Oh! My aching legs!

Since I can't run, I've decided to change my triathlon to a duathlon called an Aquabike. This eliminates walking the running part as I had originally planned and adds a bit of mileage to the swim and bike part. Works for me. I finally swam 20 laps last week and did another his week. I forgot my goggles so I couldn't do as aggressive a swim as I wanted, plus I was tired so I took it easy. I used the kick board for a couple laps to warm up, then breaststroke and backstroke the rest of it. I did manage one lap of right side stroke but since my left side is weaker I about drowned myself trying a left side stroke.  I quickly went back to breast stroke. Do what you know. Soon enough I will get together with my friend at a lake and try to see how long I can go in open water. Her husband is a swim coach so I hope he has some tips for me. I still feel like a flailing mess when I try the freestyle stroke. 

 

Before I set out on my not so ambitios swim I put 35 mins on the recumbent bike again. But after my trail bike ride yesterday there is a huge difference between 30 mins on a recumbent bike and 30 mins on a hybrid trail bike with changes in elevation and a huge honking bridge to cross. Guess I need to work on my intervals with hills and other incline on the bike. And I need to get my lazy butt up on a regular cycle and not rest easy in the recumbent. 

But yesterday's ride was 8.2 miles with only 3 crotch relieving breaks lasting less than a minute. It took 46 minutes to make that 8.2 mile trek on fairly flat, with some small inclines, and easy paved trails. I need to figure out how to ride without causing much trauma to my lady parts. The trouble seems to be a nerve thing. I try sitting on my "sit" bones but within minutes I get that painful numbing feeling inside my right leg. That's why I had to stop. It was only a half minute or so and then back on the trail I go. Today my legs feel like concrete logs attached to my hips that take way too much effort to manipulate one in front of the other. I am a nurse on a busy hospital floor and about 10 hrs into my 12 hr shift I was dragging myself from room to room. And I have a huge hematoma that has a very tender knot in the middle of it that I acquired from bumping the water bottle cage in the middle of the bike against my inner thigh.  I asked one of the docs about it and she said to wait a couple days and things should get better. It just needs to resolve on its own. In the meantime I keep bumping it into desks, beds, anything at that height. Tomorrow what is now the size of 2 quarters side by side will probably be bigger than a dollar bill. And hurt like hell. 

So the lesson to take from this is:

-I'm so out of shape

-I'm tired from trying to get into shape

-I have a lot of work to do.

Keep in truckin' folks. See ya out on the trail someday.

-

Swimmer's got the blues

Yesterday I hit the rec center motivated to start my training. I did intervals on the stationary bike for 35 mins. I probably could have gone longer but my toes were getting numb on my right foot so I stopped. Don't want to hurt myself and give up due to pain etc. Then I hit the free weights for a few quick arm moves like bicep curls, etc to start some upper body strength training. I was really ready for the pool but Mother Nature had another idea. There was an oncoming storm with lightening so they closed the pool. I could wait 30 mins per their protocol but the sky was looking a little dark and the wind picked up so I figured it was time to go.

One big thing to remember when undertaking any type of commitment is flexibility. There will be times when you can't do what you wanna do. You can choose to get mad and stew about it. Or you can move on and make other plans. Getting mad is only gonna add extra stress to an already stressful situation. You're best bet is to reevaluate and chose something else. That is what I did, I chose to go home and make a very healthy dinner. My beau was supportive of my going to the gym and very grateful for the delicious dinner I made. I'm happy that I got at least a 35 minute cardio workout. Tomorrow I'll try again. My workout bag is still packed and sitting by the kitchen door.

Over fifty, fat and frumpy

Yep, that's me. Now people say "oh, you're not fat" and I say "thanks" and go about my business. But I'm here to say I have too much fat on my body. The jury is still out about the "healthy" fat but I am not healthy. I used to be in good shape. Once when I weighed 135 lbs I thought I was fat but I wasn't in good shape then either. Once when I weighed 145 I was in great shape and felt good about it. But now that I've accumulated 50 lbs on top of that over the last 10yrs it's time to own it. I'm fat. 

So, what am I gonna do about it? Well, I'm gonna get in shape. Usually I am lazy with the workouts. Once a week for a few weeks and then I lose interest. For some stupid reason getting in shape and being healthy has not been motivation enough for me to get healthy again. But I am a goal oriented and a to-do list person. I've made my "getting healthy" goal into a to-do list with a goal at the end, something to work towards that has a tangible reward. What is that goal? To weigh a certain amount? No. To be able to do 30 squats without breaking down and crying for momma? No. To wear size 10 jeans again? No. To wear shorts that don't look like something gramma would wear to the senior center? No, well, maybe yes. Either way I want something. I want a medal around my neck. A medal I can hang on my "me" wall along with my degrees, diplomas and pictures of my family. 
"How do you get a medal for getting into shape?" you ask.  Let me tell you.

I am going to swim for 450 meters, ride a bike for about 12 miles and then run (or in my case, power walk due to knee issues) for 3 miles. When I cross the finish line of that triathlon I will have reached my goal. TRIATHLON? you say. How does someone fat, over fifty and not an athlete do this? VERY carefully. I've google training programs and have read enough personal victory stories, I know I can do it. I walked and ran a half marathon once before when I set my mind to it. Why not this? 

So what does triathlon training and fat have in common? Not much and that is my point. By training, I hope to lose some fat, find some muscles under it and get in shape. Getting in shape is a side affect of training. I'm not focusing on the weight or the fat loss but instead I'm going to focus on gaining strength and endurance. Fortunately I have a rec center membership with a pool so I can start my swim training, a friend who is willing to help coach my stroke style, a beau who is willing to go on bike rides with me and give me the support I need. 

The best thing I can get out of this is to stop calling myself the old fat lady. Oh, and a medal.