Friday the 24th

Splash, splash… pause and listen.

Peace & Quiet --- Serene… Splash, splash -- my kayak paddle dips into the water and again - gentle splashing causing soft ripples as we glide along. In the distance on the other side of “East Bay” I see a few power boats moving through the channel. Our kayaks are silently sliding across shallow waters no motor-powered vessel would dare travel. Yes, only canoes or kayaks here --- perfect. Also this is a week day paddle -- no weekenders to disturb us -- again, perfect. Just the two us on our kayaks moving without any hurries or worries.

Just us & the critters… let’s see - what did we see? An eagle, an osprey, couple pelicans, a very large heron -- oh yes, some seagulls and also some Least Terns. And as we headed back to our put-in spot -- one baby alligator estimate 2 to 2 ½ feet long. (There were several larger ‘slides’ in the reeds so I suspect there were other gators we did not see.)


Flickr photos

A successful day on the water, can’t wait to do it again.

So freaking weird...

I am on week2 day2 of my 'first day to 5k" program -- went to the park where fitness test is held. Something so weird -- On Monday at the gym on the treadmill I got through the 2 miles without any problems but at the park I ended up fighting the side-stitch over and over... WTF!!!

Obviously my running is very different on the treadmill compared to my running outdoors on the solid ground of the road or track... somehow, I have got to figure this one out. I will keep working on this and hopefully I can find the answers.

Last week's Podrunner intervals program alternated running 60 seconds with 90 seconds walking -- this week has 90 seconds running with 2 minutes walking. I looked ahead and I see next week will include 90 seconds running / 90 seconds walking then 3 minutes run followed by 3 minutes walk... I am trying to not get impatient. Everytime I have tried these programs I tend to jump ahead and skip weeks trying to reach the "30 minutes continuous run" goal without following all the steps. I believe if I stick to the program I can at last "get there." I just have to hang in there -- and in 10 weeks I should reach the goal of 30 minutes without a walk break. Yeah - that will be so awesome!

This morning I went to the gym but spent 30 minutes on the recumbent bike instead of the treadmill. I had already planned to go running after work so I split up my day's exercise. I feel pretty good about my commitment to exercise, now I need to kick it up with my nutritional commitment. Woe is me, I love my chocolate. There are a few other junk foods I tend to give into those cravings... like potato chips and onion dip - I can eat half family bag of chips and whole can (yes, processed pop-top can!) of the dip... I know the calories & fat in this is outrageous but every so often I just go nuts and have it anyway! But if I am ever to achieve a decent level of fitness these kind of binges have to become extremely rare events.

Starting Over

After my seven seconds shortfall... I decided to start my training all over again - "First day to 5k" in 10 weeks. I am now on week 2 - day 1 --- today was on a treadmill in the gym. Wednesday's workout will be on the actual trail used for the fitness test. I am also working towards the Beach Blast II race in September. My goal is the sprint duathlon of 1.2 mile run + 15mile bike + 3.1 mile run... I CAN DO IT!!! I know I can. AND I WILL pass that @#%! fitness test too. The race is in Mexico Beach the first weekend in September and the fitness test will be after the 30th - probably the first week in October. 'They' say it is important to have goals when working on a fitness program -- there we go, my immediate goal is to keep up with the 5k training program.

I am using Podrunner's Intervals mp3 downloads for my running workouts. (http://www.djsteveboy.com) So far, all the audio files I have gotten from Podrunner have really helped me to stay focused. There are also two other programs on the website -- "gateway to 8k" and "freeway to 10k" . Each week of the programs have sound tracks that are designed to have you alternat running with walking to build up to 30 minutes continuous running. The 8k & 10k programs get you to the finish line using the 30 minute run combined with walk breaks to complete the necessary distance.
The longest I have every 'run' has been 25 minutes on a treadmill... I will keep at it - alternating the treadmill with trails in the parks around town. Hopefully, if I can stay patient and not push it too hard. I really need to "build my base" to reach the consistent 30 minutes of continuous running... from there there are no limits!!!

Every so often I get the idea of going for a marathon... that will take time I know. So -- baby steps -- first a 5k running most of the way. I know I can do this if I train consistently. The 5k distance is doable as a run/walk (mostly walk so far has been my experience) -- I want to do this type of race as a run with minimal if any walking. So I am working on my consistency --- last week I stayed on task -- this week has started pretty well, tomorrow is a non-run day but cross-train day. Need to work the abs --- ever seeking the flat belly. :-)

B.O.W. revisited

Just received photo from Kayaking instructor at B.O.W. (Becoming an Outdoor Woman) in Ocala ... She sent everyone copies of photos from the canoe/kayak workshop. I really learned a lot in this class. I have been paddling wrong all these years -- now I find the kayak really easy to easy. Thanks to Barbara's training I now understand the mechanics of paddling the kayak. I also learned how to back-up a trailer for a boat AND I know how to steer a canoe single-handedly.... WOW! Definitely a worthwhile workshop. Can't wait for BOW in Tallahassee this fall, who knows who might be there. Maybe more kayak time? I also received a photo of our group --- we really lucked out with 4 workshop attendees and 4 instructors, one-on-one sessions!

Morrison Springs

Saturday -- five days after two solid days of thunderstorms we took our canoe to Morrison Springs in Walton county. It was a lovely day. The river was still very high... the park had taken on 5 feet above the walkways! All the creeks and rivers had gone well above flood stage from the storms this week.... thus the spring waters were not clear. We will go back again in a month or so after the rivers return to normal. The quiet was fantastic! No one else was on the water for most of the day. The river was way too fast for us, we didn't stay there long -- just puttered about on the springs and the run to the river. We kept hearing this woodpecker but couldn't locate it. Saw a hawk go overhead early in the day. Pretty quiet day for the 'critters' but still a pleasant day on the water.

Seven Seconds

Seven seconds short.... that's how much time that kept me from passing the fitness test!!!
My number one problem is breathing, I find myself struggling to catch my breath and not get a side stitch. I need to start my training all over again and focus on my breathing. The next test is six months away... I will do it, I will pass this freaking test. Breath in - Breath out : sounds so simple but for whatever reason I am not doing this well at all.

I was bummed when I went home yesterday - had a big choclolate-mocha shake to drown my sorrows. My stomach was miserable for several hours. But I am now motivated again to kick my butt in gear and get to it... I really think if I start over and FOCUS on my breathing with my running stride I can get it right. Wierdness, my breathing seems ok on the treadmill but put me on road, track or path and I seem to lose it and my breathing gets all ragged.

So here we go one foot in front of the other... one at a time and BREATHE!

Some days are so close to perfect...

Went sailing today on Hobie Cat -- light winds 5-9 mph just right for a nice pleasant sail. We were puttering about and the wind just stopped... Sam was fussing abit trying to find the wind when suddenly I realized there was an eagle skimming the water just a short distance away... We watched him take two passes over the water then he went airborne and we saw he wasn't alone they skimmed the water once more before moving out -- then I remembered my camera! Almost missed this moment... So Cool! This is one of those moments I relish when I can get outside away from the madness of modern society's TV, Telephones, etc... just the sounds of nature -- with an occasional jet-ski and power boat to annoy me now & then. My next jaunt is to be a kayak trip to Morrison Springs hopefully next weekend. There will be no jet-skiers there!

No run today -- tomorrow morning will come early enough and my plan is possibly 3 miles in the morning before weather gets yucky again. So nice to see the sun after the horrendous rain this past week.