And So Begins a New Challenge...

...and it is P90X. I must say, it has taken me to a new level of pain. I think I mentioned that I was thankful for whoever invented the handicapped bars in bathrooms? Or maybe it was I was thinking about having them installed in my bathroom. Whichever one it was, P90X has taken me to that place again. Not only me, but my husband Steve, as well.

We started Saturday with Chest and Back. Not too bad pain wise but I don't think I even did half of the exercises - partly because our chin-up bar doesn't work on any of our doors due to thick trim and I have bird arms. In other words, they are weak!!! Steve finally ended up spotting me on push-ups and would pull me up once I got stuck after a couple (okay, on a couple of them, none!) Due to time constraints, we didn't do the Ab X workout.

Sunday, it was cardio. That did in the legs! I still feel it four days later! We followed it up with the ab workout.

Monday, it was arms and back - not too bad with my 2 pound weights (aka chicken broth and beef stock). Yes, we need to kick it up a bit.

Yesterday was supposed to be Yoga but I was in a time crunch so I did the ab workout again. I'm still sore but not limping as much. I'm hoping this will get my core stronger, along with my arms.

I'll keep you posted on the progress.

'Bout Time!

How many blogs have you read where the author begins with "I've been a bad blogger". Well, here's another one.

Life has been seriously busy! Lately, I'm lucky to get a run or two in a month and while it bothers me, I can't dwell on it or it would get me really down. Right now, I just have to go with it.

That said, I got in a run yesterday afternoon. It had snowed overnight (the Lake Effect Machine officially turned on here in Northwestern Indiana) and all I could think of in the morning was it would be a great day for a run. So, once my husband got home from work, I headed out the door. The sun was just starting to set and things were starting to freeze a big, but it was glorious to get out there and run 4 miles.

I'm hoping to start working out with the P90X soon. Steve got it for me for my birthday and I thought I would have started using it before now but it is a little discouraging to get going in that you have to have these pieces of equipment, you really need to be on this diet and you should use the following supplements to get optimal results. Needless to say, I still need to get a few more pieces of equipment (or at least find them). I'm not sure if the diet is going to change (although it needs to - caffeine and carbs are not the best things to be eating on a consistent basis.)

The other thing holding me back has been my back. I'm not sure what I did but I have been nursing it for about a month. It gets better and then I wear heals and it starts hurting again. Yes, I've given us the heals for a while and feel much better. The good thing is that it doesn't bother me when I run.

The time is coming soon to decide on some races for next year. More to come on that later.

Somthing's Gotta Give

Yep, that's right. I got to the point of needing to back off on something or things were going to start falling apart in my world. I'm not running a fall marathon. I'm kind of sad about it but largely okay.

The daily pressure of trying to figure out when I was going to get in a run was driving me crazy and almost to the point of really hating running. I needed to take a step back and concentrate on a few more important things, one being my family.

We've undergone some major changes in the last year. Both my husband and I have gone from working at home (very enjoyable but not very profitable) to working full-time. I went back to work in November and Steve started working part-time in May and then went to full-time in June. My schedule is a steady Monday-Friday while his fluctuates days and times making running consistently at a certain time a little difficult. I know, if I got up at 4:30 a.m. to do the run I could get it in regardless but I really enjoy my sleep, too.

So, that's where I'm at. After missing about two weeks of running due to illness and literally not having enough hours in the day, I knew I had to pull the trigger on the marathon.

I am, however, racing tomorrow. Well, not so much racing as running - okay, okay, surviving a race tomorrow morning - the Blueberry Stomp 15K. Against my better judgment, I'm planning on signing up in the morning and running the torture of a race. Thankfully, I'll be running with some friends from our church so hopefully they will keep me going - slowly.

I will keep updating the blog. I've got some plans for races next year - I don't want to stop the endurance sports and I want to make my 39th year on this earth a good one and go into my 40s fitter than I was in my 20s.

Thanks for reading!

A Bit of a Better Week?

Yes, one can hope. I don't think I've hit the mileage I'm supposed to, but I'm close. Took Monday off. I ran 6 on Tuesday very slowly thanks to 90 degree temperatures. It felt good though and I got to reward myself with Pizza King pizza on my friends boat for ladies' night out - caught up with three of my really good friends.

Last night, I ran 5 in the dark, starting at 10 p.m. By that time it had cooled off a bit from the 90 degrees of the day. I think it will end up being 5 or 6 again tonight about the same time. It is still hot and humid after a day of rain. I'm sitting on the back porch watching the steam rise off the garage roof as the sun is coming out after the afternoon rain.

Come to find out there is another marathon runner where I work. He hasn't done much running lately, but finished the Sunburst Marathon in South Bend and couple of years ago and wants to do the Marine Corp someday. I gave him the link to Running Podcasts and gave him some recommendations for when he gets running again.

Well, I guess that is all for now. Get in that run :-)

Poor Training...

So this is what my training week looked like last week:
Sunday - biked 20 miles
Monday - biked 16 miles
Tuesday - lazy
Wednesday - ran 4
Thursday - lazy
Friday - lazy
Saturday - 10 miles
Sunday - 4 miles

Surprisingly, the 10 mile run Saturday morning went really well. Maybe because my legs were so fresh - hmmmm. Well, ever since then, my quads have been screaming at me. Need to do better this week. Well, starting tomorrow...

Another Month...

Summer is going way too fast this year! I can't believe it is going to be July tomorrow. Once July is over, we're just about back to school in Indiana.

Marathon training started two weeks ago right in the middle of some really hot weather. Of course, had I been running for the month between the Indy Mini and then, it probably would have been a piece of cake however, as always, life got in the way. I probably got in one run per week, along with a spinning class. Otherwise, time running was replaced with other things that needed to be done.

So, with the lack of preparation and heat/humidity, running has been an utter chore! I've been slogging along and interspersing bike rides to keep up the confidence. Thankfully, this morning, after not wanting to, I got out of bed at 5:45 a.m. and ran four great miles! Temperatures were in the high 40s to low 50s and I found my groove once again. A little confidence, too. I needed it. today.

Does This Count as a Speed Workout?

Well, another week has passed without any running. Well, until I fit in a quick run, and I mean quick, yesterday.

Emily recently learned to ride her bike without the training wheels. Steve took her to the school parking lot one day got her started and off she went all by herself! I attribute some of it to the tag-a-long bike we used last summer. She loved it and got so comfortable with it the first time we used it that she was riding with no hands or standing up. One time she did both - it was quite a sight to behold for the two seconds she held the pose until I realized what was going on and yelled at her to sit down and hold on.

So yesterday, Kate had a birthday party to go to and Steve had the car so the girls rode their bikes and I laced up my running shoes. On the way there, I walked because I was carrying the gift and beach towel. On the way home, though, with just Emily, we raced. I tried to keep up and she peddled fast. We did the same on the way back to pick Kate up and then walked home. I don't think it was much more than a mile total but it did feel good to run.