Idea Nugget

I had an idea this morning.  (Rare, I know!)

I was all filled with "back on the wagon!" thoughts at the end of May, centered on June, but then I've been filled with a lack of motivation now that June is actually here.  I'm feeling a strong motivation to take photographs.  Just not to exercise, heh.  I think some of it is just that I have some very disruptive things coming up this month and the beginning of next month, so it is hard to get excited about 2 weeks when I know what follows.

But, BUT, I've finally gotten an official start date for new-work, which is August 1.  I love that.  Nice round number, nice beginning of the month.  And I was doing P90X3 this morning and I thought, there it is.  I want to do a P90X3 actual 90 day program, beginning August 1.  This is perfect.  It is only 30 minutes per day.  It is after all my scheduled races, but I also know that it keeps me in good enough shape to go run a 5K if I want to.  It coincides with the new job, so I would be establishing a good habit with my new routine.  Starting in August allows me to finish before the holidays, which always mess stuff up.

I like this idea.  I need to flesh it out more... I am thinking right now that I'll do it free form like I did at the beginning of the year - whatever makes me happy as long as I do one routine per day... but I like this idea.

Progress, and Feeling Twitchy

Last week I ate well all week leading into Boston, as promised.  I started tracking on MyFitPal, I sterted actively trying to hit 10,000 steps per day, and I was doing really well.  When I got to Boston I tried to eat well but not stress over it too much, and with the exception of one exorbitant meal, I actually think I stayed or very close to my calorie allotment, even without doing exercise each day.

I knew, KNEW, that when I got back my weight would be up, because that is just what my body does when I travel, especially when I fly.  But even knowing that, it really hurt when I stepped on the scale the evening I arrived home and saw a 4 pound gain.  Now, there are a lot of things wrong with the scenario, including the fact that I know better than to weigh myself in the evening, but I just couldn't resist.  I should have resisted.  But the very next morning I was a pound down.  And the next day, two more.  And this morning, two more than that!  So I'm actually a pound down from my pre-Boston weight this morning, and I am freaking THRILLED with that.

Ok, so the goal is so keep it up.  It is working, keep it up.  IT IS WORKING!!!!!

I have two cheats coming up:  tonight I'm going to see Tool, therefore I will be awake much later than normal, and I'll probably need to eat more because of that.  I also wouldn't put it past myself to have a drink.  Because Tool!!!  Saturday I'm having my annual lunch with an old friend.  Other than those, the goal is no additional cheats til Tuesday.  I've actually been managing to have my ice cream within my calorie limits, which is awesome!!  Yesterday I measured it out and everything, and I discovered that when I use the small helmet cups, I was dishing myself up just about a serving without measuring, which is a fabulous thing!  I like the idea of only having the 3 cheat meals and ditching the cheat dessert combo.  3 and 3 may have been too much room to wiggle and still lose.  We will see how it goes from here.

In terms of exercise, I've been good about P90X3 since I got back.  Tomorrow I want to go for a run because I signed up for the Piney Woods Trail 5K.  I don't think I'm going to get in much specific training, but a few runs leading into it would be smart.

And that leads me into: I'm getting a little twitchy beginning to worry about 5Ks and bike rides and triathlons and lack of specific training.  This is a fine mental line to walk with me because P90X3 is working, and I don't want to stop right now, and I don't want to stress myself into a headspace where it is ok to just roll over and go back to sleep in the mornings.  BUT I need to start doing at least a little specific training.  So I'm thinking maybe continue with basic free-form/P90X3 through the end of January, throwing in a run or a ride on nice days if I want to.  I was actually thinking about trying to hit it hard with 2-a-days next week, just to up the weight loss ante.  Maybe in February I could shoot for at least one swim, one bike, and one run per week, with the balance of the days being whatever I want, which will probably still be P90X3.  Then from there we can shoot into more specific training in March.  I like this... I may need to flesh it out a little, but that is my tentative plan.  I feel better just typing that!

Next Year's Schedule

Soooo.... I didn't make it a goal to do at least one race per month, buuuuuuut...... let's just say I want to get something in in January so I don't concede the possibility from month number 1 like I did last year. ;-)

I'm thinking the Piney Woods TrailFest 5K.  I did this one back when the kid was a super-shrimp.  My first and only trail race, and I definitely wanted to do more.  So... yeah, I think so!

I also went ahead and signed up for the CB&I Tri this year since it sells out so early.  So that is in stone.  The rest of everything is up in the air, but I filled in the sidebar with the frontrunners so I can help myself to remember the research I did!  It is looking very 5K heavy - perhaps the goal needs to be to finally get consistent so I can get faster again!

Life is like a box of chocolates

That I haven't been able to eat for the last week.

Last Monday at lunch, I had some tooth pain.  But it resolved, so I figured I just had something stuck in there.  But it came back on Tuesday and didn't resolve.  So I headed to the dentist, who thought I had a cracked tooth.  Sent me to see the endodontist.

So for the past week, I've been on antibiotics and pain meds and liquid food and generally miserable.  No running.  No biking.  No swimming.  Just trying to get through the day.  "Strange how we can suffer so much fear and doubt for so small a thing." (LOTR, Tolkein)

Needless to say the Dad's Day 5K didn't happen.

The antibiotics seemed to be helping, especially as the endodontist appointment approached, to the extent that I looked at Preston the night before and said, you know, if I felt this way without feeling the way that I have for the last week, I wouldn't even go to the dentist for this.  But I went anyways because it HAD happened.

The Endo basically said he couldn't tell if it was a root canal thing or a gum infection and recommended watching and waiting.  I respect him SO MUCH for not trying to sell me an expensive procedure that he isn't sure I need.  So we shall watch and wait and eat on the opposite side.

That was on Tuesday of this week.

So yesterday I went out for a short run.  First exercise since the Monday of the initial pain.  It felt good to be back out there!  This morning I did a bike ride, again short.  Tomorrow I will run again.   This is life, right?  Stuff knocks you down, you do what you need to do to get through, then you get up and move on.  I was in a good place before this tooth.  I was sad about it for a few days.  But I only lost just over a week.  I will come back strong.  I am stronger for enduring.

Training

I was doodling in a meeting the other day trying to figure out what workouts I'd have in my perfect week.  I came up with 2 each of: swim, bike, run, lift/core, yoga, and fun stuff.  Unfortunately that is 12 workouts per week, and not bloody likely.

But after that, I did manage a pretty heavy week.  It looked like this:
Monday morning: Run
Tuesday morning: Bike
Tuesday afternoon: Swim, then Racquetball
Wednesday afternoon: Yoga, Core
Thursday morning: Run
Friday afternoon: Swim
Saturday afternoon: P90X Arms & Shoulders
That's not half bad!!  That's what... 2 runs, 1 bike, 2 swims, 1 lift, 1 core, 1 yoga, 1 fun.  I'll take hitting all the categories!  And honestly, if I had gotten in another bike, I'd be over-the-moon THRILLED with this.

This week may be a little wonky since there is the potential for another flooding event in my area AND my morning childcare solution is out of town, so my work schedule is also all wonky.  As such, I got my run in on Monday morning.  Hopefully the week will look like this:
Monday morning: Run
Tuesday morning: Bike
Wednesday morning: Lift/Core
Wednesday afternoon: Racquetball
Thursday morning: Bike
Thursday afternoon: Swim
Friday morning: Yoga
Saturday morning: Run Dad's Day 5K
Crossing my fingers!  I'm prepared to sub in workout videos and/or the bike trainer for rainy mornings, if necessary, but would rather not if I don't have to.

Come rain, or sleet, or HEAT, onward!

Scheduling Conundrum

New work maintains a "summer schedule" in which the building opens at 7am.  I prefer to start at 6.  If I show up at 6 and sit around and wait, I can usually get in and get started earlier, but exactly WHEN is never clear.

My other option is coming on in and going to the gym at 6 and coming over to work at 7.  I experimented with that last week and the beginning of this week, but that isn't perfect either.

Pros for Gym first:

• Get to sleep 40 minutes later.
• Get to run on dirt or bike on track or swim in morning = WAY NICER.

Cons for Gym first:

• I seem to have a harder time cooling down and end up at work massively hot, and when I finally cool down I end up shivering.
• I don't have a locker yet at the gym so there is a lot of schlepping.  On Wednesday I forgot to bring PANTS.  Which led to an hour drive home for pants, followed by an hour drive back, followed by a ruining of my entire day because how can you overcome that?  PANTS, y'all.
• The pool is way more crowded in the morning.  I know I could swim on Wednesday, but the other days are iffy.
• Weather.  Pretty much everything I do is outside.  Bad weather, which has been a lot lately, is an issue.
• If I don't get off til 3:30 at the earliest, traffic on the way home has already reached the sucky point.
• Can't carpool.

Pros for Work first:

• Get to use my own fabulous shower.
• Get off at 2:30 when traffic is good.
• Get to carpool more, saving money.
• There is always P90X for rainy mornings.

Cons for Work first:

• Running on concrete, biking on trainer or around neighborhood.
• Harder to get out of bed.
• Struggling to figure out carpool/afternoon swim balance.
• I HATE not knowing exactly when I'm getting into the building.  HATE IT.

This is actually really fascinating because this really makes it look like I should do work first.  I didn't expect that, and still honestly feel conflicted about it.  I am going to see how it goes for the next few weeks because I have some stuff coming up, then will go from there.

Either way if I can't get a locker I suppose I need to plant a full set of clothing both in my car and in my desk for the just-in-case.  Sigh.

The Reality of the Thing

I suffer from post-major-event slumps.  Pretty much always.

I have various ways to combat this, usually involving signing up for something else shortly after the major event in hopes that I won't slump out of sheer panic.

Well.  There is panic.  I'll tell you that.

I finished the MS150 on Sunday massively dehydrated.  I weighed 2.5 pounds less than Sunday morning on Monday morning, and that was after I had done quite a bit of re-hydrating.  And I felt ROUGH.  So Monday was, and was always planned to be, a recovery day.  But I didn't anticipate how bad off I'd be.  I went to the grocery store on Monday and then needed a nap because it exhausted me.  It was that severe.

Couple that with my other body issue which began on Tuesday, and Tuesday's planned recovery swim didn't happen.  Which led to a Wednesday lie-in.  And then Thursday... it really wasn't until Thursday night that I finally felt back to almost normal.

So this morning I finally, FINALLY, dragged myself out of bed for Yoga.  Yoga is NOT a triathlon.  And now I'm freaking out because I have to travel again for work this coming week and as always when I travel I can expect to struggle with exercising.

Ok, so the mop-up panic (but also trying to be realistic) plan is this:
Saturday: open water swim
Sunday: run or bike or bike/run
Monday: P90X in hotel room
Tuesday: skip
Wednesday: skip, but if I could do something when I get back home if I get back early enough, a run would be great
Thursday: bike morning, swim afternoon
Friday: off
Saturday: tri (TRY!)

I think this is doable and will ease my panic.  I will not have lost all my fitness in the past 2 weeks.  I need to remember that.  I just need to reassure myself that I can get through this thing.  I can definitely do the swim.  No problem.  The bike is so much way shorter than the MS.  I can definitely do the bike.  The run is the scary bit, and come on, I can totally walk if I need to.  I can do this.  It may be rough, but I can do it.

After the tri, the goal is back into a steady training plan (no more work trips til July!), and, AND back to calorie counting because the super long weekend hunger-making workouts should be over.

Last week rundown

As I was waxing poetic and nostalgic last week I was wandering away from the meat of the plan.  The day after tomorrow is April, y'all.  We've got 3 weeks (THREE WEEKS!!!!!! EEEEPP!!) til the MS150 and one month til my first post-baby tri.

So last week I did:
Monday: 3.2 mile run with a little walking.  But the distance was covered.
Tuesday: 1400 yard swim, no prob.
Wednesday: 2.25 mile run, focusing on running longer intervals and faster.
Thursday: 1400 yard swim, did I mention I love swimming?  Oh, and also I woke up early so I did yoga that morning.
Friday: P90X3 MMX.  I know, I was supposed to run.  But I just didn't want to, and I thought it might be nice to mix it up a little.  This definitely taxes my aerobic system and my legs and ass, so I figured it'd work.
Saturday: 26.6 mile HILLY freaking ride.  Yes, I planned to do the 40-something route.  No, I didn't do it.  I just didn't want to.  And I had a busy weekend and it would have killed most of the day.  And did I mention, HILLS?  (Btw Head for the Hills is an absolutely lovely MS150 prep ride.  Highly recommend!  The bluebonnets were out, it was a gorgeous day, the hills are great training, and the local fireman make a good burger for lunch after.  Really nicely run.)  The good news is I never walked, and I love my new brakes.  The bad news is I'm still fighting my big ring shifter and I need that sucker for big hills.  There were 3 hills where I ended up in the easiest possible gearing combo, going about 4mph.  But I didn't walk.  I win.

This week the plan is very similar, except I think I'm going to drop the Thursday swim in favor of MMX and then add back in the Friday run (but I'll switch that to Yoga if I'm feeling especially run down).  I would prefer to swim twice BUT it looks like rain on Thursday, plus I'm going to have a kid-free night and swimming makes me get home later, which I don't want to do because I want to go see a movie or something.  So you know I'm still sane - not sacrificing fun in favor of exercise.  At least on Thursday. ;-)

Tri Training

In the fear of the MS150, it has kind of been lost in my mind that in a fit of insanity, I signed up for a triathlon at the beginning of May.

Up until I went for that first swim, I was most worried about the swim leg, just due to general rustiness.  But I swam again yesterday, and really, the swim is going to be no problem at all.  I swam 500 straight, twice, the first time in 11 minutes and the second time in 10 minutes.  That is basically race pace for me when I'm fully trained.  I must reiterate how absolutely stunning it is to find myself in good swim shape after such a long lay off, but there it is, I'm going to try not to look the gift horse in the mouth.

So that leaves me with 2 concerns.  The first is the bike.  I am not at all worried about the distance.  Not. At. All.  However, I need to be a bit faster.  Now I think I can be.  What I remember of the course is quite flat, and I am hoping that if I use my philosophy that won me my 5K PR all those years ago - if I use up 75 miles of biking energy in 15 miles, surely I'll be faster than when I'm riding to go far.  But I will not be clipping in this year, for the first time in a tri, so that is also a factor, since I know clipping makes me faster.  What I would really love is to find a short course somewhere where I could actually try to ride a short fast ride and gauge where I am.  Perhaps if the R2R ride gets cancelled tomorrow, I can make that happen on Sunday.

The second concern is the run.   Once again I'm not worried about the distance.  After all these years, it is amazing to say, 5K doesn't phase me.  It is hard to be scared any longer of a distance when I know the worst that happens is I walk it.  But I don't want to walk it, and I'm not well trained on the run right now.  This morning I think I averaged 14 min/mi?  Running and walking.  Sooo... I have what, 6 weeks?  And we know that a lot of that, in terms of weekends, will remain tied up in MS150 training.  However I will have a tune up 5K on April 16, BUT I need to not blow my legs for MS150 since it is only 2 days before, so I'll be running that conservatively.  What if I did two runs per week for the next few weeks, one in which I don't go 5K but I try to go faster, and the other in which I do go 5K and I try to minimize walking?  Part of the problem is I'm not getting my ass out of bed fast enough in the mornings.  I need probably 40 minutes to be comfortable with 5K... I'll work on that.  I'm not trying to go crazy here - but if I could get a 30ish minute 5K time for the tri, that would make me really happy.

So, ok, the tentative plan for the next 3 weeks (before conference and MS get thrown into the mix):
M: Run 5K
T: Swim
W: Run for speed
R: Swim
F: Run easy
S: Bike FAR
S: Off or Yoga

I can always do a morning bike on the trainer on swim days, too, since I'm swimming in the afternoon, but I don't want to lock that in - I still am wanting to be mentally flexible and am trying to be careful not to ask too much of myself.

Race Planning and the MS150

The truth of the matter, of course, is I have signed up for the MS150 in hopes of curing myself from my bike spazziness.  In an attempt to properly prepare myself, I'm going to ride with Ready 2 Roll to train and prepare me for group riding.  Because even though I've ridden in triathlons, that is very solo, and I'm very aware that this will be very different.

As a part of that, I'm riding Pedal the Prairie and Head for the Hills.  Not sure what distances yet.

I've also gotten my crazy out and gone ahead and signed up for the CB&I Triathlon.  I figure the MS150 is just good training for that, right?  And I have every intention of starting a regular swim program once I get the gym membership at the new job, so I'll be easily ready for that part of it, which really just leaves the run.  And I can run (ok, maybe walk) 5K practically in my sleep, especially if my aerobic engine is prepped with all this other stuff.  So yeah.  Triathlon 2 weeks after MS150.  Eep!

Probably will do the little 5K in conjunction with my annual work conference in April as a tune-up.

Am planning on the Turkey Trot, obviously.

I just realized if I do a run in January, I'll be on track to do one per month through May... hmmm.... don't want to overcommit to a race a month and set myself up for failure, but don't want to rule it out so early in the year either... maybe I'll look for a little January quickie...

Firmly on the wagon

I finally found a My Fit Foods meal that I loooooove: Besto Pesto.  Nom freaking nom.

I managed to eat cleanly through to dinner Friday night, when we went to our favorite burger joint and oh, it was soooooo goooooood.  At that point I wanted to eat ALL THE FOOD, so, you know, it was good.  Saturday I went back on the wagon and was a good girl.  Sunday I had a small smoothie at the Globetrotters show, but otherwise I stuck with the plan.

For the first time in a looooooong time, I started Monday morning weighing the same as I did on Friday morning!  139.6.  Oh, yes, and I finally saw a drop!

I'm also doing a really good job of getting my 4 bottles of water per day, even over the weekend when I usually lose a bottle.

As for exercise, I started last Monday and it looked like this:
Bike
Bike
Tae Bo
Boot Camp
P90X Arms & Shoulders
Off
Tae Bo
P90X Arms & Shoulders

I am veeeeeeery pleased with this as well!  Booty Barre was canceled due to weather, but I still got my workout in.  WIN!  And I was disappointed when Grasshopper dropped by to tell me that our 5K had been moved to April (APRIL - BOOOOO!), and I did take Saturday off, but I was back at it on Sunday, and that is also a huge win for me, since I really struggle to get off my duff on the weekends.

We also did a lot of moving work from the old house to the new one on both Friday and Saturday, which tangentally counts.

I may need to be flexible with the rest of this week, as I already know I must miss Boot Camp on Thursday, and there is the possibility of another Ice Day tomorrow.  But I made it work last week, and I'm finally seeing results, so I know I can make it work again.  And I will.

Silver Lining?

I am still struggling through this week.  Exercising about every other day, and kind of beating myself up about it.

But.

But.

Last night I had a talk with Preston. 

I've been thinking that my problem is that always before when I started a diet and/or exercise kick, I started it HARDCORE.  You know, like 21 days straight of working out and eating well.  And that has ALWAYS led to results.  Results make me happy.  Happiness makes me want to continue, and off I go.

This time... this time I think I've got several issues.  My core is still really sore from the bronchitis, and I still feel the asthma taking a hold of my lungs occasionally.  So I'm not going hard on the workouts.  Plus life keeps interfering and I'm tired.  And then I can't do my diet the way I did in the past because I've been worried about the Z and the impact of us all not eating the same thing in the evenings.

So here's how I'm going to try to address it.  We've got a Boot Camp on Tuesdays and Thursdays starting up at work.  That will enable me to get an extra hour of sleep on those mornings.  I'm going to try to make at least one a week.  I am hoping that will help with the pesky life days.  Booty Barre has really helped me to get off my ass on Friday or Saturday.  I will keep this up. And the 5K I'm registered for makes next the PERFECT week to start this all off with 6 straight days of exercise.

As for eating, Preston and I talked and next week, I'm going to eat my stuff at dinner.  Which essentially means I'm going to buy Kashi frozen meals so I can count my calories properly.  I'm not sure if he knows it yet, but it also means I'm going to try to limit the eating out.  I do so well at work - I come home at 1100 calories or usually less.  At home is when I'm blowing it.  I have to find a way to get control at home.  This first kick is not a long term solution, but I'm hoping I can go from a week of Kashi, to maybe a week of My Fit Foods dinners, to working on cooking healthier options at home.  This can be done.  It is just a little harder this time around.

Preston is also going to work with me to try to stick more vigorously to Z's 8pm bedtime.  We've been letting it slip lately to closer to 8:30.  I literally walk straight from her room to my bed to go to sleep, and somehow I think that extra 30 min is really biting me the next morning when my alarm goes off.

So, the plan is in place.  The game is about to be afoot.  I am feeling... hopeful.

Real Life

In the past 8 days since we've spoken, I've biked 4 times and done Booty Barre (still OUCH) another time.  I'm not exactly thrilled and proud of this, BUT I'm not ashamed, either.  It isn't what I want it to be, but it isn't nothing.  It is something, it is a start, and I will continue trying to improve.

This morning was an improvement.  Yesterday morning I was totally knocked out.  Slept in.  Skipped my workout.  This morning I got up and got on the bike.  Baby steps.

Also, I may be CRAZY.  Oh, heck, I know I'm totally cray cray, because I signed up for the Awesome 80's 5K on the 25th.  I haven't run since October.  Oh yeah.  This is gonna hurt!  But it looks like fun and there is a (supposedly DARTH VADER!!!) finisher's medal and I can even go with Z in the stroller and Grasshopper (who is really more like Master now that she's running Halfs (!!So proud!!) and I'm whining about a 5K) is going to be there.  So, yeah.  It's gonna hurt but I'm totally looking forward to it!

The Long Run Plan - Update

Sometimes I feel like I'm getting lost in all the planning.  So here is the running plan, just focused on races and long runs and back-to-back weekends.  Starting this weekend.  Dates are Saturday before the / and Sunday after.

7/Run for Recovery 5K
8
9
10 for Texas
Toughest 10K Galveston
7/Houston Half Relay
Rocky Raccoon 10K Trail
10
8
Dallas Turkey Trot 8 (Thursday)/9 (Saturday)
6/La Porte By the Bay Half
8/6
6
End of the World Half/Day After the End of the World Half

This gets me my 12 races for the year.  It also gets me a full Half before the big weekend, because while I know I don't need any full length training runs, since I'm going for the back-to-back, I think it would be a good idea.  And at 3 weeks out, the timing is perfect.  4 weeks out the 8 on Thursday followed by the 9 on Saturday will be a hard training "weekend", as well.

The only 2 I'm not signed up for yet are the Rocky Raccoon and the La Porte Half.

Goodness, it looks so daunting, but my season is going so well, so far, and I'm treating all of these races like training runs, so it isn't supposed to be high pressure.  I've gotta remember that this represents 3 months.  And it really looks like a nice -build to 10 and drop back, build again to 10 and drop back not as far, build to 13 with some double weekends and drop back, double race weekend.  Also, all the races represent milestones or environments that will be good training... the hill running in the Toughest 10K and the La Porte and the Houston Half Relay and the Turkey Trot, my first 10 at 10 for Texas, including the stabilization muscles in the trail run...

I just really really want this to work out.  Injury and DNS free.  That's all I want.

The Schedule Strategy

My goal for the year is 12 races.  It is late August and I have 2.  (And 3, THREE, DNSs, ugh!)  But I think this is still do-able, I really do.

My strategy is two-fold.  I'm looking for races that help me build up to my target distance of 13.1 miles by mid December.  And I'm looking for races on Sundays that I can run the day after a long run to get my legs used to running tired since I'm targeting 13.1 miles the day after my first 13.1 miles.

Races meeting qualification A include:
*Toughest 10K Kemah
Toughest 10K Galveston
*Houston Half Relay  (Also meets qualification B)
Rocky Raccoon 10K Trail
*10 for Texas
Dallas Turkey Trot 8 miler

Races meeting qualification B include:
Tunnel to Towers 5K
Running of the Bulls 5K
Mistletoe Fun Run 5K

I've even added in one more than I need to meet my 12 goal, just in case I have to DNS another time.  * indicates the ones I've already signed up for, so obviously this isn't written in stone - I'm open to other options as long as they make scheduling sense.  The two longer ones that I'm most uncertain about are Toughest 10K Galveston and Rocky Raccoon 10K, because if I did both I'd be racing 3 weekends in a row (along with the Houston Half Relay).  The shorter one that I'm not as sure of is Tunnel to Towers, but honestly I'm not married to any of the 5Ks.  They'll be plentiful enough as the weather cools down to take my pick, although Sunday ones are a little more rare. 

But just as it is I think this is a good, do-able schedule that meets all of my goals.

(Now if I can just stay HEALTHY!)

The Plan for this Week

(Maybe if I type it, it'll come true.)

Monday: Run (Check.)
Tuesday: Tae Bo Cardio Circuit 1 (Check.)
Wednesday: Run
Thursday: 30 Day Shred
Friday: Run (Maybe run to the gym, lift, run home?  In the early afternoon?)
Saturday: Maybe the Piney Woods Trail Run?  Or maybe off.
Sunday: Probably off.

2 down, several to go.

2012 Race Plans

Gotta get going for 12 in 2012!

Feeling pretty good about:
1/14 - EP5K
3/3 - Woodlands 5K Fun Run.  Because why not?
3/17 - Warrior Dash.  Because they have medals.  And beer.
3/31 - Bellaire Trolley Run 5K
11/22 - Turkey Trot 8 miler

Potentials:

1/28 - Piney Woods 5K Trail Run
2/18 - Buffalo Wallow Cross Country 6K
3/10 - Bayou City Classic 10K
3/24 - Eikenburg Law Week 8K
4/18 - LP Run - 33 1/3 minutes
6 - Dad's Day 5K?

7/4 - something

Lol, this is 12, but I'd guarantee that I don't make all 12 of these.  And that *isn't* my goal.  I'm just musing at this point.  Except about the EP5K and the Woodlands Fun Run, because I'm already signed up for those!

Guilty

This week was going to be my first 3 run week post-Z.  This is sad, I know.  But reflective of how difficult getting going has been.

I started off right: ran Monday morning.  Tuesday I woke up feeling a little... off.  I stationary biked because that is the least stressful workout option I have.  By evening I knew I was sick.  (Yes, AGAIN.)  Wednesday morning I felt like poo.  I opted for sleep instead of a run.  That night Z gifted me with a midnight wake-up scream, and when I finally got back to bed I told P to just cancel my 3:30 alarm, thus no workout on Thursday morning.  I still felt a little sick on Thursday morning, too, so I was ok with that.  But by last night I knew I was on the mend.  This morning there'd be no skipping the workout!!  I woke up at 3:30, but managed to talk myself out of running while I pumped (it was hot, super humid, shouldn't I give my system another day to recover, etc.).  Oh well, at least I stationary biked.  But I am feeling rather guilty about it.  I really wish I had run.  Perhaps a run tomorrow morning?

Hopefully next week I'll finally catch the elusive 3 run week!

P90X and Workout Musings

I'm still going with P90X - 6 weeks and counting!  I saw big and drastic improvements in the beginning, but now they, and the weight loss/redistribution seem to be slowing.  I'm starting to think that it is about time to add some running and maybe swimming/cycling back into the mix...

But first, 2 more commentaries on the various P90X DVDs.  Since my last P90X post I've tried Core Synergistics and Cardio X.  Core was fascinating to me because it was difficult, but I didn't feel like it was targeting my core in particular while I did it.  This may be to my credit: I try to focus on my core during all workout sessions.  But afterwards I *felt* it.  This DVD did its job!  I think it will be a really nice addition to my Cores I, II, and III routine.  And Ab Ripper X.  You know, for variety!  Cardio X was more mild than Plyo, but still relatively cardio intensive, and it made me sore in some new places/ways.  I think part of that is because it included bits of Kenpo, which I still haven't tried.  It also includes bits of Yoga X and of Core Synergistics, so it would be a nice well-rounded P90X workout if I was trying to shotgun a bunch of aspects of P90X in one sitting.  I'll be keeping that in mind as I venture back towards some tri-training.

I'm still not sure what an ideal week should/could look like for me.  I'm going to use this space real quick as a musing ground.  Feel free to jet if I start to bore you! ;-)  So I've got a number of routines that I like/want to do.  Here they are (will also list the time involved if it is a known quantity - not the time on the DVD, but the time it takes me):
Run
Bike
Swim
Cores I, II, III (30 min)
P90X: Ab Ripper X (15 min)
P90X: Core Synergistics (50 min)
P90X: Chest & Back (45 min)
P90X: Plyometrics (60 min)
P90X: Arms & Shoulders (50 min)
P90X: Legs & Back (50 min)
P90X: Kenpo
P90X: Cardio X (50 min)
P90X: X Stretch (haven't tried yet)
P90X: Back & Biceps (haven't tried yet)
P90X: Chest, Shoulders, & Triceps (haven't tried yet)
P90X: Yoga X (90 min)
Yoga Zone Total Body 2 (20 min)
Tae Bo Cardio Circuit 1 (35 min)

That's what, 19 options?  And I have 7 hours per week right now, max.  Ok, what if we group them by discipline...

Tri:
Run
Bike
Swim

Core: 
Cores I, II, III (30 min)
P90X: Ab Ripper X (15 min)
P90X: Core Synergistics

Upper body:
P90X: Chest & Back
P90X: Arms & Shoulders
P90X: Back & Biceps (haven't tried yet)
P90X: Chest, Shoulders, & Triceps (haven't tried yet)

Lower body:
P90X: Legs & Back
P90X: Plyometrics (Also under Cardio)

Cardio:


P90X: Kenpo

P90X: Cardio X
Tae Bo Cardio Circuit 1 
P90X: Plyometrics (also under Lower body)

Yoga/Stretch:
P90X: X Stretch (haven't tried yet)

P90X: Yoga X
Yoga Zone Total Body 2



Hmmmm.... if I didn't count Core as an official category (more or a tack-on to something else), and I wanted to get in at least 2 runs, 1 bike, and a swim a week... what if we did something like this:
Monday: Upper Body category
Tuesday: Run, Ab Ripper X if time
Wednesday: Plyometrics
Thursday: morning Cardio category, evening Bike
Friday: Swim, Cores I, II, III if time
Saturday: longer Run
Sunday: Yoga/Stretch category or off
That would give me lots of cardio to try and get the rest of this weight off... this, of course, is very non-specific, but I could always substitute out P90X mornings in favor of run, swim, or bike if I was training for something specific.  The shorter routines can sub in when I'm short on time.  I could also try to get Preston to take Z for awhile on Sunday to get in another bike or run.  There is always the option to throw in some core or biking on the trainer in the evenings during TV time (motivation is my major problem, here).  I just really really need to be making use of ALL mornings before Z wakes up.  I need to go ahead and get up on Fridays, when I've usually been sleeping in.  And I need to be more proactive on Saturdays.  I also need to be more proactive about exploring/using my childcare options.

I can do this.  I can have fun, train, and get this weight off.  And in these trying times when exercise really helps me to cope, I need to remember to put myself first and do it so I can be a better mom, wife, boss.

Weight this morning: 139.6.  Onward!

Updated to include: There is also a workout every Tuesday evening at work.  Once I get back on a regular schedule, I would love to return to that.  (I had started after I was preggo but before I knew.  It was an ass-kicker then.  Might be a bit easier now, but I'm in worse shape now...)  It is a good way to get in a two-a-day easily and not have to worry about child care.  If I go back to Reggie, I might switch the run to Monday morning and the P90X upper body to Tuesday morning, since Reggie is more cardio/legs.  Anyways, yay!  I had forgotten about that opportunity!

P90X: Day 4

Day 3 calls for Ab Ripper X.  Didn't happen.  (I did do 100 crunches, though.)  It was my first deviation from "the plan" laid out in the P90X literature, and I felt kind of bad about it.  THen I berated myself for being stupid, because when I started on Monday I had no intention of following the plan religiously!  I get so caught up in things sometimes.

This morning called for Yoga X.  It is a 90 minute DVD!!  Yeah, I don't ahve 90 minutes on work mornings.  I barely have 60.  And this morning I felt like hammered poo, so I was super slow waking up, super slow getting up, super slow pumping, etc.  So I only had 30 minutes, so 30 minutes of Yoga X is what I did.  From what I did, though, it looks like a really good yoga session.  Really good.  And tough.  Hopefully I'll make it all the way through at some point.  When I have 90 minutes.  Right.  Anyways...

I did sign up for the 5K on Saturday, so I'm thinking I should just do an easy bike tomorrow.  Then the 5K Saturday, then pick back up with P90X.  Not sure if I should just proceed forward with the program pretending that I'm not skipping days... I think that's what I should do.  The other option is doing whatever is called for on a particular day regardless of whether the day before was skipped.  I could do some of that too, when it suits me, I guess.  But for now I like the idea of doing everything in order because it will hit all parts of my body.  I'll still be stronger for it.  I want to be running on warmish afternoons, too.  We just haven't had any of those this week!

Still sore.  Mom asked me last night what wasn't sore: everything from the chin up, and from the knees down.   Everything else is sore.

I got another Moving Comfort Fiona sports bra from Amazon delivered yesterday.  I love these bras!!  If you're a bigger busted woman, this is the sports bra for you!  I buy one size down for maximum support, and pair with a nursing bra for obvious reasons, but I've got rock solid boobs when I work out.  These sweater puppies aren't moving an inch!  I've also got another style from Moving Comfort, the Grace, on the way from Sierra Trading Post where it was on super sale the other day.  I'll review it when I get it.  When that one arrives, I'll officially have more sports bras than nursing bras for my new "girls".  Shows you where my priorities are at!

Weight this morning: 141.6 (On Monday I saw a 140.4.  I knew it was a fluke, but downward trends always begin with a fluke like that, so I still got excited.  I also got excited because I might just see a 13x at some point in the next few weeks.  I'm going to lose my shit on the day that happens, fluke or not.  I CANNOT WAIT to have my weight start with 13.  Seriously.  The difference in my psyche is enormous.