Aquathlon National Championships 2015

Swim confidently.
Run aggressively.

Aquathlon (swim/run) is a sport I have always thought I'd be good at and always wanted to try, but unfortunately, they're really hard to find locally or even in the whole state of Ohio.  Early in 2015 I established that I wanted to go to the national championships and try to qualify for the world championships.  Obviously, everything got derailed when I broke my hip.  In mid-August, though, the doctor, physical therapist, and coach gave me the green light to go ahead and do this race.

My training has been spotty at best.  I've put in the time in the pool, but I've been tentative about my running.  I've done some running but nothing as long as six miles and nothing with speed.  Honestly, I'm scared to push the hip at this point.  In addition, I put on quite a bit of weight this summer and haven't taken any of it off.  I've eaten and drank horribly and have overall felt like crap.

Nonetheless, we planned a trip to Oklahoma so I could compete in the race.  I had a hard time wrapping my head around the price of the trip versus the total time of the race versus my ability to actually qualify for the world championships.  We always came back to the fact that I was "racing the states" and I didn't have Oklahoma.  Excuse, enough, I guess.

More on our overall trip to Oklahoma tomorrow.  And now, on with the race.

The swim was a 1500m triangle open water swim in Lake El Reno.  The water was a cold 67 degrees and murky.  Ah, just like home!  I haven't done an open water swim since Anderson was born, but things have gone really well in the pool so I figured I would be okay.  Except, I'm not very confident in open water.  I don't like to be close to other competitors.  I don't like seeing how long the swim actually is.  I don't like thinking about how deep the water is and the possibility that no one would see me sink to the bottom.  Dude, seriously, I'm a head-case!  I started too far back in the pack and almost immediately freaked out.  As I was spotting I saw a girl beside me raise her hand and ask for assistance from one of the kayaks.  Yikes!  I flipped over to my back, collected myself, and told myself to just make it to the first turn buoy and then I could quit.  As I was swimming to that first buoy I got mad at myself.  I didn't travel over half of the country to quit.  If anything, I was picking up Oklahoma!

I got to that first turn buoy and it was shallow.  Like, only up to my chest, shallow.  Several people were walking.  So, I stood up too.  Shoot, I was walking as fast as anyone was swimming around me!  Soon, though, it was time to get back to swimming and I did more confidently this time.  It took forever to reach the second turn bouy but by this time there was a light at the end of the tunnel.  Although I swam a horrible line, I still picked people out in front of me and swam hard to catch them.  Finally the swim was over.  I was plucked from the water and was headed for the wet suit strippers.

Seriously y'all.  Multisport is just comical for me.  There is always something.  For me, it happened at the wet suit strippers.  My wet suit got stuck on my wrist.  Not on my watch.  Not on a timing chip.  On my tiny, T-Rex, wrists!  Seriously?!  How much weight have I gained?!?!  It took a good 30+ seconds to rip my arm out of the wet suit and then a mere flash to get the rest of the wet suit off.

Transition wasn't any better.  It shouldn't take that long to put on socks and shoes (shoes that have speed laces in them too), grab my hat and number and go.  Yet I seemed to be in transition forever.  (In reality, it was less than a minute but it probably should have been a lot faster.)  And then I was out on the run.

I got passed.  I did some passing.  I tried to do some counting in my age group.  I ran within myself at a pace that was both swift enough and conservative enough for my hip.  At the first turn around (it was a two-looping, out-and-back course), I got passed by a girl in my age group.  She was flying.  Crap.  I finished the first loop and Dave told me that I was in 10th in my age group (in reality I was 11th) and that girls ahead of me looked bad.  I picked up the pace a little and started focusing on other competitors.  I reached one girl and we began to push each other.  My pace dropped down to about 7:50 and I was starting to feel good.  At the final turn around I caught that girl in my age group who had passed me earlier.  I wound my way to the finish line and kicked it in.  My run time was around 49:15 or something like that.

This picture pretty much sums it up, doesn't it?

Here's where things got dicey.  The top ten in each age group qualifies for the world championship next September in Cozumel.  Aquathlon follows the same rules as triathlon.  You compete as your age at the end of the year for the whole year.  Does that make sense?  My birthday is in April.  I competed as a 37 year old no matter if it was January 2015 or December 2015.  This rule sucks for Dave because he has a December birthday.  Because of these weird age-up rules, my competition was really 34-38 year olds because they would be 35-39 in 2016 for the world championships.  For the current 35-39 year olds, I finished 8th in the age group.  Applying the age up rules, I finished 10th.

Unofficially, I have made the national team and will be heading to Cozumel to compete in the world championships.  I am so excited!  

Note - All of my pictures from the race are videos on the GoPro.  I'm trying to figure out how to make them into still images.  Hopefully more pictures to come later.

Manly Things

I came home from work yesterday to see the kiddo, the husband, and the neighbor all out in the yard chatting.  Or at least, I thought that's what they were doing.  As I approached, however, I noticed there were tools.  Big tools.  Sharp tools.  Then it started.  The two of them were chopping wood.  We've had to cut down a lot of dead trees this summer and we've been using the wood in our firepit (and soon enough, the inside fireplaces).  Then another neighbor came home and he came over with a chainsaw.  It was a 'manly' party at my house. 

There was also this:

Oh yes.  Chopping wood with his plastic hammer.

I asked Dave how he convinced the neighbor to come over and help him.  He said he just did.  And after the third neighbor came over with his chainsaw I knew this was true.  Men doing manly things.  Testosterone, I guess.

Week in Review

Hello, hello!!!

It's been quite a while since I've had any training worthwhile to put together a "Week in Review" post.  This week I did pretty well, though.

Swimming - 7800 yards ~ 4.4 miles
It should have been more.  I missed a nearly 3000 yard swim due to time constraints, but still got in some great swimming.  I've been working hard to become more swimmer-like after reading this article in Triathlete.  I've incorporated bilateral breathing and flip turning into all my workouts.  And it's making a difference.  I had 3 x 100 at the end of a long workout last week and busted out a 1:30, 1:29, and 1:27, respectively.

Running - 17.01 miles
Yes, 17 miles is not a lot.  However, this is the most miles I have strung together in a week since my last marathon attempt in May.  I did four runs and they were on consecutive days.  By the end of the week, my hip was not happy.  Not painful, but definitely not happy.  I had hoped to do one more run, but I ran out of time.  Life happens!

Strength Training - 0.5 hours
Right now I am only able to do my PT exercises as my strength training.  I should be doing it a lot more than a half hour per week.  By the end of the day, though, I'm just tired and want to sit on the couch.  I recently built my own slide board (more on this soon), so I hope to incorporate this into my strength training soon.

Now let's talk about the fun stuff.  I freakin' love my FitBit.  The stats are awesome!  I check them throughout the day.  I am crazy obsessed.  Here's some of the fun stuff from the last week.

Steps -  92,648 total, 13,235 average per day
Saturdays really screw me up with my steps.  I teach swim lessons for four and a half hours and cannot wear my FitBit during that time.  (It's not water proof.)  I walk a lot between the two pools I teach in and back and forth to get towels and whatnot.  I walk a lot more steps on Saturday than what is accounted for.

Resting Heart Rate - 75 average
I hope this continues to drop as I get more and more into shape again.

Distance - 40.2 miles total, 5.74 miles per day
This is grossly wrong.  I've noticed the mileage to be WAY off from my Garmin when I go on a run.  That's alright.  It's still a fun stat.

Sleep - 8 hrs, 7 minute average per day
That's right kiddos.  I regularly get over 8 hours of sleep per day.  Boom!!!

Thanks for checking in.  I'm hoping to get back to a regular blogging schedule.  I don't know how many of y'all actually read it (or care), but I enjoy writing this and want to be better about it.  Oh, and there is a big race this week for me.  Stay tuned!

Happy Anniversary

Dave and I are celebrating our 13th wedding anniversary today!

Look how young and skinny we were!

He surprised me with an awesome gift.  It involved some clues, however.  Can you guess what he got me?

Thursday Thoughts

This weekend is the Air Force Marathon in Dayton, OH.  I ran this last year as a training run (for which I got in lots of trouble with my coach) after years of wanting to run it.  And you know what?  I didn't love it.  The course was BORING and there were no spectators for most of the race since it was on the Air Force base.  I had built this race up as a cool race to run and I was disappointed.  I won't be putting this race back on my calendar.



So, what race will you not run again?

My little boy is now a big boy who goes to preschool

My little guy started preschool last week.  He goes one day a week for two hours.  He's supposed to learn about counting and letters and spelling and singing and all the stuff he already knows.  He did great - no crying - and talked about playing on the playground and playing with the trucks in the room.  I don't know if he learned anything but at least he likes it.  And Dave and I enjoyed a lovely breakfast out just the two of us.

A&F Challenge 5K 2015

Ermahgerd!  I ran a race!

I had no idea what I could do in a race.  I had no idea how my hip would hold up.  I just planned on running and see where my feet would take me.  As it turns out, my feet and hip still know how to race.

I didn't race balls-to-the-wall.  I just went out and ran.  I tried to keep my pace even and keep Dave in my sight.  And I'd say I did a pretty good job of that.

Mile 1 - 7:39
Mile 2 - 7:48
Mile 3 - 7:44

My overall time was 23:33 and I came in just 30 seconds behind Dave.  Oh, and I was the 18th female finisher.  It's nowhere near where I was last year, but having broken my hip and taken the whole summer off, I'm pretty happy with my time.  There's still life left in these legs and they're ready to start racing again.

**I wish I had some pictures.  I don't think there was a photographer at the race and obviously, my paparazzi was racing with me.

Monday's Merchandise: FitBit

Y'all?!  I.AM.OBSESSED.

I have always been give or take about my Garmin.  I enjoy having the awareness when I train about pace and heart rate, but honestly, I prefer to just run with a stop watch during a race. 

Last week I bought myself a FitBit Charge HR with money I had been saving.  And I've got to tell you, I freakin' love it!  I love having all the stats: steps, heart rate, calories, sleep, water, food intake, etc.  I must check the app one million times a day!  I've even been pretty diligent at tracking my food so I know if calories in is less than calories out.  I have to get those six pounds off I gained this summer!  I also love that I can set a silent alarm (there is nothing more jarring than being startled by a loud alarm clock).  I used it for the first time on Saturday to get up for work and it was AWESOME!

The only "con" I've noticed is that the accuracy of the distance traveled is way different than my Garmin.  This morning I went out for a 50 minute run.  My Garmin said I traveled about 5-1/4 miles which is probably about right.  My FitBit said I had gone less than 5 miles.  Of course, it's basing it on steps and not GPS.  Either way, it probably doesn't matter since it uses your heart rate to determine calories burned.

Whatever.  I freakin' love it.  And I'm sure it's going to take no time to convince the husband he should have one too.  Gosh darn technology!  You're so cool!

Do you have a FitBit or a VivoFit or something like that?  Do you love it as much as I do?

Week In Review

This was officially my first week back to training.  And I didn't do so hot.  First of all I've been battling a cold for the better part of 10 days.  Every time I would exert myself in an exercise I would cough.  And then Anderson got sick which made it impossible to go to the Y to do my swims because I couldn't put him in the child care there.  Finally, I'm struggling to figure out how to get everything done now that I have a job again.  Each week will get easier as I put in the time, dedication, and consistency.

Swimming - 6500 yards
I did swims of 2500, 3000, and 1000 yards.  The 1000 I did because I had the time at work, although it wasn't on the schedule.  Nothing wrong with adding extra work, amIright?  But, I did miss a 2600 yard swim that I'm still hoping to do sometime.

Running - 11.32 miles
Running was a struggling this week.  The cold didn't help.  The hot temperatures didn't help.  Camping and being out of town didn't help.  And my own laziness didn't help.  The running is coming back, slowly but surely.

Strength Training - 0.5 hours
I'm still doing my hip physical therapy exercises on occasion.  I should probably do them more.  I mean, I can do them while watching TV.  I'm just lazy.  There appears to be a theme here.

I'm finally starting to get over this cold so hopefully next week is an improvement.  Happy training.

Optimal Swimming Stroke

Everyone's a coach, right?

I have been swimming my whole life, although I never swam competitively.  Now that I teach swimming I know that swim instructors are just people who know something about swimming and want a job.  They may or may not know the correct way to teach or the correct way to swim.  So, the way I swim may or may not be the best way to swim.  Regardless, I do a pretty good job, I'm a little bit on the faster side, and I've done alright in races.  So, win?

Earlier this week I was at the pool while one of my good friends and fellow swim instructor and coach was in the guard chair.  I was doing a long workout consisting mostly of pulling drills.  She took a look at my stroke and form and gave me some pointers.  She said I had really low elbows both out of the water and in the water.  She said I don't reach far enough in front of me to pull all the water.  And she said I had a really high stroke rate, like 23 strokes per 25 yards.  She did say I had good hip rotation.

I relayed all this information to my coach and she basically said, "who cares?"  My friend is a good six inches taller than me and my coach is about my size (and an effing beast of an athlete).  My coach said there was nothing wrong with a high stroke rate and that I shouldn't worry about swimming with a straight arm to catch more water.

I have a few other confidants at the pool I've talked to this about.  They wondered about my shoulder rotation.  Sure I have good hip rotation but are my shoulders rotating too to be able to reach further?  They check out my flexibility in my shoulders and elbows and said it was good.  Hopefully I'll be able to get them to actually look at my stroke later this week (when I get over this cold enough to stop coughing and get my head into the water).

August Totals

August was the month I got back to running.  Well, jogging anyway.  Nevertheless, it felt good to do it.  I didn't have a training plan or clearance to schedule a race so I found it hard to stay motivated but I did do a little.

Swimming - 4500 yards.  This is pathetic.  I will have more yardage than that in the first week of September.  You would think since I am at the swimming pool every day working that I would at least jump in during my breaks and swim a little.

Biking - 8 miles.  One bike ride.  I'm over the bike.

Running - 39.79 miles.  It's not much but it's a lot more than it was.  And it was actually running/jogging and not walking.

Strength Training - 2.42 hours.  My sister is a certified personal trainer and offers her friend a circuit training class twice a week at the local church.  Last week I attended.  I've got to hand it to her, it was not easy.  I was sore for days.  Good job kiddo.  I might have to check it out again.

YMCA Visits - 16.  So, August was supposed to be the month that my employee discount kicked in.  But, we still haven't seen it yet reflected in our credit card.  I only counted the visits by the husband and the kiddo and not mine since my new discount gives me a free membership.  However, I still counted the full price in the calculation so...

YMCA Cost per Visit - $5.33.  This would have been a lot less had I counted my visits.

September is going to look a lot different.  I started training with my coach again on August 31st.  I can't wait to get back to a regular training schedule with races on the calendar.

All Clear

A broken femur.  A partially torn hip labrum.  Twelve weeks of no running.  Six weeks of physical therapy.  And six pounds gained.  I have finally, FINALLY been cleared to resume training. 

I am so happy!!!

I am allowed to return to training with a few caveats.  No more than five days of running each week.  Keep up with all my strength routines.  Do not build speed and mileage at the same time.  BE CAREFUL!

Monday it all starts.  I have five weeks until a race I'd like to focus on.  Will I be back to where I was?  Absolutely not, but hopefully enough that I can be happy about my race and experience.

Thursday Thoughts

Okay, a little bragging.

This week I went grocery shopping, with my 2 year old FTW, and bought a week's worth of food for our family for right around $100.  I used $44 in coupons!  This included meat (ground turkey, steak, and chicken breasts), lots of produce (berries, veggies, etc.), and even diapers.  I totally won this shopping trip.

So, what's your secret for saving money?  Groceries?  Race entries?  Home improvements?

Feeling the Itch

I've been back to "training" for about three weeks now and I'm already feeling the itch to race.  Sure, right now I can only run 10 minute/miles as prescribed by the doctor but give me another month and that could change.  Right?  RIGHT?  Tentatively I have two races I'm thinking about: one in October and one in November. 

Is this a dumb idea?  Does my hip need further rehab?  Am I going to be disappointed because I won't be able to race like I used to?

I better decide fast.  One is out of state and requires plane tickets and hotel reservations as well as signing up for the race.

Decisions, decisions!

Thursday Thoughts

This topic might be way too much TMI, but a running blog would not be a running blog without a little too much TMI.

Running underwear.  Let's do it.

I am an underwear girl.  I like my undies big, granny-like, cotton, and I could care less about lines under my clothing.  I don't own a thong.  I do, ALWAYS, wear underwear when I run.  I don't get chafed from underwear, but I tend to get chafed in the ol' butt crack when I run long from sweat or water getting all over me or just my big booty rubbing against itself for hours on end.

Too much TMI yet?

I've been reading all over the internet about running underwear.  Prices.  Sizes.  Materials.  Is it worth it.  And you know what I've found out?  I don't think many people wear underwear while running.  Well, good for you all, this isn't going to happen for me.  Although I wear shorts with liners, those liners don't fit like underwear.  And I've already established I'm an underwear girl.

So I'm asking...are you an underwearer or not?  If yes, do you wear the fancy running stuff?  Worth it or I'm still gonna get crack chafing anyway?

Go to town, America.  I can't wait to hear what you have to say.

Thursday Thoughts

I was walking/jogging a week ago while pushing the stroller and this random dude, slowed up his car on the other side of the road and yelled out, "NICE LEGS!" 

Um, thanks?!

I was a little creeped out but at least it was a good compliment and not something totally inappropriate or rude.

What's the weirdest thing that's happened to you while running?  What's the weirdest compliment you received?

Speaking of weird compliments....

I was picking up dinner the other night.  I got weak and ordered Chinese.  Ugh, I hate myself.  Anyway, at our previous home we would order Chinese quite often.  It was good; it was right across the street; I was skinny.  While I waited on my food my favorite ladies and I were shooting the breeze.  The asked about Dave, about the baby, about the new home.  And then in the weirdest backhanded compliment one of them told me I looked better now because I had gained weight. 

Um, thanks?!

Well, personally, I want to be lean and fit and skinny.  But I love your food so I'll take the "compliment".

Foto Friday

Here we go!

Day #61 - A video!  I mean, how cute is this?

 Day #62 - Anderson actually asked to get his picture taken today.  This is what we got.

 #63 - Little buns doing my physical therapy Steamboats.

 Day #64 - Anderson kept asking to play soccer out in the yard.  How does he even know about soccer?  We never talk about soccer!

Day #65 - Riding bikes with the neighbor girl.  Where's your helmet, son?!

 Day #66 - Excavator + Wendy's = One Happy Boy!

 Day #67 - Grilled cheese and gang signs?

Mixing it Up

I work with a lot of young (and I mean YOUNG - I'm old enough to be their mother), health and fitness kiddos at the Y.  Most of them are current or former swimmers although some have done other sports.  One of them is a former division II wrestling stud.  They talk a lot about workouts and especially what they eat in during their days.  They eat so healthy!  I eat so unhealthy.  :(

But, I've got some weight to lose and running is starting to come into focus so I figured now is the right time to get, at least, somewhat serious about it.  I bought a MagicBullet.

Why?  I don't know.  I guess juicing and smoothies and whatnot is supposed to be good for you.  I don't particularly like smoothies, but I can try.  Our tastes change as we get older, right?

My first smoothie was some cashew concoction.

Kale, coconut oil, coconut flakes, cashews, banana, strawberries, almond milk.  Yuck.  The reason I don't like smoothies is that you have to chew them a little. 

But I tried again the next day.

Strawberries, celery, avocado, apple, beet, ice, coconut water.  Maybe something else?  And this time I got smarter and drank it with a straw so there was less chewing.  This one was pretty good except all I tasted was celery.  I don't like celery.  Yuck.  Maybe next time I'll make it without the celery.

So far I haven't been in love with these smoothies, but I'll keep trying.  Even if I just drink a little I'm getting some nutrients and healthy stuff and eating less calories. 

Why is it so hard to be healthy and skinny and fit?

Learning Something New

I love working with a coach.  My coach is awesome and perfectly understands my training needs.  However, variety is the spice of life.  Or something like that.  My friends at work are, obviously, pretty good swimmers and are teaching me lots of stuff.  Tonight one of them wrote a workout for a coworker and me.

Many of the drills I had never done.  I'm not very good at butterfly (I got some good instruction on this).  I had never dove off the blocks (I lost my goggles no less than 5 times). 

This workout was tough.  I am so out of shape.  The girl I was swimming with was putting me to shame.  We only made it through half the workout before we ran out of time and the pool closed.  Guess we'll have to finish the workout another time.

What do you do to spice up your training?  What are your favorite non-running workouts?

Physical Therapy

I've been doing physical therapy now for three weeks.  The goal is to strengthen my hip and the muscles surrounding.  My first visit we discovered I have no muscles, which is why I have stability issues and injuries. 

The first week consisted of simple leg lifts and Steamboats (that's my doctor's office in the video).  I also learned some stretches for my cranky hamstring that has been bothering me for the better part of a year.  Those exercises were enough.  My hip area was on fire.  I even had to stop some of the exercises because I just didn't have the strength.  I did those exercises on my own 3-4 times during the next week.

The second week we continued with the leg lifts and Steamboats and added some more exercises.  First was single leg squats with the other leg in front, to the side 45 degrees, and to the back 45 degrees.  That's a LOT of single leg squats, y'all!  Next was a single leg "pencil pickup".  Think of it like those Drinking Birds.  Finally there were hip hikes.

This morning was my favorite physical therapy session.  I was introduced to this:

An anti-gravity treadmill

First they put me in a pair of neoprene shorts, like a wetsuit.  Then I was zipped inside up to my waist.  It fills with air and calculates your weight.  Finally you select the percentage of body weight at which to run and start the treadmill.  I started with a walk which was WEIRD!  I had the treadmill set high, 65%, which was like walking on the moon.  I kind of bounced and there was nowhere to put my arms.  I looked like an old lady power-walker.  After I few minutes I increased the speed and kept doing it every few minutes.  My last few minutes were at a 9:50 pace.  The running felt pretty good.  I didn't have any pain in the area of my stress fracture, but I did have the cranky hamstring and a little bit of tenderness on the outside of my hip area.  With each exercise, though, it is getting stronger and less tender.

I am now doing some jogging outside, although still mostly walking.  I will continue on the Alter G treadmill at physical therapy until I can fully run.  The good news is I'm getting stronger and I'm no longer in pain.  Real running is coming soon.

July Totals

Is my exercise in July actually worth an entry?  Not really.  I was lazy.  I gained a lot of weight.  I got a job.  I got busy.  The calendar has now turned and I SWEAR I will get back to regularity soon.  Really soon.

Swimming - 3800 yards
After only being allowed to swim with my hip injury, I am just tired of swimming.  3800 yards should be a daily workout, not a monthly total.

Biking - 10.55 miles
Two bike rides.  Two effing bike rides.

Running/Walking - 28.22 miles
This is nothing to brag about, but after weeks and months of no running, it feels so good to get back to it.  I've been doing peppy walks with the stroller and even throwing in some jogging intervals.  I've also put the elliptical machine to work at the Y.

Strength - 1.25 hours

Y Visits - 11
Cost per Visit - $7.76 - I have no idea how I'm going to calculate all this next month when my membership becomes free.  I guess I have to stop counting my visits and only count Anderson and Dave's.  Right?

I'm so glad this month is over.  I'm ready to move on.

Foto Friday

I'm so behind.  I don't know where the last two weeks have gone but, obviously, no time has been devoted to this blog.  Get ready to be inundated with pictures...

Day #47 - Playing around with Grandpa.

 Day #48 - My brother-in-law is a real life farmer.  He took Anderson out on the combine.  I have to admit, I was jealous.

 Day #49 - National Ice Cream Day!!!

Day #50 - This was my Tonka truck when I was younger.  I remember it being much bigger.

 Day #51 - My parents, Anderson, and I went on a long bike ride around town.  We made it back just before the sun set.

 Day #52 - Anderson talks a lot about my tattoo, so I gave him one.  Like what it says?

Day #53 - How about a little #tbt?  He still had his baby fat and no teeth.

 Day #54 - I asked Anderson to smile and this is what I got.

Day #55 - The Home Depot.  Our second home.  Anderson looks so thrilled to be here again.

 Day #56 - This one is Anderson's "performance art."  Notice his feet on the drying rack?  He calls it "Bird in Tree."

 Day #57 - Lifeguard Anderson reporting for duty.

 Day #58 - My new t-shirt.  I mean, how cool is this?!

 Day #59 - I call this game Smooshie Face.  Anderson calls it Eat Mama's Face.

 Day #60 - Anderson loves to read.  I love that he loves to read.

Only 40 days left in this project and it's getting harder and harder.  I'm back into regular exercise (sort of) and started my job and we've been putting in a lot of hours in projects around the house.  Sometimes it's 10:00pm and I still haven't remembered to take a picture.  Must.Try.Harder!

Motivational Monday

"Never quit.  It is the easiest cop-out in the world.  Set a goal and don't quit until you attain it.  When you do attain it, set another goal and don't quit until you reach it.  Never quit."

- Bear Bryant

Week in Review

Remember the July Challenge when Dave and I vowed to work out every day?  Yeah, we suck.  At least I'm doing better than Dave on that front.  This week I was given the go-ahead to get on the "Return to Running" program.  Immediately I started on the elliptical and I've been doing some solid walking outside.  Here's the week in a snippet.

Swimming - 1500 yards
5 x 300 pull

Biking - Nothing.  Absolutely nothing.  I'm soooo over biking.

Walking/Elliptical - 6.42 miles
I was only allowed to start at 20 minutes on the elliptical and build up to 40 in the next two weeks.  I did one elliptical for 20 minutes, did one walk on the treadmill, and one longer walk outside with the stroller. 

Strength Training - 0.25 hours
I am using my conditioning cards and now I can do most of them because the hip is healed-ish.  This week's exercises included Russian twists, forward lunges, upright rows, reverse lunges, pushups with legs on stability ball, one-legged squats (I could only do one set on the injured leg.  They hurt a little too much.), bench press, pull ups, burpees, and skull crushers.  Boy, was I sore after this workout.

Next week I start physical therapy.  I also hope to really get these legs moving.

I Got Caught Cheating

No it's not what you think.

I mentioned a few days ago that without running I don't particularly have a lot of self confidence.  I've gained about 6 pounds without running and just feel really blah about myself right now. What does a woman do when she feels awful about herself?  Well, she cuts her hair.

A few weeks ago I got a haircut.  The goal was a long pixie, or a Lixie as I'm calling it.  Unfortunately, the cut was a little off and had a distinct "mom hair" look to it.  I suppose at 37 and a mom that's appropriate, but I want to be a cool mom.  So, it was time to go back to the pixie.  I like the pixie.  I just worry sometimes that I look like a boy.  I'm working on my wardrobe so maybe that will help.

Anyway, when I get the idea in my head to cut my hair, I want to do it and do it now.  Don't think about it or else you'll back out.  The chick that usually cuts my hair was unavailable until late next week.  No, NOW!!!  I made an appointment at the usual salon with a chick who had availability first thing this morning.

Wouldn't you know as soon as I walked in the salon the first person I saw was the chick who usually cuts my hair?  Busted!  I had a hard time explaining that one away.  I wasn't cheating on her!  Her availability wasn't what I needed/wanted.

The chick who cut my hair had the personality of a door knob but she did do a good job cutting my hair.  Although I love the haircut, next time I'll go back to my usual girl so I don't have a guilty conscious about just cutting my hair.

Foto Friday

The #100HappyDays journey continues...

Day #40 - Anderson's first movie in the theatre.  We took him to see "The Minion Movie".  He did alright for about half of it and then he got restless.  Luckily we were able to corral him between us and let him stand up to watch the rest of the movie.  

Day #41 - Stopping to smell the flowers.  Anderson is so funny around flowers.  He always sniffs them.  I wish I had a video.  It's so funny.  I also wish I could claim these were my flowers.  My flower bed looks like shit.  That's putting it mildly.  These are my parents' flowers.

 Day #42 - R2D2-ish?  Anderson has never seen Star Wars and he won't for years, but he does love R2D2 and other robots.  He even has a t-shirt.  Here he is posing with R2D2 at our local Mellow Mushroom (pizza restaurant).

Day #43 - This kid.  Here he is half in pajamas, half in regular clothes, watching educational YouTube videos on my iPad.  

 

Day #44 - My niece is showing rabbits at the local fair this year.  We thought Anderson would think it was cool.  Instead, he was quite nervous and scared around the bunny.

 

Day #45 - This just looks like a mess waiting to happen.  Dave and Anderson planting some flowers they got me for Mother's Day.

 

 Day #46 - Yesterday afternoon.  We had a playground all by ourselves.  It's so wonderful to watch him enjoying childhood.

July Hip Update

It's been 8-1/2 weeks since I last ran.  Today was my July appointment for my hip.  The doctor asked me about my activity level, gave me the stink eye when I mentioned I was doing some walking, and tested out my strength. And then he gave me the best news ever, I could return to running!!!

Sort of.

My doctor has a "Return to Running" plan that has 11 steps going from walking to elliptical to jogging to building intensity to returning full time to training.  Because I had already started walking I blew through steps 1 and 2.  Overachiever!  So, I'm now onto at least 2 weeks of elliptical training, building from 20 minutes to 40. 

In addition because I continue to have pain in my outer hip and my hamstring, I will be starting physical therapy next week to begin to strengthen all the muscles. 

I'm super psyched to get running again.  The extra 5 pounds I gained too are extra excited to start the training too.  It might be another 8-12 weeks getting back into real training but at least there is a light at the end of the tunnel now.

Doing and Getting the Run Around

I have too much time on my hands without running.  And without running my self opinion goes down, down, down.  So it doesn't help that during this time we are redoing our closets.  I took one look at myself in the mirror and all my clothes I was removing from my closet and went, "yuck!"  Earlier this week I went to town on my wardrobe.  I put together two large laundry baskets of adult clothing and teenage clothing (I worked for Abercrombie for three years - I have lots of teen clothing).  Then on Tuesday I ran all over town to different consignment shops to try to resale my clothes.  I had to drop them off to be evaluated and quoted.  Then they would send me a text so I could go get my money/leftover clothes.

This whole time I was dragging my son around with me.  It was hot and we weren't exactly having fun.

First I got a text from the teenage shop.  They gave me $19 for some of my clothing and then gave me a bunch back.

Then I went back to the adult clothing store.  They gave me NOTHING and returned all of my clothing.  They told me they didn't sell many of my labels (snobs) and that my clothing was too old and out of style.

I'm sorry but when does a suit, a tailored jacket, and a jean skirt go out of style?

I was pissed.  And what do I do when I get pissed?  I turn to Facebook.  I started posting my clothes on different Facebook selling pages.  You know what?  I had hits immediately.  I started meeting people and selling my clothes and making better money than I was at the resale stores.  And I didn't have to host a garage sale.

Now I'm going through the rest of the house and getting read of my excess.  I'm so sick of all my stuff.  It's just sitting around, collecting dust, and has not or will not get used.  Time to clean out, the modern-garage-sale way.

Week in Review

Because of my busy week saving lives and the exhaustion that comes with it, working out fell to the wayside this week.  Plus my hip was incredibly sore after so much kicking in the pool.  I didn't do much - one swim, one bike, one weight lifting session, and two walks on the treadmill.  And all of that was finished by Wednesday.  Thursday through the rest of the weekend, well, I was just too tired.  I'll try again next week. 

Swim - 300 yards
Yep 300 yards.  That was the swimming portion of the lifeguarding test.  I wonder how much I actually swam the rest of the weekend with the abundance of rescues we had to do?

Bike - 5.29 miles
I did one bike on Tuesday evening.  It was only a half hour on the trainer.  I'm sick of biking.  I don't like biking.  When I get the all clear to go back to running, I think running is going to be my primary focus.

Strength training - 0.25 hours
Toe raises, dips with feet on the stability ball, dirty 30s (bicep curls, shoulder/flys, tricep kickbacks), side planks, reverse crunches, chin-ups, back extensions, horizontal rows, pushup rows, and skull crushers.

Walking - 3.5 miles
Most days we were given an hour for lunch.  I would eat my lunch quickly, by myself, and then hit the treadmill for a slow walk.  Yes, I have not technically been cleared to walk for exercise, but I'm also going 20 minute/miles.  That's what I would do if I were taking the dog for a walk.  I'm assuming it's alright.

It's now been eight weeks since I last ran.  I'm starting to get itchy.  I need to run.  I want to run.  Thursday I have my doctor's appointment.  I don't have my hopes set very high for running, but at least there is a light at the end of the tunnel now.

Lifeguard Certification

This past week I took steps toward securing a new job by getting my lifeguard certification.  I'm not going to lie, I kind of felt like a tool doing this.  I just kinda figured that lifeguards were 16 year old babes who just wanted to work on their tan and flirt with the boys.  Y'all, I was so wrong!!!  This was one of the hardest physical weeks I've experienced in a long time.  I was soooo exhausted by the end of the week. 

The week started off with per-requisite testing.  It consisted of a 300 yard continuous swim, retrieving a brick off the bottom of the deep end and swimming on your back with it for 25 yards (timed), and a two minute hands-free tread.  Surprisingly, we actually weeded out a few in the class who were unable to perform these tasks.

Then we started on the classroom portion of the class.  We learned about rules and scanning the pool and we watch real videos of people drowning and needing some resuscitation and some dying.  It was awful!   Some other land stuff we did was CPR, AED, rescue breathing, first aid, choking, etc.  The pool stuff was really difficult.  We learned how to properly jump or slide into the pool.  We learned all the rescues from simple stuff like handing the tube out to the person so they could get back to the wall or just getting in and lifting a person until they can touch, to really complicated stuff like passive underwater spinal rescues that involved deep water backboarding.  On Thursday we spent 3-1/2 hours straight in the pool doing rescues.  I slept like a boss that night!

Thursday afternoon we took the written tests.  The first one was CPR/AED.  It was 40 questions, multiple choice.  I missed two and passed.  Then was our lifeguarding written test.  I had wanted to study for it and take it on Friday, but the reality was there was no way I was going to have time to study.  So I took it and didn't miss any.  And then got made fun of by the instructor for wanting to study for it.  Yep.  I deserved that.

Friday was our in-water test.  We did three tests, each getting progressively harder.  One was a simple deep water rescue.  The second was a shallow spinal rescue.  And the third was a deep water passive rescue that included using the backboard and then doing the CPR/rescue breathing techniques. 

And....I passed!  I am now a certified lifeguard!

Plus, the instructors like what they saw and said I could get a job at the Y.  So I'm currently in the process of going through the application and orientation and then hopefully I can start working.  I'm not going to lie, there are parts that make me very nervous about being a lifeguard.  For example, I know that they audit you in the first week which means you perform a real (acted out) rescue in the water while the pool is open.  If you screw up, you could lose your job!  And the thought of doing a real rescue and possibly losing someone scares the crap out of me.  It's not likely, but it could always happen.  It will be good for me, though, to get back to working.  This is not going to interfere with me raising my child.  I am going to be working in the evenings and/or the weekends.  It will be good for me to get out of the house and have adult interaction.  It will be nice making some money again.  It will sure go a long way towards renovations in our house or just buying all the toys I want (hello standup paddleboard!!!).

It was a great week.  I made some new friends and learned lots of new skills.  I'm excited for the challenge ahead!

Foto Friday

And I'm back!!!  It's been a great and exhausting week of lifeguard training.  I'll talk about that tomorrow.  Let's get to the continued saga of #100happydays of photos.

Day #33 - Anderson playing at the playground while we were camping.  We only camped one night with the family during the Fourth of July holiday and actually slept on the couch in my parents' trailer.  We had too much to do to spend the whole weekend camping and boy did we get a lot done.

 Day #34 - Happy Independence Day!!

Day #35 - Yep, we got a lot done on our house over the holiday weekend.  We put the mirrors up in the bathroom along with some more finishing touches like towel rings and picture ledges.

#Day 36 - Don't worry.  These weren't plugged into anything.

Day #37 - These two.  (This was not staged.  I got lucky and caught Anderson hugging Sloopy.)

Day #38 - A video!  He's so funny.

Day #39 - Swim lessons.  This was at the very start of class, before he started screaming because he didn't want to follow any rules.

I can't believe I've kept up with this this long.  I'm on a role.  See ya next week!

Happy Independence Day