hilly 12k; brain all a-mush

Today went well given the circumstances. I still feel like things are turning the corner though I know from this workout it doesn't look like it. But I have optimism anyway, because I feel like once I am feeling a little better things are going to turn the corner.

I have felt pretty ill the last couple days - avert your eyes and skip to the next paragraph if squeamish. Otherwise, read on....you've been warned. Thursday night I went to bed a bit late (~11?) after reading an e-mail that stressed me out a bit (everything is fine but it was anxiety-provoking). I woke up at 2am because I had diarrhea (probably from the antidepressant leaving my system - this has been a persistent and annoying symptom) and I started thinking about the e-mail and then could not get back to sleep for 2 hours. Then I slept from 4-6 and woke up and couldn't sleep more. I still felt pretty sick.

Friday morning, despite feeling a bit ill (dizzy, fatigued, mild brain zaps, a touch of nausea, sleep-deprived) I got on the elliptical for 20 min, because exercise does help one get through the day even if stupid tired. I think it helped. I made it through a tough day at work and when I got home I crashed for about 30 min. Got up and made dinner, then after dinner I went to bed at 8:00 and went to sleep at 8:45. I slept for almost 9 hours :) and woke feeling a bit better, but still dizzy and fatigued. I have not taken any medication since Sunday night, when I took 2.5mg of escitalopram. I'm hoping to gut it out this weekend and hoping that the symptoms ease by Monday so that I can work.

Today has been stupid busy but I'm sorta managing. The 12K was slow; I did the first 6k alone and then 6k with Calvin and at one point in the last 6k I got really emotional. Poor Calvin got kinda mad at me and wouldn't walk with me again until I apologized, which I did, because I was being stupid. It's just hard to be so slow, and to know I'm signed up for World Masters, and to know I can't train as hard as I want. I'm still going to try. The 12K was 7:02/km for 1:24:30 with ave HR 141. Also, it was warm and humid (for here), at 26.1C (79F) and 42%. (That was at 6:30am...ughhh!).

You probably don't care that then I helped our pastor's family move (Calvin helped too), and then went tile shopping for the bathroom because it's impossible to get over to the showroom before 4:30 on weekdays and the tile place my contractor likes closes at 5. Or that I then took our summer roommate Jonathan over to Costco because he doesn't have a membership and needed some things. Or that when I got home I was stupid tired and I might have yelled at the kids and husband because the dishes weren't done (I'd asked the kids to please do them while I was gone and the husband to please stay on them to do it), or that Calvin put a hot pan lid on our dining room table, which is my one favorite piece of furniture, aside from the piano, and the only really nice furniture that I have ever purchased new, and that it now has an ugly ring (which is admittedly faint but I'm still very angry). I might have gotten very upset and was angry not just because the table is now marred, but also because I do love Calvin much more than I love the table and am angry at myself for being angry at him. I might have had a meltdown while making pizza dough for our homemade pizza (Saturday tradition) and Calvin might have given me a very sweet hug. I told him how I felt and that I love him more than the table but that I'm still angry about the table but also that I'm mad at myself for being mad at him. I think he understands?

It might be time to take a short nap before I melt down more. I'm so tired.

SugarHouse Park - overcast, warm, humid

With the boy I love much more than my table...sigh.....

dragging

Dragging today.

Last night: brain zaps (minor, but annoying), fatigue, diarrhea. Up at 2am feeling very ill, and was awake for ~2hr stressing about various things including the finances for the bathroom remodel (which turns out to be mostly fine now that I've run and re-run the #s, though it's gonna be close...) and the tile choices and other things. Finally went back to sleep.

Got in to work and realized I'd messed up something and will have to work late today and a bunch on the weekend to fix it. Sometimes I really hate research. Actually, it's more that I hate my own stupidity.

Feel dizzy and ill but am trying not to take any more escitalopram. Want to be done with it.

I did 20 min on the elliptical hoping it would make me feel better. It didn't make me feel worse.

It must be Friday the 13th.

Back to work insanity now.

Still not feeling good

I did another 6K today, alternating walk/RW 500m each. I still felt tired, dizzy, and fatigued with heavy legs.

I'm wondering if it's the mystery illness again? My resting HR is running a little higher the last few weeks, maybe 53-55 instead of ~50. But that seems inconsequential?

The fatigue is pretty impressive. I fell asleep at a kids' birthday party on Saturday afternoon - while the kids were noisily playing Bingo.

Nothing I can do except wait it out, and do as much exercise as I can tolerate, for mental health if for nothing else.

Garmin data here. 

doing what I can

Wednesday: 30 min elliptical wore me out. 

Thursday: went to the track, did 1 mile with strides in a ridiculously slow 10:45, felt lousy (weak, dizzy, fatigued, heavy legs) and went home sad :(. 

Friday & Saturday: rested from exercise (still went to work, cared for kids, house, etc). 

Today: I'm still kinda weak and dizzy with heavy legs, but going stir crazy. Went out and did 6K alternating 500m walk/RW and it felt OK (only 5K on Garmin, long story). Still dizzy, and tired at the end, but it was a gorgeous morning 62F and sunny and I enjoyed it a lot. The dogs did too :). They've been a bit crazy not exercising (no one else takes them out!). 

Someday I'll feel better. Until then, trying to keep my spirits up, eat right (!have gained so much weight! UGH!) and get exercise as I'm able. 

8K

I managed 8K today with Kelly (she was running, and I was RW). I thought I'd feel much better today, but it felt a lot like yesterday. Slow and ugly. I wanted to do 10K, but when I was feeling really lousy at 4K, Kelly and I turned around (she felt crappy too!) and we made it to 8K, which we were really proud of. Sad...but can't change it so have to start where I am.

8K at 6:46/km; ave HR 152. 

Hopefully after x-training tomorrow I'll be good for a short track workout on Thursday. Even if I don't feel good, I'll do it, unless I feel terrible, obviously. Got to push myself a little out of my comfort zone.

My hamstring was fine :) in some good news :).

still alive... 6K

Yes, I'm still alive. It's been interesting. Not at all the way I wanted to start training, but life happens and you have to roll with the punches.

So I was very sick for about a week because of a tooth, which cracked in half and had to be pulled. Thankful for modern dentistry! I will be getting an implant later, but for now... yeah... I'm missing it. The before pic at top shows the crack - all the way through the tooth (1st molar, on right of photo). The after pic is the meth-head look ;). Sigh...

Then, three days after my tooth was removed, and on my second day back at work after missing three days (I was really, really sick...antibiotics are helping), my daughter broke her arm (radius, distal) AND leg (tibia) roller skating. Both are non-displaced fractures so she won't need surgery, but she cannot go to summer camp and cannot be left alone because she can't get herself around the house. She's wheelchair bound but can't get to the bathroom alone. At least now she can get to the toilet from the wheelchair and back to wheelchair; initially she couldn't even do that much and we had to lift her onto the toilet...oh yay. Plus I've had to sleep with her in the guest room because she can't go up the stairs to her room, and she can't get anything she needs in the middle of the night (pain meds, ice, bathroom, etc.). Sleep is a loose term, since I get about 2-3 hr at most before she needs something. Hopefully that will improve as she continues to have less and less pain. I expect she won't need me at night after a few more days. I hope.

I felt good enough myself to try the elliptical on Saturday, despite residual dizziness and fatigue, and I did 45 min without too much trouble. I rested Sunday and then racewalked today. I was surprised how poorly I felt today racewalking, but it went all right considering. I was really tired and still pretty dizzy, which made me glad I didn't try to RW on Saturday. I was slow, but otherwise not too bad, and my hamstring felt decent. And I did make it 6K in a pretty slow 6:45/km. But I'm trying to focus on the positive - I got out there and walked, and it was all right. Hopefully tomorrow I can do 8-10km at a better pace. Maybe I'll sleep better tonight which will help?

Garmin data here. 

Still 3 months until the 30K. I hope I can do it.

Soul searching

Saturday, after the PT on Friday, my hammy really hurt. A lot. Like 2-3, maybe 4 at times, while racewalking 8k on the Jordan River Parkway. Ugh. It was terrible. I wanted to do 20K, then realized it was gonna be 10-12K, then had to stop at 8K.

Sunday night I picked up the pianist (and his mom, and two teachers) that we are hosting for the Gina Bachauer Junior Competition this week. Things got busier from there. I did take a rest day on Sunday, but it was busy getting ready for our guests.

Monday morning I went out for 6K, and it felt OK. But I was slow, and tired. Every time I pull my hamstring it shortens up my stride because I get paranoid about hurting it, and then I lose my toe-off, and then I'm really slow. I did 6:37/km. Oh yay.

Tuesday I was supposed to do 8K, but I was up late Monday night for the piano competition opening gala, and I was way too tired to get up and walk. So I didn't. I was angry about the hammy and frustrated and tired.

Wednesday I did the 8K, and it went OK; better than Monday but still sluggish. I did 6:32/km. I was talking with friends Wednesday night and journaling some and realizing that something has to give in my life. I'm too busy and it's not good for me or the kids or Loren or work or RW or anything else. But I don't know what to give up.

Today I was to do a 5K fartlek. I woke up tired with a sore throat and just looked in the mirror and said "I don't have to do this any more. Maybe I need to give competitive racewalking a rest." So I went to the gym and did the elliptical and did my PT - including all of the eccentric exercises. It felt OK during, but later, at work, my hammy hurt annoyingly any time I sat more than 15 minutes.

So, right now I'm thinking that I need to consider carefully whether I need a break or not. I'm thinking a break might help my hamstring to recover, though when I e-mailed my PT about that he said he thought I could continue training, albeit at a reduced volume.

I just don't know what to do.

But hey, at the moment I'm enjoying a Chopin Etude, courtesy of my 13-year-old guest prodigy. That's awesome at least.

Elliptical, sick, 5K easy RW at indoor track

Saturday: 50 min elliptical.

Sunday: sick :( didn't walk or do much of anything.

Monday: sick...still...

Today: feeling a bit better. Managed to get to the gym in time to do a short walk. It actually went OK! I did 4974m in 32:20 for 6:30/km with ave HR 147. Pain was 0-2/10. It felt really good after not RW since last Thursday, but of course the minute I started RW again it started to hurt. I was concentrating very hard on technique, which is one advantage of the indoor track: no distractions. Well, not many anyway, compared with outside. My mind wanders less at the track, because there's not much to look at. More boring, but better to maintain good form and not injure myself more. I did my glute activating exercises and I'm sure I had good posture. I can watch myself in the windows as when t's still dark out and the reflection is visible in many places on the track.

I am feeling the usual sick of winter blahs. It's cold and dark in the mornings which is just such a downer for training. But spring is coming soon, so I just have to hang in there. Being sick this week didn't help. But I've been eating a lot better for the most part, despite some home stress and one chocolate binge :(, and I lost 1.6lb last week. Hoping to lose another pound this week.

I still have to schedule in yoga/strength training sessions. I've got the household chores going pretty well with the kids and myself, and have been eating better and sleeping better. I have my diagnosis and have my PT appointment. Now all that's left is the yoga. Planning to do some this afternoon.

Garmin data here. 

rest days; 6K; 5x1K

I'm baaaaack from my evil cold!

OK, so very few people noticed I was gone :). Nyle did...thanks for the FB chat last night! This morning at the track (getting ahead of myself) I thought of Nyle and imagined her cheering me on, as I knew she would have had she been here. It's like having a virtual training partner. We live across the planet from each other, and we are very different, yet our love of racewalking and passion for the sport and determination to live life with enthusiasm despite the roadblocks brings us together. I look forward to seeing her in Perth next fall (spring for them) for WMA!

So after Monday's very tired 6K, I woke feeling even MORE lousy on Tuesday, because I'd overdone it on Monday. So I took the day off, listening to my body and respecting it. This is something I've learned the hard way over the past two years of illness, but I think it holds true even when not ill. Patience in the short term yields better results - rest now, train when ready. On Tuesday afternoon while setting up fish crosses, I was so very tired and weak that I had to sit down as much as possible, which is not normal for me at all. So I decided to take Wednesday as a rest day too. By Wednesday night I was feeling better, and figured I'd try for 8K on Thursday. 

Thursday morning I got up and dressed for racewalking, because I was feeling good. I wore the usual spring garb of a long-sleeved shirt, tights, gloves, headband, headlamp, reflective vest, pepper spray. Geez, by the time I get dressed it feels like a marathon effort ;). Sugar was so glad that I was finally going to take her for a walk, poor doggie. You'd think someone else in our house might walk the dog...sigh...but I digress. I walked out the door and noticed that 1) it was windy, and 2) it was raining a bit. Drat. So I walked inside and switched my headband out for a baseball cap and grabbed a jacket. I was glad I did because it was chilly at 36F (2.2C) and with the wind it was definitely the biting kind of chilly. Finally, I started walking and felt a lot better than Monday, but still not 100%. By 3K I was a bit tired and decided that 6K was enough for how I was feeling. I finished in 39:20 for 6:33/kmwith ave HR 151 (vs Monday’s 155…better…still high for the speed, but better).

Thursday I felt decent all day, and no weird soreness or unusual fatigue, other than the cold, which was a lot better. Just some sniffling and general congestion remained.

This morning I felt so good when I woke up, partly because I was going to take the day off work; it’s Good Friday and the end of spring break for the kids, and I want to spend time with Grace (Loren and Calvin went to Mesa Verde National Park for a boys’ weekend). But my cold is also better, and my legs feel GOOD. YES! I can’t tell you how strange and wonderful it is to feel good for a change. After two years of not feeling good and dreading workouts, it’s so odd to actually think that a workout might go well, and to maybe think about possibly enjoying it.

It was chilly again this morning at about 36F (2.2C) but not nearly so windy; still breezy at 10kph (6mph) but definitely tolerable. Because I took the day off work, I got to go a bit later to the track, and the sun was just coming up as I arrived. I had a good warm-up, doing 1600m with strides in 10:02. Did some dynamic stretching and then got started.

The 1km intervals felt good, and Jim gave me 3 minutes rest in between each :). You can’t tell from my times that they felt good; they got slower as I went, though maybe you can tell from the last three, which were at least consistent. My legs are obviously still tired from the illness – I could feel my muscles fatiguing sooner than they normally would – but somehow I still had strength and even though I was slower there was no weird soreness and mentally I stayed in the workout. Part of it was that after each interval I could hear my friend Nyle saying, “Great job – you’re going to nail this workout”, and I started to tell myself that, and believe it. So my last interval actually was pretty good at 5:45.5. Yeah, I know these are A LOT slower than what I used to do. But it's a great start.

Interval times: 5:40.6, 5:43.9, 5:47.0, 5:46.9, 5:45.5

Total time: 28:43.9 for the 5K. Well...for intervals...kinda slow. But I'll more than take it if I continue to feel good and can train. I will get faster :).

Garmin data here.

elliptical; 6K and done

Sunday: 10 min racewalking on the track and I knew I was NOT going to do a track workout. Legs were heavy and I didn't feel good. So later, I did 30 min elliptical.

Today: I am feeling better today than yesterday, but when I went out for a racewalk, it was clear that I am not fully recovered. I planned on 8-10k depending on how I felt, but by 2km I could see that my heart rate was pretty high for what I was doing, and I knew that 8km might not be the wisest. I'm glad I turned back for home, because by 5k I was done, and by 6k I was really done! NO weird soreness, though - yay! Just tired legs and hard to breathe. I've had sinus issues all weekend and runny nose, along with headache, sore throat, and fatigue.

Total: 6km in 39:18 for 6:33/km with ave HR 155 (!high! obviously still not feeling good!)

It's an improvement that I could RW today, but clearly things are not normal yet. Tomorrow I will try a fartlek and see how it goes, unless I wake feeling worse. I will plan on just trying for 5K, and going longer IF and only if I feel good. And I'll bail altogether if I feel bad.

feeling a bit better; casual walk

I woke feeling better, but not ready for a serious workout yet, at least not if I am being super cautious. Last year at this time I pushed it after my half marathon and paid in relapse. I am NOT doing that this year. I probably could have worked out hard this morning, but I'm just scared to. Tomorrow, if I am feeling good, I will try something more.

For today, I took Sugar on a long walk around town, at a brisk casual pace (8:45/km). Did a few hills, focused on my posture, stopped at Walgreens for some B12, and went to SugarHouse Park. Here are some photos below. Spring is here - the trees are budding, and it was a beautiful morning.

Garmin data here. 

sick

I woke up feeling quite sick today. Actually, the weirdest thing is that I fell out of bed last night. Seriously!?!?!?! I thought I dreamed it but Loren confirmed that it was quite dramatic. Not sure what is up with that, but when I woke up I had a very bad sore throat and felt so fatigued, like I'd been hit by a truck. This has been going around, and Loren had it this week, so I am not too surprised. 

Needless to say, no track workout for me. I stayed in bed and called in sick to work. That was a good decision, as I went back to sleep and slept until almost 11am. That's not like me, so I know I needed it. 

We'll see how I am tomorrow. Maybe a day off will make me feel good enough to work out.

3.5km racewalking

I have a cold now (thanks to my adorable petri-dish-viral-incubator children) and with the exhaustion from the trip slept from 9pm to just before 7am. I got up and still figured I had time to do a quick RW before getting the kids off to school. They are old enough now that they do most of the preparations themselves but still need a little supervision.

I wasn't sure that RW was a great idea because of feeling sick, but decided that I could always quit if it was too bad. It felt good, actually, except for stopping to hack and cough about halfway through :). My legs felt fine for the 3.5 km, and my toe hurt for the first km (maybe a 2 out of 10 pain-wise) but then settled down and didn't bother me much.

Total: 3.5km in 22:43 for 6:29/km with ave HR 148. Garmin data here. 

If I feel good later, might go to the gym for some elliptical. If not, I will rest.

rest days (sick); 5K plus 3x200m

Sunday & Monday: rest days. I planned to rest on Sunday, so that was fine, but noticed I had a cold. The cold got worse (despite lots of rest this weekend), and Monday I woke feeling awful. My legs had some of the weird soreness on Sunday & Monday, but not too much. Anyway, I decided that it would be stupid to try and push things and walk on Monday, given that I felt just terrible and wasn't even sure I could get through my work day. I did manage, but went to bed early.

***

Tuesday: felt better this morning when I woke up, so decided to go do 5K with 5x200m as Jim had suggested. I was slow but got it done no problem. Only a bit of weird soreness in my legs, which got worse as I was doing the 200m intervals, which is why I stopped at 3 of them. It wasn't bad, though - I was just being cautious. My breathing was a bit of a problem too, especially on the 200m, probably because of the cold. Hopefully I will feel better soon.

It was very cold this morning at 19F (-7.2C), and though my dog Sugar didn't seem to mind, I did. My legs were too cold in my warm pair of tights, so I have to remember to wear some long underwear underneath them when it's this cold. This is more like January weather...sigh...we are paying now for the nice fall we had? The rest of me wasn't cold with gloves, hat, long-sleeved shirt, and warm running jacket.

Total time for 5K 33:14 for 6:37/km (slow! but I am sick...so being nice to myself about this) with ave HR 146. Garmin data here. 

The three 200s that I did do were slowish at about 1:05-1:06 for 3:17 total. I felt like I was going really fast, too...this cold is a killer. Garmin data here. 

Leg soreness report as of 1:25pm: mild soreness on prolonged (>15min) sitting and none after standing. Feels decent.

recovering

I'm recovering from my illness, but also from a very challenging week; maybe one of the hardest I've had in a long time. Long story, and the details aren't relevant to the workout. Let's just say it's been very difficult, but that things are looking hopeful at the moment. Maybe.

After Monday's workout, I wasn't able to do anything until Thursday. Tuesday and Wednesday I was very ill and just muddled through my day each day. Thursday morning I managed to do 20 min elliptical and ride my bike to work, and I felt physically decent, but mentally wiped due to all the stuff going on. Friday I had to go to the kids' classes to present my annual zebrafish lesson to them, and the schedule of the day totally overwhelmed me and I really could not find any time to work out - a rarity, since I prioritize my workouts above just about everything else, knowing that I need them for my sanity. But with recovering from being sick, and with everything going on, it was better to take another day off I think.

Today my coach really wanted me to get off my rear end and do something. He said it would make me feel better, and it did, sort of. It takes a lot of energy for a track workout, and I had a lot to do today, so it did leave me a bit depleted for the other things, but in retrospect, that worked out OK. A good friend from church helped me clean my house today and made dinner for us, and I really really appreciated that given the week we've had.

Anyway, back to the workout. I didn't go to the track until 10:30am, because I was too lazy this morning. I wasn't sure I was even going to do it. I drove over there but figured if anything didn't feel right that I could just go to the gym and do the elliptical. It was warm at 10:30 but not hot; low 60s (about 17C) with the sun shining pretty fiercely. I did get a bit toasty during the workout, but I don't think it affected me too much.

I had a 3K fartlek plus 4x500m intervals. I decided in advance I'd rest 2 min after the fartlek and then do 2 min rest between each 500 as well. Perhaps I should have rested 3 min after the fartlek, as my first 500 was particularly painful, but after that I settled in and the other 3 were OK. I did have to really talk myself into that 2nd 500, but then it went better and the 3rd and 4th were fine as well. I kept telling myself I could quit at any time if I needed to, and I would have if the second 500 wasn't better; since it was, I kept going.

The 3K fartlek went fine, though my heart rate was pretty high throughout. Not sure why, as I wasn't fast - 2:46.2, 2:50.8 (both fast), 3:05.4 (medium), 2:53.1 (fast), 3:10.0 (medium), 2:54.7 (fast). Total 17:40 for the fartlek. Then 2 min rest, then 2:54.7, 2:52.0, 2:50.8, 2:50.7 for my four 500s, with 2' rest between each. HR was a bit lower on each of those as you'd expect.

Afterwards I felt OK; still mentally and emotionally a bit drained, but my body was OK. My legs had a little post-workout soreness/stiffness for the rest of the day, but it wasn't severe. Just noticeable. I will probably still try and cross-train tomorrow if I can.

Garmin data here.

sick again

I have another virus. It's making me very tired. Not as tired as the last one...yet...but very tired. Pretty sure it's a virus, as I have a stuffy nose, and Calvin has had a fever, cough, congestion. Probably got it from him; the kids are little viral incubators, especially when they go back to school and pass things around.

I'm so tired.

Took rest days yesterday and today. So much for training :(. Frustrated that every time I get going again something happens, but y'know, that's life, right?

sick; x-train; 8K!

I have been very sick this past week. I started feeling bad last Thursday, and though I was hoping I'd feel better over the weekend, I didn't. After Saturday's 3K race, I was wiped. I slept a bunch later in the day and then my big activity was attending Calvin's soccer game. #71 is Calvin; not sure why he picked that number, but he did :).

Sunday morning I told Kelly I'd try to walk with her a bit. I did try...but it was pretty sad. I was only able to go 20 min with her and then pretty much crashed. I had committed to play the piano for church so made it through that and went to my Weight Watchers meeting (only up 1.4lb from the cruise; I had hoped not to gain but that's not too awful) and then crashed HARD. I slept 3 hr, woke, ate a small dinner (no appetite - weird for me, even when sick) and then back to bed. I had to go to work on Monday because two grad students in another lab had basically cleared their schedules to teach me how to inject Drosophila embryos (fruit fly; 35 embryos in a line to left of pencil eraser, below). I barely made it through the day, and I felt so terrible. Obviously I didn't even try to work out on Monday, or Tuesday either. 

Halfway through the day on Tuesday I actually started to feel better, for which I am enormously grateful. I was worried that maybe the mystery illness was back and was causing my problems, although I did know that it was likely to be just a virus, as I had a sore throat, congestion, runny nose, coughing, and fatigue, not just fatigue alone. Still, hard not to worry when you're coming off something like I have been. I truly appreciate days of good health much more. 

Wednesday I had the energy and desire to cross-train, so I did 25 min elliptical at the gym, reading the paper on my Kindle (my usual habit at the gym; subscribed to the paper on the Kindle a few months back and have really enjoyed that). I followed that up with cycling to work, and my legs felt really good and pretty fresh. The rest of me was still a bit tired, but I made it through the day well, happily. 

Today coach suggested 8K. I got up, grabbed the dog, and went out the door. After 2K I wasn't sure I'd do all right, since I was feeling a tiny bit weak/wobbly, but while I didn't have my usual strength, I felt passable. I really enjoyed being out in the perfect morning weather (about 66F; 19C), which won't be around much longer. It's supposed to get to 90F today - a little Indian summer before fall sets in, I suppose. Anyway, I was doing 6:15/km through 6km and then the last 2km uphill dropped my time to 6:19/km (ave HR 151; 50:36 for 8K). My legs feel good now (an hour later) and I am actually thinking to enjoy the weather a bit more and ride my bike in to work. I'm thankful for health and wholeness today!

Edited to add: Garmin data here for 8K. 

rest day; 8K

Yesterday: rest day. I didn't sleep well Friday night, and had a garage sale early Saturday morning. I was wiped, and still not 100% over the bug from the week.

***

Today: 8K with Calvin and the dog! Calvin wasn't sure he could go that far, but I knew he could, and encouraged him. He could easily have done 10K. For that matter, I felt I could have done more if I'd had to. I am probably ready for 10K next weekend, assuming that I continue to get over my cold. I only hacked and coughed a little bit today while we were out. I felt quite decent, and the weather was lovely - about 57F (13ish C) and overcast with the occasional raindrop, which couldn't even be called a light drizzle.

Otherwise, my walk went well today. I had very little (none?) of the weird soreness, and no problems at all afterward, even with sitting at the piano and organ at church for an extended period. I feel I'm on the mend. From what, I have no idea, but I am glad I'm feeling better.

Now training begins in earnest for Portland-to-Coast in late August, assuming that I continue to feel well. With that comes a renewed focus on eating well :). Day 2 and holding strong on that front. Gotta start somewhere…and I have a ways to go now, due to forced inactivity and comfort eating. I started off well last week but the illness got me down and I had low resistance. Sigh. Now that the cold is almost gone I feel stronger and hopefully will have a bit more willpower to deal with all of it.

Oh, and my total for today's walk? An average (for me lately) 6:27/km for the 8K for a total of 51:35 with ave HR 145.

Garmin data here.

5K

This morning I did 5K. I felt OK beforehand, but in retrospect, I shouldn't have done it. It's hard to know how you really feel sometimes until you try to work out. Most of the time you feel better afterward; sometimes you feel worse. Today was one of the latter times.

There wasn't much of the weird soreness - no, I just had general overall fatigue. Pressing fatigue. Killing fatigue. I was slow, too. I did the 5K at 6:42/km pace (! slow !) and felt rather rotten when done. Bad enough that I emailed work and didn't go in. Bad enough that I slept 3.5 hours during the middle of the day. I felt better after my nap, but not great. I managed to make dinner and drag kids to swim lessons and do a load of laundry, but now I'm exhausted. Oh yeah, and coughing a lot. I seem to have gotten the family virus that has made Grace, then Loren, then Calvin all sicker than dogs.

Hoping I'll feel better in the morning.

rest days; 8K; optimistic?

I took Friday and Saturday as rest days. Friday, because I was ultra-fatigued and took the day off work, and Saturday because I wasn't sure. Saturday ended up crazy-busy, as I went to work for an hour and then took the kids to a track meet in Provo (1 hr drive south), followed by a graduation party, driving Grace to a friend's house for a sleepover, dinner with the extended family (out), and hanging out at my parents' house with the extended family. Whew.

Here are a few photos from the track meet; this is the toughest competition in the state and Calvin's best was 4th of 6 in the 1500m with a pretty fast time of 6:33, despite being sick. He did a 6:26 a month ago, and I could tell today that he wasn't feeling well. I'm still proud of how well he did and mostly just thrilled that he enjoys running so much. Grace competed in the 400m for the first time ever, and while she was last (of only 5 girls), I was proud that she tried and was out there. We need to work on her fitness a bit, though bicycling to Club U this summer will be a huge help there.

Back to me: I thought I was sick on Friday, but now I'm not so sure. I think it was just the fatigue, perhaps? I was congested and felt "off" but other than sleeping an extra 3 hr in the middle of the day, I was OK. Needless to say, I took a sick day from work, and obviously needed the rest. I thought I might have what Grace had, and what Calvin now (apparently) has, but maybe not. Loren has it - sore throat, fatigue, malaise, etc., but I feel fine today.

This morning I met Kelly (yes! Kelly! my racewalking buddy!) at Liberty Park for 8K. She is not up to RW at my speed yet, so she ran and I RW. Poor Kelly's been through the wringer lately, and actually wasn't even up to running 8K. She did 5K (in 32:51; 6:34/km) with me and my dog, Sugar, before calling it quits and waiting for me to finish. I picked up the pace a bit after she stopped, surprising myself (19:25 for the last 3K, for 6:28/km). Overall it was still a pretty slow walk, but my legs felt pretty good until about 6K. Then I had a bit of the weird soreness, though it wasn't bad. It was just enough to notice, and happily didn't bother me one bit sitting at the piano at church today.

My total time today was only 52:17 (6:32/km) with ave HR ??? as I forgot to wear my HRM (it was on the kitchen table…duh!). The weather was a lovely 64F (18C) with a gentle cool breeze, and it felt SO VERY NICE to be outside RWing. After Kelly stopped, I was walking around the park alone with my thoughts and realizing with such clarity how much I love racewalking. I love the smoothness of it, the fact that I am propelling myself to observe my surroundings, the beauty of being outdoors, and the strength I feel from exercise. I have been so concerned lately about my weight gain, and this morning that moment of clarity spoke to me - I am NOT the same person that I used to be, and I am not going back to that lifestyle. Yes, I have gained weight, but that is not permanent. I have a choice for things to be different. The scripture from I Corinthians about how I am a new creation in Christ popped into my head, and hit me afresh…I pondered it quietly and thought about how God has not brought me this far to drop me like a hot potato and leave me floundering. Difficulty feels permanent, but experience tells me it is transitory.

The sermon at church reinforced what I was already thinking about, as the focus was on Pentecost and the work of the Spirit in breathing new life into us, and enabling us to serve and love others with that energy and life. I thought of Kelly and the hard times she is having, and how I am privileged to stand beside her and offer support. I think of others I may touch without realizing it, and of those who have supported me in my own difficulties. Sorry for the long-windedness here, but I just needed to get this down so I can go back to it when I need it!

Some concrete thoughts I had this morning about my own issues:
1) I have fresh motivation to move my eating habits in the right direction.
2) I have thoughts on replacing my bad habits with new habits, and some concrete ways to do that - books, music, walks with the family enjoying the summer evenings, etc.
3) I have decided to go gluten-free again after my blood test on Tuesday, because I really feel it made a big difference. I am definitely not feeling as good as I was in mid-May. It can't hurt, and might help, regardless of the results of the test. If I don't actually have Celiac's, I could have NCGS (Non-Celiac's Gluten Sensitivity), which is turning out to be surprisingly common these days from what I've read. If it keeps me feeling good then I will stick with it permanently; either way, I should be able to tell from how I feel in a few weeks.
4) I know I want to RW again, seriously. I want to train for Portland-to-Coast. I would love to do a 50K again, if not this year (very dubious), then next year or whenever I am feeling better. I want to do the weight training, the good eating, all of it. I feel better when I am training!

Right now, though, I want a little rest and relaxation with my Kindle and a good book, so I'll sign off. More tomorrow!

Garmin data here.