Garmin Connect - Activity Details for Girls on the Run!

Garmin Connect - Activity Details for Girls on the Run!

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Another Gold Star!!!!

Long time no blog. This was definitely, once again, blog-worthy!

Meg/Mom, Sarah G, & I participated in the Run Like a Girl Half Marathon today! Sarah & I ran the first six miles together. It was a wonderful, albeit quite hilly, morning jog! We were surrounded by lots of lovely women and a very supportive group, including an incredible chase crew made up of some lovely husbands and a puppy! (Thanks Travis, James, & Carlo!!)

We then joined my mom at the 6 mile mark and walked the remaining 7.1 miles with her. No less hilly, but now with more company! I stole Carlo from our chase crew, so he got a crack at all of the Bellingham hills as well!


Race Start! (Not a terribly formal affair...)


Sarah, Meg/Mom, Lizzy, & Carlo at about 9.5 miles


The three of us (and Carlo) at the finish!

It was a super fun and inspirational event. Such an incredible way to spend a Saturday morning!!!!

Thanks Sarah, for joining us at the last minute for a great run. Thanks again to James & Travis for all of your support - and for putting up with us girls for the weekend! Most importantly, thanks, Mom, for being such an inspiration - not quite 4 months out from a total knee replacement. You really earned your gold star today!!!!

We Did It!!

I just wanted to make sure there was a formal post to acknowledge that Kate & I spent an AMAZING 3 days up on Mt. Baker for our Glacier Skills Course!! We had a great guide through AAI in Alasdair Turner. He led us through basic skills such as knot-tying and how to set up a rope line, taught us about glaciology, reminded us about safe glacier travel, taught us the importance of setting a proper ice anchor, showed us how to rappel... Oh, and WE JUMPED IN TO A CREVASSE!!!!!! The moral of that story was DON'T fall into a crevasse, especially if you've only got one other person to help pull you out!!!!
After we each slid into, then got pulled out of the crevasse, we survived walking through an ice fall, and we even got to learn how to ice climb!! And, turns out, we now know that our stomachs are strong enough to withstand drinking ice worms for three days. We're pretty sure they were all dead before we ingested them...

Here's the Picasa Link to all of the pictures. What an accomplishment!!!!!!!


Most importantly, we achieved our goal of becoming QUALIFIED TO CLIMB MT. RAINIER!!!! We have already registered for next summer, and intend to be standing on Rainier's summit at the end of July, 2010!!!!!!

Kind of a Big Deal

While I'm getting caught up on pictures, here's our Rock Superstar Kate Maudie!!!!

And here's the Picasa Link to the rest of the Rock-N-Roll photos. Congratulations again, Kate Great!!!!!!!!

Doing Well!

Mom is doing very very well! She has been very religiously sticking to her routines for exercises, icing, walking, and using the CPM, and keeping a positive attitude. Hooray!!

On another note, the Roadrunner seems to have found some water, and appears to be loving her life as well!! Enjoy your vacation, Kate!

Hiking with Maggie

It was a beautiful Saturday here in Eagle River, so I decided to take Maggie out to the Eagle River Nature Center. Turns out, today was the Crow Pass Race, so it was pretty tough to find a trail that wasn't going to be in the way of the racers. (By the way, Kate, I think I know what we're going to be doing to celebrate our 32nd birthdays!!!)
We ended up going on the Albert Loop Trail, with a bit of a side trip on the Dew Mound Trail to help avoid the race. It was a wonderful decision - we were out there pretty much by ourselves, and the weather was great! There were a few signs warning of bears along the trail, but they were all either laid down or turned around, so I figured that meant the bear had found somewhere else to snack on some salmon...
The trail goes along the Eagle River, so we got to clomp through some of the river silt, which was fun. It was one of those beautiful afternoons that makes me question why I would ever want to move away from this state, with these amazing trails only 15 minutes down the road. I *heart* AK!

Ow. Ow. OWowowowow!!

So, I'm a bit sore from yesterday still. Nothing like walking lunges to make you not want to move one quarter of one inch for days on end. So, back to Jogo I went today It hurt.
First:
1 Rep Max Snatch
Starting with a 5 rep warm-up, then a 3 rep round, and 3 rounds of increasing weight 1 RM
This is my first time doing a max for the snatch, so I wasn't really sure what to expect. I started out at 45#, progressed up to a failed 85#, and ended up maxing out at 80#. Not sure how to feel about it, but my legs do hurt. And my shoulder started to rebel at the end - trying to pop out on my last rep. Oops.
Then, we got some second helpings love. OUCH!
Karen
As in 150 Wall Balls. And that's it. 150. 14# ball, 10 foot wall, and me. For 11 mins & 47 secs. Ugh.

On a happier, but more painful note: word is Mom is doing well, recovering with her brand new knee. Turns out, we can rebuild her. It can be done. And it has been. Hooray!!

Farewell Thy Knee!

I hope that you're enjoying your last evening with your original parts, Beautiful Bear!! I'm loving that I get to come see you in just a few days!!! Again, I'm sorry that it's not for better purposes, but we will welcome your new knee to the world in a wonderful manner!!!!
I'll be excited to hear how everything goes - please make sure Bobby calls me tomorrow.
Love You and So Long to the Knee of Old!!!

Crossfit Games

Well, just in case anyone out there was starting to feel a little bit tough or a little bit strong, you should go check out the website for the Crossfit Games this weekend. These people are absolutely A-Maze-Ing! Not that I don't completely, 1,00% believe in you ladies, but Oh. My. Gawd. 2 days of back-to-back-to-back Crossfit WODs. And they had a team event, too - that seemed like it would be fun. In the it would completely suck kind of way. But fun...
Of course, for Jogo, that means we get to spend the entire week "Celebrating the Games", meaning I think all of our WODs will be based on the Games competitions. Ouch! Today started with:
2 mile run
30 Pull-Ups
30 Burpees
25 meter Walking lunges w/ Overhead Plate
Our version of the 2 mile run was actually a bit short, which was just fine with me - it still meant starting the day's workout with 13 mins of running. The walking lunges were definitely the worst part of the day for me. My legs hurt just sitting on the couch right now. Tomorrow's going to be rough!! :) I finished in a little over 25 mins. Then did a lot of stretching and foam rolling, followed by some Kipping work. I'm feeling like I'm making some progress, but not quite sure. Time will tell!
Also, another Monday means another Lean-N-Green weigh-in. Down another few pounds - the stalemate from the last few weeks has apparently been lifted. Mostly I just hope I keep feeling well during the day, and having good workouts. I'm not sure if the weight and body changes are from Paleo or if they're finally from me getting my act together and making it to Jogo 4 times per week. Probably the combination, I suppose. Whatever it is, hooray! :)

Finally Friday

I'm pretty sure this has been the absolute longest week on record for me. There were LOTS of factors that played in to me singing the praises of the Friday gods. Even did a little Friday dance this morning!
I worked really late yesterday, so I didn't make it in to the gym. That always compounds a bad day for me - I'm all frustrated and annoyed at work, and I don't even get to go to Jogo and clear my head and let go of everything. ARGH!!!
So, I wasn't going to let that happen today, leading into my weekend. I ended up having to go to the latest class, but I still made it in plenty of time for "Flying Nancy" tonight!
21-15-9 of:
OHD Squats
Pull Ups
400 m Run
Rx was 65#, but my dumb ol' shoulder won't allow much more than 45#, and since it was 45 reps total, I stuck with that weight for the workout. And, of course, with no kip, I was relegated to jump pulls. (Have you guys picked up on my anger an annoyance related to this deficiency of mine?!?!) Finished in 12:35, leaving plenty of time for stretching and foam rolling. That is, after I sat outside in the shade with a nice light breeze for a while. It was 70 degrees at 7 o'clock tonight in the Ham!! Don't you just loooooove summertime in the Great Northwest?!?!! :)

On another note - Kate, how are you feeling after a solid Paleo week? How are the adjustments going? I had some tiredness issues my first couple of weeks, but some of it was work-related as well. It was about 2 1/2 - 3 weeks in before I really started feeling great with it. Well, before I really felt better in my workouts and stuff. I've really enjoyed it from the start, and I've been really surprised at how few cravings I've had. I still miss cheese, but I really don't miss other dairy or sugar as much as I expected to. It's also not too tough to resist James's chips-and-salsa snacks as long as I keep the fridge stocked with easy-to-grab stuff- fruits and veggies mostly. LaraBars have also been life-saving for me a few times - pretty pure ingredients, just watch for the ones with peanuts in them!

Happy summer, my Ladies!!

Where's my Mojo????

Another Wednesday, Another Mojo, right?!? NO! Today was Jogo's quarterly "movement evaluation and fit tests". Nobody was really sure what that meant until we showed up at the gym tonight...
First, Em (gym owner) took a group of four of us through several basic movements and recorded them for future analysis. I've never been so nervous to do an overhead squat! Ha!

Next, the fit tests - Max effort pull-ups, push-ups, vertical jump and 400m run. I actually felt really good today, and I kinda feel like some of that showed. I still haven't gotten my kip, so I did a max hang instead of pull-ups, and I only lasted 10 seconds. I kinda feel like that was more of a mind thing than anything else. Push ups were strictly non-modified, meaning on your toes. As soon as you broke your plank position or rested on the ground, you were done. Your chest HAD to touch the floor. I pretty much NEVER do full push-ups, so I wasn't really sure what to expect. I managed 10, though, which I felt OK about. The vertical jump was a quicky - 3 attempts to record your best score. I ended up at about 15 1/2 inches or so. Not too impressive, but I think I kinda figured out the strategy on my last one. Anyway, on to the run. I'm pretty much not a runner, so didn't really know what to expect from this one, but I pushed myself really hard, and managed a 1:34. A *LOT* better than I expected, so I felt really good about that. Of course, I was completely spent, but it was a good feeling. Until we had to move on to our next event...

One round of Fight Gone Bad. Yep. So much for Mojo happiness for the legs. Fight. Gone. Bad. At least it was only one round, but still. Ugh.
1 minute each of:
Sumo Deadlift High Pull (Rx'd at 56#)
20" Box Jump
55# Push Press
Row
Wall Ball (14#, 10')
I can't remember my reps for each event, but my total was 74 for the first round. I much prefer getting to start at the wall ball and finish on the row. Who knew you could have some kind of FGB preference?? :)

So, the deal is, all of this information is going to be archived for us, and we're going to get rechecked quarterly. It was kind of fun, and it's always fun to have Coach Em at the gym, but Mojo it was not! My leggies are awfully tired!! But, my spirits are really high, which is the whole reason we exercise, right??

A Bike Ride?!?!

Yep, that's right. I took Carlo on a bike ride today! We went for about an 8 mile ride (round-trip) that gained about 1,000 feet. Lots of climbing, especially for a girl who's not really a biker! But it was really nice. Carlo seemed like he really had a great time. He was able to basically unload and run all out for a lot of the way - especially on the way back down!! I climbed for about an hour, and made the trip back down the road in about 25 mins! And that was with lots of braking so Carlo could stay caught up. Quite a ride! So, now my butt is VERY sore, but I'm really stoked on the ride! I'm thinking I'm going to try to find some more essentially empty trails and roads for Carlo and I to go play on in the future! I may have to get some bike shorts in order to keep this up, though!!!! Wowie Zowie Owie!!!

*I'll post pictures of several of my recent adventures soon! - As promised, pictures finally up!

Interesting...

Tonight's workout was a very different and interesting one. It turned out to have a lot of running in it, which I didn't realize until I was through the first round. (I'm not necessarily the sharpest tack in the box sometimes...)

One Arm Fun:
12 Right arm Push Press (16kg Kettlebell)
12 Left arm Deadlift (65#)
Run 800m
12 Left arm Push Press
12 Right arm Deadlift
Run 800m
X2

As I said, this was a different one. I had to scale back to the 12kg kettlebell for my push presses, but was able to do the deadlifts as Rx'd at 65. I finished in 24:36, largely because of the slowpoke running that I do. It took a lot of concentration to do the lifts properly. It was something to keep your whole body balanced even though all of the weight was just on one side. It was always interesting to see what was hurting/tired during the run portions. It was usually my core for me, which demonstrated to me how hard my core was working to keep my body neutral. I'm not sure that it won the battle, but it sure worked hard for it!!
Today was another weigh-in day for the Paleo Challenge. My weight hasn't changed at all over the last two weeks. Actually, that's a lie - I've actually gained about 1/2 pound over the past two weeks. But, I'm feeling really good during the workouts, and enjoying the food, so I'm a little curious if it's a changing of muscle:fat ratio happening. I'm going to email Coach Em to make sure I'm not doing something drastically wrong, but I feel good with it so far. The journey continues! (And, can I just say, journeys are much more fun with a partner - welcome to Paleo eating, Kate! I hope you continue to enjoy it as much as I do!!!! HOORAY for friends!!!!!)

First Official Training Hike!

Today, the Waltman family participated in my first official training hike for the Mt. Baker climb/snow school this fall! (Only 2 1/2 months away!!!!)
We did part of the Canyon Ridge Trail and were, once again, blessed with wonderful weather. It was warm, but there was enough high cloud cover to make it sunny but not blazingly, oven-style hot (sorry, Kate!). We again did a lot of training with Carlo, which is always satisfying once he figures it out!
We ended up turning around a little before I was ready to, but the timing ended up being really nice. We stopped for lunch amongst views of Baker & Shuksan as well as the Twin Sisters and what I think was the Canadian Cascades. A lovely hike on a lovely trail that makes me really look forward to more training and more time in the Washington Mountains!
What a wonderful goal we have set for ourselves, Kate!! More to come!

Returning to the Scene...

This evening, James, Carlo, & I walked along the North Shore of Lake Whatcom Trail. This was the first trail I posted about on this blog - the one I ran with the Roadrunner at the beginning of my ill-fated 1/2 marathon training plan. I went back to walk along the trail with the boys this evening, and had a wonderful time! We walked the whole 6 mile trail, and spent a lot of time training Carlo (and training ourselves, really!), and enjoying the absolutely BEAUTIFUL sunny, hot weather we've been blessed with lately! We spent a couple of hours on the trail, then came home, showered (even Carlo got a shower), ate dinner, and just walked up the block to watch the city's fireworks show. It was truly one of those days where you can't help but love your family, Bellingham, and your life!!
Happy 4th!

Personal Training Jogo

After a very frustrating day at work yesterday, with me not getting off till 7 and having to miss Crossfit, I was very excited to get off in time to make the last class before the holiday weekend! Of course, this meant I was at the 6:30 pm class on a Friday night. And not just any Friday night, but the Friday night before the 4th of July. So, turns out, I was the ONLY one there. This is the first time that's ever happened to me. It was great! I warmed up and we got started as soon as I was ready to go, and the coach followed me and cheered for me and me only the whole way. That was really nice, since it was really a grind today:

Fallen Heroes Workout: (A combination of the different CF Heroes workouts)
1 mile run
21 Thrusters
50 Ab Mat Sit-ups
21 Push-ups
400 meter run backwards (in honor of Michael Jackson)
25 Air Squats
21 Overhead Squats
21 L-sit Pull-Ups

I did the first mile in 8:10!! That felt really good! Well, it felt good hearing the time. It felt tough to do, especially with 20 minutes of work left to do... I was able to do the Thrusters as Rx'd at 65#, but the OH Squats I had to bump down to 35#. Or maybe it was 45#. No, I think it was 35#. Either way, it was plenty for the ol' shoulder! I also had to drastically modify the L-sit Pull-Ups into some kind of weird jumping pull up with a leg curl type thingy... I finished in 25:20, which was a long time, but it felt good. I broke most of the different exercises up into two or three sets so I could keep good form but still burn through everything.
I skipped out of the gym looking forward to a Hot + Sunny 4th of July Bellingham Weekend!!

Kate's Favorite Mojo!

Today's Core Mojo workout involved Kate's favorite toy EVER!!!! The Ab Wheel!! It was actually a 4-part Tabata workout, which I really enjoy. Well, I shouldn't say I enjoy them per se, but I do like them in that you're done with an intense workout in only 12 minutes. Love Crossfit!! Here's what we did:
Ab Wheel Knee Tucks
Ab Wheel Leg Curls
Ab Mat Sit-Ups
GHD Hip/Back Extensions

It was a smaller class, probably because of the holiday weekend, so I only had one other person do the workout with me. I was still really sore from Monday, so this one was really tough on my hamstrings. But, as always, a lovely Mojo day, completed with some Kipping Pull-Ups work and lots of stretching and foam rolling. *Happy Sigh*

Ouch -Liz that peer pressure sure hit home

Yesterday morning I started off with a few leg lifts and thigh strengtheners. Then, I took the 4 year old dog and 4 year old kid to the river. Walking, jumping, standing around, that was the extent of my exercise. then last night my knee hurt enough that I woke up several times. My belief is that euphexa is less effective than synthroid.

Jump & Run & Play!

What a BEAUTIFUL Bellingham day today was!! It was sunny and lovely and I didn't have to work!! *Heaven!* I had a lovely day with Carlo - he helped me clean up around the house a bit, we each enjoyed a terrific breakfast, and then we went off to the dog park. I got to stand around and take him for a bit of a walk in the beautiful sunshine, and he got to SPRINT all over the park, getting every dog (and a child or two) chasing after him! Then we walked over to swim (he swam, I just got to get wet, thanks to his shakes!), and we walked part way around the lake together! So nice!
Then, off to run errands, which, thanks to Paleo, now involves stops at three different grocery stores. Not much change in the grocery bills, just changes in where I can obtain all of my Paleo yumminess.
Finally, it was time for my exercise. (Carlo stayed home for this part.)
Today was supposed to be a 5-rep max for Overhead Squat. Unfortunately for me, I wasn't able to get past my second round of 5 reps because my shoulder wouldn't hold more than 55# over my head. Argh! I finished out the sets by doing front squats, and ended up at 95# for my 5th 5-rep round. I'm still pretty sore from yesterday, but I'm pretty sure I could have gone higher. Maybe.
Second Helpings!!
We then got to spend 8 minutes doing as many rounds as possible of a 100 meter run followed by 10 box jumps on the 24" box. I'm not able to consistently get on the 24" box, so I did step-ups instead, but I made it through 8 rounds. And now my legs are tiirreeeddd!! I'm headed to bed now and quite looking forward to Mojo tomorrow!!

P.S.
Ladies, I KNOW that you have been exercising because I've heard a little about it and I've even witnessed some of it - I would love to see some blog posts about what you've been up to and how you've been doing!! (Consider the peer pressure session now over...) :)

Another Monday

Well, another Monday, another big WOD. Although Shain (the coach for today's workout) was sure to point out that she eased back on the prescribed workout, implying that there's a whopper of a week ahead...
Badger 400
400 meter run (instead of 800m)
30 full squat power cleans
30 pull ups

Today was the first time I've done the FSPC ever, so it felt really good. I did the first half of the first round as Rx'd at 65# on accident, and then Shain set up an appropriately weighted bar for me, and I finished the rest of the WOD at 45#. I finished (barely!!) in 26:53. I had only eaten 30 grams of carbs for the day prior to the workout, and I could tell!! (My target is 100 grams a day.) I just did not have the energy reserves! It did feel good to finish. I am sick of having to do jumping pull-ups, though. Kips, here I come!!
I did go home and make a super yummy smoothie with frozen fruit & agave nector, with some coconut milk & egg whites as my appetizer before dinner. I felt much better after that! Now off to bed to try to make the 7am class tomorrow morning.

Run Lizzy Run

Jogo is such a lovely way to start off a weekend! This morning, we did a tag-team sprint workout. It was a BEAUTIFUL Bellingham morning, and a partner and I got to trade off running the following distances:
400m X2
200m X4
100m X6
I happened to be partnered with someone who is essentially my exact pace, which left plenty of rest & recovery time between sprints as she was running. A quick workout - 21 mins for the two of us to finish - but a lovely way to begin the morning! Now off to pack up and head to Seattle for Kate's big day tomorrow!!!!!!! *SO EXCITED!*

Mojo with Miss Maudie

The Roadrunner is in Orca Territory this weekend!! Hooray!
She joined me for some Mojo Love today, although there wasn't much love flowing during the workout... We did the Trail of Tears - an ab wheel workout. A TOUGH ab wheel workout. On its face, it looks pretty straightforward. But it sucked!
We had to travel back and forth across the gym with the wheel - first in a knee tuck, then in a pike, and finally in a crab walk. It definitely worked the core, but it turned out to be toughest on wrists and shoulders. When we were finally, mercifully done with that circuit, I spent some time working on my kip. With Kate's help, I feel like I made some good progress. Yay!
Super fun to share Jogo with the BFF, but it was certainly not anyone's favorite workout.

Kelly

Monday Monday (La laa, La la la)...
So, one week in to the Lean & Green Challenge, and I've been feeling pretty good. The eating isn't actually too tough. Lots of food to resist, but still lots of good food to eat, so I haven't been having too many cravings, and haven't had too tough of a time with saying no to foods on the no-no list. That said, here's what I walked in to at Jogo after clinic today...

Kelly:
400 meter run
30 box jumps (18")
30 wall ball (14#, 8')
5 rounds for time

Oof. Man, I felt AWFUL for this one. I just had no energy from the start. I did work on my box jump technique - I typically do a modified jumping step-up type thing instead of the two-footed jump your ass up on to the box as you're supposed to. So, the first round, I did all 30 correctly. But it took a loooooooong time. I also kinda cheated on the Wall Ball, since it was only on the 8 foot wall. Still didn't help me get through it though. Finished in about 34 mins, I think.
The last time we did Kelly a few months ago, I did the 10 foot mark for wall ball, and got cut off at 30 mins. I had gotten through everything except for my last set of wall balls, so I think it was probably pretty close. I was hoping for better, but I just wasn't feeling it today. Rest day tomorrow to get some of the quad soreness under control, then back at it with the Roadrunner on Wednesday!!! HOORAY! :)

First Saturday WOD

Jogo Saturdays used to be reserved for just the advanced Jogoers. However, with the beautiful weather we've been having this summer, and the exploding size of the gym, Em has mixed it up a little bit over the summer. Saturdays are now open to all, and are mostly going to be outside, sports, playing type activities. Of course, summertime Saturdays usually mean James and I are out of town, so I've missed all 4 of these that have been offered so far.
Well, Bellingham weather returned to expected (just ask Ruthie [Kate's mom] - it rains here all the time!!). So, it was just a regular old class. And by regular old class, I mean UGH!!

The Speal (a.k.a. Rocky Mtn. Regional Games Qualifier WOD):
3 rounds of
10 pull-ups (chest to bar!)
10 front squats (heavy weight)
10 burpees (Yay Burpees)

Rx for front squats was 105, but I'm not even sure if I can 1-rep-max that weight for a front squat. I did a few warm-up front squats at 65 to feel out what my weight should be, and realized that 65 was not so much a warm up as a work out! So, I loaded up 75# on my bar and went for it. Of course, I did jumping pull-ups, and, because there were so many of us, I actually ended up doing them on a squat rack, so I think I got off kind of easy there. But I did manage to get my chest up to the bar every time. I even almost knocked the bar off the rack once or twice!! :) Finished in 9:54, which I was pretty happy with. The guy who Em named the WOD after did it in 3:48 with 135# bar, so, you know, I'm pretty close to that...
For now, off to Farmer's Market then to the dog park so Carlo can get a fetching WOD in for the day!! Happy weekend, ladies!

Friday Again!

It's Friday. And I have the day off. And I get to Jogo at 8 am. And I have nothing else to do all day long. HOORAY!!!!!
Today's WOD was relatively quick, but pretty tough for me. Especially since I'm still sore from Murph on Monday!! It was:
21 Thrusters 45#
21 Double-Unders
5 Rounds as fast as possible

I managed to do the prescribed weight, but my legs were a-burnin! I am also still struggling with my double-unders, so the modification was three times as many regular rope jumps. I finished in around 8 or 9 minutes, and I was pooped! I did have some time after class to work on my Kipping goal. I'm not really sure if I see any progress yet, but I'm going to keep at it!

Another food challenge tonight - a coworker had a lot of ladies over for dinner & hanging out. The theme was Mexican - she had enchilladas ready when I walked in the door. About 2 minutes after I got there, the Margaritas were ready. There were about 4 different kinds of cheeses to snack on, plus chips & salsa. I had brought some fresh berries, and someone else had set out some plain old avocado, so I snacked on those to my little heart's delight. There was some SERIOUS temptation in that room, though! I had managed to eat about an hour or two before I got there, then came home and made a nice big salad w/tuna and (of course) more avocado! I was actually still hungry a few hours later - my eating habits and timing get pretty funky when I'm off of work - so I ended up having a couple of eggs before I went up to bed. Another successful Paleo day!

Ugh

Felt ucky today. Long icky day at work, ended up working too late to go to Jogo. Crabby, Crabby Lizzy. Also, Single parenthood is TOUGH! But, Paleo went fine today. Still low on numbers, but actually enjoying the food. And realizing there's a LOT more food I'm allowed to eat than I initially thought. Salsa (without sugar or vinegar), here I come!! :)

Rest. And Paleo.

So, today I needed to get James down to SeaTac after work. (Actually, I snuck out of work a little bit early...) This proposed an interesting when-to-eat, what-to-eat challenge in the face of the Paleo lifestyle. Right as we were leaving the house, I ate an avocado (YUMMY!). Then, I threw some already cooked chicken and some raw almonds in a ziploc with an ice pack into my purse. That way, I had something that was easy to munch on while driving, and I wouldn't have to stop anywhere to try to sort it out on my own.
Also, I got to meet just-over-one-day-old Isabel, Justin and Katy's new baby! Mom, dad, & baby are well. I haven't heard how their dogs are adjusting, though...

Big Day

So, Jogo's Lean & Green Challenge officially started today. I've done pretty well with my Paleo-only foods, although I'm not quite eating enough. When has that ever happened?! Ha! Because it was the first day of the challenge, Em (Jogo owner) decided to do it up good for today's WOD:
Murph
1 mile run
100 pull-ups
200 push-ups
300 air squats
1 mile run
(Body armor/weight vest optional...)

So, this is just about the longest classic Crossfit WOD. And boy was it ever long! You can split the middle portion up however you choose - lots of people do 5 pulls, 10 push, 15 squats for 20 rounds. Well, I don't know if that's what *lots* of people do, but that's one of the recommendations. Anyhow, split it up however you want, then wander off for your second one mile run.
My version was a 9:13 1-mile run to start, then 20 rounds of 5 jumping pull-ups, 10 knee push-ups, and 15 air squats, then a 10:20 1-mile run. Total time, you ask? 57:18. Made it in just under an hour. Ugh.
The real bummer about it all is knowing that this will be our WOD on the last day of the Lean & Green Challenge in August. So, I've got that to look forward to... Still, I made it through it. It sucked. And I hustled home to cook up some more Paleo food!

Happy Friday!

I *Heart* Jogo! Not really sure what it is about this week, but, despite work being UGH all week long, I have had a great week. 4 visits to Jogo had a lot to do with it! Here's how I started off my Friday:

CF Football-style Nicole:
Max-rep Pull-ups
100m run
As many rounds as possible in 15 mins

Of course, I can't do pull-ups (yet!), so I did 10 jumping pull-ups each round, then went for my run. Actually, I did 15 the first round, and knocked out an extra three while time was running out. So, I did a total of 118 jumping pull-ups and run (or jogged, or kinda hustled...) a total of 1000 meters.

Then, we had the "Optional" squat workout, which was simply 3 rounds of 5 back squats. Now, I haven't done much back squat since I first hurt my leg, so my first round, I started out with an empty bar (45#). That felt OK, so I moved up to 65#. Getting heavier, but still OK, so on to 95# I went for my last round. That was definitely about all I had in me. I was focused really hard on form to avoid aggravating my leg, and I think I managed pretty well.

Then, because I'm focused on my kipping goal, I practiced some more kipping form. This was somewhat difficult considering I had just done 118 jumping pull-ups. So, I only spent a couple of minutes, but the trainer is pretty sure I'm "just around the corner" to getting it. We'll see what that ends up meaning!!

I hope you ladies have a great weekend! I'm off to pack for a weekend in Sunnyside! *Wut Wut* :)

Mojo

Another Wednesday, Another Mojo. Hooray!!
Today was mostly a recoup & recovery day. Lots of stretching and foam rolling. *Happy Sigh*
I also spent a fair amount of time working on my Kipping Pull-Up form. With my re-commitment to Jogo, I'm thinking my new goal will be one Kip by the end of the summer. Hmm... This brings up the question of when I think the end of the summer is. If I go by AK standards, then it would be August. If I go by NM standards, then it would be December. Split the difference? See how I'm doing in August then decide? (Hee Hee - maybe that's the cheating method!) Thoughts??
On another note, Good Luck with the carpal tunnel release on Monday, Beautiful Bear!

Blog Catch Up

The last two WODs have been intense, but good.
Yesterday - the Crossfit Classic:
Fran
21-15-9
Thrusters - I did at 45#, as Rx is 65#
Pull-Ups - I, of course, did jumping pull-ups
5:18. Phew! The last time I did this, it took me just under 9 mins. Very exciting, but I think that means I need to add more weight to my thrusters. Next time...

Today - A Jogo Special
Kettlebell Hell, Jogo Labs Style
As many rounds as possible in 25 mins of:
1 arm kettlebell snatches, 10 each arm
5 burpees (Yay Burpees!)
10 lunges on each leg holding the KB goblet style (upside down, in front of your chest)
5 turkish get-up sit-ups each side

I alternated between the 8kg & 12kg kettlebell. Finished 6 rounds. Barely! This WOD was followed up by one round of Tabata alternating wheel tucks & wheel pikes. I was so pooped & sweating so much that I could barely hold myself up, let alone perform the Tabata exercises. Phew!!

Change of Plans

Well, you ladies know the news already, but I figured I'd post it to make it official...
My leg injury took too much away from my training, and my training during my leg injury was too poor, so I am not at all ready for the Rock-N-Roll this month. I am declaring myself Kate's loudest and proudest cheerleader on 6/27/09!!!!
I'm disappointed and feel like crap about it. I'm not a very good quitter. *But* I have had a couple of awesome days at Crossfit, and am feeling a bit of a re-dedication happening in my world. I am going to commit to at least 4 Jogo workouts per week.
I am also going to do my best attempt at the Paleo diet as a part of the "Lean and Green" Jogo challenge. The challenge start on Monday the 15th. Here's a PDF link that I think should work that explains the challenge and a bit of the Paleo diet.
One door closes, another one opens. 3,2,1...GO!

Change in plans

Well, apparently my stenuous regimen of walking 2 miles 3 times a week and biking 2 miles a couple of times a week is causing overuse syndrome to my knee. Physical Therapy says time to give it a rest so it can heal. DANGnation! So for at lest the next week, leg lifts, stationary bike, knee strengthening, yada, yada, yada.
Disappointing but the season is still young!

Crash. Burn. Flames. Ugh.

So, if any of you heard a significant snapping sound on the morning of Tuesday, May 5th, 2009, it belonged to me. It was the final straw breaking the camel's back. I finally have given in to my injury. Hmph. It happened three miles into an attempted six mile jog. Which meant a three mile walk back to the car. And lots of time for contemplation. ARGH!!
The resolution is that I will take about 2 weeks off from jogging and reevaluate my life then. I'm not completely giving up on the possibility of finishing the half, although a long time ago I gave up on the idea of matching my previous time. New goals to be set in a couple of weeks...
In the mean time, I had another rolfing session in the afternoon. We spent a long time discussing form, technique, and the root of all of my problems. So, I'm off to re-learn how to walk, and to continue to fall in love with Rolfing. Away I go!!

Endurance Bionic

A new Monday, a new intense Jogo workout! Today was:
A round of 10, then 8, 6, 4, 2 of each of the following
Sumo Deadlift High Pull
Burpees (Yay!) <-- No really - it the yay was part of the WOD on the Whiteboard!
Front Squat
Kettlebell Swings
Haning Power Snatch
400 meter run

A long one for me! I did the SDHP with 65#, and I used 45# for the other two lifts. Took me 26:15. I was arbitrarily shooting for closer to 25 mins, but still felt like I had a good workout, with a decent time.
It's just always so nice and motivating to start off the week with a good workout!
I also had a veerrrryyy slow day at clinic, so I got up and took puppy for a little 30 minute jog first thing in the morning. Kinda slow, kinda sore, especially after the 6 hour drive back from Corvallis yesterday. But a very nice way to kick start the week.
Happy Trails!!

A Walk in the Woods with a Bear

Well, after the Rolfing appointment on Thursday and a 6 hour drive on Friday, my leg was tighter, and I was limping like an old decrepit lady!! So, MommaBear & Carlo took me for a nice 1 1/2 hour long walk through the woods by my aunt's house. After, I felt like a million gazillion bucks!! Nice and loose, no pain, and some time outside with the family & some dogs. Happy Day Happy Day Happy Day!! Tra La La La Laaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!

Rolf Rolf Rolf Rolf Rolf

Today was my first Rolfing session. I really like the guy - he spent almost two hours with me in consultation and treatment. Lots of good advice, and lots of deep, deep, deep, painful, painful treatment. Followed by lots of pain and soreness afterwards. -PLUS- I got a Jogo discount on the price. Hooray!! Next appointment 5/5 - Happy Birthday to Me! :)

Wednesday. Mojo. Yay!

Once again, I thoroughly enjoyed my Core workout today at Jogo. Wednesday Mojo days should be required for everyone on any kind of exercise routine. Truly reinvigorating!! Today was 2 rounds of:
25 V-Ups
25 Super Mans
25 Hollow Rocks
25 GHD Back Extensions

A good quick workout that left plenty of time for stretching, foam rolling, and hitting up the grocery for more zone-friendly foods on the way home!!
Happy Happy Hump Day!
:)

Padden Revisted

Carlo and I have had quite a lovely morning. We went for a nice little trot around Lake Padden this morning. I felt OK - I'm a bit sore from yesterday, and, of course, my hips were tight, but not too painful. I got a little outsmarted by the new iPhone, so I was music-less , but I had plenty of people to say hello to along the way. It was amazing how much quicker 2 1/2 miles went compared to 8!
It was a nice little workout for me. Of course, for Carlo, it was nothing. So, we went to the dog park, where he sprinted the whole length of the park time and again for about half an hour. Then, he got to go for about 45 minutes worth of a swim. What a lucky guy!!

A New Week & A New Adventure

I like that Mondays are typically longer, hard days a Jogo. Such a lovely way to start off the week! We did a workout Em lovingly titled Dirty Sunday. She "borrowed" the workout from the Atlanta, GA affiliate (Dirty South) - thus the name. It was:
1000 meter Row
25 Overhead Squats (I did 35#)
100 meter Run
50 Kettle bell swings (12kg - supposed to be 16kg, I just grabbed the wrong one. Oops.)
100 meter Run
25 Burpees (Ugh to Burpees!)
200 meter Run

I got done in 16:45. It felt pretty good, except, of course, the recurring theme of the sore hip flexors. Again, not such a problem during the workout, but some serious stiffness afterward. Lots of stretching and foam rolling does a body good!
...But not as good as my Rolfing appointment is going to do! My first treatment will be Thrusday afternoon. I honestly have no idea what to expect - mostly a deep, myofascial massage type thing, but we shall see what it actually brings. Hooray for therapy!
More soon!

Warm and beautiful. And hard.

So, today was my first long run in a couple of weeks. I missed the 7 mile run when I was in New Mexico, so I jumped up to the (almost) 8 mile run today. Starting off, I felt great. My legs were feeling pretty good, it was a lovely, sunny afternoon, and I was plenty hydrated. (You know us Orcas - we require a LOT of water!) I kind of messed up pretty quickly - I missed the turn off for the out-and-back 1.2 miles that I was going to add on at just past the first mile or so. I ended up turning up a different trail that allowed me to climb up the streets that parallel Alabama hill. Only higher up. It was a lot of very, very slow climbing. The journey back down was pretty quick, though!
I got back into my rhythm after that, kind of trudging along with Carlo really hoping that I was going to hit warp speed some time soon. Bless his little heart, he's much faster than me. But he's plenty patient. I'm sure the harness and leash have something to do with that, but it still works out pretty well. At about the one hour mark, I really started feeling it. I was losing motivation, and just not feeling too great any more. And I was barely over half way. Ugh.
Anyway, we made it back, and it wasn't too bad. Partially because it's much more of a gradual down hill on the way back. Always a nice way to finish out a run.
It's got me questioning myself, though. I'm just not sure how the sound of doing another hours worth of running on top of what I did today feels. I suppose we're still two months out, but I'm feeling kind of overwhelmed. Hmm....
On a fun note, I got a fun new gadget that's going to work a lot like the Garmin Forerunner, I think. Here's the stats from today's run (let me know if you think it's a bit much for the blog. I don't have to post anymore if you don't like them here):

Fran. And then some

Ah, the Crossfit Standard. Fran. I think this is actually the first time I've done traditional Fran. I've done "Fran All at Once", where we did 45 thrusters followed by 45 pull-ups. Regular Fran is:
21 Thrusters, 65#
21 Pull-ups (jumping pull-ups in my case)
15 Thrusters (I dropped down to 55# in this round)
15 Jumping pull-ups
9 Thrusters
9 Jumping pull-ups

We then got a 2 minute rest, and then:
400 meters carrying a 25# plate bearhug style
200 meter sprint (or faster jog-ish pace, in my case)
100 meter hustled walk/jog with the 25# plate overhead

It was nice to stretch out the legs a bit with the running/walking combo after Fran, but it was REALLY hard to hold that plate overhead. My shoulders were TOAST!

It took me 8:55 for Fran. The second part was not timed. There was, again, lots of foam roller love at the end of the workout.

Big week at Jogo this week - the workouts I missed on Tuesday & Thursday were mini-Nicole (only 10 mins), and Cindy II (30 mins of traditional Cindy w/ an added 200 meter run in the mix). Tough week! Several people are gearing up for the Regional Qualifier for the Crossfit Games, so I think there's going to be a few more weeks of these brutal work outs. Fun for all!

Thursday-4-23

Hooray for medicine...Had a shot in my knee to day. Euphexa, more natural than the ground up rooster they put in synvisc. Strict instructions, take it easy today!!
OK, I have a perfect spot mapped out on the couch..if I can get the cat to move..hee, hee

Pilates - Wed 4-22

I went to Pilates for the first time in about 6 weeks. Respiratory illness followed by mental illness--the lazy, can't get motivated, mental illness--then the fear factor--I know it will hurt. But I did it--it did hurt--but Kate was right. Having done it made it easier to do it again. I am looking forward to goinng again. Work those abs..and I have lost 5 lbs in the last two weeks!!

Be Smart

I was planning on a nice jog this evening when I got off of work. Unfortunately, all day long at work, both of my hips just felt really really tight. I'm not having as much pain and weakness from my left hip flexor any more, but I have now moved to bilateral hip TIGHT-ness. It's like I've been guarding my hips for 4 weeks now or something...
Anyway, it was another great, sunny evening, so I had James take Carlo & I for a nice long & easy walk. It was really nice, really refreshing, and loosened me up for a bit. More foam roller fun at home before dinner. Turned out to be a really nice night, although not terribly cardiovascularly taxing. Sometimes you just gotta listen to your body. Sometimes...

Mojo Mojo Mojo

I actually started out my workout for today with a bit of a jog from the hospital. There's lots of great routes that I used to do when I could go on lunchtime jogs. I chose a pretty flat 25 min route through the neighborhoods & Cornwall Park. I felt kinda slow & tight, but it felt good to get out there for a jog.

Today's core workout at Mojo was really fun. It was called the Countdown, and consisted of the following:
20 reps Ab Wheel Tucks
18 reps Ab Wheel Bridges
16 reps Ab Wheel Pikes
14 reps GHD Sit-Ups
12 reps Knees-to-Elbows (still SO BAD at this!!)
10 second L-sit hold (holding your legs up in a pike position - or as close as you can)
8 reps GHD Back Extensions
6 reps Hanging Leg Raises
4 reps Ab Mat Wall Ball (sit-ups with a weighted ball thrown to a 5-foot mark on the wall)
1 min Handstand Hold (I had to break this up into 2 30 sec reps - my shoulders were giving out)

It was a fun work out, with plenty of time for stretching and foam rolling afterwards. Lovely!

Nancy

Monday was back to reality - back to Crossfit. A big start to the week with Nancy:
5 Rounds of
400 meter run
15 Overhead Squats

It took me 17:46. Prescribed weight for the overhead squats was 65#. I struggle a LOT with locking my shoulders out and keeping that much weight over my head. I did the first round at 45#, then jumped down to 35#. I just couldn't get the right depth with my shoulders locked out. Something more to work on! LOTS of time on the foam roller after this one!

A good (hard) start to the week. Then, because it was a BEAUTIFUL springtime evening, James and I took Puppy for a nice walk when I got home. We all got home with big ol' smiles on our faces!

An Orca in New Mexico

I had the joy of traveling down to visit Blue & Kate in New Mexico! There was a LOT of driving, but we got to see a lot of neat things. We even exercised (a little) along the way!
Thursday was a preparation & travel day. Our first stop was Elephant Butte State Park, which was more of a leg-stretching activity for the three of us. Blue had the most fun!

We then went to Silver City, NM to visit the Gila Cliff Dwellings. There were several warnings about the VERY STEEP section of trail along the one mile route up to see the cliff dwellings. Turns out, in some circles, VERY STEEP means steps about the equivalent of the steps in your home. Still, a beautiful drive out to a nice walk. Again, seems like Blue had the most fun - his first ever swim!














Next, we had a looooong drive (through Texas even!) to the Carlsbad Caverns National Park. This one was pretty interesting - just over a mile descending over 700 feet into the 8.2 acre Big Room cavern. It was another mile or two to walk around and check out all there was to see. Overall, a pretty mellow walk, but very interesting. (You had to take the elevator to get back to the surface.) A worthwhile trip, but I'm not sure I need to go back and see it again...
Last but certainly not least was the Lincoln National Forest outside of Ruidoso, NM. This was the first place we made it to that was a real hike in a real forest along a real trail. I know I know - that's a lot to take in. There ARE forests and green trees and running water and true mountain beauty in New Mexico. It was amazing! AND - super fun fact: the Lincoln National Forest is Smoky Bear's home! He didn't come by and visit us, though. I guess our fire was appropriately sized and appropriately extinguished. Anyway, we went on a fabulous 2 1/2 hour hike that felt so good after all of the driving through all of the desert. And Texas.







Lessons learned: NM is beautiful (in parts), Kate Blue & Liz are happiest outside in the trees, Labs are natural swimmers, and Orcas do not belong in the desert. Or at elevation. Sea level - key to an Orca's happiness! :) Lovely trip!!

Squat/Deadlift/Burpee

Today's Jogo was supposed to be a max effort back squat. The trainer (Emilie) felt like I needed a little bit more work with my form, so she had me do 3 rounds of 20 reps of back squats. I did the first two rounds working on form at 45#, then moved up to 65# for the final round. My leg felt pretty good. I was focused pretty hard on keeping my weight and strength balanced. Form days are good days!
We then finished the day by doing Deadlift/Burpee workout:
5 rounds of 5 heavy Dead Lifts and 10 Burpees
I did 135# DL for the first round, then went down to 125# for the rest of the rounds. Finished in 6:42. The record for the day was 3:45 as prescribed, which was 225# pounds. Dang!
I'm now off to pack up for my adventures in the desert with the Road Runner! Hooray!!

I'm Baaaaack!!!

I ended up basically taking the rest of the week off after my disaster out at Padden. I had a few long days at work, and just generally was crabby and kind of hurting. I got my foam roller delivered (!!!!), so I tried to use that daily. Didn't feel much better, didn't feel much worse, didn't feel much different. Then, I got to help the Garrisons move to a new apartment. (Luckily, we didn't have to move ALL of their stuff. Just the heavy stuff...)
So, after almost a week of whining and being crabby, I went out to the North Shore of Lake Whatcom. It's a relatively flat 6 mile (out & back) trail. Carlo came with and got to be off leash most of the time, which means he ran more like 8 or 9 miles. Such a happy puppy!!
Anyway, I felt OK. I was slower than I've ever been, but I felt quite a sense of accomplishment for doing it. It also helped a lot that I talked to the RoadRunner on the phone afterwards and got her words of encouragement.
Thanks for being such a HUGE part of my support group, ladies! I truly need you!!

Easter Sunday

Bummer to spend Easter with people who don't believe in Easter. Mostly we hung around and drove back to Minnesota. Not the most pleasant of drives. but tomorrow we get to go home!

Saturday the 11th

Drove to a red sandstone beach. Walked for about 30 minutes, but it was cold and Alden is sick and cranky, I am sick and cranky and Baby Stella is getting sick and Cranky, Susan has been sick nearly the whole time.

Friday the 10th of April

Small tour of Hancock and Houghton. Went to the pool, I am getting a cold and the water in the pool was verrry cold. Spent the time in the hot tub with Alden with the best intention of doing laps but really just enjoying the warmth!

Thursday, April 9

Spent the day driving across Minnesota, Wisconsin and into the upper Peninsula of Michigan to visit Sarah at Michigan Tech. By the time we got there all I wanted was rest. Day off of any excuse for exercise!!

Wednesday April 8

Walked about 30 minutes and played at the park in between. Alden had a blast on the slides and wanted to stay all day. Adults wanted to go back to eat lunch. We won!

Tuesday April 7

Swam laps and played with babies in the pool for about an hour. Turned into a prune, but not sure if it really counts as true exercise, but was as close as I could come to it. Earlier we went to the park and I did walk about 20 minutes, too bad I forgot my brace. Grandpa Bob was racing downhill after Alden and smacked into a tree. He has a nasty lump and a couple of scrapes on his head! Claims he doesn't really have a concussion, but we all wonder!

Monday April 6

Shopping at Mall of America. Need I say more? Plenty of exercise and and hours of walking and by the end of the day my knee was twice the size of a melon! But we must sacrafice.

Sunday April 5

Groggy trying to adapt to a 3 hour time change. Swam laps again. Drank a lot of wine at Olive Garden to make up for lack of exercise!! More fun that way.

Saturday April 4

Swam laps in the pool for 20 minutes and walked up and down the hotel halls with little kids, mostly to keep order, I couldn 't possibly mopve as fastg as they did!

Something Just Ain't Right

Today was the first day that I just could NOT get into a run. I left James & Carlo at the dog park at Lake Padden and planned to take a 2.6 mile lap around the lake. Planned...
My leg felt really really tight. Really. Really. Tight. So I sllooooowwwllllyyyy jogged about the first flat mile, then stopped to stretch for a good 5-10 minutes. I felt pretty good after that and tried to trot the rest of the way around the lake. Uh-uh. Not a chance. Couldn't do it - could hardly even walk. I felt kinda like my legs were disconnected from my body. So, I turned around and sulked my way back to the dog park.
Ugh. I may have to admit that I'm hurt or something. NAH!!!! Definitely very frustrated, though. Ick!

Kelly (A.K.A. Hell-y)

Another long one at Crossfit today. Tough, but a refreshing way to start the week. Today, we did Kelly, which is
5 Rounds of:
400m run
30 Box Jumps (18")
30 Wall Balls (14# ball, 10' mark)

We had a 30 minute cut-off, so I didn't quite finish the workout. I got stopped with 20 wall balls to go in the last round. 30 HARD minutes. Plus - so funny - it was HOT! I know, I know, I shouldn't rub it in. Bragging comes and bites you in the butt, but it's so hard not to! It was down right warm. So fun! In fact, it kinda makes me want to dance. Tra La La!!

~The Fox-trotting Orca!

Spring has Sprung!

Carlo and I did the prescribed long run for the week this afternoon, and it was down right warm! I'm thinking that spring may actually be here! (For now, at least!) We did the same 5 mile course as the Runnin O' the Green from a few weeks ago. I started at the spot closest to the house, so the hills all came in different spots, but it was still a very nice run! It took me a few minutes longer than the race did, which makes some since - not as many other people to push me a long, took a few minutes to get the hip flexor loosened up, and had to stop twice for a Carlo potty break. Over all I feel pretty good about it. I think my hip's on it's way back to normal happy healthy-ness. Phew!
In other exciting news, James cleaned out the cupboard today and found a gift card to Wal-Mart with $26 still left on it. Neither of us has any idea where it came from, but we went ahead and used it up today - on getting me my very own foam roller! Now I can have the foam roller love in the comfort of my own living room!! *So excited!!*
~The (soon to be) Extra Rolly-Poley Orca!

Sprinting in the Sun!

All of a sudden, Bellingham has decided it's spring. Apparently there were some parts of town that had some snow mixed with our obligatory morning rain. But, by mid-morning, the sun was out, the clouds were (mostly) gone, and it was warm warm warm. AND we were pretty slow at work, so I snuck out early to make the 4:30 Jogo class. This left plenty of time for James & I to meet a co-worker for dinner and beer at Boundary Bay, which was fabulous, and completely not the point. I digress...
Today we did Kaci. It's a Jogo classic named after one of our athletes. Actually a gal who graduated from Chugiak a few years after me. Such a small world! She was a track athlete and loves her some sprinting. So, the workout is a tag-team sprint consisting of:
400m X 2 (each partner runs twice, you rest while your partner is running his/her part)
200m X 4
100m X 6
I was partnered with a girl named Brit, who runs right about my pace, which made the rest breaks between the runs for me just about right. Pretty tough for me, on account of my general lack of ability to do anything quickly. My hip flexor was also quite unhappy, but it got a little foam roller love when all was said and done.
The only problem with the running was that I got to watch myself get a parking ticket. DOH! The downtown parking meters only have to be paid through 5, and I usually don't make it to class until at least 5:15, so I completely forgot to pay the meter. It's only a $10 ticket, but always kind of disheartening to watch yourself giving money to the city. Oops...

~The Sheepish Orca

YOU run like a girl!!!

My co-workers just told me about a great race this fall. It's a fundraiser for the Girls on the Run, which is a non-profit group that works with young girls to teach them to be active, happy, strong women. (Kinda like us, right?!?!??)
So, the race is called Run Like a Girl. It's a half marathon here in Bellingham on the 10th of October. It's not so much a race as it is a super fun excuse to be outside in October. At every mile there's some kind of special treat, like a tiara, chocolate, or (most importantly!!) CHAMPAGNE!!! That's right. Champagne. During the run.
It's all about fun and smiles and good times (not necessarily good finishing times, just happy times!). Apparently most participants walk the majority of the course. I imagine this is largely because nobody would want to risk spilling their free champagne!! It's limited to only 50 participants, and it's only $40. ($55 if you want the nice technical shirt.)
Check out the website, look at your calendars, and tell me what you think. I think it's right up our alleys (or canyons, or mountains, or ocean currents, or what have you...) *I think we should do it!*

Ashes, Ashes, We all fall down!

Well, really the volcano ash isn't that noticeable, I just cough abit. yesterday, (Wednesday) I did my warm-up and a 15 mminute outside walk about with the dog and the grand daughter. it was a blast. nice to see the snow starting to melt and the temperatures about 30degrees.

Love Me Some Mojo

It's Wednesday again - Mojo day at Jogo. Happy day!! I did the core workout again, which this week was 3 rounds of:
1 minute of Ab Mat sit-ups
1 minute of Knees-to-Chest (a modification of knees-to-bows)
1 minute of Glut-Ham Machine Back Extensions
1 minute V-Ups

Then there was some left-over time for working on my kipping pull-up technique (I'm still very far away from actually doing one, but technique is key...), squat technique, and, of course, some foam-roller love. Luuuuuuvvvvvvv the Foam Roller!!!!!!!!

~The Rolly Poly Orca

Slloooogggg

Yep. Slog. A.K.A. SLOW jog today. I'm still having some serious discussions with my hip flexors about what is actually expected of them. They're pretty interested in being wadded up balls of tight muscles, and I'm hoping that they'll be nice, loosey-goosey, happy little power houses. I'm pretty sure I'm going to win the battle in the end, but it appears as though they're going to mount a serious challenge in the short term...
Carlo and I still managed about 30 minutes of a nice, easy jaunt through Whatcom Falls Park. (Right in my backyard, by the way. I'm just sayin... YAY BELLINGHAM!!!!!) It was a beautiful night, and puppy sure was excited to be a part of it, which always makes things a bit easier.
I'm now planning to stretch the night away. And drink water till I can drink no more. Or at least till I go to bed. Oh, and swallow another 800mg of my drug of choice, ibuprofen. Such a happy night planned!! :)
Happy Stretching!

Here we go again

So, we're basically starting week two of the fitness blogging. Everything's feeling like a routine again. That can be a good thing. It can also be a bad thing. I'm going to do my best to continue to think positively, although I did not enjoy my workout much tonight. I think I'm just crabby because I was told by one of the trainers to downscale the workout, and I really wanted to try the prescribed routine. But, I'm not really sure why I'm complaining, because it was still 27+ mins of all out, hard exercise:
3 rounds, as quickly as possible, of:
30 Air Squats
30 Box Jumps
30 Jumping Pull-Ups
800 meter run

(This is a modification of the Crossfit Classic Badger.)

I'm now off to eat & hydrate! Us Orcas need LOTS of H2O!!

Choices Choices Choices...

Man, am I ever spoiled here in the old 'Ham!! I woke up this morning, knowing that I wanted to go for my four mile long run for the week, and I shuffled through all of the different trail systems I had to choose from. What bliss!!
I ended up choosing the Larabee Park Trail that leads into the Interurban Trail. I actually didn't know that the first 0.4 miles of the trail was Larabee instead of the Interurban until I got online to figure out distances this morning. Turns out, if you start at the dog park down in Fairhaven, then run along the Interurban to the road crossing right before Arroyo park, and come back only as far as the 10th & Donnovan trailhead, then you've gone four miles on two different trail systems. With your puppy. On a trail that's just muddy enough to not be sloppy for footing, but just muddy enough to get your puppy's underbelly & legs nice and juicy. Which then gets transferred to your car on the way home. Especially if you forget to bring a towel to dry him off before he gets in the car. Oops...
It was a good run with a really slow start. I'm still struggling with some left hip flexor/adductor pain, so it takes a few minutes to get it loosened up enough to run. Then it feels great during the run. Then it tightens up as soon as I get done. A lot. Ouch. But the run itself was great, and I spent a lot of time along the way looking forward to the many, many more runs I'll do along the Interurban in preparation for the RnR in June. Kind of intimidating, but much more exciting!!

On another note, Welcome Welcome Welcome Bouncing Bear!! We'll try to talk some tomorrow about getting you all set up so you can have a profile and make changes to the site and stuff. So excited to have another long-distance workout partner!!

Happy (many!) Trails (and pools)!!

Finally!!

Yesterday I finally got back into the pool. Last weekend I had a dog/ice accident and blew up my knee again, so no weight bearing this week. It felt so goooood to get back to exercising. I am so happy. I only managed a very slow 30 minutes, but celebrated all day, just thinking that the time has come back.
Volcano ash is headed our way, already hit south Anchorage so it is just as well I can't be outside anyhow!
Thank you ladies for the comraderie!!

Momma Meg

Bionic

I was able to escape from work just in time to make it to Crossfit tonight. I was not able to do it yesterday, and I was all sorts of crabby last night. Don't you love it when you realize your addiction has returned?!? Well, I suppose that's usually only good news if it's an addiction to exercise...
Anyhow, we did a workout called the Bionic at Jogo. You were to do 5 rounds of the following as fast as possible:
6 Sumo Deadlift High Pulls - 65#
6 Burpees (It's important to note that I do not do them as quickly as the video shows. And I don't do muscle-ups at the end either...)
6 Front Squats - 65#
6 Kettlebell Swings - 16kg (~35#)
6 Snatches or Overhead Squats - 65# (I only did this at 45#)

It took me 15:10, which left plenty of time for stretching afterward. So lovely! It was also a really satisfying workout because it's the first time I've ever done the snatch. Always fun to expand your horizons!
Now off to rest to gear up for a four mile jog tomorrow. Happy Friday!
~The Orca

Moooohhhh-Joooooohhhh

Wednesdays at Jogo is "Mojo" day. It's designed as an active recovery day. I generally do the core workouts on these days, which has always been a weak point for me. The core routine at Jogo has recently changed, and today is the first day that I did the new one. It's a Tabata workout with the ab wheel. Tabata is 8 rounds of 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off, with a goal of reaching the same number of repititions each round. The ab wheel is a wheel that you attach to your feet, then do movements like bridges and knee tucks aimed at strengthening all of your core muscles.
So, I did four different Tabata Ab Wheel exercises (super hard work!), then spent the second half of class doing some muscle rehab on a foam roller, which basically gives you a really intense deep-muscle massage feeling. It's called myofascial release, and it hurts sooooo good!
I then skipped away from Jogo, into the beautiful spring sunshine, with a big happy smile on my face. I definitely got my mojo back!!
Happy exercising, ladies!!
~Outrageously Content Orca

Lake Padden

This was the first time I've returned to jog around Lake Padden since moving back to Bellingham. Always such a lovely run! Pretty short, but a really nice mix of flat & hills. I felt pretty good most of the way, which I didn't expect, since I'm still so sore from yesterday. So, my time was a lot slower than I've done it before (29:29 today, and I think my fastest time was around 25 mins for the 2.6 mile loop), but it was nice to feel good while I was doing it. Encouraging.
Of course, then Carlo was sure to humble me by sprinting around the dog park for 45 more minutes after our jog together...

~The Ornate (-ly covered in mud) Orca

Filthy. But Back!

My first day back to Crossfit in about 3 weeks was a doozy!!
We did a classic workout - the Filthy 50:
50 Box jump, 24 inch box
50 Jumping pull-ups
50 Kettlebell swings, 16kg
Walking Lunge, 50 steps
50 Knees to elbows
50 Push press, 45 pounds
50 Back extensions
50 Wall ball shots, 20 pound ball
50 Burpees
50 Double unders

I had to modify several of the exercises (I can only do an 18" box jump, I did half the kettlebells with 16kg then went down to 12kg, I did a swinging grasping version of knees-to-bows, I only used a 14# ball for wall ball, and I did tuck jumps instead of double unders). It took me 35 mins, 32 secs. Isn't Crossfit grand?!?!!

~The Ouchy Orca

i am so excited to

i am so excited to start training...if only i wasnt sitting in an airport. liz are you starting back at crossfit tonight? yay!

North Shore Lake Whatcom

This morning, the rambunctious Roadrunner and I had a jog along the North Shore of Lake Whatcom. It's a lovely 6 mile out-and-back trail. We jogged the first 3 miles out, then turned and alternated walking, jogging, and running (a faster version of jogging) at random intervals for the trip back. Puppy Carlo joined us for the fun, and was a fabulous off-leash partner until he spied another dog getting to fetch sticks in the lake. He was then completely lost to us, and forced to remain on-leash for the remainder of the trail. Now he's at home, basking in his stinky wetness. Happy puppy, and very happy Orca. A pleasant way to begin the blogging!
~The Opulent Orca