Run or Dye [for Daylight!]

Today, I ran a 5k fun run for Daylight Center and School.

In rural Kenya, nomads practice "sapana," a rite of passage empowering men to make decisions for their community. During this ritual, young men are "painted green" with goat refuse. At Daylight, we want to encourage these nomads to empower both boys and girls to be leaders in their communities with another rite of passage: education. So as a symbol of joining the Daylight community in this mission, a few of us got painted at Run or Dye!

After waiting in the cold for about an hour and a half, our wave finally started! I sprinted out the starting line, and then walked for a minute or two to warm up my cold ankles, then I ran then entire 3.1 miles. Thank you, again, Brianna, Emilie, and Kari for doing this with me!

Also, special props to Emilie. Our group didn't want to ride back in the buses (and have to wait in another long line), so while Brianna and Kari rode to brunch with some of our awesome fans, Emilie and I ran another 1.5 miles to brunch!

So, in all, I ran 4.6 miles. Whoo hoo!

Last Stop?

This morning, I went for a walk with Luke and Baxter outside! Beautiful morning for it. We did a 3-mile circuit in 55 minutes. At right is a picture of the train that went by during our walk. It was only 4 cars long.

Later in the afternoon, I did disc 2 of Power 90 for strength training.

Tomorrow is weigh in! We will all see if I made my goal of weighing 118 pounds. If that is the case, then I have some diet planning to do in order to transition to maintenance rather than weight loss. After 6 weeks of being on this weight loss diet and exercise plan, that will be a new challenge!

P90x: Shoulders, Arms, and Abs

So, we didn't work out this morning. And instead of working out during lunch, we grabbed lunch with our friend Chris. So, we ended up working out this evening, which, is fine, but not ideal for the long term.

I took this routine easy, because I think this was the one last week that made my shoulders and neck a bit stiff and out of whack. I like my chiropractor, but I'd rather go without seeing him :) Anyway, as a result, I used less resistant resistance bands, and completed fewer repetitions if I felt I was straining my neck or back.

What I didn't foresee is all of the strain I would suffer in my feet. During the ab exercises, my left foot started to cramp. Foot cramps are painful! And how do they come about? Maybe I didn't drink enough water before exercising...?

P90x: Plyometrics

I have been looking forward to this routine! Mostly, because it isn't weight lifting, like we have to do every other day. It certainly isn't any easier, in fact, Plyometrics is arguably the most difficult P90X routine. Not to mention the most difficult routine to pronounce...every once in awhile "pyrometrics" slips out, or "plyrometrics." Luke sometimes says "pylometrics." At times, we just give up and say "the jumping one." By the end of 90 days, I will not only be fit, I will have also conquered the pronunciation of this routine!

We did the routine during lunch today. It just felt way too good to sleep in.

Later today, I convinced Luke we needed to go and get him some new shoes. The pair of tennis shoes he owns right now are literally just that: tennis shoes. The kind you wear to play tennis; the ones with the boxy toe and are way too heavy to successfully perform endurance exercises and other forms of cardio. The P90X instructor is always saying to land softly on your toes. Well, with Luke's tennis shoes, it's impossible, and as a result, Luke's feet started to hurt during the plyometrics routine today.

Luke bought some all-purpose, light-weight exercise shoes from REI. I love REI, because (at least if you are a member there, not sure about non-members), you can return whatever whenever for basically whatever reason. The shoes Luke bought aren't ideal for the plyometrics routine, but they are leaps and bounds (pun absolutely intended) above what he was using, and he can see himself wearing these shoes (that don't even look like your standard gym shoe) around casually. Which, if you know Luke, is saying a lot, because this guy likes to look snazzy!

P90x: Chest, Back, and Abs

So, Luke and I did not make time for P90X on Sunday. Usually, working out with at least one other person helps keep you accountable and keeps you going. But occasionally, both of you might get the same excuse in your head, and skipping a workout becomes justified.

When it became clear that we weren't going to actually workout on Sunday, Luke suggested we just pick up where we left off on Monday, rather than skip a workout.

So, today, we did the chest, back, and abs routine. Although, because we woke up late, and because I didn't want to be late for work, I suggested we wait and do the abs during lunch. It all worked out (and so did we). Lame joke, I know... :)

P90x: Chest, Back, and Abs

Wow, I have definitely learned which exercises I hate. Military push ups and triangle push ups are the bane of my existence. And it's really impossible to modify these types of push ups by going to my knees rather than feet. It just can't be done. So, I guess I need to increase the number of push ups I can do for the more standard positions before I can expect to do better with the military and triangle push ups.

My favorite types of push ups, on the other hand, are the dive bomber push ups. After doing so many standar push ups, it helps change things up a bit.

P90x: Kenpo

Kenpo was so much fun! So many of the other P90X routines are so structured with regular strength training exercises...lifting weights, lunges, squats, etc. Kenpo makes me sweat just as much (or perhaps even more) but rather than dread or count down the seconds for one exercise, I just want to keep going! And its essentially self defense training, making it applicable outside the gym. Don't mess with this girl!

P90x: Legs, Back and Abs

So this P90x routine is similar to the chest, back and abs routine: a lot of pull ups. And then a lot of squats for the legs. It burns!

P90x: Yoga

It's been a looong time since I've done yoga. Because of some lower back problems I have, my chiropractor told me to avoid any exercise (or work) that requires me to bend over or twist at the waist. In other words: no yoga. But since it's been a few years and I've made some efforts to see a personal trainer in order to safely build up my core muscles, I decided I would give it a go and see how my body reacts to the P90X yoga routine.

I was blown away by the crazy poses I was able to do and how good I felt after the routine. Of course, with any exercise, not all of it felt good while doing it, and I stopped any motion or position that I thought would do some damage to my back.

I still prefer pilates, but yoga will probably make me more flexible that pilates ever could.

P90x: Shoulders, Arms, and Abs

So, the shoulders, arms, and abs P90X exercise is about 75 minutes long. Luke and I cringed when we calculated how early we had to be up if we are going to do these P90X routines before work (which is what I prefer since I have thesis writing and board member responsibilities to do in the evenings). And as I've stated before, exercising in the morning gets me awake and ready for work like coffee can't.

So Luke and I slinked out of bed at 6:00am and changed into exercise gear. After 4 short minutes of the warm up, we both noticed how awake we felt already! This exercise was not as difficult as yesterday's Plyometrics workout in the sense that the weight lifting of shoulders, arms, and abs is much lower impact than plyometrics. We have opted to use resistant bands for the weight lifting exercises, mostly because we already have some. But since both of us are doing these workouts at the same time, I think it would be a good idea to invest in a few more, as sometimes Luke was using the one that I wanted to use, or vice versa.

P90x: Plyometrics

(aka: jump training) Plyometrics were fun! Took me back to high school basketball practice with all of the shuffling, jumping, etc. Supposedly plyometrics are supposed to make me a better and faster runner, so, sure I'll take some time off running if this will make me better!

I've noticed that Luke and I have had to eat a lot more food than we usually do for this P90x workout. I'm going to have to go to the grocery store again for some more protein snacks...turkey jerkey... In fact, Luke usually eats as much (or even less) than what I have in the past (of course, he doesn't run every other day, so why would he need to). But I think this meal plan is going to be a challenge.

P90x: Chest, Back, and Abs

So, Luke approached me the other week and told me he thought he would do P90X. A few months ago, he met with a trainer, and the trainer had recommended that if he wasn't going to stick with a gym membership, then a good option would be to check out P90X. So, Luke found a 50% off version of P90X on the internet. (We think it is 50% off because it was printed before an editor or spell checker went over it...). Anyway, it arrived on Saturday.

He has convinced me to give it a go. There are a few different versions: Classic, Double, and Lean. Lean is for people who want to incorporate more cardio in (which would be me), but Luke said that if I was going to do it with him, then I have to do the Classic version with him, which is essentially strength training every day, with some cardio incorporated in. I still may only end up doing it every other day, so that I can take advantage of the beautiful fall weather to go running, but we'll all find out exactly what I end up doing.


So, today, we started the program: the exercise and meal plan. And we had to take our measurements and some "before" pictures. At right are 2 of my pictures. And here are my "Day 1" measurements:

• Weight: 128 lbs
• Chest: 33"
• Waist: 29"
• Hips: 38" (I got some hips!)
• Thigh: 19 1/2"
• Arm: 11 1/2"

By the way, the "phase 1" meal plan, called the "Fat Shredder" is almost 70% protein!

For our first day of P90X exercising, we did 60 minutes of chest and back strength training, and 15 minutes of "ab ripping." I hope there is a lot of stretching in tomorrow's routine!

Amid Mist and Sweat

I went on a 3 mile run this morning, a little bit longer than the other day because I actually got up early enough to get all 3 miles in... It is overcast and humid this morning. Mist is hanging in the air, and if it wasn't as cool as it is (low 60s), it would have been miserable. The first half of the run even felt good.

My mom wasn't feeling well last night so she decided that instead of running, she would bike along with me. I thought of it too late, but I should have had her bring my phone to take pictures. So, no pictures...again!

My average mile time today was 8:56.

Pilates

This morning, I wanted to get a good stretch in, so I did the mat work on my "Pilates for Dummies" DVD, and then the 10-minute express pilates workout on my Gaiam, Trudie Styler DVD. My mom joined me for the Gaiam portion. A few days ago, I finally decided to order the full version of the Gaiam Pilates with Trudie Styler. I've had that Pilates for Dummies DVD for about a decade...it's about time to change things up...

From One End of Town to the Other

In order to focus in and get a good portion of my thesis written, I decided to visit my parents for the week. They live in a small farm town in northwest Minnesota.

This morning, I went on a jog with my mom along the "main" road that frames the north part of town. The town is only 0.8 miles wide, so we ran to one end and back again, and then I went off for another 0.5 miles onto a country road and back. So, I ended up running about 2.5 miles total.

Having lived in Minneapolis/St. Paul for about 7 years, I can really appreciate the gorgeous country scenery on this run. I will take a picture next time I go out for a run this week.

Group Fun Run

Jesse, Chris, and Baxter

First group fun run was a success! Four people and two dogs attended for the 3 to 4 mile loop around the Stone Arch Bridge and Boone Island Park area. The people were Jesse, Chris, Kari, myself. The dogs were Winnie and Baxter.

Kari and I walked with the dogs, while Jesse and Chris got a good sweat in with a run.

Kari and Winnie

Afterwards, we all went to Wilde Roast for brunch to replace all those calories we burned off!

I don't know about Jesse, Chris, and Kari, but it was certainly fun for me to get out and exercise with other people. The three of you are welcome to post comments on what you liked best and how having even more people next time would make things even better!!!

I will keep Facebook followers posted about future events. I know Saturday mornings don't work well for some, and I will definitely change things up in the future to accomodate various schedules. Hope you can make it out next time!

At Wilde Roast

Afternoon Jog

So, Luke was serious about going for a run. After going to the farmer's market, he realized it is actually really nice out: mid 60s. Luke, Baxter, and I went on a 2-mile jog.

To cross the street to the river walk, because of the one way streets and divided highway intersection, pedestrians are meant to walk about a block east to a pedestrian crossing in order to go back west...so, essentially 2 blocks out of the way. As I turn to jog towards the crossing, Luke looks both ways and bolts across the intersection. His timing was perfect, and it was too late for me to follow, so I pick up my pace with Baxter to run to the cross walk. Because I had to wait for traffic, by the time I got to the river walk, Luke was already about 3 blocks away.

Baxter and I eventually caught up to him at a faster pace than I intended to go today because I ate half of a bagel sandwich right before we headed out. I wanted to puke. But Luke seemed happy that I was huffing and puffing as much as he was. :)

Discipline

This morning, Luke, Baxter and I all went out on a run.

Luke and I are still very jet lagged, especially in the morning. But there is something about accountability (even if both parties just want to reset their alarms and go back to sleep) that fuels us to get up and go.

Luke requested a 1.5 mile run, then a 1.5 mile walk. So, that is what we did. But since my mom was staying with us, I decided to run the last mile home in order to spend some time with her before I had to work.

I absolutely love the river view in Saint Paul in the morning.

Snorkeling

Today, we went snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef. We went on a day-long tour with three 1-hour snorkeling stops. I just did two of the hours because I was physically exhausted and really cold by the third stop.

But we saw some beautiful coral and giant clams that close when they see shadows. I held a "sea cucumber" and a piece of hard coral that oozes its own fishy smelling SPF 50.

This morning, I went for a run with Luke's dad who plotted out a nice route near and on the beach close to the resort we are staying at. I think the run was somewhere between 3 and 4 miles long. There were a handful of other runners on the beach. Ken was saying that there are even more earlier in the morning. Near the end of the run, it was getting fairly warm, so I can see why most runners would choose to run earlier, before the sun has really come up.

Ken's running strategy is to run as far as he can at a set pace, and then walk 50 steps, and then start running again for as far as he can and take another 50 steps. I tried this a few times, but have always found it to be difficult to slow down only to speed up again, but I think it's a valuable skill to work at since there are a number of reasons why someone may need to slow down or stop during a race, and then spring back into action.

For the first few days of the trip, Ken was concerned that his pace might be too slow compared to mine, so he didn't want to run with me. But it was really nice to have a running partner. And we both worked up a sweat, which is part of the point, so I think it was a success. Thanks, Ken!