Cheer for yourself February 22, 2009

This afternoon I hopped on a treadmill at the gym to do my 6 mile run (it was 20* outside, too cold for me to run!).  All the TVs at my gym are always tuned to the news channels and the occasional ESPN.  Lucky for me, the 2009 UCA National College Cheerleading Championship was on!  I love watching national cheer and dance competitions because they’re fun (obviously) and because these cheerleaders and dancers are truly athletes.  This is a sport that they train vigorously for to perfect each and every movement.

Of course, this got me thinking about my high school dance team days.  I wasn’t a cheerleader, but at my high school the cheerleaders and dance team were part of one big group called the spirit squad – cue the spirit fingers!  We had the same sponsor/coach and she pushed our high school to accept us as an official sport.  Officially, all this really meant was that we could get a varsity letter in cheer or dance.  Unofficially, it taught us all so much more.  Our coach made sure that if we were going to be considered a “sport”, then we needed to be athletes just like any other sport. 

Our coach Becky was a gym teacher at the high school and had started the school’s first all-female weight-lifting class a few years before I started high school.  She put her knowledge to good use and set-up a training plan for all of us that including running, strength-training and aerobics.  She was also a Jazzercise instructor.  Remember Jazzercise?!?!  Yup, leotard and all

In the summers, we were all encouraged to participate in our school’s “Power Club”, which was basically the summer training program that all the football players did.  We would show up each afternoon and warm-up with the football boys- stretching and doing their warm-up drills.  We often went our separate way for the cardio portion of Power Club- the boys would do things like pull each other in harnesses (!) and we would run up and down the stairs of the football stadium, run on the track, run a route around the neighborhood or Jazzercise our hearts out.  After this was done, we headed inside for strength training.  We each had a workout mapped out for us and this is where I think I learned a very helpful lesson- the weight room isn’t scary.  Even when it’s full of high school boys.  Even when you hope one of them will ask you to Homecoming. 

So, thanks, Becky, for encouraging me to get in shape and for teaching me skills and lessons that have certainly made me healthier in the long run.  Of all the things you taught me, kicking my fear of the weight room is actually pretty low on the list.

Detox?! February 10, 2009

Without going into too much detail, I woke up Monday morning with the stomach flu.  YUCK.  I don’t think I have been this sick in many years and yesterday it was a little scary when I passed out a couple times.  My dad came home from work mid-morning with the stomach flu as well and he had to help me back to bed a couple times – we were quite a sight, I’m sure!  I wish my hubby could have been here to take care of me, but mom and dad are definitely second best!  Mom came home from work early and kicked into full nurse mode – delivering ice chips, cleaning, and following me every time I got out of bed.

I guess my body decided it needed to “detox” everything in my system yesterday.  Late in the day I was able to keep down a cup of Sprite and a few saltines.  I stayed home from work again today to give my body a chance to fully recover.  So far I’ve kept down a piece of toast and a few more saltines…maybe later today I’ll graduate to a food group other than carbs!  I’m happy that I was able to relocate to the couch today and have the strength to watch TV and play on the computer (who knew that took strength?).  Unfortunately, I don’t think I’m ready to read food blogs just yet, you can imagine that looking at all those pictures of food wouldn’t be the best idea! 

Hope you’ve had a better start to your week

7 on the 7th February 7, 2009

Today I joined in the virtual 7 mile race hosted by Amanda!  Lucky for me, Mother Nature fully cooperated and gave me a sunny 60* day today!  After playing with my niece and nephew this morning, I set out for my run around 2 pm.  I headed to a trail near my parents house since even though its warm today and most of the snow here is melted (the huge piles will just be a big dirty lump until April or so), the sidewalks and roads tend to be covered in sand and salt. 

So, I’m going to be perfectly honest, it was a pretty rough run today.  From the trailhead I parked at, there are 3 different choices of trails and I accidentally picked the most boring route of all.  It’s wonderful that Omaha has a lot of trails all over the area, but being Nebraska and all, a lot of them go through cornfields.  BO-RING.  As soon as I got out of the car I noticed that it was pretty windy and I ran straight into the wind for the first half of my run.  Cornfields = no break from the wind.  I just kept telling myself that if I pushed this first half, I would practically float back once I turned around and had this wind at my back.  The way back was great and I was able to pick up my speed a little.

Here’s another issue – I assumed this trail would be better marked, but it was not.  Once I realized there was not going to be a mile marker to tell me to turn around after 3.5 miles I decided to just wing it and turn around after 35 minutes, since 10 minute miles are my slowest pace (I need a Garmin!!).  I thought I would be able to figure out the distance once I got home, but the Internet has failed me on this one!  I’m pretty positive that I ran over 7 miles and my time was 65 minutes.  I’ll go ahead and call 65 minutes my official time, since I don’t have any way to figure out how far I actually ran today.  And if I ran extra, it just made me that much stronger, right?!

Thanks for organizing this Amanda, I don’t think I would have ran 7 miles today – especially in that wind- if I didn’t know others were out there doing the same!

~

I’m also having a pretty fantastic weekend, I’ll report more later!

Wear Red Day February 5, 2009

Don’t forget to wear red tomorrow, Feb. 6!  It’s the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women day, to raise awareness about the importance of heart health for women.

The American Heart Association’s goal is to reduce coronary heart disease and stroke risk by at least 25% by 2010.

Heart disease is the #1 killer of women, so here are some things you can do to reduce your risk:

• Eat a heart-healthy diet full of fruits and vegetables, unrefined whole grains, and fish high in omega-3 fatty acids at least twice a week.  Avoid nutrient-poor foods like fatty meats, partially hydrogenated oils, added sugars and salt.
• Don’t smoke and avoid being around smoke.  (I’m so thankful the city I just moved to has NO SMOKING in bars.)
• Drink alcohol in moderation.
• Stay active!  Regular exercise is one of the most important things to keep your heart healthy.
• Encourage those around you to live a healthier lifestyle, especially children.  Establishing a healthy lifestyle early on will greatly reduce their heart disease risk in the future.

So pull out your favorite red tee or red sweater and wear it tomorrow! 

Transition Time February 4, 2009

The last few days and the weekend seemed to slip away from me, but I’m getting back on track now!  I headed back to St. Louis last weekend to celebrate my husband’s birthday.  After living in separate cities for almost a month, I’m definitely ready to get back to our regularly-scheduled lives, ya know, like living together and spending time together.  One of our favorite things to do together is to just run errands.  It might sound silly, but we both enjoy getting up on a weekend morning, getting some coffee, and hitting the stores on our To Do list.  What’s your favorite “little” thing to do with your significant other?

This transition time certainly hasn’t been as bad as it could have been and I’m thankful that I am able to stay with my family and that my husband has our dog and our St Louis friends to keep him company.  The end is in sight, though: we close on our new house in Omaha on Feb. 27 and move-in that weekend.  We have a contract on our house in St. Louis, so we just need to tie that up and we’ll move on.

Until then, I’ll just keep chugging along.  My days consist of work (I like the new job- hooray!!), exercising, eating, and hanging out with my family.

I just finished a yogadownload.com class – Power Vinyasa Flow #2.  I really enjoyed this one and can tell I have improved since I started taking hot yoga classes a few weeks ago.  I set-up my mat in the warmest room in my parents’ house, which happens to be my old bedroom, now my niece and nephew’s room.  I’m still sitting in here because it’s so warm and cozy!

So, I’ll end this random post with some pics from my weekend.  Happy Birthday, Zach!!

Proud January 20, 2009

Today was an emotional day for a lot of Americans.  I didn’t get to watch the inauguration coverage during the day, but watched the DVR-ed version after work.  What a great day to be an American.  I feel full of hope and proud of our country, what we have achieved, and what we will do to pull ourselves back onto our feet.  President Obama is one heck of a public speaker!!

As I was watching the coverage my cute parents came home from work- Mom in a red jacket with a flag pin and Dad in a flag tie, they are just too cute! 

On a less emotional note- what did you think of Michelle Obama’s inauguration day outfit??  I thought it was beautiful and classy and I’m excited to see what she wears to the balls tonight!

Holiday Exercise December 27, 2008

So I’ve been hibernating since my last post…just kidding!  Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!  I have been busy celebrating with my family and my in-laws and now I’m back at my parents’ house.  I had a great Christmas and am glad the weather cooperated for all of our driving- hopefully it stays that way for my husband’s last leg of the trip back to St. Louis next weekend. 

My parents don’t have wireless internet (gasp!), so blogging is a little more difficult from their desktop.  Pictures will have to wait until Zach gets wireless hooked up for them this week

I’m going to do a quick re-cap of my workouts during this holiday week.  Considering that I am not at my home, started a new job on Monday, and had various Christmas festivities during the week, I think I did pretty well!  I don’t have a gym membership here yet, but luckily my parents have a treadmill in their basement in front of a TV.  This is lucky because it was very cold and icy here in Omaha early last week, so outdoor activity was out of the question!

Sunday 12/21- ran 4.5 miles on TM (incl. warm-up and cool-down), stretched 15 min.; watched Extreme Home Makeover- this was a good treadmill show because I had to keep going to see the end result

Monday 12/22- no workout.  Delivered gifts from church with my dad in approx. 0 degree weather.  Ate soup and hid under a blanket afterwards.

Tuesday 12/23- no workout.  Worked late (well, later than planned), husband got into town, went to dinner with a good friend in town from San Francisco

Wednesday 12/24- ran 5.5 miles on TM, 15 min. weights, 15 min. stretching; watched Love Actually on DVD

Thursday 12/25- Merry Christmas!  ran 3.5 miles on TM before we headed to north of Kansas City to see the in-laws; watched A Christmas Story on TBS- I love that movie, wish I’d had time to watch more!!

Friday 12/26 – finally had a warm day!!  It was almost 60*, so Zach and I went for a walk on the country roads near his parents house.  I thought this would be boring, but it was actually very peaceful.  The fresh air felt amazing, we walked for about an hour, which I am guesstimating to be about 3 miles.  Saw several cows and horses.

Saturday 12/27- drove back to Omaha.  ran 6.5 miles on TM (walked about a mile between warm-up, cool-down and a break for a cramp), stretched 15 min.; watched (can’t believe I’m admitting this) Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen on Disney.  It’s always nice to see Lindsay Lohan pre-fall-from-grace.

I usually like to mix it up more than just running, but since that was my only option this week, I’m glad I got in what I could.

I’m off to spend some quality time catching up on all your lovely blogs!  My Google Reader is full- I’ve missed you guys!

Hibernation December 22, 2008

A lot of places have been hit with serious winter weather the last few days and today I just want to crawl under some covers and sleep for a few days!  I want to hibernate!!

Today in Omaha it was about 15* which is better than yesterday when I think the high was 3*.  Within 24 hours of arriving here, I bought my first long underwear in years and stronger moisturizer (my skin dries out and my hands kind of crack in the winter weather).  Brrrr!  Today I just couldn’t warm up.  I started my new job (ahhhhh, it will be ‘different’) and the office was pretty drafty.  Plus we had to go out a few times to try to get my ID, etc. squared away and my feet and face froze!  We haven’t had this kind of cold in a few years, and I’m really hoping it won’t stick around too long.  After work, my dad and I went to deliver Christmas gifts from our church’s angel tree, which meant more jumping in and out of the car.  After a warm bowl of soup, I was still freezing.  My mom reminded me that moving around is the best way to warm up, but it’s getting late, so I’m just going to go with my instinct and jump into bed

Did I mention that my mom made a really yummy soup for dinner?  And that I’m living in my parents basement and so far it kind of rocks??  I miss my hubby though- glad he gets here tomorrow!

Hope you are all keeping warm out there

Almost Gone December 18, 2008

Yesterday was my last day of work in St. Louis.  Honestly, I don’t think it’s really set in that I’m moving. 

Anyways, today I’m supposed to be en route to my new home in Omaha (well, really en route to my temporary stay in my parents’ basement until we find a house).  Instead, I’m enjoying a leisurely day off.  The forecast has an 80 to 90% chance of ice and snow for the entire route between St. Louis and Omaha, so I’m waiting until tomorrow to drive.  It’s totally not worth risking getting stuck in the middle of Missouri or Iowa in the bad weather.  So, I took advantage of my extra time by procrastinating packing my stuff until today (hehe) and enjoying another day at home. 

I got up around 8 this morning, checked the class schedule at my gym and headed to an 8:30 Muscle Works class and then a 9:15 spinning class.  I’ve heard good things about the Muscle Works class, but it was not very good at all.  There were about 7 other people in the class and none of them really seemed to be there to work hard.  I’ve notice that the during the day gym-goers are more social during their gym time than the early morning or after work crowd.  I think I got a decent strength training workout in the class, then I happily headed to spinning.  The teacher had these hanging on every bike:

A travel-size germ-X with a chocolate taped to the back.  So cute!  She played some awesome Christmas music and I had a fantastic workout!  I think it got me into the ‘Christmas spirit’ a little bit.  I feel like I’m not really in Christmas mode this year.  Our house isn’t decorated and we’re so pre-occupied with moving that it’s hard to think about anything else.  I’m sure as soon as I get to my parents’ house tomorrow and see all their Christmas decorations and spend time with my family…I’ll be in the Christmas spirit!

I was pooped last night, so I laid on the couch and watched TV for a while.  Lucy wanted to join me, so she hopped on the couch and SAT on me.  That’s 85 lbs. of chocolate lab love

Good to be back December 15, 2008

Last week, finishing up final exams for the semester and being sick pre-empted exercise.  Even though I was busy and felt like crap, I still missed my usual workouts.  Yesterday, I was finally feeling 100% and was ready to hit the gym.  I had an awesome workout- usually my gym trips are one hour, but I felt like I could stay all day on Sunday.  Here’s what I did:

30 min- elliptical (3 min. forward, 2 min. backward)

30 min- treadmill (3.25 miles, jogging and some speed intervals)

15 min- step mill (sooo sweaty!  loved it!)

30 min- weights (squats with shoulder press, plie squats with side shoulder raises, lunges with bicep curl, tricep extension on the cable machine with the help of Kelly’s instructions!)

At that point, I was done but felt like I needed to cool down, so I hopped back on the treadmill for an easy .25 mile walk.  Then I spent 15 quality minutes stretching my muscles out.

It felt so good- I couldn’t work out this hard regularly, but after a long break, it felt really good to work really hard.  I was so sweaty that the end of my ponytail was wet.  Gross!  My hair is pretty short, so I guess it’s not that gross, but still.

Today I was deliciously sore, so I just hopped on the treadmill in the basement for a 4.25 mile easy run/walk while I watched a couple episodes of Sex and the City on DVD. 

I’m up to 19.25 points for HBBC, which is obviously a lot lower than I’d like to be, but I feel strong and healthy today, so I’m ok with it!  Hope you all had a great Monday