The Weekend...

I knew Saturday was going to be nice so I had already made plans to spend the day outside. And I wasn't disappointed! 70 degrees and sunny, it was the perfect day!

I began the day by running a local trail, the Bluffs Regional Park trail. It's a 4 mile loop (ok, 3.9 to be exact) and is up and down the whole way. One hill in particular has been a tough conquest for me and I have yet to make it all the way up without walking. But I made it farther than I have before and ended up walking for just a few minutes.

This trail was actually what got me started on my hiking adventures - my physical therapist had recommended I start hiking to help strengthen my ankle. And I did, although the first few weeks I could barely walk the entire loop, let alone run it. I'll bet he never thought I would take it this far!

I took a break after my run to do some packing then headed to Roxborough State Park, where apparently everyone had the same idea as me. There was a line of cars waiting to get in. I only had to wait 20 minutes and headed straight toward the Carpenter Peak trail. It's a 7 mile trail and is listed as strenuous. I never did get to the strenuous part since there was so much snow and ice on the trail that I had to turn around before I made it to the top - note to self: ALWAYS REMEMBER TREKKING POLES!!

I probably did about 5 miles total and although my legs were tired from all the sliding I did, it was my neck that hurt the most. I was so tense and had to watch the trail so carefully that I had my head down the entire time and now my neck is all messed up - next time I will remember to look up more!

I did meet some newcomers to the US, 2 engineers from India. It was their first time in Colorado and they were here doing some work for a company in the DTC. They had never seen snow before and had this joyous, childlike wonder that you don't see very often. They were both wearing dress shoes and slid all over the place, laughing the entire time. Funny, I had other choice words coming out of my mouth due to the snow :-) But they did remind me how much I (usually) enjoy the adventure of being outside.

Today was another longer training day - I spent about 2-1/2 hours at the gym (since we have a lovely blizzard going on outside). Did 40 minutes on the bike, 45 minutes of weights and then ran 4 miles (at a much faster pace - yeah!). After all that I spent about 20 minutes stretching, my favorite part.

I feel tired but not that sore, and I'm thrilled with that! This weekend was a test for me, to see how I do at long periods of exercise. If I keep up with my workouts the next 10 days, I should be ready to endure all the torture the camp instructors throw at me.