Power of Positive Peer Pressure / Week 2 Goals

Can I just say, I love my neighbors! They are such a good influence. I don't think I would have ever aspired to do any races on my own without their example. Everyone is so supportive of each other... it's just the best (clearly I'm rambling, but I really can't describe how lucky I am to have moved to such a cool street).

Anyway, one of my neighbors, Rachel P, is helping me get started on my own. She is also a trainer and owns a fitness company designed for moms called Stroller Strides. Be sure and check out her blog. I really appreciate all of her help and wanted to give her a little shout-out here...

Here are my goals for week 2:

MON (done): Run/walk workout on the treadmill - 60 min

- After doing the 10K, I wanted to be able to run more than ever. In the fall, Rachel gave me a training program to be able run the 8K, but it was a little too hard for me. So, I'm trying again, but starting out a little easier: run 30 seconds, walk 90 seconds for 20 min, then walk for the remainder of the time.

- It was challenging, but doable. I walked at 3.8-4 mph and ran at 5 mph all at a incline of 1. The second 20 minutes were a hill workout, with inclines of 2-10 and speed of 3.7-4 mph. The final 20 minutes were a brisker walk, incline of 2 and a speed of 4-4.3 mph. Calories burned: 825.

TUES: HIIT on elliptical/ab workout

WED: I'm considering taking today off, but if the weather is nice I plan on taking a walk after work.

THURS: Another run/walk workout. May be outside, but it's going to be an early am workout.

FRI: Either a swim workout or HIIT on the elliptical. Driving to NY, so will sneak small walks at a rest stops.

SAT: If it's nice, I'm thinking about walking Lake Mahopac. It's another long walk. If it's raining, I'm going to do a hotel workout (probably the elliptical, maybe the treadmill.

SUN: Rest, and enjoy Easter with my extended family.

I anticipate a few challenges. First, I go back to working the day shift Tues-Thurs, which means I have to get up and exercise at 5am without having someone to meet. Second, traveling means I need disruption to my routine and having to improvise (staying in a hotel, probably going out to eat with friends and family). I think being aware of the possible obstacles makes it easier to overcome them...

Happy Monday!

LP

Monument Ave 10K... with a little help from my friend!

Today was race day. Earlier this week I received FB mail from Kelly, a friend of mine from HS, encouraging me to go ahead with race whether or not I had prepared like I should. The gist of it was "if I have to drive my butt up to Richmond to do it with you, I'd be more than happy to"... Who could say no to that? Not only did I have someone to walk with me, but I got to catch up with a great girl that I hadn't seen in ages. I was in...

Last night Kelly came up and we chatted, gossiped, and reminisced. I think we figured out that it had been like 6 1/2 years since we saw each other last. She's in school getting her PhD in physical therapy, so she came up after classes and got into Richmond in the evening. We tried to figure out our gameplan for parking and arrival times (it is a huge event with over 37,000 runners), and then off to bed...

Bright and early we headed downtown. We were fortunate to find a spot pretty easily and so we had some time to kill in the cold. But it was a lovely sunny day here and we warmed up soon enough. We walked the most of it, but jogged a few little stretches to justify our wave (It was a jog/walkers wave -- 90 to 100 min). There were a couple of times that I thought I couldn't go further, but walking with Kelly helped pass the time.

With all of the people I knew running today, I was surprised that we didn't see any of them. But we did see my friend Lydia at the end and she took this picture for us...

So, before I started training, I had hoped that I would finish in 90 minutes (averaging about 15 min miles...). We all know how my training went (it fizzled) and so I was pretty pleased when I finished in 1:40:08 (averaging 16.1 min miles). And considering that my 8K time was 1:26, I did pretty well...

So now the question is... when is the next race??

The Honeymoon High

If I could bottle the energy and enthusiasm I have for my workouts when I start something new...

1) Nobody (including myself) would be overweight or unhealthy again

2) I would be a very rich girl

Alas, since that's not going to happen, I need to find a way to make this feeling last as long as possible. Momentum is KEY when it comes to my fitness endeavors... once I lose it, it is oh-so-hard for me to stay on track.

Hopefully the excitement and new-ness will carry me through this latest life-stress... I got a call from my dad while I was at work last night telling me that my grandmother is not doing well. I don't have enough information yet, but hopefully the doctor will give me a call today. It's just so hard to piece together what is really happening when I get information third-hand (the doctor tells my uncle, who tells my dad, who tells me). And being a doctor myself, I always have a gazillion questions.

For now, I will enjoy the stress-reducing benefits of my exercising, and pray that everything will be okay...

Happy Thursday!

LP

Week 1's plans...

So, I decided to post my weekly workout plans here...

Monday: (done)

25 min of HIIT on the elliptical/10 min abs

55 min walking/3.25 miles.

Tuesday: (done)

90 min walking/5.5 miles

Wednesday:

elliptical workout. 30 min HIIT/15 min steady pace

abs/core workout

Thursday:

treadmill "hill" workout (speed 3.6-4, incline 5-10)

Friday:

swim workout/laps.

abs/core workout

SATURDAY: RACE DAY! Monument Ave 10K ***

Sunday: rest :)

*** There has been a lot of inner debate about whether I should do the race or sit this one out. I definitely stopped training and feel a little unprepared. But after today's workout and after much encouragement from all of my friends and cheerleaders, I've decided to go for it!! If nothing else, I can certainly get a life lesson or two out of it (like the importance of follow-through and finishing something you started?)

So the promise I made myself when I decided to workout on my own was to do cardio at least 4-5 times a week, and some other workout (right now I'm focusing on core exercises because of all my aches and pains) 3 times a week. This week is ambitious... but I do have wiggle room if I need it. Just have to meet the minimum... the rest is bonus!

Happy Tuesday!

LP

Branching out...

I realize I haven't blogged in forever... Things have been crazy lately. I've had some struggles, and I needed to take some time to think. I've been meaning to give you an update (there were 5 half-started posts in my blogger account) but I didn't know what to say. And so many of you have been cheering me on... I really didn't want to disappoint you with my struggles and negativity... I needed some time to step back and think.

My workouts at the gym have been schizophrenic... I could have an amazing workout one day and then an awful one the next. I have been having some pain issues and have been struggling with motivation. My trainer has been trying to motivate me "Jillian-style", which doesn't really work for me. I believe that I give my all every time I exercise, but sometimes I just don't have much to give. I've been frustrating Sean to no end... and one day the tension even came to a head! He heard me say something horrible under my breath, and our workout ended short that day. And while things were okay after that, it was obvious that something had to change... because it's only a matter of time before the next breakdown at the gym.

I've been thinking a lot about the next step on this journey... Should I suck it up and continue the way things are -- you know tough it out? Should I find a new trainer and start over? Should I give in and make the appointment for gastric bypass surgery? What did I really want to do??? After much deliberation and prayer, I've come up with a new game plan...

I've decided to take a break from working with Sean. I think I need to prove to myself that I can workout and exercise on my own without a trainer. It's not like I'm going to have a trainer forever, and I have to have learned something over the past 2 years... It's both scary and exciting, but I think I'm ready.

I talked to Sean about my decision. He was very supportive and encouraging. We're going to try it for a month. I'll be checking in with him weekly to see how things go. If it's a disaster, the door is open to come back.

I'll keep you posted on how things go! Wish me luck...

Happy Monday!

LP

checking in...

Wow, I hadn't realized that it had been so long since I've written... It's time to check in!

Things are going pretty well still. I am still enjoying the new workouts. I am grateful for the cardio workouts that I am doing with Sean bc I haven't been very good about doing them on my own (although, I did twice last week go to the gym on my own... I can be proud of that). Yesterday we did a stretching/yoga-lite workout. It was good, although I think I may have to look into getting a block and strap to modify things a little. Some of the things I am not able to do just yet...

Nutrition is going okay... Lent is helping me stay on track.

Unfortunately, I found out that the person who was going to do the 10K with me is now unable to (he forgot that he was working in the ICU that weekend)... anyone want to join me? I'm signed up in the Walk/jog category, so it should be doable. I'd love the company!

So, consider yourself caught up ;)

Happy Wednesday!
LP