Melissa here. Oh boy, have we ever had a rough couple of months. We have been dealing with some severe family problems, I would go as far as to say crisis. But things are leveling out now and I think we are feeling some stability again.
Among other things we have also dealt with health problems, among them two strikes from the the flu for both my mother and I. I'm still on the tail end of my second round.
Well, it's time to kick it into high gear. The count down has begun. 16 weeks till the marathon. We have registered, purchased plane tickets and even paid for the apartment we are renting while we are there. As much as I wish that meant I was making great progress, it doesn't. Turns out that taking care of the financial end of things doesn't do a lick for your endurance. :)
I did stupid and ran while I was sick prolonging my illness. We are going on 2.5 weeks now. . . But here is where I stand:
Miles: 3-5 per run 3 times per week
Time: Today I ran 3.82 miles in 28:12, but I also wanted to die after I did that. So I think I will be slowing down as I start lengthening my runs to 8 miles next week.
Strength: Increased my weight bearance on my legs to 165 lbs today! Woohoo! I'm not going any higher than 70 with my arms because while I think Henry Cavil is sooooo good looking in the upcoming Superman movie, I'd like to stay as feminine as possible.
H.C. in Immortals
I could care less about my legs looking as awesome as Henry Cavil's, but I don't have any desire to have my arms looking so masculine. So I think I will move on to other various gym classes that will increase my strength without "bulking" up. But my legs can be as bulky as anything, I really don't care. I might change my mind when I see how unbalanced I appear come swimsuit season. . . .
Now, for the confession. . . . I have NEVER done anything for my core. I had two extremely painful C-sections from which I still suffer PSTD from. . . I refuse to lift anything or do anything that might cause pain near my incision. But, since it has now been three years, I decided it's time to tryworking on my core. My c-sections were so awful that I don't ever even want to be reminded that they happen whenever I feel that tenderness near the incision, which is still there after all this time. But, I think it's time. I really have had a hard time getting over how awful my pregnancy was with my daughter. But this might help.
Core, here I come!
I don't think I'm ready for something as intense as Crossfit. I think most of our readers will probably be EDSers, so there may not be many who do something as challenging as Crossfit. But, if any of our readers participate in crossfit, my sister in law makes crossfit wristwraps that are fun and stylish. I think they'd come in handy for any EDSers who have problems with their wrist joints. I've even considered getting some just for my regular work outs for the extra wrist support.
I think I read somewhere, or maybe she told me that they'd soon be offering these wraps with a velcro fastener as opposed to the loop or string fastener.
In closing, I just want to share one thing I started doing that has helped me a lot. Before I go for a run I write down all the reason I shouldn't run:
1) The weather is bad
2) I'm sick
3) I'm tired
4) I need to work
5) My feet hurt from standing up all day
6) I didn't sleep well last night
and so on. Some times the list is as long as 20 items!!
But I have found that if Imake this list right before I run and then go out for my run, I come back and realize that with all those shouldn'ts I still went out and did it and felt great afterwards for doing it! And each day the list gets smaller and smaller because I realize that there is really nothing short of a physical injury that really is keeping any of us from getting out and doing something! GO DO SOMETHING!
Dublin, watch out! I'm on my way!
M.
