This morning was strength training class at the gym. Since we've got the biathlon Sunday and I'm still getting over this cold I bailed on the treadmill run before class and got there just in time to get some weights and a bench. It's always a tricky proposition, picking the correct weight for this class. I've moved beyond the colored "girlie weights" for most exercises, that's the 5, 8 and 10lb weights. They're called the girlie weights because they're the brightly colored ones: orange, red and blue respectively. When you hit 12 pounds, they switch to the more serious looking black weights with the number printed on the outside. Depending on the exercise, though, picking the tougher weights can spell pain. The other reason it's tricky goes back to a previous post about the continuous crabbing in the gym classes. Some people seem to think that because they've used a certain weight set in the class, everyone should remember that and set the weights aside just for them. There obviously aren't 15 complete sets of every weight for each person so most people can share. Some people, however, cannot share and are incensed at the mere idea. I grabbed a set of 10s and headed off to the back corner and figured I'd just use the lighter set rather than deal with people. When the class format changed to a workout with partners, many new weight sets were freed up and it made life much more enjoyable. I ended up with the 20 pound set for bench press and rows, 15 pounds for the biceps set and 12 for the shoulder raise and triceps. We did 3 sxercise supersets in a row for each muscle group. It was a really hard upper body workout and it felt pretty good. We only did one set of lower body- squats with weights ( 1- 20lb weight) then lunges, side squats and finished with one set of jump squats. That last jump squat was really hard but felt so good. After a set of stretches I felt great and headed off to the shower. I got into the shower and that's where the real extent of my muscle exhaustion hit me. I could barely raise my arms to wash my hair. For a minute I considered just resting my elbows on my knees and squatting down to wash my hair while my arms rested on my legs. However, the lower body set was tiring enough that the thought of holding the squat that long wasn't good, either. Then there's the chance that my butt would hit the side of the shower and that just wasn't an option, so I managed to wash my hair, just a little less vigorously than usual.
When we went out for a walk tonight I didn't bring the sag wagon stroller for some reason. The kids wanted to walk up the "big" hill near the house. It's a decent hill if you're running but walking isn't too bad. Again, for a 3 and a half year old and a 20 month old it's a pretty big hill. Of course tonight is the night that C. decides he wants to be carried for about half the walk. So my already tired arms got a little more work this evening. I might not be able to wash my hair in the morning, we'll see. I like a good workout.
Friday, September 22, 2006
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Toddler sag wagon
The first day of fall was gorgeous here and after I got home from work we all went for a walk, as we often do. Going for a walk is just short of a major event around our house. It's me, Paul, M., C. and the dogs. That may not seem like much on the surface but then the boys both need to bring a stroller to push. The strollers we have are Graco doll strollers purchased at Toys R Us and they are, without a doubt, the best $9.99 each that we have ever spent where the kids are involved. Of all the toys in the house those strollers are the only things that are played with every single day. They are used to transport cars, trucks, toys and sometimes little brothers all throughout the house and neighborhood. M. is actually on his second stroller because last week a wheel finally gave up the fight and fell off the first stroller. If you've got kids and they don't have a Graco stroller, get one. The other cool thing about them is that they're made in a very gender neutral pattern- the new one is red and grey and they cool just like the real ones.
Anyway, back to the walk. The boys both have a stroller, the dogs need their leashes and we need at least 4 bags for poop-scooping over the course of the walk. I follow along with the double jogging stroller to act as the toddler sag wagon. We walk at an agonizingly slow pace, one mile takes us anywhere from 30 minutes if the boys are running, to an hour. C. is especially slow and easily distracted along the way. In his defense he's only 20 months old and I don't know many other 20 month old kids that can regularly cover 1-2 miles under their own power. I'm pretty sure that at the same age M. wasn't doing nearly the same amount of walking. We try to cut him some slack for that but it still gets a little frustrating when it's 5 minutes between mailboxes. Then he'll decide he wants to ride for a while. A while being about 25 seconds and then he's down again. The boys will start racing strollers and then it becomes a crash derby for a while until C. is once again distracted by something else. Kodi is always the first of the dogs to poop and Paul usually teases M. that it's his turn to pick up the poops. There are some things that M. has a sense of humor about, picking up dog poop is not one of those topics. Whenever a car comes by the kids sit on the curb and wait until it's gone by before we move along again. We're lucky to live in a relatively quiet neighborhood where we can go for great walks as a family. While it sometimes seems frustratingly slow we're lucky to have 2 boys that really enjoy spending time outside and it's quality time that we're all together. It sure beats sitting on the couch in front of the TV.
Anyway, back to the walk. The boys both have a stroller, the dogs need their leashes and we need at least 4 bags for poop-scooping over the course of the walk. I follow along with the double jogging stroller to act as the toddler sag wagon. We walk at an agonizingly slow pace, one mile takes us anywhere from 30 minutes if the boys are running, to an hour. C. is especially slow and easily distracted along the way. In his defense he's only 20 months old and I don't know many other 20 month old kids that can regularly cover 1-2 miles under their own power. I'm pretty sure that at the same age M. wasn't doing nearly the same amount of walking. We try to cut him some slack for that but it still gets a little frustrating when it's 5 minutes between mailboxes. Then he'll decide he wants to ride for a while. A while being about 25 seconds and then he's down again. The boys will start racing strollers and then it becomes a crash derby for a while until C. is once again distracted by something else. Kodi is always the first of the dogs to poop and Paul usually teases M. that it's his turn to pick up the poops. There are some things that M. has a sense of humor about, picking up dog poop is not one of those topics. Whenever a car comes by the kids sit on the curb and wait until it's gone by before we move along again. We're lucky to live in a relatively quiet neighborhood where we can go for great walks as a family. While it sometimes seems frustratingly slow we're lucky to have 2 boys that really enjoy spending time outside and it's quality time that we're all together. It sure beats sitting on the couch in front of the TV.
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Body Amnesia
Feeling healthy is so easy to take for granted. When you're healthy there's almost a feeling of being oblivious to the existence of your body. Not until there's an injury or illness to bring attention to a specific part of the body do we really pay much attention, at least I don't anyway. I remember when I was pregnant with M. and for about a month I was very aware of my belly button and the fact that it got in the way all the time. It's just not normal to be aware of your belly button and it's surprising to realize how often it gets bumped into things, of course the expansive belly behind it certainly added to that frequency, but it seems like it happens all the time when you're aware of it. When I'm feeling healthy I don't remember what's it's really like to feel sick or injured and vice versa. I think that's where kids and animals have it easier. I think in their perception of time they can't really remember that they felt better the day before so if they're sick or injured they adapt so quickly it's amazing. Living totally in the present gives them the ability to ignore everything that we might dwell on because we do remember that we felt better the day before.
Having sprained my foot a week and a half ago and now having a cold, I can't really remember how it was to feel completely healthy. I've been aware of my foot and of the discomfort it causes when under pressure. Today I'm aware of my head and the fact that every footfall feels like a large percussion instrument in the large empty expanse of my sinuses. It creates an echo in my head and the feeling is something like walking around under water with all the muffled reverberating going on in there. That feeling greeting me this morning led me to decide that this was not a good morning for step aerobics, it was the perfect morning for getting a little extra sleep. The nicest thing about the morning was waking up and getting a big hug from C. who seemed happy to see me. It's always hard to leave for work if the kids have gotten up before I'm out the door. I'd rather stay home and play but the bills have to be paid somehow. I smiled and waved as C. cried at the front door and M. waved good-bye. Two minutes later they were both playing happily, my day went downhill from there. Until I got home.
Having sprained my foot a week and a half ago and now having a cold, I can't really remember how it was to feel completely healthy. I've been aware of my foot and of the discomfort it causes when under pressure. Today I'm aware of my head and the fact that every footfall feels like a large percussion instrument in the large empty expanse of my sinuses. It creates an echo in my head and the feeling is something like walking around under water with all the muffled reverberating going on in there. That feeling greeting me this morning led me to decide that this was not a good morning for step aerobics, it was the perfect morning for getting a little extra sleep. The nicest thing about the morning was waking up and getting a big hug from C. who seemed happy to see me. It's always hard to leave for work if the kids have gotten up before I'm out the door. I'd rather stay home and play but the bills have to be paid somehow. I smiled and waved as C. cried at the front door and M. waved good-bye. Two minutes later they were both playing happily, my day went downhill from there. Until I got home.
Friday, September 15, 2006
Just let it go
I mentioned before that I've had trouble with gym motivation lately, here's more on that.
I joined the gym in April of 2004- it was my present to myself for M's first birthday. I stopped pumping at work since we switching him over to milk. That gave me an extra 40 minutes during my work day and I was hoping to lose some weight before we had another baby, I was about 194 pounds. So, I joined the gym and before the end of April found out I was already pregnant. Change of plans, instead of working really hard to get into shape I listened to all the advice that said "don't let your heartrate go about 140" or over exert yourself during pregnancy, blah, blah. I would hang out on the elliptical trainer and not work too hard for 40 minutes or so five mornings a week. Didn't do much to get me in shape, but my cardiovascular endurance did improve a little. I did nothing while out on maternity with C. and I returned to work when he was 10 weeks old. I finally joined some of the 6am group classes, step aerobics, kickboxing, spinning, weight class, etc. I attended class five mornings a week and that really helped me to lose the 40 pounds I've lost so far. This spring I decided to start training for the triathlons and that cut down on my class time a little because I went swimming or biking instead some mornings. Now that I'm not training any more I find that I've got no patience for the classes. Most of the people are really nice and they make going to the gym enjoyable. However, there are some people that spend so much time and energy crabbing about everything that's wrong that it really gets annoying. I realize that we pay to have access to the gym and it should be run professionally. I think it's a very well-run facility. Some people are just always going to find something wrong with everything. It just gets so old to listen to the comments that some people think are appropriate. I can't stand it when people say things like "I'm just outspoken" or "I'm opinionated", when what it boils down to is "I'm rude". There are plenty of ways to be outspoken and opinionated without coming across like a jerk. Of course the people that complain the loudest are the people that no one would dare to cross so they're basically catered to in every way. Goodness don't ever stand in their spot in the class, don't take their weights and whatever you do, don't ever express an opinion. I think it's time I just head off on my own and do the workouts myself. I love the spin instructor so I'll probably stick with that class, but I can do most other things myself as long as I get there. I wish I could just get past the comments in class, ignore them and enjoy my own workout. But it really seems to generate some negative energy that I just find draining and distracts from the workout for me. I don't know how everyone else in class, or the instructor, can stand it. The one motivation there is to the group classes is that there's usually someone looking out for you so you might get busted on for bagging class unless there's a good reason. I may die of boredom out on the treadmill, but I'll start giving myself more specific workouts, so maybe that will help. We'll see.
I joined the gym in April of 2004- it was my present to myself for M's first birthday. I stopped pumping at work since we switching him over to milk. That gave me an extra 40 minutes during my work day and I was hoping to lose some weight before we had another baby, I was about 194 pounds. So, I joined the gym and before the end of April found out I was already pregnant. Change of plans, instead of working really hard to get into shape I listened to all the advice that said "don't let your heartrate go about 140" or over exert yourself during pregnancy, blah, blah. I would hang out on the elliptical trainer and not work too hard for 40 minutes or so five mornings a week. Didn't do much to get me in shape, but my cardiovascular endurance did improve a little. I did nothing while out on maternity with C. and I returned to work when he was 10 weeks old. I finally joined some of the 6am group classes, step aerobics, kickboxing, spinning, weight class, etc. I attended class five mornings a week and that really helped me to lose the 40 pounds I've lost so far. This spring I decided to start training for the triathlons and that cut down on my class time a little because I went swimming or biking instead some mornings. Now that I'm not training any more I find that I've got no patience for the classes. Most of the people are really nice and they make going to the gym enjoyable. However, there are some people that spend so much time and energy crabbing about everything that's wrong that it really gets annoying. I realize that we pay to have access to the gym and it should be run professionally. I think it's a very well-run facility. Some people are just always going to find something wrong with everything. It just gets so old to listen to the comments that some people think are appropriate. I can't stand it when people say things like "I'm just outspoken" or "I'm opinionated", when what it boils down to is "I'm rude". There are plenty of ways to be outspoken and opinionated without coming across like a jerk. Of course the people that complain the loudest are the people that no one would dare to cross so they're basically catered to in every way. Goodness don't ever stand in their spot in the class, don't take their weights and whatever you do, don't ever express an opinion. I think it's time I just head off on my own and do the workouts myself. I love the spin instructor so I'll probably stick with that class, but I can do most other things myself as long as I get there. I wish I could just get past the comments in class, ignore them and enjoy my own workout. But it really seems to generate some negative energy that I just find draining and distracts from the workout for me. I don't know how everyone else in class, or the instructor, can stand it. The one motivation there is to the group classes is that there's usually someone looking out for you so you might get busted on for bagging class unless there's a good reason. I may die of boredom out on the treadmill, but I'll start giving myself more specific workouts, so maybe that will help. We'll see.
Thursday, September 14, 2006
I've got a preschooler and I'm back on track
Tuesday morning was M's first day of preschool. I wanted to go with him to drop him off but we decided that might add to his anxiety because it's not the normal routine. So Dad and C. brought him there and he stayed without too much convincing. He seemed to enjoy himself and said he'd like to go back. Which is good because he was going back this morning anyway. Day 2 also went well and he likes singing songs, doing projects, playing outside and drinking from the very small juice cups. Those small cups were a hit. It's hard to believe how quickly he's growing up. Here ar e the boys, ready to head off to school.
I finally got back to the gym this morning after "resting" my sprained foot since Friday morning. It feels almost 100% but I'll hold off on running or anything with side to side motion for a few days because some of those stresses hurt a little. Clipping out of my spin shoes was a little painful on that foot but spin class went well. I've been a little un-motivated lately. We added this biathlon a few weeks ago and I'm really looking forward to doing a race with Paul, but it doesn't have the same excitement as my triathlon training over the summer. I think it's partly because the run is 5 miles and I haven't run a continuous 5 miles all summer so I'm just going to wing it. I have no goal other than to finish the run and be able to get on my bike without falling over. If I can be done in less than 2 hours, great. The other part is probably like wedding day blues, where you train and practice and think about the race and then it's all over so fast. My life went back to the same way it was before the race, and it's just a memory now. The cool feeling that I'm a triathlete lasted a couple days but now I'm left looking for my next project or plan. Not sure what that will be, until then I'm going to try to get up and go to the gym and take things as they come.
Saturday, September 09, 2006
Just a person in training
I'm glad that I didn't run across any of these tri-blogs until about a week before my first sprint. My first was Nancy's Run Big and I'm not even sure where I happened across it, but since then I've just followed links from one blog to another, reading more than a year of many people's lives. Siren, Iron Wil, Trimama, Tri-Geek, Flatman, Misty and many others I look forward to "meeting". I can't just read the most recent posts, I have to start from the beginning so it takes me a few days to get through just one. I know about their training, their families, their philosophy and much more. I feel like they are all my friends, but none of them would know me if they tripped over me on the side of the road. If I had started reading earlier in my training I might have decided that this sport, or multisport, just isn't what I'm cut out for. Everyone is so strong, so committed, with so much heart and dedication, there's just no way I can measure up to that. I'm not an inspiration, I've had no trauma in my life to overcome, I've had no great insight into how to become a great triathlete. I'll never be a geat triathlete.
My initial plan was that this whole triathlon thing was a one shot deal. I signed up with Team in Training after losing a close friend to breast cancer. I did my first (and only so far) marathon with TNT back in 2002 after hearing a former high school friend had died of kidney cancer. This spring I had some time to myself, my two boys were out of the high needs infant stage of life and I needed something to focus my attention and activity. I had been going to the gym for over a year, I had lost almost 40 pounds, but my motivation was waning in that arena. Working out for the sake of working out just wasn't as rewarding at it had been when I was losing weight and starting out. I decided the whole triathlon thing would be good for the summer, I could add it to the list of things I've done and then move on. I know it was only a sprint and my goal was just to finish, knowing I'll never really be a competitor against anyone except myself.
I went in knowing I'm a decent swimmer, an okay biker and a pretty poor runner. This was confirmed in my second race where I was in the top half of the swim, the 75th percentile for the bike and the slowest runner of all 62 participants to cross the finish line. I was thinking of making my own t-shirt. It would have the Superman S on the front as the start of Slow triathlete. The back would say "Faster than a Couch Potato". Really, I give myself credit for getting to the start line for those 2 races when most other people chose to stay home. Of course some of them stayed home because they were training for other things like marathons, century rides, half irons and Ironman races, but most just stayed home. I think I probably hit the highlight of my entire triathlon career that very first morning in transition when I met Sarah Reinertsen. Meeting someone in person that has made me cry with her perseverance and amazing courage and seeing that she was the most incredibly nice, down-to-earth person, it was just over-whelming. The minute I hit the water on that first swim I knew I wanted to do it again. The second time I still felt the same. I was a little more nervous that race because my family was there and it was a race against co-workers. If I had a bad race in New Hampshire, no one ever would have known anything I didn't tell them, so it was safe. I was a little worried that I'd get to the finish and my parents, or Paul, or the kids would ask why I even bothered if all I could manage was a second to last place finish. I was pleasantly surprised when everyone seemed pretty proud of me, even though I hadn't done anything particularly special. I tend to think that once I've been able to accomplish something, if I could do it, anyone can, so it can't be all that great. To get an e-mail from my dad the next morning saying that what I did was impressive really hit me. To hear that I'm setting a good example for the boys made me think that maybe I am doing something important and worthy of note. Then a few days later, M. was sitting in his car seat, swimming with his arms. I asked what he was doing and he said he was in a swimming race. I asked him if he'd like to be in a swimming race when he gets bigger. He looked up and said "When I'm big I'm going to do a swimming race, a biking race and a running race. Just like Mom." To hear him say that he thinks of me as someone that races, that made it worth it to me. I have a dream that some day he'll be able to say "My Mom's an Ironman". It would be awesome to some day compete in races with the kids because we will raise them thinking that people regularly train for things like races and make it a part of their lives. That would be cool.
I read the post about the Ironman Wisconsin '07 sponsorship and it was exciting. This just isn't the time for me to take on something like that. We'd like to have another baby and my kids are still young enough that I'm not yet willing to sacrifice my time with them for what training would entail and it wouldn't be fair to expect Paul to take on more care of a toddler and preschooler while I'm off training. I'm not there yet and sometimes, like while I'm sitting here with a sprained foot, I wonder when I'll get there. I don't think it's a question of "if" I'll get there, it's a feeling of "when". That's not a question I need to answer right now, I'd like to get some more sprint races under my belt, at least a few Olympics and maybe some half IMs. I need to work the most on my running and I know that just takes time. Time, I've got. At some point I hope to have a maternity break from some aspects of training, but now that I've gotten a taste of this ultra-cool multisport I intend to stick with it.
I may not have a great philosophy to share and my blog may never be a place where people turn for inspiration or great training tips. But maybe some time another plain old person will stumble across this blog and realize that they can get there, too. I think that every blog I've read is written by someone on a level above me. Maybe they don't see it that way, maybe they feel average in their life, but I feel like they're all at a place I can only hope to get some day. They're athletes, I'm just a mom trying to survive a few little sprint races. For now that's all I can be, and as long as I'm working at being the best mom and wife I can be, that's got to be good enough. Ironman isn't going anywhere and it's good to have a dream in the wings.
My initial plan was that this whole triathlon thing was a one shot deal. I signed up with Team in Training after losing a close friend to breast cancer. I did my first (and only so far) marathon with TNT back in 2002 after hearing a former high school friend had died of kidney cancer. This spring I had some time to myself, my two boys were out of the high needs infant stage of life and I needed something to focus my attention and activity. I had been going to the gym for over a year, I had lost almost 40 pounds, but my motivation was waning in that arena. Working out for the sake of working out just wasn't as rewarding at it had been when I was losing weight and starting out. I decided the whole triathlon thing would be good for the summer, I could add it to the list of things I've done and then move on. I know it was only a sprint and my goal was just to finish, knowing I'll never really be a competitor against anyone except myself.
I went in knowing I'm a decent swimmer, an okay biker and a pretty poor runner. This was confirmed in my second race where I was in the top half of the swim, the 75th percentile for the bike and the slowest runner of all 62 participants to cross the finish line. I was thinking of making my own t-shirt. It would have the Superman S on the front as the start of Slow triathlete. The back would say "Faster than a Couch Potato". Really, I give myself credit for getting to the start line for those 2 races when most other people chose to stay home. Of course some of them stayed home because they were training for other things like marathons, century rides, half irons and Ironman races, but most just stayed home. I think I probably hit the highlight of my entire triathlon career that very first morning in transition when I met Sarah Reinertsen. Meeting someone in person that has made me cry with her perseverance and amazing courage and seeing that she was the most incredibly nice, down-to-earth person, it was just over-whelming. The minute I hit the water on that first swim I knew I wanted to do it again. The second time I still felt the same. I was a little more nervous that race because my family was there and it was a race against co-workers. If I had a bad race in New Hampshire, no one ever would have known anything I didn't tell them, so it was safe. I was a little worried that I'd get to the finish and my parents, or Paul, or the kids would ask why I even bothered if all I could manage was a second to last place finish. I was pleasantly surprised when everyone seemed pretty proud of me, even though I hadn't done anything particularly special. I tend to think that once I've been able to accomplish something, if I could do it, anyone can, so it can't be all that great. To get an e-mail from my dad the next morning saying that what I did was impressive really hit me. To hear that I'm setting a good example for the boys made me think that maybe I am doing something important and worthy of note. Then a few days later, M. was sitting in his car seat, swimming with his arms. I asked what he was doing and he said he was in a swimming race. I asked him if he'd like to be in a swimming race when he gets bigger. He looked up and said "When I'm big I'm going to do a swimming race, a biking race and a running race. Just like Mom." To hear him say that he thinks of me as someone that races, that made it worth it to me. I have a dream that some day he'll be able to say "My Mom's an Ironman". It would be awesome to some day compete in races with the kids because we will raise them thinking that people regularly train for things like races and make it a part of their lives. That would be cool.
I read the post about the Ironman Wisconsin '07 sponsorship and it was exciting. This just isn't the time for me to take on something like that. We'd like to have another baby and my kids are still young enough that I'm not yet willing to sacrifice my time with them for what training would entail and it wouldn't be fair to expect Paul to take on more care of a toddler and preschooler while I'm off training. I'm not there yet and sometimes, like while I'm sitting here with a sprained foot, I wonder when I'll get there. I don't think it's a question of "if" I'll get there, it's a feeling of "when". That's not a question I need to answer right now, I'd like to get some more sprint races under my belt, at least a few Olympics and maybe some half IMs. I need to work the most on my running and I know that just takes time. Time, I've got. At some point I hope to have a maternity break from some aspects of training, but now that I've gotten a taste of this ultra-cool multisport I intend to stick with it.
I may not have a great philosophy to share and my blog may never be a place where people turn for inspiration or great training tips. But maybe some time another plain old person will stumble across this blog and realize that they can get there, too. I think that every blog I've read is written by someone on a level above me. Maybe they don't see it that way, maybe they feel average in their life, but I feel like they're all at a place I can only hope to get some day. They're athletes, I'm just a mom trying to survive a few little sprint races. For now that's all I can be, and as long as I'm working at being the best mom and wife I can be, that's got to be good enough. Ironman isn't going anywhere and it's good to have a dream in the wings.
Friday, September 08, 2006
Oh, the grace
After over-sleeping last Monday, triathlon calf muscle recovery last Friday and Labor day this past Monday, we finally all met up this morning for the 5am run. It's been cool in the mornings lately so it's almost perfect weather to run, although still slightly more humid than I would prefer. We started off alright, although one of my running-mates is still recovering from a cold so she wasn't feeling as well as she would have liked. A little more than half a mile in we were running in an spot where there are many cars parked along the street in front of residences. It was garbage morning and one of the cans out front looked as though it had been disturbed. Thankfully we decided to cross the street at that point as a small skunk emerged from near the can and was running, tail straight up, parallel to us for a few seconds. Nothing to put a little speed on like a skunk sighting. The rest of the run was nearly uneventful and I felt pretty good right up until about 100 feet from the end. I was running in the road next to the sidewalk. I looked ahead, noticed the storm drain and said to myself "Don't step on that." and I didn't. All of a sudden I was headed towards the road, rolling, flailing, then landing in the middle of the street. My running mates heard my graceful stumble and stopped to make sure I was okay. I had scraped up my left knee in a couple spots and my right foot felt a little sore but I was able to walk it in fine. Strength class was fine, not too much stress on my legs or feet.
I got to my desk and noticed more pain in my right foot. By 9:00am I was barely able to walk and my right foot was swollen. Fortunately, my mom works at the same company and she had a clear enough schedule that she was able to drive me to the clinic for x-rays. Two hours later I left with an ace wrap, crutches and a diagnosis of right foot sprain with torn ligaments. I've spent the afternoon on the couch, watching the boys run around as my husband takes care of everything, hoping that this injury passes quickly enough that we can do the biathlon on the 24th.
Paul and I were talking about how many times I've needed medical attention since we got married almost 7 years ago. I've broken 2 toes on separate occasions, sprained a wrist and now the sprained foot and ligaments thing. That's 4 emergency room/clinic visits in that time, and except for today, none of them were exercise or training related. If I do stick with triathlons, of any distance, am I destined to become a clinic regular? The weirdest thing about today's injury is that I have no idea what it was that caused the fall. There was no hole, no curb, no stick to trip on as a did a few weeks ago, nothing. Just my stupid size 11 feet, they're big enough that they should help my balance not impair it. Are some people just more prone to injury? Am I one of those people? Is there anything that can be done about it? Maybe I just need to figure out how I can workout in a plastic bubble, with a padded floor.
I got to my desk and noticed more pain in my right foot. By 9:00am I was barely able to walk and my right foot was swollen. Fortunately, my mom works at the same company and she had a clear enough schedule that she was able to drive me to the clinic for x-rays. Two hours later I left with an ace wrap, crutches and a diagnosis of right foot sprain with torn ligaments. I've spent the afternoon on the couch, watching the boys run around as my husband takes care of everything, hoping that this injury passes quickly enough that we can do the biathlon on the 24th.
Paul and I were talking about how many times I've needed medical attention since we got married almost 7 years ago. I've broken 2 toes on separate occasions, sprained a wrist and now the sprained foot and ligaments thing. That's 4 emergency room/clinic visits in that time, and except for today, none of them were exercise or training related. If I do stick with triathlons, of any distance, am I destined to become a clinic regular? The weirdest thing about today's injury is that I have no idea what it was that caused the fall. There was no hole, no curb, no stick to trip on as a did a few weeks ago, nothing. Just my stupid size 11 feet, they're big enough that they should help my balance not impair it. Are some people just more prone to injury? Am I one of those people? Is there anything that can be done about it? Maybe I just need to figure out how I can workout in a plastic bubble, with a padded floor.
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
Not a runner, yet
This morning I had grand ambitions of running 5 miles at the gym since our race on the 24th is a 5 mile run and 16 mile bike. I had the iPod, figured I'd have some good music, TV for extra entertainment and get in the 5 miles. That didn't happen. I ran 3 miles at 9:40 miles and then I walked for 2 minutes before running 1 more mile for a total of 4.25 miles in 42:08. My heart rate was pretty far up there, over 170 by the treadmill heart rate monitor and I was feeling tired after that distance. The thing that bugs me most is that I just don't have the mental running thing yet. I'm not really so tired that I can't go on, my mind just completely gives in and gives up. I've got to get my mind doing some practice runs so that when my body takes it out, it doesn't give up so easily. I think maybe there's a part of me that feels like now that I've completed my 2 triathlons for the this year, I'm done. I'm taking it easy. I don't think I want to take it easy, I want to stay in shape. The thought of an extra 30 minutes of sleep every morning is so nice, though. It's hard. Tomorrow morning's spin, that's always a good workout.
Monday, September 04, 2006
Family workout day
Three day weekends are just about the best thing there is. Today we met up with my brother-in-law's family and hiked up a local hiking trail. It's a 1.6 mile trail that climbs 739 feet so it's a challenge while carrying backpacks of lunch and pushing one or two kids in the jogging stroller. I only pushed about half way today and then I handed the kids off to my husband and I took the dogs. I ended up carrying C. for a while, so that's an extra 30 pounds to carry and then I had the stroller on the way down. I think it was good enough for a workout for today.
I have got to get back on track with my diet. I gained six pounds last month. I think I ate like I was racing every other day, not twice in one month. It's a little depressing when I think of how long it took me to lose thos six pounds back in the spring and they came back on so fast. I've just got to regain my focus on eating healthy. I've also got to remember that just because a snack is healthy doesn't mean the whole box is!
I have got to get back on track with my diet. I gained six pounds last month. I think I ate like I was racing every other day, not twice in one month. It's a little depressing when I think of how long it took me to lose thos six pounds back in the spring and they came back on so fast. I've just got to regain my focus on eating healthy. I've also got to remember that just because a snack is healthy doesn't mean the whole box is!
Saturday, September 02, 2006
Injury update
The cramping I noticed in my left calf during the run of Wednesday's race really intensified over the course of Thursday. I was alright once I was moving for a while but as soon as I sat for any period of time it cramped up again and walking was tough for the first few minutes after I got up. I skipped running yesterday morning but I still went to weight class. Unfortunately, it was a leg intensive weight class with a lot of squats and dead lifts. During the third set of squats with a 15 pound dumbell the pain went from hurts-from-exertion-but-its-a-good-hurt to ouch-something's-wrong-with-this-hurt. I made it through class but getting around yesterday was tough. Of course there's a large flight of stairs between the gym and the rest of the building and I actually considered taking the elevator up after that class. I couldn't be that big of a wuss so I took the stairs and walked around most of the day looking like I was about 80 years old, no offense intended to any 80-year-olds out there.
I took my motrin last night and this morning my calf seemed a little better. My quads are sore from the weights class, but at least I'll be back on track for training next week. We've got the biathlon at the end of the month and I've got to run five miles. I have yet to run five miles since I started running again, it's probably been over 5 years since I've finished that distance. I'm hoping that I can just slow down a little and my training with 3 mile runs will carry me through. It might get ugly.
I took my motrin last night and this morning my calf seemed a little better. My quads are sore from the weights class, but at least I'll be back on track for training next week. We've got the biathlon at the end of the month and I've got to run five miles. I have yet to run five miles since I started running again, it's probably been over 5 years since I've finished that distance. I'm hoping that I can just slow down a little and my training with 3 mile runs will carry me through. It might get ugly.
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