Old things becoming new things...

A few days before I got the bad news, I had made arrangements to go check something out. I had been feeling discouraged about running and thought maybe a little change-up might help.

The checking-out happened on Saturday morning. I was so fortunate that it was gorgeous out instead of cold and windy and rainy...

 Sunrise and San Quentin Penitentiary

I had opted to go for a ride in the coach's launch and talk with the coach about the team instead of hopping in a boat. I must confess, the moment I pulled up into the parking lot I started quivering with excitement. While I was glad I had chosen to not row that morning, my appetite was whetted. 

A little morning choppiness out on the SF Bay...

 ...but pretty glassy down by the inlet.

I can't wait until Wednesday.

I'm going to row.

At least, I'm going to try it.

Here's where it gets not-so-pretty...

I was really hoping 2013 would be a kinder, gentler year to me. Last year really ran me through the wringer in so many ways, and I was really looking forward to a little respite.

But if it were easy, there would be nothing to TAKE ON, XL!

Right.

*sigh*

Okay.

Fine.

After I spend a little bit of time wallowing in self-pity and grieving whatever the hell I'm grieving, I will get started Taking It On...because yes, that is what I do. But sometimes I'm just really super tired of taking it on.

Yesterday, I received the write-up on my x-ray...

Moderate to severe osteoarthritis of the right hip.

On the one hand, YAY! A diagnosis! On the other hand, holy s*it...conventional medicine says there's nothing you can do to heal it. You can 'manage' it...manage the pain...mask the symptoms...cut it out and put a piece of metal and plastic in there that will need to be replaced again in 10 years and isn't made to fit a small woman's physique and doesn't treat whatever the heck led to this whole crappy situation in the first place. You can shoot cortisone in there that will further erode any cartilage that still exists in that thar hip socket.

Ummmm...no thanks. None of those really appeal to me. Conventional medicine in this moment isn't really appealing to me :P

Oh, and honey...running is probably the worst thing you can do. Oh, you say you've been thinking of rowing again? Think again because that deep compression at the catch? Yeah, probably going to really screw you up even more.

You can go for a walk. 

Or swim.

You all know how I feel about swimming, right?

Regardless of what you do, sweetheart, you are on a one-way trip to losing the hip.

So I'm sitting here, staring at my little screen and thinking...

What in the heck am I going to do now?

And my answer today is...

I have no idea.

:(

I'm hoping some of you stick around to see how this turns out. But it might really suck. One thing I can say with certainty is this... for awhile at least there won't be much running talk. So if that's why you come here, yeah...probably other more interesting places to hang out ;-)

Of course, I am one to buck trends and piss people off so this journey will probably be entertaining to watch.

Maybe I could get some network to fund a reality show?

Setting the best example I can...

My best advice to an injured runner has always been this...don't run if it's hurting you.

I'm taking my blinders off now. I'm owning my injuredness. I will not be racing this weekend. No real boo-hoos about it. It's the right and best and most comfortable decision. I feel renewed now that I've made it. And deciding to switch from the Oakland Running Festival half-marathon in March to the 5K (or maybe nothing) added hugely to my sense of relief and reinvigoration.

What led me to this place? Have I been hurting more lately? What gives, XL?

Feeling as busted up as my favorite shades...

thanks, G and Miss C :P

Here's the deal...

I started running again a little over two years ago. I stepped things up too fast. My right hip was always in a state of crisis...hanging on from run to run. There would be good times and rough times, but it never really felt strong and solid and good. Part of me believed that this was as good as it was going to get. Just take what I can. Live with the discomfort.

That all changed when I started seeing a new body work person last month. And a new trainer...also last month. Their work is showing me that I can possibly someday be pain-free. Truly pain-free. So that is my goal. There is no time goal attached to it. There is not a deadline by which it must be achieved. When I can hop on my right foot repeatedly without wincing or crumpling in pain, we'll know we're there :) I'm not hurting more lately. In fact, it's the opposite. But it does hurt. Running isn't going to make it better, and I now feel like I have a real path to wellness. And I will endeavor to follow it without wavering. Keeping my eye on the feel-good prize.

As a runner with a blog, this is the best example I can set, and as a mom as well. Listening to and hearing my body. Taking good care of myself. Being honest with myself. Making the hard decisions.

So here's what I'm doing instead...

I'm still on the elliptical and riding my bike. I'm lifting weights and doing some circuit strength stuff.

And I'm walking around with my family and enjoying our beautiful weather in our beautiful part of the country...

...and

learning that 

not every puzzle

can be solved...

...and that's okay.

I'm looking at reflections on top of shadows

and seeing my little people

through eyes that are not clouded with pain.

At all.

For the first time in a long, long time.

Whatever happens, 

I know it will all be worth the wait. 

Putting it to the REAL test?

The other day I was talking about patience. I outlined but didn't detail my new training approach, or rather, my return to an old and effective for me training approach. As I proceed with strengthening and stretching and massaging and cross-training and not running, I'm wondering what would happen if I didn't run at all before my race on Feb. 3.

My hip still isn't perfect. And running does make it more sore. Not irretrievably painful but sore nonetheless. The more pliable and strong things get, the better it will hold up. Anyway, that's my understanding of it, so that's where my focus is right now.

What do we think would happen if I really adhered to the Don't Run, Run Faster Training Plan leading up to my 5K in 2+ weeks? Honestly, I think it would be okay. But also honestly, I don't think I have the self-restraint to not run at all before then!

Opening up the opinion poll:

What's your take on this idea?

Weekend Fitness Frenzy

Since I didn't do squat all week...partially due to a 3-day migraine :( ... and partially due to lack of motivation and energy post-migraine, I decided to do what any normal athlete would do...

too much on the weekend.

I was going to run a little bit on Friday. But... I had an active 3-year old in tow all day and some painful internal struggling to power through. By bedtime Friday, I knew I had to do something on Saturday...and I had already half-committed to a possible run with a friend on Sunday... maybe... meaning I was facing a weekend fitness frenzy...at least by my standards.

By late Saturday afternoon, things finally calmed down on the homefront. I headed to the gym at around 5 o'clock and settled in on the StairMaster for a little warm-up. Twenty bored minutes later and totally up-to-date on the Blake Lively/Ryan Reynolds nuptials, I closed my People magazine and stepped off that machine and climbed aboard the elliptical. Fifty super sweaty and soulfully satisfying minutes later, I had firmed up my Sunday running plans thanks to my smartphone and was done working out for the evening for which my shell-shocked quads thanked me. All in all, it was a very productive session.

When I awoke on Sunday, I was a little concerned about the state of my quads given the run I had in mind. I was planning to meet up with my running buddy who is always up for awesome challenges. I love running with her because we have good conversations and both relish training on demanding terrain.

We planned to meet at high noon...because we like to make things harder. We set off to run the same loop as last Sunday, but this time we did three loops plus a little extra in the middle of each loop...which brought my total for the run to 9.6 miles. She did more. I was a waste product after the 9.6.

Below are photos of my two very favorite parts of this route...the photos were taken in the spring when everything was green so imagine instead of the green (except the eucalyptus) it is the golden brown typical of California at the end of summer.

This little 'gateway' is at the crest of the BIG hill. 

I love turning the corner that precedes it and seeing this opening...

 and when you pass through it, the valley opens up at your feet :)

After climbing the BIG hill, you run a bit around the rim of the valley, crossing to the other side.

You then descend on this road.

This view always makes me think of The Road to Endless Possibilities.

With each loop it was getting hotter, but it never got unbearable. Then I dropped an awesomebomb right as we approached our final 1.4 mile descent... kombucha on ice in my car at the finish. Roserunner got very excited and announced the arrival of her second wind and started picking up the pace. I grumbled and flailed and couldn't match anything faster than a determined plod until the downhill began.

We got to the bottom. I was a salty mess. I usually drink a big bottle of Nuun before runs like this one...but I had forgotten to set it up before I left the house :(  Instead, I followed my car-ride kombucha with Nuun at home. And while I tend to take ice baths following long runs (yes, 9.6 is long in my book), I've been opting for warm epsom salts baths lately. I don't really know why. And I don't really know what difference I would feel versus an ice bath. But the epsom salts deal seems to be very comforting and my muscles do feel pretty happy right now.

I'm thinking next week I might shoot for a double-digit run...not sure how that will fit into the Don't Run, Run Faster training plan...perhaps if I, once again, don't do squat all week and just save it all for the weekend... 

*****************************

And we have a victor...

the random number generator at random.org says...

28

which translates to...

Lisa from Mom to Marathon!

Congrats to Lisa on winning the Endorphin Warrior Training Bracelet...and many, many thanks to all who participated in the giveaway :)

Some of the stuff I've been leaving out...

1. I've been rock climbing. No pictures. I need to figure out how to carry a camera (or phone) when I climb. Anyway...my instructor-turned-friend paid me a huge compliment the other day, and I am feeling so good about deciding to give climbing a try. And I climbed 2 routes rated 5.11a that evening :)  Meaningless to most of you awesome readers, but it's improvement and it's got me excited!

2. I have not been running much at all. And I am planning on organizing an Ellimpics for us injured athletes. Look for details coming soon, and submit suggestions for events. That said, I am increasing my running miles this week so my training for the EGames™ will be limited ;-)

3. I have been working out a good deal, though, and the other day set a completely pointless PR on the elliptical...speeding 3.1 elliptical miles (yes, that is 5K) in 20:03. It would be so amazing if elliptical speed translated into running speed...but it doesn't.

4. We went to the beach and everyone had fun...not just Miss C and her Squishy...

~soft frisbee necklaces, playing with sand crabs with cousins, getting buried alive!~

~boogie boarding and a wicked riptide...this was the first time in 15 years that I've gone in~

yes, it was very cold

~digging a trench...guess which picture shows the fight...hint: all four kids are in it~

they spent literally all day off and on digging this

~then they planted a really big stick~

~Big G and Miss C paid homage to the planted stick~

and that bottom left pic is what the beach looked like when we left

...and this is what we drove into. Northern California coastal summer weather at its finest! 

The Ellimpics

Not a typo.

I've been thinking...

Injured athletes need something to feed their competitive spirit and drive. My new love-by-necessity for the gym machines and rehabilitative activities spawned an idea...

There should be a 'Games' for us.

This is different from the Paralympics. We injured athletes will ostensibly recover from whatever is ailing us. We are not disabled. We're just a bunch of endorphin-deprived, stir-crazy, temporarily-down-on-our-luck, frustrated and hurting individuals who are largely unaccustomed and extremely resistant to training plan revisions, let alone finding ourselves without a race (or tangible goal...something besides 'running pain-free') to look forward to.

We push the limit foolishly, ignoring our bodies' signals because competition feeds us. And if it isn't the competition that feeds us, it is wanting that measuring stick ... that baseline ... that benchmark ... to gauge our improvement. Or maybe it's just compulsion. When we hurt, the tendency is to hurry up the healing process so that we can get back out there. We try too much too soon over and over. It is such a tricky cycle.

But what if...?

What if there were an Alter-G 10K? Or an elliptical 6-hour Distance Challenge? Or a StairMaster 100? An Ellimpics? *note: the word 'limp'...signifying that these Games are for those who limp* We would have the opportunity to feel achievements without reinjuring or risking chronic injury.

Maybe these things already exist. If they do, sign me UP.

It is looking more and more like I will not be running in San Francisco at the end of July. I don't think I can safely get my actual running mileage up high enough that 13.1 will be productive. I would rather give my body the opportunity to be comfortable and strong for Hood To Coast. I have always been much more of a team player than a solo artist, and so saving myself for Nuun's Team Morning and (more importantly) not being in pain is infinitely more appealing to me than risking it all to struggle through a half-marathon.

I've been crushing my cardio workouts and doing lots of climbing. Physically, I feel great...strong and limitless...unless I run. It has been amazing to push the envelope with regard to climbing. The help it provides as I work through some of the most challenging life issues I've ever faced is unparalleled. Having my friend take me to a wall that had me shaking my head the day before as I watched someone else climb it and then announce to me that I was going to do it... in the split-second before a freak out happened, I looked at her and said, "Okay. What's the worst that can happen? I try it, I fall, and you catch me." She smiled and nodded. And I did it.

Challenging my fitness on the machines has been so expanding as well. Last night I arrived at the gym 45 minutes before closing. It had been a emotionally draining, borderline-crushing day, and I knew I needed to do this for me. I had no idea what I was going to be up for. In the past when I experienced inner turmoil *understatement* I have allowed myself to get distracted while working out. When I jumped on the elliptical, a little voice said, "Whatcha got?" I don't really know how I did what I did on that thing, but man, I wish I could do it running. But I can't. I am so grateful that I can do it somewhere.

I left the gym feeling emotionally buoyed and pleasantly, physically spent. The clarity and restoration I got from 39 minutes on the elliptical was akin to the benefits of running. It's time to stop lamenting that I cannot run very much for now and embrace the gifts I have, enjoy the outlets I can utilize, and celebrate what I can do.

I left the gym feeling hopeful. And limitless.

GymWatch II: HellRaiser

And here I was, thinking that the smells were the worst of my problems...

Cast of Characters

Angry Old Man...

source

Imagine the hair is white.

Green Shirt Guy...

source

But no apple, no shirt logo, no sunglasses. Sub in gym shorts.

Annnnnd...probably not Brad Pitt.

Super Sweaty Woman:

Yeah...for real.

Setting

Converted industrial-space climbing gym's cardio area...elliptical trainer section, to be precise.

Early evening on a very hot, late Spring day. Little ventilation or natural air-flow.

Scene

Opens with Super Sweaty Woman (SSW) transitioning from StairMaster to Elliptical Trainer. After spending 20 minutes warming up on the SM with her heart rate hovering between 130 and 135, she is ready to tackle the meat of her workout over on the ET.

She climbs on and gets started. The plan: increase intensity every 10 minutes for a total of 40 minutes. The first 10 go very well...heart rate ranging from 140-145. In the middle of the second 10 minutes, she realizes that heart rate at 150 is demanding. And she is really, really hot.

Noticing a fan on the pillar 8 feet away, she begins to fantasize about the cool air blowing over her hard-working, sweaty body. Realizing that the fan is aimed at no one, she begins to strategize how to get it aimed at her...without stopping her workout. 

Enter Green Shirt Guy (GSG).

Perspiration-soaked and disoriented, GSG walks over and positions himself directly in front of the blowing fan...sucking in as much cooling goodness as decorum will allow. He appears helpful in addition to sweaty. SSW decides to give it a shot...

SSW (in a loud-enough-to-be-heard-over-the-fan-but-not-shouting voice):  Yo...Green Shirt Guy!

GSG (lifts dazed and sweaty face to see who is talking to him...once he realizes he is wearing a green shirt): Huh?

SSW (smiling...but it probably looks more like a grimace): Do you think you could angle that fan over toward me once you're done with it?

GSG (nods and manages a word): Sure...

Once he's feels sufficiently cooled, he angles the fan toward SSW and gives the look that inquires "how's that?" She gives him a double thumbs-up and a huge smile. He smiles back and starts to walk away...

Angry Old Man (exploding...and when did he show up on the immediately adjacent machine?): JESUS CHRIST! I JUST MOVED THAT FAN OFFA ME WHEN I GOT ON! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?

SSW (sincerely apologetic): Oh, wow...I'm sorry! I'm just so super hot. Maybe we can angle it so that it isn't on you at all and I get just a little sliver of air movement? I don't need it full on me.

As she speaks, GSG tries to politely adjust the fan in just such a way and then begins to leave.

AOM (pissed off beyond all rationality): Nevermind...nevermind...I'll MOVE. JESUS CHRIST! *mutter mutter mutter mutter*

SSW: No...for real...we can adjust it! You don't need to move! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to cause such a problem...I was just hot and still have 25 minutes with my heart rate over 150. Don't know if I can make it with out some fan relief!

AOM (very loud and palpably hostile still as he changes machines): NO. I can't believe this. I'm MOVING. I don't want THE FAN! You. Are. An. A**HOLE! This is BULLSH*T!

Upon which GSG turns abruptly on his heel, strides purposefully back to the fan on the pillar and gives it a sharp whack, sending the cool air blasting full on both AOM and SSW.

GSG (lecturingly, while pointing at AOM): You both have an equal right to have it or NOT have it. An equal right. She as just as much right to have it as you do to NOT have it. I'm not choosing sides.

AOM: Oh... F*CK YOU!

GSG (bending closer and getting quiet): No, man... f*ck you.

GSG spins around and exits stage right. Continues working out in a different part of the gym.

AOM, very flustered, collects his magazine, stumbles off his machine and follows. But leaves the premises.

Who knew such a simple request could raise such hell?

I was kind of shaken by the experience but did manage to continue my kick-ass workout. Finally, I'm learning how to prevent outside "upsets" from affecting my mental sharpness and resolve when it comes to my workouts. I'm not always successful at it, but this time I was :)

In other news, my hip was sharply hurting after one little mile last night. I kept thinking that it would chill out once it warmed up (sort of contradictory, isn't it?), but it didn't. I was sad. But smart. I came in after 1.7 miles.

I may not run in the SF First Half-Marathon on July 29th. Only time will tell...

GymWatch

I know you're dying to know what's been happening at my gym, especially since I haven't really posted about working out since my Bay to Breakers recap and my labyrinth walk at the end of last month. While I haven't been lying on the sofa reading all this time, I haven't done much running...maybe about 8-10 miles a week. It just isn't feeling super good to run right now. I'm hoping that will change soon since I do have a half-marathon on the schedule for 8 weeks from now!

In the meantime, here's what I've been up to over the past 18 days:

• 1 bike ride for 30 minutes
• 1 hike for 90 minutes (Labyrinth hike)
• 1 run up and down Moeser (where I actually ran all but a very short bit) for 32 minutes
• 3 easy runs for a total of 100 minutes
• 7 ET/SM (not extraterrestrial/sado-masochistic but elliptical trainer/stairmaster) workouts for a total of 8 hours and 20 minutes
• 6 climbing sessions totaling just under 8 hours
• 5 days of doing nothing

Grand total of time spent working out equals 22 hours over the past 18 days (13 if you subtract the 5 days off). 

It hasn't all been nose-to-the-grindstone, blinders-on, ultrafocused. Probably only my 40-minute tempo workout would fall into that category. For some reason, that is the workout I struggle with the most ...most likely because it's ...ummm... hard. I hope it is supposed to be hard to hold one's heart-rate at >80% for an extended period of time because, for me, it is.

On to the fun stuff...

Smells in the gym are the worst. Who's with me on this? After being nuked by a fart from someone on a treadmill in front of me on a hot night when the fan was not turned on (why did no one else wilt from it? this, I do not know) and then being trapped next to the super STINKYPIT guy for 40 minutes while in the middle of an ET workout (with no other machines to move to...busy night) and then finding myself choked by cologne steamed up by the increase in body-heat and -moisture of the make-up lady on the adjacent stairmaster, I have concluded that intense physical effort heightens one's sense of smell...and compounds the power of odors exuding from one's body. Sort of a 'lose-lose' kind of thing. Short of wearing a gas mask or breaking into the gym after-hours when no one is there, there is no real way around this if you work out at a gym, so I must suck it up.

Tarzan now goes to my gym. And we are climbing partners...at least for the moment. I went to the gym to meet a new potential climbing buddy, and saw this guy with long flowing hair, somewhat chiseled features and a semi-vacant expression on his pleasantly smiling face. "Tarzan" was what instantly jumped to mind. He was who I was meeting. So we climbed a bit, and during the course of conversation he asks, "Hey! So did you ever see the Disney Tarzan movie?" I had. He then launched into this comparison of the Disney Tarzan and rope climbing with the kind of excitement and exuberance I often see in my 7- and 12-year olds. It was sort of endearing...in a really odd way. Anyway...watching him climb reminded me of Tarzan on crank. Where Tarzan is smooth and looks effortless, my climbing buddy works really hard and looks like he is working really hard. But he is quick and strong, using very little technique to get to the top of a wall and relying solely on speed and brute force in a desperate, panicky, survivalist sort of way. Quite impressive although not so pretty to watch.

source

Big Fro Guy was there, too. But I didn't see him climbing. And he didn't have on a shiny purple suit. I have noticed that the really interesting people hanging out in the climbing areas of the gym are usually doing that and that alone...hanging out. Unless they are sneaking in a route when I'm not hawking them. Again, still feeling too awkward to pull out my camera and take my own pictures of these people. It would be rude, wouldn't it? I should heed those feelings of awkwardness...

source

And now the best stuff...

New shoes!!! I've been renting climbing shoes for the past 3 months. I've probably spent the equivalent amount of money as I would have on a decent pair of my own shoes. When I walked in to the gym on Tuesday (to meet Tarzan) my climbing instructor was there working the desk. I handed her my money and asked for shoes and a harness. She looked at me sideways and mocked the fact that I didn't have my own shoes yet. Then she said, "OOoooooo...we have shoes on sale! OOoooooo...look at theeeeese.... Bandits!!!!!!!!! Ooooooo...." (She sometimes reads my blog, and I will bet she is laughing at that...because she really, really did say "ooooooooo" a lot in that one-sided conversation). Less than half-price. I would've been a fool not to buy them.

New climbing buddy :)  When I tried to schedule a climbing lesson, this conversation took place:

Instructor:  So...do you want to just climb?

Me:  Well...I really like what you teach me. I always learn so much.

Instructor:  Well...do you want to just climb as friends? I can still teach you stuff.

So I now have another new climbing buddy. This is a win/win. She gets to climb and I get to learn without paying any money. Watching her climb is like watching the real Tarzan...smooth, effortless, inspiring.

Not gym-related but pretty awesome nonetheless...

in the Parenting category

for my post entitled

The Mistaken Generosity of the Tooth-Fairy

The best, best stuff I've saved for last...

I plan on having a kick-ass weekend. Not really sure why it will be super kick-ass since there really isn't anything kick-ass on the calendar, but making it kick-ass...or allowing it to be kick-ass...is my mission.

Wishing a fantastic weekend for all of you :)

It felt like a really long, hard week...again.

This girl's smile celebrating her first popsicle made it all worthwhile.

I'm not as cute as she is.

I spent a lot of time looking like this...

 A lot of time...see? 

Different day... really.

You can tell it's later in the week because 

the bags under my eyes are markedly more pronounced.

Here's what happened...

Monday:  The previous week had taken its toll...I was exhausted and had a migraine. My birthday run the day before in the hot sun and getting lost and all that was an extra-exhausting way to finish out what had already been a solid training week. I had a climbing date Monday evening and decided to hit the elliptical for 30 min @ HR 130-140 first.  30 min cardio + 90 min climbing = 120 min.


Tuesday:  I still had a migraine but had "hills" on my schedule. Following my morning stint as preschool chauffeur/chaperone, I somehow rallied that evening to tackle my first-ever Double Moeser...

Look... it's a camel!

each hump a 700+ climb, total distance was 4 miles

Honestly, I don't know how I did this one, but did it I did. 4 mi running = 52 min.

Wednesday:  Revisiting 100 minutes of exciting cardio @ HR 130-140, changing the scenery by going from one machine to another...you know...so I wouldn't get bored. 30 min elliptical/20 min StairMaster x 2 = 100 min.

Thursday:  Utterly spent myself mentally and physically in a one-hour climbing session during which I managed to complete two 5.10c routes that seriously kicked my butt in every way. Instead of having the courage to tackle the tempo run on my schedule, I reluctantly dragged my bike out of the garage when I got home to make an attempt at some small cardio something and ended up enjoying 40 minutes of a gorgeous day while easy-pedaling on a flat trail just enough to break a sweat and loosen up my tired legs. 60 min climbing + 40 min bike = 100 min.

Friday:  Tempo time. Having a very full day with a preschooler in tow and then dealing with a kid being picked up from the airport while all the other kids needed to be put to bed kind of put a damper on my excitement for the tempo workout. Once I realized that I wouldn't be able to start it until 9 p.m., I decided that I would see how it worked on the elliptical...sooooo radical, I know. HR supposed to be Zone 4...I am new to all this HR stuff. Zone 4 for me used to be 175-185, I think. So I went into the workout thinking that was what I needed to hit. So. F*cking. Stupid. Thankfully, I decided early on to just do what I could with the workout and not dwell on the numbers. I spent the whole 33 minutes of the tempo part just under 160. Which, it turns out, is actually what it should have been for a 49 year old woman! Go, me :) Need to remember that I am not 28 anymore.  43 min cardio = 43 min.

Saturday:  Not sure exactly why I wanted to 'go long' on this workout...long wasn't on the schedule. I had a climbing date and so was already at the gym. I had the window of time free of responsibility. I took advantage of it. 90 min climbing + 30 elliptical/20 SM/30 elliptical @ HR 130-140 = 170 min.


Sunday:  Long Run time.

That incline should look familiar...you just saw it twice on Tuesday.

One of the hardest runs I've ever done, primarily because I was not in the headspace to tackle it. It had been a very difficult 18 hours leading up to the moment I walked out the door. Thankfully, I took it slow and followed the HR format...holding it to 130-140 (it did jump into the 150's on that uphill and slip down into the 120's on some of the downhill). I forgot to turn on my garmin for the first little over half-mile. The run was intended to be 9.7, but I started 45 minutes later than intended and it was getting dark. I ran through neighborhoods I've never run through (only driven) before.


– Hello, Mr. Drug Dealer lurking under the freeway overpass...oh, I'm sorry... I mean Mr. Drug User. Sorry...I got you confused with your supplier there at the end of the dark tunnel :P

It was kind of freaky...not so awesome coming upon someone while he's shooting up. And by then I was tired. The guy with the loaded shopping cart and the loaded pants (yes, you're understanding that correctly) ranting to himself and waving his arms wildly cinched it. I made the call.

– Hi, honey...

Ten minutes later I was safely ensconced in my minivan with my husband at the wheel, driving back to suburban Shangri-La and my awesome pink carpeting. I was and am beyond fine with "just" 7.9 miles.

Later this week I want to share a bit more information about my "revolutionary training plan for invalids." I am really fortunate to have a friend who was interested in creating this with me. My primary objectives for the training cycle involve minimizing ouchy pain (as opposed to the beneficial pain of hard work) and feeling solid about my training. I hope to feel confident and strong as I head into my next few races. We'll see how it goes.

Until I can do more of this...

I'll be contenting myself with a bunch of this...

source

....a little StairMaster, and some of this...

Except maybe not that fast...

I've received a few questions about my latest method of cross-training. Below are some answers.

Why am I climbing?

I decided to take that "Do something everyday that scares you" thing to heart. Climbing scares the crap out of me. First of all, you go up really while high clinging to the face of a wall. Secondly, if you have trust issues (like I do) you need to get over it because you are relying on someone to make sure you are safe. Sometimes putting psychological things into a physical framework helps me to work through them.  I'm not ready to do this outside on 'real' rocks. Maybe I'll try that when the inside kind no longer scares me :) In the meantime, it's proving to be an amazing core workout and is also greatly increasing my upper body strength.

How does one climb?

There are basically two ways...roped climbing and bouldering. 

• bouldering – you aren't going up higher than roughly 15 feet and so aren't roped onto anything. If you fall (or jump) you land on thick, soft mats. 
• roped climbing – you're going up higher and would get really, really hurt if you were to fall, so you are attached to the wall by ropes set up in a belay system. There is top rope climbing in which the rope is anchored at the top of the climbing route and there is lead climbing wherein the rope is not anchored but is attached to the climber and clipped through intermediate points of protection as the climber proceeds up the face of the wall.

Both types of climbing utilize a series of different types of handholds and footholds. These range widely in terms of ease of use. Click here to see a photo chart of different handholds and how they are used. That link provides some great general climbing info for the uninitiated.

I seem to prefer big jug holds (plentiful in easier routes) where I can grab on and try to haul myself up the face of the rock, completely spending my lame, weak arms and shoulders super quickly.

source

I loathe the smooth 'holds' that one is supposed to use more for bracing and pressing and gaining leverage. They demand proper technique.

source

click the source link to see other even more difficult slopers

My objective now is to work those smoothies (called slopers) until I love them. Initially, I hated rock overhangs and 'ceilings', but I told my instructor to work me on those. Now I don't exactly love them, but I can do them and do not ever shy away from them...until the end of the climbing session when I can scarcely tie and untie my rope :P I want to achieve this comfort-level with slopers.

What do the numbers mean? When you say 10a or 10b, what do you mean?

I like this site's explanation of the system most widely used in the U.S. It provides this helpful quote... 

• Class 1: you fall, you're stupid.
• Class 2: you fall, you break your arm.
• Class 3: you fall, you break your leg.
• Class 4: you fall, you are almost dead (i.e., you can't breath and move your arms, legs, and head).
• Class 5: you fall, you are dead.   

The routes I've been climbing are rated 5.x with the 5 part indicating the class as stated immediately above. The x is the 10a or 10b part...or what have you. Scroll down a little further on the above link to see an explanation of the class 5 subdivisions. Size of holds, types of holds, scarcity of holds all come into play in the rating.

Right now I am able to complete 5.10b routes consistently. I've done one 10c and it was unbelievably challenging for me. The jump from 10b to 10c felt huge. Part of this has to do with my lack of upper body strength and my impatience regarding proper form and technique. 

What do I like about climbing?

I enjoy pushing the envelope. Climbing is unlike anything I've ever done before. So much attention and focus is required while simultaneously taxing one's physical limits and being forced to trust another individual to completely have your back ...or rope. Forget total body workout...climbing is a total being workout! Every facet of you must be engaged regardless of the end of the rope to which you are attached. I love the complete and utter absorption while on the wall or belaying someone on the wall. I do my crowd-scoping between climbs ;-)

Right now I am climbing with a partner twice a week for approximately 2 hours each time. It provides a nice break from the cardio load I'm working on presently while also serving as a bit of a strength-and-core building. And it is healing. In fact, I'll probably keep doing it even when I am able to again do more of this...

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend :)

101 minutes of fun...

It was nothing exciting...just 101 minutes of pleasant, steady cardio. And there's no way to make that exciting to a reader. I did a 20/12/20/12/25/12 series alternating from the elliptical to the stairmaster. Those are minutes. As boring as the workout sounds, I did learn something! The SM is way harder than the elliptical. WAY. But that's not why I only did 12-minute SM intervals...that was a pre-set block by the SM and I didn't want to spend the time figuring out how to adjust things, it being my first time on that particular machine :)

I haven't run since my brutal 10-miler a week ago. I overdid it on that one. Not wanting to worsen any twinges or shooting pains has driven me to the machines...and I am totally digging them. It's pretty amazing to just crank for over an hour, sweat buckets, step off sore and have no pain. I'd forgotten how awesome that feels. This week I'll begin re-incorporating running into the mix. The upside of the machines is I am getting a real ass. I only get a butt when I lift heavy (squats, dead lifts, cleans, leg press), do plyometrics regularly, or run stadiums...and now apparently with the elliptical. Baby don't quite got back...but at least my pants don't fall off anymore!

Boring. Boring. Boring. Unless my pants were to actually fall off...and that would be kind of funny.

Tonight I head back to the climbing gym...this time I will have the secret spy camera ready! Of course, tonight there will probably be no one in a photo-worthy outfit because it always works out that way.

I could bring my daughter.

Awesome longhorn boots...

...strap-on horse head...

...add cowboy hat and tutu :)

Climbing gym couture, for sure!

Here's hoping I successfully lightened things up after yesterday :) 

Random Musings of an Semi-Injured Running Mom

This could be titled "Four things before Friday," but it's not.

I'll be honest here... I am climbing the friggin' walls.

Following RNR Las Vegas, instead of jumping right into hardcore marathon training for my late April marathon, I was sick for most of the week. I ran once. I was excited to run up a storm the next week (last week) but only ended up heading out twice due to a migraine and assorted family obligations. After my great run at the memorable Jingle Bell Hell, I was really looking forward to jumping into marathon madness full-bore but did a quad stretch on Monday night that *pinged* something.

So here I am. Climbing walls ... in my mind... and not running.

I know it will all work out. I know things will be fine. I'm not so much worried about the training for the marathon part, it is the sanity factor that I am missing...especially since it's Winter Break and I have four kids underfoot :P

Things in my hip and back are feeling alright, and I was given 'clearance' by my PT to run this weekend, but I've decided to wait until next week. I am playing it safe. There are some advantages to being older and wiser ;-) In the meantime, I'll ride my bike a couple of times starting tomorrow, do my glute strengthening exercises, stretch (but NOT the same quad stretch!), roll on my roller, stick with my Stick and butterknife the heck out of the tight spots. I want to be ready for this.

Staying physically healthy throughout the training cycle will be the challenge. My hip is definitely my weak link. Putting in the mileage without hurting it will be tricky. Cross-training will be key, and for this I'll be pulling out my dusty rowing machine in addition to using my trusty rusty bike. I'll be incorporating some P90X for weight work, plyometrics and core. And I've asked for a pass to the local Bikram yoga studio for Christmas.

What am I missing?

Right! Christmas!

I have kids and we celebrate Christmas, so there's that.

We're going minimalist this year. Even though we went with the mondo tree that screams 'Commercialized Christmas' at the top of its lungs, we are not 'going big' with presents. On Christmas morning, I am certain that someone will cry about how unfair something is and someone will lament how she didn't get anything on her list and that's fine. Join the club, kids :P But then Grandma and Papa will show up in the afternoon laden with overflowing bags of gifts, and all will be right in the world.

Like these kids need any more stuff. And this is just one bedroom. The others are the same.

Not to mention the toy room, the garage and the living room.

What else?

Oh, yeah...

I'm sure many of you are on the edge of your seat regarding this issue... I've decided to keep and wear my fancy sweatshirt even after reading this article that pretty much creeped me out. I think this might make me a hypocrite. Or something bad.

And finally...

This video is a big part of why I don't shop at Whole Paycheck Foods...



Yep, that's our local store.

Not that the store I do go to is really any different. Grocery shopping is not one of my favorite activities. It always seems like either I get in trouble or my kids do.

I'm not even going to end this post gracefully. Except to say...

Happy Holidays :)

Marathon relay? Tomorrow? Me?!!

Ummmmm......

Okay!  :)

A friend called me this morning.  One of my pack of running friends... we are a pack, like wolves... a pack of ... I don't know how many 'cuz I think I am the Lone Wolf.

I know some of my friends run, but I don't always know which ones run. We don't talk about running... ever. I know they run because I will occasionally see a Facebook update about how one of them just finished an awesome 8-miler (the same route I had done the day before... alone) or how one of them has been training for a half-marathon and is getting on a plane in the morning to go to the race.

I always leave a comment. Something like, "Hey! I ran that this weekend, too! Want to buddy up next weekend?" or "Awesome! Hope it goes well! Let me know if you ever want to go running together when you get back in town :)" They always reply along the lines of, "Yeeaaaahhhhh..... okay....." And I continue my loopy-doo figure-eightyeights inside The Gate... in the dark... alone.

Until someone drops out of a relay team.

And I get the call.

They all know I am running now because since last October I have been ramming down their throats posting links to my blog on Facebook. I am not sure if they think I am laughable or intimidating :P But maybe my beginning cross-training has signaled a certain je ne sais quoi ... indicating a level of seriousness heretofore unmentioned or alluded to leads to these kinds of calls.

"Hey, XL... what're you doing tomorrow?'
"Hi, Y! I don't have any plans... what's up?"
"Want to run in the Oakland Marathon Relay tomorrow? Our second leg just dropped out on us."
"OOOoooooo (squeal of delight)! Sure! How far?"
"Between 5 and 6 miles... we have everything... the hand-off is at Temescal... you know where that is?"

I know where it is and am remembering checking out this race about 2 weeks ago as a possible "training run" as there is also a 10K and a half as part of this Oakland Running Festival. And I am realizing that the leg they want me to take is ... ummmm... well, killer.  And not in a "ooooo, killer dress, doll!" sort of way.
Check out this hump... That'll be me.
No wonder their second leg dropped out :P


Would you jump into a race like this... even if were against the rules?

The P90X Workout for Moms

My husband follows the P90X program. I often watch and listen while he works out, and I have heard them refer to this particular episode... the one my husband does the least... as the "The 'Mother' of all P90X Workouts".  I have asked my husband why he rarely does this workout. His answer: it's mostly for legs and his legs are fine. shhhhh... but I think it's because they call it a workout for moms.

Well, since I was home alone with 3 kids and it was raining, going for a run yesterday or last night was out of the question
but after the comedy-of-errors morning I'd had, I was needing some sort of something to soothe my soul... or something...
So I decided an evening consisting of a casual 'Mom Workout' that focuses on legs was just the ticket to end my day right :)

I figured it'd help clear my head, get a couple of lonely endorphins kickin' around maybe help them find a few friends, be a semi-substitute for the run that was on the schedule...

What is this 'workout for moms'?

it is

plyometrics

Gonna do a lil'
ply.O.

But first I needed some o' this...

Monday's Gadget Pie

I have single-handedly eaten all of that which you see is missing.

After filling my pie-hole with ... well... with pie, I put the kids to bed and suited up.

Time for a lil'
ply.O.

There is a guy in the demonstration group who has a prosthetic leg... meaning he is doing the workout with one leg.  ONE.  I think he can be considered a nail.

It took about 45 minutes to do the workout, including the warm up and the cool down.  It was really hard.  I had the most trouble with the regular jumping jacks... but that is not fitness-related. Remember, I've had 4 kids... next time I just need a pad or something... but only for that exercise. I did my best and left the rest.  Then I needed some more pie.

The P90X Mother's Workout gets my vote.  But... is this cross-training?  I really didn't want to do any cross-training... might wreck my image.  I might start looking ... serious.



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