Triaspirational

Week in review

2012-01-29T17:10:00.003-05:00

8:37 total hours exercise for the week. Short one yoga and 2 spins, but really it was a function of my work schedule - I had evening things on Tuesday and Friday, and I went to a play with an early curtain time on Thursday night, so it just wasn't realistic to squeeze in more. This coming week should be easier: I'll do double spin Tuesday night, midday spin Thursday and double spin Saturday morning...

Long slow run!

2012-01-29T17:07:00.002-05:00

I had bad insomnia last night - at 3:30 I changed the alarm from 8 to 9 and gave up idea of running first thing in the morning. (I'm not complaining, I like my job, but Monday's my big teaching day and that means I usually have at least 8 hours of work to do on Sunday - double spin yesterday morning was not conducive to a particularly productive afternoon, and I knew that if I were really underslept I'd be wise to get at lest 4-5 hours of work under my belt before embarking on exercise.) Got out the door around 3:30 and rapidly realized that it was going to be one of those runs where you sort of wonder what the hell you're doing out there: very sunny and rather beautiful, but coolish (low 40s) and windy as well. I was running straight into the wind on the way out, and my right Achilles was extremely sore and stiff; but once I turned around, it was much better, suddenly felt like a much calmer day and by that point the lower calf was more thoroughly warmed up. I wanted to go quite long but did not make it, due to prudence mostly (got to get this lower calf working more smoothly); very slow, with walk intervals to make it mentally easy as I start to build mileage back up...

1:17 total run-walk (4min run, 1min walk), c. 6.5 miles?

(Garmin is frustrating me, it gives wacky HR numbers for long stretches and takes so long to capture a satellite that I can't be bothered to hang around waiting for it to locate itself, so distance is only approximate - I might need to get a new device, for the HR consistency/accuracy more than the GPS question)

Yoga!

2012-01-28T19:42:00.005-05:00

That was extremely beneficial: I really have been missing yoga in the last week and a half, going from doing quite a bit to virtually none is not enjoyable. Need to make it more of a priority. (This week was bad for exercise, as I had two evening work things and one other evening out that knocked out all of those days for anything useful! Coming week should be significantly better.

1.5hr yoga

Double spin!

2012-01-28T12:44:00.001-05:00

1:55 spin

Run!

2012-01-27T14:36:00.003-05:00

I was very grumpy with myself for not getting out yesterday (miscalculation of times needed for various work and errand-type things and fueling issues). However this was a good one - very very slow, and tight right calf and both feet sore, but I did the full hour. This morning it was what seemed as though it must have been the rainiest day ever witnessed in the city of New York, but it has now largely stopped raining: it's almost sixty degrees, insanely foggy but really very good running weather! Will aim to run slow and long on Sunday, double spin tomorrow; and now I gotta get some food in me, shower and get my show on the road, I let everything drift a little late, I am giving a talk at 4 in midtown!

1hr slow run

#4/20

2012-01-25T10:54:00.002-05:00

Such a great workout - I was certainly working as hard as I reasonably could...

1hr strength

Run!

2012-01-24T11:37:00.000-05:00

It is the most outrageously beautiful day for a run: almost 50 degrees, incredibly bright and sunny, with that springlike feeling of thaw in the air (the snow is by now almost entirely gone after a day of warmish rain yesterday). Saw a cormorant bobbing with gulls in the water just north of the boat basin.

Only went 45 mins., not a full hour, as (a) I was a little late getting out and (b) my right lower calf was ridiculously tight and stiff. Stopped to stretch it out a few times, and it was much better by the end of the run, but it is noticeable that a week without much yoga makes that area feel as though a block of wood has been taped to it when I run! NB do 20-30min. yoga on mat at home if I can't get to more classes: I never have been in the habit of doing this, but it would surely be beneficial.

45min run (c. 4 miles)

#3/20

2012-01-23T09:57:00.004-05:00

It's so good - the hour just flew by, it was ridiculous! More core stuff today.

1hr strength

Week 1 summary

2012-01-22T16:40:00.001-05:00

I am one yoga course short of my stated goal for the week (I am still tempted to go to 6pm local yoga this evening, but I have a lot of work to do both for tomorrow and in general and I think it will relieve more anxiety for me to make headway with some of that than to go out again this evening)! I am one hour short of the ten-hour goal (that's where I'm hoping to set base weekly level of exercise), but the workouts with Mark are strenuous and it's better to give them some time to get absorbed than to overdo it right at the start of the program. I've got ten weeks' worth of sessions with Mark, if I see him only twice a week, so that's what I'm counting off, I guess...

Summary:

2 strength sessions (1:00 each)
1 yoga class (1:30)
3 spins (:50, :45, 1:50)
3 runs (1:00, :11, :43)

Run!

2012-01-22T16:30:00.001-05:00

Very nice 4-mile run with Liz. I was dreading cold and snow on ground, but really it was absolutely fine - temperature in mid-20s, but with very damp air, so it's not too bad on the lungs.

4 miles (43 mins., c. 10:45 pace)

Double spin!

2012-01-21T13:51:00.000-05:00

Woke up to unexpectedly snowy morning; the spin studio at Chelsea Piers looks out over the river, and it is mesmerizing to watch the snow fall into the water. Very good double spin - muscles noticeably less fatigued than they were yesterday when I tried to do things...

2hr spin

Yoga!

2012-01-20T21:43:00.002-05:00

It was an 'easy' class (really yoga classes aren't easy or not easy, there is always something challenging to learn or contemplate in a pose, but let's just say it didn't involve a lot of strenuous muscular exertion and sweatiness), which is just as well - very beneficial. It was over in a flash! I only ran one mile beforehand, as I slightly lost track of time and didn't have a ton of vim - in general I think it fair to count runs of 2 miles upward as runs as opposed to warmup activities, but I think in this case as it's first week of arduous new fitness regimen that we will let it 'count'...

1 mile run
1.5hr yoga

Spin!

2012-01-20T13:52:00.003-05:00

45min spin at Chelsea Piers. I'm going to stick around here and get some work done, then go to 6:30 yoga (hopefully with a 40-minute run beforehand, if I can muster the vim). I'm sorta shooting for a basic week of 2 sessions with Mark, 2 yoga classes, 3 runs and 3 spins - will go to double spin tomorrow (J. is teaching both, that's good) and run 4 or so miles with Liz on Sunday, so if I go to one yoga class over the weekend as well, I will have just about made it for this week...

45min spin

Belated post

2012-01-19T21:47:00.001-05:00

to say that I had a very nice run earlier: possibly the slowest hour-long run I have ever done, it was at near-shuffle pace (all muscles esp. in upper body ridiculously sore from yesterday's workout), but it was good to get out. Had meant to do it in the morning, but it was in the low 20s & that is not good for wheezing; late afternoon was chilly and damp and overcast, but more like low 30s, which is fine...

1hr very slow run

Session 2/20

2012-01-18T11:36:00.001-05:00

In retrospect Monday's session was just child's play, to ease me back into it...

1 strenuous hr workout with Mark

Spin!

2012-01-17T21:19:00.001-05:00

50min spin class @ Chelsea Piers

Session #1 of 20

2012-01-16T09:41:00.001-05:00

Flew back to JFK last night and wintry weather; got home around 10:15pm, I guess, and was very glad I had set up this morning's appointment, otherwise I would pretty certainly be only just getting up! My fitness splurge for 2012: a three-month membership at Body Strength Fitness (the full membership, which comes with unlimited yoga at what I usually just call the local yoga studio), and twenty sessions with friend and former trainer Mark. I'm keeping my Chelsea Piers membership, but I need the jump-start and these are the months when it's hardest to get down to CP on cold winter days/evenings...

1hr strength

Run!

2012-01-15T08:53:00.004-05:00

OK, that was good. I wasn't sure I was really going to get out the door for a proper run - it would be better if I could get up earlier, as even leaving at 7:30 puts you in a situation where the run back is noticeably warmer than the run out. But it's not as hot and humid at this time of year, really, and perhaps I got some heat acclimation by dint of yoga: the newspaper says 79F right now, with relative humidity of 73%, and I am certainly pretty darn hot by the end of it, but there was a good breeze and the sidewalk hadn't yet trapped the heat of the day.

1hr slow warm run

Yoga!

2012-01-14T10:07:00.003-05:00

This class is particularly challenging - the teacher is very good. The studio is doing a 30-day challenge that is just at the end of its first week, and it is having a devastating effect on attendance - it was mat on mat, the room was packed to its max, it got insanely hot!

1.25hr yoga

Yoga

2012-01-13T12:16:00.001-05:00

1.5hr yoga

Misc. cardio

2012-01-12T11:45:00.001-05:00

1hr elliptical

Run-walk intervals

2012-01-11T19:39:00.004-05:00

I was slightly dreading Wednesday night run club, as it is warm and humid here (not as hot as at the hot time of year, but high 70s and high relative humidity) and the runners in that group are fast - I don't mind being slow, but I get nervous when I am running along the side of road about to be mashed by traffic! However it was all good - B.'s friend L. was there and wanted to do run-walk intervals, so we did some laps around the playing fields at the Cayman International School rather than trekking out along the highway. It was nice enough that I might have to have another run in the early AM tomorrow, since it is a no-yoga day...

47 min. run-walk, plus 2 x 15 min. walk to and from start

Yoga!

2012-01-11T13:05:00.002-05:00

Also very hot (door opened to outside partway through to allow 'cool' air to enter, but it remained super-warm!). Think I will take tomorrow off from yoga, as I can feel little spots in neck and shoulders that will benefit from recovery. Tonight is Wednesday Night Run Club...

1.5hr yoga

Hot yoga

2012-01-10T17:49:00.002-05:00

Not "hot yoga," just hot yoga. Hot enough that the sweat was pouring off me even in corpse pose at the end of the class: someone said afterwards that the thermometer read 93 degrees. Class was packed (body heat raises temperature). Yoga is beneficial...

1.5hr yoga

Misc. cardio

2012-01-09T16:08:00.001-05:00

This is the last week for a while when my time is truly my own (school starts up again next week, and the beginning of the semester is usually very busy), so I'm trying to get as much exercise in as I can. However I was thwarted by raw asthma-feeling lungs as I segued from treadmill to elliptical, so I figured I should call it a day.

30 min. treadmill intervals (10 min. warmup, 10 x 1 min. hard, 1 min. easy)
10 min. elliptical
15 min. walk home

55 min. total

Yoga!

2012-01-09T12:24:00.001-05:00

A very good class that left me feeling much better than I did all weekend. (I flew to Brent's Saturday morning, but the flight leaves early enough from JFK that I literally didn't sleep a wink the night before, I've been going to bed pretty late and when I did lie down around 1:30 and try and sleep a little, I was anxious that I wouldn't wake up when the alarm went off at 5:15.) Weekday plan for this week: I get a ride to the cafe with Brent around 7:20, work on book revisions for a couple of hours and then go to 10am yoga. It is good - I do best with a very regular routine...

1.5hr yoga

Blissful run

2012-01-06T15:39:00.001-05:00

OK, that was good, it was right that I took yesterday off. My nose is still runny and chest not quite back to normal, but it was a most beautiful afternoon for a run (52 degrees, sunny, calm!) and I was determined to take advantage of it. It has been extremely to my chagrin that I haven't been able to run over the last couple weeks (I was really looking forward to a lot of running, and I could have used the mental boost), but runners amongst you know that one cannot always run when one wants to...

1hr easy run

Yoga

2012-01-04T23:06:00.001-05:00

A very good class at Chelsea Piers, I think my favorite of the three I've gone to in the past three days. I am holding out hope that if I keep doing yoga 3-4 times per week for many months, I may actually get somewhat more flexible... I had intended to run for 40 mins. on the track beforehand, but in fact the cold air on the walk from the subway made me too wheezy for it to seem advisable, so I went to the 30min abs class beforehand instead. It is a very demanding class, with some Pilates-type stuff in it - I should do that stuff more regularly... Now my muscles need a day off from yoga...

.5hr abs
1.5hr yoga

Spin, yoga

2012-01-03T21:36:00.002-05:00

Nose still very runny, but really I can't wait forever for it to stop! Had a good spin workout on my own at Chelsea Piers, then yoga with Lauren (last time before she leaves town). Have some good plans (good, but slightly expensive!) for getting back to peak fitness, about which more anon. I'm going to Cayman on Saturday for a week, during which I'll mostly just do much yoga and some treadmill running, but hit things hard once I'm back here from Jan. 17 going forward.

1hr spin (5 x 5min zone 3, 3min easy)
1.25hr yoga

Yoga!

2012-01-02T20:14:00.002-05:00

1.5hr local yoga (also very beneficial)

Highly beneficial short run

2012-01-02T15:48:00.003-05:00

Ugh, I'm still sick, and I was feeling very grumpy indeed about having to cancel the projected mid-afternoon run with L.: it would have been 5-6 miles at a moderate to hard pace on hills, and it was clear that this would not be at all a good idea. But after moping a bit I pretty much just decided that I had to get out for 30 mins. at easy/moderate effort: mental health benefits outweigh cost to lungs! Felt particularly un-fleet of foot, with very stiff and slightly sore feet and lower calves, but it was highly worthwhile regardless...

30min slow run

Brisk walk

2012-01-01T17:09:00.002-05:00

Lungs still wheezy/gummed up, and sinuses are in terrible shape, so I figured I'd better not run, though I really wanted to! 1:05 brisk walk (down to just north of boat basin and back).

#25/26 of 30

2011-12-31T16:12:00.000-05:00

And that's it for the year, folks!

Still have some lingering cold symptoms, but am feeling much happier today than yesterday. Took my book revision stuff down to the cafe at Chelsea Piers and spent a fruitful hour on that before meeting up with Liz for 11am spin; then Liz went and ran a couple miles and swam while I went to yoga. And we had a very good lunch afterwards, too, at La Lunchonette. An old friend is having a party this evening, so though while I often prefer to stay home on New Year's Eve, really it will be worthwhile going out (it's near to my subway train, too, so it shouldn't be an impossible trek home), and already today has been a nice end to an unsettled week. Not too far off the 30 workouts in 30 days goal, all things told; sickness and travel made it a tricky month, but I am really hoping that January will be a month of huge and excellent exercise!

Best wishes for a happy and healthy new year...

1hr spin (#25/30)
1.5hr yoga (#26/30)

24/30

2011-12-30T19:22:00.001-05:00

30 mins walk across the park (to get somewhere). Beautiful day, but I was grumpy not to be running - my cold has had a second resurgence! Am going to spin class and yoga tomorrow COME WHAT MAY, will modify intensity if needed...

#22/23 of 30

2011-12-29T11:27:00.001-05:00

Still pretty grumpy, lungs full of junk, but I met up with out-of-town friend B. for local yoga and it was beneficial. Don't think I will hit 30 workouts for the month, though, as I had still better take it easy for the next couple days (will probably do body sculpt class at the gym tomorrow - yoga and strength seems wiser than demanding cardio, the latter is harder on the lungs).

#22: 1.5hr yoga
#23: 35 mins walk

#21 of 30

2011-12-27T14:20:00.001-05:00

30 min brisk walk (scouting neighborhood locations for novel revisions).

Update

2011-12-27T09:45:00.002-05:00

Am feeling very grumpy, as I woke up on Dec. 24 with a distinct sore throat. Nothing major, but I still have slight congestion and soreness. Had hoped yoga later would seem a good idea, but I think I have to take one more day off. It is very frustrating though perhaps inevitable that as soon as my very busy schedule actually quietens down enough that I could do what I like, I am stricken with a minor ailment!

Don't usually log walks as exercise, but I did have a couple brisk point-to-point walks in Philadelphia for purpose of actually getting somewhere: so let's say Dec. 24, 30 mins. walk, #19 of 30; and Dec. 26, 35 mins. walk, #20 of 30.

#18 of 30

2011-12-23T15:51:00.003-05:00

Abs and body sculpt class at the gym: no spin, as L. was underfueled, I was lazy and we both had things that needed to get done over the rest of the afternoon! It is a good workout notwithstanding. I think I might do a spin on the stationary bike here tomorrow morning before I leave for Philadelphia c. 10:30am - then I can run Sunday morning from my mom's house in Phila. Monday will almost inevitably be a day off from exercise unless I decide I want to run on adjacent days (probably fine if I only do half an hour).

1.5hr strength

#17 of 30

2011-12-22T23:40:00.004-05:00

Friend and former student J. treated me to a very enjoyable vinyasa class and a mini-feast afterwards at her gracious Riverside Drive apartment (pate, shrimp cocktail and lobster, the cake known as buche de noel - diacritical marks have been lost as they interfere with HTML - which is our mutual obsession at this time of year). Luxurious!

Partial run intervals

2011-12-21T23:24:00.000-05:00

Really I am gnashing my teeth at myself, I knew when I ran yesterday that I had serious soreness in the left thigh muscle and should not go and try to do run intervals today! However I was unwilling to abandon previous plan. It was quite uncomfortable immediately and grew more painful as I continued to run, so I stopped before the end of the 2nd of 4 sets, alas. Coach is wiser than I, I wanted to run the rest of the workout at slower speed but he pointed out that if it is actively painful, better to stop now and not end up having to take weeks off for an injury!

1 mile warmup + 400m additional warmup

4 x 200 on 1 min rest, 4 mins set rest, 3 x 200 on 1 min rest, bit of further walking

(It certainly was enough of a workout to give me the endorphins! But I won't try to run again for another couple days - this is not as painful as a grade 1 hamstring tear I had a few years ago, but it's definitely enough of something wrong that I shouldn't do things that exacerbate it!)

#15 of 30

2011-12-20T13:13:00.000-05:00

Very nice little 40min. run, as I submitted the second set of grades last night and finished my Bookforum review in the late morning. Just down to the boat basin and back - air felt a bit raw on my lungs, but it's back up to the mid-40s, so not bad. Various thigh muscles still pronged from last week's high-intensity workout - have to be careful with that speedwork!

40min. run (c. 3.8mi.)

#14 of 30

2011-12-19T16:28:00.000-05:00

Sunday was a write-off: I had a lot of work to do, and a family engagement in the afternoon, and by the end of that I was just too tired to get to the gym, I went straight home on the subway and collapsed! Good midday workout today, though: 30 min. abs class, 45 min. spin.

1:15 abs/spin

Spin!

2011-12-17T13:27:00.003-05:00

I was ridiculously tired yesterday and did no exercise, alas - but the semester is effectively over (I still have one set of papers to grade), and I think I should be able to do a good bit of exercise this coming week. Joanna's Saturday 11am spin class was great as always, and I should be able to go to her Monday daytime class this week also (usually I am teaching).

1hr spin
#13 of 30

#12 of 30

2011-12-15T21:30:00.004-05:00

It was fortuitous: last week at our mutual friend I.'s talk, I saw graduate student H. and learned that she is teaching a class at the local gym I used to belong to. It is NIA, non-impact aerobics (dance-based, incorporating martial arts and other movements), and not at all the sort of thing I usually do, but I like to support people I know in their endeavors and I said I'd come to the Thursday 4:30 class. I was particularly glad of having made that commitment as it was a day of meetings, with work obligations before and after, and I am not sure I would have used the time particularly well if I had not actually said I'd be there to exercise!

1hr light aerobic exercise with good stretching benefits

#11 of 30

2011-12-13T21:57:00.002-05:00

1.25hr vinyasa yoga

"Warp Speed"

2011-12-12T21:27:00.001-05:00

Whoa, that was amazing! I have been to this class a handful of times in the past (times when I was running quite a bit more and faster), I knew I really liked it, but in this case am just happy to say that I could execute the entire workout. The group are mostly faster than I am (the only two who were comparable or slower both left halfway through!), but they are supportive and the coach is fantastic.

I think one problem for me this year has been that I do very well with a coach who is also a bit of a guru in one of the triathlon disciplines and who I want to learn from and please by working hard, and I've had a bit of a gap in that respect. I'm definitely going to go to this class regularly for the next couple months, as I am not in fact training for any endurance races and I think the higher-intensity workouts do me good. This is the course description and the coach was nationally ranked in the 200m distance throughout the 80s (he ran a 20 point something, couldn't tell you the exact number): I always get really good form coaching from him, too, causing me to observe that I don't know how it is that just a few words called across from the other side of the track can create such great improvement!

Anyway, it was pretty much a killer workout for someone who hasn't been sprinting at all, and I was pleased I was able to hang on to the end. Ran the first set too fast, but settled in for the final set on a pace I could manage and descended the last couple. Legs will be very sore over next few days, I am guessing...

4 x 200m (1 min. rest) (fastest was :53, but I certainly couldn't hold that right now!)
4 min. rest
6 x 200m (1 min. rest)
4 min. rest
8 x 200m (1 min. rest) (:58s and :59s, with final one at :57)

#10 of 30

#9 of 30

2011-12-11T15:30:00.001-05:00

Very nice run with Liz along the river - just down to the boat basin and back, 40 mins. total. Wintry but gorgeous day, very still: though cold enough that going to brunch afterwards in sweaty lightweight running clothes has left me much in need of a hot shower!

#8 of 30

2011-12-10T13:39:00.001-05:00

Late getting up, late getting out of the house, and as I neared the gym, I had the horrible realization that I hadn't packed my cycling shoes! But the teacher is good-natured and didn't seem irked that I was ten minutes late, and sneakers are OK too. Double spin is a good workout - unfortunately this teacher I like is back only in the 11am slot next week, so I think I'll just do 11am next Saturday and then either run or go to yoga immediately following.

1:40 spin

#7 of 30

2011-12-09T16:22:00.001-05:00

I feel a bit sheepish that I only ran for 30 minutes, but am taking approach this month that if I am feeling fatigued and 30 seems desirable, then 30 it is. I was later getting out the door than I should have been given early sunset at this time of year, and also I was detained just a few minutes into my run by the most amazing sight - a large hawk (I am pretty certain it was a red-tailed hawk) devouring a substantial piece of prey, probably a pigeon! It was in the upper branches of one of the trees in the lower-elevation bit of Riverside Park, so that from the path along the edge of the park (which is substantially higher than the park itself) you were only about 20 feet away from the sight itself. Mighty, majestic, violent!

30 minutes run (easy zone 2)

#6 of 30

2011-12-08T22:48:00.001-05:00

Vinyasa yoga at Chelsea Piers - same teacher/class as Tuesday, very good.

1.25hr yoga

Run!

2011-12-08T11:37:00.001-05:00

Just got back from a run that made me ridiculously happy: it was nothing special from an athletic standpoint, but after three days (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday) of fog and rain and unseasonable warmth and excessively hard work, the temperature dropped overnight: I am over the worst hump of my work week and it is the most beautiful running weather, 40 degrees and as clear and sunny and bright as you could possibly wish for. Ran down to the boat basin and back, no Garmin as the strap for the heartrate monitor has left a spot of chafing and I want to let it clear up. Beautiful!

(I was thwarted in my desire to work out yesterday - I packed up run gear so that I could go straight from office to gym to Lower East Side dinner meet-up, but didn't realize until I was on the subway platform that I didn't have my inhaler with me. As I was intending to go to the run intervals class, and as run intervals are about the most wheeze-inducing thing the asthmatic person could possibly do, it was clear that I'd better just skip it - it got me early rather than late to dinner, which was probably better in any case. Tendency to try and squeeze too many things into the day!)

I should be able to go to yoga later, though, in spite of another dinner meet-up obligation afterwards...

40 mins. (zone 2)

#5 of 30

#4 of 30

2011-12-06T21:31:00.001-05:00

Like Tristram Shandy, I am getting ever further behind myself! Monday was hopeless, my schedule this semester leaves me pretty much totally wiped out at the end of the day - it was simply not possible to get back out the door, even for local yoga. But I did get down to Chelsea Piers this evening for a very good yoga class (though I gather the teacher is leaving soon, alas), and then worked in the cafe afterwards for an hour and a half. I think I have to call it a night as far as work goes, I am too tired now for the one important job I still need to do and I will just have to fit it into the window between 12 and 4 tomorrow - I hate leaving something important quite so last-minute, but it should only take about two hours and that is how it will have to be...

1.25hr vinyasa yoga (puddles of sweat!)

Sunday run!

2011-12-04T12:56:00.001-05:00

Beautiful run with Liz in Central Park. It was surprisingly warm and sunny (NYT site now says 53, but I would have guessed high 50s - I took off jacket and gloves and ran in short sleeves!). We only did 55 minutes, not the full hour/full loop, as there are better breakfast options if we leave the park at 72nd than if we run all the way down to 59th where we started, and at my behest we power-walked Harlem Hill rather than running it (more efficient use of energy!), but it was a highly satisfactory run.

55 mins., 5-and-a-bit miles

(Oh, that's #3 of 30...)

December workout #2/30

2011-12-03T13:31:00.001-05:00

I could NOT get out of bed this morning - snoozed the alarm for an hour and a half, which is foolish - but I did get up in time to get things together to go downtown for the 11am spin class at Chelsea Piers. Beautiful sunny day, mid 40s, and I probably could have ridden my bike down, but I didn't want to risk any frazzle; and in fact I have purchased a 30-day metrocard, unlimited use (usually I get a per-trip card, but this is an incentive to get down there for early evening classes without thinking about per-trip cost). I forgot how relaxing I find the walk from the subway and the gym itself - the spin studio is on the second floor and has floor-to-ceiling glass looking out onto barges coming to and fro on the Hudson, it is very pleasant to be spinning (as it were) on the water. It is the teacher I particularly like: the workout is built around long climbs, and there is a soothing lack of chatter and noise (as opposed to certain other classes that offer a good workout but grate on my nerves!). Feeling much better now that I have had a quiet evening at home and the prospect of a day or two to myself.

1hr spin, including quite a bit of zone 4 time

December workout #1/30

2011-12-02T16:28:00.001-05:00

It was very hard to get myself out the door, as I am basically still in condition of deathly fatigue from travels and large amounts of human contact (but I don't have to see anybody now till Monday, which will be highly beneficial!); but it was a beautiful afternoon, and I told myself I only had to run for 30 minutes, and that was exactly what I did.

I am in a Facebook group that is aiming for 30 mins. cardio workout every day in December, for a sort of "30 in 30" approach - I have regrettably missed day #1, but better start late than never...

The next two weeks are basically insanely busy, so I don't want to set any unreasonable workout goals, but I think I am adding a couple other commitments to the 30 in 30. The first is that I will go to the Monday and Wednesday evening running classes at Chelsea Piers for the next 5 weeks unless I actually have a schedule conflict (will try and avoid such, but it is not always possible); I really like the teacher, and it's a fun way of having some higher-intensity intervals with external prompting to work hard. And once school obligations start winding down as of Dec. 16, I will also add back in as much yoga as I can (it's possible that I'll hit a few classes before that, but I will have to see how it goes) - I find it highly beneficial.

.5hr run

Hotel treadmill!

2011-11-29T09:07:00.001-05:00

Well, Thanksgiving was a bust as far as exercise goes - I got home on Sunday evening so tired I could have cried, and yesterday was a day of insane frazzle as I had to teach my two classes and then hustle to the airport to fly to Boston, where I am giving a lecture today (a lecture that I got up at 6am yesterday to write, having not been able to fit it in during complex Thanksgiving travels).

Didn't get up early enough this morning to do an hour, but just had a very nice half-hour of treadmill intervals - I feel much better. Today's fairly busy, and tomorrow I've got plans to see a few friends in Cambridge before going to the airport in the late afternoon to fly home, but I should be able to do another workout of some sort in the fitness center here tomorrow morning - better than nothing!

.5hr treadmill: 10min warmup, then 4 x (3min hard, 2min easy)

Turkey Trot!

2011-11-24T10:28:00.001-05:00

There is no actual turkey to trot after, of course, but it is a very nice little event in Fairmount Park in Philadelphia. Five miles (a two-loop course), very pretty area (this will give the flavor of the location). Had hoped to run sub-10-minute miles, but really it was not meant to be: finished in more like 52:00, about 10:30 pace, but felt strong at the end and passed 10-15 people in the last five minutes (with a strong burst of asthmatic wheezing in accompaniment!).

Happy Thanksgiving!

5mi. Turkey Trot (52:00)

Rainy run!

2011-11-22T21:39:00.001-05:00

A very nice one this afternoon - have to keep on getting out there for a mid-afternoon run like that, it works well with my schedule and it is so enjoyable. Will run a 5-mile Turkey Trot on Thursday and an hour regular morning run on Saturday, that will probably be about it for me for exercise during Thanksgiving travels - it is a complex holiday, with multiple stops on the itinerary!

1hr run (c. 5.5mi.)

Beautiful run

2011-11-19T16:09:00.001-05:00

It's been a bad week for exercise, and this coming week won't be much better, but I did get out just now for an absolutely beautiful one-hour run: gorgeous running weather, sixty and sunny, with that fall crispness in the air. Feet still slightly stiff and sore, as they seem to have been recently, but I had a pleasant surprise: two weeks of little running and much yoga seem to have returned my lower calf muscles more or less to normal, I didn't have to stop and stretch at all - it's been many months since I could say the same.

1hr run (zone 2), c. 5.5mi.

In which hot yoga was very hot

2011-11-16T12:25:00.001-05:00

Went to Bikram yoga again today with C. Had imagined that 5 x warm yoga last week would prepare me for hot yoga today - I was quite wrong! Light rain in NYC, which means 100% humidity, and it really was overwhelmingly hot in there (I think the teacher opened the window more times last time because she knew it was my first Bikram class). I am guessing you would have to go 3-4 times a week to be really acclimated - I might do a month sometime where I go every day and really get used to it, but I think I will do better in the meantime with regular-temperature yoga at 105th St. (walking distance) or Chelsea Piers (included with my gym membership)...

1.5hr hot yoga

Postscript

2011-11-13T15:36:00.001-05:00

Garmin is found! That is good - it was tucked into an unusual compartment, I guess I was just frazzled before when I looked...

Spin!

2011-11-13T14:59:00.001-05:00

Actually the class itself was fairly dreadful: my bike fitness is negligible right now and also and more immediately to the point that class is just WAY TOO LOUD FOR ME! Had a nice ride down, beautiful day - ride back was horrible due to TOO MANY PEOPLE being out there, the weather is too nice! Little kids on bikes and scooters dangerously shooting across the path, tourists with no helmets riding three abreast (i.e. one person riding in the wrong direction in the left-hand lane), etc. etc. IT IS A HORROR!

Also, I think I left my Garmin at the gym. At any rate, I can't find it in my backpack. Arghhhh! I called just now, and front desk manager has looked and failed to find it in the locker room but will put it on the email to managers - I'll check back in lost and found in another day or two if I don't hear anything. Slightly frazzled due to fatigue (got home around 10:30 last night, didn't sleep at all well on Friday or Saturday) and need to buckle down and do the rest of my work for tomorrow.

The really good thing, though, besides the mere fact of exercise, was catching up with Lauren, who is back in town for the weekend from Atlanta. Good to see her!

1hr spin
10 miles bike

Yoga!

2011-11-12T10:01:00.001-05:00

This class might be the best yet - very demanding athletically, but also very precise in terms of adjustments to postures etc. Surrounded by a huge puddle of sweat at the end of class...

1.25hr yoga

Warm run!

2011-11-11T08:11:00.001-05:00

It was good - I still have a bit of congestion, but fortunately my lungs never got involved in this minor ailment.

40min slow warm run

Yoga!

2011-11-10T15:23:00.001-05:00

Yoga is addictive, I couldn't stay away! (Really I was finishing up a big work thing in the morning and couldn't detach from the computer to go to the gym.) It is a class that is specific for marathon preparation: I was afraid I would feel like I was there under false pretences, but in fact nobody else seemed to be doing the marathon either. Less demanding in terms of strength and balance than the other classes I've done there this week, but very useful indeed in terms of stretching hamstrings, quads, psoas, IT band, etc.

1hr yoga

Yoga!

2011-11-09T10:21:00.000-05:00

OK, that was good - I feel much better than I did beforehand! (Slept very badly - too much work...) Legs and back muscles both seemed quite fatigued, so I think tomorrow is a day off from yoga - maybe I will go to the core strength class at the gym instead.

1hr yoga

Yoga!

2011-11-08T15:27:00.003-05:00

Hmmm, that was beneficial: the flow class was a little less intense than the "power" class, and only 60 minutes instead of 90, but still very good. I have a slight sinus infection/head cold, I am going to wait another couple days before I do any cardio...

1hr yoga

Yoga!

2011-11-07T12:49:00.001-05:00

My only real exercise plan for the week is to go to a yoga class every day - there's a good yoga studio nearby that I hadn't yet made it into, so I got the week-long introductory rate and will get in there for a morning class in upcoming days also. (Will probably do some other stuff also, but that's the main target.)

1.5hr yoga

Triathlon!

2011-11-06T13:08:00.003-05:00

The sport of triathlon just puts me in a good mood. Being currently overweight and undertrained, my only goal was to finish - I had checked last year's times and was fairly sure I would be the last finisher, and my guess was correct (a lot of the less fit participants do the sprint rather than the Olympic distance or race as a team).

The course volunteers were fantastic - they really make even the slowest finishers feel very well taken care of. Bike course really well marshaled, including lots of police on motorcycles - it felt extremely safe and well organized. Thanks to volunteers for their time and efforts!

Don't have my exact time, but something like 3:40 total (1500m swim/40K bike/10K run) - I have no heat acclimation, it's pretty darn hot out there but mercifully it was not as humid as it might have been. (Currently it's 84F with relative humidity of 61%.) Fun!

Swim: around 40min
Bike: 1:34:49 (15.7mph, avg HR 146, max HR 156)
Run: 1:19:35 (4.7mph, avg HR 157, max HR 169)

c. 3:40 total

Nice bike!

2011-11-03T11:26:00.000-04:00

Hmmm, that was one of the nicest bike rides I've had all year. Will strive to get out more now the weather's cooler - the west side path is intolerably crowded at the really balmy times of year, much more tolerable once you hit November! Strong headwind going down, and there are quite a few spots where you need to slow or stop for pedestrians, thus slow speed...

(Rode down to Chambers St. and back; with a little bit more time, which I didn't have today, I can add on another 7 miles or so by riding up all the way to the Little Red Lighthouse and then turning south and heading home.)

52F and sunny - perfect cycling weather!

13.98mi., 1:03:26, avg speed 13.2mph, avg HR 135, max HR 144

Hot yoga!

2011-11-02T13:41:00.001-04:00

I went with C. to the studio he likes - I was full of trepidation, as though I have done quite a bit of most other kinds of yoga, I have never done Bikram before, and I am not someone who thrives in heat! It wasn't as overwhelming as I feared, though it must be said that is extremely (at times verging on intolerably) hot. Felt good afterwards, though, with a smoothie in hand and a seat on a Central Park bench on a sunny cool day...

1.5hr yoga

Short run

2011-11-01T17:33:00.004-04:00

I wanted to do an hour (not very happy about not having exercised Saturday, Sunday or Monday!), but I had an unpleasant surprise when a cyclist came down very hard off his bike just ahead of me on the path - he ran into one of the posts/bollards that divide various segments of the bike path.

I stayed with him and his partner while another cyclist called 911 and went to try and show ambulance people where they could get into the park - it was probably almost half an hour later by the time she came back and said they were near but not yet here. By that time the fellow had re-oriented himself and it was clear that they would be OK to make their way home in a cab: it is almost always more sensible to schedule an MRI or other relevant scans for the next morning rather than waiting around for many hours in the emergency room! And I am pretty certain he will be fine (the foam inside his helmet was split, but not the hard shell, and though he was scraped up quite a bit it didn't seem that he'd have more than bruises), but I remain fairly rattled - my cycling nerves are fragile at the best of times!

Anyway, I just turned and headed home at that point - my lungs felt very wheezy and I'd been out longer than I'd anticipated in any case. Some days the longer run just isn't meant to be!

(Gorgeous day, though - sunny and calm and in the mid-50s.)

Ride safe out there!

38:27, 3.4mi., 11:10 pace

Yoga

2011-10-28T17:16:00.003-04:00

Went to the local studio for what was probably the first time since I got my Chelsea Piers membership. It was a good class - strenuous and yet relaxing. My legs told me I had already done boot camp...

1.5hr yoga

Final Beast

2011-10-28T08:20:00.001-04:00

Great class - it seemed to pass by in a flash...

1:15 boot camp

A minor complaint

2011-10-27T14:38:00.001-04:00

I was hoping to run today, but my left hamstring is slightly sore (not the top part, more like the round part a few inches above the knee). I must have overdone it yesterday, that is not surprising. Will take today off so as to allow for a bit of rest before the final BEAST class tomorrow morning...

Spin-swim!

2011-10-26T13:48:00.001-04:00

Showered (those Chelsea Piers showers are so great!), breakfasted and did some work in the cafe, then had an excellent hour-long spin workout and a short swim to follow. Yesterday I was so shatteringly tired I was incapable of doing any exercise at all, but hopefully I can do quite a bit over the next few days: I'm thinking I'll run 6 tomorrow, swim after the Beast is done on Friday and then do double spin Saturday morning? Sunday I am going to Philadelphia for my sister-in-law and her twin's 40th birthday party, so that will be a day 'off'...

15 mins. warmup
4 x 5 mins. gear 14, cadence 80, 2 mins. rest
4 x 2 mins. standing gear 16, 1 min. rest
cooldown

1:00:02, av HR 132, max HR 149

1000 yards swim as 5 x 200 with evens free, odds IM (fly drill)

Beast week 8 class 2

2011-10-26T08:48:00.001-04:00

Too early! A good class, though...

1:15 boot camp

Beast week 8 class 1

2011-10-24T09:28:00.000-04:00

It was good, but I am looking at the clock to see if there's any chance I can catch half an hour's nap before I teach at 11 - I feel extraordinarily under-slept! This is the final week of this cycle of the class - I've gained a lot of fitness, and it's an enjoyable class too, but it is too early in the morning, it will be a great relief when it's over...

1:15 boot camp

Bike-spin-swim!

2011-10-23T18:46:00.003-04:00

Arghhh, I can't say how it's crept on me except that I've really been very busy - but I am doing a triathlon in two weeks! What I do at this short distance out probably doesn't make a huge amount of difference fitness-wise, but I will have as many 1hr. spins and short swims as I can in the next ten days, for mental preparedness at least. My only strategy (it's the olympic-distance race in Cayman - first time I've done it, usually it's over US Thanksgiving weekend when neither Brent nor I is there): swim very very easy and if at all possible on someone else's feet, bike in zone 3 because the run will be horrible anyway due to lack of heat acclimation, then do some mix of run-walk and keep covering ground as fast as is reasonable once I get to the run. As far as heat acclimation goes, I might try for a few sauna or steam room sessions at Chelsea Piers this week, but I didn't have time today and I won't tomorrow either, so that may be a bit impractical...

Horrible ride down - it was such a beautiful day, the path was way too crowded, and when I don't ride my bike for a week it gives the anxiety time to build up! However I have finally pumped my front tire up properly - not sure if it was problem with valve or with pump itself, but it takes a bit of fiddling. A relief to be going 'normal' speeds again.

Had a great workout once I was actually at the gym - I did an hour spin along lines that I took from the Spinervals site the other day:

10 mins. warmup with 3 x 30 sec. hard, 30 sec. easy
1 min. soft-pedal
8 x 20 sec. high cadence (100-120), 20 sec. easy
1 min. soft-pedal
4 x 7 min. aerobic temp (cadence 80-90rpm, zone 2-3)
1 min. soft-pedal
6 x 20 sec. high cadence (110-130), 20 sec. easy
cool down

1:00, avg HR 135, max HR 152 - Garmin Connect seems to have updated itself in a way that means I no longer know how to see segments in different HR zones...

Then I just swam 1000 yards fairly easy: 4 x 100 free, 50 stroke (breast, back, free, fly drill), then 4 x 100 as odds free, evens IM

And had a 'popeye' smoothie (pineapple, mango, banana, spinach and water) and 2 HB eggs at the cafe, then rode my bike home - it was gorgeous, 1-2 slightly congested spots but it had cooled down and was close to dusk and it really was a lovely one...

10 miles bike in the world
1hr spin
1000 yards swim

Saturday run

2011-10-22T17:20:00.000-04:00

Beautiful day for it: sunny, clear, high fifties. I was feeling lazy but am very glad I got out (again with the injunction that I only had to do 30 minutes - but really 40 is what makes sense, there is a natural beautiful turnaround at the 79th St. Boat Basin, where I stop and stretch my calves and contemplate watercraft and ducks).

40:14, 3.82mi., 10:32/mi.

Beast week 7 class 2

2011-10-21T09:14:00.001-04:00

Excellent class - there were only three of us, it was like a small-group training session. It is very noticeable how much my fitness has improved over these seven weeks - I feel like I am now in a position to work really hard and consistently through the whole of class (it helped that today we were doing more what I think of as strength stuff and less of the things that require agility and flexibility at the same time as cardiovascular fitness and strength - my bete noir is these things we do like the "low bear crawl" where you are basically putting strain on about four different systems at once - I like it better when I can concentrate on just two or at most three different aspects!).

1:15 boot camp

Beast week 7 class 1

2011-10-19T09:42:00.001-04:00

Very good class, too - the first half felt just plain arduous, but the second half became enjoyable.

Terribly rainy and windy morning - I got drenched on my way to the subway (no way I was riding my bike in that!). I'm experimenting with transportation - I think I can take the subway as opposed to a taxi without getting up any earlier, so long as I get myself really expeditiously out of the house and use the near-mile trip from subway at other end to Chelsea Piers for my warm-up run. Feet went ankle-deep in an unavoidable puddle, soaked, but otherwise it worked very well - my cycling backpack, which is what I always use to take stuff to the gym, is surprisingly comfortable for running in (I mean, I don't know that I'd take it on a two-hour run, but for ten minutes of warm-up jog, it's very comfortable).

1:15 boot camp

Short afternoon run

2011-10-18T17:24:00.002-04:00

I am going to make it a priority for the next few months to have more short runs - I seem to have done terribly over the last six weeks in getting out at all, and I think I need to make the mental hurdle easier by pulling the notional time back to 30-40 mins. unless I am feeling inspired. I had to skip boot camp yesterday - I woke up very thoroughly around 3:30, shatteringly tired but unable to go back to sleep, and around 5:30 I turned the alarm off and stayed in bed. (I had a long day of too many complex things ahead of me, that was clearly the problem!) However it is possible that skipping boot camp yesterday is related to the fact that today's the first Tuesday afternoon this whole semester (I think) that I've actually been able to get out the door for a run...

This week and next week and then this cycle of the Beast class is over - I really like it, but it's terrible for me to have to get up so early those days, so I won't do the next cycle.

39:31, 3.56mi., 11:06/mi. (Garmin was giving wildly inaccurate HR numbers, but let's call it easy zone 2)

Beast week 6 class 3

2011-10-15T10:59:00.001-04:00

Rode my bike down - it is a most beautiful fall day! - and did the best I could with a challenging BEAST. There were only four of us in class today, which puts one under more of a spotlight than is strictly speaking desirable! I had intended to go to at least one and possibly double spin class subsequently, but I could tell I'd used up most of my vim for the morning, and I also have a lot of work to do today, so instead I rode home (that path and park are too crowded when weather is good!) and will try and get some midday work hours in before heading out to meet my dad at 4:30 for early dinner and a show.

Happy day at Chelsea Piers

2011-10-14T18:04:00.001-04:00

Triathlete Lauren is back in town for the weekend, and she and Loren and I all met up at Chelsea Piers to go to the midday block of classes: abs, body sculpt and spinning. Sushi and other fish-related products for lunch afterwards at Chelsea Market - it was excellent.

1:30 strength
:40 spin

Yoga

2011-10-12T12:05:00.001-04:00

+1hr gentle yoga

(Now I am going to take a short nap - slept much too little and too lightly!)

Beast week 6 class 2

2011-10-12T08:42:00.001-04:00

A particularly good one. Sandbox- strenuous...

1:15 boot camp

Beast week 6 class 1

2011-10-10T09:10:00.001-04:00

Almost didn't make it down there - just so tired! I was afraid I was going to burst into tears as I rode my bike down, deep levels of fatigue and I don't like riding in the dark (obviously I should start wearing my glasses - path is very poorly lit, I don't have good visibility!). However a lap or two around the track for warmup put me in a better frame of mind, and it was a good class - I'm glad I went. Ride home very nice, beautiful weather, only both of my tires seemed a bit squishy - I was going very slowly....

10 miles bike
1:15 boot camp

Ottawa run interlude

2011-10-07T10:55:00.001-04:00

Wednesday and Thursday were incredibly demanding in terms of family responsibilities (yesterday early evening I thought I was about to explode from stress!), and so I acted on my earlier-in-the-week intuition that I would be wise to claim one morning for myself, and that this should be Friday. I waited for 9am so that I could do half an hour or so of business on behalf of B.'s parents (mostly setting up various doctor's appointments, ordering the hearing aid that B.'s dad was fitted for at yesterday's appointment, etc.), then kitted myself out in running gear, walked over to the canal and had 20 minutes out and back. It is the most beautiful fall weather here; I was running very slowly (my feet/calf muscles are stiff and sore, and I'm not in fast shape), but it was extremely good for mental health Now a quick shower & an expedition to find the bus that will take me out to B.'s parents' place for lunch...

41:18, 3.68mi., 11:13/mi., easy zone 2

Beast week 5 class 1 and only

2011-10-03T09:48:00.001-04:00

It's really dark riding down there! Glad of fall temperatures, though: finally...

I feel that my fitness is definitely improving - I did an honest-to-god proper "low bear crawl" the other day for instance, without having to stand up to stretch out my legs halfway through...

Not looking forward to traveling this week, but will bring running stuff and good intentions, and not have too much self-reproach if it just doesn't happen.

1:15 boot camp, 10 miles bike

Run

2011-10-02T19:05:00.001-04:00

I'm not very happy about how little I ran in September, but the weather's finally turned cooler and I am hoping this will be beneficial. Really I shouldn't be so self-critical: I had a very busy month at work, and I did two longish races (Survival of the Shawangunks, 5+ hrs, and Little Red Lighthouse 10K swim, close to 3 hrs) that necessitated downtime. The Beast morning boot camp was my main exercise commitment (3 x week), and I did pretty well with attendance there, but it has cost me in terms of building up any regular training week of triathlon-type stuff.

Anyway, I had a good run this afternoon with Liz. Calf muscles very stiff for first half hour or so, I need to stretch them more faithfully, and I'm not saying I wasn't glad when we were finished, but it was certainly better than the last one we had, and if I run so infrequently, I can't expect to be either quick or really comfortable! Saw another running friend of mine earlier for brunch, and she says she has been having a good time recently running five times per week for only 25-30 mins. at a time (she has a demanding schedule at home and work): I resolved to take a page out of her book and make sure to get out just for 30 mins. even if I don't have vim for longer. I'm in Ottawa Tues.-Sun. this week and don't have great confidence that I'm going to get much exercise if any (I might take Friday morning 'off' from responsibilities there and go for a run, though), but once I'm back, I'm determined to put more running back onto my weekly schedule.

It started pouring halfway through our run this evening, but cooler temperatures are such a boon, I am definitely not going to complain about a little rain!

Central Park lower loop (we had an easy consensus as we reached 102nd St. that really we did not need to go round the upper loop and trudge up Harlem Hill!)

5.16mi.
55:56 (avg pace 10:50)
avg HR 144, max HR 162

Beast

2011-10-01T10:33:00.001-04:00

I had intended to do an hour of spin after, but though my stomach's fine today, I didn't eat right/enough yesterday for super-long workout.

5mi. bike, 1mi. warmup, 1hr. boot camp

Grumpiness

2011-09-30T17:07:00.001-04:00

Exercise plans stymied today by a stomach-ache - in retrospect, my stomach hasn't been quite right for a couple days, only definitely worse over last night and today. Nothing dramatic, but can't really do much other than lie down and read or nap! It is especially grumpiness-inducing because the weather finally changed from horrible warm humid rainy overcast to seasonally appropriate clear beautiful late-September climate. Will hope to feel better tomorrow.

Beast/yoga

2011-09-28T10:50:00.001-04:00

1hr boot camp, shower and quick breakfast with an aspirational triathlete looking for advice, 1hr gentle yoga. I think I will hang out in the cafe at Chelsea Piers now for a bit- I have to read 2 books, and it will go more quickly if I am not near my real computer with internet (internet on phone is too fiddly to do for long).

Beast week 4 class 1

2011-09-26T08:58:00.000-04:00

It was very good, too: I slept little and poorly (I have a long demanding day ahead), but the class started with more stretching than usual and I felt very good by the end of it. It was disgustingly humid as I rode downtown around 6:15, but in fact by the time I was riding home it had cleared up significantly: seems like it might have actually turned into a nice day! There were a large number of trucks parked along Riverside Drive early, which is anomalous, and as I rode back through the top bit of the park I saw that they are filming something there today, not sure what...

1:15 boot camp
10 miles bike

Race of the Incredible Moving Buoys!

2011-09-24T12:58:00.001-04:00

Just a quick note to say that I distinctly enjoyed this morning's Little Red Lighthouse swim. I was feeling mournful last night and this morning as I thought about the bittersweet memory of the other time I did this race. Everything is so different now: I still just really miss Wendy (whose race report from the 2009 event was here - my cat Blackie, in that picture, died in May 2010, and Wendy died in June - with further roundup here), that is the long and the short of it. But I saw quite a few people I knew once I got there, and it was fun riding on a boat from 125th St. (the check-in point, literally ten minutes' walk from my apartment - truly a race on home turf!) up to the start four miles further upriver from the George Washington Bridge. Which, as I rode under it on the ferry, I felt very grateful I was not riding over on a bicycle!

It was a quite enjoyable swim. The water temperature felt perfect (I think it was around 68F - it's cold when your face first goes in, but very good in terms of keeping body temperature regulated during exercise), and the air is warmer than the other time I did it. There was a ton of chop in the second half, but I always think it's good practice to get these conditions in a low-stakes race so that one isn't fazed when they happen sometime 'important.'

The only really bad thing was the moving buoy situation! I swear, I swam two and a half times to New Jersey, it was the most zigzaggy inefficient open-water swim I have ever done - we were supposed to keep buoys on the left, but they were shooting across the river and also upriver towards us, I was perplexed around mile 2.5 that the buoy I was sighting on seemed to be aligned with the NJ rather than the NY side of the bridge but figured I had just misunderstood the initial course description - had to make this mistake several more times before it became truly clear that the right thing to do was to ignore the buoys and just swim as one thought proper!

(Funny exchange with kayaker, just before the bridge: JMD, treading water, slightly irked and distinctly confused: "But is it really the case that we should swim with left shoulder to the buoy?" [gesturing with head towards buoy that is clearly much further on the NJ rather than NY side, and only about 25 yards ahead, which would necessitate probably an extra 50 yards of swimming or more to get to] Kayaker: "Yes, that's right, swim with your left shoulder towards the buoy!" And we turn to look at it, and just in that brief bit of time during our conversational exchange it has actually shot upriver past me and is now 25 yards behind me!)

Don't have official time yet, but it was close to three hours - unlike last year, where everyone had very fast times, there was relatively little tidal assist for a good chunk of the race.

10K swim

BEAST, short swim

2011-09-23T11:01:00.000-04:00

I had a work thing yesterday evening and wasn't sure I'd really be up for the Beast this morning, but I'm going to miss a couple the week after next, so really it was a priority to make it happen. I do feel unpleasantly tired now (nearly burst into tears in the lobby when the freight elevator bypassed me without stopping - it is too warm and humid, and also clearly I need to eat something additional!), but it was worthwhile. Rode my bike down in what was mostly pitch darkness, not crazy about that but it is so much the most convenient way to get there, and most of the ride's on a bike path; ran my mile warmup; had a strenuous hour of BEAST; then had just a short swim, 600 yards, as I have not swum all week and I am scheduled to do a very long one tomorrow! Had thought of going to the 9:30 "gentle yoga" class again, but really it was more important to write comments on a few more of my student assignments: one of the small things I can do to avoid excess stress is not end up having to mark them all in an insane late-night-early-morning marathon session on the same day that I have my heavy teaching load!

10 miles bike
1:15 boot camp
600 yards swim (100 free, 50 stroke x 4)

BEAST, bike, yoga

2011-09-21T11:25:00.000-04:00

I worked very hard (work work, not exercise work) on Monday and Tuesday, to point of complete exhaustion - could not even contemplate prospect of a swim workout yesterday evening! Have indulged myself this morning, though, with much exercise, and am going to try and do some other relaxing things today also. I have a huge amount of work to get done for Monday, so I need to start making some headway with that, but not at cost of stress explosion...

1.25hr boot camp
1hr gentle yoga
10 miles bike

The yoga class meets at 9:30 and is mostly made up of older people, it's definitely less athletically strenuous than some of the other ones there, but I suspect this is more to the point right now - I haven't been doing yoga regularly for a long time, and I really miss it, I find it beneficial...

BEAST week 3 class 1

2011-09-19T09:03:00.002-04:00

I took yesterday off, as my legs felt completely chewed up on Saturday afternoon during my 'easy' run with Liz: in retrospect, I didn't build in any time for recovery after the S.O.S. triathlon (this is always a conundrum with a race for which one hasn't really trained & which falls early in a get-back-into-shape cycle!). Definitely benefited from that today, though I think it was also an easier class than Friday's.

1:15 boot camp
10 miles bike

Run!

2011-09-17T19:06:00.003-04:00

Was supposed to meet up with Liz at Grand Army Plaza at 4:30 for an hour of easy running in Prospect Park, but the trains did not do right by me! Really I should have left more time, an hour is fine on a weekday but does not allow for weekend vicissitudes (the last straw was the 2 train running express in Brooklyn & requiring me to overshoot and switch to another train back). I will leave 90 minutes next time. Fortunately even though I was half an hour late, Liz was still waiting: neither of us was full of running vim, so we just did 40 minutes, but the park is a pleasantly bucolic sight on a September Saturday afternoon, with lots of barbecuers and picnickers and dogs and younguns...

40 mins. run (c. 3.7 miles, avg HR 151, max HR 160, 10:50 pace)