Hurts So Good!

I knew the first few weeks of training were going to be a bit of trial and error, but necessary to evaluate my limitations. After another week or so, I think I have a little bit better understanding- but it did come with a cost. Minus the two days I was down sick (very grateful it wasn't a whole week, like others with the same flu!) training was mostly treadmill and strength training.

Saturday, I took a hike up Big Baldy, a 3.5 mile hike (5.6 km.) with 1000 ft. (304 m.) of vertical gain per mile. It's a nice little mountain located on the west side of Mount Timpanogos and a jumping off point for the Everest Ridge route that's particularly popular in winter here (Utah). While the distance wasn't trying, the challenge for me was the elevation gain. I greatly underestimated how weak I was from being sick; it took me two full days to recover. What I'm observing is that my recovery isn't as quick as it was before I got sick- something I'll have to take into consideration from now on. That judgement lapse aside, it's hard to have a bad day in the mountains! The view was amazing and well worth the effort. While the distance is shorter than the Elbrus Race, this trail will work well while I'm getting back into shape.

To change things up this week, I've returned to one of my old favorites: bleachers! As a bobsledder, I would get giddy thinking about running bleachers in the summer. I just LOVED the challenge; sweat dripping down your body, muscles pumped and music booming in your ears. I love the solitude of an empty stadium, full of promise and potential victory for those who are willing to put in the effort. To me, it's inspiring. There are tons of workouts possible when running bleachers, everything from sprints and plyometrics to long slow endurance training. Some I've picked off websites and added to and some I've been doing for so long, I hardly remember who I learned them from. You can cut down the warm-up time if needed, my warm-up's are a bit longer, since it takes me longer than average to get warm.

Here's one of my favorite plyo workouts to get the quads and glutes burning:
- 10-15 minute warm-up jog or speed walk
- 5 minutes easy bleacher jog (up and down)
- Jump up each step, one at a time with two feet together until you reach the top. If you want to kick it up a notch, drop your rear with each landing into a formal squat. Keep an eye on your knees and don't let them go over your toes.
- Side squats across the top to the next section of steps
- Easy jog back down
- Side shuffle back to your starting point
- Repeat

For endurance and base strength, here's the workout I did this morning (remember, I'm a beginner right now, so feel free to ramp it up):
- 10-15 minute warm-up jog or speed walk
- 5 minutes easy bleacher jog
- Walking lunges up each step until you reach the top, concentrating on getting that perfect angle to engage the glutes. If the steps are too small, you may want to skip a step to get the right angle. Keep chest up and resist using momentum- allow your legs to do all the work. 
- Jog across to the next set of stairs
- Sprint down, concentrating on keeping abs tight and body centered. Think, 'fast feet'. If you have balance issues or are feeling extra fatigued, use your common sense with the speed.
- Repeat

With so many plyometric exercises available, there are a ton of variables that can be worked into a good bleacher workout. Today, I followed my workout with some more treadmill time, half a protein shake, tuna and a lot of water. With recovery being my biggest enemy, it's vital that I give my body all the advantage I can.

Starting From Zero- Jen Hamilton

As a naturally active personality, starting from zero is one of my least favorite things, the other is feeling weak in front of others, so I'm going to pretend no one is reading these posts and we'll get along just fine!

More than one infomercial trainer has touted that the hardest part of getting physically fit is the first day- it's a lie. Anyone can do the first day, or even the first week, it's weeks two and three that will kill your momentum before you can establish the habit. With my glutes still screaming and my legs fatigued from the second week of 2 hour treadmill days at 15% (interspersed with 25 min. stair climber sessions and strength training), I 'treated' myself to a muddy trail run. More for a mental break, I thought I would feel stronger and tougher than I have. I'm embarrassed to admit that even with barely doing the minimal, my body is worn out. While getting outside was a great reminder of why I'm training and I thoroughly enjoyed the vacant trails, it was a bit discouraging to be reminded of my lack of fitness. I felt painfully slow and heavy, so getting rid of 35 extra lbs. from steroid treatments is first on the list of improvements. Challenging trails that used to bring a goofy grin to my face were now taunting me as I drudged slowly with my head down.

A coach years ago told me that my body is capable of so much more than I can fathom and it's important to trust in it's ability to adapt and get stronger. She told me that if I would have faith, I would be amazed at the outcome. But with my body still recovering from an extended illness, my faith in it's abilities has been shaken. I spent the entire run muttering to myself, and it wasn't even an internal monologue, is was audible, crazy person muttering. It can be remarkably frustrating when your body isn't performing how you think it should! After purging all my negativity and concerns into the mountain air, I could only come to one conclusion; Elbrus by choice, or my current condition by default. I'd have to test my new limits to find out where they are.

So, this week's goals are:
1- Put on the blinders. Focus only on the next workout.
2- When getting discouraged, remember to be kind and patient to my healing body.
3- Recovery focus through nutrition (lean proteins, more veggies) and more sleep.

Focusing on these three things goals should take me through the next week of training. Nothing feels better than looking back at how far you've come. Looking forward to that day!