Day 54 - Smile, would you?

Today was a lovely and relaxing day at home.

I slept in, spent time playing with and cuddling my kitties (who I've missed so much!), had a Greek lesson with Olga (who clarified the problem I'm having with adjective-noun agreement!), and met Eve for a hot chocolate at the Coffeeco near Market Square.

After such a lovely day, it wasn't hard to motivate myself to head to the gym for a long slow distance run on the treadmill. I usually prefer to run outside, but it has just been too cold recently to even entertain the idea, with the past few days dipping down into the minus teens and minus twenties Celcius. My airways seem to still be a bit unhappy about the cold I had a few weeks ago, and I find myself coughing annoyingly in cold air.

While I was contentedly running in the warmth of the gym, I watched this video from TEDMED. The emotion in this video is pretty powerful, and I found myself smiling at the speaker's quips, and eventually at the happy end to his unusual story. When I had finished with the video, I switched over to listening to two of my favourite playlists on the 8tracks app*.

Not running. This would be an awful stride and not smile-worthy.

I only felt self-conscious about the ridiculous grin I was wearing when I noticed the girl on the treadmill next to me looking at me in the mirror in front of us. We awkwardly locked eyes for a moment, and I looked away.

When I did, I noticed that no one else on the treadmills was smiling.

I looked in the mirror at the girl on the stationary bike in front of me. Her mouth was set in a grim line.

In the mirror, I could also see the elliptical users behind me, and each of them looked as serious as death.

When I watch videos or listen to music while I run (which I don't always do...), I don't do it to distract or motivate myself. Instead, I find that listening to music or watching videos can be a nice way to enhance my enjoyment of working out. When I worked out with Randi on Day 51, I noticed a tall, muscular guy on a nearby treadmill running along and chuckling at his phone - I think he knows what I'm talking about.

There's something about smiling that makes even a difficult workout more enjoyable, and I don't think it's distraction.

During the course of a particularly excellent undergrad class, I remember learning about the James-Lange theory of emotion. This theory suggests that emotion is actually the mind's interpretation of physiological reactions - muscle tension, heart rate, perspiration - and not the other way around. In other words, you don't get a pounding heart because you see the bear in your path and you feel afraid. Instead, you feel afraid because there is a big, nasty bear in  your way and your heart is beating fast.

This cat is having a great time! Because he's smiling!

The natural extension of this theory is that if you can create a bodily sensation, you can create an emotion.

I think that's why working out while smiling is so much fun. I'm still aware of the time on the clock and the kilometres left to go, but when I smile I convince myself that I'm having a great time.

In fact, I enjoyed my run so much today that I ended up running 11k instead of the 8k that my training plan recommended for this week. 

And I don't regret it.

*Consecutively, not concomitantly.

Day 53 - Do Yoga With Me Redux

A while back, I posted about a website called Do Yoga With Me.

Photos are looking much clearer, thanks to my new phone.

The website offers streaming video of fully-instructed/guided yoga practices of varying lengths. I didn't have much luck with it last time I tried; practicing yoga at home with all the attendant distractions of cats, phone, computer, and roommate undermined the sense of peace I usually experience with yoga, and the video I chose didn't seem challenging enough for my (just barely not-novice) level.

I thought I'd give the website another shot today, and tried this video from their Yoga for Runners series. The video focussed on stretches for the IT band, which many runners complain of tightness and irritation around.

This was probably a more successful session for me.

I didn't enjoy some aspects of the video - the transitions weren't well-explained, and the video itself seemed less like yoga and more like a basic stretching class - but I did enjoy the instructor's use of props (particularly the block and strap) to find space in some hard to reach areas. Randi gave me a lovely cork block a couple of Christmases ago, and it was perfect for the job. I didn't have a strap, but I found that a scarf worked nicely. 

Block = bizarre picture, more intense hamstring stretch.

I hadn't previously thought to use a block to achieve a more intense hamstring stretch, and I have to admit it worked nicely. I also found that it was much easier for me to get a deep quadriceps stretch when I used the wall as described in this video (check out the video starting around 16:00 to see how this is done) than when I try to do it the traditional way (standing). My left shoulder just doesn't have the flexibility to reach around and grab my left foot, and using the wall was a nice work-around. 

I still am not convinced that this website can replace attending a good studio with solid instruction; I find hands-on instruction invaluable, and I think a studio can go a long way toward creating an atmosphere conducive to both hard work and relaxation. I do think it might be a nice supplement to a regular yoga routine, particularly if you find yourself - like I am - away from your usual studio.

If you're a runner, definitely check out the video (heck, even if you're not, check it out!). Let me know what you think!

Day 52 - Ummmm…I stretched?

Consider this another round of apologies for phone posting.

Frankly, Blogger's app absolutely stinks. It can't be used in landscape mode, I can't bold or italicise, and any pictures I post get crammed together at the end of the post, with no option to resize or move them. Come on, Blogger.

Yesterday was rough.

As I mentioned in the last post, I have been tired right out recently. It's not so much that work is terrible or the hours are long as it is that my schedule is constantly changing and my commute is just over an hour each way. I'm trying hard to squeeze in friends and physical activity and struggling to fit a good amount of sleep in. I find it really tough to come home and go straight to sleep; decompression time is pretty much a requirement.

With that in mind, yesterday was a day for stretching. My legs probably deserved the break, and they certainly appreciate the gentle coaxing of my muscles back to their regular length. Sigh. So nice.

Tonight I am waiting to board a train that will take me home for two nights of kitty love, Greek lesson, and some yummy bubble tea with Katelyn.

I suspect that tonight I will give the yoga website I mentioned in a previous post a second try.

And then I'll enjoy a yummy night of lovely sleep in my own bed with my favourite furry boyfriends.

Days 50 and 51 - What have you done for me lately?

This is 365 Days of Sweat: Feeling Rough Edition.

I haven't been getting quite enough sleep recently, and this has apparently made my belly one unhappy being. Ever get that nauseated feeling when you're way overtired? I took it one step further today and was actually sick to my stomach. I think it is fatigue in its purest form.

I had hoped to complete a 10k training run on Day 50, but when I got to the gym it quickly became obvious that I had unwittingly picked the busiest time of day during the busiest month of the year to visit Hart House. As a result, I had to actually stick to the posted time limit and ended up doing a short and speedy run that had me sweating like crazy.

On Day 51, yesterday, I actually got around to completing my 10k. Randi had a complimentary guest pass for Extreme Fitness, which she recently joined. The gym was practically empty, so I ran a happy little 10k, hogging a treadmill for just over an hour. Even though I wouldn't strictly call this a long run, it is the longest I had run in a while, and I think my legs were happy to get moving again. I find that I really start to feel warmed up around 7k, so if I keep my runs short I never get to that nice place where my lungs feel big and my legs feel strong.

Today, Day 52, I will probably stick to some stretching, recognising the fact that my stomach still isn't feeling great and my legs are a little worn out from yesterday.

Friendimal feet at the gym.

In honour of Day 50, though, I thought it would be nice to reflect on what this challenge has and has not done for me so far:

I have not become a machine. I continue to have days where I lack motivation and would avoid doing any physical activity were I to give myself the option. Motivation isn't a given.

I have become more likely to generate motivation when I need to. I may still drag my feet heading out the door on some days, but I willingly walk frequently (and briskly!), even if I've already done my physical activity for the day. I think that physical activity is becoming increasingly routine, and it's making me generally less lazy, even if I do have days when I don't feel like doing anything.

I have not lost much weight. In fact, I've probably only lost 2-3 pounds since starting the challenge almost two months ago.

I immediately devoured all these calories in a Quesada burrito.

I have built muscle. It's nice to feel my newly-re-sprouted quadriceps muscles through my tights and know that I got them through hard work, including lots of running and walking even when I haven't felt like doing anything. It's the sort of thing that keeps me going on days when I really don't want to tie up my running shoes, put on my swim cap, or roll out my yoga mat.

I have not shed all my insecurities. I still feel a little too heavy, a little too flabby, and not quite as athletic as I want to be.

I have become more confident. Yesterday, I ran indoors in my outdoor running tights. I never would have done that in the past, for fear of looking ridiculous. As if running tights don't look ridiculous regardless of where you wear them. But I had planned to run outside (Toronto's incredible cold snap had not set in by the time I left the house in the morning) and I hadn't brought any indoor workout gear. I didn't feel stupid. I am fit and committed to getting physical activity in, and I couldn't care less about people who might have thought I looked silly as I left them in my treadmill dust.

Randi looks better sweaty than I do.

I guess you could say I feel pretty satisfied with how things have been shaping up.

(Pun intended.)

Day 50- Yay!

This is it, folks! Today is day 50! We are half way to day 100, just under 1/5 of the way through this challenge. Time is literally flying by! It's almost the end of January and before we know it, the semester will be over. Wow, then it's one more year until freedom (sort of...)!
Day's 49 and 50 have been less then stellar on the exercise scale, but let's jump back to day 48 when I was actually productive... Saturday started off with a bang! Back to back classes at the gym. Sounds like a good idea, right? Wrong. I am sick. At the time of signing up for the classes I had a bit of a sniffle, but it wasn't a big deal. Saturday morning came along and I was feeling pretty rough. Regardless of my new germy friend, I made it to the gym and got a place in the spin class. It pretty much went downhill from there. For the first half I couldn't breathe and was convinced I was going to die. Half way through I decided to suck it up and finish the class because I have an incredibly competitive personality! I wasn't going to let some cold ruin my workout! I am glad that I stuck it out because it improved and I survived. Spin was quickly followed by SST (no idea what it means). This was a lot less cardio based and much more focussed on weight training. A nice follow-up and I felt great after the classes!

Obama was sworn in on Day 50!

Yesterday, Day 49, I woke up with the full-blown cold. I was supposed to go to yoga that morning, but decided not to on account of my lack of sleep and my nose acting like a broken faucet. Instead I spent the morning in bed and the afternoon working on my chemistry lab. The best way to spend a Sunday, if you ask me! What did I do for exercise? Very little! Some stretching (I was sore from the classes on saturday) and a lot of laying down. Today, I am much worse then yesterday having not slept for 3 days now. Today will also involve some light stretching and perhaps some squats. I downloaded a new app onto my phone as I have no butt and it promised me a "bubble butt" by summer! Not 100% sure what a bubble butt is, but its better then no butt at all!
My apologies for my rare appearances on this blog. By the end of the day the last thing I want to do it write about it! I will try harder, I promise! I also haven't been reaching my 30 mins a day either. For that, I make no promises, but I have exercised 50 days in a row, though! Until next time... (it may be a while).


-Nicole

Days 47, 48, and 48 - Are my eyelashes longer?

...I ask that in all seriousness.

Today I noticed that my eyelashes seem a lot longer. I used to be embarrassed about how short and straight my eyelashes are, but today when I was putting on mascara they seemed long, lush, and full.

This came up when I googled Day 48. What.

The author of this post (yeah, it's Livestrong, get over it) seems to believe that you can get longer, fuller lashes through exercise and a healthy diet, but it seems a little unbelievable, doesn't it? I'd love to believe that my eyelashes are actually longer and healthier because of this challenge, but I suspect that they are no longer than usual, and that eyelash length may all be in the skewed eye of the beholder.

Just a short post for now, but I hope to post later tonight about how Day 50 went. Incidentally, I walked on Day 47, ran on the treadmill and used the ellipitical on Day 48, and walked for about an hour or so on Day 49. This afternoon I'm going to hit the treadmill for some marathont training. 

This came up when I googled Day 49. That's more like it.

More later!

Days 45 and 46 - Running vs Walking

The past week has been particularly challenging when it comes to physical activity. 

Like I mentioned in my last post, my motivation has been pretty low. I think that has a lot to do with being away from home (and slightly homesick!), routine, and my kitties (who I'm perhaps a little too attached to) - my mood has just been lower than usual, and I've been dragging my butt. I also haven't been sleeping as well or as long as I'd like to.

My schedule has also been a bit tougher than usual. I've been working 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. shifts, and usually get to leave the hospital closer to 2 a.m. I then have a commute home of just over an hour by public transit! I don't mind - this is the job, after all! Nonetheless, work + commute has really been an adjustment. At home, I live less than ten minutes away from the hospital on foot, and my gym is only ten minutes walking in the opposite direction. In fact, the school gym and pool are on the same campus as the hospital, so if I'm really feeling crunched for time, I can trip over there in about 3 minutes.

Nevertheless, I've been getting lots of walking and a bit of running in. On Day 45, I went for a slow run with no particular distance or route in mind; I just wanted to explore the neighbourhood I'm staying in . It ended up being best that I didn't have a plan, because I got completely lost and had to rely on my phone's GPS to get me home. Yesterday, Day 46, I turned my commute home from the hospital into a bus ride interspersed with brisk walking in the wee hours of the morning. The cold and snowy walk ended up being a refreshing end to a long shift in the stuffy ER air.

On the topic of walking and running, I overheard someone saying to her friend the other day that walking and running the same distance burns the same number of calories. 

As someone who runs for fitness but also hopes for weight loss, this immediately grabbed my attention. I've heard it repeated a hundred times, and read it just as many times on every amateur fitness forum out there.

At first blush, it makes perfect sense - moving identical masses over the identical distances should require identical work and thus burn identical calories. Right, Sir Issac Newton?

But, as with all things in life, it's just not that simple.

I read a recent article (abstract available here) that clearly showed both that energy expenditure is significantly higher during running than walking, and also that walkers return to baseline energy expenditure more quickly than do their running peers. I really liked that this study looked at average fitness young individuals, meaning that the results apply to people who aren't high-performance athletes, the population that is often the focus of exercise physiology studies.

This study found the same - running requires more energy than walking. The interesting bit here was that both the walking and the running were for quite short distances (only 1.6k), and took place on a treadmill. Evidently, these differences don't need time to build up over long distances, which is good news for those of us who don't always have a lot of time to be physically active in a day.

There are a number of other studies out there that have looked at the energy expenditure differences between walking and running, and they all arrive at the same conclusion - walking burns lots of calories, but running burns even more. I encourage you to do a quick search for energy expenditure in walking and running on PubMed and satisfy yourself that I'm not pulling your leg.

A nice place to get lost, whether walking or running...

So why do we burn more calories running that walking? Was Newton wrong?

Not exactly, but when we think about walking and running simply as moving a mass over a distance, we miss something fundamental about the complexities of running.

Running isn't just moving weight forward, it is jumping from foot to foot as we move weight forward. We bend our knees and move our centre of gravity up and down, and not just translationally.

Does this mean that walking is useless? Absolutely not. The best physical activity is the physical activity that you will do. If you will walk, then you should!

I'm short on time today, but I hope to fill in more details and add more research to this topic in the future. For now, here's an accessible non-scientific read that talks about why running burns more calories than running.

And please, don't take my word for it. If you've got a Forerunner or other calorie-monitor that uses your heart rate, do a little experiment and let me know how it goes: Run and walk the same distances and see  which burns more calories for you. I'll do the same and post here...

Days 43 and 44 - What the What.

I just wrote a post for you guys explaining my lack of motivation.

I apologised for the formatting because I'm posting from my phone for the first time.

I apologised for the lack of real content because I am experiencing such a dearth of motivation. I don't even want to wash my hair.

I explained how frustrating the past few days have been and that my physical activity over the past couple of days has consisted of brisk walks.

I asked for tips and tricks for getting motivated again in stressful times.

And then Blogger lost my post. I guess that's about on par with how the past few days have gone.

Days 41 and 42 - So long, synchro!

I will wait until tomorrow to write about Day 43 (which is today), because I am frankly too frustrated with how my day has gone so far to rehash it now.

Yes, I'm Bad Mood Sarah today.

Nevertheless, I'll tell you a bit about my weekend:

This weekend was Easterns, the Canadian University Synchronised Swimming League's qualifier for Nationals, which take place in February. Because I've left on elective as of last night, this weekend was my last opportunity to practice with my fantastic, fun, amazing, outstanding team, and my last chance to cheer them on.

The weekend started out great, for me at least. We had practice and spacing on Saturday night, and I finally had the revelation I've been waiting for all season. In other words, I got over the mental block I'd had about swimming the routine and just swam it properly and fully. Of course, I managed to mess up the actual spacing swim, but I still felt pretty good. I noticed while we were practicing that my height was closer to my old standard, my body positions more stable, and my spins straighter. I actually felt able to use my left arm to scull, which I've been quite ginger about recently.

Arty composition compliments of Renee.

Sunday I cheered on my team as they swam. This year I requested an alternate position (and probably will again next year), which means I don't swim in competition with the team and am just available if anyone is sick or injured at competition time. The position suited me well this year, since my schedule is a bit more frenzied and a bit less flexible than it has been in the past, and also since I've still been getting my left arm working. I could never have imagined requesting an alternate position a few years ago, so maybe this is actually a sign that I've matured a bit...?

Team time! I'm in the blue and white Queen's jacket on deck.

The team swam the first half of the routine really superbly, but we did run into a few problems later in the routine. Nevertheless, we placed a respectable 6th of 14 teams, with lots of potential to do even better at Nationals.

I'll miss swimming with the team, who really embraced me despite the fact that I was  bit physically limited this year and that I'm...um...a few years older than most of them. They're all fantastic girls and talented swimmers, and I'll miss seeing them shine at Nationals.

After the competition, we had some delicious cake, baked by our coach, Renee, and decorated to replicate our own swimsuits - so cool! And then I rode back to Toronto with the U of T team, including Karen, a lawyer and masters student who I swam with way back when I was an undergrad at U of T. So nice to reconnect, and fun to hear that she reads the blog (even if she was a bit disappointed about my lack of answer regarding whether one should exercise with a cold!).

A yummy cake wearing a synchro suit! Who could ask for more to end the season with?

PS, Apologies for the awkward formatting - I apparently left my power cord at home and I'm struggling with Lisa's computer at the moment...

Day 40 - Setting Goals

I don't know why, but I keep forgetting that my 24h gym is only open 24 hours Monday through Thursday. Silly me.

In completely unrelated news, I ended up doing a bodyweight workout at home instead of my prescribed 6k run for the day. I'm hopeful that tomorrow will be more productive. Erin and I have planned to hit an outdoor skating rink, but it may be too warm and wet tomorrow for that, in which case Plan B would be a run. 

Anyway, onward and upward.

One of the interesting things that has come out of this challenge is that people often want to tell me about their fitness goals. That's exciting for me, because I love hearing about people making a commitment to being fitter and healthier. I also love hearing that I've motivated someone to set and achieve a new goal.

I thrive on goals. 

I really, really do.

Goals keep me moving forward, and the goals that I've achieved give me a sense of accomplishment and mastery that motivates me to continue setting new goals and working toward bettering myself in new ways.

When I was 13 or 14, I learned a system for goal setting at an athlete development camp. I was taught at this camp that not all goals are equally "good" - some motivate us to work harder and give us the sense of achievement we (okay, I...) crave, whereas others are unrealistic or vague, leaving us  discouraged or lost at the end of the day.

The system I learned back then and still use today is S.M.A.R.T., standing for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely (or Time-bound in some writings).

The specific aspect of the system means that your goal has to be...well...specific. It's not enough, for instance, to say I'd like to be healthier and fitter. Instead, I've got to tell myself exactly what "healthier" and "fitter" mean to me. Saying that I want to do physical activity for 365 consecutive days or that I want to run a marathon by the end of May would fit the bill. Similarly, I'm not being specific if I say I'd like to lose weight. On the other hand, saying I'd like to lose 10 pounds tells you (and me) exactly what I'm hoping to do.

Turns out that a google search for "goal" returns many corny images.

A good goal is also measurable. There has to be a way for me to know I've made progress. How will I know I've met my goal? Instead of saying I want to be a better runner, I could say that I want to run 5k in under 28 minutes, or that I want to run 4 days each week. I think this is one of the most important aspects of goal-setting for me. I want to know that I've been successful, and I can only know that if I'm measuring my progress. Those who know me well know that I love to look at the stats my Garmin Forerunner spits out - knowing how far I've run, how fast I did it, and how often I've been pounding the pavement makes me feel successful and motivates me to keep going.

Of course, the best goals are attainable. This doesn't mean you shouldn't be ambitious - of course you should! But goals that are too far out of our reach make it difficult to get started, and quickly discourage us. Ambitious goals are great, but impossible goals aren't.

This is what I imagine having a stroke must look like.

Realistic goals are goals we have the tools to achieve. The realistic aspect of goal setting is where I usually create my plan of attack; if I have the necessary tools to carry out my plan, I know that my goals are realistic. For example, when thinking about completing this challenge and my goal of 365 days of physical activity, I had to think about whether I had the baseline fitness to achieve the challenge, whether I had the time each day to put toward the challenge, and whether I had the necessary equipment, resources, and support. I might decide that I want to compete in high jump in the next Olympics, but if I have no access to coaching, no time for training, and two bum knees, I may not really have the tools I need to achieve my goal. Ultimately, I'll be discouraged.

Finally, goals should have an aspect of time built into them. I find that if I don't set a time-line, I'll never get done...because I'll never get started. A time-line is a crucial motivator, as anyone who has ever written a paper, studied for a test, or cooked a Christmas meal for 20 people, can attest. That's why it's not good enough to say that I want to eventually run a marathon. I had to sign up for a marathon to push myself to get in the necessary training. This is why competitive events like racing can be so helpful. By no means am I a fast runner, but signing up for a race gives me a time-limit for the completion of my goal.

I'm sure there are other goal-setting systems out there, and I've love to hear about how you frame your goals. Comment below, shy readers!

Days 37, 38, and 39 - Impossible.

These past few days have been the sort that make this challenge seem nearly impossible.

It seems like I'm staying extra hours after every shift, and I'm scrambling to get prepared to leave my apartment for three months. Eve kindly took me to buy months worth of food for the cats, but I still need to get keys cut for the friends who are looking after Desi and Guinness, and I need to figure out what I'm bringing with me and, you know, maybe pack a thing or two for when I leave on Sunday night.

Incidentally, I am leaving directly from a competition.

So yeah, things are busy.

But I am sticking with it.

Today I had synchro practice. I've been struggling with synchro this year; it has been hard to come back from everything that has happened recently with my shoulder, with the brief couple of months of arrythmias I was weirdly having (all clear now!), and with being generally deconditioned after a year away. I am trying hard to just take this year as a developmental season, but the fact is that I am such a poor swimmer compared to 3 or 4 years ago. Every practice is a struggle at this point, and there are still things I don't feel I can do. Nevertheless, I went today and worked hard and I will continue to work hard this weekend as I finish my season.

6k and feeling good on Day 39.

My favourite sweaty t-shirt.

Yesterday I ran 6 k on the treadmill as part of my marathon training. I have noticed that my speed and endurance are quickly improving, so I'm feeling successful in that regard. I feel confident that I'm improving, though I know I need to balance all the running with some yoga and/or stretching.

The day before yesterday, I only had time for a quick bodyweight set at home after a shift that went two hours longer than expected. At least I got something in, though, and Katie sent me a timely link that very day to an article discussing the benefit of even short ten minute bursts of physical activity throughout the week; it made me feel much better about my progress.

Anyway, onward and upward.

Here's to tomorrow.

When did I become such a shameless hippy?

Dear blog world...

...I have not forgotten you and am still going strong in the challenge. I hope to have time to write tomorrow!

Day 36 - Marathon Training Begins!

I ran my first 5k at Limestone Race Weekend in late April of 2012.

I ran my first 10k, the Wolfe Island Classic, on July 1st 2012.

I ran my first half marathon, the Canadian Evening Half-Marathon, September 1st 2012 in Ottawa.

Today I started training for my first marathon.

I will be running May 26th 2013, during the Ottawa Race Weekend, just over a year after I ran my first 5k. My only goal is to finish without walking.

I'm pretty pumped.

There is patchy ice covering just about every surface outside, so I took it to the treadmill and ran 6k (I think...Resolutioners had taken every metric machine in the building, so I had to do some on-the-fly calculations). Even with my muscles still sore from the past couple of days (what did I do???), it felt good.

I felt strong.

I ran without stopping, except for a brief coughing break that reminded me that I'm not 100% over this cold yet.

Uh...I think 4 miles is about 6k...

I couldn't have done this a year ago. In fact, when I started running regularly, around March of 2012, I wasn't able to run longer than a minute or two at a time. I was painfully embarrassed during Dragonboat practice when it seemed like everyone else could effortlessly complete our runs around the short loop at City Park. I would slowly jog as far as I could and stop to walk, running again when I caught my breath. I was always the last to finish the loop and the team would wait for me so that they could start the subsequent bodyweight training interval. I wasn't exactly in the best shape of my life, but even when I was in excellent shape and would be sent out on a run with my synchro team, I would lag behind, feeling like I was dying while my lungs burned.

I started running after I had my shoulder surgery; it was really the only physical activity I could do without too much pain or risk of undoing the yet-unsolidified good work my surgeon had done.

It can be hard to get started in running, but I used the Couch to 5k program, and found that it helped me progress to running a full 5k in a little less than the promised 9 weeks. I notice they have an app now, so if you're interested in getting started, you may want to check that out. There's also a lot of great support out there for beginning runners, including the great communities at r/c25k and r/running.

By the time I ran my first 10k, I was training for a half-marathon, but I've since learned that there are Bridge to 10k programs out there for runners who have completed the C25K program and want to move toward longer distance. There's also a subreddit for that.

For half-marathon and marathon training, I've been using a training plan Amy used for her half and full marathon training and passed on to me, but there are plenty of programs out there for runners who want to move toward 21.1k and 42.2k - Hal Hidgon's training programs seem to get the most respect from the recreational running world. 

My big finish at the Canadian Evening Half-Marathon

Ultimately, I'd love to get into ultrarunning, but at the moment I'm too scared to even look into how one trains to run back-to-back marathons!

Day 35 - Thank you!

More than a month in - and you have helped me get there!

Dear lovely blog readers of the world, 

You make me feel so good.

It's hard to keep up all the physical activity and still find time to blog, but it is so gratifying to know that this blog has somehow - incredibly - had over 2600 views. And I love seeing people I haven't run into in a while for just a brief moment, and having them toss a casual 'I've been reading your blog!' over their shoulders as they speed down a hospital corridor or downtown sidewalk. The emails and facebook messages I've been getting make me feel so lucky.

I don't know what I did to deserve all the support, but knowing that you are reading helps keep me going on tough days like today, when my muscles are sore and I can only bring myself to go for a walk. When that walk is actually a delicate and treacherous tip-toe across iced-over sidewalks, knowing that you're keeping tabs on my progress stops me from turning around and going back home.

Now I just have to get the other girls to contribute a bit more often!

I think I'll go do a butt and thighs workout now. I feel like I owe it to you.

From the bottom of my stinky, sweaty, sore-muscled self: Thanks!

PS, I am finally almost over my cold! Back to the gym properly tomorrow, if all goes well!

Day 34 - Exercise and The Sniffles

Check out my yummy tea and awesome new tea infuser!

Today was my first day back at synchro after winter break.

In case you've never worn a tight cap and goggles and been upside down underwater with congested sinuses, I've got to tell you that it is kind of painful! I didn't want to miss practice (because I will be able to make very few practices for the rest of the season due to rotations), but it probably wasn't the right time for me to be back in the pool.

Pool feet. Let's try not to get warts.

Nevertheless, it was really nice to see all my teammates (almost - Anna was missing) and our coach, and get in the water for a couple of hours.


I've done a bit of a preliminary lit search to try and find out whether there is evidence suggesting either that you should do physical activity with a cold, or that you should not. As I've mentioned previously, it seems like everyone's got a different idea about it, and google turns up a wealth of completely unsupported, uncited, and unscientific recommendations.

A quick PubMed search dug up a number of articles discussing immune function and physical activity, but very little about whether you should exercise with a cold...in fact, nothing at all.

I did find an interesting study that suggested that people who engage in high levels of athletic training have upper respiratory tract infections (i.e., colds) more often. Immune effects of exercise don't seem to differ between women and men, but may become more pronounced in people with particularly high training load (i.e., lots of physical activity).

Will exercise scare a cold off? Should you exercise with a cold? No clue.

Other authors completely disagree - this study suggests that individuals who are physically fit and active experience fewer colds and are sick for shorter periods. The authors of this study also assert that physical activity reduces the risk of upper respiratory tract infection.

It's hard to know what to believe.

In fact, whether physical activity helps or hinders your immunity to colds may depend on a host of poorly-understood individual factors

So, in sum, I am still completely in the dark about whether I should work out with a cold, and now I also don't know whether physical activity will keep me from getting sick or will result in me being sick more often.

Huh.

Side note: My legs and bum hurt from yesterday's workout - I definitely wasn't expecting that!

Day 33 - 500 Bodyweight Challenge.

It was a day for Camino Dark Hot Chocolate and Reddit.

I'm pleased to say that I am starting to feel better already. I woke up still quite foggy and congested, but things seem to be clearing up ever so slightly today, and I imagine that I'll be feeling a lot better by tomorrow.

I briefly entertained the idea of going to the gym today, but the burning sensation in my nose deterred me from going outside and breathing in all that cold air on my walk over, and I decided to do a short workout at home instead. Anyone have a solution? I constantly feel like I'm about to sneeze.

Not me, but a reasonable facsimile of what I have felt like nearly every minute of the past few days.

For my activity today, I downloaded an app called 500 Bodyweight Challenge, which is a no-equipment-required home workout. 

I like bodyweight exercise because it's portable - you generally don't need any specialised equipment, and you usually don't need much space, either, so you can work out just about anywhere.

Perfect for those days when you don't want to leave the house and brave the snow and wind.

Of course, you only get out what you put in when it comes to bodyweight exercises. It's easy to coast through a routine with loose muscles and poor form, but if you pay attention to form and keep the appropriate muscle groups engaged, you can really get a great sweat going.

The app initially takes you through a video tutorial that teaches you how to complete a bunch of bodyweight exercises, including Cossacks, Y squats, and Squat Thrusts, among others. Then you get the chance to complete a challenge - 50 reps of each exercise. It's timed, which allows you to compete against other users and your own prior attempts. You get a chance to review a short video of each movement as you're doing it, which is helpful, as there are several activities in the set to remember.

Unfortunately, I did not make it through the entire challenge.

Nope, not that kind of dirty dog.

The penultimate exercise in the set, Dirty Dogs, was just too challenging, probably because I'm still not quite (read: not at all) recovered from whatever I've got. The attempt precipitated quite a coughing fit, and - feeling quite lightheaded - I had to concede defeat before completing the final exercise, Burpees. 

I think this would be a great little at-home workout under different circumstances, and I was impressed that I felt I was doing some cardiovascular work, not just strength training. I'll likely give it a try in the upcoming weeks and see if I have more success when I'm not feeling so yucky. 

If you've used this app, I'd love to know what you think of it.

Day 32 - Still sick.

Just a short post today because I am, as the title says, still sick.

I have spent most of the day in bed, subsisting on cups of instant miso soup and throat lozenges while coughing, sneezing, and generally feeling miserable. Whatever has hit me has hit me pretty hard. I'm entertaining the idea that I may have the flu, but I really hope that's not the case.

I did, however, yank my sorry butt out of bed for a 30 minute walk in the snow.

Please think some healthy thoughts for me, wash your hands regularly, and stay healthy and active.