Exercise is the best medicine

It's Monday. Brargh.

I had one hell of a day at work. My workload is high, I'm training on something new, plus the sales reps I work with are doing all kinds of crazy complicated things that fall back on me. Then we have Masters in a couple weeks, and the paperwork involved is just hurting my brain.

So I came home with a serious headache. Did not feel like working out at all. Then to make it even harder to get motivated, my husband was there and we spent some time lying down on the bed just hanging out, talking, laughing, goofing off, etc. Well after a few minutes I just decided to suck it up and get to it. I got into my strength workout, and even did a few extra things to demonstrate what I was doing to my husband, who came in during the second half of my workout. He gave me some good feedback on what I was doing and said he noticed some definition in my shoulders and back (Really? Because I don't!) By the end of it I was out of breath, covered in sweat, and best of all - My headache is gone.

There's days when I don't feel my best. As much as I can, I try to push past the suck and get my workouts in. I don't always overcome my desires to be lazy, but I do most of the time. And I think that is a small victory in itself.

FATS - Skinny

Howdy there!

I am pretty beat on this Sunday.

This morning I got up early to go and run FATS - Forks Area Trail System. It's a mountain biking trail right across the river in South Carolina. While I was driving up there I noticed how huge the hills were. It almost felt like I was driving through small mountains. The trailhead was at the top of these hills. There are like 6 trails, and I was going to start my FATS experience with Brown Wave, but when I saw the map I learned you have to go 2 miles to even get to the start of Brown Wave. I was kind of pressed for time because I was going to be doing some work with my husband today, so instead I opted to try the Skinny trail.

Skinny is 6 miles. Not many steep hills here, most of them are pretty gradual and when you start off it's alot of downhill. The trail had some mud puddles and several areas where they had put in stone blocks or wooden boards to help you cross the mud. I saw a group of mountain bikers within the first mile or so, but after that I was all alone. This was a beautiful run. Nice sunny 50 degree morning with a cool breeze. I ran through alot of pine forest which is typical for South Carolina. I also saw alot of damage from the ice storm we had last month. Poor pine trees. The trail is well kept so there wasn't any debris blocking my path. Around 4.5 miles or so it started to be more uphill, and there was a cool part where I was high up on a steep hillside, and had a really pretty view of the forest to my left while I was about 30 feet above it all. My watch wasn't working right and I had no idea what my pace was. Kind of wish I had known so I could have pushed myself a little harder. I thought I was going faster than I really was. Oh well. This is all about trying to get my trail legs back, I guess the speed will come with time.

Saw a couple runners as I was doing my cool down walk. But no one else was around during my run. It was really nice and peaceful, I didn't have my music with me so it was a good time to just unwind and be with nature.

I got this.

It's a peep donut. Don't worry - I didn't eat it. I got it for my husband who loves peeps. I got myself one marble frosted donut.

We spent this afternoon working on our yard. It was the start of a large project - replace our 2 year old pinestraw with white marble stones! I am liking it. Every now and then it feels good to do some good old fashioned hard work, plus you get to lift big heavy bags of stones!

Is it weird that I love the smell of fresh dirt? It reminds me of mud runs!

It will take a long time to do all the areas in our yard, but we shall get it done eventually.

Now I'm pretty tired and am tempted to go to bed early!

I believe I can fly

Here I am on a Thursday night. A pretty nice night if you ask me.

Now that I'm done being sore from last weekend, I'm back to doin' my thang. Just ran 2.5 miles around my neighborhood and it was sorely needed. I'm currently experiencing the awesome post exercise feeling - no more pent up energy and stress! We're having great weather today so it was a nice little afternoon run.

What I'm focusing on right now with my weekday runs is speed. I don't have the time or the space to run more than 2-3 miles, and since the only way I am ever going to get faster is.. by going faster. I'm dedicating the weekdays to doing just that. Maybe 1 day will be a tempo run and the other day will be intervals or something.

Tomorrow I'm gonna lift things. Not sure what the weekend will bring since we're supposed to get "severe" storms on Saturday, but if that's the case then I will just do my long run Sunday. My goal over the next few months is to run on trails more (for my long runs anyway) I need to get away from the flat paved surfaces. So I plan on going out to FATS this weekend - it's a trail system across the river in SC. I've wanted to check it out for a long time, so hopefully I can do that this weekend!

Finally, I have my pictures from Charlotte!

Knowing where the cameras will be really helps you to have great race photos. In GA I wasn't really thinking about the cameras, which resulted in some derpy looking pictures of me. But in NC I was prepared for the glamour shots! And I must say, they turned out pretty great.

And finally...

Are you ready for this?

*ahem*

*sings* "I BELIEVE I CAN FLY....."

Charlotte Spartan Sprint

I am back from North Carolina!

Another muddy Spartan Race done!

I signed up for the Charlotte Sprint awhile back, because it was cheap and I had heard last year's venue was really cool. It was at some whitewater rafting center and it had an obstacle where you cargo net climb over the rapids. Charlotte is 3 hours away which isn't too horrible so I decided to go for it. However, after I signed up they changed the venue to a farm. I wasn't too happy about the venue change but I knew Spartan would put on a good race as always. The farm stunk alot though.

The whole place was very very muddy. This course's length was 4.8 miles which is pretty long for the Sprint. But it was also a fairly flat course. Georgia was alot of hilly trails, and this course was mostly running through grass, gravel paths, and a bit of running through the woods but not as much as Georgia. The race started out pretty simple, but within the first mile or maybe even less, we got hit with the hard stuff!!! First big obstacle was the rope climb. I'm not at the point where I can climb a rope yet. I really need to find a rope to practice on. But for now, it was 30 burpees for me. Next up was the inverted walls, and they were muddy as hell! The first time I slipped off of the bottom part of the wall, which I'm not sure if it counts for burpees but no one said anything. The only reason I fell off is because it was so muddy and my foot slipped. The second time I got up it no problem.

Right after was the ladder climb which is easy stuff. I guess it's hard if you are afraid of heights, but for me personally this obstacle is not a big deal. After I got over that one, next up was the traverse wall. Here it is pictured to the left - I caught a glimpse of this gent as I was getting ready to start my race. I went to the very last one hoping it would be less used and therefore less muddy, but it didn't make one bit of difference. I did better here than I did in Georgia, but still fell off after the first set of blocks. 30 more burpees for me! I was starting to feel a bit overwhelmed about the fact that they put 3 hard obstacles back to back, 2 of which I really suck at. Until I saw what was up next

Hercules Hoist. Yes. I kill this thing every time. It's absolutely my best obstacle. So I walked up to it and there was this lady who had walked the rope all the way out so it was fully extended and at a wide angle. Not really sure why she did this, but as I walked past her she said "Hey, can you help me here?" So I did, and got her sandbag the last 1/4 of the way up. I told her what I do is sit on my ass so I am in a stable position. She said that was usually what she did too, but decided to try something different this time. Not the best strategy really. So then I sat down with my sandbag. I noticed all the girls to my sides were all struggling with their bags which were just a few feet in the air. I started lifting fast. My sandbag reached the top as the volunteer cheered me on, and then I was lowering it back down before anyone elses's had barely moved. Yes. I freaking rock at this thing. It feels good to kick ass at something after failing 2 obstacles in a row!

All of this took place before 2 miles.I really wasn't expecting so much so soon, but I knew I had at least gotten my 2 worst obstacles out of the way. I hit the water station, kept running, watched a woman fall on her ass while running through a mud puddle and laughed about it with her.. and then hit the barb wire crawl. This was easier than Georgia's, as we have that thick clay down here. It was muddy and hard to get through, but I think I made decent time and had no issues with the wires. I saw many clumps of hair caught in the wires though.

Once I was through the barb wire I ran through a field for awhile, then proceeded on to the sandbag carry. Then it was the tractor pull, which we did not have in Georgia this year. Immediately after was a 7 foot and an 8 foot wall. These actually had the ledges unlike Georgia, and the volunteers were super cool and let us use the wall supports to get us up. I did the walls, hit the next aid station, and continued into the woods. Here was the mud pit. This big guy running next to me jumped in, and immediately froze. He had this look of sheer panic on his face and he did not move. Me and another guy were kind of talking him through but for whatever reason this guy was freaking out. Then the other guy pulled him out of the water and once I saw that he was ok I continued on. We all have different fears, and Spartan Race forces you to face and overcome them. After the mud we turned the corner and found the tire pull. Unlike Georgia, this one was not in the mud, it was in grass. I had no problems with that tire, it moved SO much easier than last time!

Next up was the gamble! This one was a muddy hill which had some tree roots and saplings that you could grab onto. Once again, it wasn't even a choice for me. I want to take the hard road and test myself. It wasn't really that bad, just climbing really. Then we ran on some more trails. Here I witnessed some people who were really in a tough spot - a guy who was running fast and bouncing over all the fallen logs - turn the corner, there he was saying "I made a bad decision..." and had a big ass thorn stuck in his leg. Then I saw a girl having a serious calf cramp, her racing companion massaging it while she was screaming in pain... ouch, I have been there before!!! There was also a guy with a handheld radio blasting Poker Face while we ran through the woods. Then we entered the fields once again to face...

The atlas carry. This one was totally new to me - I had seen it in pictures but never faced it before. You have to pick up this cement ball and carry it about 10 feet, drop it and do 5 burpees, then pick it up and carry it back. This mother was HEAVY. I could hardly pick it up. It took me a few tries but I got it and stabilized it against my stomach and thighs, then waddled over to the other side. The girl next to me couldn't pick hers up, but before I could help her the male volunteer came to give her a hand. On the way back once again it took me a few tries, but I managed to pick it up and carry it back over with 2 other chicks beside me. We all finished at the same time and the volunteer said "Way to go Spartan Chicks!!" I love when people cheer us on!

As I started to near the end of the course I reached the spear throw. I missed. 30 more burpees. But I took off running, and was one of the few people who was actually still running at this point. Before long we were near the finish line!

Got into another mud pit with a wall you had to go UNDER. Muddy hair time! I saw one genius go UP the
wall as a volunteer was yelling "UNDER! UNDER! UNDER" and the wall wobbled as he was climbing it.. probably wasn't meant for climbing, stupid! Immediately after was the incline wall, which was super wet and muddy from the previous mud pool. I made it up no problem though. And after a fire jump and a gladiator pummeling I was over the finish line! It's such an awesome feeling, and I felt like I did pretty well this time around. My time was 1:51, which is actually my fastest time per mile for a Spartan Sprint. This is also the longest Sprint I've run. I was not totally exhausted afterwards. With some more upper body training I will definitely feel like I could take on a Super - and I will, sometime over the summer most likely. I had a great time out there yesterday!

Side note - several guys were staring at me during various points of the day. Not that I am interested in any of them because I'm married, but it's a nice little confidence booster to know they're looking!

The soreness is hitting me as I've done a bunch of housework today. Tomorrow I must rest. But I'll be right back to it on Tuesday!

Heading to Charlotte

It's super early on Saturday morning, and in a little while I will be road trippin' up to Charlotte for another Spartan Sprint!

And it's gonna be a mess.

Waterworld Charlotte Sprint

Yep!

I am ready to kick ass, fully expecting/looking forward to getting wet and muddy.

There was a bunch of chaos about the parking for the race. First they moved all parking to PNC pavilion in downtown Charlotte (30 minutes away) because the parking lot at the race site was flooded. Shuttles. I haven't had the experience but I have heard horror stories about shuttle rides and long wait times. But then they went back and changed it to anyone racing before 12 can park at the farm, and all others park at the Charlotte Speedway. Yay! I can park at the actual venue!! I was not looking forward to riding a damn shuttle!

Signing off now, I will probably return tomorrow with many bruises and stories!

My week

This has been a pretty good week here in my world

Had myself a nice rainy run on Sunday morning, followed by breakfast with my husband. Then we shopped for indoor and outdoor plants. We love having greenery around us. We also saw the new 300 movie. It was awesome and had some bad ass chicks in it. I have a total girl crush on the Persian leader chick.

Monday I didn't get a workout in. I ended up having some spare time with my husband which is rare on a weekday, so we just kind of had some cuddle/goofing off time together. Sometimes it's best to just enjoy the little spontaneous moments life gives you, even if they take you off of your "schedule".

I strength trained yesterday and must have done a good job cause I'm sore as hell today. Somehow I worked my inner thighs really well?

Today I decided to do some interval/speed work for my run. I didn't time the sprints, it was more like picking a far away object as my goal and not stopping until I reached it. I'm going to start doing this kind of thing more often.

I'm going to be sore as all hell tomorrow!

Atlanta Spartan Sprint pictures, and a setback

It's Saturday, and I am NOT at the Ft Gordon parkour course like I wanted to be.


Warning - girl stuff ahead, you may not want to read...



Here's the thing. I have a condition called PCOS which can cause you not to have periods very often. I used to only get it about twice a year. Before I had PCOS I had pretty "standard" periods - heavy with painful cramps for a couple days, then they would be lighter for the last few days. Since I've lost weight, started exercising, started eating better, and got on birth control, I have been able to control PCOS a litttle more. I am pretty much regular now, however they are very very light. Well, for some reason this month I have reverted back to the old style periods from hell. It's probably been 2 years since I had one like this and I'm not used to dealing with it!

So this morning I was going to do the parkour course but the period and cramps were just too god awful. I was concerned about my ability to go out into the woods for an hour and not need a bathroom. Ugh. But the way I figure it, it should be better by tomorrow morning. It might rain tomorrow morning, but if that's the case I will just stay inside and workout instead. I really really wanted to go this morning, but it was just way too bad. I'll probably take a short walk later and enjoy this warm day.

I'm actually happy that this is happening. It's a sign of my body doing what it's supposed to do.

Instead I'm spending today doing taxes. Yay, NOT. Gets worse every year, I swear. Hanging out and cleaning house. Tomorrow after whatever workout I choose, the husband and I are supposed to go and get some new plants for the house and then go see the new 300 movie.

Speaking of Spartan related things ...

I got my offiicial pictures from Atlanta! And I race at 1045 on Saturday in Charlotte!

 Really wish this guy wasn't in my sandbag carry picture ... lol

Then we have the barb wire crawl at the end. I realized the camera was there a little too late

Love these gladiator pics

Checking in

Well, I haven't had a very active week. I stopped being sore from Spartan Race on Wednesday, but I have had alot of errands to run which has left little time for working out and cooking healthy food. So I'm just going to start fresh Saturday with another trail run/strength training session. Even though I don't really have time to work out today I finally got a chance to cook something from scratch for the first time in forever. Now I'm eating some chicken with black beans, pineapples, onions, jalapeno, cilantro, and lime. It's tasty stuff. The whole husband working at night thing has really deflated my desire to cook but I am trying to get back into it.

Here's a shot of some of the stuff I got from Spartan Race

The shirt on the right is this year's finisher shirt. They went away from the red and black but I like it! The shirt on the left was just too awesome not to get, plus it's a tech shirt. I like my souvenirs :)

I also ended up getting a new Spi belt for running. My old one will be used for mud runs since it's really hard to get the mud 100% out of it. I don't really wanna use a muddy belt 99% of the time.

It's so cute!!!!!

Signing off for now ... later!!

Atlanta Spartan Sprint

Arrroooo!!!

I ran the Atlanta Spartan Sprint yesterday!

This year had a much bigger turnout than last year, which is something I was absolutely expecting because Spartan Race has exploded in popularity. The festival area was much larger than last year's and it also featured a little information wall. I didn't take much time to look at this in detail, I really just took a picture to have for later. Spartan Race is all about surprises on the course so I figured I could just let it all be a surprise for me.

My goal for this race was to - beat last year's time and/or complete an obstacle I failed last year. I wore my old running watch so I could keep track of the time.

Spear Throw

The elites were finishing when I arrived so I got to watch a few of them go through the course before I had to start getting ready. It was about 50 degrees when my heat started at 9am, which is my ideal kind of weather. I wore a short sleeve shirt and capris that cover my knees - a lesson learned from last year's Spartan race! Once the opening speech and warcries were done, off we went! The first obstacles were some basic over/unders involving some small walls. Then it was into the woods. I love the trails at this venue - somewhat hilly, narrow, rocky, and like last year we ran through the creek a little bit. After a little while on the trails we met the first big obstacle - the inverted wall (example here). This is a new one, it's basically a wall that is slanted towards you at an angle. It was tough to get over but I did it with no problems. Right afterwards was the mile 1 aid station. I ate some food here just to stay ahead of my hypoglycemia. Then it was back onto the trails.

Rope Climb

Next up was the mud hills. 4 hills of mud - slide down the hill into a pit of muddy water about chest deep, wade across it, then pull yourself up the next mud hill using a rope. This water was cold! I kind of experienced that heart stopping feeling in my chest, but I just remembered to breathe slowly and not hyperventilate. Once I did that I calmed down instantly. The people next to me jumped right into the pits not realizing how cold the water would be. They paid for it dearly and immediately freaked out once the cold hit them! After that obstacle was behind me I could run again and get warmed up. Next up was the spear throw, and my first 30 burpees of the day. I need to start throwing the spears harder.

Traverse Wall

Next was the Hercules hoist - one of my strong points! A heavy sandbag attached to a pulley that you have to hoist to the top and then bring back down. That was followed by the obstacle that goes over the entrance - a ladder climb to the top of a platform, then you walk across the beams and make sure you don't fall through the cracks. I saw a girl's fear of heights get the better of her here. You just have to keep moving and not think about it too much. Right after this obstacle was the traverse wall. Here is where I am mad at myself. Last year I failed this, I got to the 2nd to last block and fell off. Well for some reason, this year I had a hard time getting a grip on the first set of blocks to even begin the obstacle. I fell off at the very beginning. Ouch :( Oh well... I just couldn't get it for some reason.

Barb wire crawl

After this were the walls. They changed the walls this year - no ledges to help you climb up except for on the 8 foot wall, and you weren't allowed to use the side supports like they let you do last year. I tried to get up the wall by myself the first time, fell down and bruised the hell out of my right arm, then eventually had to ask someone to help me get over the wall. My arms were like jelly by this stage, it was getting really hard to hoist myself over these walls. Once I was over the walls it was back into the woods for more trail running. I was still running, even up the hills which reduced most others to a walk. The next up I believe was the sandbag carry. Simple enough. But the following obstacle was brand new and BRUTAL. Instead of tire flipping, this year they had a tire attached to a rope which was staked into the ground. You drag the tire out so the rope is extended and completely straight, then walk back and pull the tire towards you using the rope. When I went to pick up my tire to carry it out, IT DID NOT MOVE. Oh god. I sat down on my ass and just started pulling, and inch by inch it was moving VERY SLOWLY. Did I mention that this tire is in the mud? I finally got it to the end, walked back, and started to pull my rope. NOPE. The volunteer felt bad for me I guess so she helped me out a little bit. It seemed to move much easier after that. After much pulling and grunting my tire was back home and I was done! That one was hard, and it wasn't just me - the girl next to me walked up to her tire, tried to pull it, and said "Yeah this thing is not moving, I'm doing burpees!" It was hard but I'm glad I did mine.

More wooded trails and hilly descents led us to something new for this year - The Gamble. Pick a trail. The left path led directly in front of us - a cargo net climb up a CLIFF. Here is the photo courtesy of Spartan Race's blog. The picture does not do this thing justice. The path to the right was unknown - you didn't have to face the cliff, but it was the longer route according to the volunteer. Many people took the right path. Oh no. I couldn't do it, I had to face the cliff. How could I not? I got to the far right side because I'm slow, and started climbin! At the top it was pretty much a 90 degree angle and it was getting harder to get my footing on the ropes. But I was moving steadily along, as a volunteer shouted "We got some Spartan Chicks killing this rope!" Yeah! Also, they said the way around was a big ass hill, so the people who took it over the cliff were not getting a break. I figured you had to get up the hill one way or another and I guess I was right.

Next up was the log hop around mile 4. Another failure for me. I'm just not a good balancer. But you know what, at least I tried it. Almost every other person was having people hold their hand as they crossed it. Even a volunteer held someone's hand! Yes, 30 more burpees, followed by 30 more at the rope climb. I just can't get that rope! Then we entered the infamous Georgia clay filled barb wire crawl. I was in a predicament here. I slid in on my belly, then rolled around to avoid sliding face first into the pool of mud at the bottom. But I realized there was some low hanging barb wire which threatened to cut my face. So in one perfect move I slid down, rolled on my side, and shielded my face. I passed through unscathed, and the guy next to me said "Nice save!" Next up, the muddy incline. Pull yourself up an incline with a rope. I did much better than last year, when I almost fell off and had to pull myself all the way up using only my arms. After this was the long crawl. Another thing I did much much better this time around. I have really learned alot about how to crawl, and got through this much faster and with zero stops. My calf did start to cramp at the end of it, but I got through it and over the fire pit - yes we had a fire pit this year! Over the fire, through the gladiators and across the finish line!

1:59 was my time. Not better than last year but this course was longer. I compared my stats to last year and I actually was faster per mile, so that's good at least. I also was not nearly as exhausted. My arms were completely gone, but endurance wise I was still good to run and move a little while longer. Last year I was totally spent at the finish line. I got my recovery food/beer/merch.

I had to get this!!!

The new medal style (2014) plus they attached the old one. I am not a fan of the new pie shaped medals, but there you go.

Spartan Race is definitely humbling. Even though I did it last year, I have definitely slacked on my strength training this year and I paid for it on that course. I absolutely have to revise my plan and dedicate more time for upper body work, since I am aiming to get my trifecta this year. Ahead of me lies the Super and the Beast. I have got to be ready!

Fun, challenging, harder than last year, and empowering. That pretty much sums up my experience. And I'll be back in 2 weeks for the Charlotte sprint!

Slow healing

I'm unexpectedly taking the week off from activity. Booo.

Saturday's workout was horrible on my lingering cough. The workout was pretty intense and I was coughing alot during, but that night was absolutely horrible. My throat was so dry I couldn't sleep, even after taking some medicine. I coughed up alot of mess the next morning. Yesterday I got halfway through my strength workout and I started coughing alot. I am pretty sure I have bronchitis. I feel totally fine but I have this cough that is going away very very slowly. Each day is a little better than the last, but any day I work out it's like a step backwards. So in the interest of this weekend's Spartan Sprint, I'm going to take the week off to let this thing heal quicker. I hope to be totally over it by Saturday. 

I am getting psyched! I got my bib number and I run in the very first open heat of the day at 9am!

Running the trails at Blanchard Woods

It's Saturday!

Long run Saturday has been temporarily replaced. Today I went out to run the trails at Blanchard Woods. It's this big outdoor sports complex, it has like 4 soccer fields and a football field or two. It also has a cross country trail. Last year I did a 5k here and remember it being super super hilly. But you know how sometimes your memory fades a little, and you don't remember it being "that bad" ?

Well my memory came back to me today. It's pretty damn hilly.

A big long hill I ran UP

Today's goal was to run 2-3 miles/to wherever the end of the trail was and turn back, and throw in 40
burpees during the run. I ended up going 4 miles because the trail splits a bunch of different ways and I realized I would probably end up getting lost before I found the end. And I did 50 burpees total, broken up into 5 sets of 10. I really liked this run because it was something different. It's been a long time since I've been out on the trails and it was my first time incorporating burpees into a run. It was a hard workout but at the same time it felt great! I took a little extra time to stop and take these pictures. I don't usually allow myself to stop and take breaks during my runs. I guess since I was already stopping to do the burpees I felt like I might as well stop and take in the scenery

It was such a pretty day! A little chilly but I warmed up quick!

The hills wore me out. Today showed me how much my hill training is lacking. It's to be expected though, cause for the last 2 months I've been training for the half marathon at the Canal - probably the flattest place you could ever run

It was muddy out there too. A little taste of next weekend's Spartan Race perhaps?

I had fun and got a kick ass workout which has rendered me pretty sore. My watch said 500 calories, plus whatever the burpees cost me. I am feeling great this evening, think I'm finally getting through the last of this nasty cough. The run helped me get alot of it up, but it also kind of made me cough uncontrollably for awhile. 

Side note - I have also come to realize that my tight hip is alleviated by running regularly. My life is basically this - sit in a chair, run. The whole sitting in a chair part is what causes my hip to be tight. The more I sit, the tighter it gets over time. I have to stretch every 1-2 days to keep it in check. Lately I've been coughing so hard my lower back hurts, and my hip has been so freaking tight it feels like it's about to pop off! Today's run REALLY helped loosen it up. It feels so much better now! 

Time to chill out for awhile..