Did I say OW!!

So, this morning I could barely squat to sit on the toliet... Ouch!!   As the day has gone on I can squat more but not without groaning like a much older person. And all this is after Wednesday's workout...
plus.. did I mention that I have 3 miles on schedule for today.. Yep. Sure do! And I'm gonna get'em done too! They may be slow.. but they'll get done!

OW... ow.. ow...

So Thursday I was a little sore from all the squats and running that we did on Wednesday.  Thankfully it was a rest day and I didn't have to log any miles!!   
I did laundry and played with all my babies... two and four legged!

Forgetful when Sweatful

Wednesday was the Lose Big workout.  This time there wasn't anything done for a record. We usually do the fitness evaluations 3 times (beginning, middle, and end) a season. 
I discussed with Tom, a member of my group, that I would like to make an online calendar to share my training schedule.  If he'd like to do the same I could set him up then... if we happen to be training on the same day.. we could bust out a few miles together.  I'll just go ahead and say his miles will be faster than mine - the man is.a.giant. so when he stretches out and gets on a solid pace... he's just flat gone!
He agreed so I set him up! (I just pulled up the calendar, he's already entered stuff into it!  That's pretty cool!)
We started our workout with 4 laps. Then intervals.. up until the last few seasons I've been able to remember what we did long enough to get home and log it on dailymile. But the last few seasons I haven't, she's kicked it up and I have been able to remember some things but not all.
Our intervals (what I can remember) were with 8# hand weights.  First 20 Squat Presses, 20 push-ups, 10 Burpees from Hell, and 20 of something I don't remember. Then run a lap when we got back to where we started there is a stairwell, we run down the stairwell and back up (two flights) then start the interval again.
After the second time on the same set of intervals including the lap and stairs - we did another set of intervals. Four completely different intervals, 20 squat lunges (with the weights 1 squat plus a backward lunge on each leg - do this 20 times, 20 skiers (legs like skier, weights in hands going back like your shooshing down the slope, squat as you shoosh) 20 of something I can't remember, then 20 woodchops each side (hold both weights together in your hands like holding an ax, then from your right side stand tall with legs spread shoulder width and chop toward your left ankle bending as you chop) plus the lap and the stairs and then do the same set including the lap and the stairs.
Then it was time to do Abs... for this month Sara has us doing Fab-AB-February. But since we're on the "Advanced Team" we are to do double of what each day says. So instead of doing it at home on our own, on the days we're at the gym we do F.A.F with our team mates.
Then time to stretch... I probably haven't mentioned it... but I LOVE to STRETCH... feels great after a workout or run or even after getting out of bed.
If I ever post a workout but don't describe what it was and you want to know - feel free to ask for a description.. if I can remember it.. I'll be glad to tell you what it was =)

Puppy

I love dogs... I haven't admitted that to you, or at least not lately.  I'm allergic to cats.  Specifically cats plural... I don't have a problem with one cat. I can handle one cat fairly well.  But put me in a room with more than one.. and I become a sneezing, sniffling, drippy mess.
Anyway. We have had our boxer, Maddie for over 7 years.  We picked her up on Tuesday and on Thursday of the same week we found out we were pregnant with Lulu. (she'll be 7 in June)  Angel, our retired greyhound, we adopted five years ago. She's the same age as Maddie.  The short story with Angel is the people who have the greyhound rescue were at a pet store and I was shopping at a neighboring store for a wedding gift. Just HAD to go by and see them.. and adopted her.
We also adopted Abby, another greyhound from the same people, three years ago.  She was 13 weeks old, we were told her mother died during birth. We just HAD to rescue her. Sadly she passed away last summer.  We were told by the vet, that a gas bubble had gotten trapped in her chest and killed her.  We were told, sort of shruggingly, that it happens to "barrel chested" dogs.  RIP Abby. 
I tell you allllll that to tell you this. On Facebook I'm "friends" with several areas shelters... so I get daily "come rescue me" emails from the pups (and cats) that are there for any number of reasons.  So, naturally I look.  I've been telling my husband for months that I want a dog to run with. (He wants a Bulldog.) I would like a little protection too.  I'd started looking at shepherds.  Long story short, Saturday I found 4 German Shepherd mix puppies at a rescue.  Sunday I applied for adoption. Tuesday we picked her up.
Her name is Sasha.  My littlest daughter "Mia" calls her "She-Sha" or "puppy"...
She loves her belly rubbed.. and is currently doing all the puppy things she should be doing... you know learning what not to chew... where to poop... etc.  But she's a good girl...
My hubby will have to start working less nights before we get a bulldog... I love him - He's sooooo good to me!!!

This week has been KAH-RAY-ZY!!! I'm probably gonna post several times today to fill you in on the craziness.
Monday , I started Lose Big again (5th time).  Hello! (stands up) My name is Tessa.  I'm addicted to my coach Sara.  She says hop, I hop.  She says run, I run.  She says "Now for a warm up, we're going to do intervals in the stairwell.  Grab your 8# weights and follow me."   I quiver with delight because I know that I will be dripping wet with sweat by the time I'm half way finished with the warm up!!  Don't bother trying to "fix" me or "cure" my addicition.  It's fine.  I would much rather be addicted to this than half a dozen other things (foods, mainly) that I've been "addicted" to in the past. 
So, We were told that we would keep our measurements and times from two weeks prior and just start working out on Monday. Well, that isn't how it went. We did all the "tests" over again. Pushups, Crunches, Plank, and the timed mile..  "The lady" is on my team again... but my friend Bliss Runner is back too. I'd told her about The Lady cutting her mile one lap short last time and I was waiting to see if she would try it again or if she could meet her 9:11 mile time.  I, of course, wanted to meet or beat my 10:02 time.  Now I don't claim to be fast, but I do my best and that's all that I can ask of myself.  
When we started the mile this time, like always, I started in the back of the pack.  I run at my own pace and I try to stay at that pace. I may occasionally stretch my legs out a bit and "run longer".  By the 3rd lap, I passed "the lady" and kept going.  I didn't look back.. okay, I'll admit that in the windows that surround half the track, I would look for her reflection.  "She's right behind me, I know it" "She's gonna pass me any second"  Um, no neither of those was happening... I actually couldn't see her in the windows.. and by the 8th lap I found out why... she'd walked and I'd nearly lapped her.  I saw her ahead of me as I was taking the 3rd turn in my final lap.  She was walking.  "I'm gonna pass her, Kick it up a bit!" I told myself.  It would give me a tiny thrill to pass her twice in a mile!  But she turned and saw me coming, just as I lengthened my stride and started to sprint... she broke into a run.  She wasn't gonna have any of it.
As I crossed the line, Sara called out my time 9:45.  WHAT?!  9:45!!! I beat my own time!! HELL YEA!!
I hugged Sara!! High Five'd my girls!!  I can't breathe right now but HELL YEA! 
Closer and closer to the 8 min mile I want so badly!!

Fit Mommy Friday

It's been a while since I participated in Fit Mommy Friday.. and there's a different mediator now too. I'm just gonna jump in with both feet.. so here goes!!
Set my own goals...
1.  Follow my training plan working toward my 3rd official 5k on February 18th. It'll be a race I haven't ran before on a course I haven't seen... not sure what my time will be like.  My time goal is less than 36:46.  My stretch goal is 30:00
1a)  my training plan currently - today; run 2.75 miles, tomorrow, run 60 minutes.  Monday is a 3 mile run and an hour w/my coach, Wednesday is a 2 mile run and an hour with my coach, then next Friday a 3 mile run.
2. Continue to post my daily food intake to http://www.myfitnesspal.com/  and to eat equal to or slightly less than my allotted calories daily.  My stretch goal will be not to consume any of my exercise calories on workout days.
3.Get as much as 6 hours of sleep.  My stretch goal is seven hours of sleep.  (dear sweet toddler... PLEASE!!)

I'll start with those and see how I do for this week.

PawPaw

I usually don't post to my blog often. This time, during the stretch of months since I posted last, my Father-in-Law discovered he had esophegial cancer.
He had never had a colonoscopy.. and decided that he would but the condition was that they would also do an endoscopy.  That's when they found the tumor.  The tumor was at the entrance of his stomach between the esophgus and the stomach.
The operation was scheduled for April 2011.  He spent the entire month of April in the hospital under a drug induced coma.  When he was released he began chemo and radiation treatments. 
He stayed very weak, basically lost any volume in his voice, and so much weight that it actually aged him by several years. 
We didn't see him much because of the traveling they had to do for the treatments.  But we saw him when he felt up to it.  
We spent the day with him on Thanksgiving and not long after that he was back in his local "small town" hospital.  He was having problems breathing.  A week later they brought him to our "small city" hospital.  He spent the next few months in the hospital, his wife by his side nearly every moment.  Slowly slipping away.  Everyone hoping he was getting better...
He left our world on January 20th.  He was was strong, kind, and a wonderful father.  
He is missed badly.  
I confessed to my husband that during PawPaw's illness I'd wanted to get a trace of his hand to embroider on a running jersey.. for strength on the run.  It never really felt like a good time to ask for it. I kept telling myself that it wasn't the right time to ask and I'd ask when he felt better or was back home. 
After the funeral my husband brought me a tracing of his father's hand.  He'd asked the funeral home director to trace it for us.  They traced his hand and laminated the page.  I didn't expect it... didn't expect him to ask for it or to have the chance to have it done.  A chance lost... a moment stolen...
But like he always does, my husband turned my request into reality....
And I will be running each race with his dad there... pushing me along.

What to do...

I want to keep my first blog... but the content has changed soooo much... I think just maybe I'll treat my blog the exact same way my stress fracture treated my leg...
Break it down... Start it over...

NEXT!!!

Lose BIG

I've signed up and participated in a total of four "Biggest Loser" programs held at my gym. My first program began September 2010.
Last week was the final week of the current round of Lose Big. We were scheduled to do our fitness evaluations on Monday but coach was out sick. So two four person teams combined and we did what we could of the test; running the mile, crunches, pushups and plank. Then we agreed to come back and do the remaining 3 minute step test for heart rate and recovery rate and our measurements.

We did our mile first... 9 laps around the indoor track (coach usually tallies each lap as we run) a different coach kept time but didn't keep tally while we ran our laps.
I am a mid to back of the pack runner. So, when I confess to you that I began the mile in fourth out of eight please understand I felt good about it. As we began to run we all sort of know that one guy is going to be leaps ahead of us... his stride is enormous! He was followed by another guy (I called him Dozer because of his build) a lady, and then myself. Skip to the 4th lap, the lady slows to a walk and then Dozer does as well. I passed them both and then by the beginning of the 5th lap Dozer caught up with me and passed but the lady didn't. She's on my tail but I don't look back. Dozer got a half lap ahead of me... then he'd slow to a walk.... occasionally he'd catch my reflection in the windows or turn to find me and start running again. I just tried to keep up with or catch him.
When we got to the end of the 9th lap the tall guy had already finished of course... Dozer took off and so did I... but what's this... the lady was already there?! But she didn't pass me back... how'd she finish before me? I was furious!! Truth be told, I'm still furious almost a week later!! If you're gonna DNF... that's fine.. do what your body can, what your body will allow you to do - but don't claim a finish that you didn't earn!
I finished my mile and shaved off 20 seconds from the same mile in December. I ran a 10:02 - I would really like to become an 8 minute miler or at least in the single digits... but I'm super close so I'm proud.
I also did 47 pushups in a minute, 67 crunches in a minute and held a plank for 2:25.
Signed up for my 5th tour of the Lose Big program. Starts up on Monday!! In the meantime I'm following a Hal Higdon 5k training plan and preparing for a 5k on 2/18.
How is your training coming?

Blogger for Android

Just found this app. We'll see how it works. In other news... I continue to be a giant ball of stress!

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Still Stressin'

I suddenly feel sick to my stomach. My doctor's appointment was today. It was 3 weeks from the day he told me to use crutches, stay off your leg, no weight baring exercise, wear this air cast 23 hours a day and I'll see you back here. I'd felt pretty good. I'd still been going to the gym two days a week with my group, doing only arms and abs though just like doc said.

X-rays were done first. Then the exam. I'm sitting there ready to hear.... "Ok, everything looks good. You can start back slowly. Here's a program I want you to follow to the letter... and I'll see you back here next week"... right? RIGHT? hahaha! WRONG! oh so wrong...
I kept the air cast off from the x-ray, no point in getting re-dressed. He asked me how my leg was and I told him.. it feels fine. cause it does. except for my knee... and I mentioned my knee again, too. He looked at the x-rays "MM-hmm - well that's (the x-rays) not showing me what I want to know..." So he comes over sits down and presses ONE FINGER in a spot on my calf! "How does that feel?" I nearly came up off the table!!! OW!! "It hurts!" Just what he had thought apparently because the next thing he said was not expected. One more week on the crutches and then two more weeks with the air cast and start physical therapy on March 25th.
It's been very difficult to stay off my leg. My kids ages are 14yo, 5yo and 10 mo. Plus, my husband works from 4PM to 1AM. So, that makes our evenings a little hectic. Our families both live over two hours away so there's no built in help in that respect. ...I'll just stop with the run down and say it's been hard, very hard. I honestly expected it to be different.
So by the end of the appointment I'd had questions to ask and I was so out of my head that I didn't remember. Thankfully my husband spoke up and asked about my 10k. "Is she gonna be able to even walk it?" no. Then I started asking about barefoot running. Figuring that if he wants me to tear down my base and start over should I start completely over with barefoot running. He basically said one thing at a time and asked me to wait on a decision for that.
So, I'm back to waiting. Waiting to heal, waiting to run, waiting to feel good again.

Bliss Runner went to her appointment today too. He gave her a clean bill of health and let her know that her issue was her shoes. Because of her stride and how she runs she needs a shoe with a deeper cut in the ankle area. I'm very glad that she news that was better than she expected!!!

Missed it by --------- that much!

My appointment was yesterday, I overslept and called to tell them that I was running late. They insisted I reschedule... so my appointment is Friday at 11:45. I went to the gym last night. First coach had me work out on the ARC trainer for 15 minutes, carrying a 10# medicine ball over my head every other minute, while my teammates used the treadmills to do the same. Then they did a lap of lunges around the track with the medicine ball while I used the TRX to do lunges. We also used a dumb bell and Bosu ball to do more strength training.

Thursday we workout again... and it will also be the midpoint for this session. So, we'll have our session then we'll do measurements and weigh in.
Bliss Runner has decided not to come to the gym until her doctor's appointment on Friday. So, hopefully we'll both get answers on Friday.
I applied for a job at the local Running Store!! I hope they call !!!!

Get on the Cycle!!

Today was a better day. At the Weightloss Challenge (or Biggest Loser as it was previously called) two of my four lady team showed tonight. Bliss Runner, I named her for what running does for her, went to her son's string concert. Can't blame her for that. =) The other two ladies and I was joined by a guy from another team, he was making up a workout.
I arrived early hoping to get a parking place that wasn't at the end of the lot... it's pouring rain here today and crutches are even less fun in rain. Hopped on the elliptical for 12 minutes on 6 resistance and got in a mile there... (didn't want to do too much, never know what my trainer is gonna have us do)
Our trainer has been very helpful in accommodating her planned workouts to include something I can do.
1)They ran 4 laps (1/2 mile) and I rode 2 miles on a cycle at 13 resistance. Then we started circuit training, 1 minute intervals. (I'll list what I remember of my workout... just a note though, my workout has alot more repeats than my other teammates because of my Air Cast) Pushups, punching standing heavy bag (it moves too much when I hit it), modified mountain climbers on a "step bench", and using a TRX one legged squats.
2)Then 1 mile on the cycle (they ran two laps) followed by bench dips on the step, back handed punches on the standing bag, bicycle crunches on a Bosu ball, on the TRX one legged donkey kicks (left leg) while squatting with the right leg
3)Repeat the cycle, then pushups, knee the standing bag, modified mountain climbers on the step, one legged squats w/the TRX.
4)Repeat the cycle, then round house kicks to the standing bag, leaning bicep curls on the TRX, one legged squats on the step, and bicycle crunches on the Bosu.

All in all a decent sweat! At today's weigh-in, I showed a 1# gain. I'm hoping I'll be on less restrictions soon and will be able to participate more.
Can't wait to get back to running... I really miss it.

Biggest Loser part 2

They would say run laps... I ran laps. We started slow.. maybe two laps and got up to 16 laps (two miles) right around mid November. We had a challenge on November 20th... a 5k! It was officially my first race. My son jogged beside me the entire way; through grassy ballfields and over a few gravel paths but no pavement ... "You got this, Momma!" and including stopping to use the port-a-potty, we finished in 37:03 (even in high school I walked the mile - cause my parents told me that I shouldn't run because of asthma, which by the way I don't have.. but I'm not going there!)
I signed up and ran a 5k Thanksgiving morning, pushing my 5yo through the streets of our small city... (pavement) She and I finished in 43:23. I was a little discouraged by my time, I thought at least it would be close to my previous time but they were two very different races. I noticed my leg starting feeling some pain but ignored it. I kept training and working out twice a week with the girls.. then adding one or two cycling classes every week... all the while my leg keeps hurting.
I went to my sports med doctor nearly 3 weeks ago.. it's a stress fracture. I cried. Cried like he'd just told me he'd have to hack it off right there in the office. Truth be told... I was scared to death that he would tell me that I wouldn't be able to run the 10k that I'd signed up for in April. And... that's exactly what he told me.
I've been wearing an air cast since I saw the doctor. I go back to him on Monday to see what he thinks of my progress.
He wanted me to stay off my leg. He wanted me to stay on crutches and wear the air cast 23 hours a day. It's been very difficult. Difficult being a mom with 3 kids that depend on someone to do basiclly (it feels like) everything for them.
I've been stressed. I can't do much and have lost my running. It's odd how quickly I came to love running. Love the way I feel... there are so many feelings it gives me and I'm going through withdrawls.

Biggest Loser

I post in fits and starts. Basically because the only time I have to myself is spent sleeping.

I joined a group at the gym on September 27, 2010. We officially started working out October 4th. Originally the group that I was placed with was quite abit older than me.. like by 20 to 25 years. So on Friday the 8th, my trainer came to me and "offered" for me to go to a younger team. She told me that two of the women on that team had quit and there was only two ladies on it now... that they'd really like to have me over there. I took their advice - switched teams and am so glad I did... these ladies are awesome friends.

We work out on Mondays and Thursdays; weigh in on Thursdays. I could go track my loss over on myfitnesspal.com but instead I will just tell you... I started out at nearly 190# and with the help of my trainer, and support my friends & family - I have lost right at 28#.

I have always wanted to be a runner and have tried before to run a half marathon. It was with Team in Training, in 2004, and 6 days before my race I gave in to a pain that I'd been feeling in my foot. My doctor said it was tendonitis and that I would need to stop running for six weeks. I didn't start back up again... til October2010