Monday, July 28, 2008

Back on Track

July 22
Biked and did hillwork for 1/2 hour


July 23

Family walk 45 minutes.


July 25

Peter was out of town - busy night with kids and diapers after work. Got on the treadmill @ 11pm for a 30 minute run. You do what you have to do.

July 26-27
Workout? Not so much. A weekend off.

July 28
Did the mini mini mini duatholon @ work. Ran 20 minutes Biked 15 minutes Ran 10. Again - you do what you can in a lunch hour. Hoping to go on another bike ride after the kids go down and Peter gets back from an oil change. Our friends Don & Jenny gave me a refector light for my bike that no car could miss in the dark.
Told our spin instructor at work that I am committed to the noon spin class Tuesday & Thursday and I'm sticking to it. I struggle if I work through lunch and don't work out. It's counterproductive not to take a lunch hour really.

Saturday, July 19, 2008

A Body In Motion Remains in Motion

A Body at Rest Remains at Rest....isn't that the truth?


Thursday & Friday July 17-18
I missed 2 days of "real" read: sweat enducing/cardio workouts due to various reasons. I did manage to do 2 miles Thursday & Friday of walking downtown and back each lunch hour. Plus situps at night.



Saturday July 19
I packed the kids up for a run around Normandale Lake where the event is taking place. As we drove raindrops started hitting the windshield. Fine for me - but I'm not taking the kids out for a run in the rain. Plan B? Target. Grabbed some things I needed and by the time I was done the sun was out. Went back to Normandale Lake and pushed the kids. Surprisingly subtle hills for a lake run. 2 miles 20 minutes with a few stops.

Sunday July 20
Post 40th birthday party - no morning workout no way. The night was another outing to First Ave to see the English Beat. 2 hours of some serious dance cardio. Again - does that count? Not on the duathlon training regimen.

Monday July 21
Turned 40. Spent the day strolling around the MN Zoo. Had to be some miles we walked. Majority of my presents consisted of bike gear. In the evening Peter sent me out. I did about 45 minutes of riding and tried out some of the route for the Iron Girl. Brutal hills, that's all I have to say.

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Monday, July 14

Balance. It's a delicate one trying to prioritize family, work, house maintainance and manage to squeeze in the workout.

Peter was a peach and kicked me out the door for a post dinner bike ride while he gave the kids a bath. He had been with the kids solo all weekend while I was out of town, so it was especially peachworthy.

But he also got in a 3 mile run with them earlier, so he had that momentum under his belt.

If we're doing this we have to support eachother and remember how good it feels to get the sweat in.

Watch Bikes With Daddy!

This morning Ben was up with the sun. (which is pretty early these summer morns.)

He's out of the crib and into the big boy bed, meaning free roam of his room. He was standing at the door blocked by the baby gate, peering into our room calling "Up up up!"

I needed to be up up up anyway.

We headed downstairs and he declared "I want to watch bikes with daddy!" (meaning the Tour de France which is on our TV pretty much constantly in the month of July, and probably the only reason we still have cable.) That was sweet incentive enough to get daddy out of bed. The Tour starts at 7 am, so he had time to make coffee and read too.


I didn't get up up up early enough to get out on an am. ride and get ready for work sooo...
My workout today consisted of a post bedtime run on the treadmill - 30 minutes.


Peter's was a hilly 5 miler with the 2 in the jogging stroller. He swears they help his training and his calves are getting bigger pushing their load up the inclines. Vivian fell asleep, and Ben kept cheering him on "ready set go!!"


When we put him to bed we asked him what some good things about today were. His answer? "Waffles, and watching bikes with daddy."


A good day indeed.

Sunday, July 13, 2008

Catching Up

Two out of town trips without computer access have gotten me behind on keeping up with the blog and keeping track.



Monday 7/7:
Drive to Illinois - only workout was the gas station stretch

Tuesday 7/08:

Ran 2.5 miles on my old high school cross country route. Thought back to the days when I was a gangly legged spider vein free freshman. My "#1 problem" has returned in full force. 2 kids will do that to a gal. Very embarassing, but motivated me to run faster. This issue doesn't happen on the treadmill only the pavement and started at about the mile mark. Pavement makes me pee. Note to self: invest in black shorts with really good wicking material. Oh, and kegels, kegels, kegels.



Wednesday 7/09:
40 minute bike ride - hillwork. I rode at dusk while Peter put the kids to bed.


Thursday 7/10:

45 minute stroller walk : back to being gun-shy about running outside. Kegel, kegel kegel.
We took a tour of the post storm neighborhood and dodged branches. We were serenaded by chainsaws and woodchippers.

Friday 7/11 :

Left work early today as the day care provider had no electricity - it was sultry hot. No refrigerator, no hot meals - they ordered take out. Took the kids off her hands early. Leaving town the next day - no workout unless going back and forth 4 times corner to corner pushing a 50+ lb cart at SuperTarget counts. (and I think it just might)....I'm sticking with it.


Saturday 7/12:

Up with the birds. 6 mile early morning bike ride before heading to Des Moines for girls weekend. College reunion for all of us turning 40.


Sunday 7/13: Nada.

Saturday, July 5, 2008

Accountability

Accountability: That is the main reason I'm maintaining this blog on top of my family life, full time job, and keeping up with my end on the other blog (dearest Cribsheet). I need to stay on top of my workouts and log them daily. If I know I have to report in - I'll stay on task.

So I'll catch up with my workout log. Also tracking Peter - just to figure out how we do the balance and trade off of both trying to fit in workouts in our few hours we have together. Kids come first always. We'll work around naptimes, dinner, and heat. Training in the summer adds that extra element. So far no fussiness with the outings. They love being outdoors.

Friday, July 4:
60 minute solo bike ride - maiden voyage on my new Marin hybrid felt great, exhilirating. Years since I've been out on a bike.
While I biked alone Peter took the kids for a run - also 1 hour.
Ben is our little motivator -Peter said he kept saying "Run Daddy Run, Go Daddy Go!"

Saturday, July 5:
I went on a 25 minute bike/hill work after dinner, Peter handled bathtime.
hills = brutal and there are a lot of them on the Iron Girl course.
Peter went on a solo bike ride/cross training - before dinner, he did about 12 miles in 30 minutes. Came back sweating and appreciative to go it alone.

Sunday, July 6:
Hot and humid. I took the kids out for a 40 minute run/walk in the morning. Tried to stay in the shade as much as possible. This is working better now that Vivian is letting us sleep through the night (2 nights in a row - knock on wood) Whoo hoo! It's been 8 looonnnngg months of sleep deprivation. The walk/run session ended with a stop at the playground for Ben. And a snooze in the shade for Vivi.


Now, off to Illinois tomorrow for 3 days. We are both planning on getting up early - Peter to take the dog for a run before she's in kennel land, and me to go on the treadmill before the kids wake up. We set our alarms! Also packing our gear to do a run whilst in Rockford and grandma watches the kids.


Trial Run

Just practicing uploading photos from my Picasa account . Nice & easy feature!

Here is Benjamin our (drill sargent, coach, motivator, eldest child) last fall. This was taken just days before Vivian was born. His last picture as an only child. We had just come home and he grabbed a pumpkin from my makeshift fall display in front. I snapped a shot just as he looked up, and it's one of my favorites.
Posted by Picasa

Introduction

My name is Kay. I'm a parent in training to Ben and Vivian. I am also in training for the Iron Girl duathalon in September. It is a women's event where you run 2 miles bike 22 miles and run 2 miles. I am a race rookie aside from a handful of 5K fun runs. It is my goal to finish this event in honor of my 40th birthday. I also want to get healthy and fit after being perpetually pregnant since 2005.

My husband Peter, is also a parent in training. In addition, he is training for the Twin Cities Marathon which takes place a few weeks after the Iron Girl. Peter is no stranger to marathons, but put 2 little ones in the mix and it adds extra challenges.


So, are we nuts? Two parents with two under three trying to fit in time to get fit? Perhaps. But we are enjoying the journey to our goal along with our kids in tow.


To quote our son Ben "Go Daddy Go!" "Go Mommy Go!"