Brown Socks

Zack's play postcard

 

I'm in

I headed over to packet pick-up this afternoon still not sure if I would actually be able to run the race...

After getting my packet I decided to run the 3 mile loop at Town Lake to see if my shin/ankle pain would get worse or better.  A few minutes in I could still feel a pulling feeling, but it wasn't getting worse.  About 10 minutes in, the pain was pretty much gone- and it was just kinda tight- nothing awful. Perhaps it was just something in  my ankle that was tight and needed to be worked out. Who knows.  Maybe I'm just paranoid!

So I'm doing the race tomorrow. And Monday I will start to focus on a completely new training plan- I'll be trying something different for the next few months.  I don't yet know what it is because I am not designing it, but I am looking forward to checking it out.  I'm hoping it won't be too painful...

The Catch

So I was watching and old Sex the City episode  on Saturday- the one in which Carrie goes on a trapeze assignment.  And she is freaking out about letting go and making a fuss.  And I'm like "that Carrie Bradshaw, what a freakin' chicken!  What is she even screaming about it looks easy and it can't be that scary...geez"

Well, I decide that I am going to have to try it out for myself.  I remembered reading an article in the Statesman a few months ago about classes that were held in Austin.  I checked out the website and found that they were in town for the month of May.  I called Monday morning to sign up, but I was wait-listed.  I figured that my trapeze curiosity was going to have to wait until the circus came around again next year.  But, I got a call on Tuesday evening to let me know that there was a space for me the next day! So, without really thinking about what I was getting into, I said "I'll take it!"

I really didn't know what I was signing up for...I thought I would swing around on the bar for a while and then go home.

For those of  who have never been on a trapeze- it ain't easy and it is scary. 

So, this is how it goes- first, you get there and fill out some paperwork (including information about your health insurance- great) and then stretch out.  Then they instruct you how to do your first "trick" on a low practice bar.  We were given very specific instructions on how to jump off of the platform (hop off), what to do in mid air (hook your legs and hang upside down), and how to get down (back flip...are you SERIOUS?).  And then it was time to try it out for real.

I'm third- so I get a chance to watch a few others try it first.  I look at the platform and the net and the ground and wonder if there is any way to fall off the platform and somehow miss then net...? I'm incredibly klutzy, so if someone is going to do it, it would be me. 

My turn....There is a very skinny ladder that brings you up to the platform. A skinny ladder. A skinny wobbly ladder.  Once I get up to the top it hits me what I am doing- I am about to jump off a 25 foot platform.  The apparatus is set up in an open part of the property at the highest point in the area and it overlooks hill country. It made you feel like you were MUCH higher than 25 feet. I listen to the very specific instructions on how to where to place my hands, how to put chalk on your hands while holding on for my life on top of  the small platform..which I was occupying with another person- leaving little room for movement.  I am hooked to the harness and instructed to grab the bar with my right hand (while leaning forward) and holding on to the ladder/pole thingy with my left.  And that bar was freakin' heavy- I felt like it was going to pull me off the platform. That was when my legs started to s h a k e. 

The sequence of events for the next forty five seconds is as follows-

I grab the bar with the other hand

My toes are at the edge and I am instructed to grab the bar with the other hand while leaning forward.  My legs really start to shake now, but after a false start, I jump off at the cue (Ready- Hep)  and I am flying.  I'm instructed to get my knees hooked at the top of the first swing.

I'm then instructed to let go of the bar at the top of the back-swing. I am hanging, looking for the "catchers" bar, pretending to put my arms and hand out to be caught (we will do this at the end).

I swing a few times, then unhook my legs to return to hanging. I kick my legs forward, backward, and forward- bring my knees in, and somehow manage a sorry looking back flip.

Repeat 3 times.  I am just getting comfortable with the old hang and flip thing- when they change it up on me.  Now it is time for "the catch".

So the dude gets on the other bar, and now he is the one that lets me know when to jump off the platform (instead of the person on the platform with me as before). I am totally thrown off,  I manage an idiotic take-off where I scrape my foot on the platform...I then hook my legs and hang, and release from the bar for the dude to catch me.....But instead of grabbing onto him, I ball my fists up and he drops me. The instructor looks at me puzzled,  and tells me "I have no idea what you just did".  Great.

So, he is nice enough to let me try it again, though it is getting late. The whole process goes by so quickly...a matter of seconds...so it is easy to be off in your timing, or forget the directions.   I really wanted to make this work so I focused on all of the things I had to do to pull it off.  And, I did it! When I got to the top of the first swing, I swung my arms back when he told me too and let go- put my hands out and was caught.  And then I swung there for a bit while he held onto my wrists, then he told me to push off and turn around to catch the returning bar. Yeah right. I had visions of the bar flying into my head so I let go, ducked, and fell to the net.  I found out after the bar was nowhere near my head. Oh well.

So my big accomplishment of the eve was that I was successful in "the catch".  So I didn't get "the return" but I was pretty darn happy with what I was able to do.  Climbing up on a small ladder onto a small platform and flying through the air by my knees was pretty darn freaky... But when I was up there, my legs shaking like mad, I just compared it to that week-long fear that I had before my 50K...and it wasn't that bad. I mean, with the Trapeze lesson there were people telling you exactly what to do, were spotting you, even holding you to keep you from falling on your face, and there was a safety net.  We don't have any of those things out there on the trails- yeah there are aid stations and other runners for support- but how you do it is ultimately your plan and your plan only.  So to add to the reasons why I love this whole trail running thing- it has helped me be more comfortable with my fears so that I don't let those fears keep me from doing something I want to do.  I have let my fears keep me from things in the past (I never learned to ski and I grew up in Central New York!)... NO MAS!

Today my arms, my hamstrings, and my calves are sore. And my shoulders. It made for a not-so-comfortable run on the greenbelt today.  Oh, and I have bruises om my leg- behind my knees, and some bar-burn.  And I thought it looked easy!

Whim

I had an easy run planned for Wednesday.

Instead, I did a new workout:

I'm on my way to meeting, so I don't have time to write now- but I will say a few things about Trapeze...

It is not easy

It is a super leg workout (ow!)

The bar is HEAVY

And yes, it is scary. I didn't think so until I got up on the platform and my legs started to uncontrollably shake.  It is hard not to be scared when you are holding a very heavy bar while hanging forward off the platform with someone smaller than you holding you by your waist belt.

But also, IT IS really fun...and I made a catch!

More later (with a few pictures)

Mom Day

My little guy ran the Mother's Day 5K race today- It made my day to see him so confident, proud, and happy!

Running races has become a big part of our lives, and has become an important part of his as well. Starting 2 years ago Marcel started to express interest in doing what "Mom and Dad do" so we started him with a some kids races. He LOVED them. The look on his face when he finished his first race was priceless...It was a 1 mile race and he, along with many of the younger kids, had a meltdown halfway into the race.  He asked me to carry him. We walked slowly, but was we got closer to the finish line he began to pick up the pace. As he turned the corner to the finish line his face turned into a look of bewilderment- tons of people were clapping for him calling out his name (which was on his shirt).  The announcer yelled "Go Marcel" and the look of bewilderment changed to a look of excitement. He kicked it into high-gear and I veered off to the side to let him cross the finish line by himself.  He was thrilled- and even more thrilled with he was given a donut and a medal/patch for finishing.  And he keeps going back - he runs every kids K/kids Mile that he can, always with a smile on his face.  At every race we will see a handful of small kids out there on the course who are scared or tired and bawling... and there are always those parents who are pushing them to "tough it out" or "suck it up".  I always cringe when I see those kids- they look so miserable and it is clear that the race is more for the parent then for the kid.  We look at these races as a fun experience for Marcel- our only expectation is that he enjoys himself.  I have seen him become a very confident boy over the past 2 years,  and I am sure that the races and Kung Fu (his current "sport") have much to do with it.

So today, instead of running the Kids K, Marcel asked to run the 5K with Zack and Salado. I started about 10 minutes before them (Moms first!) so I was able to see them on the out-and-back, and then 2 more times on the course after I finished my race and doubled back.  When Marcel saw me the second time (about mile 2.5), he kicked up the pace to show us his skills (photo 1).  After cheering him there, I took a short-cut to the finish line and was able to cheer for him as he crossed the finish line (photo 2).  He was tired, but so happy with himself.  Plus he got Krispy Kreme for his efforts- can't top that in his book.

Well, I hadn't intended on writing all of this when I started! I was just going to post the pictures... But people in my life ask me about it, so I thought I would share.

And if that wasn't enough to make me a happy mama- Marcel has promised me some Mother's Day Chocolate later! Good day for sure.

Vacation Running

Yesterday I woke up and threw on my new running shoes and ran around my old neighborhood. It was so nice to run down the street and see trees.  A forest of tall pine trees was all I could see as I reached the top of the hill.  Ahhh, I'm home.

In a few hours I'm heading across the city to meet up with Lara and Molly to run a 5K at one of the nearby college cross country trails!

More hills

Yesterday I went back out to run in the neighborhood- I did the same route that I did last week, the hilly route which was probably about 4.5 miles or so.  I started out as the sun was coming up, and as I made my way to the hilly area I started to see people;  a person walking their dog, a couple getting some early morning exercise...and then more people: a trio of runners, more dog walkers, more couples, 3 bikers.  I stopped counting when I hit 30 people, all before 6:30 AM!  And that's not even including the folks out watering their lawn...It was really strange; there was so much activity, a few times I had to look at my watch to make sure I wasn't totally confused about the time.  My guess was that people are getting out and exercising off their 4th of July hot dogs and potato salad...? It sure wasn't because it was a cool, breezy morning (it was 80 degrees when I left at 5:50). I have never seen that many people out on the road in that neighborhood, especially that early.  It was pretty cool saying "good morning" to one person after the other.  What a great way to start the day.

I'm taking a rest day today after my hilly run yesterday.  However, I am sitting around wearing running clothes anyway. That is basically what I do these days, get home from work and change into running clothes, even when I am not going running.  On the weekends, the same thing.  It is so freakin' hot here that dry-fit clothing is the only thing that is comfortable to wear! 

On another note, I haven't picked up the crud, yet... However more people at my work have, so it is just a matter of time.  I don't know if I wrote about this when it happened, but the last time I got sick (sinus infection) I ran through most of the sickness.  I actually preferred the way I felt when running, it was the only time my sinuses were not plugged up beyond belief. So, today when a coworker announced that she was coming down with the workplace crud, my advice to her was to go running. She looked at me as if I was insane.  Later, I went over the conversation in my head and realized what a ridiculous suggestion that was! Here the girl had no energy, was feeling achy and sick, and I am telling her to "go run it off".  I shot her an email later telling her that I thought that was the worst advice I have given in a while. She wrote back that it was OK, and that she wasn't considering the advice anyway... I guess running goes to my head sometime.

Back out there

I had a good easy run around the neighborhood this morning. Thankfully! I was apprehensive about getting back out there after Saturday's disaster of a run. Today I headed out at as soon as the sun came up for a 45 minute run around the "Medium" hilly section of the neighborhood. Stayed away from "Major" hilly section today, but plan to zig-zag up and down the hills later this week for a hill workout. No hills today though, just one short climb before turning around and heading back home.

Surprisingly, I wasn't aware of any soreness in my arms and shoulders from the kayaking yesterday. Oh, but I feel it now, do I ever. I feel like the muscles between my shoulder and neck are black and blue. Oh, and I forgot to mention the idiotic sunburn I got yesterday in the kayak...I put sunscreen on my arms and shoulders, but forgot to put it on my legs. I'm not in the habit of doing so since my legs don't seem to get much sun while running. But, sitting with your legs stretched in front of you in a kayak on the lake - that's another story. The tops of my legs are burned in such a way that it looks like someone poured red Kool-Aid on my legs. All uneven and blotchy. I even think I have a bit of a sunscreen hand print on my left leg. Needless to say, I wore pants to work today...My husband got a good laugh.

This evening, Marcel and I went over to Blunn Creek Nature Preserve to check out the trail. Located in between 135, Travis High School, and St Edward's University, it is definitely an odd place to find such a cool trail. When I first pulled up to the entrance on St. Edwards Drive, it appeared to be overgrown and forgotten. I wasn't sure where to park, but had read in a few places on the Internet to just park there on the street, so I did.  Once we got beyond the overgrown entrance, it opened up into maintained little trails. At most trail intersections there were markers to let you know know where you are going, a plus in my book! In just 40 acres (or so) the trail had it all- creek crossings, flat soft runnable surfaces, rocky climbs, scenic overlooks- in a mini sort of way.  The Volcanic Overlook was my favorite part of the hike/run, with a view of my former college in the distance-

As he did on Friday, Marcel bolted off immediately, running over rocks, tree branches, and creeks. He is unstoppable. Our hike turned into a run (of course) and I got about 2 more miles in at the trail after we found our way back to the car. My new trail running partner it seems, is my 4 year-old son.  At least out here in the less traveled trails I am not getting looks from people like I am torturing him while running with him at Town Lake. Always get a few of those disapproving looks, like I am forcing him to run out of punishment for not eating his peas or something.

My favorite photo on our hike is the one below- for some reason the setting was on sepia, but I think it looks pretty cool that way.

Scouting out the Greenbelt

Friday Marcel and I went down to the Greenbelt to take some photos for Marcel's Father's Day gift to Zack. It was also an opportunity for me to scout out 2 of the Greenbelt trail-heads that I have not used before, 360 Access and Gus Fruh. I was very surprised that it was completely dry, allowing us to actually hike up the middle of the creek once the trail became more technical. I spent most of the time running behind Marcel- man that kid is fast. When we arrived at the trail-head I explained to him that the BELT race coming up in July would be on the same trail that we were about to hike on. After hearing that, it wasn't about hiking anymore, and as soon as he found the trail- he was off. I was yelling "waaaiiiit, waaaaiiiit" behind him like a little old lady, as I tried to strap on my Camelbak and get my camera in a safe place. I joke around, but I have to say it was awesome to be down there running with him. He really has some endurance for a 4 year old, and can run for quite a while. I got quite a work-out chasing him! When he realized that he was officially a "trail-runner" too, he was very pleased. 

I did find one great short loop to run, to work on my technical footing and climbing. I may try it one of these mornings... Now all I need is my new Brooks to come in the mail and I'm ready!

"Real" push-ups

About a few months ago, I started doing push-ups every other day (or so) to help with my arm strength, and to allow me to get in a little work-out when my schedule is tight.  At first, I started with a few push-ups while using my knees, otherwise known as "girl" push-ups (poo!) .  I will call them modified push-ups. At first, even 10 modified push-ups were difficult, but was able to increase the push-ups each week. I have been working up to "full" push-ups, but man there is a serious difference between resting on your knees and using your full weight (see below for my "calculation"). I could only manage one or two full push-ups before collapsing on the floor.

It has taken me a while, but last night I finally did it- 2 sets of 10 "real" push-ups!

In attempt to figure out how much weight I was pushing up (and why it was so darn hard), I googled "how much weight push up" or something like that.  The first site I saw said: to determine how much weight you are pushing up do a push up on a scale. OK, I could do that. Basically, you have to bring all of your weight down on your arms, the way you would right before you push up, and check the scale. Well, my scale is in a bathroom the size of a closet, so I had to bring it down to the kitchen to a larger flat surface. My  poor husband was trying to make breakfast while I did this. Anyway, I started by doing the modified push-up; the scale read about 45 lbs. When went to measure the full push-up, I almost fell over; it is not easy to hold your body low in that position while you wait for your cheap scale to register the weight. After what seemed like a lifetime, it finally read 90 lbs. 

A bit later I found a site that said that a push up is 65% of your weight. Yup- that's about right... There is actually a formula! Why was I doing push-ups on the bathroom scale, in the kitchen, while my husband was stepping over me to toast his bagel?

One of the sites I googled today had this to say about women and push-ups:

"Female athletes tend to have less relative strength in the upper body and therefore can use the modified press up position to assess their upper body strength."

Boo! My "girl" push-ups are the real deal now.

Running and Snotting

So I dragged my butt down to the trail at 7:00 this morning. The plan was to run until Zack and Marcel met me at the trail to check out the triathlon. I decided on a new and different route (to avoid the triathlon frenzy) and ran in terms of time not distance. I should do that more often, it takes away the calculations I do create a workout such as "a 12 mile run is one 6.9 mile loop plus a 4.2 loop and a bit less than a mile out-and-back..." I lose all ability to do math when I run, and when doing multiple loops sometimes I forget if I am supposed to run to the first bridge (3.1 mi) or the 2nd (4.2 mi) to make mileage.

So I ran 1 1/2 hours instead of a pre-determined route. Not anywhere near twelve miles, but with my snotty nose, I figured that was pretty darn good. Nothing like running along the trail blowing snot bubbles in your nose. I finished just as Zack and Marcel were getting in the car to meet me - perfect timing.

After that I walked about 1 1/2 miles to meet Zack and Marcel at the triathlon swim finish area. We watched the swimmers, then crossed to the runner's finish. There was a time last year when I was considering doing a tri this summer, and probably will someday- but today I was glad to be watching.

We walked the 1 1/2 miles back to the car, only to find that my car was completely boxed in in the parking lot; cars on either side of me as well as in front and behind.  What the hell were those folks were thinking, clearly the parking was 3 deep?! Anyway, luckily, I caught Zack and Marcel before they left and hitched a ride home.  We went back a few hours later and it was free, thankfully.

Still snotty and sneezing, even after an allergy pill and decongestanet (post run). I really hope this goes away soon!

Volunteer Duty

Tomorrow I will be volunteering for a few hours at The Maze trail race. I am really looking forward to getting out there and seeing things from the "other side".  I think it is important to "give back" to the running community as a volunteer- they are so important to the success of these events. I hope to more race volunteering now that I finished my 8-month mentor project and my once-a-week volunteer "lunch lady" duties.

The last event I volunteered for was a triathlon- I was stationed in the transition area (swim to bike). There was a big runway from the lake to the bike area, and my duty was to be a human barricade and try to keep people from crossing in front of the athletes. The finish line was on the other side of of the runway, and spectators were frantic to get across, regardless of the fact that they were cutting off the competitors. I was cussed at, pushed, kicked, and my toes were run over by impatient stroller-pushers all morning long. When you are standing between a spectator and the loved one they came to see, you can be sure that you will not be the one to win the battle. Needless to say, it was not an enjoyable experience.

Tomorrow will be much better and I am really looking forward to checking it out.

Tune-up

I get a sports massage tomorrow!

Recovery

From October 26, 2005

Well, it has been 3 days since Rocky Raccoon, and I am feeling surprisingly well! I went to the gym this morning at 5:15 to get my long overdue upper-body/abs workout in and do about 20 minutes of bike. Everything felt pretty good, it is amazing how I have forgotten how much pain I was in on Saturday.

Plus, I got a sports massage today!

Official results for the race should be posted soon. I hope to be somewhere in the middle..!?

Recovery

From October 26, 2005

Well, it has been 3 days since Rocky Raccoon, and I am feeling surprisingly well! I went to the gym this morning at 5:15 to get my long overdue upper-body/abs workout in and do about 20 minutes of bike. Everything felt pretty good, it is amazing how I have forgotten how much pain I was in on Saturday.

Plus, I got a sports massage today!

Official results for the race should be posted soon. I hope to be somewhere in the middle..!?