Tuesday Report

Happy Tuesday

Friday and Saturday I covered for a couple of the teachers who were off in Chicago doing circus stuff.

Friday, we covered basics. The studio had teacher training. I focused on describing why I do what I do. The trainees had some experience with aerial yoga which made life easier. They did well. I think they’ll make good teachers. The second class was fun. Girl Scouts and their moms. This gave the trainees a chance to work with kids, which is a whole different world. The class did wonderful. They all had fun as we went thru a similar group of asanas as the previous class, but made it more fun. Yoga poses were completed with fun little stories. Kids bring a whole different energy to a yoga class. I also discovered Lularoe leggings. I went home with blue and silver tiger striped leggings and one with clouds and suns.

Saturday, the class was a little bit more challenging. We had a new student but she was game for whatever. So were the trainees. Two regulars showed up too. I asked the class what they wanted to do and we ended up with some strength work. I also included a vinyasa side locust series to show how to link static poses together. The studio owner requested I do a few poses so she didn’t have to demonstrate them later. We did those. We also worked on some trouble areas for new students. Everyone seemed onboard and excited with class. We opened the door and let some fresh air and the sounds of weekend life into the studio. It was a very refreshing class.

Sunday, I did not do a long run. I had intentions but then life got a little busy. The dog got to run. She went with us to a friend’s house and she got to run around the backyard with her little buddy. By the end of the visit, she was pooped and lay panting in the shade, while the little one continued to bounce on her.

Then, of course, there was Game of Thrones. A Buzzfeed quiz put me in House Stark. The dog and I watched the show. The dragon did not want to watch the show. My Sunday evenings will now consist of cider and a visit to Westeros. Frequently, the dog watches with me but the fiancé is not as enthralled as we are.

I ran this morning. I wore my Brooks and my new cloud leggings. I felt rather perky and awake. The run went great. Well, the first few minutes were rough as they usually are. But then Daredevil got really good and I didn’t notice how tired I was getting. One of the students from yoga is doing the 5k in Door County but she wanted to see what the half marathon course was like. On Saturday, she told me that it’s one big hill. My new strategy is work on hills and continuous running. Speed is nice but if the hill takes me out, nothing else matters.

It felt like I could have easily kept going. Mostly, I left the treadmill on 5.2mph with one break. This should give me a 2:50:00 time for my half. At level three, it seemed easy enough. Maybe the next run, I’ll try level four. Next week, I’ll need to take it a little easy to keep my legs fresh.

So that’s it. I wonder what the rest of this week will hold. 

Keep Moving

The weekend is nearly here. It was a long week.

I’m so glad to have a way to let things go. Between running and aerial yoga, there is a lot of peace to be gained.

This past weekend was my bachelorette party. Lots of love and lush Saturday. Sunday was a do nothing day. I think it was wise not to push and to recover from a once in a lifetime party/girls night out. I spent most of my day on the couch with saltines and sipping soda. Hung out with the dog, and Karn the Dragon. We also have a new friend. He has no name as of yet other than Dumpy, which is the kind of frog he is.

Before 

After

New Buddy

I ran Tuesday and Wednesday. I’ve been tired. And I’ve been slacking. I went to the gym and went for some good runs. Both these runs have been tough. I feel like I just can’t catch my breath. My legs are tired from the start and never wake up. Nothing has changed. But I’m struggling. A few other times, I’ve had these runs, the kind you just suck it up and do it. I could quit but really there is nothing wrong with me other than being tired. No reason to quit, just to keep going.

I really need to keep going. I’ve gotten two emails from the administrators of the Door County Half Marathon, including the one with the list of places to get my pasta the night before and a sneak peek at our shirts. Part of me is hoping I can snag a short sleeve version of the shirts for the 5k. The long sleeve shirt will not get a lot of wear with the seasons starting to change. I’m anxious and excited for the race and the trip up to Door County. We used to go there with my fiance’s family. It’s a wonderfully quiet place. The scenery is stunning and the food is even better. There is a fudge store in Fish Creek that is a required stop.

Anyways, Wednesday night I taught a class where is stayed in the fabric as much as possible. Fabric kept us warm in the chilly studio. We stretched out the quads and hamstrings, hitting all the basic poses. It was a small class.

Tonight I will be teaching at least 2 classes and maybe a third. We have some student teachers in house and a Girl Scout party. Beginners are always fun. Especially when we have a person who’s heart falls in love with this practice on the spot. And I’ve another class tomorrow. Subbing is a great way to meet new students and to grow in my own practice. Different students help me stretch my practice in different ways. It helps me learn new cues to give students and each student learns differently.

And I’ve got to run. May 7^th will come way too quickly.

The fudge better be worth it

Hello, Are you out there?

Well, hello again. I promise I haven’t abandoned you. As so often happens, life has gotten in the way. Between wedding and work, time has been at a premium.

Last Tuesday, I went for run before work. I’ve developed a plan to help increase my pace. It seems to be working and I can adjust it for the day’s need. I start with a regular five minute warm up and then start the work. Typically, I start at 5mph and each minute build up. And then build down. The first time around, I keep it slow, not building past 5.6mph. Second time, I build up to 6.7mph. And then back down again. How many times this is repeated is dependent on how long my run time is. It gives me an opportunity to work on pace and intervals at the same time. Even though it is an interval workout, it isn’t easy. I was dripping in sweat.

So here is the before picture

Wednesday, we had an airing aerial yoga class. The students and I had to let things go. We needed to air our frustrations out but not have any one try to fix it. Just say it and let it go. I would like to think we all felt a little lighter leaving class. In yoga, we talk about a mind body connection. Sometimes, where our minds go, our body follows. If our thoughts are kinda ugly, our bodies can go south too. In the beginning of class, we start with a seated meditation. Last Wednesday, we mentally swept our minds of all those things dragging us down. At the end of the class, we reminded ourselves that we are supported and safe and able to deal with whatever life was swinging at us.

I had the intent to run Thursday and Friday and Saturday, but it didn’t happen. I’ve been battling some exhaustion and a busy life.

We went to an Ani Difranco concert Friday night

So running on Monday happened. And I copied my workout plan but started at 5.2mph. I’m still slow. It’s ok. I remind myself that I just started running a year ago. I’ve been adding hills to my walking portions. A little birdie told me that my half marathon has some rather large hills. I don’t want to be surprised again like I was with the Great Pi Run.

Monday was rough. I felt like I couldn’t get going or catch my breath. Even before that, I had forgotten pants. No running pants. No running pants no run. Thankfully, my gym has clothes for sale and I got some shorts. They were super comfortable and unisex, so they weren’t short. They were long. I rolled them up so they weren’t knee length. It was an awfully sweaty run. But satisfactory.

Now this Wednesday, this Wednesday was fun. Last Wednesday, we did a little “foam rolling” with the fabrics. So I planned a whole aerial yoga rolling class. It was wonderful and painful all at once. In the past, I had a trigger point massage one day. The day of and the day after left me uncomfortable and sore. But the day after that, I felt so pain free. Foam rolling is of a similar concept. It is a popular way to work out sore muscles especially with runners. I’ve heard a lot of people with fibromyalgia use it as well.

I applied the concept to the low aerial yoga. It went really well. We used traditional yoga moves modified to let the fabric roll on certain muscle groups. The phrase “it hurts so good” surely applies here. Besides working out achy muscles and achieving myofascial release, it was great working on core, back, and arms. There was a lot of groaning after finding the spot. At the end of class, everyone expressed their happiness with the new class. I mentioned I might bring to a class I’ll be subbing for on the 22^nd and that sparked some interest as well. I think it was a successful class. Admittedly, I’m a little sore today but tomorrow will be better.

Studio was freezing this morning. Stayed in my coat for a bit.

Tomorrow, I plan on running. A few times, I’ve said I’m too tired to get up but I have found that I’m more tired and continue to get tired when I don’t get my butt up and run. Also, I don’t have to go to the gym to run either. I sometimes forget that I was a road runner first. When I run on the road, I don’t have the control that I get on a treadmill. The treadmill lets me fine tune what I want to do in a way that I cannot outside. They both have their benefits.

I love my active life. And it’s not as active as some and more active than others. At the same time, it’s really easy to fall into bad habits. I must be on guard. I’m looking forward to the half marathon. I just need to keep training and keep using my aerial yoga for recovery.

In the meantime, here is Karn sunbathing and straight up bathing

Also here are a few pets available at our local Hwy 100 at Petworld

Flares and a Long Run

It’s been awhile. But I’ve got some running and yoga updates to do.

I yoga’ed on Wednesday. It was nice and full. I had some new faces which is always fun. There is something very nice about new students. It reminds us of how far we came and the joy in discovering something new. I kept with the basics and made sure to give accurate cues. With the regulars, it’s not as important and they have general concepts of aerial yoga. Once you have the basics down, the sky is the limit.

Random thought: Love these boots and leggings

The past week I had a cold and a flare. It was a rough week. I didn’t run but did get to yoga. I have to decide when this happens whether or not to suck it up or not. In general, but it felt like this week was a week where I needed rest. Sleeping was minimal and I was teary from the extra pain. It makes me feel powerless over my own body.

But Saturday, I had it. I went to the gym as the weather was unpredictable. I meant to just take it easy. No runs could lead to injury if I went too hard. So I went slow for my 13.2 miles. My pace was 13:26. When I first started, my knee hurt. Not too painful but still uncomfortable enough to notice. It went away after the first mile. Daredevil is starting to get good. I dressed as if it was 70-ish with light capris and my new favorite shirt. It quotes from Firefly. There was some near poetry in that show.

I’m hoping that I can get some more runs in this week. I feel much better but it’s important not to go too hard or I could trigger another flare. There is a fine line that I have to be careful. There is sucking it up and being conscious of what happened last week.

So that’s it. I hope I will be able to give more updates this week.