The Goings On

It is high time I updated this blog.  It's been over 3 months since I last wrote.  A lot has happened.

In about mid-November, I broke my toe.  I couldn't walk properly for 3 weeks, and couldn't exercise or run for much longer.  Around this time, I also got a new job.  So it was one terrible thing followed by one awesome thing.  The job also kept me from going to the gym often, as I had to focus and put lots of hours in.  I was doing 10 hour days, so I was frequently passing on the gym.  In more recent weeks, I have revisited my gym schedule and have put more effort into making the time.  I now do at least 2 classes per week, have a 3rd as a "I'd better do it, but if I miss it it's not the end of the world", and then I try to fit in my own little workout, whether it's on a treadmill or something.

But I'm getting ahead of myself!  Back to my toe injury.

The horror.  I was limping around, taking the TTC to work every day, trying to rest my foot and leg at all possible moments...  I grew lazy and tired as I limped around and didn't want to walk anywhere.  It took a while for the residual pain to wear off.  I think I had phantom broken toe syndrome of some kind, because even when I was sure it had to be ok, I could still feel twinges of pain when I bent my toe even slightly out of alignment.  It screwed up my workout regimen, and put me behind quite a bit.  I haven't fully recovered from this setback, partly because it was so long that I'd been off my feet, but also because it happened just before I got this new job.  The injury timeout bled into the "I have to work fifty-six hours per day" sentiment, and voila.  No gym.

But now I'm back, and I'm back with a vengeance.  There is not a day that passes by that I don't think about the 10K run that got me started on this trip, and the 10K that's coming up in May (yes, I signed up for the Sporting Life 10K again, so I'll be aiming to beat both my previous 10k times).  The weather outside has been miserable.  It's the coldest Toronto winter that I can remember, and one of the snowiest in this city.  It's been slippery and treacherous, so running (avec or sans Ben) has not been an option.  I swear, though, that the first warmer (as in not -20C), dry day that comes along, I'm going to strap on my shoes and get out there for a nice jog around the neighbourhood.  You can only do so much on a treadmill.

In other exciting news, Ben and Susana both joined Goodlife, so Marie and I have some new workout buddies.  We're all gung ho about the place.  Ben likes to swim, and now that I work in a store that sells amazing swimwear, I figure I should join him.  In fact, I just bought a swimsuit today, so once my goggles and swim cap come in (on order right now), I'm going to join him.

Working in a building that houses a gym has certainly raised my bar a bit higher.  Now that I take care of ordering and selling fitness and sports equipment, I feel the need to further educate myself about these things, as well as get super duper in shape. I have let myself slide these past few months, but I think with the warmer weather just around the corner, I'm starting to wake up to the fact that this life is not ok and that I need to move my booty!

Tomorrow, however, there will be not workout for me.  I am doing a wonderful, relaxing spa day with Esther and Rachel.  Monday I can work and workout, but Sunday I will rest, sit in a hot tub, and sooth my body and soul.

I promise, my dear internet, that I will not neglect you for so long again - unless I have a very good excuse.  A broken toe just doesn't cut it.  Until next week.

Sail on, silver girl

Last weekend I was in the country just outside of Ottawa.  I played some soccer with Angela and her brother, and we did a bit of walking/jogging.  It was a wonderful and relaxing weekend.  I slept in until 9 each morning (this is unprecedented for me, as I always wake up automatically by 7am), and we enjoyed a number of movies, TV shows, the Sims, and a 1000 piece puzzle.

When I got back to my Shred class on Wednesday, I lagged behind.  It's amazing what even just a 5 day break can do.  I also ate enormous amounts on the weekend (it was Thanksgiving!), so I'm sure that has also been slowing me down.  Time to shave that off!

I did a Pump class today, and I was happy that my legs were doing all right and I was able to do the same weight as usual for them.  At a party on Friday night with coworkers, I had a few good talks about fitness, and I have a number of friends who would like to workout with me.  Bring it on.  It's always nice to have a buddy to keep inspired.

I was actually feeling quite morose all morning, right up until I started writing this entry.  Pump was fun, but I had this terrible shadow looming over me.  I felt down and didn't even want to go to my class this morning, but I'll be damned if a silly feeling stemming from a dumb incident earlier int he week is going to take away my health.  I won't let it change what I do in my free time.  I have so much more going for me that it's ridiculous.  Somehow, writing this all down has taken a weight off of my shoulders, and mulling over a talk I had with my mother has made me see the positive, or at least the different options I have.

Marie is back from the Dominican, so it's full speed ahead for our workouts this week.  We're planning it out, and it looks like it's going to be a killer week (in a good way).  Esther and Rachel ran the Scotiabank half marathon this morning, and I'm so proud of them!  It really makes me want to train over the winter and next summer so I can join them next October.  We'll see...!

Things happen, but life goes on.  In fact, those things are life, so get used to it.  It just makes the rest of life so much more enjoyable and that much happier.

Save the Breasts, Save the People, and Why I Run.

Apologies.  I didn't update last week for a number of reasons, but mainly because I didn't feel I had anything vitally important to say.

Today, however, I do have something exciting to report: I did my first 5K run.  It was the CIBC Run for the Cure, a run whose proceeds go towards the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation.  A number of my friends signed up for it, so some of us met in the morning before the race.  We were excited to be there.  The gloomy sky and the spitting rain didn't deter us.

The race was not timed, so I brought my phone in lieu of a proper stopwatch.  The run started at Queen's Park, went down Queen's Park/University, looped back up to Bloor, then back down St. George till College, where we ran eastward until the entrance to King's Circle, where the finish line lay.

I made sure to start at a brisk pace, because unlike the 10k, I didn't have to conserve my energy for later.  I could feel I was pushing it faster than usual, but I felt good.  Just past the 3K (I think) mark, there was a water station, so I grabbed a cup.  I took a little sip and then aimed my cup at a garbage bag a man was holding for empty cups.  I threw it in, but I think I got some on him, so I turned around to yell that I was sorry.  While not looking forward, I ran right into another man who was handing out water.  I swerved out of his way.... right into a garbage can.  It almost fell, so I steadied it quickly, as I yelled out more apologies and continued on my way.  The episode was absolutely ridiculous, and it unsettled me, my heart speeding from guilt, embarrassment, and residual fear.

Despite this hiccup, I finished the run at 27:46.  That's a 5:33 min/km, faster (as planned) than my previous 10K pace (5:51 min/km.)!  In a previous entry, I wrote that 25 minutes was my goal, but that I would be happy not reaching it this time around.  Indeed, I'm absolutely happy with my time!  I'm very proud that I ran strong, and I'm confident that I will improve next time.

Something that also really struck me today was that I was running for something very near and dear to many people's hearts, and something that, honestly, is a threat to me and all of my friends and family.  Breast Cancer is a looming shadow over the shoulders of many women, a number of them younger than I am.  Today I heard a statistic that 1 in 9 Canadian women is expected to, at some point in their lives, be stricken with breast cancer.  1 in 9?!  That's terrible.  So today I ran for the people that cannot run themselves.  I ran for my future, my friends' futures, my family members' futures.  I ran to promote healthy living, something that has so many healing properties, both physical and mental.  I ran to show that there are people supporting you when you feel hope is lost in the face of an indiscriminate genetic sentence.

Injuries and continuing gym bonanzas

Injury alert!  Nothing too bad, but my thumb has been giving me trouble the past few days.  It got sore from stapling large amounts of papers together at work (I would constantly jam the stapler into the palm of my hand to help the staples get through the pile). Now it hurts to even hold a glass of water.  Some rest should get it feeling back to normal, but for now, I'll tread (or hand?) carefully.

I visited the gym 5 times this week.  Thursday night I tried a new Pump class, the instructor for which I really liked.  Then Saturday I did Zumba for 45 minutes, then ran over to another gym to do Shred, followed by a class called Awesome Abs.  The Zumba killed my shoulders, the Abs killed my butt (go figure).  I feel really strong today!

In other news, I got some new responsibilities at work.  It's nice that I'm trusted to start taking on new things.  It certainly helps with confidence levels.  Mood is good and motivation is high.  This week is going to be another gym bonanza as I prepare for my next run, but work will have calmed down a bit.  I'll be training for my new tasks, but I won't be working 10 hours per day.  It'll be nice to focus on other things in my life, such as… everything else!

Steady as she goes for now.  Perhaps there will be some more groundbreaking news next week. :)

4/4

Monday Attack, Wednesday Shred, Saturday Attack, and Sunday Pump.  It was pretty much a normal week, except that I would have done some running if it wasn't for work.  I'm on my feet for most of the day at work, and the September rush creates some long hours, so by the time I get home, I'm not about to strap my running shoes to go on for a hungry, dark, cold, late night run.  I need to stop making excuses, though...

Weather.  The weather has changed.  We were in the midst of a heat advisory, and then 2 days later it was suddenly 6 degrees.  I'm sure once I get back outdoors for my runs I'll appreciate the cooler weather more (well, not 6 degrees, although 12 I don't mind), but for now, it's just a shock to the body and mind.  I love the summer so much.  I don't want to have to bundle up to step outside...

I have felt quite energetic this weekend!  I jumped out of bed yesterday morning and this morning, ready to work out.  Today at Pump, I pushed myself to a new level with the squats, upping the weight by a few kilograms.  I was inspired by the soreness in my muscles the few days after the Longboat 10K.  While I broke my record at that one, there was a price to pay.  Extra leg work will help, since stronger legs will mean less pain after I push myself.

My next run is a 5K coming up on October 6th.  It's the CIBC Run for the Cure.  I've been thinking about my goal for that run.  If I divide my 10K PB, I'd finish the 5K in about 29 minutes.  But it's a shorter distance, so I should be able to push myself a bit harder for the duration.  I've therefore decided to settle on 25 minutes as my goal.  Now, I know that's quite a bit of a time difference, but it's not something I necessarily have to accomplish this October.  If I don't make it on the 6th, then I'll aim to make it next 5K.  Aim high or go home!

A Victory

I ran the Longboat Toronto Island 10K today!  It was a beautiful day for a run - sunny, a bit cooler at about 20 degrees, and not too windy.  Esther and I participated in this one, with Josh, Esther's husband, watching from the sidelines.

We started off near the front.  Esther is a little speed demon, so she set a pace, and I tried to keep up with her for as long as I could.  I lost sight of her sometime before the 4km mark.  It was a sad moment, but it also meant that till then I was going at a faster pace than usual.  The course was very flat, and it was a mix of pavement, grass, and boardwalk.

This time, my faster pace at the beginning had my body screaming for relief until 5km.  Up until 5, I was thinking "What have I gotten myself into?!  I haven't trained properly for this!!  I haven't gone for a run in ages!  I should just stop and take a breather!"

But so many things came to my mind and made me continue.  I thought of my gym classes, I thought of my instructors encouraging me to keep going, I thought of Marie doing pushups on her toes and egging me on to get off my knees and follow her, and heck, I even thought of having to post a FB status update about the race.

Just after I passed the 5km mark (which was actually the start line that we'd looped back to), the pain and hesitation left my body.  Everything normalised, and I realised that I was now more than halfway done and that it was totally possible to keep going.

So I kept going and going and going.  The last 2 kilometres were along the boardwalk.  The sailboats on the water were a beautiful sight to behold, but I found it easiest to look down at the ground so that a) I wouldn't get distracted by the pretty view, and b) I wouldn't get discouraged by what was up ahead (almost 2 kilometres of just boardwalk).

Once I got back up on the pavement, I could see the finish line.  Oh, the sprint that I did.  Oh, that sprint.  I ran so hard and so fast for the last few hundred metres that I almost made myself sick.  Felt damned good.

I picked up my medal with glee and went off to find Esther and Josh for the BBQ that was being held.  Veggie burger, apple, apple juice, Cliff Builders bars… It was a feast well earned.

My time?

Drumroll…

58:32!!

A triumphant 5:51 min./km.  The time I was aiming to beat was from my May 10K, a time of 1:02:37.  I blasted it!  I shaved 4 minutes and 5 seconds off of my time, and I came in at under an hour, which was my goal last run.  Right when I finished the race, I was pretty sure I'd come in under an hour, so I was in a good mood, but when I confirmed it online when I got home, I daaaaaanced.  I boogied in delight.  Woo!

I feel reinvigorated and energised.  This is going to be a good week since I'm so inspired.  I plan to hit the gym at least 4 times, which I hope will begin to propel me to some new level of fitness.  I'm also going to make sure I go for runs more often, if anything to toughen my feet up (I got a few blisters this morning).

And you know what?  It's time to sit and think about a new running goal.  How exciting is that?!

Only three times?

I was talking to a co-worker and friend today about my exercise these days.

"How's the gym going?" she asked.

I took a breath to answer, then stopped myself.

I took a step back from what I was going to say, thought about what it meant, and its implications, and then continued, "Wow, I sound like a total snob saying this, but my response to that is: it's going well, but I only went to the gym three times last week."

*Only* three times?  Clearly I've reached a point where going to the gym three times per week doesn't feel like enough.

And it's true!  I never went out for those runs I promised in my last entry, which has left me feeling unsettled and unprepared for my 10K on Sunday.  But last week for me was an incredibly busy week.  I went out every night.  As Marie put it on Facebook, "Work was just a break between one party to the next".  It was a much-needed social week, as I connected with new friends and re-connected with old friends.

Work this week has become a madhouse, and it will continue for the next few weeks.  I won't have as much time to relax, read, meet friends for coffee and drinks.  Tomorrow is definitely a gym night, but we'll see what I have time to do in the next few days before the weekend.  I feel confident at least in my basic fitness level that running a 10K without direct running training won't kill me.  But I feel like the 1:02 time I would like to beat will not be beat this Sunday.  And you know what?  I'm okay with that.  There will be other races, less busy weeks, and more training to come!

That's all for now, as I must now go and rest from an 11 hour day at work!  My next update will probably be about the run.  Ciao!