I am sure I have loved on my kettlebells class on my blog quite a bit, but here it is again.
It has been quite some time since I have been this sore from a workout, but today I walking is quite the chore. I did my usual kettlebells class last night and our instructor must have been in some kind of mood last night. Our musical selection for the class was a techno/death metal band that he claims the Germans who lift weights listen to (what.the.hell?). We did our usual warm up and then went right into what I like to call "Death Row." Simply put, it involves 20 swings/squats at each of five different weights - start with the 25 pound kettle bell, and eventually finishing up at the 70 pound kettlebell. THEN, we do it again, but starting at the heavy end of the line. It's a beast. Every week we finish class by doing a bear walk across the floor (with 50 extra pounds tacked on to yourself) - did not happen this week.
We added some squats and lunges and some double arm presses. I can now press 36 pounds for two minutes - I know I rest in there somewhere, but I am still proud of this. Thirty-six pounds doesn't seem like much, but it is rough for two minutes. It felt like my heart was about to beat out of my chest when I was done. We did some crazy abdominal stuff and I am thinking there might be some muscles down there after all.
I found out last night that there is a class on Saturday mornings as well. One of the other women last night told me that they do some more intense work and that there are usually only guys there (no workouts for our dainty lady core muscles), but I may still check it out. She did tell me that one time she went and our crazy instructor made them go out to the parking lot and pull "stuff." There is a train yard in close proximity, so maybe they pulled locomotives or something. It's like the ultra-feather weight division of world's strongest lady competition.
And here is some video of people who are in much better shape than me and who get to do their workout on the beach as opposed to the basement of a community center.
7/31/08
7/28/08
Goals
Currently, my blog is a lie! Sort of.
One of the reasons behind the blog was to document the marathon/training experience. And I was running the marathon, as it was something I would like to do with myself before I hit the big three-oh. Well, the event and birthday are well passed and I even updated the name of the blog. But I never added any new goals.
What would I like to do over the next seven months? And I'm thinking out loud (as it were) so these are subject to blackout dates and changes in order of importance.
1. Pay off debt - this one is actually quite do-able as our credit card balance is not that much and as I will be getting a steady pay check starting next week. The Hubs and I already have a plan to show up at the bank (in North Carolina, mind you) where credit card account is held, a check for the full account balance in hand. We will calmly approach the teller and then slam the check on the counter and whoop out cheer of victory ("BAM" and/or "boo-YAH"). We will then take our receipt and Dum-dum lollipops and leave as calmly as we entered the branch.
We also have a loan at the same bank from when we moved and sold our house. Yes, we lost money on our house. Actually the house broke even, it was the cost of the real estate that bit us. So the plan is to return to the same bank in December and do the same thing in celebration of closing up another loan.
After that, we have what remains of my student loan and our cars. The balance each car is pretty minimal and I have great dreams to get rid of my car completely and become a one-car family. Really, during the school year my car just sits in the parking lot at the swimming pool. Last year I only filled it up 5 times. Maybe more than that, but I guarantee that it was less than ten times total. We are very fortunate the be able to do this, I know. Anyway, I want to ditch that car. I want to ditch that car and get a scooter. The Hubs is not so big on the scooter idea. I told him we could get a manly color like dark green or burgundy, but he is still not sold on it.
2. The scooter idea actually leads into another goal. I want to bike to work. The place where I will be working this year is, as the crow flies, only about 3 miles from where I live. Unfortunately our bike is the cheap model and does not have flying capabilities, so I would have to learn to share the road. I have mapped out three different routes to work, the shortest (and most traffically terrifying) route is about 4 miles. There are also five and six mile routes, the longest being the most desirable (I have deemed it the "least likely to be run over by a car" route). I'm not all that intimidated by the distances, but I am very scared of the cars. And I am very scared of the big hill in the way on any of the three mapped out routes. I will have to stop by the cycle shop for some advice.
3. Volunteer - I have found an organization here to which I would like to donate my time. I have even filled out an application. I have to admit, it's not as noble as working at some soup kitchen or reading to the blind or anything that Mother Teresa would endorse. But one has to start somewhere, right?
One of the reasons behind the blog was to document the marathon/training experience. And I was running the marathon, as it was something I would like to do with myself before I hit the big three-oh. Well, the event and birthday are well passed and I even updated the name of the blog. But I never added any new goals.
What would I like to do over the next seven months? And I'm thinking out loud (as it were) so these are subject to blackout dates and changes in order of importance.
1. Pay off debt - this one is actually quite do-able as our credit card balance is not that much and as I will be getting a steady pay check starting next week. The Hubs and I already have a plan to show up at the bank (in North Carolina, mind you) where credit card account is held, a check for the full account balance in hand. We will calmly approach the teller and then slam the check on the counter and whoop out cheer of victory ("BAM" and/or "boo-YAH"). We will then take our receipt and Dum-dum lollipops and leave as calmly as we entered the branch.
We also have a loan at the same bank from when we moved and sold our house. Yes, we lost money on our house. Actually the house broke even, it was the cost of the real estate that bit us. So the plan is to return to the same bank in December and do the same thing in celebration of closing up another loan.
After that, we have what remains of my student loan and our cars. The balance each car is pretty minimal and I have great dreams to get rid of my car completely and become a one-car family. Really, during the school year my car just sits in the parking lot at the swimming pool. Last year I only filled it up 5 times. Maybe more than that, but I guarantee that it was less than ten times total. We are very fortunate the be able to do this, I know. Anyway, I want to ditch that car. I want to ditch that car and get a scooter. The Hubs is not so big on the scooter idea. I told him we could get a manly color like dark green or burgundy, but he is still not sold on it.
2. The scooter idea actually leads into another goal. I want to bike to work. The place where I will be working this year is, as the crow flies, only about 3 miles from where I live. Unfortunately our bike is the cheap model and does not have flying capabilities, so I would have to learn to share the road. I have mapped out three different routes to work, the shortest (and most traffically terrifying) route is about 4 miles. There are also five and six mile routes, the longest being the most desirable (I have deemed it the "least likely to be run over by a car" route). I'm not all that intimidated by the distances, but I am very scared of the cars. And I am very scared of the big hill in the way on any of the three mapped out routes. I will have to stop by the cycle shop for some advice.
3. Volunteer - I have found an organization here to which I would like to donate my time. I have even filled out an application. I have to admit, it's not as noble as working at some soup kitchen or reading to the blind or anything that Mother Teresa would endorse. But one has to start somewhere, right?
7/21/08
Show on the Road
10 whole miles last week - WOOT!
I spent my Saturday working for a very well known public television joint that provides appraisals of antiques, collectibles, and random crap. Aside from the big plus of getting paid for work, it was perfect for people watching. They came out of the woodwork for this big event, and they came with their "valuables" in tow in some of the most interesting vehicles. Lots of red wagons, rolling suitcases, some cart-like creations made of PVC and old training wheels, and a grocery cart. And people did actually bring in some pretty valuable stuff. I experienced actually feeling my jaw drop when I heard the appraisal price of $250,000 for a diamond necklace that was about two feet from myself.
Out of the massive crowd at the convention center, it was easy to spot the appraisers. They were all like a dressed up version of Comic Book Store Guy from the Simpsons. And by dressed up, I mean they might actually be just like Comic Book Store Guy, but they found and old suit to wear for the day just in case they got tabbed to be on TV. Except for the famous ones - those guys were dressed in suits nicer than what my husband wore for our wedding (and I bet they didn't rent their suits from Men's Wearhouse either).
All in all, it was a great time. The full-time crew that I worked with was one of the nicest and several of them said I was some of the best local crew they had worked with (although I have a feeling they tend to start out with lowered expectations of local crews, so I can come in and do a fairly decent job and come out looking like a rock star).
I'm off to drink my coffee now, in a mug that would bring around $4 at auction (or $8 were it sold in a gallery and it didn't have a chip out of the handle).
I spent my Saturday working for a very well known public television joint that provides appraisals of antiques, collectibles, and random crap. Aside from the big plus of getting paid for work, it was perfect for people watching. They came out of the woodwork for this big event, and they came with their "valuables" in tow in some of the most interesting vehicles. Lots of red wagons, rolling suitcases, some cart-like creations made of PVC and old training wheels, and a grocery cart. And people did actually bring in some pretty valuable stuff. I experienced actually feeling my jaw drop when I heard the appraisal price of $250,000 for a diamond necklace that was about two feet from myself.
Out of the massive crowd at the convention center, it was easy to spot the appraisers. They were all like a dressed up version of Comic Book Store Guy from the Simpsons. And by dressed up, I mean they might actually be just like Comic Book Store Guy, but they found and old suit to wear for the day just in case they got tabbed to be on TV. Except for the famous ones - those guys were dressed in suits nicer than what my husband wore for our wedding (and I bet they didn't rent their suits from Men's Wearhouse either).
All in all, it was a great time. The full-time crew that I worked with was one of the nicest and several of them said I was some of the best local crew they had worked with (although I have a feeling they tend to start out with lowered expectations of local crews, so I can come in and do a fairly decent job and come out looking like a rock star).
I'm off to drink my coffee now, in a mug that would bring around $4 at auction (or $8 were it sold in a gallery and it didn't have a chip out of the handle).
7/14/08
Bonjour! Je suis en forme.
I am happy to report that I got off my butt on Saturday afternoon and spent some quality time at the cardio room. I actually ran on the treadmill for 30 minutes but I won't say the mileage I completed, as it is a bit embarassing. But my shins didn't fall off and I felt pretty good considering it was my first run in almost a month proper. I did some ab work and something that might pass as a quad workout. I did feel good enough when it was over to start planning my workouts for the week.
I also got in some more treadmill time this morning. Before my workout, I was browsing iTunes for a new podcast or something to listen to, and I happened upon the Coffee Break French Series. It's free and I thought it might be fun to brush up on it - you know, because it is so useful and practical to know French where I live. And I often count to one hundred and then backwards en francais during a run to pass the time. Maybe I need to throw some verbs to conjugate into the mix. I really enjoyed the change of pace, although I am sure I looked quite the fool mouthing "Ca va? Ca va tres bien!" to myself over and over. I plan on having lesson two downloaded and ready for my run tomorrow, oui!
*Note that the guy/tower in the picture actually attached his race bib to his tower instead of to his shirt. That's dedication to your costume.
I also got in some more treadmill time this morning. Before my workout, I was browsing iTunes for a new podcast or something to listen to, and I happened upon the Coffee Break French Series. It's free and I thought it might be fun to brush up on it - you know, because it is so useful and practical to know French where I live. And I often count to one hundred and then backwards en francais during a run to pass the time. Maybe I need to throw some verbs to conjugate into the mix. I really enjoyed the change of pace, although I am sure I looked quite the fool mouthing "Ca va? Ca va tres bien!" to myself over and over. I plan on having lesson two downloaded and ready for my run tomorrow, oui!
*Note that the guy/tower in the picture actually attached his race bib to his tower instead of to his shirt. That's dedication to your costume.
7/9/08
Whiney McWhinerstein
I'm still flying high on accomplishment of having run 0 miles in the last three weeks. But I did go to my kettlebells class tonight. Surely that 45 minutes is workout enough until next Wednesday's class.
I'm still in a bit of a funk I guess. The addition of two new pairs of running shorts a few weeks ago only sent me to the elliptical machine one time, and that's it. I haven't even taken the tags off the other pair. I have to go to my husband's high school reunion at the end of September and there happens to be a 5K in Raleigh that Saturday. Perhaps I could sign up for and train for that. Part of me digs the idea of trying to actually get faster and set a PR, something I've never done technically, as I've only run the usual races distances (5K, 10K, 15K, half, full) exactly one time each. OR, I could sit on the couch and enjoy M*A*S*H reruns most of the night.
If someone were to tell me this exact problem, I would probably tell them, or think it in a very snarky manner at the very least, to just STFU and do it. Alright self, get to it.
I'm still in a bit of a funk I guess. The addition of two new pairs of running shorts a few weeks ago only sent me to the elliptical machine one time, and that's it. I haven't even taken the tags off the other pair. I have to go to my husband's high school reunion at the end of September and there happens to be a 5K in Raleigh that Saturday. Perhaps I could sign up for and train for that. Part of me digs the idea of trying to actually get faster and set a PR, something I've never done technically, as I've only run the usual races distances (5K, 10K, 15K, half, full) exactly one time each. OR, I could sit on the couch and enjoy M*A*S*H reruns most of the night.
If someone were to tell me this exact problem, I would probably tell them, or think it in a very snarky manner at the very least, to just STFU and do it. Alright self, get to it.
7/7/08
Yes, there are certainly disadvantages to living in a dorm. But there are also pluses.
Advantage # 2,649 to living on campus at a prep school: walking next door with your laptop in hand to the IT office and wooing them with peanut butter cookies to fix your computer. Sure they sent out a school-wide "We don't really have time to fix your personal computers" as a result of my request, but they did a fine job if making the ol' (and I mean OLD) Think Pad purr again. I will post again when I am caught up on a weeks' worth of blog posts and other internetly delights on which I have missed out.
Advantage # 2,649 to living on campus at a prep school: walking next door with your laptop in hand to the IT office and wooing them with peanut butter cookies to fix your computer. Sure they sent out a school-wide "We don't really have time to fix your personal computers" as a result of my request, but they did a fine job if making the ol' (and I mean OLD) Think Pad purr again. I will post again when I am caught up on a weeks' worth of blog posts and other internetly delights on which I have missed out.
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