Go Slow? What was that again?!

My plan was to start slow. I did that. It's been a whole month and I've been building. I've not had softball for a while. I've been swimming and golfing, with the occasional 'other cardio' added in. This week I decided to add to my 'go slow, build yourself up' mantra by restarting the Couch to 5K running program. This week I warm up for 5 minutes at a brisk walk, then I alternate run 60 sec/ walk 90 sec for 20 minutes, then I cool down 5 min, for a total of a 30 min workout. Monday, that was more than enough. I was still a tomato-face when I arrived home. (Yes, tomato-face. My little face turns the beet/tomato red and stays that way at least 30 minutes after I run.)

Today, I went to the Y after work again. I was tired, and a bit crabby, and a bit hungry. I did not want to work out. But, I'm sticking to this! So, in I went. I changed clothes and limped upstairs. Limped, because I apparently ran yesterday for my 60 second blocks faster than I usually do, so was suffering a shin-splint in my left leg. I did my 5 min brisk a bit less briskly than yesterday. Up to when my heartrate monitor registered 5 minutes of workout, I wasn't even sure I was going to run. But, the timer turned 5:00 and I started. I think I must have wanted it done, because I was going even faster than yesterday. We're talking 8:30, 9 min mile pace. (Way WAY under my typical 10-11 min mile)...(Also this is ONLY one minute at a time, that, I can do.) I did relatively well, but I didn't count how many laps I did, so I have no clue on the miles. My guess, somewhere around 2.5.

During my cool down I walked over to the studio where classes happen. I saw they were doing family Drums Alive (take excerize ball, put on upside down stair risers, hit with drum sticks and work out to music). It was in 10 minutes. I decided I'd only been there for 40 minutes, and it wasn't dinner time yet, I could stay. It was, after all, family Drums...it couldn't be too hard.! It wasn't too hard, though I did get some sweat going, and it was terribly fun to watch the kids play drumming! I was ready to go home. Really I was. I had been working out for 1:40:00. Time to leave....but then, a lady I met in class mentioned she was staying for Zumba. I say, 'What's that' and the instructor we'd just had explains. Ooh, sounds cool...so I stay.

Zumba is a salsa/hip hop/dance/aerobics explosion of effort. Similar to Step class, I usually am a bit off the routine. But, it was great fun. I even survived the 6 minutes of squats at the end. I left and came home after working out for almost 3 hours and over 1500 calories burned.

Now, I HURT! Literally, I am afraid to get off the couch because I don't want to TRY to move :P I see the stairs, and they are doing the nightmare-get-longer thing. The problem is, I want some rhubarb pie, and it's upstairs, so I have to go up, get it, and come back down to finish watching the Twins/Olympics (back and forth...must watch Mr Phelps swim for gold and the gymnastics along with the Twins trying to win against the Yankees)...

They are still both going, but I can not. No more gas. I'm going to bed. Good night.

Milestones...Mile Post

I did it! Today, I have done something I don't think I've ever done before. I have swam (swum?) one mile! I started with a 600 yard warm up. Then I did 10 50yd somethings that hurt...where you start by swimming slow but then speed up. then there were 400 kick-swim,swim-kicks. And a few other things in there...some practice backstroke (I think 200 yds of that) and some cool downs between...At any rate, I did one whole mile. I think I'll be sore tomorrow.

The scale is slowly acknowledging my hard work. this morning when I stepped onto it, it showed almost 6.5 lbs of progress. This changes, of course, day to day...but I've had over a week of showing better than 5lbs of progress...which is encouraging.

I also managed my 12 times to the y last month, even with being gone and occupied on some weekend days. I have been there 2 times so far, and it's the 4th. Tomorrow, at long last, I'll go back to the climbing gym.

The only problem with leading an active lifestyle, and working 9 hours a day, is that by the time I go to work, come home, make supper, clean up after supper, go to the gym, come home, have a glass of Kool-Aid, and read the news online, it's bedtime. This leaves no time for chatting with friends, cleaning my house, reading a book, etc. A bit troublesome...

I think the next step (although it will take probably til the end of the year) in this grand scheme of mine will be: find the balance. I'd write more on that tonight...but as you can see in above paragraph(s), I've done a lot today, and I'm beat. I am going to practice a side-step...called going-to-bed-at-a-reasonable-hour-and-having-a-full-night's-sleep. 8 hours of sleep?! Well, I might just get that, even! Goodnight, everyone.