Oh wait. It's only August 4th. It feels much more like
September today - a picture perfect fall morning.
My plan was to go for
a bike ride that started out with 5-6 miles around Media "south" of route 1 and
then "north" of route 1 out and back to Hildacy Farms. The return from Hildacy
Farms is a hill that I fell apart riding back in January. By the time I returned
to the area of my house my legs did not feel up to making that so I repeated my
warm up circuit around the immediate neighborhood and went home.
As I
write this I think the truth is more likely that I let my brain talk me out of
it. I blamed my legs but I think that isn't fair. *sigh* I'll get it next time.
The upside- it was a 7 mile bike ride and that beats sitting
on the couch.
Four more sleeps 'till vacation!
Showing posts with label Fitness without a purpose. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fitness without a purpose. Show all posts
Sunday, August 4, 2013
Friday, August 2, 2013
Numbers vs Narrative
2 kids playing in the creek
1 different kid walking back to the car with his mothers make up bag on his foot because he lost his shoe in the creek
1.5 falls (I saved one)
3.57 miles
1 runner passed me going my way
1 walker pass me coming toward me
1 warm up lap of the parking lot
1 cool down lap of the parking lot
159 average heart rate
58 minutes and 18 seconds total time on my feet
So I read a report that "they" did on whether people read other people's training or fitness reports for the numbers or for the narrative. I read for the narrative and since I write for myself mostly that's what you get here. But I do enjoy that others read my blog so in case you are one of the number seekers there you have tonight's run by the numbers :)
None of that really matters though as much as the fact that I actually did it. I've had a sore throat for three days now and this morning it felt the worst of the three. I almost didn't even put my gym bag in the car. In the end I decided that it was too early in the day to sabotage my efforts so the gym bag came with me to work. After some water and some coffee my throat felt less parched although it still bothers me to swallow.
"They" say the rule of thumb for working out with a cold (or whatever this is) is neck and above the neck go for it, below the neck skip it. I decided I would use the 10 minute rule tonight. 10 minutes on my feet and if I didn't feel right I'd turn around and go back. Since the first 8+ minutes was a long and winding downhill it was either keep going or turn around and go back up the winding uphill. If I kept going I'd have to go up it again on other side eventually but in the meantime I'd have some fun on the trail. Plus by the time 10 minutes was up I was feeling good and was, in fact, really enjoying the trail.
I did a loop of sorts combining parts of the blue and white trails at Ridley Creek State Park tonight. Trail running has been growing on me these past few years and I've pretty much decided that I really love it. It so much more interesting than road running. A little trickier, sure, but I think that's what I love the most - the adventure. :) When I was a kid and we would go on car trips I remember looking out the window of the car and imagining what it would be like to be able to hike up the hills and mountains we passed. I still do it (although not so much while I'm driving). I think trail running/hiking is in my blood somewhere. I'm just now getting to do it. I had a great time tonight.
Upon arriving home, I did the arm challenge. Which hurt a lot more than yesterday since my muscles where suffering from delayed onset soreness by the time I got to tonight's challenge. Still I finished. How are the rest of you doing? I know some readers are doing the arm challenge as well. Are you looking forward to Sundays day off from the arm challenge as much as I am? :)
Earlier this week I had a great bike ride - my first of length since returning. It was mostly flat. However, I'm proud to say I managed the three hills that were there very well. :) On that same night I had a shorter bike ride with the son of one of my running buddies. Austin is 7 and he and I rode for about 3 miles while his mom and a few others completed a virtual race with the "Nerd Herd". They are raising money to fight cancer. At 7, one does not have as much trail awareness as is necessary to be safe but fortunately he was very good at listening and following my directions and I'm pleased to say we both survived and had a nice chat about movies while we rode. Austin loves horror movies and was rather philosophical about the ones he can't see yet because they are above his viewer rating. ;)
Also earlier this week I ran at another nature preserve - Gwynedd - in Ambler with Maggi and Julius. It was great to run with them again. It was another gorgeous running night too!
No photos of anything this week. I wish someone would invent a camera that fits in your hat or visor and the shutter is managed by a button on your wrist or something like that. There were lost of photo opportunities this week but I just didn't feel like carrying the camera.
I ran tonight - Friday's are usually an off day - so that I could take tomorrow off and go to see my sister Meg and a production of Sound of Music. Meg is in the pit orchestra (I hope I got that right). She plays the bass guitar and just about any other instrument she wants but it's bass guitar for tomorrow. :)
1 different kid walking back to the car with his mothers make up bag on his foot because he lost his shoe in the creek
1.5 falls (I saved one)
3.57 miles
1 runner passed me going my way
1 walker pass me coming toward me
1 warm up lap of the parking lot
1 cool down lap of the parking lot
159 average heart rate
58 minutes and 18 seconds total time on my feet
So I read a report that "they" did on whether people read other people's training or fitness reports for the numbers or for the narrative. I read for the narrative and since I write for myself mostly that's what you get here. But I do enjoy that others read my blog so in case you are one of the number seekers there you have tonight's run by the numbers :)
None of that really matters though as much as the fact that I actually did it. I've had a sore throat for three days now and this morning it felt the worst of the three. I almost didn't even put my gym bag in the car. In the end I decided that it was too early in the day to sabotage my efforts so the gym bag came with me to work. After some water and some coffee my throat felt less parched although it still bothers me to swallow.
"They" say the rule of thumb for working out with a cold (or whatever this is) is neck and above the neck go for it, below the neck skip it. I decided I would use the 10 minute rule tonight. 10 minutes on my feet and if I didn't feel right I'd turn around and go back. Since the first 8+ minutes was a long and winding downhill it was either keep going or turn around and go back up the winding uphill. If I kept going I'd have to go up it again on other side eventually but in the meantime I'd have some fun on the trail. Plus by the time 10 minutes was up I was feeling good and was, in fact, really enjoying the trail.
I did a loop of sorts combining parts of the blue and white trails at Ridley Creek State Park tonight. Trail running has been growing on me these past few years and I've pretty much decided that I really love it. It so much more interesting than road running. A little trickier, sure, but I think that's what I love the most - the adventure. :) When I was a kid and we would go on car trips I remember looking out the window of the car and imagining what it would be like to be able to hike up the hills and mountains we passed. I still do it (although not so much while I'm driving). I think trail running/hiking is in my blood somewhere. I'm just now getting to do it. I had a great time tonight.
Upon arriving home, I did the arm challenge. Which hurt a lot more than yesterday since my muscles where suffering from delayed onset soreness by the time I got to tonight's challenge. Still I finished. How are the rest of you doing? I know some readers are doing the arm challenge as well. Are you looking forward to Sundays day off from the arm challenge as much as I am? :)
Earlier this week I had a great bike ride - my first of length since returning. It was mostly flat. However, I'm proud to say I managed the three hills that were there very well. :) On that same night I had a shorter bike ride with the son of one of my running buddies. Austin is 7 and he and I rode for about 3 miles while his mom and a few others completed a virtual race with the "Nerd Herd". They are raising money to fight cancer. At 7, one does not have as much trail awareness as is necessary to be safe but fortunately he was very good at listening and following my directions and I'm pleased to say we both survived and had a nice chat about movies while we rode. Austin loves horror movies and was rather philosophical about the ones he can't see yet because they are above his viewer rating. ;)
Also earlier this week I ran at another nature preserve - Gwynedd - in Ambler with Maggi and Julius. It was great to run with them again. It was another gorgeous running night too!
No photos of anything this week. I wish someone would invent a camera that fits in your hat or visor and the shutter is managed by a button on your wrist or something like that. There were lost of photo opportunities this week but I just didn't feel like carrying the camera.
I ran tonight - Friday's are usually an off day - so that I could take tomorrow off and go to see my sister Meg and a production of Sound of Music. Meg is in the pit orchestra (I hope I got that right). She plays the bass guitar and just about any other instrument she wants but it's bass guitar for tomorrow. :)
Sunday, July 28, 2013
A New Challenge and some updates
On August 1st I am taking on this arm challenge.
It crossed my timeline on Facebook twice in one day so I decided to check it out. Then I posted it to Perkis People and invited my fitness buddies to join in. Needless to say, they did and that just makes it all the more fun. I know what you are thinking. "I wonder what her definition of "FUN" is?" Hey, whatever keeps us smiling and moving is fun in my book.
As I began to look at the challenge a little closer I began to think I must be crazy. But this is where the group comes in and keeps it 'fun'. Misery loves company (that's another group I know but the thought applies here). With others in the group doing the challenge we can laugh and applaud our attempts together. I've also challenged Carmen, Todd, Dave and the boys to join in to keep me going during our upcoming vacation. So far, Carmen is the only one to commit. I think we can drag the boys along simply by telling them they do not want Mom and Granpaula to do more than they do. :)
No one will be more surprised than me if I actually get to the full complement of push-ups, dips, curls and air punches by August 31st. But any number I accomplish is more than I'm doing now so it's still a win. And since I am not working out toward an event goal I've decided to add a squat and plank challenge to this calendar. Without the pressure of an event to train for, I can take the chance of straining something because I can afford to rest if that happens. Of course I don't want to do that so I'll be careful but I have nothing to lose for trying. :) With an event on the schedule I would have had an 'excuse' not to try.
An update on eating healthy:
Yesterday marked 8 weeks. The second 4 were much less strict than the first 4. Having said that I still did an excellent job of sticking with the concept of the plan - Protein, Veggies & Fruit with no grains or processed foods. I backed away from my plan to avoid the same food in the same day or for the same meal two days in a row. The primary reason is to avoid spoilage. I'm basically preparing menus for one. Dave is not a huge fruit and vegetable eater. He eats them but is not really on board to having them at every meal. So preparing for one in those areas becomes a real challenge if I want to maintain the variety level I initially committed too and avoid waste. I've had ice cream and M&M's over these 4 weeks too but sparingly. All in all, in 8 weeks I've come a long way of eliminating processed foods from my intake.
It was difficult to turn away from the Crème Brule French Toast that was on the menu at breakfast yesterday. A group of us went out after putting in some trail miles. I stuck to the omelet instead and truthfully it was very satisfying and filling. I was satisfied until diner. The French Toast delight would have left me wanting more in a few hours.
I'm looking forward now to finding out how this will work with running and biking and increasing my activity levels in general. One of the benefits of eating this way is having your body to use fat rather than sugar/carbs for fuel. This is very beneficial for endurance.
I did not eat breakfast before our group run yesterday and I felt fine. This result is not significant at this point though. I only went 4.4 miles and I've never run without having breakfast first so I have nothing to compare this too. I am curious to see how far I can go before feeling the need to fuel. Then I have to decide what to use for fuel on longer outings. One step at a time. ;)
Thanks for staying with me.
 |
As I began to look at the challenge a little closer I began to think I must be crazy. But this is where the group comes in and keeps it 'fun'. Misery loves company (that's another group I know but the thought applies here). With others in the group doing the challenge we can laugh and applaud our attempts together. I've also challenged Carmen, Todd, Dave and the boys to join in to keep me going during our upcoming vacation. So far, Carmen is the only one to commit. I think we can drag the boys along simply by telling them they do not want Mom and Granpaula to do more than they do. :)
No one will be more surprised than me if I actually get to the full complement of push-ups, dips, curls and air punches by August 31st. But any number I accomplish is more than I'm doing now so it's still a win. And since I am not working out toward an event goal I've decided to add a squat and plank challenge to this calendar. Without the pressure of an event to train for, I can take the chance of straining something because I can afford to rest if that happens. Of course I don't want to do that so I'll be careful but I have nothing to lose for trying. :) With an event on the schedule I would have had an 'excuse' not to try.
An update on eating healthy:
Yesterday marked 8 weeks. The second 4 were much less strict than the first 4. Having said that I still did an excellent job of sticking with the concept of the plan - Protein, Veggies & Fruit with no grains or processed foods. I backed away from my plan to avoid the same food in the same day or for the same meal two days in a row. The primary reason is to avoid spoilage. I'm basically preparing menus for one. Dave is not a huge fruit and vegetable eater. He eats them but is not really on board to having them at every meal. So preparing for one in those areas becomes a real challenge if I want to maintain the variety level I initially committed too and avoid waste. I've had ice cream and M&M's over these 4 weeks too but sparingly. All in all, in 8 weeks I've come a long way of eliminating processed foods from my intake.
It was difficult to turn away from the Crème Brule French Toast that was on the menu at breakfast yesterday. A group of us went out after putting in some trail miles. I stuck to the omelet instead and truthfully it was very satisfying and filling. I was satisfied until diner. The French Toast delight would have left me wanting more in a few hours.
I'm looking forward now to finding out how this will work with running and biking and increasing my activity levels in general. One of the benefits of eating this way is having your body to use fat rather than sugar/carbs for fuel. This is very beneficial for endurance.
I did not eat breakfast before our group run yesterday and I felt fine. This result is not significant at this point though. I only went 4.4 miles and I've never run without having breakfast first so I have nothing to compare this too. I am curious to see how far I can go before feeling the need to fuel. Then I have to decide what to use for fuel on longer outings. One step at a time. ;)
Thanks for staying with me.
Saturday, July 27, 2013
Getting Back To It
I ran twice this week. Both were around 4 miles and both felt great. My legs were fine for both. Tuesday was an evening workout and today's was a morning workout. The humidity was mostly the same for both but today the temp was 13 degrees cooler. I ran both solo although I started out with friends today.
I ran with my Garmin on both days but set it to only show my heart rate. I really want to get away from focusing on pace/time. I wanted to use HR to determine when I need to take walk breaks or slow down. If my HR went above 80% of max I would take a walk break or slow down. As my endurance improves I should be able to go farther/faster at the same heart rate. In theory this makes sense but .... .I don't know what the MAX is. I've never tested it and the formulas are way off. The formulas put me at somewhere around 167-171. I ran comfortable both days this week averaging 152 so my max is definitely more than the formulas predict.
I thought about backing into it. I know my resting heart rate is around 72. I tested it this week wearing my HRM to bed and checking first thing upon waking. BTW, sleeping with the HRM is not comfortable but I really wanted to find out. So using that and my average HR for this week and the next few runs I could probably back into the MAX. But that assumes that my perceived effort was in the fitness/aerobic zone. And if I knew that it was then I don't need the numbers.
So now I am bordering on taking the fun out of my return to running and biking. So PPPfffftttt (this is a G rated blog after all). I probably won't ditch the watch - it does help to know distance when the trail is not marked - but I'll use the data only after the fact to see where I'm at. I started distance running because I wanted to see how far I could go not how fast I could go. I can use the talk test to be sure I maintaining an appropriate effort.
I also biked once this week and hope to go out again tomorrow. I did not feel nearly as good on the bike as I did on my feet. I rode my bike probably every day as a kid. All over everywhere. I do not have any memory of being bothered by hills. I continued to ride when the kids were small and carried them on the back of the bike. Even then, I do not remember hills being as much of a problem as they are now. I see a hill while on the bike and I mentally fall apart. It's embarrassing, really. On my feet, eh - the hills are not my favorite part of the run but they are no big deal either. I guess the difference is walking my bike up the hill is much more embarrassing than walking myself up the hill. I have some work to do! :)
All in all I'm glad to be back with all options available to me. I'm very curious to see how my new eating habits will work with increased activity but I'll post my thoughts about that another time.
I ran with my Garmin on both days but set it to only show my heart rate. I really want to get away from focusing on pace/time. I wanted to use HR to determine when I need to take walk breaks or slow down. If my HR went above 80% of max I would take a walk break or slow down. As my endurance improves I should be able to go farther/faster at the same heart rate. In theory this makes sense but .... .I don't know what the MAX is. I've never tested it and the formulas are way off. The formulas put me at somewhere around 167-171. I ran comfortable both days this week averaging 152 so my max is definitely more than the formulas predict.
I thought about backing into it. I know my resting heart rate is around 72. I tested it this week wearing my HRM to bed and checking first thing upon waking. BTW, sleeping with the HRM is not comfortable but I really wanted to find out. So using that and my average HR for this week and the next few runs I could probably back into the MAX. But that assumes that my perceived effort was in the fitness/aerobic zone. And if I knew that it was then I don't need the numbers.
So now I am bordering on taking the fun out of my return to running and biking. So PPPfffftttt (this is a G rated blog after all). I probably won't ditch the watch - it does help to know distance when the trail is not marked - but I'll use the data only after the fact to see where I'm at. I started distance running because I wanted to see how far I could go not how fast I could go. I can use the talk test to be sure I maintaining an appropriate effort.
I also biked once this week and hope to go out again tomorrow. I did not feel nearly as good on the bike as I did on my feet. I rode my bike probably every day as a kid. All over everywhere. I do not have any memory of being bothered by hills. I continued to ride when the kids were small and carried them on the back of the bike. Even then, I do not remember hills being as much of a problem as they are now. I see a hill while on the bike and I mentally fall apart. It's embarrassing, really. On my feet, eh - the hills are not my favorite part of the run but they are no big deal either. I guess the difference is walking my bike up the hill is much more embarrassing than walking myself up the hill. I have some work to do! :)
All in all I'm glad to be back with all options available to me. I'm very curious to see how my new eating habits will work with increased activity but I'll post my thoughts about that another time.
Wednesday, July 17, 2013
Ramblings mostly about fitness without a purpose
Ok so there is always a purpose to fitness. If one
defines fitness as minding your overall health, physical & mental well-being.
My title, of course, refers to not having a goal event on the horizon. For me,
the net effect has been positive. As I stated in an earlier post I can pretty
much do what I want when I want and how I want. My only “goal” right now is to exercise
regularly but I have no need to do any specific things. Still, there are some
very odd disconnected emotions floating around as well.
One thing that hasn’t changed is the battle over whether or not to give up a workout. Without an event to plan for, I’d have thought the decision would be easier. I’m struggling with that today. It’s hot and humid. There are air quality and excessive heat warnings posted all up and down the I-95 corridor. I’m tired and I have a minor sore throat. Yet, I’m fighting with myself about whether to go for an after work bike ride. Well not really fighting it anymore. I’ve already decided not to but I’m still suffering from the internal battle as to whether it was a proper decision or a wimpy one. I guess I should take comfort in knowing that I don’t have to have an event goal to make exercise a valued part of my life. J
One thing that hasn’t changed is the battle over whether or not to give up a workout. Without an event to plan for, I’d have thought the decision would be easier. I’m struggling with that today. It’s hot and humid. There are air quality and excessive heat warnings posted all up and down the I-95 corridor. I’m tired and I have a minor sore throat. Yet, I’m fighting with myself about whether to go for an after work bike ride. Well not really fighting it anymore. I’ve already decided not to but I’m still suffering from the internal battle as to whether it was a proper decision or a wimpy one. I guess I should take comfort in knowing that I don’t have to have an event goal to make exercise a valued part of my life. J
Monday, July 1, 2013
What's Next?
Once again conjuring up my inner "Josiah
Bartlett". :) (Miss that show!)
In 2013 I planned to complete a spring marathon, a
century ride and a half marathon. The last two in the same weekend. HA! Life
sure has a way of humbling a person doesn't it? It's all good. I learned a lot
about me and my body in these past two months; and I'm not done.
So the marathon didn't happen. The bike ride won't
either. I toyed very briefly with the idea of doing a shorter distance but
bagged that pretty quickly. I haven't put in any significant bike miles in over
three months so I have no idea where I'm starting from. I notified the MS folks
yesterday and will volunteer for the ride instead. :)
I've also decided that I won't be doing the Ocean City
half either. I'll be in Ocean City on September 29th, I'm just not running. I
love OC and the race. I'll cheer on my friends and a few hundred random
strangers instead. A good time will be had by all!
I've decided instead to take full advantage of this
opportunity I've been given to reboot.
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