Xena

I have no opinion about whether or no low/zero drop shoes are good for you. But if you are looking for some with a wide toe box, have you tried Altras? If you are looking for something zero drop and pretty cushioned, try the Torin. I think this is a great idea! If you wanted, you might add on some walking before and after the run to make the total time a little longer. It would get you used to blocking out a little more time for the workout. But I totally like you strategy of first just finding something you can stick to. Yay! Sounds like a big success in some tough conditions.

My lower back is a little tweaked from Bootcamp class. I have a hard time with a couple of the movements, especially when it's too much too fast. I should be more assertive about scaling that sh*t down. It should heal quickly though. I'm not too worried about it, but I want to be careful. 3 miles pretty easy today. Back was sore before I started, so I did a little foam rolling, which felt good. Running doesn't really seem to make it worse (similar to when I messed up my back more seriously a couple years back). Rolled a little more after I finished.

Looks great! Glad you've figured out the knee situation.

That sounds hard. As far as Titanium Mickey's PT, maybe she could start with the exercises she tolerates the best and work from there? Is there any way to scale the exercises that she finds painful? I'm suggesting these things just thinking it might help to separate laziness or lack of motivation ("I don't want to do any PT") from discomfort associated with specific exercises. I know the specific exercises are necessary. Maybe just getting into a solid routine of doing even sub-optimal PT exercises would help push her in the right direction. Does she have an appointment with the therapist soon? It might help for her to hear the tough love from someone else.

So glad you had a good trip to Scotland :-)

Glad you clarified....I automatically thought of Pavel Tsatsouline

Do what you need to. Come back whenever you think it would be helpful or fun.

Love hearing about your hiking adventure! It sounds like you are open to cooking some pretty easy food. Instant mashed potatoes are kind of a go-to item for me. So easy, cheap, light and kind of good. If you are bringing some kind of pre-cooked steak, that could go with it well. Also think it's great that you and the boys are doing the obstacle course together. I like the deal you have all come up with. They'll try the things they want, skip things they don't want, hopefully laugh a lot, and top it all off with a milkshake. Perfect.

Update: the cat is having a freaking awesome week. I heard a lot of running and some squeaking. He was chasing a mouse around. I'm having a not-bad-at-all week. I was able to sweep the still-alive mouse outside with a broom. The cat is now meowing and feeling a little confused.

That's a lot of aikido events, but they sound fun. I like the part of about joining the aikido seminar with your zen instructor.

Love your tattoo idea. And so far, doughnuts are my highlight for Week 1 :-)

Love the trampoline idea! Do it! I haven't looked through your spreadsheets so you may have specific things you want to put in your journal. If you are flexible about it, give yourself permission to "cheat" a little if you need to. Paste in a picture from a magazine and write about that. Or use a writing prompt. This was the first site I looked at...it's geared toward school kids, so many wouldn't really apply, but some do: https://www.dailyteachingtools.com/journal-writing-prompts.html Here's one geared a little more to adults: https://www.writerswrite.com/journal/prompts/ Here are two ideas from the second site that I thought sounded interesting: Write out your To-Do List for tomorrow but make it sound exciting, like you are going on a great adventure! What do you wish happened today? I also thought the quote you posted about "what is this trying to teach me" might be a good topic. ...but you probably have your own ideas for the journal, and that's great. Just get them onto the paper!

Maybe if you add enough bacon?

So true! Very wise. I kind of keep forgetting that I'm going it. I'm a bit undertrained, but it will be really fun. (and a perfect springboard into my upcoming trail races). Glad to have you here! It always makes me feel happier when I convince myself I'm giving my cat a good life. And of course doughnuts are nice to share. I pretty much always share any kind of meat or fish with him. Sometimes he want green onions. Once, inexplicably, he wanted a few leaves of a brussel sprout. This is the first time he's asked me for baked goods. The cat has leveled up :-) -------- Today was much better than yesterday. 5 miles in the morning. Legs felt pretty sluggish, but that's ok. Bootcamp after work. Taught my class today. That always stresses me out a bit leading up to it. I feel so much better when it's done. Going to run very easy tomorrow and try to shake my legs out a bit from bootcamp. It really should be a rest day, but I've decided "zero running day" is just too disruptive to my schedule. If I feel like running on a rest day, I'm going to do it, but just keep it short and easy.

Dark Raider obviously! I was trying to think of something cute to post. You are linked with Crossfit in my mind, so I found this. There are a couple different variants, but this one looks fun and not too miserable. Maybe good as a warmup.