Monday, February 28, 2011

monday :/

And the crappy weather continues here in midcoast Maine.  Ugh.  I have just about had enough of the snow/sleet/cold.  I was able to complete most of my workout goals for this past week.  I didn't get the extra 5K run in like I wanted to but I did shovel heavy, wet snow off my entire deck all by myself.  That should count for something, right?  And all that shoveling was after my mile swim.  I was pretty tired after that.

Saturday was busy with jiu-jitsu for D and basketball tournament for S.  S did well in her tournament, but her team is all 5th graders and it was a 5th and 6th grade tourney.  They won the first and lost the second.  I am pondering the pros and cons of putting her in an AAU league next year rather than the local Y league.  We'll have to see how it goes.  Here is a pic of S shooting a foul shot at a different game.



Here is D warming up at jiu-jitsu, he has the green cast on (in case you thought he was the girl.... lol).



And finally, I shouldn't leave out my middle child, C.  She hasn't decided what she wants to do yet.  Although, she is pretty good at being a princess.  :)

Oh, that girl has some attitude!  She gets that from her dad. 
This week I am really going to try to get some double workouts in.  I need to kickstart my routine.  This weather has gotten me in a bit of a slump.  Goals for this week:
Monday:  spin 1/2 hour, cardio tennis
Tuesday: spin 1 hour
Wed:  Spin/strength training
Thurs: 4-5 mile run, cardio tennis
Friday:  2000 yds swim
Sat:  possibly Jiu-jitsu fitness class, but most likely picking up Girl Scout cookies and sorting them. 
Sun: 4-5 mile run

Maybe a little ambitious for me and my schedule but you have to set high goals in order to achieve them, right? 

Have a super day!

































Friday, February 25, 2011

struggles

As it snows like the dickens here this morning (arrrrgh!!), I find myself struggling to get workouts in like I should (want to).  At this point in my life, with 3 kids all under age 11, my life is not ever always about what I want to do.  Those moms out there know exactly what I mean!  Ideally, I would love to come to work each day, play tennis at lunch, leave work and head to the Y for my choice of exercise.  The reality is, I may get to play tennis at lunch 2 x week, but after work all bets are off.  One kid has dance and the other has basketball.  Neither is at the same time so you go from one to another, finally arriving home at 6:30 with no dinner cooked and kids needing to go to bed at 7-7:30 or someone (ME!) will pay dearly in the morning getting ready for school.  You get up the next day and do it all over again.

Even lunchtime break is not sacred.  Sometime staff meetings or other business obligations get in the way of my lunch workout.  Being a business owner can be a PIA sometimes.  (Overall, it is super--no complaints!)
Adding to the difficulty, is the amount, or lack thereof, of daylight in the winter and the stupid snow!  Once we get into April, I will be able to run at 6:30 or 7 at night when the kids are getting ready for bed because it will still be light out.  Now it is darker than a boot and there's no way I'm taking my life into my hands on the narrow road around my house.  That is a death wish!  Add snow into that mix and it reduces my available running time yet again.  I don't mind the cold, but the ice on the road is scary, especially if it's covered with snow. 

The weekends are often filled with the kids activities especially during basketball season.  This weekend we have bball games tonight, one child's jiu jitsu in the morning and another bball game in the afternoon.  In two different towns.  ugh.  Then  more snow on Sunday.  double ugh. 

This may sound like a bitch session, which in some ways it is.... (it is my blog, after all.  I can bitch if I want to... ) but more just a way to let it out and maybe get some feedback on how others deal with it.  I think I am just going to have to wait it out for better weather and more daylight.  Spring is coming, spring is coming.  It is coming, isn't it? 

Have a great weekend!

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

how much stuff do I need?

Getting ready for a tri (even just a sprint tri) is getting to be a challenge.  I've got the running thing down pat.  I have sneakers and shorts and my ipod--all set there, swimming is coming along nicely, but the bike part has me worried.  First of all, I hate biking.  Well, I hate spinning and the stationary bike.  It is boring as hell.  You can't really use the ipod as a distration (hello, quite unsafe!) and all there is to think about is how boring it is.  The other thing I've been worried about is my actual bike.  It sucks.  It's just a cheap bike from the sports store to ride with my kids.  I realize that I won't be breaking any records here, and most likely a newer, nicer, faster bike probably won't have any real impact on my final time, however--I do need to have a water bottle holder, at least, right?  Those pedals that hold your feet on would be nice as well. 

So I am trying to decide if I buy a new bike (not very likely as estimates were in the $500-1000 range!!!), rent a bike for the race or just rock the Olympia Sports one that I have.  Decisions, decisions.

The other issue nagging me a little is what to wear.  For the first race, it is a reverse tri which means you run first, then bike, then swim.  This might be a little easier for clothing changes than the traditional way of swim, bike, run.  I am thinking I will wear my swim suit with a sports bra underneath.  Yes, I know that I really don't need a sports bra, but honestly, I just can't imagine running without one.  Little boobs bounce too.  Really.  They do.  Anyhoo, I will wear the swim suit with my sports bra, then my bike shorts over that and some shirt which the weather that day will decide.  I will wear my running sneakers for the run and bike and then I don't have to change there.  All will need to do is whip off the running shorts and trade them for some bike shorts.  I might not even do that if it's going to cost me too much time.  That should be a short transition, dump the ipod and grab the helmet and off I go.  Switching to the swim should be easy, take off everything except the swim suit and bra and throw on some goggles.  It's only 6 lengths so I'll skip the cap, but I really do need the goggles. 

Good God, I'm getting nervous just writing about it.  I'm going to be a wreck that morning......

On a more irritating note, we are supposed to have 3 rounds of snow/sleet/rain over the next week.  The weatherman isn't sure which or how much just yet.  (God, I wish I could be that vague in my job.....)  This does not bode well for my Virtual 5K race I'm doing this weekend.  I really wanted it to be outside but that is looking like it might not happen.  I do have two weekends to complete it so maybe the next weekend will be better. 

Thanks for reading and have a super great day!

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

welcome to my blog!

Well, here it is.  My first blog.  I have been pondering starting a blog for a little while now and finally have gotten around to  the courage to do it.  I thought it might be interesting to write about and document my path to getting fit and doing my first triathlon (sprint of course, nothing too long to start with!).  I started running last winter when I was looking for something to do while my kids played basketball with their father (who I will call B.).  I am not a ball player, that is his forte, so I opted to run on the track above while they practiced.  I found that I did a mile quite easily, so I did another.  Then I realized that 3 miles wasn't that bad and I could do it again.  I did run some in college for exercise, but really nothing since then.

I signed up for my first 5K race in 5/2010 and finished it in 27:01.  Since then I have run 3 more races:  Augusta Rail Trail 5K--25:42, Old Hallowell Days 5K--26:29 and the Lobster Roll 5K--26:09.  I hope this year I can break the 25 mark. 

For those that don't know me, here's a few facts that you may find interesting:

1.  I'm an optometrist.
2.  I've been married for 14 years to B.
3.  I have 3 kids: girl 11 S, girl 7 C, and boy 5 D.
4.  I play tennis at about a 3.5 level--which is pretty average.
5.  I used to referee soccer until kids S, C and D arrived....
6.  I drink 1 Mt. Dew each day--no coffee, blech. :p
7.  I went to a high school whose name is now considered a swear word.  Really.  Ask me and I'll tell you what the name is.. :)
8.  I've lived in Maine my whole life except for school in Boston.
9.  I love cats.  I could be that crazy cat lady who has a million cats if it weren't for the litter box.  ick.  So we have 1 cat. 
10.  I have always been a pretty average athlete, but have always wanted to be a super athlete.  I will be happy with being a better-than-average athelte.  That is my goal!

I am signed up for my first triathlon in April.  http://www.noreaster-tri.com/  It is a reverse tri, in Maine, in April.  Should be interesting.... :)  A friend of mine from high school who is recently into running like me, has reluctantly agreed to join me!  Yay BD!  It will be her first tri as well.

Exercise goals for the week:
Spin class: 1 hour X 2
Swim: 1 mile
Run: 6 miles
Tennis:  cardio tennis class and another day of match play
 
Thanks for reading and have a super great day!