boot camp

Can’t Keep a Good Girl Down

“Life will break you. Nobody can protect you from that, and living alone won’t either,

for solitude will also break you with its yearning. You have to love. You have to feel.

It is the reason you are here on earth. You are here to risk your heart.

You are here to be swallowed up.

And when it happens that you are broken, or betrayed, or left, or hurt, or death brushes near,

let yourself sit by an apple tree and listen to the apples falling all around you in heaps,

wasting their sweetness. Tell yourself you tasted as many as you could.” 

― Louise Erdrich, The Painted Drum LP

Sooo life has been throwing me A LOT of curve balls recently (huge understatement); and I very well could curl up, cry about it, feel sorry for myself, and gain a ton of weight eating junk food… while hating the whole world. However, the only thing that would accomplish is self loathing, and that’s not really the lifestyle I’m going for.  Sure, MANY things have been sucking in my life recently, and there are several people who were important in my life who have hurt and let me down recently.  I’m not going to lie- it blows…  (ESPECIALLY for someone like me who has still has PTSD even on my best days and some seriously justified trust issues).

On the other hand, I am a firm believer that everything about life can’t suck all the time.  Bad things happen, but they are usually also accompanied by some good.  The problem is people get so caught up in the hurt and drama they forget to look for it and appreciate it.

Well, I am not going to allow myself to get bogged down and not appreciate the good stuff.  Break ups are hard, betrayal is hard, loss is hard, LIFE IS HARD; and it’s going to kill every one of us.  How we choose to spend our finite time on this planet is up to us.

I would rather focus on all the people I can still count on than the ones I can’t.  I would rather make new friends than worry about the ones who have screwed me over.  If someone does something to blatantly disrespect my feelings (on a repeated basis), then they were never worth my time in the first place.  Why waste any more energy over a person like that?  Getting angry and bitter is a huge WASTE OF TIME AND ENERGY.  I would rather spend it devouring some hills (like this morning 😉 before boot camp…. YES, I started boot camp again… with some modified exercises)

I have been through enough crap in my life and  have spent more than enough time worrying about other people and trying to please them.  Now the only people whose approval I care about are the ones who I respect.  I have plenty of friends- true friends.  I don’t need a bunch of shallow relationships at this point in my life.  I am not out to compete with anyone other than myself, and if someone is looking to start drama with me they are going to be sorely disappointed.  Try and interfere with my relationships.  Go ahead and compete with me.  I don’t care.  It’s not worth my time.  I’m secure with who I am.  I don’t need to beat you at something to feel good about myself.  Likewise, I don’t need to collect a bunch of “cool” friends to feel important.  Any friend of mine who is willing to drop me for you was never a good one to begin with, so thanks for weeding them out for me.

I spent this past weekend with multiple amazing people.  They made me laugh until I cried (there may have been a cinnamon challenge involved… get boot camper together and $hit gets crazy!).  They offered words of support even without knowing the details of what’s been going on.  They invited me into their homes expecting nothing in return.  There was no cattiness, no one-upping, no complaining- just enjoyment of each other’s company.  I hung out with new friends and old friends, and they all made me feel welcome and accepted… which is truly all anyone really wants to feel, am I right?

It was a chance to forget all the drama and remind myself that (as cheesy as it sounds) I am not an island.  I have people in my life who will love and support me no matter what happens.  I am a kind, caring, and lovable person: the type of person who will do anything for someone I care about.  If someone has a problem with me, it’s their problem.  If someone treats me badly, and I need to take a step back (or cut them out of my life completely) then it’s their loss.  I will make new friends.  I will build new relationships, and my life will go on.

*******

There are not words to express how much it meant to me to spend time with each of the individuals I did this weekend.  I am extremely grateful to all of them for not only providing a distraction from all the drama in my life right now, but also reminding me how many wonderful people there are in this world who will appreciate and accept me as I am.  In spite of everything that has and will happen to me in my life, I will continue to remind myself how truly blessed I truly am.

There are people who go through there entire lives without ever making a single true, loyal friend.   I am beyond fortunate to have many wonderful friends who care about me scattered throughout the country and in my own town.  Distance doesn’t matter when you have a true bond.  I have more support in my life than I ever could have imagined.  To each and every one of you:  THANK YOU.

Thank you for making even the worst of days bearable, for making the good days even better, and the would be boring moments beyond entertaining.  Thank you for molding me as a person and supporting me when I need it most.  I count EACH of you as a blessing in my life.

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Tough Mudder Recap(Or How Maximum Results Boot Camp Owned Vermont)

“You measure the size of the accomplishment by the obstacles you had to overcome to reach your goals.”

-Booker T. Washington

My journey to the New England Tough Mudder began 8:30 pm in West Hartford.  My teammates had arrived long ahead of me in Vermont while I stayed behind for a CT-Alive event (more of that to come in a future post…when I have pics).  By the time I arrived at the house, it was pretty rowdy- a vast understatement. lol Most of the group had run that morning and were celebrating their victory by further dehydrating their sunburned bodies with massive quantities of alcohol.  Makes total sense to me. 🙂

Being the only sober person in the room (it didn’t take Adam and G-dawg long to catch up, having only arrived 2 hrs before I did) it was a pretty entertaining scene… especially when G-dawg was telling my friends how terrified he is of me because I’m “impervious to pain”.  In his drunken state, he also managed to convince one the guys who ran Saturday to do the course again with us.  There were considerable amounts of Patron involved in this decision process…

All that being said, I didn’t get a heck of a lot of sleep.  I resorted to stuffing tissue in my ears and curling up on a chair in another room in an unsuccessful attempt to drown out some of the noise.  I probably drifted off to sleep in the early hours of the morning, only to wake up a few later.  The Saturday group was in pretty rough shape, but in true team form came out to support us anyway.  

The course was different from the NorCal mudder in that you had to climb a Berlin Wall to get to the start.- a nice touch in my opinion.  Many of the obstacles were the same, but there were a few new ones like the Electric Eel (getting shocked while crawling under barbed wire) and some under ground tunnels that were tight  even for me.  Our first obstacle was a dumpster filled with ice where you had to climb under a board and out the other side. There was so much ice it was hard to wade your way through; and the temperature of the water made it difficult to breath. Sound fun right?

From there we ran up and down the ski slope so many times I lost track (oh and there were some obstacle mixed in between).  The uphills were so steep there were times we were crawling on all fours, and the downhills were so muddy it was hard to move.  I would take a step and be literally knee deep!!!  I LOVE mud, but it was A LOT- even for me. lol

No surprise, there were a lot of water obstacles. We crawled under barbed wire in muddy water, climbed through tunnels in muddy water, went under and over logs in….you get the idea.  😉 We got blasted with snow and freezing water going up the hills- at one point the water hit me so hard I got knocked off track. lol  Thankfully, the water on the walk the plank was not NEARLY as cold as last time.  It was nice to be able to breath when I hit the surface!   BTW it was still TERRIFYING- absolutely my LEAST FAVORITE obstacle!!!  I would rather go through the electric shock 5 times (which just for the record was not that bad… maybe they turned down the voltage?) than jump off that plank.

I spent extra time swimming because I fell in on the monkey bars (in retrospect, maybe not the best obstacle to try with my shoulder…) AND off the rope where we were supposed to shimmy across the pond.  The rest of the obstacles I managed though! The walls were much easier with a team- especially coming down.  I also made it up Everest this time despite wearing mudddy Vibrams with no tread.  The cargo net, snow obstacles, logs, and tunnels were all pretty easy for me, although I did a great job scraping myself up on the logs and came out of the tunnels bleeding from my knee.  I think I was the first to draw blood!  I also made it across the plank in record time because I was afraid of the guy yelling at everyone to move faster.  There was a point where Kelly and I momentarily got caught up when we went to jump over the fire and they cranked it up.  We were so cold and close to being finished at that point that we (not so gracefully) hopped over it anyway.

Overall, everyone on our team KICKED ASS.  I don’t think anyone was prepared for those hills, but everyone plowed through them.  We worked together as a team and BEASTED through that course! (even our recruit from Saturday, who stayed with us even after he sobered up)  The energy was amazing. I was so happy for everyone who had finished for the first time.  There is no greater feeling than achieving a goal you aren’t sure you can reach.  I was especially proud of all the people in our group who ran with various injuries and were still able to push through the pain and finish.  I couldn’t imagine being part of a more motivated, determined, and dedicated (not only to their goals, but also each other) group of people!

So in case you are wondering what a bunch of Boot Campers do after conquering a Tough Mudder, I will tell you.  They set another goal AND KICK IT IN THE FACE.  Looks like G-Dawg and I will have some company in September for the Ultra Beast! (…at least for half the course)

Love these guys!!!!

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Ironman in Training

“Adversity causes some men to break and others to break records.”

-William Ward

No one likes facing adversity, but it’s an unfortunately necessary evil.  Adversity is what lets us know just how badly we want (or don’t want) our goals.  No one ever overcomes a great obstacle to victory and says “wow, I wish I had just coasted here instead”.  Why? Because ADVERSITY BUILDS CHARACTER.  It strengthens the mind the way physical demands create a stronger body.  It turns a simple goal into a journey– and journeys are what make up our lives.

That being said, I am still not happy about being sidelined by this shoulder injury!  lol  However, it has given me a chance to reevaluate a few things.  1) I don’t see the purpose in killing myself trying to get in as many Insanity workouts as possible in a week.  That stuff is rough on my joints and would serve me better on cross training days to mix things up.  I have too many other types of workouts going on to try get in their scheduled 6 sessions a week. 2)  I want to going climbing more frequently.  It’s a challenging workout both mentally and physically; and I have really fallen back in love with it over the past few months. Not being able to go has made me realize just how much I miss it.  3) As much as I LOVE boot camp, I seriously need to cut myself some slack when I can’t make it there.  I have a tendency to feel bad when our instructor yells at people for not showing up regularly- but most of them are not pulling multiple sessions a day and working 13+ hr shifts.  Plus, I know he’s not directing it at me personally and knows I make it when I can (AND I still busting my ass even if I’m not there.)

As you may have guessed, with all my downtime I have had LOTS of time to think.  What is ultimately all comes down to is this is my body and my training, so I need to do what works best for me.  Instead of trying to do it everyone else’s way (frequently at the say time) I am going to work on figuring out what is going to get me closest to achieving my goals.  Right now, those goals include Pike’s Peak and the Ultra Beast.  That means lots of running!  However, it also means conditioning myself to function when I’m fatigued and deprived of oxygen, AND building strength and endurance to conquer those obstacles.

Right now, I am pretty limited; but I have been making the most of what I CAN do!  Sunday I went for a long run on the trails and did LOTS of hills.  Initially I had planned on an easy 6, but felt so great I just kept going.  I probably knocked out close to 10 miles in total. IT FELT AMAZING!   I think it was exactly what I needed! (the mental “control-alt-delete” ) I didn’t want to stop, but I was afraid my IPhone would get wet when it started raining hard.  My shoulder held up fine, and the chiropractor said it was okay to keep it up as long as my shoulder wasn’t getting aggravated.  My calves, on the other hand, have been SCREAMING in rebellion.  I’m sure it was thanks to the vibrams, but I’ll happily take it.  I will gladly go down stairs backwards if it means getting to blow off some steam! Plus it’s kind of a relief to have some “normal” muscle soreness for a change.

In order to give my legs a rest from running, yesterday I continued my habit of pedaling like a demon and knocked out 28 miles on the bike.   Today  it was another 16- plus 10 min on the stair climber and a half mile around the parking lot just to loosen things up (it was my “light day”).  The more I pound out miles on the bike, the more resolute I become that I will do Ironman.  It may not happen in the next year, but my mind is made up.  I can see it. I believe it. I can become it. Consider me a woman on a mission! No little bump in the road is going to derail this train. 🙂

I have mountains to climb!

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Easter Update

“Dedication and commitment are what transfer dreams into realities.”

First off, Happy Easter everyone!!!! I hope you all are having a fabulous weekend!  

I started my Easter Morning right- by getting back on track with Insanity!  It was bugging my knee and shoulder a little bit, but didn’t cause any pain.  In fact, I was able to stay pretty comfortable (at least from an injury standpoint) by taking it a little easy and resting when I needed it.  Plus, all the stretching felt GREAT!  I used the foam roller for some added insurance, and it hurt like hell just as I expected.  Almost 12 hrs later, I’m feeling pretty darn good.  Score 1 for me- Nagging injuries 0 (fingers crossed this trend continues…).

I am SO HAPPY to be “easing” back into my typical (rigorous) exercise. 😉  I am EVEN MORE HAPPY to get started on training for the Ultra Beast, which will be my biggest physical challenge to date!  I am incredibly grateful to have so much training support going into this race.  In addition to boot camp, I now have the added benefit of  a training buddy, and have already felt a huge boost from having that relationship of pushing and supporting each other.

So far I have been limiting myself to only one workout a day, and I’ve been trying to go light on any lifting involving my shoulder.  Friday I did some weight training with the boys and was able to get a new PR on dead lift of 155 lbs and seated row of 90 lbs.  My shoulder didn’t act up much, which was a HUGE relief.  (Of course I still babied it the whole time!)   I even got in an easy 2 mile run around the parking lot.  IT FELT SO GOOD!!!!  For me, running is truly the ultimate expression of freedom.  I can’t think of anything that feels better than hitting the trails and leaving every care and worry behind!

Yesterday I pushed it a little and went to the climbing gym.  I was definitely favoring my shouldering, but managed some of my toughest climbs yet.  Normally I avoid the walls that lean enough that you need to clip in to rest, but I did a couple really challenging ones and made it WAY further up than I thought I would (and showed up the boys- bum shoulder and all…not that anyone is keeping track).  I think I was primarily motivated by the intense fear of swinging way out if I fell. lol

The funny thing about me and climbing is I am actually TERRIFIED of heights- as in if there was a way to just climb over the top and not have to look or come down I would totally find it.  I also hate swinging on the rope- so much so, I will choose a harder route straight up in line with the rope to avoid it at all costs. Case-in-point: I didn’t even use the anchors to rest on the first route because I was so afraid to stop or let go. I made it all the way to the top of the lean (only a few feet from the ceiling) with spasming forearms and failing muscles (I literally couldn’t reach for the next hold) before I was willing to let go- proving that fear is sometimes an excellent motivator. 🙂

That’s all for now! Looking forward to some climbing again tomorrow, and maybe some boot camp…

Have a great night!

Confinement Day #2

“Sometimes the most urgent thing you can possibly do is take a complete rest”

-Ashleigh Brilliant

Or feels as frustrating as injury...

Okay, maybe it’s not technically confinement, but it may as well be.  Someone should just go ahead and lock me up because not being able to exercise has been DRIVING ME CRAZY.

Then, as if life were taunting me, the gym called me today because my payment didn’t process for the third month in a row (ever since I updated to my new credit card).  They needed me to come in person, so I hauled myself over there on my way home from work to fix the issue.  I was definitely having some serious exercise envy watching everyone workout.  I would have been happy even to do a little cardio, but I was a good girl and didn’t risk it- even when G-Dawg showed up after his run or offered to do some lifting. (He quickly remember my shoulder and apologized when I shot him a dirty look reminded him I couldn’t)

On an up note, I ran into Mike while I was there AND HE TOTALLY MADE MY NIGHT! He said a client of his was in the gym Saturday when we were lifting, and she just happened mentioned to him that there were two guys doing some really sloppy pushups and getting completely shown up by a girl.  Mike said he knew right away it had to be me based on the description she gave.  It definitely cheered me up to hear that I was, in fact, actually kicking their butts at something even while nursing my trashed shoulder and feeling like a wimp.  It was absolutely the nicest thing anyone could have said to me (THANK YOU MIKE!!!). lol  Plus, I know he wasn’t making it up just to make me feel better because he was clearly excited to tell me.

Tonight I’m going to try some time with the foam roller to see if it helps the knee.  Mike agreed with my plan to lay off Insanity for the rest of the week and really give my body time to recover.  It’s somewhat fortunate that this happens to be a week where my work shifts are all scheduled on boot camp days, so at least I ‘m not missing days I could have made otherwise.

Have a great night everyone!!!!

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From Humble Beginnings…

“Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle.”
Napoleon Hill

And even then, sometimes life will surprise you beyond what you can imagine...

When I started this blog less than a year ago, my purpose was to provide hope and help for other victims of domestic abuse.  I started writing about what I had been through, the symptoms of PTSD I was still struggling with, and how I had started to regain my identity and sense of self through running.  At the time, I fully identified myself more as a survivor of abuse, than a thriver- despite my best efforts.  In spite of the fact that the abuse was in past, I couldn’t keep it from affecting my everyday life.

Then somewhere along the way I stopped being a survivor of abuse and became myself– a thriver with a passion for life and fitness.  I’m not sure exactly when it happened, but with the change in myself, this blog changed too (you may have noticed it’s been through a bit of an overhaul).  Instead of blogging my doubts about running and myself – or things I struggled with in life, I started blogging about fears I conquered and goals I achieved.  Over time,  this blog has became more about fitness and health than overcoming abuse.  Why? Because that’s why I’m passionate about!  Plus, once I overcame my past abuse, I didn’t feel like I needed to write about it anymore.  It’s not who I am; rather it’s just something incidental that happened to me in the past. Ultimately this blog became about aspiring to be the strongest and healthiest version of myself possible and hopefully inspiring some others in the process.

I went from struggling with a 10K and 15 K to finishing a half and full marathon and a Tough Mudder– at altitude.  I grew from struggling with a single pushup to handstand pushups.  I became a boot camp and weight lifting junkie and found my happy self. Throughout all of it- I never expected much from this blog.  What happened instead exceeded more than I could ever have imagined: I became part of a community- a wonderful little network of amazing people who inspire me on a daily basis and blow me away with their kindness and encouragement.  This blog have grown so much in the past several months that I can hardly keep up with all the comments! (I still read every one!)  Even more amazing, are all the award nominations I’ve been receiving!

Just recently I have nominated for the Versatile blogger Award (Thank you Coach Crystal’s Padawan!!!), Kreativ blogger Award (Thank you Living Beautifully!!!), The Very Inspiring Blogger Award, and The Sunshine Award (Thank you PositiveBoomer!!!).

The rules for for these awards are all pretty much the same:

1) Thank the person who nominated you and link back to their blog (check)

2) List some random things about yourself that other people may find interesting

3) Nominate some worthy blogs and let them know

Since I have been nominated for the Versatile Blogger Award a few times already, I thought I’d share the list of awesome bloggers I’ve nominated in the past.

  • Tina Running For Freedom:  This blog is bran-spanking-new.  It belongs to a close personal friend of mine, and fellow CT-ALIVE board member.  She is a survivor of domestic abuse, thriver, and hosts a network TV show called Beyond Violenceto raise awareness about abuse.  She is currently running in an effort to lose weight and raise money for victims of abuse.  Today she is participating in her first 5 K!  I am SO PROUD of her!
  • The Healthy Push: I would recommend this blog (and Facebook feed) to anyone interested in working out.  They have great images, recipes, exercise tips, motivational quotes, etc.   Conveniently, there post today is tips on how to avoid over stuffing (bad pun intended) yourself on Thanksgiving.
  • Heikewrites:  Heike is a talented writer, an optimist, and also a survivor of childhood abuse.  She is very open about her own struggles and always has something interesting posted and I definitely recommend checking her out!
  • The Everyday Warrior:  Well, she is just that- an everyday warrior (better known as a super woman ;) ) She is a wife, mother, and runner who happens to be training for a half marathon and Tough Mudder.  She is also tirelessly working to raise money for the Wounded Warrior Project and could use our support !:)
  • Cerridwen’s Cauldron: “Wit, Wisdom, Humor, Nonsense, Rants and Raves, Brewed With a Pinch of Individuality Since 2009″- that pretty much sums it up!  I especially appreciate the wit. :)   She’s already been nominated, but I’d like to recommend visiting her blog anyway.
  • Remember the H:  A fellow marathoner with an awesome blog to get you motivated off the couch. (or maybe I’m the only one you wants to run a marathon after reading someone else did it- either way it’s worth the read!)
  • Thetortoiseruns: This blog seriously cracks me up- on a regular basis. Love it!
  • Soles of a Mom: “shoe addict, workout queen, wife & mom celebrates motherhood one shoes at a time!”- my kind of gal. Plus she’s a runner!
  • Conchsaladesque – Thank you for making me laugh and inspiring me!
  • Lean Girl’s Club– Great motivation for women who love to run or just want to stay fit
  • Fit and Feminist– Not only because we have so much in common, but because it’s something every girl should read
  • Tikk Tok– A fellow barefoot runner documenting her journey
  • Undeterrable– Love to read about another goal setter!
  • The Skinny Pink Ninja– Way to prove the doctors wrong girl! Can’t wait to follow in your footsteps (fingers crossed)
  • My Pink Ribbon Journey– Talk about survivor- this super woman just completed a triathlon after taking on breast cancer!
  • The Thinks I Can Think– Besides being generous, she is also incredibly funny!
  • Eat:Watch:Run– This blog cracks me up (and the bunny is adorable)!
  • Running on Empty– Love that this couple is training for a marathon together- and he documented his proposal in the blog!  Lots of luck to you both!!!!
  • Love and Running Shoes– Another CT local. Ashley, you rock! Good luck with your running and future triathlons :)
  • Motion and Rest– Love to read about another runner’s progress- especially when that runner is a fabulous woman with a sense of humor!
  • Breathless Runner– I totally relate to this blog!
  • Slow Happy Runner– Because Lori, you are an inspiration, and I love reading about your journey.
  • Fat Girl in a Skinny World– A great blog about living healthy :)
Also- just in case you missed it- here are the amazing folks I nominated recently for the Kreativ Blogger Award:
  • Soles of a Mom– I find this blog to be full of positive energy and always find something inspiring to read.
  • The Everyday Warrior– Why? Because she’s AWESOME!!!! and someone I can totally relate to.  She is also running a Tough Mudder and raising money for the Wounded Warrior Project, so head over there and show her some support!
  • Fabulous 50′s– Because she truly is FABULOUS and so is her blog.  I especially love her travel photos!!!!
  • Feminist Figure Girl- What can I say? I’m a feminist at heart.  This blog is totally worth reading.
  • Conchsaladesque- This lady has been through some recent heartache, but continues to face each day with strength and gratitude.  Her posts are always thoughtful and insightful.
  • Manbicep– All I can say is you have to read it.
  • Run. Dog. Cat. Me.- If for no other reason (and there are others) then because this post totally cracked me up.

In my opinion, ALL these bloggers of the Very Inspiring Blogger and Sunshine Awards. 🙂 However, in the interest of sharing the wealth I’d also like to add the following blogs to the list:

  • Coach Doug Bowers: love his blog and ever-encouraging comments on my page.  Be sure to check out his recent post on love handles and see what I mean. 😉
  • Mojo’s Movement: a fabulous fellow fitness junkie… like makes us practically soul mates right?
  • My Struggle- Losing 400 Pounds: 100 pounds down already! Sounds pretty inspiring to me, don’t you think?
  • Once and Future Runner: A fellow runner battling injuries with optimism and enthusiasm.
  • Coach Crystal’s Padawan: Fellow fitness enthusiast suffering through P90x while I sweat it out with Shaun T.

Hmmm and as for the random things…

I have developed an adulthood love of avocados and guacamole.

I love paisley and have it all over my house- not just on this blog. 😉

I can cook but stink at baking… not sure that’s a bad thing though!

I haven’t cut or colored my hair in over a year- changing that today!

If I could summarize this blog with one picture- and it's not just applicable to working out!

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From Bad Day to Bad Week

“Success is not the result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.” 
-Reggie Leach

Borrowed from Marathon Sweetheart. Love her blog! Also love this pic (because this is what I fantasize I look like when I'm lifting)

Not to indulge too much in the drama (it’s not my style… no pity parties here peeps), but I have pretty much had a week from hell (not that couldn’t have been worse, but it was pretty bad).  I got totally run into the ground all week at work so I was REALLY looking forward to a RELAXING four day weekend.  Well, it didn’t exactly work out that way- as they say “people make plans and God laughs).

If you have been reading my blog for a while, you may have caught on by now that my mom is one of (if not THE) most important people in my life.  She understands me better than anyone on the planet and is probably the most kind, caring, selfless, and compassionate person on this planet.  She spends her entire life taking care of everyone around her- which is no small task with my dad being 100% disabled and my grandmother completely needy (and mean and spiteful…you get the idea- just not a nice person).

Go ahead and try not to fall in love with that face!

A couple years ago my siblings and I got my mom a french bulldog for her birthday to help her cope with empty nest syndrome.  She had totally fallen in love with my bulldog Lucy (the skateboarding one who she used to kidnap on a regular basis while I was at work) and wanted one of her own, just smaller.  We new a frenchie would be perfect for her, and the puppy she got could not have been a better match.

In fact, my mother and her little Maggie bonded so closely that even the vet commented on how in tune Mags was to any change in my mom’s mood.  We even got my her a second frenchie the following year because my she was concerned that Maggie was too attached to her, but then only ended up completely spoiling both of them.  Those dogs are her life now that all of us kids have lives of our own, and they are with her almost 24/7.  She literally plans her life around them.

So when I talked to my mom Thursday night and she said something was wrong with Mag Pie, I went straight to her house after work.  Poor Maggie had lost use of her back legs and was clearly incredibly stressed and tense.  My mom had rushed her to the vet and they started her on steroids thinking Maggie had gotten stressed because my mother was at her wits end dealing with my grandmother (who just broke her wrist and demanded my mother shuttle her to every doctor appointment and do EVERYTHING for her).  She had a similar previous episode the last time my mom was stressed out of her mind that had resolved on its own, so they were hoping this would get better too.

It didn’t.  I called my mom the next morning and she was hysterical.  Initially I thought Maggie had died, but then she was able to blurt out that Mags still wasn’t walking.  I immediately rolled out of bed and dragged myself over to her house.  We brought Maggie to the vet and they sent us right the the emergency facility in a neighboring town to get an MRI.  Poor Mag Pie had an MRI showing two herniated discs in her back and was rushed to emergency surgery.  My mother was completely beside herself, and the staff practically had to wrestle little Maggie out of her arms.  Luckily my sister was able to front the money for the surgery (it took my mom and I three different credit cards just to cover the deposit).  The good news is that Maggie pulled through the surgery like a champ, is already taking some steps on her own, and should be coming home tomorrow.  My mom has already gone out and bought her an orthopedic bed and new food dishes so she doesn’t have to jump or bed.

With all that going on, I having been working out like a nut to try unwind.  Wednesday night we had 1000 reps of abs plus sprints outside- in the goose poop. It was definitely hardcore with lots of profanity circulating in the ranks, but also super fun.  Saturday and Sunday I did some lifting with Adam and his friend G-dawg (no that’s not really his name. 😉 ) The first day we did chest, biceps, and abs. It was the first time I had benched since high school, so even though I wasn’t going super heavy I still feel like I did a respectable job.  I will definitely push it harder next time though!  We also did dragon flags again- I’m still not there yet, but definitely getting closer!

After all that benching, the following morning my shoulders were FRIED.  This became even more apparent when I tried to do Insanity almost fell on my face throughout the SEVERAL HUNDRED pushups scattered throughout the workout.  I told G-dawg that if Shaun T asked for one more pushup I would have thrown something at the TV (or kicked something, since my arms weren’t working AT ALL).

Sunday we did back and triceps which was not as bad as I expected, especially considering how fried my upper body was.  I was excited to get a few new PRs on dead lift (135 lbs, previous 95 lbs), seated row (80, previous 60 lbs), and triceps pull downs (60, previous 45 lbs).  I am even more excited to see what I can do when I’m not already fried (and exhausted from stress and sleep deprivation). 😉 This morning I started week 8 of Insanity.  It was torture, but at least there weren’t hundreds of pushups.  Of course, I still have boot camp tonight so we’ll see!!!!

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Boot Campers Gone Bad

“Hard work, given time, will defeat talent.”

Ever wonder what happens when a group of boot campers go rogue? Twelve scoops of ice cream topped over 2 chocolate lava cakes with m&m’s, gummy worms, and who-knows-what-else turns into a sad empty plate… THAT’S WHAT!

From this...

In our defense, it was a special occasion (Kelly’s Birthday/St. Patrick’s Day) AND it took 4 of us to eat it… Alright, one person may have carried the team a little, but she has a six pack and manly biceps so that makes it ok, right?

Despite any slight pings of guilt any of us may have felt, it was a great time! We even got to torture Adam’s best friend about the endless reasons why he needs to join boot camp.  Ultimately, he continues to refuse, so we just told him we would bring a boot camp flash mob to his house. 🙂  He’s so funny thinking won’t wouldn’t actually do it!

Aside from pigging out on St. Patrick’s Day weekend (including yummy S’mores Sunday night!) I have actually been eating very healthy recent (very healthy for me anyway).  The thing that sucks about eating food that is actually digestible- I feel like I have a tape worm again and need to eat every 2 hours or I get light headed.  This is especially fun when you work in a profession where you don’t even get a real lunch break.  The fact that I also have been working out like nobody’s business and getting my butt kicked by month 2 of Insanity probably isn’t helping.

To this...ok there was a banana left, but not much else

That extra 10-15 minutes of intervals has been killing me!- no lie.  (Of course that may be in part from me over-doing it on a regular basis.)  I know it may seem a bit intense to some people that I pull so many doubles and triples. However, the truth is on the days I work it is very difficult for me to get a good workout in; so although I may be getting in 2 or three workouts on my days off, it’s still only (haha “only” I know what you’re thinking!) 7 or 8 (alright, sometimes more) sessions for the week.  Plus, I don’t really count going for a casual run or afternoon at the climbing gym a “workout” – even if it actually is one. 😉 To me, it’s just fun.  Like going to a movie, but without all the junk food.

The highlight of my weekend was surprisingly not the junk food, but rather lifting with Adam and his best friend.  I really like hitting the weights with them, because 1) lifting heaving things makes me feel like a total badass, and 2) Adam’s friend makes it a point to push me really hard.  (Plus, he is like a super man with the weights!  I am always super impressed by the amount he is able to lift.)  I even made it a point to wear my bad ass boot camp gear so I could feel even more like a badass!  (and I thought Adam’s friend would appreciate the badass socks)

We ended up doing back, shoulders, and abs.  In true awesome form, Adam’s friend was doing rows with more than my body weight!!!! He was also trying to teach me how to do a dragon flag, but my back was shot after the rows and completely uncooperative.  Apparently, it is something near impossible to do on your first try, but I gave it my best effort! Something to add to the goal list for sure!  I did have one great accomplishment for the day, however. I completely SMOKED the boys at back extensions.  Initially, they told me to do them until I got tired, but when I was over 60 in, they decided it was too easy and gave me a weight.  When that still didn’t wear me out, they (picked their jaws off the floor, and then) handed me a 25 lb plate and I knocked out about 25 more.

Adam tried to say it was because I wasn’t bending far enough over, but his friend totally backed me up that I was doing them correctly (secretly, I think he was impressed but his manly pride wouldn’t let him admit it 😉 ).  I think it probably worked in my favor that I’m so short and compact, but I’m also totally sure it had to do with the fact THAT I WORK HARDER THAN BOTH OF THEM PUT TOGETHER- especially Adam who tends to rely on his natural athletic ability (who could fault him, really?).   I get that it probably sucks for him when his athletically challenged girlfriend kicks his butt at something physical, but the reality is HARD WORK BEATS TALENT WHEN TALENT DOESN’T WORK HARD!  I may be tiny, but I have a lot of heart and I’m willing to bust my ass– which is EXACTLY what I do.

In other news, I am STILL working on the pull ups (and chin ups).  I’ve made some progress at lifting with my back but still can’t get my arms to bend.  The important thing, though, is I am closer than I was yesterday!!! I have also been nominated for a few more blog awards- which I need to get on posting pronto!

I hope everyone is having an AWESOME day!!!

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A Fish Belongs in Water…

“I do not run to add days to my life, I run to add life to my days.”
–Priscilla. 

Likewise, a trail runner belongs on the trail, and that is exactly where I was this afternoon.  It was sunny and 70 degrees out. Who could ask for more?

Hitting that trail was like being reunited with an old friend.  I savored every dip and bend in the path as I cruised up and down the hills. I was a little surprised by how much the landscape had changed since I was there last; and by how dry everything was for a change… not that I didn’t still find puddles and streams (and mud) to run through.

I know. Shocker! Me find mud... who would have guessed?  They didn’t nickname me the “water witch” as a child for no reason (true story). In fact, when I was the pint sized version of myself, I used to dress in the frilliest of clothes and then promptly head outside and get covered in mud.  I loved being a girlie girl and getting completely covered in mud and dirt… clearly not much has changed.  Diva-Fabulous-Obstacle runner in the making? Quite possibly!

BTW Ladies, just for the record- there’s no reason we can’t get out there and make mud look good… and put the boys to shame at the same time.  After all,  “Remember Ginger Rogers did everything that Fred Astaire did, backwards and on high heels”. 😉

Originally, I had planned a short 5 K (to everyone thinking “short? seriously?” trust me, stick with running and soon enough you will be saying it too), but ended up actually doing 10 K instead.  My calves (and body) held up better than I expected, especially since I had already done Insanity this morning (5 weeks done!!!) and have been dragging all week.

That being said, I did have some stomach issues during my run.  I had tried to temporize the leak situation with my reservoir by flipping it upside down, but it didn’t work very well (no big surprise… I know).  Every time I tried to take a sip, I got a bunch of air with it; so by the time a was 5 miles in I was having some serious heartburn. lol

Within an hour of getting home I totally crashed and burned.  I was so exhausted I didn’t even make it to boot camp (gasp!!!) which I am pretty bummed about.  However, I really think a third workout would have been pushing it.  Instead I’ll take an early bedtime and live to fight another day.

Another muddy one for good measure! Here's to getting dirty!

Question…

“If we had no winter; the spring would not be so pleasant; if we did not sometimes taste adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome.” 
-Anne Bradstreet

That's how we roll at boot camp 😉

How could anyone not feel grateful to be alive when it’s 75 degrees out and the sun is shining?    Granted, we have had an unseasonably mild winter up here in the north east, but it hasn’t made me look forward to the beautiful spring weather any less! I mean, who doesn’t feel happy at the first signs of spring?  I for one can’t wait to get outside more!

I spent this morning cleaning the house and catching up on chores…like finally trucking over to the grocery store to buy some healthy food (I was delighted to have my sunroof open on the drive!).  I was also delighted at just how many heavy bags of groceries I am able to juggle now- thanks to all my kick ass workouts.  Pretty soon I won’t even need that second trip to the car!  I know, yet another awesome reason to hit the gym!

Speaking of which,I luckily managed to get my Insanity workout in early before I distracted with the typical daily chaos.  I especially wanted to make sure I got it done today because neither of my planned workouts panned out yesterday.  In truth, though, I think I really needed the rest.  I have been dragging a bit and have been more sore than usual, which was part of my motivation to go get some healthy eats.

I decided to celebrate the gorgeous day by making some fresh guacamole for lunch…YUM! It’s always a plus when something tastes good AND is good for you.  Of course the fact that I ate way too much was probably NOT good for me, but great eating habits has never been a strong suit of mine.  What can I say; I’m a work in progress.

Tonight I’m looking forward to some more boot camp!!! I’ve been trying to convince Mike to let us have our session outside tonight- on account of the fabulous weather– but he has yet to cave.  It might have to do with us acting like 5 years at our last outdoor session.  We basically had a hard time paying attention because of all the excitement of “playing” outside.  (There were a lot of punishment exercises involved…) It was still a great time though! (at least for us…maybe not so much for Mike)  My favorite part was tire flipping, although the obstacle course Mike constructed was also fun. 😉

That is all for now!   It’s way to nice out to spend any longer on the computer!

I hope everyone is enjoying the day!!!!!

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