Laying groundwork

This summer, I have decided, is all about laying groundwork. While I don't have any firm plans or goals in mind (beyond my half-marathon, of course), I've been using this time as an exploratory period in my fitness life. By that, I mean that I'm trying a whole lot of things to see what I like best. Allow me to elaborate:

Running: I know I love running, so this is a no brainer. To switch things up and keep it interesting, I've taken on a mentoring role in my half-marathon training program. So far, I LOVE it. (That's another post to come.)

Hiking: Another no brainer. I haven't been hiking as much this summer, really, but I know I'll pick it back up when the weather cools down a bit more. I love being out in the woods and getting all that fresh air!

Crossfit: I used a Groupon to take 6 Crossfit classes, and boy did they kick my butt. While I loved the classes, the main thing holding me back from making this a regular part of my routine is cost. It's just too darn expensive--I'm finding it'll be $80-$100 a month, just for two times a week. Added to that, I feel like once you know the exercises, you can do a lot of them on your own, unlike...

Yoga: I'm falling in love with yoga again after discovering a great Vinyasa/Yin class. We spend the first half of the class in flow, then the last bit holding (seated) poses for several minutes each. I lurv this! (lurv=seriously love) The meditative aspect is so powerful for me, and my tight runner's hamstrings have been appreciating the good stretch. So, if I'm going to shell out big bucks each month on fitness, it will be on yoga.

Biking: A good friend handed down her mountain bike to me, so I am overcoming my fear of going over the handlebars (been there, done that, don't want to do it again) and learning to love the rush of the wind when I go fast... it gives me a joyful feeling like I'm a kid again. My goal is to become comfortable with biking again--things like when to brake and how hard, learning how to maintain and care for a bike, and getting more adventurous in the trails I'm attempting.

Swimming: I have never been a strong swimmer. I grew up living down the street from a lake, and we would take our paddle boat out and swim, but I never quite mastered the art of swimming without nose plugs. (Parents: Do NOT let your children ever rely on nose plugs... ever.) But, this summer, I've been meeting up with a co-worker to swim 2-3 times a week at her community pool. It's not a huge pool, and we don't swim for too long, maybe 20-25 minutes, and I'm sure I look ridiculous because I don't really know appropriate form for any strokes. But, I'm enjoying it, and working on swimming without my nose plugged, and trying to get better at the freestyle (I mostly do a strange version of the breaststroke in which I keep my head out of the water). In an ideal world, next summer I will take lessons.

Rock climbing: I haven't tried this yet, but I did buy a two-week pass to a local climbing wall that includes an intro lesson. I am really excited to give this a go!

Strength training: Always my weakness--I'm so awful at building it into my routine--I'm just working on going straight to the gym after I run to do weights or using my Jillian Michaels' 30-Day Shred DVD (so intense... for real).

The whole point for me is just trying out new things to find new activities that I love and that will keep me, well, active. And, in the back of mind, there is a whisper of a thought that if I can become a stronger swimmer and more confident biker, there may be a triathlon in my future. Maybe. But I'm not putting this pressure on myself just yet.

For now, it's all about laying groundwork--getting fitter, having fun, keeping active, finding new things I love to do. Right now, it's about the journey, not the destination.

Become one with the heat

Growing up in Upstate NY, I tend to be a bit of a wuss about heat. I mean, c'mon. The humidity here in North Carolina is brutal. Hot for NY is somewhat humid in the 80s. Yesterday, our local heat index was over 100 degrees, and standing outside felt like standing in front of an open (hot) oven.

So, all day, I anxiously awaited news that our training program meeting--a 7 p.m. 3 mile run--would be cancelled. Surely it would be insanity to run in those temperatures, and we're supposed to be teaching our new participants safe, healthy running.

No cancellation news came.

In early afternoon, I innocuously tweeted at Fleet Feet, keeping it real casual, y'know--"Are the training programs still on tonight with the heat advisory?" Just in case they didn't realize it was HOT out. I hadn't heard back by 3:30 or so, so I finally bit the bullet and sent an email to our half-marathon coach. I admitted to him that I am a wuss when it comes to heat and asked if we were still on.

Reasonably, his response was (paraphrased): Yes, but I'll tell you what I plan to tell everyone tonight. If you get out there and feel awful, just stop, turn around and walk back. Don't risk the rest of your season on this one run, because it won't make or break your training program.

I knew I had to give it a shot. They had shortened our 3 mile route to 2.3 miles--I really couldn't justifiably say I couldn't handle that distance. So I went. And I ran. And I expected to be at about a 12-minute mile--crawling--and instead finished under a 10-minute mile.

Yes, I was a completely sweaty mess. I've never had that much sweat pooling at my lower back before, and I was sweating from places I didn't know could sweat. (TMI? Probably.)

Yes, I was so, so happy to finish at 2.3 instead of 3.

But, I was surprised at just how much fun it was. I met some great, friendly participants that I can't wait to run with again. I really felt like a runner, being out there in that heat. (What I found most interesting is that it is more uncomfortable to stop running--my skin was burning when I stopped--than it was during the run. You learn something new every day.)

And, I think I could've done the 3 miles.

And this is just another reason why I really love the Fleet Feet training program--it constantly pushes me to break through any mental barriers I erect for myself or any discomfort I might feel. There is absolutely no way I would've run in that weather on my own. But now I know that I can, and I don't really have the excuse "it's too hot to run" anymore... because it doesn't get too much hotter than that.

As my safety disclaimer, I will say that I drank loads of water yesterday, and I carried a water bottle with me while we ran, and I had more water in the car for when we finished. And I had loads of water after the run. So, hydration is key.

But, it was nice to feel that instead of trying to "beat the heat," in a way, I just became one with the heat. (For real.)

I'm a runner!

When I first strapped on my running shoes, way back in 2004, I was training for a half-marathon in Scotland. My reason for running was simple: Why not? The two years I lived overseas were all about saying "Yes!" and pushing myself into new experiences. So when a friend asked me to train and raise money for the Sick Kids hospital, I said "Yes!" Even though the last time I'd run was probably 1995 on the junior high track team.

It was hard. I built up from running 1-2 minutes at a time to running 10 to 15 to 30 minutes at a time, and it wasn't pretty. I was a wuss, big time.

I trained for my first 10K, and it went okay. Then I kind of stopped running. A year later, the same race came up, and I trained again, knocking a good 8 minutes off my time. And then I pretty much stopped running, apart from the occasional short treadmill workout. And I didn't really start running again until three years later in the fall of 2008.

That spring, I'd moved back to NC after a rough, emotionally draining year in SC. By the time I moved back, I was carrying more weight than normal, feeling out of sorts and struggling with the knowledge that my life wasn't all that it could or should be. So in the fall, I picked up my running shoes again, struggling to mete out 2-3 miles without walking in an effort to manage my weight.

And then I got this hair-brained idea to scare myself into running more by signing up for a half-marathon.

And I did. I trained, for a little over three months. And in May 2009, I ran, and walked, a half-marathon. I felt amazing, and I wanted to be a runner: by that I mean someone who enjoyed running, even needed running, and ran a few times a week.

Then work got tough. I was pulling 14-hour days for an intense spell. All exercise stopped. I was drained, stressed and once again packed on a few extra pounds and felt pretty much gross. When things finally slowed down last summer, I hopped on the treadmill and stayed there sporadically through the fall--which is where this blog picks up. I kept thinking that with the cooler weather in the fall I would run more, but then it was so dark, and I was so tired, and I didn't ever fall into a solid routine.

Enter my half-marathon training program (HMTP) at my local Fleet Feet. I began training with the group this January, and it has been a life changing experience. This time, you see, the running is sticking, and I credit the support and friends I found through the program.

In the past, I've always run for self-improvement: to lose weight, to be healthier, more active, because I should. I force myself to try to establish a routine, then get frustrated or stressed when I feel like the routine isn't sticking.

My Fleet Feet HMTP gave me a routine--two designated running dates a week that I could not, and would not, miss because I loved the people I was running with, and I loved the exhaustion and sense of accomplishment I felt after every long run. And I only had to focus on finding another day or two a week to run. I could do that.

I won't lie--my HMTP ended with a disappointing half-marathon performance (that's another blog post to come), so I was worried I would do what I'd always done... fall off the running wagon. To stay motivated, I agreed to participate in the HMTP again this summer (we start up tomorrow!), but this time as a mentor. Someone to help push others along and keep them motivated. You've gotta walk the walk, I figured.

Following the race in April, I kept up with my running at first because I knew I needed to maintain enough fitness to keep up conversation with my mentees while we ran. Then I ran because it was getting so gosh darn hot, and I needed to get used to it so I could even physically manage to run during the summer.

But along the way, something changed for me. I suddenly realized a few weeks in that running wasn't a chore I was doing to look or feel better. It was something I not only enjoyed, but I needed.

I need that time to just be. To focus on my breath and the fall of my steps on the pavement. To sweat it out. Running has become a form of meditation, and I can see a change in the way I'm handling stress at work or at home. I'm calmer and more confident. I'm not worried about what the scale says, and my clothes are fitting better than ever. And when I miss a run or two, I don't panic because I know that I'll get back out there again.

I'm a runner, you see, and that's just what we do. Lace up, and get out there and run.