2024 is around the corner. I’ve been thinking. I’ve been looking for the right target. I’ve been thinking about how to hit the target. I put the pen to paper. The idea was hatched.
The hamster wheel. My idiotic quest. My target. My stretch goal. My to do list item on repeat. The few I’ve shared this goal with asked why? Well, I was motivated by a friend who chose run every day in 2023. She has just 40 days left. She ran with stitches in her foot. She ran on cold days. She ran when she didn’t want to. She ran on the treadmill. She ran races. She ran alone. She ran with friends. She overcame so much adversity.
I looked at that success in awe. I also knew I was not as dedicated to running daily. Thus I had to find a broader way to hit a similar milestone. 1 mile a day may last me a week. I can’t do the same thing so many times. I’m just not wired that way.
I will have to manage my miles my way. Adding a mile here and there at lunch. Running a 5k here and there to build the mileage. I’m looking for variety. Maybe a 10k, 15k or half marathon. Maybe some new destinations to entice me. Maybe become friends with the air runner at my gym. Who knows.
All I know is I have a goal. I bought a journal to track my progress. I wrote this blog to have a placeholder in time. Now it’s up to me to mentally prepare for January 1, 2024. For that is when I begin my hamster wheel activities. Round and round I will go.
How many pairs of shoes will I use?
How many states will I run in?
Will I run in another country?
Will I do my mileage alone or with friends?
How many races will I register for?
Will my time improve with consistency?
Will my body change any?
Will I motivate anyone to run/jog/walk?
Is it possible for me to end up liking running?
We shall see. Look for updates in 2024 or maybe it will be a memo of defeat? Anyone want to make a wager?
When a friend first sent me the link, I laughed. He was training for an ultra running event, and who knows why but he was looking for more. I am training for a 15k in January and slowly (slowly!) increasing my running every week. I jotted the date down in my calendar, thinking I would go and support him if he did it. But a little voice in the back of my mind also wondered if I could do the three hour event myself as part of my own preparation for January…
Finding the time and energy to run in this season of life has been harder than my ramp up to a half marathon several years ago. I’m not really sure why that is. Technically, I have fewer commitments crowding my calendar. Still, I haven’t been putting the volume of miles into my legs that I should be in order to feel prepared.
As the date crept up, I decided it was time to test myself. If I end up walking, so be it. I set the goal of 5 laps…each lap is 2.2 miles. 11 miles in 3 hours seemed possible. Most of my miles these days are between 15-17 minutes. With a few breaks and to allow for some slowing in the latter miles, 5 laps would be a challenge but I was determined to try.
Another challenge was the time of the event. I would be on the course from 5 pm to 8 pm. I am a hard-core morning exercise person. Lately I have been running a mile or two in the afternoons once or twice a week, but an all-out extended effort in the evening would be a stretch.
When the day came, I had told a couple of people what I was up to but not many. I’m inspired by this image from Compete Every Day.
I packed up my stuff. I ate some extra carbs. I showed up at the right time, grabbed my bib, and lined up with a few dozen other brave / crazy souls and away we went.
Honestly, the run was pretty uneventful. I have a good playlist. People were encouraging. I was several minutes ahead of my target times on each of the first couple of loops. Some runners had full tents set up with chairs and food and decorations. The official tent had trays of cold food and hot. The runners who were competing in the 6 and 12 hour events commented on the quality of the grilled cheese, quesadillas, and more. It had a Halloween theme so some people were dressed in costume.
Aside from cheering on other racers, my mind was focused on my time and my goal. From a “back of the pack” running group on facebook, I had figured out how to set my watch for intervals. I would run two minutes, walk one. I did this pattern for most of the event. My watch buzzed me every time I had to switch.
My trusty playlist kept me going. I even had some universe whispers from a friend who has passed on. He came to me in a group of songs that kept me moving when I was tired.
Other pleasant diversions were the signs some had made to encourage runners. There was a trick or treat fun run with little kids in costume. There were dogs. There were lights. A pretty sunset and a beautiful Harvest moon.
Lap four started and my energy really started to falter. My strength in these long efforts is usually being able to stay consistent even in the later miles. At least that was the case last time around. But I could really feel my lack of training after mile 8. Slower walking in my recovery minutes. Walking creeping into the running minutes. I could also feel that I hadn’t fueled properly. I ate more running chews than I ever have. I ate less nutritious, whole food than I ever do. Combined with running with a headlamp, I was slogging across the finish line of lap 5 but I had about 9 minutes to spare. It was all just guts and will for the last mile or two, but I met my goal.
Given the chance, I would totally do it again. It gives me a benchmark to work from. It doesn’t give me “back of the pack” anxiety since I’m working against a clock and not a finish line. So if I’m free again next year, I’ll do it. I’m also looking at scheduling a half marathon in the spring.
A few kinks to work out…how to fuel for an afternoon race. Shortly after I completed the run, I was overcome with nausea. It lasted for hours. I knew it was from the sugared, artificial nutrition I had taken in (oh, and caffeine). It would also be nice to have a friend or two on the course. Even if I don’t run at the same pace as others, it does help to have someone out there sharing the suffering.
I’m clapping for myself and looking ahead. The goal now is to get out and run more often. To spend more time putting miles on my legs. Training to get faster and better. By the time the 15k rolls around, I hope to be feeling much better about the experience.
The CrossFit Ranch. The Original Proving Grounds. Home of the first CrossFit Games. Owned by Dave Castro. Even though I do a lot of my fitness outside of my CrossFit gym, I am a huge Dave Castro fan. I love his CrossFit announcements. His esoteric clues. His persona.
When the opportunity came to visit The Ranch for an event, I was all in. I missed it last year due to a scheduling conflict, but this year I was going to make it work.
It was a celebration of sorts, leaving school directly after the last day of my 10th year as a teacher. A long flight across the country. Renting a car and making the drive. To save on what was already a splurge of a trip, I bunked in with a group of women I had never met or even interacted with much. But, we are all part of the same online fitness community. They turned out to be pretty low key and kind. A group no one would have ever brought together but we were all in it for the adventure.
A 30 minute drive to the Ranch in the morning and we were into our weekend of fitness fun. Signed in, got our swag bag, and dove right in to the first event.
Called “Climb Every Mountain,” it started with a 1 mile run. After that, you did a mile ruck / sandbag carry up the infamous CrossFit Ranch hill. I was the slowest of my heat on the run, but I was smiling and taking in the sights, meeting the people I’d only seen on the screen at the turn around points. Once I got back, I had to choose my weight. I could choose 20, 40, or 60 pounds (or more) to carry…or go with no weight. My home sandbags are 25 and 35 pounds, so I decided to challenge myself with 40. I had done a lot of weighted walking in May, so I felt pretty good about it as I started. It didn’t take me long to realize that the 40 pounds combined with a seriously steep hill was going to be a heck of a challenge. I quickly got to the point where I had to just tell myself to walk 50 paces then drop. Walk 50 paces then drop. I thought the hill would never end. But, I was determined to make it to the top, and make it to the top I did. No time cap on this event so as long as I kept going I knew I would finish. True to fitness fun form, a special surprise guest waited at the top of the hill behind a tree. Yes, I screamed when he jumped out, but then I laughed and had a quick photo opp.
The trip down to the bottom was treacherous with the sandbag, but little by little I made it to the finish line. The smile when I saw my team captain cheering for me at the finish line said it all.
The rest of the weekend was all about fitness and connection. I met scores of wonderful people, all at different points in their fitness and life journeys, all challenging themselves to work hard and be joyful. I picked up heavy strongman and husafell bags. I pushed enormous sleds with a team. I muscled through a long chipper. We ate, danced, and fitnessed together.
The weekend ended with a final climb of the hill. Everyone in attendance climbed together. We carried notes where we had written some things we were going to leave behind on that relentless hill. I wanted to leave behind my fears. My worries about what anyone else thinks. My concerns about failure. We got our hug and challenge coin for the climb, then burned those fears in a fire pit. It was a satisfying end to a weekend of fitness.
What was the best part? Was it meeting so many of the community’s “celebrities” (or really they’re sort of everyday heroes to me)? Meeting them in person, I see that they are sincere in what they believe. They are dedicated to family, fitness, and the belief that we can all be well. They live out their mission. Or maybe it was making new friends, enjoying meals together, morning meditative walks on the beach…really there are too many good memories to list here.
Here’s my takeaway: in the end, no one but you has to understand or approve of what you’re doing. Did people tell me I was crazy? Sure. Did someone close to me chuckle as they asked if I was traveling all the way across the country to exercise? Absolutely. Did those doubters make me do a double take? Maybe for a second. But whose approval ultimately matters? Me. I am SO glad I did it. And I would totally do it again.
So when people look at you like you’re crazy, carry on. In the end, the collection of experiences and memories you have is up to you. No one else can climb the mountain set before you. If something is calling you, answer.
I have been in many pickles or jams. I’m not even sure why one refers to a situation in that way. Nonetheless I was asked by a friend to play pickleball and of course I jumped at the chance. Why not? I enjoy a good pickle. It’s the hot trendy thing too, isn’t it?
I had really no clue other than it looked like a cross between ping pong and tennis. Of course that’s how they came up with the name pickleball. Pretty funny to me but I went to trusty old amazon and ordered a starter set of paddles and balls. Bounced a few around my driveway with an unwilling soul. I can do this. I got a feel for the ball and the paddle. It’s all good.
Hopped on to YouTube and watched a few videos. Skimmed the rule books online. Eew the scoring sounds weird. Not at all like tennis. Who makes this stuff up? Who picked the ball for that matter? Good lord I have to learn record keeping on top of the game itself. Oh well. I said I would play so I will.
I’m on a team of strangers. All new faces. All different ages and abilities. Talk about a fish out of water. It’s okay I can make friends easily. First practice is called. The team votes for learning vs. competition. Oh no. That’s new for me. I’m super competitive. I showed up and it was so much fun! The scoring was much simpler in practical application than reading it. The game is fast paced. The strategy is as interesting as the kitchen.
Yes, I said the kitchen. Who decided the area by the net is the no no zone anyway? sort of cracks me up. The kitchen has rules of entry. It’s easy to accidentally enter the kitchen especially if you are hyped up in a game and don’t have great body and spatial awareness. It’s sort of fun to watch and I’m not referring to me. Stay out of the kitchen. Easy for me I hate to cook anyway so the rule is simple for me to comprehend. Do not enter.
Sweat fest is how I would describe my first day on the small court. Day two would be sufficed as the same. Day three was game day. I was playing mixed doubles for the first time with a partner that was new to me. That in itself brings challenges. Then add the newness of the game and our inexperience and boom we lost all three games. I even sweated hearts on the court. See picture below for a giggle. Despite losing I couldn’t wait to play again. Also the sweat session is no joke. It’s the type of sweat where you must immediately change and shower. 95 degree heat could be a factor, too.
We improved each time but we lost as a whole. What an experience. I’m so ready for more. This may be my new summer addiction. Not only am I getting a workout but I’m getting challenged in multiple ways. It’s also new enough in my area that I can share my knowledge with friends.
This is just a fun post to hype you up to try something new. Go get a paddle. Find a friend to hit with. Join the pickleball craze, but don’t break anything. When you’re ready, join a team. It’s a lot of fun, I promise. And a friendly reminder don’t break anything. Medical professionals maybe ready to cash in on injuries!
Knee replacements are the prediction. I’m sure due to many older folks showing an interest. Couch to pickle ball. A sure way to get injured. Why not? Life is short.
Today’s workout was called The Push. One hour of sled pushes. I had to go to the gym for this one since I don’t have a sled at home. It had to be a day when I woke up awfully early. Also had to be a day when they weren’t using sleds in the class workout. All the conditions were met one early June morning. I loaded the sled up, didn’t really warm up, and just started the slow methodical pushing up and down the turf. Back. Forth. Back. Forth.
It didn’t take long until the ideas started to flow. I took a short break to grab a whiteboard and a pen to start capturing my thoughts.
The idea to think on during this workout is “in the face of…”. What can you push through?
In the face of….
In the face of….
All the adversity hit me every time I braced to push that sled. I didn’t even know how much it weighed altogether. I first started answering the “in the face of”s with I can statements, but that soon changed to “I am…” statements. About every fourth push I would stop to jot then get back to it.
In the face work of I am capable
In the face of challenge I am strong
In the face of boredom I am proactive
In the face of adversity I am grateful
In the face of scrutiny I am undaunted
In the face of doubt I am confident
In the face of fatigue I am resilient
In the face of distraction I am focused
In the face of overwhelm I am undeterred
In the face of heavy I am strong
In the face of confusion I am clear
In the face of exhaustion I am centered
In the face of impatience I am calm
In the face of change I am nimble
In the face of insurmount I am worthy
In the face of conformity I am unique
In the face of complacency I am willing
I am powerful. In control. Independent. Thankful.
I am a reservoir of all that I need.
So many times during long workouts I am trying to distract myself, tune out from the dcscomfort and pain. It was a challenge to tune in and use the monotony to try to make sense of things.
I can choose to focus on the positive and powerful. I can tune in to discomfort and use it as a tool. And in the face of obstacles, I can get things done. A beautiful reminder.
2 Chicks and a blog 