Some Things You May Not Know About Me!

A) Four jobs I have had in my life:
1. Librarian
2. Insurance endorsements officer
3. Media assistant in Advertising Agency
4. Co-Manager for Apprenticeships Centre

B) Four movies I would watch over and over
1. Four Weddings and a Funeral
2. Bridget Jones Diary
3. Notting Hill
4. Under the Tuscan Sun

C) Four places I have lived
1. Dunedin, NZ
2. Wellington, NZ
3. West Kensington, London
4. Canberra, ACT

D) Four TV shows I love to watch:
1. House
2. Inspector Rex
3. NYPD
4. Cold Case

E) Four places I have been on holidays:
1. London, Southern Ireland, France, Italy
2. Denmark, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, Canary Islands
3. San Francisco, Los Angeles
4. Noosa

F) Websites visited daily:
1. Hotmail
2 Blogspot
3. Cool Running Site
4. Idealbodiesonline

G) Four of my favourite foods/drinks:
1. Chocolate
2. Coffee
3. Strawberries with Balsamic vinegar and unsw maple syrup
4. Bananas

H) Four places I would rather be right now:
1. In France with Mr B
2. Italy
3. Having a massage
4. In bed reading a good book

I) Four people I think will respond
1. Hilda
2. Aki
3. Susan
4. Tuggeranong Don

I took up CJ's challenge and responded accordingly. Now it's your turn! Today I'm home from work sick and the doctor says to stay home tomorrow too. So it was a compulsory rest day from running today and I had to miss speedygeoff's training group unfortunately. I also have some nasty antibiotics to take - hope all is ok for City to Surf - don't want last year's history to repeat itself when I had to be a reluctant spectator!

Mt Taylor Vets' Handicap

Distance: 6.8km
Time taken: 41.20mins
Handicap Group: 14
Place: 50th
Average pace per km: 6:05 (oh dear - now that really is slow!!)

I woke up a few times during the night coughing and when I struggled out of bed at 6.30am I seriously contemplated contacting CJ and saying I would give today's run a miss but after my rolled oats and banana (yes, I bought a banana and it was soooo good) I felt much better and at that stage the sky was blue and this convinced me that Mt Taylor was waiting and so were lots of friends I wanted to see. So on went the running gear and off I drove to collect CJ and head for the south side to join the vetrunners at our monthly handicap run.

Mt Taylor is called MOUNT Taylor for a reason. It's a very undulating course and some of those hills are very steep indeed. However, it's also very pretty and another of those off-road runs where the views and the surface is wonderful. I did find the run, although far shorter, almost harder in parts than yesterday simply because I kept coughing. I had to remember not to talk to people, just raise a hand because every time I opened my mouth I started coughing. However, the downhill parts of the run were great. I felt like I was flying in the last downhill stretch. This course used to be run in the opposite direction a few years ago and I found that much harder. This direction is really very pleasant and certainly scenic.

After the run and lots of catching up with people a few of us went to Babars for a great coffee and more chatting. I caught up with Barb who has just returned from a week in her native NZ. It was great to catch up and laugh over the different expressions we use even though our countries are so close. Being an ex-kiwi it's always fun to catch up with recent travellers.

It's been quite a busy weekend. This evening I went to the movies to see The Lake House. It was quite delightful.

I have stocked up on throat lozenges and vitamins but think that tomorrow (which is now today) I will sleep in and take a sicky from work. I need to work on shaking this cold so that I can bounce back properly.

Bush Capital Run

Distance: 16km
Time taken: 1hr 36mins
Average pace per km: 6mins
Calories burned: 889
Fastest km: 5:15

What an absolutely stunning day for the Bush Capital Runs. It was frosty and cold but the sky was a clear blue and the sun was shining brightly. There was a choice of distances and I entered the 16km run. I'm very glad I didn't decide on the 25km although it had crossed my mind a few times that I should. As it was I felt very fortunate that I even managed the 16km as my cold has developed into a real humdinger and I sound like a steam train when I breathe and have a very croaky voice! There were so many people out there who I knew and I managed to catch up with quite a few after the race - Aki, Tuggeranong Don, Flashduck, Vicky, speedygeoff and all the usual suspects. I was so impressed with FD selecting the 25km run and managing to complete it in spite of not feeling 100% healthy. She is truly an inspiration the way she bounces back.

The 16km run start was at 9am. I collected CJ who ran in the 25km and did a fantastic time finishing as 4th female only missing out on 3rd by a few seconds. I, on the other hand, ran rather slowly. For the first 8km I struggled with my breathing and every time I chatted to someone I started coughing so I concentrated instead on putting one foot in front of the other and trying to breathe! I was very stuffed up but I felt much better on the second half of the run. It was very hilly but being off-road the surface was lovely and it was a really pleasant run. I will definitely run this again next year and may even opt for the 25km with more training and no cold bugs hopefully! The fantastic thing about Canberra is that you can be in the city one minute and then a few kilometres away be in the the peace and quiet of the bush with only the sounds of the birds singing in the trees. Yes, there were lots of birds up there keeping us company and even a rider on a large white horse came trotting past. A couple of cyclists rode downhill quickly as we struggled upwards and it was so pretty out there. Some of the downhills were a bit uneven and rough but on the whole the surface was pretty good - just a little muddy in patches from our recent rainfall.

My time was slow and speedygeoff had to redirect me at the finish line as for some bizarre reason I completely lost the plot and veered off from the finish line but I only lost a couple of seconds I'm sure. I was very happy I did it feeling the way I did. I felt so sick last night that I did have serious doubts at one stage. Tomorrow the intention is to run the Vets' Handicap at Mt Taylor - could be another slow run but that's ok, it's all about the wonderful company and the great feeling at the end! That's what running is all about.

Is Spring Approaching?

Morning Run - 5.40am

It was a very foggy frosty start to the morning as I set off at 5.40am with my headlight showing the way and my music keeping me company. This morning my session was hill repeats. Now the very last thing I felt like doing was rolling out of bed and going out in that cold dark morning but I'm so glad I did it. It always feel so good to know you have achieved the session you had planned, especially after missing Monday's hill training.

Session - Hill Repeats - Hill just under 400m
Warm up run to start of hill - approx 1.5km
slow jog to top of hill and slow jog down (x 2)
fast jog to top of hill and slow jog down (x 2)
sprint to top of hill and slow jog down (x 2)
slow jog to top of hill and slow jog down (x2)
Cool down run home

Total distance: 8:11km
Calories burned: 509

After a very foggy start to the day by lunchtime the sky was blue and it was warm enough to walk outside with only a light jacket on. Maybe Spring is just around the corner. In the weekend I noticed a few magpies eyeing me up as I ran. Pretty soon they'll be building their nests and swooping me. They definitely have that meaningful look in their eyes!

Session after work - 5.30pm - speedygeoff's group - Dickson

Total distance: 8:05km
Calories burned: 495 (yes, definitely more gentle than this morning)

We did a large warm up loop of the full oval then a smaller loop of the oval. The oval was officially closed and as there was no lighting we decided to take to the cycle paths and go for a 5km run out around the suburbs. It made a very pleasant change to run and talk at the same time especially as too much exertion set me coughing. It was a lovely session with only a select few of us participating. It gave me an opportunity to chat with Marg and speedygeoff and it was fun. Am I ready for Saturday's run? I'm a bit unsure as this cough has held me back from running very much this week so hope I at least finish the run. I'm really looking forward to seeing everyone there.

Total distance for the day: 16:16km

Yoga Resumes

Tonight I returned to yoga after a couple of weeks' semester break. CJ is in the same class as me which is really cool. I haven't had a friend for company in these classes before. It makes it more fun! It was a good session with lots of excellent stretches and an extra long time in the shoulder stand. It's so good for my body to stretch like this. Unfortunately my cough and sore throat are not easing off but I'm still hanging in there!

The Saga of my Gym

Firstly thanks for the comments guys. I'm hanging in there! CJ had a few days off work this week and has moved into her newly renovated home (it's just beautiful). She met me for a coffee in the city at lunchtime today. It was great to relax and catch up. She has just finished her 12 week program and looks absolutely amazing. So I'm definitely hanging in there - less than five weeks to go and in the meantime I'll fight this sore throat and keep going if I can.

As I also met a few ex work colleagues for brekkie this morning and I have another early morning meeting tomorrow I did my gym session after work today. At that time of day the clientele is quite different from the early morning. The gym I attend has an average age of about 70 and is predominately male. There has been a radio in the gym for avery large number of years and in the mornings the venerable gentlemen like to listen to the BBC and classical music or news programs. Recently the radio decided to just stop and there was lots of discussion about how to replace it. The Board was approached and on Friday a new radio appeared to the accompaniment of loud cheering. It was immediately switched to their favourite station and the news! Tonight as some of the clientele were at least 30 years younger one guy decided to change to a commercial radio station. What courage! For the first time I can ever remember we actually had lively music playing to our workout and it was the best workout I had for ages - lol!!

Some of the gentlemen who attend the gym in the mornings have been going there for more than 20 years. They are all very friendly and all have their stories to tell. There is a small swimming pool there and often they wander through in their speedos and barefeet (I should add that there is a sign there saying "no barefeet" but these gentlemen are the backbone of the club and I don't think anyone will argue with them) to the change rooms. There is one man (he would only be about 50) who always wanders through after his swim, towel over one arm and book in his hand, who climbs on one of the bikes (in his speedos and bare feet) and spends the next 20mins or so gently cycling as he reads his book. He's never read a novel in his life - all his books are history or war sagas. In the many years that I have come in and out of that gym that same man has always just gently done his workout (never working up a sweat) and his rolls of fat have never diminished in the slightest! It is rather fun actually listening to their conversations. They always say 'hello', unlike most trendy gyms you attend and I know all their names and their golf handicaps!!

The "after work" crowd is different but it's still interesting and I did enjoy my workout this afternoon. It was a legs/arms session today and I felt quite comfortable for once.

Warm up on treadmill - 10 mins
Leg Press - 1 x 12, 1 x 15 (50kg); 1 x 15 (55kg)
DB Lunges - 1 x 15, 2 x 12 (20lb)
Seated Leg Curl - 1 x 15 (20lb), 2 x 12 (30lb) - yay, I finally increased the weight
DB Standing Calf Raise - 2 x 15 (20lb)
DB Biceps Curl - 12 x 8lb, 10 x 15lb, 8 x 17.6lb (and I actually increased this as well)
DB Triceps Kickback - 3 x 12 (10lb) - I've finally figured this one out
Stretches

Abs/Core
Back Extension - 2 x 15
Modified Plank - 2 x 60secs, 1 x 80secs
Bicycle Crunches - 3 x 15
Crunches - 3 x 15

I really felt good tonight although my cough has worsened now it's the evening and I can hear my daughter's "barking"cough in her bedroom. Tomorrow yoga resumes and CJ will be attending my class at the same time which will be great company.

Just another Manic Monday

Today was not an especially good start to the week. My throat is very sore and raw and I feel very tired. However I still struggled out of bed early and went to the gym.

Chest/Back/Shoulders
Lateral pulldown - 1 x 6 (30kg), 1 x 6 (25kg); 2 x 12 (25kg)
Cable seated row - 3 x 12 (45kg)
DB Bench Press = 3 x 10 (20lb)
Pec Dec Fly - 3 x 10 (20kg)
DB Upright row - 3 x 12 (30kg)
DB Shoulder Press - 1 x 12, 2 x 10 (10lb)

Abs/Core
Back extension - 2 x 15
Modified Plank - 3 x 60secs
Bicycle Crunches - 3 x 15
Crunches - 3 x 15

The rain poured down all day and after work I just didn't feel up to going to speedygeoff's session. My throat was hurting heaps and I knew we would be training in the underground carpark so instead I wussed out and drove home and climbed on my windtrainer (stationary bike) in the comfort of my lounge! There I did a hard intervals session as follows:

5 mins warm up followed by 21mins intervals - 1 min easy/2 1/2 mins hard (x 6 repeats), 5 mins cool down - total of 31 mins.

I worked really hard to make up for the guilts and was so wet when I finished I had to have a shower before preparing dinner. I did a load of washing, ironed a couple of shirts, wrote my blog and now I'm ready for bed! And my throat still hurts!! Waaaaah!

Family Day Sunday

On Friday I went to the gym and did my usual legs and arms workout. However, I did find it tough although I managed to increase the weights which is always encouraging.

Saturday - Mid-distance Run - 10am
Distance: 16km
Time: 1hr 33mins
Average pace per km: 5:52
Calories burned: 929

I ran from home and along the cycle track to Nicholls and back. The only problem with this course was that there were roadworks on the cycle track and I had to run a bit of a detour through dirt and uneven grassy surfaces. This slowed me down a bit as I had to watch my footing. The weather started off very overcast and cool. However as I returned the sun came out and it was really quite warm. I ran with my music playing loudly in my ears and although I was tired and have been all weekend I still enjoyed a pleasant run all on my own with my music for company.

Sunday (today) I had a "rest" day. I have a sore dry throat which I sincerely hope doesn't develop into anything as there's a lot of nasty viruses out there - STAY AWAY BUGS! I joined Lyn and Barb for a coffee this morning at Yarralumla and this afternoon the family came over and I could spend quality time with my beautiful children and grandchildren. Only three weeks until Mr B returns! I've stuck to my nutrition plan and tomorrow I will be in Week 8. I've lost just over 4kg and over 4% bodyfat. I feel better for it although this weekend I have been tired so it was good to have a rest day today. I've prepared all my lunches for the week so that it's easier to pack my bags each day. I can't believe how quickly weekends disappear!

Two Tough Training Runs Today!

Morning Run - 5.45am

This morning as I rose to an ice box of a house the frost was glistening on the white grass and all the ungaraged cars were covered in a layer of white. Yes, it was jolly cold inside and outside.

Session - Hill repeats - distance of hill 380m
Warm up of 9 mins to reach the hill from home. Next I ran the hill session as follows:

Jog slow to top, slow jog down x 2
Jog fast to top, slow jog down x 2
Sprint to top, slow jog down x 2
Jog slow to top, slow jog down x 2

Cool down run home.
Total distance: 7.21km
Calories burned: 444

Afternoon Training - 5.30pm

speedygeoff's training session at Dickson Oval was similar to last week except for the distance. After two warm-up laps of the full oval we were split into groups of 3-6 and ran one behind the other again with the last person in each group running to the front when Geoff blew the whistle.

2 x warm-up loops of full oval
1 x 1200m (3 x 400m laps of oval) swapping leaders on the whistle
1 x 800m (2 x 400m laps of oval)
1 x 1200m
1 x cool down loop of full oval

Total distance: 6.53km
Calories burned: 398

The shorter interval of 800m was the toughest. We really worked on the 800m lap which was evidenced by the fact that during that time I ran my best km time of 4:50. It was tough especially during the bursts to reach the front before the whistle blew!

When I arrived home I was expecting to open the door to a freezing cold house. During the day I had rung the ducted heating people and they couldn't come out until next week. The receptionist suggested I turned the power off at the wall and at the mains, wait 5 minutes then reset the metre. I had explained this to my younger daughter over the telephone and she and her boyfriend had come home for a while and managed to fix it. How happy I am to have a lovely warm welcoming home again. What a difference a warm house makes!

The Heating has gone on Strike!

My house is absolutely freezing. The ducted heating has decided to stop working. The pilot light is working but no matter what I do I cannot make the thermostat rise above 14deg and I AM COLD! I'm currently wearing a jumper, sweatshirt and Kathmandu fleecy jacket and I'm about to go to bed where it's warm. It's a nice warm water bed. I've tried ringing the ACTEWAGL emergency number but that's only if there's a gas leak - nope, not the case. In fact I can't find anything wrong. Maybe during office hours tomorrow I'll try to seek other help. Mr B, where are you when I need you? I know the answer to that - wallowing in 30deg sunshine in France - grrrr!

This morning I went to the gym again and worked on my chest/back/shoulders as follows:

Lateral pulldown - 3 x 12 (25kg)
Cable seated row - 3 x 12 (45kg)
DB Chest press - 1 x 12; 1 x 11; 2 x 6 (20lb) - yes, I was having problems lifting weights this morning. Where did all my strength go?
Pec Dec Fly - 3 x 12 (15kg)
DB Shoulder Press - 1 x 12; 2 x 10 (10lb)
Abs/Core
Back Extension - 2 x 15
Modified Plank - 1 x 45 secs; 2 x 50secs
Bicycle crunches - 3 x 15
Crunches - 3 x 15
Stretches

Of course I was late for work again!

And Tuggeranong Don, in response to your question, a windtrainer is actually an indoor piece of equipment that I mount my bike on to hold it in place . The rear wheel is locked in position and you climb on the bike and pedal madly in one spot and still have the ability to change the front gears to make it tougher. It's a bit like the stationary bikes in the gym except you use your own bike. It's great when you don't want to cycle outdoors early on cold mornings!

Early start tomorrow for hill runs so off to my nice warm bed. Goodnight!

Intervals

This morning I did interval training on my windtrainer at home with my ipod attached to my ear to keep me at it!

5 mins warm up followed by 21 mins intervals as follows:

1 min easy / 2 1/2 mins hard - repeated 6 times
5 mins cool down
total of 31mins

The hard intervals were very intense and I was dripping when I finally finished and very thirsty!

A New Week Dawns and I'm Half Way Through my Program!

Friday - Gym session - 7am
Chest/Back/Shoulders

Back
Lateral Pulldown - 3 x 12 (25kg)
Cable Seated Row - 3 x 12 (35kg)
Chest
DB Bench Press - 1 x 12 (20lb), 2 x 10 (20lb)
Pec Dec Fly - 3 x 12 (15kg)
Shoulders
DB Upright Row
DB Shoulder Press - 1 x 10, 2 x 8 (10lb)
Abs
Back Extension 2 x 15
Modified plank - 2 x 60secs
Bicycle crunches - 2 x 60

Sunday - Cross Country 10-miler!
Location: Black Mountain Peninsula and round Lake Burley Griffin
Distance: 16km
Time taken: 1hour 30min:20
Average pace per km: 5:37
Calories: 933
Fastest km: 5:01

The conditions were perfect. The rain cleared and although it was overcast and threatening more rain it held off for the duration of the run and in fact the temperature was plus 7deg which was unusual after our zero and below temps lately. We could comfortably run in singlets and shorts. I ran with Marg some of the way and Pam some of the way. Pam took off later in the run and managed to beat me by 1 minute but I caught up with Marg and managed to sprint to the finish line 2secs ahead of her. It was lovely to see PRB out there cheering us on. It was a comfortable run with lots of familiar faces en route. After rushing home for a quick shower and change I met up with CJ, Mr CJ and a group of our triathlon friends for a great lunch at Carlo's - a lovely day altogether.

Monday
Morning - Gym Session - 7am
Legs/Arms
Leg Press - 1 x 15 (35kg); 1 x 15 (40kg); 1 x 15 (45kg)
DB Lunges - 1 x 12 on each leg, 2 x 15 on each leg (20lb)
Seated leg curl - 1 x 12, 2 x 10 (20lb) - ouch, big ouch, ouch, ouch!!
DB standing calf raise - 2 x 15 on each leg (15lb)
DB Biceps Curl - 12 x 8lb (DB), 10 x 10lb (DB), 8 x 12lb (BB) - the last one seated!
DB Triceps Kickback - 2 x 12 (15lb), 1 x 12 (17.6lb)
Abs
Back extension - 2 x 15
Modified Plank - 2 x 40secs
Bicycle Crunches - 3 x 15
Crunches - 15

Hill repeats at Parliament House with speedygeoff - 5.30pm
Session
Two loops of Parliament House warm-up
20 hill reps (100metres steep) - fast up, slow jog down on 90secs
Cool down loop of Parliament House.
Total Distance: 9km

This was the same session as last Monday and maybe it felt a tad easier? However, my hamstring has been quite sore today after yesterday's run and I did notice it on all those hills! Great to have Ewen back to join us after his trip.

Hilda sent us Much Needed Rain!

Thanks Hilda! It is certainly raining this morning which may make Tuggeranong Don's run sloshy but we do need the rain and I think it may be easing off now after raining steadily during the night. I can't believe I haven't blogged since Tuesday. Every time I sat at the computer to write up my blog I fell asleep!! Today is my rest day from exercise and a chance to catch up at last.

Back to Wednesday
Gym - Legs/Arm

Leg Press - 3 x 15 reps (35kg)
DB lunges - 2 x 15reps on each leg (20lb)
- 1 x 12 reps on each leg (20lb)
Seated Leg Curl - 3 x 12 reps (20lb) - that still hurts!
DB standing calf raise - 2 x 12 (15lb)
DB Biceps Curl - 12 x 8lb, 10 x 5kg, 8 x 10lb
One arm DB Row - 2 x 12 (15lb), 1 x 12 (17.6lb)
Abs - Back extension - 2 x 15
Modified plank - 2 x 30secs holding
Bicycle crunches - 2 x 60
Stretches

Thursday
Before work - 5.45am
Hill Repeats

Warm up run to a hill on the cycle track between Nth Lyneham and Kaleen. This is quite a good hill of about 400m and perfect for hill repeats.

Session:
Warm up
Jog slow to top, slow jog down x 2
Jog fast to top, slow jog down x 2
Sprint to top, slow jog down x 2
Jog slow to top, slow jog down x 2
Jog home to cool down.

Total distance: 7.82km
Calories burned: 519

Then I quickly showered, prepared for work and drove in to meet CJ for brekkie, my favourite time of the week. She hasn't been well and it was lovely to catch up. For the benefit of susan brekkie is an Aussie abbreviation for breakfast! And pretty damn good it is too!!

Thursday evening - speedygeoff's session
Dickson Oval
This was an interesting session tonight and quite challenging but fun. We ran two warm-up loops of the oval. Next we ran a trial 800m to establish our level after which we were put into teams of three according to our approximate ability. I was with Pam and two sprinters who alternated so they just ran 400m each instead of the 800m which meant of course that they didn't run out of puff! The idea was to run one behind the other and whenever speedygeoff blew his whistle the back person had to run to the front of the group. At one stage we had five people running in our group and that made it very hard to pass all the runners and become the leader before the whistle blew. We ran 3 x 800m laps doing this and it felt like a very good workout! To finish we ran another full loop of the oval.

Total distance: 6.58km
Time taken: 38mins (including warm up and cool down)
Calories: 395

Friday - Another Gym Session
Chest/Back/Shoulders

Lateral pulldown 3 x 12 (25kg) - ouch!
Cable seated row - 3 x 12 (35kg)
DB bench press - 1 x 12, 2 x 10 (20lb)
Pec Dec Fly - 3 x 12 (15kg)
DB upright row - 3 x 12
DB Shoulder press - 1 x 10, 2 x 8 (10lb) - I find this really hard!
Abs - Back Extension - 2 x 15
Modified plank - 2 x 60secs hold
Bicycle crunches - 2 x 60
Stretches

And now I'm up-to-date again. Tomorrow weather permitting I will run in the Cross Country run/race round Lake Burley Griffin - 16km. Later in the afternoon I'm going to kiwi Barb's house for a BBQ get together and to meet her daughter and grandson who are over from NZ for a week. And after the run tomorrow I'm going to brunch with another group of friends including CJ. This group of us used to train in a triathlon squad which folded about 2 years ago and it's always fantastic when we catch up. Mr B is in sunny Paris this weekend and having a wonderful time. I've been so busy I haven't missed him too much so that's a good thing. He'll be back in just over 3 weeks.

Interval Training

This morning at 5.30am I did interval training on my windtrainer as follows:

5 mins warm up followed by 21 mins intervals - 1 min easy/2 1/2 mins hard. This was repeated 6 times, 5 mins cool down - total of 31 mins.

I pushed as hard as possible on the hard intervals and pulled right back on the easy intervals. After my shower etc I rushed in to town to meet three friends for brekkie.

When I emerged from the office this evening it was pouring with rain. Good thing I didn't have a run planned! We definitely need the rain in Canberra. We don't see it very often!

Monday Madness!

Morning Gym Session

This morning's session was chest/back/shoulders. I had to rise at 5.15am in order to eat brekkie and organise all the appropriate gear for the day even though I had packed my bags the night before. It's unreal how much organisation it takes to take the work clothes and running gear and gym gear, make-up, lunches for the week etc. I spend more than an hour every Sunday making my lunches and measuring my portions, chopping up veges, carrot sticks etc. It's quite a performance but I'm now in Week 6 of my program and have lost nearly 4kg and 4% of body fat so I have to be happy with that!

Session
Warm up 5 mins of stationary bike
Lateral pulldown - 2 x 12, 1 x 10 (25kg)
Cable seated row - 3 x 12 (45kg)
DB Chest Press - 3 x 12 (17.6lb)
Pec Dec Fly - 1 x 10, 2 x 12 (15kg)
DB Upright row - 1 x 12 (30kg); 2 x 12 (25kg)
DB Shoulder Press - 2 x 12 (10kg)

Abs/Core
Back Extension - 2 x 15
Modified Plank - 2 x 45secs
Bicycle Crunches - 2 x 60

Stretches

Evening - speedygeoff's group at Parliament House
It was lovely to welcome speedygeoff back tonight after a week in Sydney. At the start of the session he made some announcements and in them included some lovely comments about me and gave me three Marathon photos and they're beauties. I'm delighted! What a lovely surprise. I'm glad I was there!!

Session:
Hill Runs!
Warm up of two loops of Parliament House
20 hill repeats sprinting (or running as fast as possible) from the bottom of the grassy bit in front of PH which goes down to the road and right up to the top then we jogged back to the start and ran each repeat at 90secs.
Cool down loop of PH
Total distance: 9.16km

My times for the hill repeats varied between 32secs and 36secs but I mainly seemed to achieve 34secs and I WASN'T LAST!! Woo hoo! Perhaps I'm finally getting stronger.

This was a tough hill session but I found the hardest part jogging that final warm-down loop of PH. My glutes and legs objected violently! The good part about this session is that I now don't have to run hill repeats in the morning. I can just jump on my windtrainer and do an interval session instead. Thank you speedygeoff!

I Love Weekends! There should be more of them!

Friday 7 July
Gym Session

I now have two different sessions, one concentrating on legs/arms and the other concentrating on chest/back/shoulders. Today's session was legs and arms as follows:

Warm up on stationary bike - 8 mins
Leg press - 3 x 15 (30kg) - this is my first time so will obviously need to increase weights
DB Lunges - 3 x 15 (8kg)
Seated Leg Curl - 3 x 12 (20lb) - OUCH!
DB Standing Calf Raise - 2 x 15 (15lb) - I was a bit uncertain as to whether I was doing this correctly so will need to be shown this I think
Biceps - DB Biceps Curt - 12, 10, 8 (I was supposed to increase weight as repetitions decreased but I only increased it by about 2lb - will improve next time!)
DB Triceps Kickback - 1 x 12 (8kg); 2 x 12 (10kg)

Abs/Core
2 x 15 Back Extension
2 x 10 bicycle crunches
2 modified plank (holding 60secs) - again will have to increase these but ran out of time

Saturday - Run

Distance: 9.50km
Time taken: 59mins
Calories burned: 519

I met up with kiwi Barb and Marg at the Hackett side of Mt Ainslie and we ran the same undulating course as the Vets' run starting and finishing at a slightly different spot. It was freezing this morning and very bleak. By lunch time the sun was shining and it was a gorgeous winter's day but at 9am it was sooooo cold. I borrowed gloves but they were fingerless and my fingers and nose felt blue with cold! We wore shorts but the legs were ok, it was just the rest of us. It's quite a tough undulating run but great with company and off-road on that surface is lovely. We chatted apart from when we were concentrating on the biggest hill! Although this is a relatively short run it's great training on those hills for the Bush Capital Run and the City to Surf which are coming up soon. After the run we adjourned to Hudsons in Dickson for a lovely coffee and good company.

How can the week go so fast??

I can't believe it's Thursday already. This week has just flown.

Tuesday - Intervals on Windtrainer
Session:
5 mins warm-up
1 min easy/2.5mins hard ) x 6 times
5 mins cool down
Total time: 31mins

Wednesday - Resistance Training - Gym
Session:
8 mins warm-up on stationary bike
Back:
Lateral pulldown - 3 x 12 reps (20kg)
Cable seated Row - 3 x 12 (30kg)
Chest:
DB Bench Press - 1 x 15; 2 x 12 (17.6kg)
Pec Dec Fly - 3 x 12
Shoulders:
DB Upright Row - 3 x 12
DB Shoulder Press - 3 x 12

Evening - Yoga - Final session for term. Next term I progress to Level 1 - sounds scary to me!

Thursday Morning
Hill repeats
I found a hill in Kaleen which was reasonable but I think I need a higher hill so will look for one for next time!
Session:
Warm up of 8 minutes to the hill.
Jog slow to the top and gently back down x 2
Jog fast to the top and slow jog down x 2
Sprint to top, slow jog down x 2
Jog slow to top, slow jog down x 2
Warm down run further along the road then turned to run home.

Distance: 7.20km
Calories burned: 428

Thursday evening - interval running at Dickson Oval

I was caught up at work and in traffic and arrived about 15mins late which meant I missed the first lap of the warm-up. However I did manage the next full loop warm-up which was good. Carolyn was there tonight and it was good to catch up.

Session:

Warm-up of full loop of oval
5 x 600m on 5mins which meant that some people had a big rest and some people (not mentioning any names - lol) had only about 45 secs rest time after our jog back to the start.
Warm down of full loop of oval

Total distance: 6.1km
Calories burned: 370

Tomorrow morning I have another gym session concentrating on my poor legs!

Another Week and a difficult start!

This morning I rose at 5am to do my gym session and gee, I felt every weight. I found it really tough this morning especially those shoulder lateral raises! I have just received my updated program for the next 8 weeks and oh boy, I should never have complained before. It is pretty damn tough!

Anyway tonight was speedygeoff's training session at Parliament House. Speedygeoff is currently interstate so Neil took our group. He knew some of us had competed at Googong so we did the bottom loop of the lawns in the front of PH instead of both loops which was a little easier than last week fortunately but the uphills still felt a bit uncomfortable.

Distance: 9.1km
Calories burned: 433
Weight loss since 5 June: 3kilos

Session: warm-up of 2 loops of Parliament House (each 1.7km)
Main set: 5 x 400m loops of the front lawn of PH - fast on the uphill slopes and steady on the other three sides
5 x 400m loops in reverse
Warm down: full loop of PH

I certainly felt those hills but I was very happy to complete the entire session. I did however have to run very quickly to the loo at the end before even saying goodbye to anyone. I have had a decidedly dodgy tummy ever since Googong on Saturday and interestingly Pam, who also competed, tells me she had the same problem in the weekend as did CJ. Perhaps there was something in the water?? I am now in Week 5 of my 12 week program and yes, I've lost 3 kilos in weight and an inch off my waist so that's encouraging!

Half of a Half!

Friday - Gym session - 5.30am
Single Arm DB Row - 3 x 15 (8kg)
Chest press on Swiss ball - 2 x 15; 1 x 12 (8kg)
Body weight squat against Swiss ball - 2 x 20 (5kg)
DB Static Lunge - 2 x 15 (5kg)
DB Side Lateral Raise - 2 x 12 (4kg)
DB Biceps Curl - 2 x 15 (5kg)
Triceps pull ups against chair - 3 x 15
Abs: 3 x 15 crunches; 3 x 15 reverse crunches

Found it quite hard today. Arms felt tired and I had trouble lifting the weights especially the shoulder side lateral raise. I improvised by doing the session at home before work as I had a brekkie date at 7.30am and the gym I go to doesn't open until 6.45am!

Saturday - Googong Dam Half Marathon

Marg and I decided to enter this at the last minute as a two person team. I ran the first half of 11.1km and Marg ran the second half of 10km. It was a tough off road mountain run - in other words very very hilly but I really enjoyed it. Apart from a bit of a head wind in parts the cool conditions were perfect for a tough run. The link to the map and route details is here.

Distance: 11.27km (so says Gandalf)
Time: 68mins (I said it was tough)
Average pace per km: 6:05
Calories: 669
Fastest km: 5:14

The turnaround point was at 11.1km where teams changed runners and the others turned. Both "halves" were almost a mirror image of the other and equally difficult by the look of the course map.