Posts Tagged ‘garmin’

I felt like a kid on the slow bus yesterday in spin.  I had the same instructor as Sunday, who was hard core, and I when I entered the room and saw her, I was like “oh shit”.  Then I made the mistake of asking her why my knees hurt after spin and she said “You were here this past Sunday, right?”  “Yes”  So she came over to my bike, adjusted a few things, and told me my knees were pointed outward when I peddle.  Okay.  Sure.  I wasn’t disagreeing, but I don’t know how that happens, it must all be subconscious. 

 

So class started, the sweat started, and she got off her bike, came back over to me, and adjusted the seat again, then increased the resistance.  Like, not a little, but a lot.  And then the sweat really begins, and I am like holy shit.  I felt like I was the only one in the room really working.  I later did a quick glace at the surrounding bikes and realized, people don’t increase the resistance when she instructs us to.  Then I snicker to myself knowing I did. 

 

I’ve been wearing my Garmin in the gym to gauge my HR.  I’m not really obsessed with my HRM, but I find it interesting to see how these classes get my HR up.

 

Now, that class is an hour long, but I obliviously forgot to turn it on at the beginning.  You can see I was grasping for life by the end.  When I got home, I couldn’t sit because I also went to “Body Works Plus Abs” prior to spin because I wanted to do my little comparison.  The instructor was 30 minutes late, we did some crazy moves, it was… okay.  I wasn’t thrilled with it. 

 

I got home, starving and dehydrated, but felt very accomplished thanks in part to the fact that once I saw a few others with no resistance, I knew I was doing what I needed.  I just wonder if spin will get any easier?

 

Happy Friday!

 

PS—I will be registering Jared and I for the Spirit of Pittsburgh Half Relay, soon!  Just as soon as I swallow the $100 fee. 

Update your Google readers…  irunisweat.com will have the new “feed” to my posts.  Oh technology.  It seriously took me two hours to get my image uploaded!  Still needs some cosmetic changes, but I am settling into my new blog home

 

The Pros and Cons of Joining a Gym

In an attempt to get a halfway decent workout in this morning, I stopped by LA Fitness in Pleasant Hills this morning.  I wanted to get a three-day trial, but ended up getting suckered into a membership.  $158 (and $29.99/month) later, I can now go to LA Fitness’s across the country.  (Grumble).  That was a bad decision.  Well, then 10 minutes later, I reason with myself…  So I decided to blog a post about this in an attempt to let the issue die and make a damn decision…

Pros

• Warm on the inside, so no winter freezing
• Cheaper than my old gym, and more access
• I won’t just be running, I have access to classes, other cardio equipment, and weights
• Pool, not that I will want to swim when its 20 degress outside
• Sauna
• In ran pretty fast on the treadmill
• It’s convenient for night classes

Cons

• The treadmills suck.
• It doesn’t open until 8 am on the weekends (I know, I’m crazy)
• The showers are crappy
• Its $158 when I need brakes and new tires on my car
• I could save the initiation fee, and the monthly dues, and next year buy a treadmill, or have saved quite a bit for it
• I’d be going against the premise of this blog, going back to basics
• People at gyms tend to be ridiculous (i.e, loads of make-up, etc)
• They don’t have BodyPump, the only class, aside from spin* that I enjoyed
• *Their spin class is 45 minutes instead of one hour
• I will be going against the whole premise of this blog by joining because I know I won’t return to the streets.
• I bought my Garmin to really say there is no reason for me to go back.
• I had to buy a battery for my car to the tune of $100.  Running is free (mostly). 

 

So, there it is.  Blah.  I really should think about these things before I sign a contract   Luckily, I have three days to exit.

 

I also ran to Whole Foods (gasp) and Trader Joes this morning…  I got some staples from Trader Joes, and was happy to visit WF to stock up on some items I’ve been wanting to try.  I will blog about those later. 

 

In other news, Jared said he would run the spirit of Pittsburgh relay with me!  See, why waste money on a gym when you can run in races!?

At this point in my training, every long run is a new distance.  I did not do my 11 miles last week as promised, so the last long run was the 10 miler. 

 

 

My personal theory on long runs is they ought to be flat (grin) and done at a pace that allows the body to adjust to working for long periods of time.  If I’m done today in around 2:10, I will feel happy.  Then again, I glance at my Garmin just to make sure I’m doing okay pace wise, but I usually let me body even itself out.  Some moments in the run will be better than others… 

 

I plan to re-fuel at the halfway mark.  Since I don’t have any oranges per Michelle’s advice, I am going to take a mini clif bar and go from there.  Water fountains are available along the trail but I tend to sip along the way.  This also helps prevent me needing to go to the bathroom =)  I hate hate hate to stop running to use the restroom. 

 

I’ve been looking forward to this run since last week, so it was easy for me to get up.  This is also the second to last weekend before the 1/2, so this run is very important.  I also love the Montour trail.  I’m glad I decided to cheat using this trail =)

 

Happy Saturday, I will be back after the run, the Best Buy hoopla, but before the family par-tay.

Today when my alarm went off, a miracle happened… I woke up!  This never happens on Mondays—my body is usually telling me to go back to sleep, and chalk up a Monday to a rest day instead of getting upset about sleeping in.  I had re-planned my 1/2 marathon training the past few weeks because of this.  Not today. 

I am feeling good about this week.  Since the killer sidestitch Saturday, I am really going to focus my XT on ab exercises.  I’m going to continue the 30-day shred, but am also considering alternatives such as Yoga Download, or finding a used bike on Craigslist.  I also realize I am a little late into my half marathon training to be thinking about XT (19 days away!), but I am already thinking about my next 1/2 marathon and ways to improve =)

 

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday	Total
45m mod	30-40 XT	50 min easy	30-40 XT	30 m easy	12 mi	Rest	??

 

I’ve read several times about the dreaded side-stitch, so when Jared was running with me telling me to breathe out on a particular foot and straighten up, I just wanted to say “No Duh” (yes, I may sometimes be stuck in 1984).  I really want to say, though, that it was more due to all of the passing (not to toot my own horn, it was just that crowded) and I got the killer SS on the bottom of a hill.  Regardless, it is now my job to ensure this doesn’t happen in the half.

 

I usually get side stitches when:

1.)  I’ve eaten dairy 24 hours before the race

2.)  I drink too much water, or cold liquid (not room temp, though).

3.)  I am leaning in

 

I was not doing those things during the race.  I had no dairy, I don’t know what happens to me with dairy, but I imagine a great big curdling in my stomach that causes it.  If I drink cold water, look out.  As refreshing as it is, I think it shocks my organs (this is all speculation, but my years of running have taught me to drink regular water while running, save the cold stuff for later).  And the leaning in part may very well have caused it, but a lot of what I’ve read/been reading is telling me to focus on core strength.

 

Here are a few articles about side stitches:

The Side Stitch via Sportsmedicine.about.com

The Stretching Handbook (Note: this article states most SS’s occur on the right.  Mine was on the left.  Strange)

Runner’s World Mid-run pain

I’ve been inspired to write some pretty deep posts lately, mainly because I’d like to “get it all out” and help people put this blog into perspective.  I run the risk of it turning into a “weight loss blog” instead of me just blogging, stream of thought, so I’m switching gears here, trying to maintain my original focus…  running! Here are some FYI’s about me and running.

When did you start running?
I started running when I was 18 or 19. I was never fast, but I wanted to do it because I thought it was a good physical challenge. Once I tackled that, I realized it was more of a mental challenge that my body adapted to. I used the Couch to 5k plan to help me out, and once I was done with that, I never followed a training plan again, until now. I was hesitant to use a training plan, and really me running this 1/2 is on a whim, so I figured why not? All in all, I’ve been running for six years.

Why would you decide to train for a 1/2 Marathon on a whim?
Good question. I’m in a transitional time in my life. I’m living with Jared in a new house, I’ve got a new job, and in my old job I was not happy thus impacting my running there. I thought if I train for the 1/2 in the mornings and on the weekends, I will engineer my running time back into my schedule. It’s worked for the most part, though some mornings I really just miss my runs due to sleeping in =).

What has running taught you physically and mentally?
Running has taught me to develop strength. Let’s just say that I’ve been through enough in my life that I decided to shut up, deal with it, and move on. I have a big tattoo that I got in grad school (during some difficult times) that helped to remind me extra….

Physically, running has taught me simply that anyone can run. No excuses.

Who are your running buddies?
Jared and I run together when we do races. Though, I will be doing the 1/2 Marathon on my own because this is something I need to do for myself. Training for it (getting back into my groove) and running the actual race. I’m not worried about time, maybe some day, but now I’m more concerned with the process.

How do you keep time and pace?
When I first started running, I ran on a treadmill. We all know I don’t do that anymore. I have a Garmin 305. When I got my new job, I treated myself. So shoot me.

Why do you keep b*tching about your crazy schedule?
Part of it is guilt that I have such a crazy schedule that some days I cannot run. Somedays the run is all I have to keep me sane. Most of the time I get my run in, but it’s early. I’m simply being hard on myself/being proud of myself/reminding myself to be dedicated/being dedicated.
The other part of it is that I am so happy I am getting back into running, a rebirth if you will, that I just need to blog about it. No one really reads my blog, anyways!

What do you do?
I am a Borough Manager. Basically, I oversee the operations, finances (aka tax money), and overall growth of the municipality. I live in Pittsburgh, I work in one of the suburbs of the city. I love my job. I enjoyed my old job, but it was not challenging for me and I seek out challenges professionally and personally.

You half marathon is in 3 weeks, are you ready?
Let’s hope so! After my 10-miler this weekend, I could have gone more, just as long as I wasn’t fighting the up-hills!

Will you ever run a full-marathon, you know you aren’t a runner until you do so?
I don’t agree. If you run, everyday, one mile, you are a runner. I never compare myself to other running bloggers, so when I see their times, pace, distance, sure I’d love to be like that, but I do what I do and I’m satisfied with it… Good for them for having enough time in their day. Most of the bloggers I see that do that 1.) Don’t work full time or 2.) Are in their groove and I’m still getting back into mine

Does your blog help you running?
Yes and No. I don’t have a huge audience (which I am okay with), so I don’t feel the need to gloat, and I’m not one for gloating in general. I’m pretty low-key and I’d rather blog about my life in general (I think that’s more interesting) than show pictures of greek yogurt and wheatberries all day. Again, just my preference!

This is me, 18 month ago. I still felt strong and confident, despite the job unhappiness and slight weight gain from it. Booya