Before SRQ I was working out 5-6 days a week every week, with at least one full dedicated rest day.

Now I’m only getting in 2 days per week: 1 day of spinning during the week + 1 day of cycling on the weekend.

I’ve basically lost any desire to run. And that’s really not a good thing considering what’s on my race schedule this fall.

On the upside, I’ve found a sudden ability to rein in my eating habits.

Since March I’ve lost about 4 or 5 pounds, bringing me to a total of about 8-10 since January. No, that’s nothing super remarkable but seeing as I’m not working out, I’m just happy I’m not gaining weight.

The second thing I found? A new pants size!

I went shopping this weekend and FINALLY fit into pants from “regular” stores! I had the most successful day of shopping that I’ve had in about a year.  A few months ago I tried on a pair of pants at NY&C and they were *this* close to fitting. Today they fit!

Shorts & Tops, Pants & Work Shirt (plus an un-pictured dress)

I may or may not have given Ryan a super duper overzealous high five in the middle of the store when I came out to show him they fit…which led to some pretty weird stares from the other people in the store. But I didn’t give a shit – I was SO excited!

I’m hoping I can force myself out of this workout funk. I know eventually the workouts will come back and I’ll be back on a regular workout schedule. Until then I guess I’ll just continue doing what I’m doing and work out when the mood strikes.

WHAT ABOUT YOU: Any exciting news to share? Have you ever been in an extended “rut” like this? What did you do to break it?

It’s 100 MILES OF NOWHERE TIME!!

Taken directly from Fat Cyclist’s website, here’s his description of the event:

“The 100 Miles of Nowhere is a race without a place. It’s an event in which hundreds of people participate . . . all by ourselves. (Or with a friend. Or with 20 friends.)

It’s a very strange thing where you pay $89.95 (plus shipping) for the privilege of riding your rollers, trainer, or a very small course (like around the block or up and down a hill) for 100 miles. And then the profits from your entry (i.e., $70 per entry) go to LiveStrong, which will turn around and give that same amount to Camp Kesem — camps all across the U.S. dedicated to giving kids of parents with cancer a week of carefree fun, at no cost to them.”

Lucky for me, Fat Cyclist also includes this little blurb about the event:

“And also, the “100 Miles” part is more of a guideline than a rule. For example, if you would rather ride 50 miles, that’s fine with me. So is 25.”

So I’m changing it up this year – instead of riding 100 road miles, I’m shooting for 50 single track miles!

The furthest I’ve gone EVER on a mountain bike was 35 miles.  (It was at the “Croom 35/50 Off Road Challenge” back in 2008…or maybe 2009…I can’t remember what year…and it took me over 5.5 hours to finish the distance.) I was totally spent at the end of that 5+ hours…so I’m already terrified about what 50 miles is going to feel like! 

Of course, Ryan will be riding with me again, but he’s a champ at long distance mountain biking.  And by “champ” I mean “he has completed several 50s and one 100 mile MTB ride already”.  I’ll be relying on him to motivate me through the miles!

We’re about 99% sure we’ll be riding the event at a park called “Santos” which is maintained  by the Ocala Mountain Bike Association.   Ryan has ridden at Santos many times (and swears it’s not as filled with Palmetto roots as the trails in the Tampa area.  He has a set of trails in mind that combine to create a “loop” of about 7 miles…or we can do a 3 or 4 mile loop a million times which would be more “true” to the 100MON theme.

Event Day is June 2nd…so we’ve got 4 training weekends left to get some miles on those knobby tires. 

There’s no turning back now – “50+50 Miles of Nowhere” HERE WE COME!

It must have been sometime in early fall of 2011. 

I had been going every Monday evening since January 2011…and then the regular instructor of the class I took stopped teaching (she was towards the end of her pregnancy and just stopped teaching early) right around Thanksgiving and I stopped going right around the same time too. 

So tonight I  grabbed my gear and headed to the YMCA for my (old) usual 7pm Monday night yoga class, prepared for a “power flow” class.

I set up shop towards the back of the room…

…you know, since it’s been so long between yoga sessions…I had no idea what my capabilities would be so didn’t want to be front & center. 

And I’m super glad I was in the back of the room – because this was a class like no other Yoga class I’ve taken. 

It was ALL bending & stretching.  No chaturangas.  No warrior poses.  The closest we got was a few chair poses during the first 5 minutes of class. Otherwise, just bending & stretching!

And let me tell you – I am not bendy…or stretchy!

So I wallowed in the back row with bended knees during every stretch pose for an hour.

I do really like the new instructor – he’s an older gentleman, maybe early-mid 60s.  And he is super flexible!  He also has a quirky sense of humor that’s impossible to put into writing (I tried…it looked weird in writing…so I just deleted it…you’re welcome.)

I definitely missed the sweat and powerful poses.  But I really felt “refreshed” at the end of class.  I also felt very defeated because such a low-key yoga class was so incredibly difficult.

But, onwards and upwards.  Maybe this kind of yoga is just what I need right now – so Monday night Yoga again next week it is!

WHAT ABOUT YOU:  Have you ever taken a “bendy stretchy” yoga class, or do you prefer “power” classes? Which do you like better?

I’m not necessarily sore but my legs (and arms even) are still surprisingly tired. I braved spin class on Wednesday evening & I just felt very weak.  The most surprising thing though was that my rump didn’t hurt at all – what gives?

Things got started on Friday night at the Olive Garden in Lake Wales where I consumed copious amounts of (unpictured) pasta and some Samuel Adams.

It was at this dinner that I met the majority of my teammates – the “Cyclotrons” from Cardinal Health.  ALL of the people on our team were people I had never met before, with the exception of Kerri.  She’s the one that told me about BikeMS!  (You may remember her from Princess this year.)

After dinner we headed back to our hotel room & got our stuff together for the morning.

I usually have trouble sleeping in hotels – and this weekend was NO different.  I seriously got about 2 hours of sleep on Friday night.  Not really the best way to start off a 125 mile weekend is it?

Could I look any more not-awake in that picture?

I didn’t know how many people to expect at this event – turns out  there was over 1,200!

We got rolling right around 7:30 am on Saturday in the 3rd “wave” of the day, with 75 miles on deck.

Within the first 16 miles I knew I was going to have trouble…

HOW COME NO ONE TOLD ME CENTRAL FLORIDA IS SO HILLY???

I was prepared for 75 miles – but not 75 mountainous hilly miles! It was unbelievably defeating to see just how much strength I lack when it comes to climbing real live hills – it’s NOTHING like hill climbs in spin class!

Thankfully Kerri stuck with me the whole day, even while I complained!

I didn’t take any pictures along the way – it was all I could do to keep my legs moving while I was riding – and then shove food in my pie hole at the pit stops.

I think my favorite pit stop of Day 1 was lunch (around mile 60) – there’s seriously nothing like a PB, honey & banana sandwich with Lays potato chips to perk a girl up.

Scratch that – there’s nothing like MOUNTAIN DEW to perk a girl up when there’s 10 miles left to go!

The last 10 miles was the worst – 10 miles on a highway with no bike lane. It was INSANE and I felt terribly unsafe.  But the upside is that worrying about staying safe and un-hit-by-a-car kept my mind off of how miserable I felt!

And then we rounded the last corner and saw the rest of the Cyclotrons waiting for us to bring up the rear…we were the last ones out there.  I immediately got VERY emotional and cried my eyes out – both for finishing the long and hilly ride, and knowing that I was out there riding my bike while thousands of people suffering from MS no longer had the ability to do so.

That’s Kerri in the front – I’m still amazed at how happy and “fresh” she looks! And I’m also amazed at how absolutely miserable I look…

All I wanted to do was GETTHEEFFOFFTHATEFFINGBIKE. My legs were cramping, my arms hurt, my neck hurt, my ass was killing me.  But I had good reason…

The course was almost 4 miles longer than expected! …and believe me…that extra 3.44 miles feels like a lifetime when you’ve been on the a bike for 5.5 hours already!

Cardinal Health had set up an awesome “hospitality area” for us with any kind of post-ride snack you can imagine.  I opted for healthy & went for Cheetos and beer.

Now that we were done for the day we racked our bikes…

That’s not even 1/2 of the bikes!

…and headed up to our new hotel room for a shower and quick nap.

There was a Celebration Dinner and presentation later that evening which I attended, but didn’t take any pictures.  We enjoyed some great food and listened to some very inspiring people talking about how THEY’VE dealt with MS and how BikeMS has benefitted them.  Two of the speakers were even participating in the ride that weekend – AMAZING!

Lucky for me I actually slept really well on Saturday night.  And felt relatively strong on Sunday!

I actually rode the entire Sunday course by myself – a choice that I made early in the morning.  All day Saturday I was worried that I was holding Kerri back, or not “keeping up” well enough.  So I encouraged Kerri to ride with the faster members of our team.

I’m still surprised I’m saying this, but deciding to ride alone was probably the best decision I made all weekend long! 

I ran into the “pack” from our team at every rest stop – they were usually gearing up to head out just as I was pulling it – so I wasn’t TOO far behind. But knowing that I was out there riding my own ride at my own pace was so much more enjoyable than stressing about keeping up with the group.  I was even excited to get back into the super hilly section of the course!

I had lots of time to think & reflect on what BikeMS was all about, and to prove to myself that I AM strong enough to get through a long ride like that on my own!

The worst part of Sunday’s ride was the wind – I actually had to pedal to get down a lot of the hills! …which meant extra work going back UP since there was zero momentum…

The last 5 miles was simply brutal – 5 flat miles right into a headwind with gusts over 15mph. I may or may not have yelled profanities at the wind during that stretch…

And then they REALLY get you with the last mile hill  –>  5% grade with one mile to go! I most definitely hoofed it up 3/4 of that sucker.  (Only NOW do I wish I had a picture of it!)

The up-side is that the course was short on Sunday – 47.99 miles instead of 50 – so it evened out with Saturday’s overage!

I made better time than I thought I would on Day 2 – finished in just over 4 hours!

Yeah, I listened wrong…the grade was only 5%, not 7!

That’s 4 hours total time – I didn’t stop my Garmin at any of the rest stops.  I stared at my Garmin all day long though and usually clocked in at 14-16mph on flats, 23+ on downhills (my maximum for the day is 28.7mph!) and a whopping 8-10mph going up hills!

I wish I had a picture of the finish – I was SO happy to be done, and felt extremely proud of what I just did!  We even got a medal!

I owe a huge “Thank You” to all of you that donated to the National MS Society in support of BikeMS: The Citrus Tour, and to everyone for all of the encouragement on Saturday and Sunday! So without further adieu: THANK YOU!!!!

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

As for the event itself, it was seriously one of the most well organized events I’ve ever participated in!  The course was clearly marked, the volunteers were wonderful and and the support was out of this world! There were chase cars going up & down the course at all times & there was even a number to call to be picked up if you didn’t see a chaser in the vicinity.  There were even several bike shops providing free service – and free parts – for riders that had breakdowns or got flats!

…And don’t even get me started on the food that was provided at rest stops…Gatorade, bananas, oranges, Nutrigrain Bars, Slim Jims, animal crackers, trail mix, sandwiches, chips…just about anything a rider could crave was on one of the tables…and always enough to make sure no one went hungry or under-fueled.

There were zero hiccups with getting our luggage from the start to the hotel on Saturday evening, and then back to the finish on Sunday.  (We started in Lake Wales and rode to Orlando where we spent the night on Saturday.  Then on Sunday we reversed things and rode back to Lake Wales.)

Even with the threat of severe weather on both days, there was never any question about our safety, and no confusion when last-minute changes needed to be made.  (On Day 1, the 100 mile course was closed forcing all riders to ride either 50 or 75 because of forecasted severe thunderstorms, and everyone had to be off of the course by 2:00pm.  On Day 2 any riders wanting to complete 75 miles (there’s no 100 option on Day 2) had to be at the turn off by 12:00 because the course was closing, again due to severe weather blowing in.)

In the end, I had a wonderful experience at BikeMS and would do it again in a heart beat! At least now I know about all those pesky hills so I’ll (hopefully) be better prepared for next year!

(If anyone’s counting, that’s 2 runs in the span of 37 days.  And gosh, that sounds BAD…so please don’t count!)

My Garmin is still eating my workout data so this is all of the info I get to share:

I’m still struggling to keep my heart rate in my endurance zone while I’m running…

I “average out” to the upper end of my endurance zone…but while I’m actually running I’m solidly in my strength/speed zone…even though I’m “running” just about as fast as I can power walk.  Things only “averaged out” on this run because I took 1 min walk breaks at each 1/2 mile.

Maybe my “running” heart rate zones aren’t supposed to be the same as my “cycling” zones?

The moral of this story?  Take 30+ days off and maybe, just maybe, you’ll want to start running again…You know…so you can actually train for what might be the biggest race of your lifetime.

WHAT ABOUT YOU: Have you ever taken an extended break from running? Any tips for getting excited about getting back into it?

I don’t really know why I haven’t blogged about this yet – I guess because I have a hard time asking people to make a donation…even though that’s the whole point of Bike MS – to raise money for the National MS Society as part of the fight against multiple sclerosis.

One of my closest friends in college was diagnosed with MS in her mid-20s after many months of agonizing and debilitating symptoms.  This young woman has been strong over the years and is living a full and happy life – and I believe the MS Society has been an important part of why she has done so well. Sadly, she and I have fallen out of touch with each other but I just can’t get the image out of my mind of her dealing with her symptoms and then ultimately receiving the diagnosis.

Having multiple sclerosis means that you may suddenly have blurry vision. Or that your memory will fail you for no apparent reason. Or that you may not always be able to walk, or ride a bike, or even feed yourself. The symptoms of MS are different, and devastating, for everyone – the only certainty is that it will affect yet another person every hour of every day.

I want to do something for this old friend (even if she doesn’t know I’m doing it), and for all of the other people who have been diagnosed. Today, there is no cure for multiple sclerosis, and with diagnosis occurring most frequently between the ages of 20 and 50, many individuals face a lifetime filled with unpredictability.

MS researchers have made extraordinary progress in the last few years searching for a cure – and any funds I raise will help support these vital efforts.  Funds are also used to support local programs for people with MS and their families.

If you would like to contribute to the National MS Society by sponsoring me in Bike MS: The Citrus Tour 2012 you can make a (tax deductible) donation by visiting my fund raising site here. 

I don’t have any fun giveaways planned or anything like that, but your support will mean a lot to me.  And I’m sure it will mean a lot more to the over 400,000 Americans living with MS.

And I’m here today to proclaim that I’m no longer doing Insanity. In fact, my last Insanity workout was on Wednesday of last week.

I most definitely feel like a failure for not even making it 2 weeks. But I stopped for good reason. (No, not a baby.)

After the first 2 workouts, my calves were super sore, as was my low back and just about every other part of my body.   I chalked it up to the new – and super intense – workouts.

Throughout the rest of the first week, my calves started to feel better, as did everything else.  With one exception: My back.

As the days went on the back pain got worse.  It was hurting so bad I was having trouble standing up straight after sitting at my desk at work. I left work in tears on Wednesday evening because it was so bad. 

And that’s when I decided to give it a 48 hour test. Would 48 hours of no Insanity off make things feel better?

48 hours off helped. So I pushed it to 72. And slowly the pain has subsided. But it hasn’t gotten worse again.   (When the pain first started, I tried modifying the workouts – but there’s only so much “modifying” that can be done to Insanity. I knew complete Insanity abstinence was in order.)  Even after nearly 5 days things aren’t totally back to normal, but I can stand up straight again and walk without pain.

For background – I’ve had back pain off and on for many years. Things were at their worst in 2008ish at which time I was diagnosed with early arthritis in L3,4 and 5.  Physical therapy ensued for several months and things got better.  A lot better.  And as long as I kept up on my PT exercises things were fine.  I’ve never even mentioned it here because it’s been a “regular” part of my life for several years and I know how to manage it. 

Running and cycling (and even sometimes yoga) cause a “flare up” of sorts, but nothing that a little ice/heat and stretching can’t handle.  After 30 minutes of PT exercises and stretching I feel fine.

But that didn’t hold true with Insanity workouts.  I would feel all nice and loosened up during and right after the Insanity workouts – so I’d think there was a light at the end of the tunnel.  But within 2 hours of finishing the pain came back – and it got worse each time.

My takeaway from all of this? Insanity is an awesome workout series…and I’m actually going to miss it!  (I seriously felt stronger after just 4 workouts!)

Ryan is continuing on – and it makes me jealous to see him doing these crazy workouts while I’m sitting at the computer (that may or may not be happening right now).

But I know it’s the best thing for me to take a pass on this workout series.  At least for now.

Maybe someday I’ll give it another whirl and see if things are any better.  But I’m not terribly hopeful. 

After class...I'm too chicken to take a picture of everyone during class!

Since I went through the certification class, Kristen has asked me to set up a bike on the “podium” in the front of the class with her so I can get used to being in front of the group!   I cycle in the front of the room with her just to get used to the “overwhelming factor” of being in front of everyone for the first time.

It’s kind of a “get your feet wet” approach to becoming a full-blown instructor.

The first week I was up there I was terrified.  But yesterday I felt a bit better and was able to joke around with the class and Kristen a little bit when she introduced me to the class.

“This is Theresa.  She just got certified to teach and has some in-class training to do.  Sitting here with me in front of the group is her first step! So, welcome Theresa & good luck!” Cue: everyone clapping & Theresa blushing and saying something she doesn’t remember today.

For about a month I’ll be up front without teaching any tracks.  When I feel comfortable enough I will lead the cool down and stretching.   Kristen even TOLD the class last night that I’ll be doing the cool down within the next couple of weeks.  Confession: I’m no where near feeling THAT comfortable yet!

While I’m up front not teaching, I’m focusing on keeping my heart rate in my “endurance zone” and making sure that I’m not huffing & puffing up there.  After all, once I am teaching a track (or a whole class) I can’t really be wheezing into the microphone, right? Confession: It’s surprisingly hard to stay motivated and excited while trying to hold back.  There’s most definitely a fine line between “not enough” and “too much” and I think it’ll take me a while to get the hang of it.

So far the only real drawback of being in the front is that I can’t see things like this:

Goose was always my favorite!

Yeah, we have a screen in the studio that is “supposed” to be for cycling videos.  But we got bored with those and now we watch movies each week!  Top Gun, The Italian Job, Casino Royale, Star Trek? Yes, please!

I will definitely miss that part of class if I ever find a class of my own to teach.  BUT, I think the reward of actually having my own class someday will be worth it!

About 45 minutes ago actually.

Workout Number 1: Plyometric Cardio Circuit

This ish is…well, it’s insane. My legs are ALREADY sore.

How on Earth did I get myself into this?

Wait…I know the answer to that: Because I haven’t run since the Sarasota Half Marathon and  I haven’t been in the pool for months.  So like any other undedicated triathlete, instead of running and swimming, I decided to go in a whole new direction!

Am I going to do the whole 60 day program? That’s the plan.  The only “change” I’ll be making is taking spin class on Wednesday evenings instead of completing the “Cardio Recovery” DVD. Otherwise it’ll be 2 months of ridiculous workouts 6 days a week.

Will I actually follow through? Only time will tell.

I’m only feeling slightly overwhelmed…and by “slightly” I mean “REALLY”.

Ryan and I had grand plans to paint our house – the last time we did it was in the fall of 2004 & with the intense Florida sunshine a new coat is needed about every 7 years or so – but those fell through thanks to a weather report that was threatening rain.

Lucky for us – but unlucky for the house – it didn’t rain at all on Saturday. BUT, we had moved on to a different project: A new fire pit!

We’ve had a “portable” fire pit for years – you know, one of those copper bowls sitting in a metal frame – that we loved using.  But when the “feature tree” in the middle of our patio died and we put the portable fire pit in its place we knew it was time for an upgrade something more permanent.

So we went from this:

To this:

To THIS:

We even had our first fire that night!

Good thing we didn’t paint too – because it POURED on Saturday night/early Sunday morning! We would not have been happy campers if the first coat of paint washed off over night.

Since painting was no longer on the agenda, I even got in a decent bike ride on Sunday. Some friends came out and we were planning on getting in about 22 easy miles.

The ride started off great – even with a nasty headwind.

I was focusing on keeping my heart rate in my “endurance zone” which was sort of challenging. Only this time I was struggling to get it high enough – quite backwards from running or spinning where I struggle to keep it low enough.

(I’d show you a heart rate graph here…but my Garmin is on the fritz AGAIN even after a hard reset and software reinstall…so no data for you…or me…)

Our route took us through Robinson Preserve

and then out to Anna Maria Island

where we took a “half way” break at the City Pier.

And since I’m an idiot, I forgot to turn the sepia filter off after taking that picture…so the rest of my pictures are super “artsy”! Enjoy!

We had the wind at our backs for the trip back home. I seriously think that was a first for me!

But it wasn’t meant to be. Just after we passed the 16 mile mark – after crossing the drawbridge on Manatee Avenue – my back tire started fishtailing and I immediately knew I had a flat.

Turns out it wasn’t a regular ‘ole flat.  It was completely irreparable because there was an effing twig stuck in my tire!

Even with a new tube, that tire wasn’t going to hold for very long – and definitely not the 6+ miles back home.

So I plopped myself into the grass and waited for Ryan to come get me. (Thank goodness for cell phones, right?)

Several nice people stopped to make sure I was ok. And one guy was amazed at the condition of that tire!

Hopefully I’ll be able to get a new rear tire soon – I’ve got a 2-day 150 mile ride for the National MS Society coming up in three weeks (eeek!) and I wanted to ride that bike!

I haven’t said much about it here – but I’m fund raising for the ride too. You can visit my fund raising site here to see why I’m riding in this event benefitting the National MS Society, or to make a donation.

WHAT ABOUT YOU: What did YOU do this weekend? Are you a do-it-yourselfer for at home projects? Have you ever participated in and raised funds for a charity event?