onepinkfuzzy

After my surgery, I have ramped up my mileage somewhat quickly. I went from 0 to 11 to 18 in two weeks. No wonder my knees are a little sore. I have six months till OP50, giving me plenty of time to train. I decided that I would take this first month to build up my aerobic base. Run around 15 miles a week, and spend the rest of my time cross-training. I think this will help me get stronger while taking it easier on my joints. I also think I'll be taking a close look at my nutritional strategies.

Yesterday morning, Paki and I were scheduled to go out. This time, I called her at 5 a.m.
me: It's raining. Is it raining at your place?
paki: yes
me: it's thundering. are you getting lightning?
paki: yeah
me: what if the lightning hit one of the electrical poles at the river?
paki: yeah, I was going to wait to see if it goes away
me: I don't want to get hit by lightning
paki: yeah, we probably shouldn't go
me: no, I think I'll go to the gym instead
paki: darnit, I really wanted to go today.
me: I know!
paki: oh well.

So I stumble through the dark house, trying to find my strength training gear (separate from the running gear I set out the night before), and manage to get out of the house and on my way by 5:25. As I drive over, I notice that it hasn't thundered in at least 20 minutes, and the rain has settled to a drizzle. I second-guess my decision the entire 5-minute drive over, agonizing that I made the wrong choice. Finally, I decide to live with the choice I made, reminding myself of my new goals: not miles, but base.

The gym is surprisingly full 5:30 a.m. I want to get on one of the stationary bikes, but they look like they are off. I'm not sure how to work it (I'm still a newbie), so I get on an elliptical machine instead. Since the goal is to get my heart rate up, I actually peruse the various workouts and choose one that looks hard in a good way. As I spin my legs round and round, I pay close attention to the people getting on the bikes in front of me, the bikes I thought were off. Aha! All you have to do is pedal a little, and the displays will light up. I file that away for future reference. A man hops on the elliptical next to me, without signing in on the board, and cranks up Christina Aguilera and Britney Spears in his iPod. I bounce along, first moving my legs forward, then moving them backwards as directed by the programmed workout. I'm happy to see my HR moving up. I don't have a HR monitor at home, so to be able to get a feel for my heart rate while working out is pretty cool. I'm suprised at my body's response to a HR in the 150s - I can feel my heart pounding, my head pounding and I'm breathing surprisingly hard. I thought my HR would be higher for that sort of physiological response.

I hop off my machine as a woman is getting upset that the man next to me didn't sign in. She wants a particular machine, and according to the sign in board, two should be available. She hops on mine as I wander over to the weights. I am feeling good. I am ready to up it to three sets per exercise. I am serious, focused. So focused, I fail to realize until half-way through my exercises that I am doing the wrong day's exercises. Oops! Oh well. I keep going. I am delighted as I do reverse crunches to feel that I'm starting to be able to lift my butt off the mat. I'm also excited to feel that I can keep my balance doing squats. I finish up and head out to stretch.

My gym has a nice balcony area overlooking the basketball courts, with mats and other assorted floor equipment. I snag a mat and start my ITB stretching. Ahhh, it feels so good. I work through all my leg stretches, and then head back out. What a great workout.

I spend the rest of the (stressful) day satisfied. I can feel the burn in my muscles throughout the day. I feel strong, confident and solid. By the end of the day, my muscles are sore, but in such a pleasant way.

This morning, I decided to sleep instead of run or go back to the gym to bike. Rest is an important part of training programs; I am taking this to heart!