It is one o clock

And yoga class is at 4pm. I am attending that and then 2 mile walk with .25 mile jog in there. I know, that is a tiny amount of jogging, this is forcing myself to increase slowly to avoid debilitating shinsplints. This week .25 mile run, next week .50 and so on. When I get to 2 miles in a row I will start playing with speed and incline. Building up slowly on strength and running is one of the hardest things I've done. It's so frustrating not to just go balls out to happy exhaustion but it sucks even more to be unable to train at all and I'm in this for the long haul.

Yesterday I trained next to two women in the Women on Weights class. They were kind of pathetic as far as lifting goes, not referring to the amount of weight but the effort and lousy form. Hell, lift the little bar but at least squat it all the way down, you know? One had run a half-marathon that weekend her friend informed me, and as a wanna-be runner I was mildly impressed. It's kind of mind-blowing that a human body can run 14 miles and yet be so incredibly weak. They started talking diet. One of the women whom I've seen in the gym many times, always running and doing cardio expressed dissatisfaction at her body and said it was obviously her diet as she trained like a fiend. The half-marathon friend was super-skinny, but in an unhealthy way that made you want to see if she was okay rather then the hot super-model way.

Super-skinny woman is on a really low-carb diet and not skinny woman was depressed that that might be the only way for her to reduce down to her desired shape. The thing about all of this was, that along with me there was another female weightlifter in the gym, who's figure they were admiring along with her strength. Wouldn't you think that might make the brain say, hey maybe getting stronger will help my body look more the way I want it to look? I would, hell that was part of the reason I started lifting in the first place (see title of this blog) along with stronger bones and increased lean mass. But no, the two women loved weightlifting girls body, said they could never be that strong, and made plans to take more cardio classes together. It was not the time to go into a full-blown lecture about increasing lean body mass through weightlifting to improve body shape and enable it to burn more calories instead of depriving oneself more and more while shrinking away into bone and skin. Or maybe it was and I'm just a coward.

In a way I can see where they were coming from, as the lifting they were doing was ineffective and they had paid for 6 weeks or so of the lifting classes without much result, so may as well give it up. Also, you are going to do what you like, thus my signing up for the trail run early in the year to force myself out of my comfort zone. On the other hand i wasn't exactly gung-ho about yoga in the beginning despite being aware of the benefits in stretching one's body, concentrating on the breath and meditating. It took a long time of muscle stiffness before I finally did something about it. I may never be particualrly good at yoga, but that does not matter, being able to walk around like a human should, to bend and stretch and turn and have full range of motion, to watch TV without begging for a leg rub makes it worth the schedule inconvienence. Evolving, slowly but surely.

Running with Heidi

I knew it would be tough. Somehow my sister got the blond hair, long legs and natural running abiltiy. I'm still better at lifting weights! So, we went for an interval run, her pace the majority of the way- had to be 7 miles per hour. I did my best and she did get worn out towards the end which is when I demonstrated my mellow long distance pace. It felt so much better- to me, she was surprised anyone could go that slow, it didn't allow her to stretch out her legs. Surprisingly, I don't want to kill her. Hey, I need the variety in training at this point. Plus, I can always get back at her in the weight room. Tomorrow, more running but no specific plan yet. I have dinner plans with a friend so it depends on when he wants to meet if mt run will be before or after.

Run run run away

Went to the gym earlier in the day then usual, 11am. Treadmill work 4.0 .25, 5.2 .25, 4.0 .25, 5.2 .50, 4.0 .25, 5.2 .50, 3.0 .25, 5.2 .50, 4.0 .25, heartrate still high so 3.0 .25, then 5.2 .25, 4.0 .25, 3.0 cooldown. Its tougher in the beginning, the middle is good, and then when I was cooled down I couldn't resist throwing another quarter-mile at 5.2 in there. That is where my cardio-bunny past creeps up. It's amazing how sport-specific exercise is. One could be the Spinning queen but running will break you, and vice-versa. I get where Crossfit is coming from by throwing all of the above at you, but also understand how fit people end up with rhabdo. It's easy to assume that because you are great at A and B exercise that you can also do C and D okay, but the truth is if you are genetically average you have to train for what it is you want to do.
Which brings me to skiing, which is what I really love. I am starting saving now to take a month off to ski next year. Yeah buddy!

Bad morning turned into great workout

Lying in bed, getting up and ready for the Treadmill Interval class was not appealing. I remembered that the gym was considering canceling it and got up and ready anyway, rushing, knowing I was late. On arrival, every treadmill was taken- Damn! So I went downstairs and took a minute to regroup, and decided to lift. In case it isn't obvious, I dress for the occasion, and running with a group of women is a completely different occasion from lifting with mostly guys. For running, not only are the shoes completely the opposite of lifting shoes, so are the clothes. Instead of being comfortably covered in a soft, sweat-absorbing tee and yoga pants I was wearing running shorts and a couple of sports bras. But oh well, time to suck it up and lift.
This wasn't the most comfy I've been, and the check-out looks were distracting, as well as the conversations started by guys who usually smile and nod then go about their business. It really is all about the skin showing I guess. I got a good workout in, squat 70 lbs, bench 65, deadlift 135. Yes- 135 lbs! Personal record there and met my goal for this month.

Don't take the interval treadmill class away!

Damn, attendance is spotty at the HIIT running class on Fridays and there is talk of changing it to an Ultimate Challenge class. Ultimate Challenge classes are a combo of HIIT and circuit training, sort of a Crossfit Lite thing, and they are good. Someone of average fitness could take them three times a week and add in a couple of steady cardio sessions and improve their fitness a lot. However, not me. Full sessions devoted to lifting and full separate sessions for cardio work better. Barbell full-body training and recovering from it is enough strength training and that interval class is a perfect added exercise for variety and cardio. So I voiced my opinion to the instructor and her boss and one rather loud-mouthed other instructor and going to hope for the best. In the short-term it isn't a big deal, the weather should be nice until June for steady-state cardio outside and I can take Spinning for variety too but those interval classes are kick-ass.