Flabby2Fabbylous

RE: CHICK-FIL-A extravaganza

2012-08-01T23:43:00.001-04:00

Well, at first I ignored this political garbage as I always do, but it has kinda stuck in my craw. I really have a hard time understanding the reasoning behind people being so adamantly against the idea of people who love each other being able to have the same legal privileges as they do.

I understand that there is an extreme point of view out there that does not see a person, a friend, loved one, a mentor, care taker, or even just a boring, plain ol' person. The point of view sees sex and depravity and molestation and flamboyancy and whatever other dark images they can conjure to justify their cause.

I do not deny that there are negative realities amongst gays, nor do I deny the negative realities amongst straights, we are all PEOPLE, people who do good, bad and gray area things, it all depends on where you shine the light.

We all love or are at least fond of someone who is gay, whether we know it or not, do we want to tell them that when they die, and the person they loved and spent 20-30-40-50 years with, is not regarded as their legally recognized partner. Do we want to tell them that the person they devote their life to, who is Ill and in need of treatment, that they do not deserve to have the right to share health insurance because we don't think they should be together? Do we want to stand in front of a faithful couple, who has overcome harder challenges than we can imagine and come through together, better and stronger people than ever, stand and tell them that their relationship means less, in the eyes of our country, than a drunken one night stand turned marriage, turned divorce? Less than an arranged marriage, uniting two people who don't even know or love each other? Less than the 20 year old who marries the 90 year old millionaire? The list could go on.......

The immovable answer forever blanketing this issue is; "The bible says that it is wrong". If we brought out a list of things that the bible specifically stands against and started shutting down every one of them..... Well that would be ridiculous..........it would only make sense to pick and choose the passages that we want to believe in and just ignore the rest.

That is all.

13.1

2012-07-29T17:55:00.001-04:00

Well, it has been almost a year since I've shared any fitness experiences. I'm ready to go at it again in hopes of running the Detroit Free Press Half Marathon. I am scared to death to do this, I want to do it for me and for my brother Jake, we want to do it together. Here's hoping! I'm about to hit the pavement for my first run in months and to Kick off my marathon training. I actually have butterflies in my stomach, here goes nothin!

Just finished an 8.50 mile

2011-09-05T17:02:00.001-04:00

Just finished an 8.50 mile and a hilly 8 mile ride! Woo hoo! My lungs are burning from the cool fresh air.

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2011-09-01T19:04:00.001-04:00

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2011-09-01T17:55:00.001-04:00

It's go time.

Slow and Steady gets faster

2011-08-29T23:44:00.000-04:00

Well, things have been going pretty well with running these past couple of weeks. I've been working on my mile to build some strength and trying not to overdo my distance and avoid injury. Ive been trying to pay close attention to my form and it has really made a difference.

When I picked back up on running this summer and started to work on my mile I was running about a 10 minute mile. I've been working that down to low or mid 9's. Quickest mile thus far has been 9:07. Now that I feel a little bit better about my mile time and I feel my legs are a teency bit stronger, I'm going to start picking up those runs to 1.5 and 2 miles.....still throwing one milers in there to work on my speed progress.

I'm capable of running further..but right now, distance is not my goal, it's strength and speed....once I can elevate those areas, distance will come more quickly and less painfully.

New goal for my mile is sub 9 minute...should come along shortly with the way I have been progressing.

I still have not had a bike ride for a couple of months and I am really excited to get back on my bike. I'll have a great opportunity this week, we are going up to Houghton Lake for the whole holiday. I'm heading up tomorrow night and Kath will be meeting up with me Thursday night. There are plenty of gorgeous areas to ride and run there.....I plan on taking advantage of them. I'll be driving up in the jeep with half doors and no hard or soft top and my bike on the back! VERY Excited!

Run-Swim-Et-cetera-etera-era

2011-08-19T23:55:00.000-04:00

Today was one of the loveliest days of summer. The temp was perfect, the breeze was perfect, and the night air was perfect!

I ran outside for the first time in a long while. It felt nice, my pace was not terrible...it was hot. I'm used to being inside, out of the sun, most of the time with air conditioning(spoiled). I want to run outside more, it gets boring on the treadmill. I ran about a mile and a half at about a 10:30 pace and then jumped in the pool when I got home. Jumping in the pool felt like heaven. After skimming out some bugs and leaves I swam 10 laps the length of the pool and back, One lap, back and forth, is about 90 ft total. Both exercises were very enjoyable...which is the goal.

I have a sheet I've been using to keep track of my "tv" exercises. I mentioned before that I am doing basic free weight and floor exercises when I watch tv, two birds. I have this sloppy page of paper listing each exercise and a hash for each set of reps with a line between days. I find that hashing down and having a visual "journal" of my "leisurely tv exercises" encourages me to do more and makes me feel accomplished. Yippee!

July was a fun month, lot of company, lots of parties by the pool and lots of drinking. I decided to take August off to give my liver a break : ) I haven't drank any booze for almost 3 weeks now, which for me is like a season.

I still have yet to get on my bike in weeks and I'm really looking forward to it!!

Please feel free to comment below and share your exercises, eating tips, experiences, thoughts, etc.

Thanks Chuck Norris

2011-08-15T00:38:00.000-04:00

Although I have not checked in for several days, I am indeed keeping to my fabylous efforts. I have ran a few times since my last post, chipping my mile down a bit; 9:44, 9:34, 9:32. It seems that just above 9:30 is where it's at for me right now, I'll try to shoot for that range when I incorporate a quick mile into my workout. Right now I know I couldn't hold that pace, my goal for now is to work toward being able to hold a 10 minute pace for a 5k. I plan to continue working on my mile and getting used to a little more speed and then pushing myself a little further when I feel ready.

In addition to light running; I'm working on some pretty simple leg, core and upper body exercises. I love having a total gym....there are a lot of jokes about Chuck Norris, really good ones actually ! All joking aside, Chuck created the Total Gym and for working out at home it's really great. There are a ton of strengthening exercises you can do all on one machine. There is certainly more room for error with the total gym versus using a bunch of different machines that are all specified for certain exercises. For me, it gets the job done as long as you do your homework and make sure your positioning and posture are correct. The brightest side is being able to target so many areas and still work out at home. My parents have a total gym and I used to use it when I lived with them, I found someone selling a used one online for something like 60 bucks years ago....smokin' deal.

Something else I've been doing for years, but am doing with a but more vigor and diligence now, is doing crunches, leg lifts and lifting free weights while watching tv. It's nice to be accomplishing something while you watch the death box.

They once made a Chuck Norris toilet paper, but it wouldn't take shit from anybody.

Midnight Snack

2011-08-10T02:06:00.000-04:00

A big downfall for me has always been eating at night. This is partially from getting home after 8 or 9 pm and being hungry from a days work. I really need to break this habit, because that is really what it has become for me, a habit. A fat habit.

Eating before bed can be problematic in multiple ways. First; your body will not likely properly digest the food that you ate, causing bloating, gas and cramping in the morning. blagh... Secondly; Your body is working to digest food while you are supposed to be resting and recuperating for the next day, not only will you feel bloated, crampy, gassy and fat in the morning, but you will be tired throughout the day. This is really not sounding worth it at all. Lastly; all the extra NON-BURNED calories have to go somewhere......I have a couple key areas it's evident they like to go.

Lots of people like to say NO EATING AFTER 7! Well, it's really more like "Don't eat meals or heavy foods 3 hours before bed." If you usually don't go to bed until 12 or 1.....you can still eat a small meal up to 9 or 10...I would also consider how active you'll be those 3 hours leading up to sleepy time.

After work I got a mile in before getting too relaxed. Tonight was faster at 9:44...I was happy with that. I also did some stretching and leg lifts, 3 sets of 20.I was feeling very snacky tonight, I'm happy to say I had a nectarine!

Take the edge off

2011-08-07T18:49:00.000-04:00

The last two days were really nice, what a great weekend. I find that when I've had a run, long or short, it really smooths all my edges. Areas where I may be feeling moody or cranky or edgy, even a quick run can really sand those puppies down.

Yesterday I ran a mile and did forearm pulls on the Total Gym, 3 sets of 25, I felt that today in my arms. My mile was 10:50.....not fast....but decent for me. I added another quarter mile after doing my arm reps for good measure. Later I shot some hoops outside for about half an hour, I am REALLY rusty...but I love bball, later I went for a nice dip to cool off.

Today I ran another mile, sped it up a bit to 9:59. This is actually a pretty decent mile for me. My goal with these single mile runs is to make myself run a little faster and get used to running faster before I increase my mileage. I'm also running in my WT10 minimus shoes, which are a strengthening tool all on their own. This is a different approach for me, but I like it so far. I also did bicep pulls on the total gym, 3 sets of 25. Right after my workout I played some more bball for about 45 minutes....my shots improved but I am still VERY rusty. My GAGA remixes definitely had a part in me bringing down my mile time. : )

Those two days of some fun exercise felt great...I can feel that my body is stronger from all the effort I put in during April and May. I'm really looking forward to a decent bike ride...soon.

Now to balance my athletic efforts at fitness.....I'm going to make mini cheesecakes, they will take another kind of edge off....and I'm sure they will help "round" me out.

I'm a nerd.

I'm not Slim Shady, but I'm back ...just shady.

2011-08-05T22:29:00.000-04:00

Hey y'all.

Well I took myself a break from blogging and a break from my intensive workout program. I am proud of what I had accomplished back in the spring. I tend to be all or nothing when it comes to exercise and nutrition, I need to teach myself that it doesn't have to be that way, small steps are ok and not a fail. It may take me some time to convince myself that I can be both, intensive and non intensive, simultaneously, and still have results with both fitness and physique. For some reason I feel like I need to workout for 2 hours to really have it be worth while. Inside myself I know this is not true and I need to re train myself to be alright with a quick mile run and that's all, or swimming for 20 minutes and that's it. I feel so accomplished by completing a challenge that I set for myself and sometimes when I don't feel challenged I want to give up. Well, time for a new leaf.....this is all part of the experience of this blog....my journey...every part of it...

This doesn't mean I'm giving up my long bike rides or running or anything.....I'm just going to try and let things flow a little more smoothly so that exercise and nutrition do not feel like an obligation, but a privilege, and a thoroughly enjoyable one.

Today I went swimming for about 20 minutes, did a couple of laps and some fun flips and some swimming under water. Later I ran a mile and then went swimming at night with some friends. As we were floating in the pool chatting I was doing leg lifts and treading water off and on for about half an hour...I see this as a good and active day and I'm happy to say I'm getting back on my fitness horse!

yee haw!

.

101 Mile week and BURNED!

2011-05-09T10:33:00.000-04:00

Well, I did it.....and it was great! 6 days, 101 miles, 96 on a bike and 5 on foot. I am happy that i set a high, but obtainable goal, and accomplished it, plus 1!

Some friends and family thought I was putting too much on my plate too early, some thought I was CRAZY and going to hurt myself. I'm not really one to set myself up for failure, I like to succeed, I knew I could do this and my body feels great.

Some of you who are avid runners and cyclists think 100 mile week is like a vacation, so there are always multiple perspectives. My goal is to challenge and strengthen myself where I am (my body), not compared to what anyone else thinks, or can, or can not do.

All of that being said; here is my week in review:

Monday 5/2/11 -      27.5 mile ride

Tuesday 5/3/11 -      2.5 mile run

Wednesday 5/4/11 - 17.5 mile ride

Thursday 5/5/11 -     30 mile ride

Friday 5/6/11 -         10 mile ride (on indoor bike SUCKED) and 2.5 mile run

Saturday 5/7/11 -     11 mile ride and the most rewarding thus far!

Sunday was the first day I have not exercised in 3 weeks, I thought it was well deserved. I suppose scrubbing our pool with a long pole and brush and taking a leisurely 4 mile bike ride with Jake and Kath could count as some form of exercise, but not focused. We spent the latter portion of the day BAKING in the sun. I am VERY burned, WoW and OUCH! It is going to be gorgeous again today and I'll want to be in the sun, I'll have to cover up, or hide in the shade.

So now for WEEK 4 of Flabby to Fabbylous.

My plan for this week is not as intense as last week, but equally as important. The focus this week will be core strengthening, general strengthening and stretching. I will be incorporating yoga, lots of free weight exercises, some total gym and of course some cardio, like running and biking, but not a set amount, just whatever comes. I also want to continue to focus on some detoxification using dandelion tea and lots and lots of water and water with lemon.

Time to keep on truckin' toward Fabbylous.

Closer to the finish

2011-05-06T09:20:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I had two separate adventures totaling 30 miles.

I went to the Trans Canada Trail, which is pretty cool, it is a trail over old railroad tracks. Once the trail is complete it will connect across the entire country of Canada. Much of the trail is complete already, the one in Windsor goes out to Kingsville, which is about a 40ish mile ride round trip. I had never ridden this trail so I drove out to it and gave it 13.5 miles. It is not paved and a little pebbly, thus slowing me down a few MPH. I enjoyed the lack of traffic and the scenery, I did not enjoy road crossings every couple miles and the terrain slowing me down.

Check out the trail http://www.tctrail.ca/tlocator/tlocator_en.html

After stopping home and taking the pups out for a tinkie, I went back to a local area where I like to ride, gave that 16.5 miles, putting me at 30 for the day. I was previously at 47.5 so adding 30 puts me up to 77.5 out of 100 for this week. Now I am on the home stretch!

It is supposed to rain the next couple of days, I won't let that stop me from reaching my goal.

Progress....and some Bitching

2011-05-05T10:29:00.000-04:00

Ok, so Tuesday I decided I was going to run. It was NOT enjoyable. I felt like a slug with zero energy, I figured it was because I had rode a fair distance the day before....after some more thought....I think it was just because I hadn't had any coffee that morning *insert cheesy shrill horror music* I ended up rounding my 27.5 mileage tally up to 30 with a 2.5 mile run that felt like 100, ugh.

Last night I went out for a ride after work, did my best to get as much in as I could with the remaining daylight. I ended up with 17.4 brining my tally to 47.4 out of 100 for the week.

There were people everywhere! I get annoyed when people get in my way, even if they have every right to, I'm just a bitch that way. I get really irritated when there is a 10 foot wide path with a yellow line down the middle and one group of people blocks the entire roadway. HELLO, this is not considerate of others! Not everyone wants to walk, Rollerblade, bike, walk dogs, meander aimlessly at your friggin pace! Kill!
So, needless to say, as the weather gets nicer I need to find a less congested area to ride. The congested area only makes up for about 8-10 miles of my ride, but still.

Not to bitch and bitch, but there is another thing I would like to address about public trails. If you are strolling along a trail that people use for fitness of any kind, how do you think it is ok to SMOKE on these trails? OK, I used to be a smoker, I understand that "hey, it's outside" or "I can't even smoke inside anymore, now you wanna bitch about smoking on a trail?" YES, I want to complain big time! Step away from the trail please, be courteous. If I wanted to inhale stomach wrenching fumes, I would find a big stinky semi or a garbage truck to follow throughout my ride or run, I wouldn't go to a public athletic trail.
Smokers- You have no idea how stinky you are, until you quit. I had no idea how my stench carried and embedded into my clothes and went up everyones noses until I stopped smoking, now I know what it's like and let me tell you, it is very offensive. It is doubly offensive when your body is working hard and vulnerable to smells and tastes. I know what it's like to be on both ends of this equation, it is much more difficult to stomach smoke stench during exertion, than it is to be courteous and move your ass 20 feet to the side of a trail, so others aren't negating their fitness efforts.

Bitching Over. Nuff Said.

Week 3, 100 miles and detox!

2011-05-03T11:43:00.002-04:00

I have set out to complete 100 miles this week between running and cycling (cycling obviously being the lions share). Monday I rode 27.5, and I worked hard for almost all of it. Half the ride I was staying between 16 and 19 mph, the wind was at my back, so that helped. Heading back into the wind was far more resistance but I still pushed to stay around 14 or 15 mph. I know I could go faster with a road bike, but I don't like the limitations of a road bike, some of the places I go can get pretty rocky and I would not want to cut those routes out for a faster ride. I'll stick with my hybrid.

I'm starting to get to the tipping point where my body is tapping into some fat and releasing some toxins. Our fat stores nasty amounts of toxins and when we start to melt it away those toxins seep out into our body. This can make us sick and getting sick will really mess up my 100 mile week! Toxins are like poison, kryptonite even! Rigorous exercise, with sweating and panting and all of that, is an awesome way to release excess sodium and toxins, this is why sweat is so salty. When you are burning a lot of fat, sweat alone is not enough to get rid of the toxins.

A couple of things that I am doing this week to expel toxins are;

1. Drinking lemon water

2. Drinking dandelion tea

Lemon is a natural detoxer, it breaks down toxins in the liver and pulls them out through your urine. Lemon is actually a natural diuretic as well. Lemon juice also improves the alkalinity of our bodies.

I'm not talking about squeezing one dinky dried out lemon slice into your tap water at the restaurant, you may as well just order a martini.

Get yourself some fresh lemons(2 or 3 big juicy ones), squeeze the heck out of them and add 24-36 oz of water. Drink up, this will help detox your day.

Dandelion tea is also a natural diuretic, it cleanses the liver and is a natural antioxidant. Dandelion tea is also full of vitamins and potassium which is often greatly reduced by other diuretics. For more info on the health benefits of Dandelion Tee (and there are MANY) go here. To purchase some Dandelion Tea through Amazon click here.

A week in running

2011-04-30T22:15:00.000-04:00

I consider Saturday to be the official end of my workout week. I have decided that Sunday is bonus day. This does not mean that Sunday is a slack off day, but I figure I just won't really have expectations for Sunday. If I bike 30 miles, GREAT, if I just run a quick 2, that's fine too.

Week 2 of my Flabby to Fabby transition has come to a close and I feel moderately satisfied. I ran a neat 20 miles this week and that is probably in my top two or three longest running weeks for the past ten years. I feel good about hitting a five mile run this week as well. I'm not thrilled that the past two days I only ran 2 miles each day, but I don't want to push too hard out of the gate and get injured, especially while doing strengthening runs with my WT10's.

My legs feel pretty good, I am having some tightness on the inner side of my soleus muscle (lower calf muscle) on my left leg, so I'm taking the mileage a little easy. Next week will be back to biking. I have a set a goal, I would like to complete a collective mileage of 100 miles next week, between running and biking.

Week in review 4/24/11-4/30/11:

*Each day includes some variation of strength training other than a run

Easter Sunday - 2 mile Run (wt10 strengthening) **bonus day, I don't count the mileage toward my week

Monday - 4 mile run

Tuesday - 5 mile run

Wednesday - 3 mile run (wt10 strengthening)

Thursday - 4 mile run

Friday - 2 mile run (wt10 strengthening)

Saturday - 2 mile run

20 mile week, not too shabby for a Flabby

STOP! Don't Brake!

2011-04-28T23:04:00.000-04:00

There are two major things that can REALLY slow you down AND contribute to injury during running or walking.

1. Allowing your heel to absorb the majority of impact.

2. Over extending or Locking your knees.

Both of these actions are equivalent to putting on the brakes in your bodys movement.

Say you are sledding down hill and you need to stop ASAP. How do you put on the brakes? You dig your heels in. So why would we dig our heels in when we run or walk? are we trying to stop? Why would we want to extend our heels out on an angle that causes our body to jar and essentially stop the flow of our bodys movement? Bad habit I suppose. Such a difference it makes removing this habit from your running or walking form, and what a difference it has has made for me.

As bad; or worse, is the locking of the knees. Our knees absorb 3 pounds of shock for every pound in our body. Have you ever jammed your finger? Those connecting bones in your finger are not supposed to slam together, that's why it hurts so damn bad. Similar story goes for the knee. When you lock your knee back, your bones nearly bang together(or they DO, depending on how damaged)....your bones collectively absorb that 3x body weight. There is some padding there, but not nearly the amount available while your knee is bent. Even worse, is landing full weight onto a locked knee......*cringe* landing on that bent knee absorbs the shock, landing on a locked knee sends shock waves through your body, typically channeling that shock into your weakest areas.

High repetition of these motions can cause multiple injuries that stop you, slow you down and excuse your lazy alter ego.

After my 4 mile run today, I am at 16 for the week. Since following these two rules, my legs and knees feel great!

Wake up and stretch!

2011-04-28T08:01:00.000-04:00

I am feeling it today.....had to wake up and stretch this morning! My running distance this week has been more than I have done in over a year, plus the strength training. It feels good to have sore muscles, this means I am getting stronger! I like strength training, but there is nothing like a good cardio workout to really get your blood circulation going and boost your fitness level.

Stretching is so important, yet I hate doing it. It is hard not to half a$$ through stretching and cut it short. I'm trying to take more time with it, but I just get bored.

If anyone has any stretching techniques that you enjoy, please share!

TIP: If muscles start getting really sore and uncomfortable, sometimes you stop being proud and it starts to put a damper on your day. I learned this from my old man; take a Motrin and a Tylenol or two. The Mortin is an anti inflammatory, takes down the swelling, and the Tylenol is a pain reliever, combined they are magical....just magical.

Off to another day in the life of Flabby2fabbylous!

Lazy Alter Ego

2011-04-27T23:33:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I set out to run another 4 miles. I wanted to tell the whiny 2 year old inside of me who was boss, me.

Well, the whiny 2 year old is more like a Lazy Alter Ego. We all have at least one. That jackass- really knows how to work it. We get excited and we get motivated to change our lives and then LAE swoops in and knows just which justifications to push. I'm too tired, cleaning, kids, I had a good workout yesterday, I've made progress, I just don't feel like it, I don't have the right clothes, the right shoes, the right equipment, it's too cold, I'm hungover, on and on and on it goes until we are stereotypical FAT fools wondering what the hell happened. We gave up, gave in, succumbed, or are just plain lazy.

I've decided that I am the boss of the LAE and that fugger reports to me.

So as I was saying, I set out to run 4 miles yesterday, in the spirit of kicking the LAE's A$$, I did 5. It felt good, and I really didn't run into any worrisome pains or cramps, I think it was karma.

Today I ran 3 miles in my WT10's again. I am really starting to enjoy this shoe. Let me tell you, I felt the difference. My left ankle was letting me know how it felt about the lack of support(intentional in this footwear line) as mile 3 approached, I also had some cramping in my left hamstring after I finished. Surprisingly I am not experiencing any shin discomfort at all thus far, I think this is attributed to the amount of focus I have been putting on my form.

Important TIP:

-USE BODY GLIDE! Body glide is the best stuff for an athlete! Who has had a blister? Every human, athletic or not. Who has worn the wrong clothes in the wrong weather and had serious chafing? Most humans! Body glide goes on like deodorant but it is clean, not greasy, odor free and SAVES YOUR ASS, literally! When you run/walk a distance, and you have a big bootie,....well....sometimes you can run into a chafing issue. BODYGLIDE. When you wear the wear cotton anywhere on your body that can rub, the cotton is absorbent and holds sweat against your body, your skin gets soft and moist, as it rubs together you chafe and blister. ewwww and ouch! BODYGLIDE! Your bra line, your nipples (male or female), underarms, between legs, bootie cheeks, FEET most of all, feet! This stuff is gold! Put it on and suit up.

It's been 5 straight days of running, I'm ready for a bike ride!

Sweat gets in your eyes.....

2011-04-26T08:50:00.001-04:00

Yesterday was a dreary mofo of a day. Rain..blagh...rain. Looks like it's going to be that way until Saturday. I am blessed to have a room tucked away in my basement where is can workout. I have enough equipment to cover my basis. I have a treadmill, total gym, stationary bike, couple free weights, an ab roller and a PUNCHING BAG! I love my punching bag....it has helped me through some times. I have collected all this stuff over the past 10 years, it sounds like a lot, but it took time to get it all. I'm telling you about all this crap because I want you to know, I have ZERO excuse not to workout. I don't have to leave the house, it doesn't matter what I look like, what the weather is doing, unless I am sick or away from home, there is no excuse.

I wasn't really 'Feeling it' yesterday. Wanted to play on the computer, tidy about the house, play with the dogs, twirl my hair, ANYTHING other than start running. Well, I got my a$$ up, suited up and went to it. I did some strengthening BS, some total gym and leg lifts and some free weights, stretched and got on the mill.

I like to start out with weights on my arms. This may sound odd. I have two 2 LB weights, the kind you can wrap around your ankles. I wrap these around my hands and run with them on for the first mile. This contributes major toning to my arms and upper body, it also makes me feel weighted down and extra laboured through the first mile. This sounds sucky....it really isn't so bad. Once I throw the weights on the floor, I feel super light and invigorated to pick up the pace for the remaining mileage.

After I threw the weights off, the next mile and a half were tough. I was feeling tired and I didn't want to focus on my form at all. It was like arguing with a 2 year old inside myself. I set out to do 4 miles. The 2 year old wanted to call it a day at a 5k. A 5k is a respectable distance, it's even long enough to be an event.

My stubborn mule willpower won out in litigation against the 2 year old and I did all 4 miles. It felt good all in all and I was really sweating! I hope you can't get pink eye from sweat getting in your eyes, even with my headsets headband I was still getting an eye full. Tobi, our 4 month old lab, was hanging out with me while I ran, he kept threatening to try and get on the treadmill. He was helping me stretch afterwards, photo below.

Today I'm gonna do another 4, just to show that 2 year old who's boss!

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2011-04-25T14:42:00.001-04:00

Tobi is helping me stretch

Easter foot, ankle and calves

2011-04-25T10:05:00.001-04:00

So yesterday I took it pretty easy. Easter was a really lovely day, it was supposed to be cloudy and crappy all day and it turned out to be perfect weather! My day started with coffee, a workout, cleaning and cooking a delicious chicken vegetable soup, again. I made this soup last week but still had a lot of the ingredients and I didn't want them to go to waste. Kath's parents came to eat and visit with us, I got an Easter Lilly from Kath's Mom. : ) The day ended with loved ones on the front porch with great conversation and a fair amount of tequila. Solid day.

I wasn't planning on doing much in the way of a workout since I was happy with my week and wanted a nice rest. I did end up doing a couple of miles in my WT10, this is a new shoe for NB in their minimus line(click link for more info on this product). I use this shoe to strengthen my feet, ankles and calves. How does this work? Without going into too detailed an explanation, I will compare this style of running shoe to your typical running shoe.

Imagine you are running barefoot along the beach....every step is carefree (as long as it is a clean beach) and you know you can rely on the sand to absorb the weight of your body. (similar to your typical running shoe)

Now imagine you are running barefoot on a paved or concrete surface, your body becomes much more tentative, you know each impression of your weight upon that hard surface is going to wrack your body with the shock, not to mention the discomfort on the bottoms of your feet. (minimus running shoe or vibram 5 finger)

Which running style requires better form, control and strength? The answer is clear.

So, using this shoe is quite(5 finger is closer, not quite ready for that) close to running barefoot. I would not run more than a handful of miles this way until I have reached a new level of strength in my calves, ankles and feet. This will ultimately make be a better athlete in all facets, being that the foot, ankle and calves are the foundational support of my body.

Looking forward to another great week of my transition from flabby 2 fabbylous!

29.5 The wind is my enemy!

2011-04-23T19:33:00.000-04:00

Today I rode out to the Belle River Marina (photo below post) 29.5 miles. The first 15 were smooth as silk, the wind was at my back and I was flying with ease. The 15 back were HELL.....the wind was continuous and gusting. I must say, the wind made for one hell of a workout, but I have dubbed the wind my enemy.

I am happy with my week:

Tuesday - ran 4 miles (2 and 2) and strength training

Wednesday - Yoga *sorta

Thursday - 20 mile bike ride

Friday - 5k and strength training

Saturday - 29.5 mile bike ride (15 in the WIND!)

I'm now rewarding myself with a delicious margarita and will relax for the night with my wonderful girl.
Tomorrow will be a day of rest. I may hop on the mill for a couple of miles at most.

HAPPY EASTER TO ALL AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT!

Cheers!

IMG00336-20110423-1450.jpg

2011-04-23T14:52:00.001-04:00

Destination. Belle River Marina. It is windy but beautiful! 15 to get here, now 15 back to the jeep.

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IMG00334-20110423-1429.jpg

2011-04-23T14:30:00.001-04:00

Quick stop to scope the view. Mile 11