defunct home town. The other shows the Santa Fe State School for the Deaf (where Dad works) in its original 1930s construction. I gave my brother some Beatles and Rolling Stones memorabilia, as usual. And I gave my sister a silk sweater for work, an antique childrens' book about rabbits and a DVD of Dominique's Circus Cats. OMG-- this guy is so weird but his show is hilarious! I know what I'm doing if I ever go to Key West!
I gave Dan some shoes, a couple shirts, a book about Monhegan Island and a book about the life of a domestique in the Tour de France, which was as much a gift for me as for him, I think.
Our furry friends were quite generous this season. Pixel gave us a new blanket and Tidbit gave us some new pillowcases, probably to replace the ones she has chewed on. Thanks, kids!
And finally, on the subject of generosity, anyone who has not yet donated to the tsunami disaster relief-- what are you waiting for? It's easy. All the newspapers have instructions how to give and even our friends at amazon.com are now set up for you to make a donation quickly and easily. Most of us in this country are blessed with good health, cheap food and easy access to jobs. Even a small donation that seems insignificant to me or you will go a long way in Thailand or Sri Lanka. For the cost of a couple of Starbucks lattes or a deli lunch (or fast food, if that's your preference) you can save lives. So give a little bit now. We have over 200 million people in the United States. If everyone gave just a dollar, think how much help we could give! So don't think any gift is too small. Thank you, and may God, the gods, the fates or whatever you believe in, bless you a thousand times for every penny you give to this relief effort. It is only by accident of birth that it wasn't me or you in the path of those waves.
Recent Workouts (since this is supposed to be a triathlon blog)
Christmas Day: 2 hours, bike - Spinervals 9.0 Have Mercy
Sunday: 15 mile run (left quad cramped badly or I would've gone farther)
Monday: 1 hour slow elliptical (no hard workouts on massage days)
Tuesday: 1 hour body pump, 1000 yds swim
Today: Spinervals 5.0 Mental Toughness (1st hour only)
Saturday, December 25, 2004
Friday, December 24, 2004
Let it snow!
It's snowing tonight! We get snow maybe once or twice a decade here and never on Christmas Eve. We're much more likely to be wearing shorts, but not this year!
We've had flurries all day. At first it was just tiny little ice crystals. Nothing to get too exicted about, although one landed on the lapel of my coat in the exact shape of a star. Cool. But tonight we started getting actual flakes. I haven't seen any bigger than dime-size, but it's still pretty impressive to see them swirling around against the dark of the night sky. Dan and I went up to the park and walked around in it for nearly an hour. The wind was blowing the snow into our faces and it was accumulating in the folds of our clothes. By the time we got back to the car, the trees, grass and tops of cars were turning white. With what we scraped off our car we had enough snow to make a tiny snowman. I put it where maybe a passing runner will see him.
When you so rarely get snow, it really is a magical thing.
After we got home we heated up some homemade tamales Dan got from his aunt. They were delicious and perfect for a cold winter day. Not to mention that I was starving. Later tonight we'll open our presents from each other and from Dan's family. Tidbit will open her present. Pixel will ignore his. And tomorrow we'll go out to my parents' house for turkey dinner and more gifts.
I won't be running in the morning. The roads are wet from the snow and will be icy by morning. So I guess I'll stay in and do some Spinervals. I'm now thinking I'll do my long run early in the week when the weather warms up a bit. I really do want to get in something in the 23 mile range before tapering. It's nice to have the whole week off so I'm not locked into doing my long run on any particular day.
Today's Workouts
Technically, none. But I walked to two different drug stores looking for colored tissue paper after Dan used the last of mine. (Bad planning, Dan!) So that turned out to be about 4-5 miles. And then we walked 3 miles at the park tonight. Not bad for a day when I didn't work out. And wrapping all the gifts (it took hours!) surely counts for something, right?
We've had flurries all day. At first it was just tiny little ice crystals. Nothing to get too exicted about, although one landed on the lapel of my coat in the exact shape of a star. Cool. But tonight we started getting actual flakes. I haven't seen any bigger than dime-size, but it's still pretty impressive to see them swirling around against the dark of the night sky. Dan and I went up to the park and walked around in it for nearly an hour. The wind was blowing the snow into our faces and it was accumulating in the folds of our clothes. By the time we got back to the car, the trees, grass and tops of cars were turning white. With what we scraped off our car we had enough snow to make a tiny snowman. I put it where maybe a passing runner will see him.
When you so rarely get snow, it really is a magical thing.
After we got home we heated up some homemade tamales Dan got from his aunt. They were delicious and perfect for a cold winter day. Not to mention that I was starving. Later tonight we'll open our presents from each other and from Dan's family. Tidbit will open her present. Pixel will ignore his. And tomorrow we'll go out to my parents' house for turkey dinner and more gifts.
I won't be running in the morning. The roads are wet from the snow and will be icy by morning. So I guess I'll stay in and do some Spinervals. I'm now thinking I'll do my long run early in the week when the weather warms up a bit. I really do want to get in something in the 23 mile range before tapering. It's nice to have the whole week off so I'm not locked into doing my long run on any particular day.
Today's Workouts
Technically, none. But I walked to two different drug stores looking for colored tissue paper after Dan used the last of mine. (Bad planning, Dan!) So that turned out to be about 4-5 miles. And then we walked 3 miles at the park tonight. Not bad for a day when I didn't work out. And wrapping all the gifts (it took hours!) surely counts for something, right?
Thursday, December 23, 2004
Wednesday, December 22, 2004
Bah humbug!
Any other year I would've been thrilled at the prospect of a snowy Christmas Eve. This is the only time in my entire memory of living in this city, let alone this state, that a white Christmas Eve has been more than a fantasy.
And it just happens to be the weekend when I had scheduled my last long training run before the marathon. I've been mentally running through all the possible options. Do I give myself an athsma attack by running my planned street route in cold temps, assuming no ice on the roads? If it's icy out, do I risk driving to the park to run there? (The tricky part would be driving home, not getting there.) Should I try to tough out four hours on the treadmill? Or should I just run on Sunday instead and do a long Spinerval session Saturday in anticipation of Christmas goodies with my folks? If I do a spin session Saturday, will my legs be up for 23 miles the next day? Not likely. Not in any way that won't be really painful. But four hours on a treadmill is pretty painful, too. And so is running with reduced lung capacity, which is the state I'll be in when the 20-something temps hit my screwed up lungs.
So I'm not pleased at all by our Christmasy weather. Just call me Grinch.
Recent Workouts
Monday: 45 minutes core and stretch cords, 45 minutes elliptical, 5 minutes jumprope
Tuesday: 45 minutes core and stretch cords, 45 minutes Spinervals: 3.0 Suffer-O-Rama
Wednesday: no morning workout-- overslept, 30 minutes elliptical, 20 minutes treadmill, 5 minutes jumprope
And it just happens to be the weekend when I had scheduled my last long training run before the marathon. I've been mentally running through all the possible options. Do I give myself an athsma attack by running my planned street route in cold temps, assuming no ice on the roads? If it's icy out, do I risk driving to the park to run there? (The tricky part would be driving home, not getting there.) Should I try to tough out four hours on the treadmill? Or should I just run on Sunday instead and do a long Spinerval session Saturday in anticipation of Christmas goodies with my folks? If I do a spin session Saturday, will my legs be up for 23 miles the next day? Not likely. Not in any way that won't be really painful. But four hours on a treadmill is pretty painful, too. And so is running with reduced lung capacity, which is the state I'll be in when the 20-something temps hit my screwed up lungs.
So I'm not pleased at all by our Christmasy weather. Just call me Grinch.
Recent Workouts
Monday: 45 minutes core and stretch cords, 45 minutes elliptical, 5 minutes jumprope
Tuesday: 45 minutes core and stretch cords, 45 minutes Spinervals: 3.0 Suffer-O-Rama
Wednesday: no morning workout-- overslept, 30 minutes elliptical, 20 minutes treadmill, 5 minutes jumprope
Sunday, December 19, 2004
Feeling Run Down
In spite of my best intentions, I just couldn't get on the bike today. I've been dragging all day, in spite of a long afternoon nap. They say these longer runs can take their toll, so I guess I'm still recovering from yesterday.
I seem to have hit on a good post-run therapy for my legs, though. Cold water soak, hot shower, a few minutes of gentle massage on the foam roller, a little stretching and then arnica and a menthol-containing lotion. My legs are only very slightly stiff today-- I've felt worse after a hard 5K. It's the rest of me that doesn't want to do anything! I've read that overuse of arnica can be bad for the liver, though. I don't know if that applies to topical solution or not, but after the marathon my focus will return to half-ironman distance triathlon (Gulfman Tri in Galveston, April 3) so my longest runs will probably be around 15 miles. Not enough to justify such an intensive post-run therapy. No more arnica.
I ran a few errands today, spent some time online, hung out with the bunny, took a nap and went for my customary Sunday night walk with Dan at Memorial Park. It's nice to know that even though we don't spend huge amounts of time together during the week, there are certain things we always do together. It's better to always wish you had a little more time with someone that be constantly wishing they would go away and leave you alone.
I talked to my family on the phone this evening. Dad made green chile enchiladas tonight. I wish I'd known-- I would've driven over there! But he promised to freeze some for me and said he'd be making posole and red chile enchiladas (New Mexico style) after Christmas. I'm looking forward to that. I really need a posole fix sometimes. Over 400 years of New Mexico ancestry and I guess these things end up encoded into your DNA or something.
My sister sounded pretty good on the phone, although my mother insisted on giving me a blow by blow account of the professional cleanup of the spot where her boyfriend shot himself, all the stains, dribbles and particles they found, etc. It didn't upset or disgust me, but I found it pretty tacky of her. Like I really care?
My sister is still in worship mode of her boyfriend. I guess this will take longer than I thought. I had hoped that after a week she'd be starting to remember how screwed up things really were and how she had complained about him, wanted to leave, etc. But no. She's still reluctant to part with so much as a piece of lint he might've touched. And she's crediting her Prozac with keeping her from crying as much as she thinks she should be. Like there's some kind of "right" way to grieve. And as if the Prozac wasn't what kept her in this doomed relationship to begin with. Funny, she didn't need it before she moved in with him, he lost his job and things started spiraling out of control. Typical for the mentality of our modern age-- don't fix your screwed up situation, take a pill instead!
Today's Workouts
Nothing, unless dealing with the Sunday crowd at Central Market counts.
I seem to have hit on a good post-run therapy for my legs, though. Cold water soak, hot shower, a few minutes of gentle massage on the foam roller, a little stretching and then arnica and a menthol-containing lotion. My legs are only very slightly stiff today-- I've felt worse after a hard 5K. It's the rest of me that doesn't want to do anything! I've read that overuse of arnica can be bad for the liver, though. I don't know if that applies to topical solution or not, but after the marathon my focus will return to half-ironman distance triathlon (Gulfman Tri in Galveston, April 3) so my longest runs will probably be around 15 miles. Not enough to justify such an intensive post-run therapy. No more arnica.
I ran a few errands today, spent some time online, hung out with the bunny, took a nap and went for my customary Sunday night walk with Dan at Memorial Park. It's nice to know that even though we don't spend huge amounts of time together during the week, there are certain things we always do together. It's better to always wish you had a little more time with someone that be constantly wishing they would go away and leave you alone.
I talked to my family on the phone this evening. Dad made green chile enchiladas tonight. I wish I'd known-- I would've driven over there! But he promised to freeze some for me and said he'd be making posole and red chile enchiladas (New Mexico style) after Christmas. I'm looking forward to that. I really need a posole fix sometimes. Over 400 years of New Mexico ancestry and I guess these things end up encoded into your DNA or something.
My sister sounded pretty good on the phone, although my mother insisted on giving me a blow by blow account of the professional cleanup of the spot where her boyfriend shot himself, all the stains, dribbles and particles they found, etc. It didn't upset or disgust me, but I found it pretty tacky of her. Like I really care?
My sister is still in worship mode of her boyfriend. I guess this will take longer than I thought. I had hoped that after a week she'd be starting to remember how screwed up things really were and how she had complained about him, wanted to leave, etc. But no. She's still reluctant to part with so much as a piece of lint he might've touched. And she's crediting her Prozac with keeping her from crying as much as she thinks she should be. Like there's some kind of "right" way to grieve. And as if the Prozac wasn't what kept her in this doomed relationship to begin with. Funny, she didn't need it before she moved in with him, he lost his job and things started spiraling out of control. Typical for the mentality of our modern age-- don't fix your screwed up situation, take a pill instead!
Today's Workouts
Nothing, unless dealing with the Sunday crowd at Central Market counts.
Saturday, December 18, 2004
Saturday Run
I had a good run this morning-- 20 miles. It was starting to get painful toward the end, but that's no surprise. Stopping actually hurt more than continuing, so I was quite a sight once I got home, stumbling painfully around as I tried to change clothes so I could go soak my legs in the cold swimming pool. That water was cold! It hurt so bad I actually had to get out for a minute, get my courage back up and then get back in. But I eventually settled in, had my hot chocolate (what was left of it after I Frankenstein-walked to the pool) and toughed out ten minutes.
Today was the local Team in Training's 20+ mile run, their last long run in preparation for the marathon. Their rest stations looked so good! They had cookies, bananas, watermelon and other goodies. I was very tempted to stop and beg a bit of Gatorade off them or something, since I was running on water, Endurolytes and Hammer Gel only. But I resisted the temptation and didn't bother them. I'm guessing Houston Fit will be out there next weekend and since I know a lot of those people maybe I can beg a Clif Bar or something. I intend to do 22 or 23 next weekend and then taper. I'm already trying to decide on my route for next weekend. I've been intentionally staying close to home and close to where I know I can find clean restrooms, but it's so boring doing loops! A training run of 20 miles or more is kind of hard to deal with even under the best circumstances. Unlike race day, there are no bands, no one cheering.
I've decided, based on how I felt today and last Saturday, that foot and calf weakness are my biggest run limiters at this time. I should've continued with jumping rope every week, after starting it last summer and then getting lazy about it. I might've even been able to prevent the injury I got last month. I'm wondering now if it's too late to make a difference if I were to do just 5 minutes of jumprope every day, as opposed to the longer 15-20 minute sessions once a week that gave me so many calf and arch cramps over the summer. I think I'll give it a try, since 5 minutes shouldn't be long enough to injure myself, but doing it daily should give me some good results quickly. Anything that doesn't injure me will help at this point. I don't buy the bullshit about not being able to make any more significant gains this close to a marathon. How silly. Even small gains in strength or flexibility will help, and these can certainly happen in two to four weeks.
After today's run and after I did a bit of maintenance on my sore and tired legs, Dan and I went for Indian food-- my second Indian feast in two days! Yesterday's office party was full of Indian food, much to my chagrin. I can resist lasagna, poboys, ham and other such fare, but I'm a hopeless case when they set out saag paneer, three kinds of daal and paneer in curry sauce. It's been interesting to see the shift in what shows up at our potlucks over the past few years. I'm sure having an Indian boss has something to do with it, but in general our Indian employees have started to realize that the office is full of Indian food lovers and they are happy to accomodate us by bringing their favorite recipes from home or bringing goodies from their favorite restaurants. I don't know how they all stay so thin, though. I have to limit myself to Indian food only once a week on long run days or I'll be huge! Oh, did I mention I brought home some naan from today's lunch with Dan? He probably thinks he'll get to eat it all. Ha! I think it will make a great accompaniment to my butternut squash dish or to a salad tomorrow. Dan better move fast if he thinks he's getting all that naan!
Today's Workout
Run - 20 miles
Today was the local Team in Training's 20+ mile run, their last long run in preparation for the marathon. Their rest stations looked so good! They had cookies, bananas, watermelon and other goodies. I was very tempted to stop and beg a bit of Gatorade off them or something, since I was running on water, Endurolytes and Hammer Gel only. But I resisted the temptation and didn't bother them. I'm guessing Houston Fit will be out there next weekend and since I know a lot of those people maybe I can beg a Clif Bar or something. I intend to do 22 or 23 next weekend and then taper. I'm already trying to decide on my route for next weekend. I've been intentionally staying close to home and close to where I know I can find clean restrooms, but it's so boring doing loops! A training run of 20 miles or more is kind of hard to deal with even under the best circumstances. Unlike race day, there are no bands, no one cheering.
I've decided, based on how I felt today and last Saturday, that foot and calf weakness are my biggest run limiters at this time. I should've continued with jumping rope every week, after starting it last summer and then getting lazy about it. I might've even been able to prevent the injury I got last month. I'm wondering now if it's too late to make a difference if I were to do just 5 minutes of jumprope every day, as opposed to the longer 15-20 minute sessions once a week that gave me so many calf and arch cramps over the summer. I think I'll give it a try, since 5 minutes shouldn't be long enough to injure myself, but doing it daily should give me some good results quickly. Anything that doesn't injure me will help at this point. I don't buy the bullshit about not being able to make any more significant gains this close to a marathon. How silly. Even small gains in strength or flexibility will help, and these can certainly happen in two to four weeks.
After today's run and after I did a bit of maintenance on my sore and tired legs, Dan and I went for Indian food-- my second Indian feast in two days! Yesterday's office party was full of Indian food, much to my chagrin. I can resist lasagna, poboys, ham and other such fare, but I'm a hopeless case when they set out saag paneer, three kinds of daal and paneer in curry sauce. It's been interesting to see the shift in what shows up at our potlucks over the past few years. I'm sure having an Indian boss has something to do with it, but in general our Indian employees have started to realize that the office is full of Indian food lovers and they are happy to accomodate us by bringing their favorite recipes from home or bringing goodies from their favorite restaurants. I don't know how they all stay so thin, though. I have to limit myself to Indian food only once a week on long run days or I'll be huge! Oh, did I mention I brought home some naan from today's lunch with Dan? He probably thinks he'll get to eat it all. Ha! I think it will make a great accompaniment to my butternut squash dish or to a salad tomorrow. Dan better move fast if he thinks he's getting all that naan!
Today's Workout
Run - 20 miles
Thursday, December 16, 2004
Happy Birthday!
Happy Birthday to my brother Jacob, who is 31 today!
I am so ready for this week to be over. It seems like I can't manage to do anything I set out to do at work. Today my assistant came in late and the boss was anticipating various important phone calls, so I had to play receptionist and sit by the phone. I only have one line, so I couldn't make any calls of my own or talk more than a few seconds with anyone who called me. Adding to the frustration, I had to keep an eye out for job applicants coming in for scheduled interviews. I don't normally mind helping with any of this, but I had a lot of work of my own to do and it involved phone calls, going to other offices, etc. But no, I was stuck at my desk waiting for the phone to ring until almost noon.
Then we had to scramble to get any budget-affecting documents ready for higher level signatures since it would be the last day before the new year that we could do this. Why do so many people take whole week of Christmas off? I understand the ones who go out of town, but the ones who stay here? I had planned to leave early today or at least on time, and get signatures at the end of the day Friday. Finding out I had to do it today just added to my workload. And since my assistant is the only one by policy allowed to generate certain types of documents, we simply didn't get everything ready because she came in late today. Well, it's not my silly policy that says we can no longer just sign them and take them to accounts payable. It's not the university's policy, either.
But at long last I got a few of the more important things done. It was a day I just felt like I couldn't settle in and get any one thing completely finished. I hate days like that. And for all that, I didn't even get to leave early. If I'm going to not get anything done completely, it should at least be because I was doing something fun instead.
Our office holiday party is tomorrow, the last of the parties for this season. Thank goodness. I hate to be part of the bah humbug crowd, but it took me all year to work off last year's holiday weight gain and I can do without the sabotage. I made a lasagna to take to the party tomorrow, cutting into my workout time tonight. I'm not happy about it, but at least I'll get my gold star for being a team player.
Today's Workouts
Morning: 45 minutes core and stretch cord exercises
Evening: 20 minutes elliptical, 20 minutes treadmill - 8 min/mile pace
I am so ready for this week to be over. It seems like I can't manage to do anything I set out to do at work. Today my assistant came in late and the boss was anticipating various important phone calls, so I had to play receptionist and sit by the phone. I only have one line, so I couldn't make any calls of my own or talk more than a few seconds with anyone who called me. Adding to the frustration, I had to keep an eye out for job applicants coming in for scheduled interviews. I don't normally mind helping with any of this, but I had a lot of work of my own to do and it involved phone calls, going to other offices, etc. But no, I was stuck at my desk waiting for the phone to ring until almost noon.
Then we had to scramble to get any budget-affecting documents ready for higher level signatures since it would be the last day before the new year that we could do this. Why do so many people take whole week of Christmas off? I understand the ones who go out of town, but the ones who stay here? I had planned to leave early today or at least on time, and get signatures at the end of the day Friday. Finding out I had to do it today just added to my workload. And since my assistant is the only one by policy allowed to generate certain types of documents, we simply didn't get everything ready because she came in late today. Well, it's not my silly policy that says we can no longer just sign them and take them to accounts payable. It's not the university's policy, either.
But at long last I got a few of the more important things done. It was a day I just felt like I couldn't settle in and get any one thing completely finished. I hate days like that. And for all that, I didn't even get to leave early. If I'm going to not get anything done completely, it should at least be because I was doing something fun instead.
Our office holiday party is tomorrow, the last of the parties for this season. Thank goodness. I hate to be part of the bah humbug crowd, but it took me all year to work off last year's holiday weight gain and I can do without the sabotage. I made a lasagna to take to the party tomorrow, cutting into my workout time tonight. I'm not happy about it, but at least I'll get my gold star for being a team player.
Today's Workouts
Morning: 45 minutes core and stretch cord exercises
Evening: 20 minutes elliptical, 20 minutes treadmill - 8 min/mile pace
Wednesday, December 15, 2004
Mid-week update
Nothing very interesting has been happening this week, thank goodness. Just a lot of meetings and errands at work that keep me there late and keep me from getting much desk time. I'm staying late and I'm unproductive! Who wouldn't want that?
I haven't talked to my sister this week, although I've tried a couple times to call to get more info about the pets she's trying to find homes for. In a way I dread actually talking to her. I don't handle other people's emotions very well, and she and Mom are emotional people. I'll be glad when the worst of this mess is over.
Recent Workouts
Mon: Morning - 45 minutes core and stretch cords
Evening - N/A (I don't work out the evening after a massage)
Tue: Morning - 45 minutes core and stretch cords
Evening - 30 min elliptical (5K pace), 15 min treadmill (8 min/miles)
Wed: Morning - 45 minutes core and stretch cords
Evening - Spinervals 7.0 Uphill Grind (45 min)
I haven't talked to my sister this week, although I've tried a couple times to call to get more info about the pets she's trying to find homes for. In a way I dread actually talking to her. I don't handle other people's emotions very well, and she and Mom are emotional people. I'll be glad when the worst of this mess is over.
Recent Workouts
Mon: Morning - 45 minutes core and stretch cords
Evening - N/A (I don't work out the evening after a massage)
Tue: Morning - 45 minutes core and stretch cords
Evening - 30 min elliptical (5K pace), 15 min treadmill (8 min/miles)
Wed: Morning - 45 minutes core and stretch cords
Evening - Spinervals 7.0 Uphill Grind (45 min)
Monday, December 13, 2004
Sunday, December 12, 2004
Sobering weekend
The weekend started off well enough. I ran 17 miles and followed up with half an hour on the elliptical trainer. I had a bit of pain in my arch at mile 16, but walked a few minutes and was fine running the rest of the way. My legs got a bit knotted up, but I felt strong throughout. As an experiment I rubbed my legs down afterward with arnica gel and Nemidon's black and blue ointment (which is not black and blue, btw). I don't know if it helped or if I was just lucky, but my legs felt pretty darn good the rest of the weekend. Much better than last weekend when I did less mileage. Go figure.
Dan and I went to lunch and then I took a long nap. When I got up I had a message to call my mother. She informed me that my sister's boyfriend of more than five years had committed suicide. He had had a lot of problems and to those of us on the outside, I don't think it was a big surprise. But my sister is a mess, of course. So I spent some time talking on the phone with her. I offered to come over but she said she'd rather I come over Sunday.
So today I got up and puttered around on the computer for awhile. Then I went to Central Market and got some things for me and for my sister and her bunny. After that I came home and did a Spinervals session, then took a nap. This evening I went out to my parents' house and spent some time with everyone. My father is just in from New Mexico, which is great but I feel really bad for him getting all this thrown at him when I'm sure he was looking forward to a relaxing winter break. My sister was as well as could be expected-- sometimes okay, other times not. I urged my mom to make sure the girl gets food, rest, vitamins, and a bit of fresh air and exercise every day, even if it's just a walk around the block. I also stressed the importance of constructive activity. I hope Mom was listening. I've often felt like Cassandra in that family.
It's unfortunate that my sister is having to learn the same hard lesson I had to learn, in the same hard way. You can't save a person who isn't making any effort to save himself. You'll only get dragged down to his level. It's not like taking in a stray dog who will be grateful for your efforts. When you decide to fight for someone who won't fight for himself, he'll only keep taking until you're left with nothing. There's no future in it.
So I hope once my sister's initial shock and grief have passed she can begin to understand that there are lessons to be learned here. As many times as she thought it might be wise to leave this guy, she could never bring herself to do it. It would've been hard. There would have been a lot of complicated things to work out-- things she still has to work out now, so what did she gain? Sometimes in life all your options suck. You just have to pick the option that sucks the least and has the least possibility of even worse consequences down the road. If you sit around waiting for it all to magically get better, you'll still be sitting there when the worst happens.
And so as not to end this on such a dismal note, I scored some Smithsonian magazines, pumpkin bread and dried apples tonight. (The apples came from the New Mexico farm.) My feet feel pretty darn good and I'm feeling ever more optimistic about the marathon, although I'm not letting myself get enthusiastic yet. I have a massage appointment for tomorrow. And my bunny is unbearably cute!
This Weekend's Workouts
Saturday: 17 miles running, 30 minutes elliptical
Sunday: Spinervals 5.0 Mental Toughness
Dan and I went to lunch and then I took a long nap. When I got up I had a message to call my mother. She informed me that my sister's boyfriend of more than five years had committed suicide. He had had a lot of problems and to those of us on the outside, I don't think it was a big surprise. But my sister is a mess, of course. So I spent some time talking on the phone with her. I offered to come over but she said she'd rather I come over Sunday.
So today I got up and puttered around on the computer for awhile. Then I went to Central Market and got some things for me and for my sister and her bunny. After that I came home and did a Spinervals session, then took a nap. This evening I went out to my parents' house and spent some time with everyone. My father is just in from New Mexico, which is great but I feel really bad for him getting all this thrown at him when I'm sure he was looking forward to a relaxing winter break. My sister was as well as could be expected-- sometimes okay, other times not. I urged my mom to make sure the girl gets food, rest, vitamins, and a bit of fresh air and exercise every day, even if it's just a walk around the block. I also stressed the importance of constructive activity. I hope Mom was listening. I've often felt like Cassandra in that family.
It's unfortunate that my sister is having to learn the same hard lesson I had to learn, in the same hard way. You can't save a person who isn't making any effort to save himself. You'll only get dragged down to his level. It's not like taking in a stray dog who will be grateful for your efforts. When you decide to fight for someone who won't fight for himself, he'll only keep taking until you're left with nothing. There's no future in it.
So I hope once my sister's initial shock and grief have passed she can begin to understand that there are lessons to be learned here. As many times as she thought it might be wise to leave this guy, she could never bring herself to do it. It would've been hard. There would have been a lot of complicated things to work out-- things she still has to work out now, so what did she gain? Sometimes in life all your options suck. You just have to pick the option that sucks the least and has the least possibility of even worse consequences down the road. If you sit around waiting for it all to magically get better, you'll still be sitting there when the worst happens.
And so as not to end this on such a dismal note, I scored some Smithsonian magazines, pumpkin bread and dried apples tonight. (The apples came from the New Mexico farm.) My feet feel pretty darn good and I'm feeling ever more optimistic about the marathon, although I'm not letting myself get enthusiastic yet. I have a massage appointment for tomorrow. And my bunny is unbearably cute!
This Weekend's Workouts
Saturday: 17 miles running, 30 minutes elliptical
Sunday: Spinervals 5.0 Mental Toughness
Friday, December 10, 2004
Thursday, December 09, 2004
Best laid plans
So it started out as a normal, quiet day at the office. I had some tea, a snack, updated a spreadsheet, looked at a website with some cute kitties... and then around lunchtime I got hit with three urgent, must-do-today projects! Luckily my sluggish brain ramped up to the task quickly and the time just flew. The biggest project was one of those number-intensive, change mental tracks and you'll forget it all, type of things. So by the end of the day I barely even looked up when my boss went home, my assistant went home... hey, why am I here all alone?
Another day late at the office. This makes three this week! Maybe I can leave early tomorrow. I better not plan on it though, or surely something else of life or death importance will come up and I'll be the only one who can save us from certain doom with my Excel pivot table skills.
By the time I left the office it was after 5 and I was tired, hungry and a bit out of sorts. So instead of going to the gym for pilates and body pump, I came home with a vague notion of doing my Spinervals Big Gear Strength video and maybe some weights later in the evening. But I took a nap and overslept, ending up doing short sessions on the stairmaster and elliptical trainer instead. It was probably better for my marathon training, but it's frustrating to have none of my plans for the day work out.
Today's Workouts
Morning: 45 minutes core and stretch cord exercises
Evening: 20 minutes elliptical trainer, 20 minutes stairmaster
Another day late at the office. This makes three this week! Maybe I can leave early tomorrow. I better not plan on it though, or surely something else of life or death importance will come up and I'll be the only one who can save us from certain doom with my Excel pivot table skills.
By the time I left the office it was after 5 and I was tired, hungry and a bit out of sorts. So instead of going to the gym for pilates and body pump, I came home with a vague notion of doing my Spinervals Big Gear Strength video and maybe some weights later in the evening. But I took a nap and overslept, ending up doing short sessions on the stairmaster and elliptical trainer instead. It was probably better for my marathon training, but it's frustrating to have none of my plans for the day work out.
Today's Workouts
Morning: 45 minutes core and stretch cord exercises
Evening: 20 minutes elliptical trainer, 20 minutes stairmaster
Wednesday, December 08, 2004
Mid-week ramblings
Today was the Staff Council Christmas party. Since Dan has been going to a holiday party almost every day this week, I took the lasagna I made earlier in the week for his lunches. He won't need it. As it turned out, there was a little left over, so I took that and a plate of other food and cookies to him at his office since this was the one day he didn't have a party to go to. It was fun hanging out with him for a bit. There are advantages to working at the same place as one's spouse.
Once back at the office I was suddenly hugely sleepy and grumpy. I think the high fructose corn syrup in the cookies I ate may be to blame. I wasn't going to have any of the desserts, but there were some delicious-looking cookies that appeared to be homemade. I should've known by the way I couldn't keep my hands off them once I'd tasted one, that they contained HFCS. I ate about six. And then a little later my blood sugar dropped like a rock. I should've known. I found out later that they weren't exactly homemade-- they were made from pre-made cookie dough from a tube, then mixed with a few homemade extras. They were delicious, but I've been trying to eat as "clean" as possible for more than a year now, and I think I'm just a lot more sensitive junky stuff like HFCS now.
I ran on the treadmill tonight, with no pain. I did an interval drill. It's too late to make huge amounts of progress at this point, but I think doing various kinds of short intervals once or twice a week will help my marathon. My original plan had also called for some jump rope and plyometric drills. Do I dare attempt that? Obviously the jumping would be harder on my feet than anything else I've done so far. I'll see how my weekend long run goes and make a decision based on that. I know I would make some very big improvements quickly with some plyometric drills.
I had a good spin session last night (Spinervals 4.0 - Muscle Breakdown) and am planning a long gym session for tomorrow.
Unsolicited Tip of the Day
Do not under any circumstances, eat half a box of Kashi Go Lean cereal at one sitting! No, not even if you are already accustomed to a high fiber diet. Just trust me on this.
Today's Workouts
Morning: 45 minutes core and stretch cord exercises
Evening: 30 minutes elliptical - 10K pace, 30 minutes treadmill - ladder drill
Once back at the office I was suddenly hugely sleepy and grumpy. I think the high fructose corn syrup in the cookies I ate may be to blame. I wasn't going to have any of the desserts, but there were some delicious-looking cookies that appeared to be homemade. I should've known by the way I couldn't keep my hands off them once I'd tasted one, that they contained HFCS. I ate about six. And then a little later my blood sugar dropped like a rock. I should've known. I found out later that they weren't exactly homemade-- they were made from pre-made cookie dough from a tube, then mixed with a few homemade extras. They were delicious, but I've been trying to eat as "clean" as possible for more than a year now, and I think I'm just a lot more sensitive junky stuff like HFCS now.
I ran on the treadmill tonight, with no pain. I did an interval drill. It's too late to make huge amounts of progress at this point, but I think doing various kinds of short intervals once or twice a week will help my marathon. My original plan had also called for some jump rope and plyometric drills. Do I dare attempt that? Obviously the jumping would be harder on my feet than anything else I've done so far. I'll see how my weekend long run goes and make a decision based on that. I know I would make some very big improvements quickly with some plyometric drills.
I had a good spin session last night (Spinervals 4.0 - Muscle Breakdown) and am planning a long gym session for tomorrow.
Unsolicited Tip of the Day
Do not under any circumstances, eat half a box of Kashi Go Lean cereal at one sitting! No, not even if you are already accustomed to a high fiber diet. Just trust me on this.
Today's Workouts
Morning: 45 minutes core and stretch cord exercises
Evening: 30 minutes elliptical - 10K pace, 30 minutes treadmill - ladder drill
Tuesday, December 07, 2004
Monday, December 06, 2004
Rainy Monday
I could tell it was a Monday because the day began badly. I had been looking for some kind of ointment that would work on my injured foot and bought some Capzasin on Sunday. I used some right before going to bed and was disappointed that for $12 it seemed to do nothing at all. Well, nothing until 4:30 am when I woke up in pain, feeling like my ankle was on fire! I got up and washed it with soap and water, then put some aloe on it. It helped, but only a little. And after all that ruckus, who could go back to sleep?
So of course having not gotten a full night's rest, this was a late day at work, having to get documents signed. My business officer mentioned that the CIO realized he was spending a lot of time looking at documents and is going to phase this out. Well, duh. I could've told him that looking at each and every document in the former IT division would be a monster of a time-consumer. So it looks like there is finally a light at the end of this tunnel. People are starting to realize that this takes a lot of time and delays our getting anything accomplished. I just need to try to stay positive for a few more weeks and things should be back to (somewhat) normal. But in the short-term, I go back for more signings tomorrow. Well, it beats unemployment and most days it beats waitressing, too.
I put some gel heel cups in my shoes today as another measure to try to cure my foot pain. I don't know if it's helping, but the little gel thingies sure feel nice!
In other training news my quads and my right calf have been sore since Saturday night when they tightened up after my run. This doesn't bode well for the marathon. But there's still... what, 5 weeks? Why did I ever register for this thing?
Today's Workouts
Morning: 45 minutes abs and stretch cord exercises
Evening: 45 minutes elliptical trainer, about 10K pace
So of course having not gotten a full night's rest, this was a late day at work, having to get documents signed. My business officer mentioned that the CIO realized he was spending a lot of time looking at documents and is going to phase this out. Well, duh. I could've told him that looking at each and every document in the former IT division would be a monster of a time-consumer. So it looks like there is finally a light at the end of this tunnel. People are starting to realize that this takes a lot of time and delays our getting anything accomplished. I just need to try to stay positive for a few more weeks and things should be back to (somewhat) normal. But in the short-term, I go back for more signings tomorrow. Well, it beats unemployment and most days it beats waitressing, too.
I put some gel heel cups in my shoes today as another measure to try to cure my foot pain. I don't know if it's helping, but the little gel thingies sure feel nice!
In other training news my quads and my right calf have been sore since Saturday night when they tightened up after my run. This doesn't bode well for the marathon. But there's still... what, 5 weeks? Why did I ever register for this thing?
Today's Workouts
Morning: 45 minutes abs and stretch cord exercises
Evening: 45 minutes elliptical trainer, about 10K pace
Saturday, December 04, 2004
My Saturday run
Well, I was a bad girl today. I was only going to run 9 miles and ended up doing 12. I'm sure runners everywhere are screaming at me about the 10% rule, but I don't have time for someone else's rules if I'm going to make the marathon. I felt so good I even considered going a little farther, but I came home and did an hour on the elliptical machine instead. So it came out to about the equivalent of 18 miles from the consistent-effort perspective.
After I finished working out I soaked in the cold water of the small unheated pool outside my building. Immersion works better than laying a few bags of frozen corn on my legs, but it sure isn't fun. Today seemed more painful than usual, for some reason. Luckily I had a newspaper and a cup of hot chocolate to distract me until my legs went numb and I didn't feel any more pain. And I felt very fresh and tingly after a hot shower, so that part was nice. I'm a little bit sore tonight, but it's been worse. In fact, for not having run long since early November, I feel pretty good. Maybe the running-specific strength training I've been doing with the stretch cords is helping.
I'm going to experiment this week with a new theory that maybe my sore arch has something to do with tight calves. I've noticed that I've been having little teaser pains in the general area of the anterior tibialis, so I'll put some extra effort in loosening that area. It can't hurt anything and I have noticed in the past that when my calves are tight I'm more prone to foot cramps when I swim. Maybe this is sort of the same thing. Anything reasonable is worth trying at this point.
Dan and I had our usual "date" for Indian food today, then I took a long afternoon nap. It's great to get caught up on my sleep! It was supposed to rain most of the day, but it ended up not raining at all. Now they're saying the rain will come tomorrow. Whatever. I'm planning to spend some time on the bike trainer and then maybe stop in at the Y to use the hot tub on my feet. So it can rain all it wants to. I don't care.
Today's Workouts
12 mile run
1 hour elliptical trainer
After I finished working out I soaked in the cold water of the small unheated pool outside my building. Immersion works better than laying a few bags of frozen corn on my legs, but it sure isn't fun. Today seemed more painful than usual, for some reason. Luckily I had a newspaper and a cup of hot chocolate to distract me until my legs went numb and I didn't feel any more pain. And I felt very fresh and tingly after a hot shower, so that part was nice. I'm a little bit sore tonight, but it's been worse. In fact, for not having run long since early November, I feel pretty good. Maybe the running-specific strength training I've been doing with the stretch cords is helping.
I'm going to experiment this week with a new theory that maybe my sore arch has something to do with tight calves. I've noticed that I've been having little teaser pains in the general area of the anterior tibialis, so I'll put some extra effort in loosening that area. It can't hurt anything and I have noticed in the past that when my calves are tight I'm more prone to foot cramps when I swim. Maybe this is sort of the same thing. Anything reasonable is worth trying at this point.
Dan and I had our usual "date" for Indian food today, then I took a long afternoon nap. It's great to get caught up on my sleep! It was supposed to rain most of the day, but it ended up not raining at all. Now they're saying the rain will come tomorrow. Whatever. I'm planning to spend some time on the bike trainer and then maybe stop in at the Y to use the hot tub on my feet. So it can rain all it wants to. I don't care.
Today's Workouts
12 mile run
1 hour elliptical trainer
Friday, December 03, 2004
Tired
Well, after my Thursday evening at the gym and no nap, it was all I could do to stay awake today. Ginseng, sugar and caffeine weren't even touching this! I had an hour to kill between campus meetings so I came home and picked up Tidbit's hay from the leasing office, since I wasn't sure if I'd be working late and might not get home in time to pick it up. I didn't want Dan picking up any packages because I was worried one of his Christmas presents might have been delivered. As it turned out, it hadn't been. Maybe he isn't on Santa's "Good" list, after all.
So after I got my packages, I took a 20 minute nap. I've always been skeptical of those stories that say a 20 minute nap is "refreshing" and that more than 20 minutes makes you sluggish. Ha! They obviously haven't met me! I was dragging just as bad afterwards as before, only now with sheet wrinkles on my face. Great. My other meeting ended up being cancelled, so it didn't matter. I was too eager to get back to bed to really care. But on a less immediate level, I'm irked. The CIO won't sign payment docs unless we show up with them in person. Then he regularly cancels the meetings. WTF? At some point, someone is going to have to develop a sense of perspective about this. Someone besides little unimportant me, that is.
Dan came home with a rumor that my department is aquiring part of another department. I can see the logic of it, but I don't know what to think. If it's true and no one on the inside told me in advance, does that mean I'm on someone's blacklist? I'd like us to aquire more people because then I can justify asking for a promotion. But if I'm being kept in the dark...
Well, it's no use dwelling on such things. It'll only ruin my weekend and I'll be no better informed for it.
Tomorrow I'm going to try to run again. The plan is to run 9 miles and do an hour on the elliptical trainer. Hopefully the rain will hold off and I can run at the park, but I'll use the treadmill if I have to. If I'm pain-free after tomorrow's workout I will start to feel very optimistic about the marathon, but I still think sub-four will be an unrealistic goal.
Today's Workouts
45 minutes abs and stretch cords
So after I got my packages, I took a 20 minute nap. I've always been skeptical of those stories that say a 20 minute nap is "refreshing" and that more than 20 minutes makes you sluggish. Ha! They obviously haven't met me! I was dragging just as bad afterwards as before, only now with sheet wrinkles on my face. Great. My other meeting ended up being cancelled, so it didn't matter. I was too eager to get back to bed to really care. But on a less immediate level, I'm irked. The CIO won't sign payment docs unless we show up with them in person. Then he regularly cancels the meetings. WTF? At some point, someone is going to have to develop a sense of perspective about this. Someone besides little unimportant me, that is.
Dan came home with a rumor that my department is aquiring part of another department. I can see the logic of it, but I don't know what to think. If it's true and no one on the inside told me in advance, does that mean I'm on someone's blacklist? I'd like us to aquire more people because then I can justify asking for a promotion. But if I'm being kept in the dark...
Well, it's no use dwelling on such things. It'll only ruin my weekend and I'll be no better informed for it.
Tomorrow I'm going to try to run again. The plan is to run 9 miles and do an hour on the elliptical trainer. Hopefully the rain will hold off and I can run at the park, but I'll use the treadmill if I have to. If I'm pain-free after tomorrow's workout I will start to feel very optimistic about the marathon, but I still think sub-four will be an unrealistic goal.
Today's Workouts
45 minutes abs and stretch cords
Thursday, December 02, 2004
Marathon training frustrations
I have finally gotten all my calendars at work and at home turned to December so I'm no longer living in the past.
I received an email from the Houston Marathon yesterday reminding me that the marathon is only six weeks away. Great. Just pressure a girl, why don't you? I can't tell this week if my foot feels worse or not. Sometimes I think it hurts, but then I move it a bit and it doesn't hurt any more. I'm hoping it's only my imagination. I've had imaginary pain after recovering from bone stress and from tendonitis, so maybe it's all in my head. The arch feels a little tight, but that might not mean anything bad. I'll put my foot in the water jet at the hot tub at the Y tonight, and that should loosen it up. And I'll know more about what's going on when I go for my Saturday run. I need to be able to do nine or ten miles this weekend if I'm going to get back on track for a January 16 marathon.
But back to the email... They mentioned that everyone finishing under four hours will be eligible for an expenses-paid trip to the Athens Marathon. One male and one female will be selected at random. Well, hell. It just figures that this would be another year when I can't train competitively because of injury. And to think that if I hadn't gotten this weird random injury that I don't even know the cause of, a sub-four finish would've been doable. Okay, so I never win anything really super cool like a trip to Athens, so it's almost guaranteed that my name wouldn't have been picked, but... I coulda been a contender!
So I will console myself tonight with a long session at the gym and maybe a big bowl of oatmeal and pumpkin butter when I get home. I know it sounds weird, but it's really, really good!
Today's Workouts:
Morning: 45 minutes core and stretch cords
Evening: Kickbox class, Pilates, Body Pump, and either a short swim or deep water "sprint" session
I received an email from the Houston Marathon yesterday reminding me that the marathon is only six weeks away. Great. Just pressure a girl, why don't you? I can't tell this week if my foot feels worse or not. Sometimes I think it hurts, but then I move it a bit and it doesn't hurt any more. I'm hoping it's only my imagination. I've had imaginary pain after recovering from bone stress and from tendonitis, so maybe it's all in my head. The arch feels a little tight, but that might not mean anything bad. I'll put my foot in the water jet at the hot tub at the Y tonight, and that should loosen it up. And I'll know more about what's going on when I go for my Saturday run. I need to be able to do nine or ten miles this weekend if I'm going to get back on track for a January 16 marathon.
But back to the email... They mentioned that everyone finishing under four hours will be eligible for an expenses-paid trip to the Athens Marathon. One male and one female will be selected at random. Well, hell. It just figures that this would be another year when I can't train competitively because of injury. And to think that if I hadn't gotten this weird random injury that I don't even know the cause of, a sub-four finish would've been doable. Okay, so I never win anything really super cool like a trip to Athens, so it's almost guaranteed that my name wouldn't have been picked, but... I coulda been a contender!
So I will console myself tonight with a long session at the gym and maybe a big bowl of oatmeal and pumpkin butter when I get home. I know it sounds weird, but it's really, really good!
Today's Workouts:
Morning: 45 minutes core and stretch cords
Evening: Kickbox class, Pilates, Body Pump, and either a short swim or deep water "sprint" session
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