It's nearing the end of 2013 and my year of ending all my activities that were spending my time and getting me nowhere. I've done pretty well and now want to start building back the things that are good for me and getting me to a better place.
One thing is I miss running. I've been out of it long enough that I don't feel competitive any more. I'd just like to participate and be out there. I've gotten into terrible shape again. But this week I'm going to start running. It's ok to even walk a little so I'm mixing it up with running two minutes and walking three. I can do that fairly easily.
So I'm just picking up where I left off in July from my tri. I'd do that again too. Maybe do some cross training but one step at a time. 2 minutes on, 3 minutes off. And I'm going to finish this week on schedule.
Monday, November 4, 2013
Monday, July 22, 2013
I made it
I accomplished the three goals I set for myself with this triathlon---finish, don't die, don't finish last. I can honestly say I did all those things, and did better in parts of the race than I thought I might. Here's the recap:
Swimming---I wasn't sure how well I would do with this. A lot of triathletes are not strong swimmers. I'm not either but I have swam with a masters group before so I know how to do it well. And, I was doing well until my swim cap came off and took the goggles with it. In the middle of the lake no less. grrr. I got both back on and then caught up to the people who had passed me. So, even though it was frustrating to have to stop, I was happy with the fact that I was able to catch up again. Imagine how I would do if I didn't stop!
Biking---riding a bike is easy. I've been doing it since I was 6 years old. Biking on those hills is not easy. I didn't do as well at this as I thought I might. :/ I did set a goal while riding that I was not going to get off the bike and walk up the worst of the hills. So, kudos for that but I gotta work on that for the next race!
Running----I figured this would be my worst event. Ironic since I used to be a pretty good runner. I decided to run as long as I could, then walk if needed. I also walked up hills. After a mile or so I caught my second wind. I actually felt good and that I could keep on running! I ran a lot more of this than I thought I would and I feel pretty good about that.
So, I crossed a big barrier, just being able to finish. I looked at the race results and the people in front of me aren't going any faster than I am capable of. I will be back and will be stronger the next time!
Swimming---I wasn't sure how well I would do with this. A lot of triathletes are not strong swimmers. I'm not either but I have swam with a masters group before so I know how to do it well. And, I was doing well until my swim cap came off and took the goggles with it. In the middle of the lake no less. grrr. I got both back on and then caught up to the people who had passed me. So, even though it was frustrating to have to stop, I was happy with the fact that I was able to catch up again. Imagine how I would do if I didn't stop!
Biking---riding a bike is easy. I've been doing it since I was 6 years old. Biking on those hills is not easy. I didn't do as well at this as I thought I might. :/ I did set a goal while riding that I was not going to get off the bike and walk up the worst of the hills. So, kudos for that but I gotta work on that for the next race!
Running----I figured this would be my worst event. Ironic since I used to be a pretty good runner. I decided to run as long as I could, then walk if needed. I also walked up hills. After a mile or so I caught my second wind. I actually felt good and that I could keep on running! I ran a lot more of this than I thought I would and I feel pretty good about that.
So, I crossed a big barrier, just being able to finish. I looked at the race results and the people in front of me aren't going any faster than I am capable of. I will be back and will be stronger the next time!
Thursday, July 4, 2013
10 days and then onward!
This triathlon is happening in 10 days. I have continued to train but not like I had wanted to. There is a part of me that thinks, "am I going to be able to finish this?" I haven't swam in open water in 12?, 13?...many years. I have ridden my bike around the park and was really glad I did. There are a LOT of hills! I still can't ran 3 miles non-stop but that's ok, walking is allowed. So, I'm telling myself I'm just gonna go for it.
A few weeks ago I was out walking/jogging with my dog, very early in the morning before work. I was thinking about life and trying to get into shape for this race and the Bible verse below came into my head:
"Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us."
Now, I'm pretty sure the writer of Hebrews did not write this with the intent of saying of "hey you in 2013, get those workouts in!" But perhaps he understood the bigger picture of the human condition, where we lose sight of ourselves and what God wants for our lives. We get lost in the details and frustrations now just like they did then.
This triathlon is more than just "hey, I want to do a triathlon" but more about trying to take better care of myself and my aging body. And, about getting focused on what is important in my life and laying aside the "weights" that keep me from those things. The next 10 days will come and go, as will the race. I will still need to keep moving forward, with patience, toward the bigger goal.
A few weeks ago I was out walking/jogging with my dog, very early in the morning before work. I was thinking about life and trying to get into shape for this race and the Bible verse below came into my head:
"Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us."
Now, I'm pretty sure the writer of Hebrews did not write this with the intent of saying of "hey you in 2013, get those workouts in!" But perhaps he understood the bigger picture of the human condition, where we lose sight of ourselves and what God wants for our lives. We get lost in the details and frustrations now just like they did then.
This triathlon is more than just "hey, I want to do a triathlon" but more about trying to take better care of myself and my aging body. And, about getting focused on what is important in my life and laying aside the "weights" that keep me from those things. The next 10 days will come and go, as will the race. I will still need to keep moving forward, with patience, toward the bigger goal.
Saturday, April 27, 2013
time to just do it
"Everything you need is already inside. Just do it."
-Bill Bowerman, former Oregon track coach and Nike co-founder
11 weeks to go! I took most of this week off while dealing with my house, but will get started back up again this week. I found a training program on-line that has given me a weekly plan to follow. I don't follow it 100% but I can tell I'm getting stronger. It's a slow process of getting back into a routine of exercising and out of the routine of signing up for a zillion other activities that keep me from it. Bad habits are hard to break and new habits are hard to make but I'm slowly making the turn.
I saw this quote on the FB page of a friend and it spoke to me. I already have all the tools I need. I just gotta do it.
-Bill Bowerman, former Oregon track coach and Nike co-founder
11 weeks to go! I took most of this week off while dealing with my house, but will get started back up again this week. I found a training program on-line that has given me a weekly plan to follow. I don't follow it 100% but I can tell I'm getting stronger. It's a slow process of getting back into a routine of exercising and out of the routine of signing up for a zillion other activities that keep me from it. Bad habits are hard to break and new habits are hard to make but I'm slowly making the turn.
I saw this quote on the FB page of a friend and it spoke to me. I already have all the tools I need. I just gotta do it.
Sunday, March 3, 2013
be true to thyself
I have a friend who is working towards running a marathon in June and trying to live a healthier lifestyle in general. He and his trainer were featured on the local news the other night and I watched the segment. His trainer mentioned how one of the keys to success is internal motivation and a willingness to put himself first. That really struck me and made me think about am I putting my health first? It seems like something always gets in the way of a work out, even though I'm also trying to do better. I try to eat better at work but get busy and stressed out and it's easier to eat junk.
These last two weeks I've put clothes in my car so there's no exuse not to stop at the gym after work. I'm trying to get back on the cash system for eating out so I don't spend too much eating at work in the cafeteria.
But, some other changes are going to start happening too, like all the extra-curricular things I get involved in. I obviously have to work, but I need to put 30 minutes per day into myself and staying physically healthy. Everything else needs to come second. I realize that all these secondary things are sucking the life out of me. I just don't have the energy or stamina I did in the past to run from one activity to another. It probably wasn't emotionally healthy for me then, and it certainly is not now.
2013 is going to be the year for me to pare down my life to the things that put me first. Because like Chris's trainer said, you want to be around to be in the lives of the people you love, which means taking care of yourself first. That's the toughest thing to do.
These last two weeks I've put clothes in my car so there's no exuse not to stop at the gym after work. I'm trying to get back on the cash system for eating out so I don't spend too much eating at work in the cafeteria.
But, some other changes are going to start happening too, like all the extra-curricular things I get involved in. I obviously have to work, but I need to put 30 minutes per day into myself and staying physically healthy. Everything else needs to come second. I realize that all these secondary things are sucking the life out of me. I just don't have the energy or stamina I did in the past to run from one activity to another. It probably wasn't emotionally healthy for me then, and it certainly is not now.
2013 is going to be the year for me to pare down my life to the things that put me first. Because like Chris's trainer said, you want to be around to be in the lives of the people you love, which means taking care of yourself first. That's the toughest thing to do.
Monday, February 18, 2013
You can always do one more...
I've had different dreams about running most of my life. When I was a competitive runner, my dreams were often that I could not get going fast enough, or I was running lopsided with one leg shorter than the other. Since I've pretty much quit running, in my dreams I run like the wind! I've never understood why my dreams are the opposite of my real life.
Another recurring dream I have is that I have another year of eligibilty to run at Southwestern. (for those of you who haven't known me long, Southwestern College is where I went to college on a cross country/track scholarship). When a person goes to college and participates in a sport, we only get four years to participate or have "eligibility". Once you've competed in that sport for four years, you're done. There's no going back. The fours years doesn't renew itself after a period of time. It's over.
Every so often I'll dream that for whatever reason, I have another year left, and I return to Southwesstern to run with the team. I'm at the exact age I am now and the girls are 18-22. I usually realize how terribly out of shape I am and wonder how I'm going to keep up. In last night's dream I was even outside of Coach Helmer's office, waiting to talk with him about being on the team again. Of course he was busy with new high school recruits. I walked past his office , checking out to see if he was there, then waiting outside the office, then inside and feeling a bit intrusive while he was talking to some high school kid. I finally told him I'd come back another time and left his office. Then the alarm went off. The feeling was so real I had to tell myself it was just a dream, that I did not have any more eligibility left to run in college. Even if I went back to college now, I would not be able to run on the cross country team again.
Are these dreams a sign of unfinished business or regrets? I don't know. I'm kind of sad I never qualified for nationals but I know I did the best with what I had at the time. My only regret now is that I didn't give myself enough credit for how good I really was. No, I was not an Olympian, but I could run a 6 minute mile, easily. Heck, I could run a mile in about 7:30 and still have a converstation with my teammates while running it! In my mind I can still do it.
I went out on a run on Sunday with the dog. I jogged for 10 minutes and didn't quite make a mile. I walked for 10 minutes then jogged another 10 minutes and that was enough. These days the goal is just to get out the door and do something. The days of PR's, long runs and track workouts are long over. But, if the you-tube guy with the broken back and leg braces can work himself out of that bondage to running, well, so can I.
Coach Helmer taught us many great lessons about life through our running. The two that stand out in my mind are "Don't waste your opportunities" and "you can always do one more." I'll never give up thinking I have one more mile in me.
Another recurring dream I have is that I have another year of eligibilty to run at Southwestern. (for those of you who haven't known me long, Southwestern College is where I went to college on a cross country/track scholarship). When a person goes to college and participates in a sport, we only get four years to participate or have "eligibility". Once you've competed in that sport for four years, you're done. There's no going back. The fours years doesn't renew itself after a period of time. It's over.
Every so often I'll dream that for whatever reason, I have another year left, and I return to Southwesstern to run with the team. I'm at the exact age I am now and the girls are 18-22. I usually realize how terribly out of shape I am and wonder how I'm going to keep up. In last night's dream I was even outside of Coach Helmer's office, waiting to talk with him about being on the team again. Of course he was busy with new high school recruits. I walked past his office , checking out to see if he was there, then waiting outside the office, then inside and feeling a bit intrusive while he was talking to some high school kid. I finally told him I'd come back another time and left his office. Then the alarm went off. The feeling was so real I had to tell myself it was just a dream, that I did not have any more eligibility left to run in college. Even if I went back to college now, I would not be able to run on the cross country team again.
Are these dreams a sign of unfinished business or regrets? I don't know. I'm kind of sad I never qualified for nationals but I know I did the best with what I had at the time. My only regret now is that I didn't give myself enough credit for how good I really was. No, I was not an Olympian, but I could run a 6 minute mile, easily. Heck, I could run a mile in about 7:30 and still have a converstation with my teammates while running it! In my mind I can still do it.
I went out on a run on Sunday with the dog. I jogged for 10 minutes and didn't quite make a mile. I walked for 10 minutes then jogged another 10 minutes and that was enough. These days the goal is just to get out the door and do something. The days of PR's, long runs and track workouts are long over. But, if the you-tube guy with the broken back and leg braces can work himself out of that bondage to running, well, so can I.
Coach Helmer taught us many great lessons about life through our running. The two that stand out in my mind are "Don't waste your opportunities" and "you can always do one more." I'll never give up thinking I have one more mile in me.
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Polar bear plunge
Ok--I didn't plunge into the icy cold water of a frozen lake . My pool was indoors in a climate controlled environment. Despite all the controls, it's still hard to dip into 74 degree water when it's only 30 degrees outside! BRRR!! That water is much more refreshing when it's 100 degrees outside. So in the winter, I reward myself with a prize at the end--sitting in the hot tub! It's my bubbly heaven! And something to motivate me to do a swim when I don't always feel like doing it.
Workout today:
200 m swim
200 m pull
100 m kick
50 m swim
15 minutes of hot tub!
Workout today:
200 m swim
200 m pull
100 m kick
50 m swim
15 minutes of hot tub!
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