Lessons Learned...

Two things I learned this morning... number one: I must remember to drink some water before I head out on my morning run. (or at least bring water bottle with me) and number two: starting my run later means much hotter temps! Today is day off from work so I slept in a bit - thus instead of heading out at 5:30 am my feet found the pavement at 7:30 am -- two hours is a HUGE difference in the heat factor. By the end of my run my legs were getting VERY wobbly -- kinda scary actually. When I got back to the house I sat on back porch and got the liquids back in me... Running later also meant more traffic on the streets. I didn't like that so much either. Well, hopefully I have learned my lesson this time. I really, really need to drink some water before I head out and maybe even bring a water bottle too. Was almost 80 degrees by the time I was halfway through my route. I felt very sluggish early on but I didn't put two & two together to see I was pushing it on an empty tank. My legs are starting to come back so I will add my canine partner tomorrow morning (@ 5:30am) and begin kicking it up a notch. Livestrong!

my favorite bike jersey

This is my favorite jersey that i own... so much fun!

I think it is important to have fun on my bike -- not just be commuting to and fro OR training for a race. The sheer joy of riding cannot be overlooked. When I saw curious george jersey I couldn't pass it up. Livestrong!

Against the wind. . .

Makes for a difficult ride to work this morning. I did not realize how much wind was blowing this morning until a mile or so into my ride. At this point I realized I was working very hard and not much speed was happening. The trip into town took 10 minutes longer than normal and I felt every minute! This string of thunderstorms every day is creating havoc on my commute. When I arrived to work I went online & discovered the winds were 10-12mph WSW -- a headwind the whole way -- hopefully, this translates to a tailwind going home. We can hope :-)
I do not mind riding in the rain, thunderstorms are a different matter. We shall see how the afternoon falls, I just might get lucky and enjoy a repreive from the weather on the journey home.

Livestrong.

Good easy run this morning...

Finally pushing myself back into excercise groove. Getting tired of seeing the roll above my waistband. I am still signed up for Sundancer Adventure Race October 4th so it's now or never if I plan to be in shape for this race. Actually, this morning was pretty nice although a warm 80 at 5:30am! I wore a regular t-shirt and sweated something fierce. The "keep dry" shirts work so much better I will try to remember in the morning. (Tomorrow is bike day) I will start the dog running with me again soon but I need to get my 'legs' back a little before I take on the long legs of a labrador. :-) Hopefully in couple weeks I will be ready for my canine running partner again. Livestrong.

My other 2-wheel ride

My other ride is a 2002 Honda Metroplitan Scooter, it is a 49cc load of fun! With nearly 100 miles to the gallon this is definitely one super way to get around town. Today on the way home from work thunderstorm hit with a vengence -- thank goodness for rain gear. I have discovered that I need rain booties or something I was dry except for my feet and my hands. The coming week there are 3 days I have to drive a car :-( -- and the week following also. But then the rest of the summer is open for 2 wheels almost every day!

Vacation is over...

Darn,it was so nice to wake up whenever -- no alarm clocks being rude and disturbing our slumber. This morning everything returned to the world of timeclocks -- oh well. Commuted by bike today after a long absence... $4.00+ per gallon of gas is enough convincing. I don't HAVE to drive a car to work -- so I choose to go by 2 wheels! Actually this morning was not too bad, This Afternoon was HOT!!! (93 degrees) -- There is a hint of rain "out there" and I felt a nice tailwind shortly before arriving home. I took my time as it has been awhile and actually my travel time wasn't too shabby. I finally replaced my helmet mirror as the old one never stayed in postition (I would look and see the sky, my panniers, anything but the traffic behind me -- scary) I also have a new rear light I plan to install on to my rear rack... being visible is soooo important! My legs are feeling it at the moment but I am know the soreness will be ok as long as I drink enough water and stretch it out some. Livestrong!

Training is going along finally

I have finally started training again. This week I have managed to stay with it even with unusually cooler temps in the morning. My motivation is simple, I have signed up for the Sundancer Adventure race which occurs one week before my 50th birthday. (Also, I tried on some clothes I really liked but my fat rolls made them look horrible!) Now the trick is staying with the running. The bicycle training comes with commutes to work (plus one long ride on the weekend) I also need to add 2 weight training sessions a week to build up additional strenght and endurance. The Sundancer is six months away I have enough time to prepare. Now stay injury-free and illness-free. Livestrong!

Time just flies when you let it...

I admit it, I have just not done anything for two months now. I think I have allowed myself to get bummed out and I just stopped doing anything. No running, no riding, nothing. Geez... time to get off the pity pot and get going.

2008 is rolling along already

the year is starting off slowly, I have not ridden very much so far and I have run just a few times. After looking at this year's race schedule I have made my choices. April 5th is the Sunset 5k I will do again and I will try to improve over last year's time. Since this was my first race I really hope I can get it together and find a way to find my stride. For cyclist in me, I bought a new bike jersey for fun -- curious george on a bike how fun is that?
Livestrong!

one more day

left in the year 2007... the year hasn't been too bad. The last couple months my fitness efforts really dropped off. Motivation still needs a good kick start. Now is the time to get moving and just do it!!!

only two weeks left in 2007

Yes, the end of the year is so near now... I am glad to report I am getting back in the groove again. Friday I rode for a bit with some 'real' cyclists. Actually, I followed behind and realized how slow I ride, really. Almost depressing but definitely motivating. I will keep meeting them on Friday mornings and continue trying to tag along. Tomorrow is a run/walk day -- my canine partner has a hurt paw so I don't think she will be able to join me. I know she will want to try - but I am worried she will hurt herself even more.

My resolution stays the same -- Get Fit, Get Strong, Get Lean but never mean :-)

November is nearly finished

My cold last week kept me off the bike and no running either... I am finally back in the groove again. My canine partner and I had a nice run yesterday, hopefully I will back on two wheels again tomorrow. The weather is promising clear skies for the next few days -- Life is good.

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Thanksgiving notes

Thanksgiving was nice... mother, sister & brother in-law came to my house! We had a nice meal, I did pretty good job feeding everyone. My guests also included friend with her teenage son... all in all I fed 10 people!

Still recovering from a nasty head cold, no running or training of any kind all week. My appetite has been minimal at best. I have lost nearly five pounds! Not the best way to do it. I am eating again so hopefully I can get back in the groove soon.

Thankful to be alive and happy to have a good life with so much love -- family and friends.
Peace.

Another week begins

This morning Chyenne & I hooked up with T and her daughter. Off we went, felt pretty strong most of the way -- I was able to talk some while running so I guess I didn't push it too hard. I have decided to take the other dogs on alternating days for my warm-ups -- they do not have the legs to run with me. Hopefully, the weather will continue to hold and I can ride my bike to work (and back) after a longggg break from the bike commuting. Livestrong!

hard to get going this morning

Had the day off from work... finally managed to get going by 7:30am the dog had completely given up all hope of a run today. today was hard, I have got to start drinking more water. I have made the effort to drink the good stuff all day. I am sure my aches are a lack of hydration. Got lots of chores done today, now I am a little tired. Going out tonight to a comedy show, can't be too late as this is my weekend to work. I will try to get out with the dog Sunday morning before work and do a long brisk walk, no running for a change. Keep it loose and limber. After reviewing how I have felt lately, I am pretty sure I need more H2O and more stretching afterwards. I will keep going, I will get stronger! As long as I stick with it and listen to my body I know I will reach my goals... currently, my goal is 3 miles at a steady pace. I still feel like I take too many walk breaks but maybe I am just too hard on myself.

Awesome run today!

This morning was fantastic! The running is still hard but I have to admit I do enjoy my canine training partner. We started later today and I think Chyenne was convinced we weren't going out this morning until I grabbed her leash then she believed me! She loves it so much! The temperature was just a little nippy at first so I started out with a warmup jacket ... a light sprinkling of rain started about 10 minutes into the run. I figured as long as it didn't thunder (translation: no lightning!) we were ok. The lights rain stayed with us about 15 minutes then stopped, by then I had given up the jacket. As I am re-adjusting the jacket around my waist I see the most awesome sight, a beautiful rainbow overhead! Looked like the rainbow was just for us at the park!

I am still struggling with running without walk breaks. I haven't figured out how to get my breathing on track so it's not such a battle. I try to keep the walk breaks to aprox one minute and then run some more. I keep working at it, surely I will eventually "get it" and manage to run consistently for more than 5 minutes at a time! When I ran on the treadmill I seemed to do better with the breathing and running... I could run for 20 minutes solid on a treadmill before taking a walk break... Outdoors is much harder for me but I won't give up!!!

Friday was short run

Had a late start on Friday morning with my canine running partner... we barely had time for 30 minutes including warm-up and cool-down... Once again Chyenne proved to be good companion on the road. She is loving it, she can barely contain herself when she sees me lace up my sneakers first thing in the morning.

Go Dog Go! (or runs with canine)

Another runing day today... again with my canine training partner. Went pretty well, it was cooler this morning and I started with a light jacket. About 15 minutes into it, I tied the jacket around my waist. There is one issue I need to figure out, lighting is a problem - in my neighborhood less than half of the streets have streetlights so I have to bring some sort of lighting with us. I have a headlamp but it gets uncomfortable after awhile I guess I need to wear a headband or something for the lamp strap to go over. Also, I need to get a blinkie to attach to the dog's collar. I am enjoying her company and I know she enjoys getting out and having fun with me. A win-win situation!

different running partner today

Today I ran with Sam's dog -- 90 pound labrador retriever named Chyenne. She loved it! Was nice having such a big dog with me at 5am. It is very dark but I just felt a little safer with Chyenne by my side. She has to learn how to give me a little more space when she 'heels' -- she is so close it is hard for me to get my stride. She got better and she was very tired when we got back ... she did not even ask for her breakfast right away. (There's a reason she's 90 pounds) I will try to work with her more often and we can get in shape together. :-)

rainy day workout

Today is a running day -- Raining cats, dogs and more this morning so off to the gym to find an open treadmill. As I usually arrive before 6am I have no trouble finding an open machine. I dialed in the treadmill fairly steep for over half of my run... gives some semblance of an outdoor run. Sweating pretty good by the end. My energy levels were great for the class I taught this morning... workouts really do help fight fatigue!