nanako

Still nursing that cold - no running and I could only squeeze in 12 incline push-ups. Strangely enough my back seems better after the sun salutations and planks on Monday. Turns out that moderate exercise is a better way of dealing with it. No big surprises there. The university sports clinic offers free osteopath consultations for staff so I'll try and get an appointment. Oh yes and I'm doing the park run on Saturday - hope to be alright by then cold-wise. We're defecting and are doing the flat one in Little Stoke, not the hilly local one. So I'm in for a fast race, or so I hope ! EDIT Oh yes ! I got a place in the cub race which is the little sister of, and held along, the insane-multi-multi-multi-terrain-bog-and-beach-and-far-too-many-hills-with-a-Buddhist-twist Grizzly race (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-Y92Oe7K10). Mind you, I'm, only doing the 9 miler, the full grizzly is a twenty-miler. I signed up for the raffle, got a place, couldn't pay at the time, and then something happened and they reopened the registration and now I'll be able to enter which is probably a sign or something. So I'm definietely doing it. And I signed up for the Thunder run next year as well. Race calendar slowly filling up. :-)

Always difficult to negotiate all those appointments when you're so sought-after ! I'm sure Scott will be ok though. Gutted, but ok.

Congratulations on winning that scholarship !Tell us what it's like ok ?

No, I got struck down by the common cold that had been lurking in my lungs. No running today either I'm afraid.

I've had great success with taking a spoonful of crushed and soaked chia seeds every time I feel a cold creeping up on me. Works on the kids as well. I also take chia after long runs when I feel drained of energy. I've tried supplements as well, especially zinc, but there's something in the seeds that works a lot better. They seem a bit pricey at first but it's been my best investment so far.

Went to Zazen meditation this morning. It was great ! First time after 6 or 7 years. Will integrate into weekly routine. :-) No running this morning (Meditation class starts at 7 am) - I think I'll do my fast run around the block later tonight. Good thing about short runs is that you are really flexible. Hah ! I nailed this. Now, find a cleaner.

Aaw, if you're drinking loads and eating tacos, at least you should get to feel good about it ! Well done on turning the challenge around ! As German said, you can totally rock this, easily.

Great work on the challenge. They have ParkRun in Australia now ? That's awesome ! I love Parkrun.

That was one weird day. ;TLDR: I have two kids and work full-time -> I get stressed -> I'm getting a cleaner and am taking up meditation again. I had a doctor's appointment to have my thyroid checked. I still have anger issues, and I want to get to the bottom of this ... anyway I talked to my GP and he said, well, you can very rarely get aggression from thyroid issues, but usually it's just that you're stressed. At that point I had a little internal meltdown, so I really had to concentrate hard to look nice and nod while he talked me through some leaflet where they are offering counseling. I walked home (only 2 minutes) and started bawling right away. Of course I get stressed ! - I work full time, and overtime - I have two kids under 7 - I do all the housework (my husband looks after the kids, does the shopping, and is a very good cook, but he's useless with cleaning) - I try to fit some sports in and look decent - we are living in a foreign country so everything is a bit more difficult and less intuitive than at home - I have to do most of the official BS because my language skills are better than my husband's I was talking to a mum from school recently and she told me how depressed she was that her little boy was starting school now, and how she felt empty and directionless. I was trying to be sympathetic but I was shocked at how different our lives are. She works one day (!) a week. I have always worked since I was 16, but I have made some idiotic misinformed choices, which means I now hold a job which is very en vogue and 'ethical' but requires a PhD, mobility, and lots of travel and overtime while providing no job security and a rubbish salary. My husband also works in a potentially high-profile job but has been working part time until now to look after our daughter. We were ecstatic that our daughter would start school because it would free up so much of my husband's time and so much money (~ $800 a month) spent on nursery fees up to now. It was so strange to talk to her. She doesn't have to work and her husbandearns bucktsfull of money doing something with digital TV. I'm not exactly jealous, I wouldn't mind being a housewife and I'm sure it has its challenges. It was just that her life is so different. I felt I was form another planet. Anyway. What about you guys ? Do you get stressed ? I do get stressed. And exhausted. I get stressed and exhausted ALOT. I should get a cleaner. So following my meltdown at home today, my husband, who is actually quite clever, sat me down and said: - you have to stop stressing - you have to stop taking things so seriously - you have to start meditating again. I've known you for amost ten years now and that's the only thing that helps. So, yeah, that's where I am right now. I'm going back to my dojo tomorrow. I'm getting a cleaner. One weird day, I'm telling you. ;TLDR: I have two kids and work full-time -> I get stressed -> I'm getting a cleaner and am taking up meditation again.

Thanks guys !

By the way I stumbled upon this when reading up on your challenge: That is just what got me into gig rowing. I believe running along towpaths should be re-evaluated as a gateway drug.

Looks like you're winning this one.

*breaks down sputtering coffee, laughing tears*

This is starting well ... ... Woke up at the sound of the buzzer at 6am, with a slight cough on my chest and my first thought was "I CAN'T RUN !!!" So much for motivation. Managed to put on the shoes however (it's always a "go" from there, isn't it ? I've never taken the shoes off again) and went out really easy. I ended up doing a 9.45 min/mile. which is pitiful even for me, given that I only run 1.5 miles. Ah well. 10 a-t-g squats, 12 incline push ups, 40 sec plank.

More thoughts: I am trying to work out what my next goals will be. Next up for the 10K is stay under one hour - my last one was 1:01.46 so that's easily within reach, maybe even now. After that, I want to go towards 55mins. What I want most of all is get my 10K time to around 8.30 min/mile. This is the threshold for the slightly better runners at my club, meaning you get to do the "interesting" club runs, trail and off-road and that kind of thing. Slower than that, it's only women, old people or newbies, always circling the Harbourside. I still want to get into that slightly better bracket.

Hey, this sounds really good and makes a lot of sense ! Personally I know I wouldn't be able to pull it off everyday but if you do, it is surely the best and healthiest way to handle it. Well done !

Klaymates, that is indeed awesome ! I think you'll do great, I believe Biel has a thing for crazy long distance things ? Only maybe less funky.

He's doing fine ... if a bit crazier than he was around here.

I've done some more planning for my speed goal. When I was younger, I used to run for about twenty minutes every day and I was insanely fit doing fine. Too old, too fat and too slow now to do that; but I think I can manage 12 minutes every weekday morning and (possibly) something more fancy on the weekend. I'll only do a few laps around the block here - I've worked out one lap which is roughly 1K and today I was starting 2K at 9 mins/mile. I had been expecting to be able to go ALOT a bit faster, but when I started, I noticed I had trouble breathing - maybe a slight cold ? In the long run :cough: I'd like to go faster and go further - I'll try and just stick to the 12 minutes and go round and round the block, see where I end up. I'm logging my runs on a site called smashrun which seems kind of fun. You get rewards for running fast, running everyday, and so forth ... I love rewards ! My first goal will be to do the park run in four weeks in under 29 minutes. Looking at my times that should be doable. Park run is a UK free weekly timed 5K - very good if you want to keep track of how if you improve. Our local course is a mean bitch, straight uphill for 2.5km and then back down. The weight loss goal is tied to the speed goal. Sadly, I am very complacent about my looks and size on an everyday basis (UK size10/12 which is 6/8 US I think). From a distance, I look moderately fit with a solid layer of fat all around which I tell myself is fine. I've given up on letting myself be photographed to avoid the shock of not recognizing myself. But there is no way I can improve my speed any further if I keep eating like this. So at least some of the weight must come off. I am aiming for 68kg as a first goal - 5kg to lose. And yes I was at 71 not so long ago ... before I started eating bread again. > For this challenge, losing 2-3kgs should be fine - will probably be easier in the beginning due to the water weight. So summing up - I'm thinking 70kg and a sub 29 minute 5K by the end of these 4 weeks - fairly palpable goals I should think.

Hi PB, sorry to hear about your bad luck here hun ! I know you'll spin this challenge to make it into a massive upper body training program. Woot ! Re diet, I'm trying out the Tim Ferris-style approach - it's basically paleo with beans and one obligatory (!) cheat day every week. He claims it keeps your metabolism from slowing down too much, or something. Works surprisingly well for me. Over the week when you get cravings, you tell yourself "I'll eat that on Saturday". On the cheat day, I enjoy stuffing my face with bread, chocolate and pasta but have noticed that I end up overdoing it much less than I'd have thought I would. I do get crazy mood swings on the cheat day, but overall I feel ALOT better the rest of the week. I reckon it's also better for the psyche than "failing" ever so often, and more effective eventually.

Thanks PB, yeah, bummer ! I just looked up you thread - Monks is it ? Hope your ankle feels better soon ! Thanks Colin, you make me feel most welcome ! *beams* *pushes way the mental image of 18ck bribing those waves (but with what ?) to bring me back to the Scouts*

Just popping in for a sec to say hi ! Seems like you're all doing some awesome work again on the challenges ! I injured my back while bodyboarding over the holidays so all my Assassin goals - backbends, pull-ups, push-ups - are off for me right now. I can still run though, so I'm over training with the scouts if you need me. Hope to be back soon.

Just popping in here to say I'm back with you guys for the next 4 weeks ! Hurt my back bodyboarding so assassin-style workouts are not for me right now. I can run though, so I figure I'll focus on speed and that's why I'm here, hope that's alright ! Happy to be here again !

Wrapping up three weeks to late - I know nobody's reading this but I feel the need to do it. I did well on goal A, and I did badly on goal B. I finished the paper (draft) and my colleague contacted me, eager for more collaboration, so that's a big fat A+. Goal B, before my holiday, I did some serious training I can be proud of. I didn't run in my holiday, and I didn't run after. On the day before the half, my husband and I had free childcare (kids were staying at friends' houses) and so we went out for a drink. The next day, I started the race dehydrated, felt great for 10 miles, and cramped over the last 3.1 miles which really, really, really, really, really, really hurt. There were people walking next to me, going faster than I was in my mock-running. I finished, but the time was 2.31 something, which works out at a 11.14 min/mile. Ah well. So that's a lesson learned, I guess. Still I should say I managed to keep up my 10K average 10.30 min/mile pace for 10 miles, which was good. I didn't cut after all, so I didn't lose any weight. Overall, I think a C+ would be adequate. So I think can level up after writing a 100 times: "I will not drink alcohol the day before a race (and will always carry some electrolyte gel when running further than 10K)."

Hi my lovely fellow scouts, I'm back (late as per usual) with you for a bit ! When on holiday in Cornwall, I managed to break my back - at least it felt like it - while body boarding. A wave smashed my upper body down while hurling my lower body up, resulting in a very unhealthy forced back bend. Not good. I had been training back strength (pull-ups) and back bends (bridges and all) with the assassins and that, right now, is definitely off for the time being. My GP says not to worry, but when I do push ups, pull ups, or even slight back bends, I still hurt. So I'm back with you for my next great fitness goal, which is running faster. To achieve this I will 1) run a 2K-fast every morning 2) eat low carb paleo (with beans and a little dairy) 6 days a week with an obligatory cheat day 3) do some basic yoga and strength training every day after my run to regain flexibility It's not much - twenty minuts, maybe half an hour every day - but it should be enough to lose a few pounds and beat my post-race and post-injury lethargy. (Yes I did do that half - don't ask ! Another typical Nanako story ...) So, consistency it is. Happy to be here again ! PS If I feel like doing more I will. I know my running club "friends" will harass me into running more, and on top of this, I'm resolved to join the Pilot Gig Club from next week - another group of irresponsible friendly drinkers with an exercise problem ! Let's see how that pans out. PPS I forgot to say that I don't eat after 7pm (ish), which has really helped (I've been doing this for a week now).