Hmmm.....

“Exercise is done against one’s wishes and maintained only because the alternative is worse.”

-George Sheenan

I need some serious motivation right now so I'm going to put this up where I can see it everyday.

The alternative to no exercise? Not even worth thinking about.

4 days in a row

You can tell I have more time on my hands, can't you? My blog went from barely one post a month to 4 days in a row - I LOVE having free time!

todays workout: walked for about 30 minutes then did strength training for about an hour. this new program is whipping my butt but i know I'll see a difference soon.

Something kind of cool I saw on a friends site so i thought i would do it here...

2008 Trips
Moab, UT - 2 trips
Salt Lake City, UT
Rifle, CO
Breckenridge, CO
Leadville, CO
Telluride, CO
Kremmling, CO
Gunnison, CO
Ouray, CO
Great Sand Dunes, CO
Buena Vista, CO - 2 trips
Lake City, CO - 3 trips
Denver, CO - too many times to even list
Albuquerque, NM
Fenton Lake, NM
Amarillo, TX
San Antonio, TX

How in the world did I have enough time to visit all these places????

Some Group Hiking

I spent the morning hiking at a local park, Palmer Park. I thought the hike would be pretty boring but it turned out to have some challenging parts, especially at the parts that had some snow leftover from last week. There were 18 of us and I ended up being the "rounder upper" - in other words, I went last so that if anyone had problems and slowed down, stopped, etc, I was there to help.

It was a pretty uneventful hike but I did get the chance to hike with a gal who had just set the goal to lose 100 pounds and this was her first hike. We took it nice and slow and I'm proud to say she made it up some pretty steep hills - a great start to her resolution!

So, that's my exercise for today - about 3 hours of hiking. Now I'm ready for bed, I'm tired.

accountability

I've decided to post my workouts daily, more for me than anyone else. This will allow me to go back and track what I'm doing and how I'm progressing - I just realized that adventure race camp is only 3 months away and AR season begins soon after that - I need to be ready!

So, what was today's workout? It was a nice and long brick workout and a good way to spend the morning.

- ran 2 miles
- took a one hour spinning class (with one of my favorite teachers - she completely rocks!)
- 30 minutes of pilates class

Tonight is laser tag with some friends and I always work up a sweat when I do that, so I guess I can consider that hour as part of my exercise as well. Now if the snow would just melt on the trails I could get out and do some biking - I never thought I would say this, but I kind of miss my bike :-) (that, in itself, is a miracle)

A long overdue update

I just realized it's been almost a month since I posted - yikes! No excuse really, just been working more and have suddenly become the social butterfly. My calendar has been packed with time with friends & family, AFA basketball games, work and working out... enough to keep me very busy!

My running is coming along very nicely - the initial 2 weeks were tough but I'm up to running 2 miles fairly easily and should be ready for the Pikes Peak Road Runners Winter Series in January. It starts with a 5k, two weeks later will be a 4 mile race, then 2 weeks later a 5 mile race and the final race will be a 10k. It's a pretty quick turn around for preparing but I have remembered something the past month... I love to run! Part of it is the way my head clears up when I run - I forget everything in my day and as a result it's a great stress release. But what I really love is how I can see improvement each day. I love to feel like I am accomplishing something, moving forward, and I definitely feel that way when I run. (I definitely don't feel that on my bike!)

As for those goals I set last month, I've been sticking to them pretty well. I'm back to a rhythm in my workouts, my eating is much better and my asthma, well... it's a work in progress. I FINALLY have insurance so i will be able to afford my meds and that will help tremendously. But in the process I am learning to concentrate on my breathing and figuring out ways to take deeper breaths while I run. Not easy, but good practice for future races.

So it seems that, after my initial funk, I have adjusted to my non-traveling/non-racing schedule pretty well. I have a pretty busy December-February due to work, then I get to look forward to a return to Adventure Race camp in April, and then it's back to racing again in May. I have already seen 4 races I want to run in Colorado, one in New Mexico, and of course a 24 hour race in California with some adventure race friends who live out there (my first 24 hour race! CAN'T WAIT!). It seems like it's so far away, yet I know it will creep up pretty quickly.

that's it for now - hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

Dancin' on my Bike

I love my spinning class.

I'm just saying.

A Typical Morning

Each morning I drag myself out of bed at 4:30 am and head to the gym. Since I've always been a night person, this is quite the accomplishment for me. I never thought I would be a morning person (just like I never thought I would run an adventure race!) but it has fit into this new life rather well.

Now let me make this clear, I am still not a morning person. Most mornings I hit my snooze button many, many times and then when I finally do get out of bed, it's in slow motion. I'll give you a little peak into what goes on in my odd brain when the alarm goes off on my spinning class days (Monday and Wednesday):

4:30 am: alarm goes off - I hit the snooze button and happily doze off again

4:39: alarm goes off again - I hit the snooze button again and think "I really need to get up" - it doesn't work

4:48: alarm goes off a 3rd time. This is usually when I actually crawl out of bed, all the while thinking "do I really need to work out today?"

4:52: I get over my reluctance to head to the gym, grab a bottle of water and my many morning vitamins, turn on the tv and crawl back into bed - I proceed to drink my water and take my vitamins, all the while thinking "do I really need to work out today?"

5:05: I finish chewing, swallowing and drinking and realize if I don't hurry I will be late to class! I rush to get dressed and collect everything that I need: a towel, my ipod, a bottle of water and ID. I think to myself "why am I always late?" and of course "do I really need to work out today?"

5:20: I grab my peanut butter pudding from the fridge and run out the door, knowing I am going to be late. If it's Monday, I usually end up speeding a little faster since my instructor turns out ALL the lights at exactly 5:30 - have you ever tried to adjust a spinning bike in the dark? Not easy.

5:24: I eat my PB Pudding while driving to the gym - eating pudding while driving can be rather daunting but I'm getting pretty good at multi-tasking. I again think to myself "do I really need to work out today?"

5:32: I arrive at the gym, rush to the door when I remember that my water bottle is still in my car. (every morning!) I rush back to my car, grab the bottle, then hurry to the front desk to get signed in. Get to class, say hi to all the regulars and rush, again, to get my bike adjusted. Think to myself "why am I always late?" and of course "do I really need to work out today?" (at least I am consistent!)

5:35: Jump on my bike and begin warming up - the thought comes to my mind "why am I doing this? I am way too tired to ride a bike for an hour." Or "do I really need to work out today?" I am STILL fighting the urge to run home and hop back into bed.

5:40: "Will this class never end?"

5:48: "No way am I going to make it to the end of class - can I go home now?"

5:56: "Another hill, are you kidding me?"

6:04: "You want me to increase my tension again?! *&%^#!!"

6:18: "If I turn my head to the left and casually look like I am stretching my neck, I can check out the clock and see how long I have left and no one will notice."

6:18 1/2: "Instructor saw me look at the clock - has an evil smile on his face. NOT GOOD."

6:24: "My legs feel like jello and my butt is asleep- can I stop now?"

6:28: Ahhhhh... stretching, my fav part. That is until our instructor decides to introduce a move that has me standing on one leg, while my other leg is stretched out behind me and my arms are twisted above my head in a strange sort of ballet/swan move. I fall flat on my ass.

6:30: "That was fun... let's do it again!"

You know it's summer when...

you see a snake while on a hike.

Yup, saw my first snake yesterday. A tiny little garter snake that was more scared of me than I was of it (which is kind of amazing, knowing my fear of snakes!) I was hiking Eagles Peak at the Air Force Academy and saw not only the snake but a roaring waterfall, the requisite chipmunk, lots of flys, bees and other bugs and of course, many cadets. It was a perfect day for a hike and I enjoyed every minute of it.

That night I went for a bike ride with Jody, a friend I met through the orienteering club. We parked near a local trail head and took a beautiful, mellow trail to downtown Colorado Springs, where we proceeded to get sick on a big bowl of Josh and John's ice cream (actually, I got sick - she was smart and got the small bowl). It was a perfect summer evening and reminded me of when I was a kid, when your only means of transportation was your bike - I remember riding all over the place, not having a care in the world. That's how the ride felt - just a casual, fun, relaxed ride with beautiful scenery and great company.

I seem to have turned a corner in my workouts - I'm finally feeling like I am progressing and getting stronger. I'm regularly riding 20-30 miles on the bike and actually sticking with my workout schedule. I'm pretty disciplined in getting in my workouts, but I've never been very disciplined when it comes to following a schedule. I am going on week 3 of my training for my race in July and it's been easy and fun to follow. If I can keep this up until the race, I just might feel prepared for the race. Let's all keep our fingers crossed - I don't want another repeat of the last race!

One thing I have been working on is how to avoid another dehydration/bonking episode. I've been trying different ways to get in electrolytes, which I know was part of my problem last time. I hate sport drinks, way too sweet for me and tends to upset my stomach. Instead I've been experimenting with Sports Jelly Beans, which are working really well. I've got a big workout planned Friday with 20 miles mountain biking and 10 miles hiking and that will be a good test on how these really work in the long term.

Other than that, the only other new adventure has been my new job. It's quite a change, going from a fairly large place to one that has 8 people. It's been a fun challenge - I've hit the ground running with lots of projects that need a quick turn around and I'm enjoying that. I love the challenge and I'm definitely not bored!

That's all I've got - hope everyone had a great holiday weekend! I'm finishing the weekend with an ATV ride outside of Woodland Park. Get out there and enjoy the summer, it is going to disappear way to fast!

Balance

After a good (and tough) weekend, I've been thinking about the fine line between challenging myself and knowing when to throw in the towel. Saturday I challenged myself at an Orienteering Meet; then Sunday I completely freaked during a mountain bike ride. The difference between the two? Orienteering is done with 2 feet solidly on the ground, while mountain biking involves the threat of my already bruised body being thrown to the ground. See why I might be willing to hike my bike rather than ride?

I write the above as a round about way to say I think I might not be cut out for mountain biking. Sunday's ride was a continuation of past rides - my fear getting in the way of any fun I might have. Granted the trail was more difficult than most I have been on and after the initial terrifying, single track ride (where I walked the entire time) I was able to enjoy a nice, simple ride with another friend. But I am tired of being "challenged" on rides that elicit panic attacks, not shouts of joy. When do I say "no more" without feeling like a quitter?

While I contemplate that question (and you are more than welcome to offer comments with advice, encouragement, or a "kick me in the ass" type of comment) I plan on riding the whole weekend. Ironic, isn't it? But, these rides are not exactly typical mountain biking - more like road biking and some simple, wide and hilly trails that lack any of the typical technical stuff usually associated with mountain biking. This whole thing puts into question all the adventure races I want to race - unfortunately most races do not have easy biking sections. Now, if I could just find a race without mountain biking, I would be extremely happy (unlikely but hey, I can wish can't I?)

I'm still planning on running my 12 hour/60 mile race in July - I figure if it gets too bad I can do the whole "hike my bike" thing. That's part of the reason i am doing it alone - I won't have the pressure of letting my teammate/s down with my fear of riding - I'll just be riding for me. That might be the best idea I've had yet.

I'm Back!!

My confidence took a pretty hard hit after the last adventure race and I was pretty sure I was doomed to live the rest of my life struggling with my workouts and any type of activity that requires, well, energy. It's been a couple of months of not feeling well and despite knowing that it was due to the sinus infection and my asthma, it still didn't sink in that that was the cause of my exhaustion. I'm funny that way - my moods tend to get in the way of reality.

I know all of you kept saying "give it time, you'll feel better." But I don't think I ever believed it because honestly, I didn't feel that bad. Yes, I was a little more tired than usual. But to me sick means wanting to crawl into bed for days and hoping that death comes soon. And that wasn't how I felt. This week, however, I realized how crappy I had been feeling when I suddenly began to feel much better. As the title above stated... I'm back!

It helps that my confidence was boosted by two big rides last week, one 20 miles and the other 30 miles. The 30 miler was flat for portions but also had some good hills for climbing - I felt so good by the end I could of kept going (except for my butt - oh my god, it was sore).

Then this week I was actually able to run 3 miles... all at one time! I'd lost a lot of my running last month and was barely doing 2 miles a couple of weeks ago, which was such a change from the regular 5 miles I had been running before. It was such a relief to know I could do it again!

I'm now working on building my confidence - I really think that was part of my problem at the last race. And I'm going to need it because I just signed up for a 60 mile/12 hour adventure race in Summit County on July 26! I decided to take the plunge, knowing that this race was more suited to me and my skills and finishing within the time frame is a very good possibility.

So, I'll be working hard the next 6 weeks - I've got some orienteering courses planned, as well as a day of kayaking at Lake Dillon, some long mountain bike rides and a mountain bike skills clinic. All stuff that sounds fun to me, which is the key ingredient.

Is summer finally on the way?

Winter has had a tight grip on the weather here in Colorado and it appears it does not want spring to appear anytime soon. However, this weekend spring got the upper hand and we finally saw a beautiful, Colorado weekend; sunny and warm! Thank god for that, I was beginning to get depressed with all the gloomy weather we have been having.

With a nice weekend coming I, of course, planned a lot of outdoor activities. I'm already longing for the freedom I had last summer, when I could take off at a moment's notice with no worries. Not anymore, I have to plan for the weekends like all the rest of you mere mortals out there.

Friday night I saw "Ironman" (awesome movie!) then Saturday the plan was to run in the morning then help mom with her garage sale. My social plans the night before had me out kind of late so I bailed on the run and instead did what every good daughter should do and spent the day helping mom.

Sunday was my 'big workout day' - I planned a brick workout, which is a training session that involves two or more different disciplines (ie trail running, hiking, mountain biking, etc), one after another. I was planning on doing 15 miles on the bike, then spend three hours hiking Eagles Peak at the Air Force Academy. You know what they say about best laid plans?

I woke up and was not motivated AT ALL to get out there, so I dragged my feet for a couple of hours. I finally got my butt in gear and headed to the Santa Fe Trail with my bike, only to be derailed by a problem with my gears - I could only get into 3 gears; low, medium and high. I suppose it was kind of funny to see me pedaling like speedracer on crack - I even ran into a fence during one of my 'changing the gear' phases. At that point I was sincerely wishing the trail was somewhere else and not next to a highway - I got lots of honks during that little incident.

Because of my mechanical failure I turned around early and only did about 6 miles. I then headed to the Air Force Academy, one of the most beautiful places in the world and an outdoor paradise. It's one of my favorite places - I grew up not too far from it and have wonderful memories of attending football and basketball games and various other events.

I was meeting my friend Tori to hike Eagles Peak on the grounds of the Academy (see pic above)- we had been trying to get together to do this hike for months and our schedules had finally converged to make it work!

Let me just start by saying that I have found the perfect trail for training - this trail had everything; boulders, scree, icy climbing, incredible views, all in a very steep climb (2000 vertical feet in 1.25 miles). I figure if cadets use this for their training then I should definitely add it to my list.

Tori has climbed this thing numerous times and knew all the ins and outs of the trail, which was good because there were times when the trail wasn't visible and without her I would of been hopelessly lost on my way to the summit. It started fairly mellow but then proceeded to a relentless climb - it just never ended. It took us 2 hours to get to the top (mostly because I kept stopping - I have got to get my hiking legs back!) and from the top we were rewarded with an amazing view of the Academy and the front range. It made the climb worth it.

Coming down was fun - scree on a steep slope is pretty hard to navigate when you have forgotten your trekking poles (what a dolt I am). There was a lot of sliding on my butt and of course the day wouldn't of been complete if there wasn't a fall (there was) and blood coming from some part of my body.

This was a great trail and one I would recommend if you want a challenge, but the best part of the day was spending it with Tori. We haven't been able to spend much time together due to crazy schedules and I loved spending time with her. Thanks for a great time hon!

The Yoda of the Cycling World

It’s been unbelievably busy lately – my move has added about 2 hours to my commute and trying to prepare for this upcoming adventure race has been a challenge. I’m pretty motivated, but when that alarm goes off at 4am, that motivation can go right out the window! Forcing myself to head to bed at a much earlier hour than most people is the big challenge - my social life is seriously hurting but at this point I kind of prefer the whole 'staying awake while I drive' aspect more than my need for social engagement. Who needs a date anyway.

I've been ramping up my workouts to get ready for the race and one of the things I've added is a spinning class 3 times a week - love, love, love it! The fellow who leads the class has a unique approach to his instruction - he likes to do visualization and throws in lots of inspirational sayings to get us going. The funny thing is he is a bit like Sean Penn in "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" - I catch myself laughing at some of the things he says, with that ting of a surfer dude accent. But what he does works - I truly HATED riding on stationary bikes before but no more, he knows how to get me in 'the zone.' Now we'll just see if it translates to the open road - I pick up my bike this weekend and Steve and I plan on doing a ride Saturday in Palo Duro Canyon State Park. I don't know what kind of trail he's taking me on, but I have a feeling he's going to want to push me a bit - I'm all for a good push now and then and now seems as good a time as any.

My first race is just 10 days, 11 hours away! It will be in Albuquerque on April 20 and I'll be racing with a couple I met at camp. It includes mountain biking for about 10-15 miles and trail running/trekking for about 5-10 miles - we won't know exactly until the day of the race. I'm nervous yet excited all at the same time. On top of that, it's another item I can check off of my 'dream list.' It's funny, I keep checking things off of this list yet it keeps getting longer - at this rate I'll be 80 before I finish the darn thing. (hey, that was one of my goals... to be doing stuff like this when I am 80. Let's hope I don't finish the list before then!)

The other night I decided to lay out a schedule of all the races I plan on doing this summer - it was then that I realized that this is going to be a crazy summer... and a lot of fun! I'm going to post it on my blog with the thought that this will keep me accountable to all of you and that I might actually RUN these races. :-)

Registered/Confirmed:

• April 20: New Mexico Adventure Racing Club Sprint #1 - I'll be racing with Jerry and Linda, a couple I met at camp. First adventure race for all of us!
• May 3: Take 5 in the Garden- a 5 mile, very hilly run in the Garden of the Gods. I actually enjoy running hills - it's probably because I get the reward of a fun, downhill run after the climb. :-)
• May 10: Gravity Play Buena Vista Adventure Race - I'll be working as a volunteer for this race. This is the same group that put on the camp I attended, it will be a great introduction to what a longer race involves and what to expect when I run one of their races.
• May 26: Bolder Boulder 10K - this race was one of my first goals when I began to lose weight. I'll be running this with a group from work. I keep hearing how much fun it is, can't wait to experience it myself!
  

Tentative:

• June 8 OR July 12: New Mexico Adventure Racing Club Sprint #2 OR #3 - I'll be running one of these races with my brother Steve. We need to finalize the date but he seems pretty excited to be doing a race.
• June 21 - July 2: Primal Quest - I might be on the support team for a team running this amazing race (it's a huge race, kind of the ultimate challenge of all the adventure races) It would probably be just a few days, but what a great way to spend those days!
  
• July 26-27: Gravity Play - Summit County Adventure Race: I want to do either their sprint or 12 hour race but need to find a partner/team that is willing to put up with a slow newbie (Anyone out there interested??)
• September 6: Gravity Play - Vail Adventure Race: Would like to do the 12 hour race for this one, but once again need a partner/team. Anyone??
• October 19: Denver Half Marathon - this is REALLY tentative, not sure I want to take on a half marathon. A lot depends on how the summer goes.
• November 16: San Antonio Rock n Roll Marathon - I'm more likely to run this half marathon. I would get to visit my Aunt and Uncle and run at a beautiful location (that just happens to be at a much lower altitude than Colorado - you would be amazed how much of a difference that makes!)
  

Did I mention I also have a goal of climbing 10 14ers? And who knows what else might come up - I like having a schedule but I also want to be flexible and open to trying something/anything new. I might as well add more to my dream list - I don't want to get bored, do I?

Hi ho, hi ho, it's off to work we go....

I know, corny title, but I'm tired and nothing else came to mind so there it is. It was hard getting back to work and school and just the everyday grind of life after my fun, long weekend. I'm also in the process of moving and just have to say that living in one place for a long time is not always a good thing - I have collected way too much junk! Geesh, where did all this stuff come from???

The above pic is from my hike at Arches National Park to the Delicate Arch - beautiful hike that I squeezed in before heading back to Denver. I went with a fellow AR camp attender David who had also stayed in Moab for a couple of days after camp - it was a nice ending to a great weekend. We also did a short hike among some of the rock formations (below) that was just gorgeous - fun time!

My workouts have been rather intense since I returned from Moab - I have a whole new motivation that I didn't have before and am trying to push myself harder. Mental toughness is always my problem - most of the time my body can do it, but my mind isn't always so sure. I'm working on that and hoping I can begin to build the confidence and toughness that goes with racing.

My dear and wonderful brother (Hi Steve!) has offered to let me use one of his mountain bikes, yeah!! I'll be heading down to Texas soon to pick it up and hopefully hit a trail or two when I'm there - I would love to go out with someone as experienced as him. On top of that he has agreed to do a race with me!! He's strong in biking, I'm strong on trekking and between the two of us I think we could do pretty well. He's pretty competitive, I'm only so-so competitive so I'm hoping his competitive streak will rub off on me. Mom has even said she would be there for support, so it could be a fun time for the whole family!

Now, if I can just get Bill to step up and do the Bolder Boulder with all of us, I would be happy (hehe - I thought I would try another route to get you motivated my friend)

It looks like I will be spending Easter Sunday climbing Mt Elbert - my first winter ascent, (or spring, if you want to get all technical about it). I have wanted to do Elbert for a long time and was going to make it my first summer 14er this year, but this chance came up and I don't want to pass it up. Let's just hope the weather holds up - it's suppose to be 20 with some wind but that's it - pretty decent considering what a rough winter it has been. I'll try to post pictures of the climb, as long as my camera doesn't freeze!

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.

Today's Challenge

I ran 4 miles today and dare I say, it was easy? Ok, maybe not easy, but definitely easier. After Wednesday's workout of only 3 miles, where my legs felt like they were being pulled out of their sockets and roasted over an open fire, this was a breeze. No problems with warm up, no problems with breathing (a recurring problem I have been dealing with) and no problem with my back. Nice way to start the day.

On top of that, I went faster and ran part of it at a 1% incline. It's amazing how the body can do so poorly one day, and so well the next. I like the "doing well" days much better.

Later today I'll probably hit a trail close to work and do a nice walk at lunch - a good way to get a break in during the day.

Tomorrow is a long day where I plan to be outside ALL DAY!! The weather is suppose to be gorgeous and I fully intend to enjoy every little moment of sunshine. I have a fun partner (Hi Tori!) who is planning on joining me for the hike in the afternoon, the company will be nice.

Have a great day everyone!

Training, or lack of

'Life' has this funny way of getting in the way of what you really want to do. Funerals (way too many the past 5 months, 1 just this past week), school, moving and family obligations just keep piling on. It's a challenge for me to balance all of it and I wonder how someone who has kids can do all they do - I salute all of you who are parents and spouses!

I created a pretty strenuous workout schedule to prepare for camp. I have yet to follow it. I'm still working out, just doing my usual 'fly by the seat of my pants' type of schedule. Actually, I'm not even that spontaneous, I just do what I feel my body can handle that day. I've been trying to train for not only the Adventure Race camp but running the Bolder Boulder in May. One of them has to give on certain days and lately the Bolder Boulder has been winning out. Probably because I am not enjoying my bike riding but love my running. I'm hoping I get motivated to bike more after the camp.

My typical schedule is this: Workout 6 days a week in the mornings from 5:30-7:00. The workouts vary from a Strength Training class once a week, weight training 2 other days, then running 4 miles (or an hour) and biking for at least 30 minutes for the other 4 days. On weekends I'll spend a day snowshoeing or hiking.

I've got to admit that I have been a little stressed about my inability to stick with my rather ambitious workout schedule. I have never been athletic, ever. And here I am, planning to spend 3 days with many world class athletes who will leave me in the dust. Am I crazy to be doing this? My fear of heights could seriously freak me out during the rope training; I have never mountain biked in my life and yet I will be biking on a trail that most expert riders say is difficult. What if I can't keep up or even worse, can't do it at all? Geesh, I think I'm crazy to be doing this.


To help me ease these fears I plan on doing some huge workouts during the next two weekends. This Saturday I will be going trail running in the morning for 4 miles, then hike 7 miles up Carpenter Peak in the afternoon. Sunday will be a long workout in the gym, running 4 miles, 30 minutes on the bike and weight training for 30 minutes. I have only 2 weeks left and I don't want to get to camp and think "If I had only done more."