I Love Hot Yoga--Really

All evidence to the contrary, I love hot yoga. My first foray was in Monterey. After my first class, I almost passed out.  Fun times.  But I went back. I enjoyed the repetition of the poses and the visible progress. I sweated it out and became more bendy and stretchy. Not a whole lot more, but enough that I could actually do all 26 of the asanas and touch my toes. (That was actually a big deal). When we left Monterey for points East, I never got back into it.

Fast forward eleven years:  I am not bendy or stretchy.  Everything hurts. The docs and the PT peeps say arthritis, blah, blah, meniscus, blah, blah, you need to bend and stretch EVERYTHING. Blah.

I bought this yoga bag in Monterey.  Now it is
filled with a new mat, a soaking wet towel, and
my empty water bottle.  The towel on top is
necessary and full of snot and sweat.

So I am back. Luckily, there is a wonderful studio right here in Coronado.  And they have a military discount. 

Last time it was a fun class that pushed me forward and made me feel good. This time it's more like a last ditch effort to move without pain.  Sounds fun, right?

I cannot do all 26 poses. Yet. 

I cannot touch my toes. Yet.

I don't feel good. Yet.

The upside to all of this, is I know I will see progress. I know I will get to all of those poses.  I will improve. I will touch my toes.  

Just not yet.

Thoughts from the Elliptical

Today started out pretty much the same as every other day lately: a chair, a cup of coffee, and a computer.  But as I scrolled through my Facebook feed, I saw all of the Veterans' Day posts. On my second cup of coffee, I saw a picture of the #RunMuchLove coin we created for the CDR Jason Much Memorial Birthday Bash 5K. As I contemplated eating one of the donut holes from the box on the counter, I saw that Brian was out running. Again. Brian is running 2,017 miles in 2017 as part of the Run the Year Challenge.  And as I scrolled some more, I saw the video of Rob Jones Journey.  Rob, a double-amputee and veteran, was running his 31st Marathon in 31 Days.

Time to get up. I laced up my brand spanking new Hoka One One's and headed over to the base gym. 

Hoka One One (Ho-Kah Own-ay Own-ay)

Why the gym and not just heading out the door to run?  Well, I am old and falling apart.  Colorado just about did me in with migraines.  Before my inactivity pushed me past the point of no return, I visited the doctors, plural.  I now have the most painful orthotics ever made and PT on the calendar.  And a directive to use the elliptical instead of walking and running.

Today was my second trip to the elliptical.  The first trip was uneventful.  30 minutes on the Precor elliptical.  Today?

Started out by picking a different machine.  I wanted to see which kind I liked best.  So, I went down the row and picked out the one that wasn't in front of the TV tuned to Fox News and claimed it by putting my water bottle in the holder.  Unfortunately, there wasn't a bottom on the water holder.  It fell to the ground, burst open, and spilled half its contents all over the floor.  After sopping up the water with the towels provided to wipe down the machines, I went on the hunt for a LifeFitness elliptical, not in front of Fox News, AND with a working water bottle holder. 

Success! I chose the Fat Burn option and entered all the pertinent details (ouch). The levels and resistance for this work out were determined by heart rate. It told me to aim for a heart rate of 114.  Seriously?  I was above that just stepping onto the elliptical.  So, I just did my thing, my HR was way over 114, and the resistance was low.  I set the time for 50 minutes, because that's about what it takes me to do a 5K with my run/walk intervals.

The rest of this story is just plodding along.  My feet got a little numb.  Not sure if it's the new shoes or the different machine. I will retry the Precor, and try this other weird looking Arc Trainer.  

On a side note:  I learned a lot about Major League Fishing.  1) You need to dip your stealth lures in small fish scent.  2) Put sponsor stickers everywhere. 3) If you are unable to reel the fish in, throw your rod down and throw a tantrum. 4) Still better than Fox News.

Again.

We've moved. Again. I'm running. Again.  

I know, I know. You've heard it all before. Guess what? So have I, but I keep trying. 

We have left the high altitude. I am hopeful that being at sea level and in the nearly unchangeable clime of Coronado, I will experience fewer migraines associated with exercise.  

Fingers crossed.

I started out last week.  I mapped out a 5K route and walked it.  3 times! Today, I began to run. Slowly. 

For the first time, I began with 1:4 intervals.  One minute running, four minutes walking. I did it.  So far, no migraine.  Next up will be 1:30 minutes running, 3:30 minutes walking.  I will check back in after I take that gigantic leap in training.

Here we go. Again.