Last night I realised that my blog celebrated (if it's even possible for a blog to celebrate) its second birthday earlier this month. I'd forgotten that I started my blog the day after my 30th birthday - doh, just gave away how many times I've celebrated my 21st birthday ;-)
There have been many times - particularly last year - when I came very close to abandoning my blog. But I'm so glad that I haven't. When I lose sight of the 'big picture' - that the journey is more important than the destination - reading my old posts never ceases to remind me of how far I've come & all that I have experienced (the good, the bad & the ugly) along the way. Over the last 2 years through my blog & CR, I have been lucky enough to meet people - or get to know people o/s through their blogs - who inspire me on a daily basis. I have adopted or been adopted by (I'm not sure which) a mentor who challenges me to challenge myself on a daily basis & without whom I would not be lining up for Six Foot next Saturday. I have also been blessed by friendships & deep bonds with people who I would not otherwise have met but for this wonderful sport & whose impact on my life can never be reduced to words. I have gone from running 20mins non-stop for the first time (in my very first post) to now being 10 sleeps away from my first marathon.
I've come along way baby - and my journey is really only just beginning…
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Sunday, February 25, 2007
Stormclouds may gather...
Well a very long lunch with my girlfriends + an amazing thunderstorm & torrential rain meant that I was just not meant to run on Saturday night. So I dragged myself out of bed around 7am this morning & was out the door by 7.30am. It was a lovely morning actually - overcast, cool with a breeze. Nice :-)
Ran 12k around scenic - and smelly - Llandilo. Then got on the trainer & rode for 1:11 at 65-70% MHR. My glute is certainly improving though my right ITB (formerly known as The Problem Child) was having a bit of a whinge on the 2 small inclines that I stopped to walk. I'm *trying* not to get too frustrated or negative right now but I'm struggling a bit. Clearly my ITB is just annoyed that my glute has been getting all the attention lately - my application of the 1000% rule when it comes to riding may also have had something to do with it ;-) I'm sure a massage tomorrow combined with lotsa stretching & rolling pin action will bring it back into line soon.
Ran 12.04k in 1:19:25 (aver 6:35min/k) for a total of 2:31:25 for the morning.
MTD: 77.68k
Ran 12k around scenic - and smelly - Llandilo. Then got on the trainer & rode for 1:11 at 65-70% MHR. My glute is certainly improving though my right ITB (formerly known as The Problem Child) was having a bit of a whinge on the 2 small inclines that I stopped to walk. I'm *trying* not to get too frustrated or negative right now but I'm struggling a bit. Clearly my ITB is just annoyed that my glute has been getting all the attention lately - my application of the 1000% rule when it comes to riding may also have had something to do with it ;-) I'm sure a massage tomorrow combined with lotsa stretching & rolling pin action will bring it back into line soon.
Ran 12.04k in 1:19:25 (aver 6:35min/k) for a total of 2:31:25 for the morning.
MTD: 77.68k
Friday, February 23, 2007
Groundhog post...
Yes, you guessed it - another run, another ride ;-)
Thursday night I had an interesting meeting which meant that I had to run before work. It's sooo dark out there now - I took my snazzy new headlamp out for a test drive as my favourite loop near home takes in a few (rural) back roads with very few, if any, streetlights. Yes, I now own a headlamp. My god - what has become of me ;-)
Today the goal was to go a little bit further & run some of the little bitty rolling hills that I have been walking for the last couple of weeks. My piriformis was a bit more niggly than 'normal' but that's to be expected I guess. Still, finished pretty comfortably with 9.05k in 58:11 (aver 6:25min/k).
Today (Friday) I decided to sleep in - woohoo - 5.30am seems like such a sleep-in these days! Got up & did my stretches. After work tonight, I dragged out Apollo for an interval session -
5mins warm up
7 x 4mins efforts/1:30 recovery
5 mins cool down
I had it in quite a large gear to start with but again had absolutely nothing in my legs - so after the first interval I dropped down to a lower gear & increased the cadence. Really tough session - I was 'glowing' lots ;-) And I really shouldn't have eaten those 2 rice crackers just before getting on the bike - not a good idea at all...
Finished with stretches & more snowball building. Run + ride either tomorrow or Sunday - I had planned to do the session tomorrow afternoon but I'm off to a rather belated Christmas lunch first so we'll see.....
MTD: 65.64k
Thursday night I had an interesting meeting which meant that I had to run before work. It's sooo dark out there now - I took my snazzy new headlamp out for a test drive as my favourite loop near home takes in a few (rural) back roads with very few, if any, streetlights. Yes, I now own a headlamp. My god - what has become of me ;-)
Today the goal was to go a little bit further & run some of the little bitty rolling hills that I have been walking for the last couple of weeks. My piriformis was a bit more niggly than 'normal' but that's to be expected I guess. Still, finished pretty comfortably with 9.05k in 58:11 (aver 6:25min/k).
Today (Friday) I decided to sleep in - woohoo - 5.30am seems like such a sleep-in these days! Got up & did my stretches. After work tonight, I dragged out Apollo for an interval session -
5mins warm up
7 x 4mins efforts/1:30 recovery
5 mins cool down
I had it in quite a large gear to start with but again had absolutely nothing in my legs - so after the first interval I dropped down to a lower gear & increased the cadence. Really tough session - I was 'glowing' lots ;-) And I really shouldn't have eaten those 2 rice crackers just before getting on the bike - not a good idea at all...
Finished with stretches & more snowball building. Run + ride either tomorrow or Sunday - I had planned to do the session tomorrow afternoon but I'm off to a rather belated Christmas lunch first so we'll see.....
MTD: 65.64k
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Still rolling....
Another 2 days - another ride, another run :-) Must say I'm looking forward to getting back in the gym & doing some weights. I feel like I'm turning to mush with all this cardio stuff...
Anyhoo, Monday was a rest day. Surprisingly I (including my butt) recovered well after my long ride on Sunday. Must have been the nana nap. No DOMS at all - was just a bit sleepy at work in the afternoon ;-)
Tuesday night saw another post-work run. I'm really enjoying running in the afternoon. Though I sometimes struggle to get out the door, despite the heat I always feel stronger in the afternoons. Perhaps it's just because I'm awake - when I run in the morning, I'm on the road & running with 15mins of my alarm going off!. I took the same (flat) loop as the last few runs, again walking the hills. Very pleased to say that there was little in the way of complaints from my piriformis - yippee! Finished with 8.05k in 50:55mins (aver 6:19min/k). I'll be reintroducing mini-hills (ok, inclines really) on Thursday - fingers crossed!
This morning and I was up before 5 to get back on the trainer. I had planned to do 60mins at 75-80% MHR - but in all honesty, it probably ended up being a 20min warm up with 40mins at 70%. I had nothing - my legs felt like lead so I changed down (or should that be up?) to a lower gear & increased the cadence to try & get my HR up without my legs dropping off. It kinda worked. Will just put it down as one of those days me thinks....
The plan for the rest of the week is another slightly longer run on Thursday, an interval session on the bike on Friday & then hopefully a 12-15k run followed by some time on the bike on Saturday. Not long until Six Foot now - right now I'm feeling confident & positive that all my snowball building, time on the bike & calculated decisions about when & how far to run without pissing off my piriformis will get me to the start line. It hasn't been the ideal preparation but that's life - and I'm not going to die wondering :-)
MTD: 56.59k
Anyhoo, Monday was a rest day. Surprisingly I (including my butt) recovered well after my long ride on Sunday. Must have been the nana nap. No DOMS at all - was just a bit sleepy at work in the afternoon ;-)
Tuesday night saw another post-work run. I'm really enjoying running in the afternoon. Though I sometimes struggle to get out the door, despite the heat I always feel stronger in the afternoons. Perhaps it's just because I'm awake - when I run in the morning, I'm on the road & running with 15mins of my alarm going off!. I took the same (flat) loop as the last few runs, again walking the hills. Very pleased to say that there was little in the way of complaints from my piriformis - yippee! Finished with 8.05k in 50:55mins (aver 6:19min/k). I'll be reintroducing mini-hills (ok, inclines really) on Thursday - fingers crossed!
This morning and I was up before 5 to get back on the trainer. I had planned to do 60mins at 75-80% MHR - but in all honesty, it probably ended up being a 20min warm up with 40mins at 70%. I had nothing - my legs felt like lead so I changed down (or should that be up?) to a lower gear & increased the cadence to try & get my HR up without my legs dropping off. It kinda worked. Will just put it down as one of those days me thinks....
The plan for the rest of the week is another slightly longer run on Thursday, an interval session on the bike on Friday & then hopefully a 12-15k run followed by some time on the bike on Saturday. Not long until Six Foot now - right now I'm feeling confident & positive that all my snowball building, time on the bike & calculated decisions about when & how far to run without pissing off my piriformis will get me to the start line. It hasn't been the ideal preparation but that's life - and I'm not going to die wondering :-)
MTD: 56.59k
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Rolling along...
My weekend kicked off nicely with a late night on Friday night catching up with a friend (*waves*), 'some' red wine & sensational banana maple syrup pancakes for breakfast on Saturday. After a crazy couple of weeks, it was exactly what I needed.
After a siesta on Saturday afternoon & loads of water, I was ready to head out for my run. It was still 29*C when I left the house about 6pm. Came home about 50mins one very happy chicky. I stuck to the flat loop near home (walking two short hills) & was really pleased to have almost no complaints from my piriformis. Yippee! Finished with 8.02k in 50:24mins (aver 6:15min/k). I've got alot of work to do over the next 3 weeks but this run gave me a big confidence boost :-)
Arrived home, filled up my water bottle & jumped on the mag trainer to round about the afternoon. 40mins & several stages of the 2005 TdF later I just about crawled off Apollo. This was a real struggle actually - my legs felt like lead. Still, I finished the day a very chicky with a total of 1hr 30min run/bike combo.
Sunday morning and a sleep-in was needed so it was after 9am by the time I got to the M7. The plan for the day was 60k or 3 hours with Apollo on the M7 bike path. During the first 30mins I was wondering how on earth I was going to make it to 2 hours, let alone 3. I was regretting the fact that I'd done my sessions so close together - my legs felt dead & I had absolutely no energy. But I started to think about Six Foot - nothing like terror to get the adrenaline - and legs - moving ;-)
3:15 & 62km later (my longest ride ever!), I got back to the car one happy, tired & rather sunburnt (stoopid) girl :-)
After some food, a stretch & shower, I had another nana nap! I don't think I've ever had 2 in a weekend before - I'm such an old woman now ;-)
I think I've spent 5hr 50min on Apollo this week. Wonder how long its going to take my butt to forgive me ;-)
MTD: 48.54k
After a siesta on Saturday afternoon & loads of water, I was ready to head out for my run. It was still 29*C when I left the house about 6pm. Came home about 50mins one very happy chicky. I stuck to the flat loop near home (walking two short hills) & was really pleased to have almost no complaints from my piriformis. Yippee! Finished with 8.02k in 50:24mins (aver 6:15min/k). I've got alot of work to do over the next 3 weeks but this run gave me a big confidence boost :-)
Arrived home, filled up my water bottle & jumped on the mag trainer to round about the afternoon. 40mins & several stages of the 2005 TdF later I just about crawled off Apollo. This was a real struggle actually - my legs felt like lead. Still, I finished the day a very chicky with a total of 1hr 30min run/bike combo.
Sunday morning and a sleep-in was needed so it was after 9am by the time I got to the M7. The plan for the day was 60k or 3 hours with Apollo on the M7 bike path. During the first 30mins I was wondering how on earth I was going to make it to 2 hours, let alone 3. I was regretting the fact that I'd done my sessions so close together - my legs felt dead & I had absolutely no energy. But I started to think about Six Foot - nothing like terror to get the adrenaline - and legs - moving ;-)
3:15 & 62km later (my longest ride ever!), I got back to the car one happy, tired & rather sunburnt (stoopid) girl :-)
After some food, a stretch & shower, I had another nana nap! I don't think I've ever had 2 in a weekend before - I'm such an old woman now ;-)
I think I've spent 5hr 50min on Apollo this week. Wonder how long its going to take my butt to forgive me ;-)
MTD: 48.54k
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Girl, you'll be a woman soon....
A very busy week for this pussycat.
You found me out Tesso ;-) Yes, Wednesday - Valentines Day - was my birthday. I turned 21. Again ;-) So after a long (and wonderful) dinner with my folks on Tuesday night, I gave myself a rest day ;-) I had a great day (days actually) which culminated in dinner on Wednesday night. Lorna & I had planned to have dinner at my fav spanish place in the city. Much to my surprise, we arrived at the restaurant to find Chonky, Lulu & Wine Trail Runner, Don Juan & Sparkie there as well - with Ellie arriving shortly afterwards! What a coincidence ;-) Thanks Owly & The Don for organising it and for everyone whose birthday wishes, hugs & kisses Owly passed on ;-)
Thursday morning, I almost didn't make it out of bed. I've been burning the candle not only at both ends but in the middle as well lately. Far too many late nights, early mornings & (unusually for me) not sleeping well, have combined to leave me a rather tired pussycat right now.
But I did. And I'm glad I did. I took largely the same route as Tuesday morning & my butt (my piriformis actually) continues to improve, albeit slowly. I ran 6k almost niggle-free this morning before making a strategic withdrawal at 6.72km in 42.54min (aver 6:22min/k).
Friday afternoon I had an appointment with Saint Andrew which meant another early start so I could drive into the city. Got into the city at about 6.30am & headed for the gym for an interval session on the bike. I think I had the bike seat a bit too high cause I really felt this in my VMOs.
5mins warm up
6 x 5mins efforts (L10, 105RPM)/2mins recovery (L5)
5mins cool down
Total: 52mins
followed by a quick stretch. Then I went back to the gym at lunch to work on my snowball (ie strengthening exercises & stretches)
MTD: 40.52kms
You found me out Tesso ;-) Yes, Wednesday - Valentines Day - was my birthday. I turned 21. Again ;-) So after a long (and wonderful) dinner with my folks on Tuesday night, I gave myself a rest day ;-) I had a great day (days actually) which culminated in dinner on Wednesday night. Lorna & I had planned to have dinner at my fav spanish place in the city. Much to my surprise, we arrived at the restaurant to find Chonky, Lulu & Wine Trail Runner, Don Juan & Sparkie there as well - with Ellie arriving shortly afterwards! What a coincidence ;-) Thanks Owly & The Don for organising it and for everyone whose birthday wishes, hugs & kisses Owly passed on ;-)
Thursday morning, I almost didn't make it out of bed. I've been burning the candle not only at both ends but in the middle as well lately. Far too many late nights, early mornings & (unusually for me) not sleeping well, have combined to leave me a rather tired pussycat right now.
But I did. And I'm glad I did. I took largely the same route as Tuesday morning & my butt (my piriformis actually) continues to improve, albeit slowly. I ran 6k almost niggle-free this morning before making a strategic withdrawal at 6.72km in 42.54min (aver 6:22min/k).
Friday afternoon I had an appointment with Saint Andrew which meant another early start so I could drive into the city. Got into the city at about 6.30am & headed for the gym for an interval session on the bike. I think I had the bike seat a bit too high cause I really felt this in my VMOs.
5mins warm up
6 x 5mins efforts (L10, 105RPM)/2mins recovery (L5)
5mins cool down
Total: 52mins
followed by a quick stretch. Then I went back to the gym at lunch to work on my snowball (ie strengthening exercises & stretches)
MTD: 40.52kms
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
It's all about the bike...
Monday was not my best day. Woke up feeling like I'd been hit by a bus & was about to come down with a cold but I seemed to improve as the day wore on - nothing like a work-induced shot of adrenaline to get you through the day.
I ran away from the office at lunch & headed to the gym for a chest/shoulders/triceps weights session. Great session - despite feeling so blah-ish in the morning, I felt really strong & was able to increase the weights on almost every exercise. Noice.
And later in the day I ran away from the office again (me bad) & headed home for a date with my trusty steed Apollo. Torrential rain (is it wonderful!) ruled out heading out on the roads so I hoped on the trainer & watched the '05 TdF (thanks Miners!). Kept the effort at 75-80% MHR. Tough but enjoyable. Was exactly what I needed after not one of my finest days.
After another terrible nights sleep, I headed out for a run at 5am this morning which went pretty well. Again I pulled the pin at 6km. My glute was slightly more unhappy than it was on Sunday though I wasn't really surprised; the course I took this morning was a touch hilly compared to my pancake- flat run in Canberra & my glutes were feeling a bit fatigued after my session on the bike & strengthening exercises last night. It probably wasn't the wisest decision to do these sessions so close together but a busy social calender this week left me with little choice. Still, a pretty pleasing run on a clear, humid morning :-)
Finished with 5.85k in 37:07mins (aver 6:20min/k)
Spent an hour in the Tiger's torture chamber this afternoon...'nuff said.
MTD: 33.8kms
I ran away from the office at lunch & headed to the gym for a chest/shoulders/triceps weights session. Great session - despite feeling so blah-ish in the morning, I felt really strong & was able to increase the weights on almost every exercise. Noice.
And later in the day I ran away from the office again (me bad) & headed home for a date with my trusty steed Apollo. Torrential rain (is it wonderful!) ruled out heading out on the roads so I hoped on the trainer & watched the '05 TdF (thanks Miners!). Kept the effort at 75-80% MHR. Tough but enjoyable. Was exactly what I needed after not one of my finest days.
After another terrible nights sleep, I headed out for a run at 5am this morning which went pretty well. Again I pulled the pin at 6km. My glute was slightly more unhappy than it was on Sunday though I wasn't really surprised; the course I took this morning was a touch hilly compared to my pancake- flat run in Canberra & my glutes were feeling a bit fatigued after my session on the bike & strengthening exercises last night. It probably wasn't the wisest decision to do these sessions so close together but a busy social calender this week left me with little choice. Still, a pretty pleasing run on a clear, humid morning :-)
Finished with 5.85k in 37:07mins (aver 6:20min/k)
Spent an hour in the Tiger's torture chamber this afternoon...'nuff said.
MTD: 33.8kms
Sunday, February 11, 2007
The snowball effect
I'm feeling shattered tonight. In a good way. I think.
Friday was a weird day. An early start to drive into work, 2 x visits to the gym to do my stretching/strengthening regime, a bollocking via email, a really frustrating day at work, a trip out to Concord to see Saint Andrew after work, dinner in Leichardt & then driving home to Penriff left me feeling physically & mentally tired. Got home about 10.30pm I think. It was lovely to catch up with Mr & Mrs Miners , Gnomy, Go Girl & Owly over dinner but I'm sorry I wasn't the best company.
Saturday the alarm went off at 4.30am so I could do an interval session on the bike before leaving for Canberra at 7am. Fark.
5mins warm up
6 x 5mins efforts/2mins recovery
5 mint cool down
Total: 52mins
followed by another 30mins of stretching. I watched What It Takes (a doco on a couple of triathletes) while doing this which was fascinating. I actually felt really strong during the session but had an overwhelming urge to sleep the minute I got off the bike. I had asked Mum to drive to Canberra so I could get some sleep in the car. I even brought my pillow. But could I sleep? Nope. Not even a single 5mins doze. At least I got to sit on my arse & do nothing for 3 hours for the first time all week I suppose....
One of the highlights of my weekend was (unsurprisingly) when I met up with CJ, Strewth and Ewen for lunch (*waves*). Given that 3 of us are doing Six Foot, it was not hard to guess what the main topic of conversation was ;-) Oh that & the decoration on CJ's right knee ;-)
Today I had planned a reserve brick - a short run followed by a long ride. Alarm went off at the decadent time of 5.30am so that it would be light by the time I headed out on the bike.
After Thursday I decided this time I would do a 5k out & back from the hotel and then, if my glute was ok, to tack on an extra block or 2 to bring it up to 7k so (unlike Thursday) I wouldn't get stuck a long way from home with a grumpy glute. It was a beautiful run - the sky was relatively clear after a huge thunderstorm on Saturday night & the War Memorial & Parliament House were all lit up. Noice. I made a strategic withdrawal at 6km as my glute was just starting to niggle - which was a big improvement on Thursday's run. I was really pleased with this run. On Saturday afternoon I was bitching to mum about all the boring stretching I'm doing at the moment (3 x per day) but clearly its paying off. Reminds me of an article that Susie Power wrote in R4YL last year I think about snowball building. Finished with 6.07k in 39:49mins (aver 6:33min/k).
Back at the hotel & I had to make a decision about where to ride. The roads were still wet after a thunderstorm. Not being confident on wet roads (both of my own abilities & those of Canberra drivers), I decided to avoid the Federal Highway which was plan A and go for plan B - the bike path around Lake Burley Griffin. Ewen had kindly offered to come for a ride with me but my indecision about where to ride meant I was running out of time to ride, stretch, eat, shower, check out & get to the Art Gallery before the hoards. Thanks anyway Ewen - hopefully next time!
So I set out on the bike path and, let's just say, I took the road less travelled. It was certainly scenic (well, except for the industrial estate I rode through) but thanks to my natural sense of direction (good thing too cause I didn't have a map) I made it back to the War Memorial. Eventually. 3 hill reps near the War Memorial to finish off & I was back at the hotel 1:37 later. My scenic ride left me with a total of 2:17 for the day. I would have preferred a total of 3 hours for the day but ran out of time.
I had thought about getting back on the bike tonight for 40mins (to round out the day to 3 hours) - but that was until I spent 3+ hours on my feet at the Art Gallery & then drove home (largely) in torrential rain. But I can't sleep yet, I've got more snowball building to do...
Friday was a weird day. An early start to drive into work, 2 x visits to the gym to do my stretching/strengthening regime, a bollocking via email, a really frustrating day at work, a trip out to Concord to see Saint Andrew after work, dinner in Leichardt & then driving home to Penriff left me feeling physically & mentally tired. Got home about 10.30pm I think. It was lovely to catch up with Mr & Mrs Miners , Gnomy, Go Girl & Owly over dinner but I'm sorry I wasn't the best company.
Saturday the alarm went off at 4.30am so I could do an interval session on the bike before leaving for Canberra at 7am. Fark.
5mins warm up
6 x 5mins efforts/2mins recovery
5 mint cool down
Total: 52mins
followed by another 30mins of stretching. I watched What It Takes (a doco on a couple of triathletes) while doing this which was fascinating. I actually felt really strong during the session but had an overwhelming urge to sleep the minute I got off the bike. I had asked Mum to drive to Canberra so I could get some sleep in the car. I even brought my pillow. But could I sleep? Nope. Not even a single 5mins doze. At least I got to sit on my arse & do nothing for 3 hours for the first time all week I suppose....
One of the highlights of my weekend was (unsurprisingly) when I met up with CJ, Strewth and Ewen for lunch (*waves*). Given that 3 of us are doing Six Foot, it was not hard to guess what the main topic of conversation was ;-) Oh that & the decoration on CJ's right knee ;-)
Today I had planned a reserve brick - a short run followed by a long ride. Alarm went off at the decadent time of 5.30am so that it would be light by the time I headed out on the bike.
After Thursday I decided this time I would do a 5k out & back from the hotel and then, if my glute was ok, to tack on an extra block or 2 to bring it up to 7k so (unlike Thursday) I wouldn't get stuck a long way from home with a grumpy glute. It was a beautiful run - the sky was relatively clear after a huge thunderstorm on Saturday night & the War Memorial & Parliament House were all lit up. Noice. I made a strategic withdrawal at 6km as my glute was just starting to niggle - which was a big improvement on Thursday's run. I was really pleased with this run. On Saturday afternoon I was bitching to mum about all the boring stretching I'm doing at the moment (3 x per day) but clearly its paying off. Reminds me of an article that Susie Power wrote in R4YL last year I think about snowball building. Finished with 6.07k in 39:49mins (aver 6:33min/k).
Back at the hotel & I had to make a decision about where to ride. The roads were still wet after a thunderstorm. Not being confident on wet roads (both of my own abilities & those of Canberra drivers), I decided to avoid the Federal Highway which was plan A and go for plan B - the bike path around Lake Burley Griffin. Ewen had kindly offered to come for a ride with me but my indecision about where to ride meant I was running out of time to ride, stretch, eat, shower, check out & get to the Art Gallery before the hoards. Thanks anyway Ewen - hopefully next time!
So I set out on the bike path and, let's just say, I took the road less travelled. It was certainly scenic (well, except for the industrial estate I rode through) but thanks to my natural sense of direction (good thing too cause I didn't have a map) I made it back to the War Memorial. Eventually. 3 hill reps near the War Memorial to finish off & I was back at the hotel 1:37 later. My scenic ride left me with a total of 2:17 for the day. I would have preferred a total of 3 hours for the day but ran out of time.
I had thought about getting back on the bike tonight for 40mins (to round out the day to 3 hours) - but that was until I spent 3+ hours on my feet at the Art Gallery & then drove home (largely) in torrential rain. But I can't sleep yet, I've got more snowball building to do...
Thursday, February 08, 2007
A date with a passionate tart
Work is driving me batty at the moment. My job would be great if it weren't for the clients (geez, I hope none are reading this). I just get frustrated by clients who don't return emails or phone messages until 2 days before their deal is due to be finalised & then I have to drop everything cause they were too lazy to get back to me earlier.....arrrrrgggghhhh
Sorry. Rant over.
I've had a good day today. Lunch with some of my favourite girls - Go Girl, Lulu, Ellie & Owly - at the Lindt cafe before the IronBlouse dropped by just in time for dessert. 2 x (skim) mochas + a little bit of chocolate (+ lunch of course) meant I was a productive ball of sugar & caffeine all afternoon. Of course it might also explain why I am, um, kinda putting on a bit of weight at the moment.....
Anyhoo headed out this evening for a short (7km) flat run to test the progress of my hip/glute. The first 4kms were fantastic - though by the 5km mark my glute had had enough. Ideally I would or should have pulled the pin then but unfortunately I had no way of getting home other than under my own steam so I slowed right down & took it easy until I'd hit the last hill before home (which I stopped to walk). I've still got along way to go before my hip is anywhere near 100% but I'm feeling positive :-)
Finished with 6.52k in 40:26min (aver 6:12min/k)
MTD: 21.88km
Upper body weights session in the gym tomorrow morning (Friday) before heading to Canberra on Saturday morning for the weekend. Looking forward to catching up with a few fellow bloggers while I'm there (*waves*). And yes, Apollo is making the trip too ;-)
Sorry. Rant over.
I've had a good day today. Lunch with some of my favourite girls - Go Girl, Lulu, Ellie & Owly - at the Lindt cafe before the IronBlouse dropped by just in time for dessert. 2 x (skim) mochas + a little bit of chocolate (+ lunch of course) meant I was a productive ball of sugar & caffeine all afternoon. Of course it might also explain why I am, um, kinda putting on a bit of weight at the moment.....
Anyhoo headed out this evening for a short (7km) flat run to test the progress of my hip/glute. The first 4kms were fantastic - though by the 5km mark my glute had had enough. Ideally I would or should have pulled the pin then but unfortunately I had no way of getting home other than under my own steam so I slowed right down & took it easy until I'd hit the last hill before home (which I stopped to walk). I've still got along way to go before my hip is anywhere near 100% but I'm feeling positive :-)
Finished with 6.52k in 40:26min (aver 6:12min/k)
MTD: 21.88km
Upper body weights session in the gym tomorrow morning (Friday) before heading to Canberra on Saturday morning for the weekend. Looking forward to catching up with a few fellow bloggers while I'm there (*waves*). And yes, Apollo is making the trip too ;-)
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
The Power of One
Bryce Courtenay's book has always been a favourite of mine. It's been probably close to 10 years since I last read it - I've always been drawn to it & certain paragraphs from it often come to mind. A few weeks ago I decided that I was only going to read positive, strong, inspiring material in the lead up to Six Foot so this book was always going to make the grade. This paragraph seems particularly relevant for me (and perhaps all the Six Foot virgins) right now -
The power of one is above all things the power to believe in yourself often well beyond any latent ability you may have previously demonstrated. The mind is the athlete; the body is simply the means it uses to run faster or longer, jump higher, shoot straighter, kick better, swim harder, hit further or box better. Hoppie's dictum to me: 'First with the head and then with heart' was more than simply mixing brains with guts. It meant thinking well beyond the powers of normal concentration and then daring your courage to follow your thoughts.
The power of one is above all things the power to believe in yourself often well beyond any latent ability you may have previously demonstrated. The mind is the athlete; the body is simply the means it uses to run faster or longer, jump higher, shoot straighter, kick better, swim harder, hit further or box better. Hoppie's dictum to me: 'First with the head and then with heart' was more than simply mixing brains with guts. It meant thinking well beyond the powers of normal concentration and then daring your courage to follow your thoughts.
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
HUCC me
Well I dusted off my trusty steed Apollo on Monday night -
(you can relax Miners, there were no cobwebs) & took him out for a quick spin (in fading light) to test if riding was going to further annoy my glute/hip. 35mins later after some hills (seated & standing) I decided the answer to that question is no :-) Of course, that's not to say that my butt has forgiven me - it's been a while since I rode ;-)
Today included another hour in the Tiger's lair (one my left ITB is not likely to forget soon...) & another 50mins on the bike after work tonight. I'd post my average speeds but they are really quite embarrassing (not to mention that Apollo has a flatish tyre....)
Rest day tomorrow thanks to a day full of appointments & meetings before an easy, short run on Thursday morning.
To answer Tesso's question from Sunday - there were sheep. Plural. About 5 or 6 on the road & another few still in the paddock - which had also managed to escape by the time I had knocked on a few doors & ran past the paddock again. Glad I didn't have to go & round 'em up. Never a dull moment in Penriff....
Suppose I should learn how to change a tyre on Apollo now that I'm actually riding him on the road & not just on the mag in front of the TV....
(you can relax Miners, there were no cobwebs) & took him out for a quick spin (in fading light) to test if riding was going to further annoy my glute/hip. 35mins later after some hills (seated & standing) I decided the answer to that question is no :-) Of course, that's not to say that my butt has forgiven me - it's been a while since I rode ;-)
Today included another hour in the Tiger's lair (one my left ITB is not likely to forget soon...) & another 50mins on the bike after work tonight. I'd post my average speeds but they are really quite embarrassing (not to mention that Apollo has a flatish tyre....)
Rest day tomorrow thanks to a day full of appointments & meetings before an easy, short run on Thursday morning.
To answer Tesso's question from Sunday - there were sheep. Plural. About 5 or 6 on the road & another few still in the paddock - which had also managed to escape by the time I had knocked on a few doors & ran past the paddock again. Glad I didn't have to go & round 'em up. Never a dull moment in Penriff....
Suppose I should learn how to change a tyre on Apollo now that I'm actually riding him on the road & not just on the mag in front of the TV....
Monday, February 05, 2007
Knockers & acceptance
Over the weekend I saw this quote from Serena Williams after she wiped the floor at the Australian Open last month -
"I could lose 20 pounds and I'm still going to have these knockers and I'm going to have this bum. That's just the way it is."
I love it. If only there were more women in the world who accepted & appreciated their bodies more for what they are capable of than simply for the way they look...
"I could lose 20 pounds and I'm still going to have these knockers and I'm going to have this bum. That's just the way it is."
I love it. If only there were more women in the world who accepted & appreciated their bodies more for what they are capable of than simply for the way they look...
Sunday, February 04, 2007
I'm still here :-)
Another one of those rollercoaster weeks. 2 months today until I fly out for Nepal :-)
Struggled mentally earlier in the week. I allowed myself to dwell on the negative thoughts that I was having about Six Foot & my recalcitrant hip, rather than accept them as part of the journey & let them wash over me (thanks Owly).
I did 3 x upper body weights sessions during the week and my shoulders haven't forgiven me yet. Let's just say that I'm still paying for not doing much weights over the last few weeks....
After a week off I set off to do my long run today. Saint Andrew & Easy Tiger want me to stay off hills for the time being (!) so I picked a reasonably flat 12k loop near home with the intention of running it twice. I really struggled today, mentally & physically. Unfortunately my hip hasn't improved during the week off. Not even doing a a door-knock at 7.44am to find out who owned the sheep that had escaped from a paddock & were now running down the road ahead of me did little to improve my mood. I pulled the pin after 15.36k in 1:48:44 (aver 7:04min/k) . More time off running is needed me thinks - might be time to dust the cobwebs off my bike...
MTD: 15.36k
Struggled mentally earlier in the week. I allowed myself to dwell on the negative thoughts that I was having about Six Foot & my recalcitrant hip, rather than accept them as part of the journey & let them wash over me (thanks Owly).
I did 3 x upper body weights sessions during the week and my shoulders haven't forgiven me yet. Let's just say that I'm still paying for not doing much weights over the last few weeks....
After a week off I set off to do my long run today. Saint Andrew & Easy Tiger want me to stay off hills for the time being (!) so I picked a reasonably flat 12k loop near home with the intention of running it twice. I really struggled today, mentally & physically. Unfortunately my hip hasn't improved during the week off. Not even doing a a door-knock at 7.44am to find out who owned the sheep that had escaped from a paddock & were now running down the road ahead of me did little to improve my mood. I pulled the pin after 15.36k in 1:48:44 (aver 7:04min/k) . More time off running is needed me thinks - might be time to dust the cobwebs off my bike...
MTD: 15.36k
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