How many times can I be the come-back kid?

Since I have been teaching more and more group fitness classes at TWC and have been working various other places in the community, my personal training and small group training has picked up (Praise God!).  As well, I am more active by . . . default?  I don't know about that, but I am slowly gaining muscle endurance and s-l-o-w-l-y gaining muscle strength.  (Unsure what is going on but my body still won't tolerate strength+endurance physical activity for very long without pain.  Interesting.)  One of the small groups that I am working with is a 'Beginner 5k' training group!  Therefore, I am holding myself accountable for running the route 2 days before the training group runs it so that I know approximately how long it will take to complete and what the terrain is like.  Got my behind out there this morning, despite wanting to "skip it" due to Minnesota's ever-changing climate (last week: 60-70 degrees, sunny; today: snow/sleet). 

I continue to come back to blogging when I "feel" like I am getting back into "training" :-p I do have some goals and even some upcoming events that I plan to participate in, so I suppose this may translate into more frequent blogs in the upcoming months. *insert applause, hoots and hollers*

Has anyone else been using foam rollers?  I have been using mine daily and have been encouraging just about EVERY client/patient/friend to utilize one!  Foam rollers are somewhat "trendy" right now, but I will say that I started using them nearly 15 years ago when I had access to one at home (dad was rehabing from a vehicle crash and had one).  The rollers can be used to massage muscles and break up scar tissue - really effective for Chronic Myofascial Pain, injury rehab, muscle tightness, etc. 

Another note - I have been experimenting with making kale chips and "ice cream" (not mixed - ew).  When I get recipes that I like A LOT, I'll share!  Meanwhile, I'm also going to start experimenting more with the juicer my housemate has . . . and figure out ways to use the 'fibrous leftovers' [because it is very nutritious and it is wasteful not to use!].

Okee-dokey then.

Are you training for anything?  Training yourself to be more physically active, in general, perhaps?! :-)

So, I Sez to Myself. . .

I sez, "SELF? It's TIME for a run. Readddddyyyy, GO!"

And I did.  Much to my doggy's pleasure.  Although, we did start at 10:15am, which in Florida in June is already HOT.  Yuck.  OH WELL.

13 minute run, 10 minute walk, 5 min run, cool down walk.  Good start for today and good midweek pick-me-up.  The run felt really good, too!  Hopefully, I can keep up the momentum and at least be able to jog the 5k Blast on July 4 in Vegas!

Morning "Run" = success!

Mornin'!  Surprise, surprise - somehow I hoisted my achin' agin' body outta bed this morning at 6:10am (whaaaaat?!?!) and forced myself to stretch, wake up my body, and get out the door with the dog by 7:05am!  This, after not going to sleep until around 1am.  I don't really understand my body cycles . . .

Anyway. . .Logged another 2.5 mile walk/jog this morning.  Since I missed the swim that I wanted to do yesterday and I knew today would be another H-O-T day, I figured I had better get moving before work.  (I can always take a nap later!)  I wanted to clue "readers" (aka YOU!) into a neat website that I have discovered works well for figuring out just how far I moved my body: http://www.geodistance.com/  Now, I know there are many, many sites out there for people to use and gadgets that you can buy to track every step, inch, and breath you take - I don't have the money for those fun gadgets right now, so this works really well! 

Today's breakdown:
(Warmup-ROM/stretching for about 15 minutes, walked for a couple minutes)
Run: 12 minutes
Walk: 3 minutes
Run: 7 minutes
Walk: 2 minutes
Run: 8 minutes
Walk: 5 minutes

Neato!  I added 1 minute to each of the first two jogging intervals and cut down on the walking time in between!  I again used the mid-foot/forefoot method and it *seems* to be working alright for me!  I iced the ol' arches when I got home for about 10 minutes.  Oh - I wanted to note that after my run earlier this week, my upper back, between the shoulder blades, felt as though I had lifted weights!  I remember reading (or, perhaps I watched a youtube video) about how the barefoot running (in my case, mid-foot/forefoot running) improves your posture while you run.  Fantastic!  Minnesota, I'm coming for my VibramFiveFinger shoes.  Las Vegas, I'm coming to tackle your 4th of July 5k . . .