Upping the stakes

I've just agreed to move to three sessions a week with Case. The hardsell is that I get three free sessions if I complete 12 sessions in October.....of course we know that all comes out in the financial wash when I end up buying more sessions earlier. That said, it's a great idea as it will accelerate my training hugely (I don't really care about the economics of it, but can't help but think through the business math of it). I've lost 7lbs and Case wants me to lose 7 more in October - yikes, can't remember last time I would have been that size. The goal has never really been to lose weight but it seems to be coming together as a package so I'm not fighting it.
Case has discovered new levels of torture. Once a week he gets me on the treadmill and has me run as hard as I can for 1 mile. Last night was the first time we tried this, see already I see it as the norm - "we" had already run for 5 mins up hill on the treadmill!).....new levels of pain. I did do under 10mins (9.36), which I hope I will one day look back on and laugh saying "was I ever that slow" - okay so trying to boost myself, I did work hard for it though. He didn't stop there, that was a mere half way through my alloted 50mins...we carried on with other exercises! At the end of the session he declared he was "very happy" with my progress, which made me feel ridiculously happy........

What a difference a week makes

I can't claim to really understand why or how Case mixes up my training days with him. Some days it's obvious and I'm either doing upper or lower body, always with "intervals". Intervals are little torturous moments where I either get on the treadmill or bike and he has me running/biking inclines at various speeds. They can last anywhere between 1.5 to 3mins (although he did put me through one very long 5mins). Now I've read enough to know intervals are the key to getting stronger and faster and achieving your goals or not....or so it seems. Friday I went for another 6 miler. While it would be going too far to say it was a "breeze" it was remarkably different from any of my other runs. I really did feel 100% stronger, my legs carrying me with ease and comfortably able to keep my body in line - it was lovely. It's these moments that keep me going.

Feeling good

Sunday I tried the 6 miles again and did it with "relative" ease. Relative because it's only the second time I've done it. I'm still pacing at over 10 min miles so have a way to go before I can do the trail run with any credibility. On the upside this evenings PT workout was very rewarding. I feel a thousand times stronger and did some credible intervals on the treadmill. It's all baby steps but so much more rewarding when you are at least able to stand and take a few tentative steps before crashing to the ground.

Sometimes you're on and sometimes......

I think forever I've largely ignored my body or thought of it as inconveniently rotund (I still don't accept any notion that I might be on the short side).  Training is bringing a new focus to, not only the totality of this thing that houses my mind, but individual parts as I try to get everything aligned to create something like a running machine!  Thursday's training was tough, Friday I thought I would try the 6 miler again - challenge 1. body feels weary, challenge 2. going to the State Fair so have to run at 4pm....still way too hot outside.  Ended up giving it a shot but conceded at 3 miles that this wasn't all coming together. Woke up bright and early, today (Saturday) and promptly started surfing around running websites an Amazon.com looking for books and inspiration.  Decided it was a gym day (cardio and core strength....CS requires a whole entry all its own, I'll get to that another time).  Body still a little weary but did spend a lovely sweaty 30mins on the Stairmaster (fatburn, lovely terms they use), did some core exercises then spent 30mins on the bike doing cardio, finished with core exercises.  All of which was thoroughly enjoyable, so today is one of the days where "sometimes it all comes together".

Personal Training Day

As part of this crazy dream I got myself a personal trainer through the gym (24hr Fitness).  Case is a sweet 22 year old who aspires to be a nurse.  Funny I don't really think of him as 20 years younger than me - I guess I seem very "old" to him!  Mostly I see him as the boss, for the 50 minutes twice a week I spend with him.  He cuts me no slack, unfailingly working me hard. When you have a PT there is no cheating nor pretending you are doing better than you are.   There is also no such thing as an "easy" day - even when he says it will be....it's really just a different kind of hard.  Today was one of those days.  We did circuits; upper body exercises then 1 min cardio on the bike, then started all over again - it hurts and I am stubborn and my body tries to keep up!

To add to the pain every few weeks we do a weigh in and body fat test - so far I am trending in the right direction.  It's all worth it though because I feel my body changing and I feel fitter.  

No pain no gain, it's probably the one "truth" I've held for years that I haven't questioned. 

Two firsts

Today was my first time running on the sand at Seabright Beach.  I went out gently as I am still sporting a minor calf injury.  Overall I was surprised though.  I think I could have run harder and actually enjoyed the whole experience.  Sun was setting so it was also a beautiful evening to run. Second "first" was wearing my trail shoes (as opposed to my road shoes).  They were grand and fit perfectly.  I love my runners - very comfortable.  Downside and a little funny - my trainer has me on a diet and I think that means I am about to need to buy some new running shorts....they are getting a little loose on me - or maybe really it just means I am wearing them out quick (hard to believe I have lost enough weight to require new shorts just yet!).

Gidget gadgets make you run faster

Well maybe they don't make you run faster but they do help you track how far and fast you run......they also track calories but that is a bitter disappointment. You have to run/exercise a whole lot more than you think to burn off a descent amount of calories - so best solution is to eat less!

Over a year ago everyone at work got given a Nike Sportsband. It's a very cool device that lets you record how far and fast you run. You then download the info onto your own personal webpage. You can also make comments on your run and set targets. You can look at info in a variety of ways, either showing all your runs or each individual run, letting you check how fast you ran each mile.Enough to say that for 12 long months this gadget sat idyll, it is now my new best friend that keeping me honest and focused! The "chip" with the tick on it fits into a special pocket in a Nike shoe or, if you are me, a specially designed pouch that I attach to my shoelaces. Simple, lightweight and no programming required (well maybe a little bit of calibration). Once I got the hang of it I was able to start recording both my road/track runs and time on the treadmill. Keeps me very happy watching my progress.

An obsession is born

About six weeks ago I took it into my head to join a gym, get a personal trainer and enter a 10km trail run......it seemed like a good idea at the time. I had no idea just how good an idea it was until I realized that I have found a new focus in my world; something to strive for that wasn't about work, wasn't about relationships, wasn't about being a "new immigrant" and was all about me (although I guess all of the above is about me!).

Back in July, 2009 my worlds collided in a happy turn of circumstance - I went to New Zealand for the first time in three years. I had been nervous about the trip, unsure how I might feel. I had left in 2006 knowing that leaving was exactly what I was supposed to be doing but my world had been severely shaken in advance of my departure. I was at a complete loss as to who I was and what the previous 3.5 years had been all about........now I know. They had been about nothing more than bringing me to the point where everything I had known, trusted and believed in was, in a single moment, gone. I had been offered the unique opportunity to re.invent, revitalize and refocus my life, and here I am, doing exactly that. Or maybe the next step, given I have found a job I love, settled (at least for now) in a little house in Santa Cruz and made some new friends to supplement the old.

My next big step - all going to plan in 2010 I will cross the finish line of the NY Marathon, having run 26.4 miles. This is the first step in that journey.