I took today as a lazy day AKA a rest day. I meant to work out, I really did, but it just didn't happen.
I sparked for a while, caught up on the blogs, cleaned my bedroom and kitchen, did an assignment and now I'm about to get ready to go to work! So it has still been a busy day.
I'm about to go to work for my last. shift. ever. Yep, I quit my job and as of 9pm tonight I will be unemployed! I can't wait. Evenings free, more time, no dread for HOURS before I go to work! Excited? YES!
Breakfast today was a serving of Honey Almond Special K
Lunch was a burger made with a vegetarian patty, lettuce, tomato and aioli, the same as what I had for dinner last night. It was yummy and the boyfriend even had one. He said he was too lazy to make his own lunch so he would just have what I had. I think that secretly he wanted to try a veggie patty on his burger! He said it was nice, so maybe there will be more vegetarian meals in our future!
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
More time
I really wish I had more time to work out, eat right, blog, do my assignments, clean my house... The list goes on!
So I neglect this blog, unfortunatly. I am trying to get better!
Yesterday I went for my first run as part of my 'Run a 5K my way' plan. I ran 1km in 6m30s. I'm very happy with that! I'm going to work on building up this first interval, rather then lots of little intervals. I did a few other runs ranging for 1-3 minutes in length then came home, making it a 40 minute 4km walk. I felt good and happy when I finished, and I felt strong and happy during my run. A nice change from being stresses and disapointed!
In other news, I ate my first vegetarian meal tonight. No pictures, camera battery is dead. I started small and put a vegetarian patty in my burger along with aioli, lettuce and tomato. It was great! Very tasy and filling. I am looking forward to eating more vegetarian meals. I don't want to become a vegetarian, but I am interested in alternatives to meat, since I don't always want to eat meat. I'm thinking about having something like meatless Mondays where I eat vegetarian one day a week. We'll see how we go!
So I neglect this blog, unfortunatly. I am trying to get better!
Yesterday I went for my first run as part of my 'Run a 5K my way' plan. I ran 1km in 6m30s. I'm very happy with that! I'm going to work on building up this first interval, rather then lots of little intervals. I did a few other runs ranging for 1-3 minutes in length then came home, making it a 40 minute 4km walk. I felt good and happy when I finished, and I felt strong and happy during my run. A nice change from being stresses and disapointed!
In other news, I ate my first vegetarian meal tonight. No pictures, camera battery is dead. I started small and put a vegetarian patty in my burger along with aioli, lettuce and tomato. It was great! Very tasy and filling. I am looking forward to eating more vegetarian meals. I don't want to become a vegetarian, but I am interested in alternatives to meat, since I don't always want to eat meat. I'm thinking about having something like meatless Mondays where I eat vegetarian one day a week. We'll see how we go!
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Why Water Jog?
I get a few strange looks when I tell friends that I will be going water jogging in the weekend, or the next day. That look that says "really?"
Yes, really!
Water jogging is awesome exercise, and it is not just for old ladies like everyone seems to think! Water jogging, if kept at a good pace, is very tiring and works all sorts of muscle groups. The day after water jogging my legs, especially my quads, are very sore. I can still walk and even run but they definatly have a few things to say about it. My arms and shoulders get sore too because when you move your arms underwater there is a lot of resistance that isn't present when you run on land. It is almost like a strength work out for your arms while you are getting a cardio workout.
The worst part about water jogging (for me) is wearing the floation belt.
After a while it digs in a little and wearing it makes me feel a little weird. But I get over it pretty quickly and get on with my workout.
Water jogging is done in a section of a big pool and you go in a circle, in one direction. That can get boring, so there are a few things you can do to keep things interesting
-Take a friend so you can chat while walking.
-Make a friend, start chatting to someone who is a similar pace to you. I have found most water walkers to be very nice and only too happy to chat to you.
- Race yourself. If it took you 3 minutes to do the last lap then try and beat your time.
- Do intervals. Jog as fast as you can down the long side of the pool then recover down the short sides
I am going to aim to water jog twice a week on my non-running days. It is a great, no impact way to get cardio in and I'm really enjoying it.
Yes, really!
Water jogging is awesome exercise, and it is not just for old ladies like everyone seems to think! Water jogging, if kept at a good pace, is very tiring and works all sorts of muscle groups. The day after water jogging my legs, especially my quads, are very sore. I can still walk and even run but they definatly have a few things to say about it. My arms and shoulders get sore too because when you move your arms underwater there is a lot of resistance that isn't present when you run on land. It is almost like a strength work out for your arms while you are getting a cardio workout.
The worst part about water jogging (for me) is wearing the floation belt.
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After a while it digs in a little and wearing it makes me feel a little weird. But I get over it pretty quickly and get on with my workout.
Water jogging is done in a section of a big pool and you go in a circle, in one direction. That can get boring, so there are a few things you can do to keep things interesting
-Take a friend so you can chat while walking.
-Make a friend, start chatting to someone who is a similar pace to you. I have found most water walkers to be very nice and only too happy to chat to you.
- Race yourself. If it took you 3 minutes to do the last lap then try and beat your time.
- Do intervals. Jog as fast as you can down the long side of the pool then recover down the short sides
I am going to aim to water jog twice a week on my non-running days. It is a great, no impact way to get cardio in and I'm really enjoying it.
Running, my way
I have come to a few realisations of late. One is that I am very, very busy which is leading to stress. I have started to solve that problem. I quit my job and am trying to be better organised with my time so that I can get my assignments done AND have time to work out AND have a social life / see my boyfriend. Hopefully some extra time to do essential life activities will allow me to become less stressed.
Another realisation is that running on a plan is simply not working for me. I am a perfectionist, and if I don't finish my intervals prefectly I start to beat myself up about it. I want to feel proud and happy when I finish my intervals, not like a running failure!
So from now on my plan will be to go out, have fun and do my best! Run when I want, walk when I want, try to push myself further so I improve, but with no specific time goal in mind. I think this plan will work much better for me. I can't fail at a plan if the plan is have fun, do my best and start enjoying running again! Wish me luck with this new plan!
Speaking of plans, on the agenda today I have water jogging, swimming and then a relax in the spa. Then I am going to go to my old placement school to see my kids. Hopefully they will be motivation to start some assignments! I am going to try to stay within my calories today, but since I have a lot of exercise planned (80 minutes in the pool, nearly 900 calories burned) I won't beat myself up if I need to add a snack.
Another realisation is that running on a plan is simply not working for me. I am a perfectionist, and if I don't finish my intervals prefectly I start to beat myself up about it. I want to feel proud and happy when I finish my intervals, not like a running failure!
So from now on my plan will be to go out, have fun and do my best! Run when I want, walk when I want, try to push myself further so I improve, but with no specific time goal in mind. I think this plan will work much better for me. I can't fail at a plan if the plan is have fun, do my best and start enjoying running again! Wish me luck with this new plan!
Speaking of plans, on the agenda today I have water jogging, swimming and then a relax in the spa. Then I am going to go to my old placement school to see my kids. Hopefully they will be motivation to start some assignments! I am going to try to stay within my calories today, but since I have a lot of exercise planned (80 minutes in the pool, nearly 900 calories burned) I won't beat myself up if I need to add a snack.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Rain, rain, go away...
Good morning world, good morning blog world, good morning...rain!
I woke up this morning to pouring rain. Blah! I am supposed to run today, I hope it clears up soon! In addition to my run I WILL be doing the 30 Day Shred. I need to start strength training, and since tomorrow is a rest day I should have plenty of time to recover from the Shred before my next run. The shred kills. True story.
I also have a cat situation that needs to be delt with today. A black cat has been hanging around our house for about a month. Yesterday we managed to get the cat to come to us. He is sooooo friendly and smoochy. He just wants to be loved and we have love to give. But we can't really afford all the costs that come with a stray cat. He needs to go to the vet (he has been in fights and has a few wounds that need checking out) and he needs to be de-manned. That costs money. So we have 2 options, find the money to get him seen to and bring him home and love him or take him to the SPCA. Because he is a mature cat I know that he might be at the SPCA for a while, so I would really prefer to keep him. I am actually really surprised that there is no help avaliable for people like me. I am happy, thrilled even, to give this boy a new home, but no animal agency will help with the financial costs. I am saving them money by having and housing the cat from the word go. They won't need to pay for food and homing costs. Now, I'm not expecting a handout, but a discount for being a good person would be nice! Anyways, we can afford $100, so maybe I will be able to find a vet who can work within our budget to help us and the cat out. If not we'll take him the the SPCA. Either way he will be safe and happy and thats the main thing!
I woke up this morning to pouring rain. Blah! I am supposed to run today, I hope it clears up soon! In addition to my run I WILL be doing the 30 Day Shred. I need to start strength training, and since tomorrow is a rest day I should have plenty of time to recover from the Shred before my next run. The shred kills. True story.
I also have a cat situation that needs to be delt with today. A black cat has been hanging around our house for about a month. Yesterday we managed to get the cat to come to us. He is sooooo friendly and smoochy. He just wants to be loved and we have love to give. But we can't really afford all the costs that come with a stray cat. He needs to go to the vet (he has been in fights and has a few wounds that need checking out) and he needs to be de-manned. That costs money. So we have 2 options, find the money to get him seen to and bring him home and love him or take him to the SPCA. Because he is a mature cat I know that he might be at the SPCA for a while, so I would really prefer to keep him. I am actually really surprised that there is no help avaliable for people like me. I am happy, thrilled even, to give this boy a new home, but no animal agency will help with the financial costs. I am saving them money by having and housing the cat from the word go. They won't need to pay for food and homing costs. Now, I'm not expecting a handout, but a discount for being a good person would be nice! Anyways, we can afford $100, so maybe I will be able to find a vet who can work within our budget to help us and the cat out. If not we'll take him the the SPCA. Either way he will be safe and happy and thats the main thing!
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
A Dam Nice Walk
Today the boyfriend and I decided to go for a walk on a trail up in the Waitakere Ranges, aka The Waitaks. We googled and found a trail that looked promising (1.5 hour, beginner) and off we went armed with bottles of water and muesli bars!
Then the fun began. The boyfriend, who was driving at lightening speed, drove past the trail entrance. OK, no big deal. He turn around and parked in a parking bay and we started walking towards the trail entrance. After 400 meteres we decided we were probably in the wrong parking bay, went back to the car and tried again. Success! Found the train entrance. Off we went...About 10 metres. No was was that muddy, steep mess a beginner trail. I know my limits and I knew that that trail was waaaay to hard. We turned back and got back into the car. Then I remembered the Waitakere Dam had a paved walking trail down to the dam that might be just what we needed for our first bush walk.
And so we walked to the dam
In fine print the sign says that it is uphill all the way back...yep...missed that one!
Down the path we went
We stopped to see the big Kauri tree
We found a bit of a hiking trail to take us the last little way to the dam
And I managed to get some pictures of our view. They can't even begin to show you how breathtaking it was in real life!
And then we saw the dam
We wandered down some stairs for a closer look
I spotted a trail that led to this bridge, but the boyfriend had to get to work so we didn't have time to explore it
We spent about 10-15 minutes taking in our surroundings (and I took pictures!)
Then we turned around and walked back to the top. Up hills like this
As I was stopped by the side of the road, puffing on my inhaler a friendly council worker who was checking on the water station drove by in his ute and offered us a lift to the top. We told him we would be fine (even though I wasn't so sure!)
It took us about 25 minutes to walk back up to the top. I have never been so glad to see a car before! The hills were very steep! I was happy that I did it though!
Then the fun began. The boyfriend, who was driving at lightening speed, drove past the trail entrance. OK, no big deal. He turn around and parked in a parking bay and we started walking towards the trail entrance. After 400 meteres we decided we were probably in the wrong parking bay, went back to the car and tried again. Success! Found the train entrance. Off we went...About 10 metres. No was was that muddy, steep mess a beginner trail. I know my limits and I knew that that trail was waaaay to hard. We turned back and got back into the car. Then I remembered the Waitakere Dam had a paved walking trail down to the dam that might be just what we needed for our first bush walk.
And so we walked to the dam
Down the path we went
And then we saw the dam
It took us about 25 minutes to walk back up to the top. I have never been so glad to see a car before! The hills were very steep! I was happy that I did it though!
MIA
How dare I start a blog and then ignore it!
Right, when we last saw our fearless heroine (me) she had just completed her first week of running.
Week 2 I started to get really bad calf pain while running. Very bad, I had to stop every 30 seconds to stretch and scream (OK, I only screamed once). Bottom line, I was in pain. I did all three of my runs for the week and hoped it would all go away. No such luck.
Week 3, run 1 was just as painful as my week 2 runs. I couldn't take it anymore so I hit up the Sparkpeople message boards to see if this pain was normal. I was told it wasn't, so I started looking for causes. And I found out what was wrong! My form was all wrong. I wasn't leaning forward at all, and I was landing on the back of my foot. Wrong and wrong. You should lean forward slightly from your ankles and land midfoot. I did this for my second run and all was well. I didn't get my third run in due to a slight mental breakdown in the changing rooms at Farmers, followed by an afternoon of staying in bed and hiding from the world.
That brings us to now! I'm currently repeating week 3 of my training plan. I did my first run of the week on Monday and it went fine apart from the drinking fountain on my route being out of order. I will do another run tomorrow and one on Saturday and that will give me my 3 runs for the week!
Right, three cheers for the newly commited blogger. Hip hip...Never mind
Right, when we last saw our fearless heroine (me) she had just completed her first week of running.
Week 2 I started to get really bad calf pain while running. Very bad, I had to stop every 30 seconds to stretch and scream (OK, I only screamed once). Bottom line, I was in pain. I did all three of my runs for the week and hoped it would all go away. No such luck.
Week 3, run 1 was just as painful as my week 2 runs. I couldn't take it anymore so I hit up the Sparkpeople message boards to see if this pain was normal. I was told it wasn't, so I started looking for causes. And I found out what was wrong! My form was all wrong. I wasn't leaning forward at all, and I was landing on the back of my foot. Wrong and wrong. You should lean forward slightly from your ankles and land midfoot. I did this for my second run and all was well. I didn't get my third run in due to a slight mental breakdown in the changing rooms at Farmers, followed by an afternoon of staying in bed and hiding from the world.
That brings us to now! I'm currently repeating week 3 of my training plan. I did my first run of the week on Monday and it went fine apart from the drinking fountain on my route being out of order. I will do another run tomorrow and one on Saturday and that will give me my 3 runs for the week!
Right, three cheers for the newly commited blogger. Hip hip...Never mind
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