I did it!

Never thought I would see the sun rise this morning!  That was a nice bonus to getting up at 6:30. I was in bed at midnight last night (earlier than usual!) but had a very restless sleep, knowing my alarm was set to go off at 6:15. I remember tossing and turning, looking at the clock at 6:08...  My husband can verify that I LOVE my bed in the morning - it takes a LOT for me to decide to crawl out of it on a regular day!  This morning took about 12min of pep talking myself before I left the comfy warmth of my covers. Even though I was over-heating (was wearing winter-weight PJs), I could have easily just gone back to sleep, especially since I was tossing and turning all night. I was really tired!

Now it's 9am - I've done a 30min intense workout, ate breakfast, sent my son and hubby off for the day,  listening to some tunes while catching up on email, twitter and updating my blog. Wow!  I don't think I've ever gotten that much accomplished by 9am!! Once I'm done this post, I'll grab a quick shower and get my youngest son up for the day (he likes to sleep in like his momma).  Talk about feeling ahead of the game!  Love it!

Before and after photos from this morning. (finally - notice the time below the TV - 6:32 and 7:12)

I must remember this great feeling of accomplishment the next time I want to get up early for a workout!


Before signing off, a brief update on this week's activities:
Monday - schedule conflict - I'll go swimming on Wednesday instead
Tuesday - Kathy Smith 30min workout, running 20min with Running Room clinic
Wednesday - swimming 45min followed by soccer 1hr
Thursday - maybe bellyfit 1hr...  I must say, I sweat a TON more during the 30min KS workout this morning that I have in any of the bellyfit classes...
Friday - Kathy Smith in the morning again?  Maybe.... It's my son's birthday - still have to plan his party and now I've got the rest of today to do just that!

Changing priorities

I've played team sports my entire life - volleyball and soccer in grade school, volleyball and softball during high school and volleyball, soccer and softball post-college to present-day. In fact the only time I didn't play sports was during college, other than the odd intramural.

There are a few things I love about team sports:

• the games are scheduled - I have always been the type that schedules my life around my games - they are priority #1 (not all team players can say this and I've experienced the frustration of having more than one on many teams...)
• the competition is invigorating - although I don't like to lose, I'm usually happy just to get out and play and do my best
• doing my best is usually pretty good - I'm not an Olympian by any stretch, and there are always one or two teammates more skilled than me, but I'm usually one of the better players on the team.
• my self-confidence is strong - My friends would see a very different side of me if they played on a team with me. Honestly, I only truly feel like 'myself' when I'm participating in a sports team. That's not an easy thing to admit - motherhood has taken it's toll on my confidence in general (as it does for a lot of mothers!) and playing sports is my release from the doubts and guilt - when I'm on the field I know exactly what I should or shouldn't be doing. Even when I screw up, I'm able to shrug it off and try harder next time.
• of course, the EXERCISE! - almost as a side-affect, the cardio benefit from soccer has been, until recently, the only thing that has kept my weight in-check.

If you've been following my blog, you'll know I recently added swimming and running to the mix - they aren't team sports - and lately I've been finding it harder to make them a priority. I haven't gone swimming since my classes ended and I haven't gone running in weeks... I've *thought* about doing both almost daily though!

A couple weeks ago I finally found my way to the YMCA to meet with a personal trainer (as part of my Y-Champion commitment, I was allowed 2 sessions). I haven't worked out in a gym since before having children - 5+ years now! It was great to use free-weights again, not so great to be doing so in front of strangers and all those mirrors... Alison, my trainer and fellow Y-Champion who ran the 1/2 marathon in the Blue Nose, put me through my paces and developed a simple free-weight routine I can do in 1/2hr at home. "Perfect", I thought. "I'll just schedule it into my days, twice a week." Well that was over two weeks ago and I've done the workout once!

Holding myself accountable has never been my strength. I can create the perfect schedules for all kinds of things like housework, workouts, meal-planning, etc. but when it comes time to follow-through, I tend to fall off the wagon within days or weeks, sometimes even within hours of creating another one of my TimePoster masterpieces!

I guess that's my biggest attraction to team sports, it takes the accountability bit out of my hands. Funny how I will attend every single game - unless I'm deathly ill or out of town - but try to 'attend' a 1/2hr workout in my basement is nearly impossible! And there's even less to be concerned with - I don't need to arrange for child care!

I'm going to need some help with this - help to make my OWN schedule a priority. Do you have any tips, suggestions, clues that will help? How do you fit the 'unnecessary' necessaries into your daily life - like working out, housework, life-planning, etc...??

Who inspires me?

Two weeks ago I went to visit a good friend. She was housebound, in recovery from a major operation and it had been a while since we got together to chat. As is always the case for us, we talked about business - we're both WAHMs, creating websites for clients from our home studios. But what was different this time - we talked about working out, heart-rate monitors and healthy eating - mainly how does she get her boys to eat the healthy choices she includes in her regular meals?

Michelle at my son's birthday party - 2007

My friend, Michelle, has been a huge inspiration to me from the first time we got together with our babies, over five years ago. Back then, we would steal away once a week to Starbucks, indulge in their high-fat, high-sugar, over-priced treats and teas, and talk about life, websites, clients and mostly, MOTHERHOOD and how much it transformed our lives. We only laughed about what we SHOULD be eating, or SHOULD be doing for exercise, not exactly the picture of health. The thing I admired or was inspired most about Michelle was her keen business sense and her ability to focus on her work, even amidst the ciaos that surrounded her on a daily basis (having twin boys can do that!). I am proud to call her a truly "good" friend!

Michelle NOW!

Recently, my admiration for and inspiration from Michelle has come in a completely new package, literally! She has made a huge lifestyle change in the past 2 years. Michelle is a shadow of her former self and looks absolutely fabulous. I highly recommend reading about her journey on her blog: www.uncoveringme.com. Now, I'm not surprised by her transformation - Michelle is a very determined woman - and when she decided it was time to make some changes in her life, those changes happened! She has a lot of support from her trainers, family and friends of course, and she gives them all props in her blog, but ultimately, MICHELLE was the one that made the decision and did whatever it took. And for that, Michelle, YOU deserve credit and my full admiration!

Now I find myself turning to the inspiration of Michelle for my own fitness goals. If you've been following my blog, you'll know I am quite active. I play soccer year-round, softball in the summer and recently added swimming and running to my routine. I've always been active in team sports - it's my preferred form of exercise. But lately I've noticed a shift in my thinking, and a shift in my fitness needs. Maybe it's because I recently celebrated my 35th birthday? Or maybe its because I know this body is done having babies and now belongs solely to MOI again? Stay tuned for future insights into my fitness shift...

All things change, and friendships aren't immune. You can always tell good friends from acquaintances - the good ones are still there to chat, even if it's been months or years. I have to admit, I struggle with keeping in touch with my "good" friends, and I hope if you're reading this, you will forgive me and send me an email or call! :-)

Running and Soccer and Swimming... OH MY!

Those of you who know me know that I've kept myself active by being involved in team sports nearly my entire adult life. Well, in the last 36hrs I was involved in all three of my current activities...  

RUNNING

Lake Banook - next time I'm going to bring my camera for my own pic, but this is pretty much how it looked

Yesterday morning was a gorgeous spring day - the sun was shining, there was no wind and the air was crisp and fresh.  Jill and I started out on our run at around 9:30am. With pants, T-shirt and light jacket, I felt the coolness of the air just enough to tell my body "get moving legs so we'll warm up!" And warm up we did! It was our best time yet. I forgot to map out a new route with less hills, but it was probably for the best - we know this route, where the hills are and when we can push ourselves. So I timed us while we were running, but forgot to time the walk part - I'll get it right soon enough! (I don't know the total time with walking because I forgot to stop my watch, but it was somewhere between 1:05:00 and 1:15:00) But, I do know we ran a total of 0:26:36  and the last big push was up the hill from the lake to the intersection by the mall. We both felt the burn and our heart-rates were in the 105% range - so it was good. Next week I'll get it right and plan for a 10min run, 1min walk - I think we're ready, right Jill?

SOCCER

Turf fields at Dalhousie U where we play spring soccer

Ahhhh.... spring soccer has begun. As mentioned above, it was a perfect spring day - so UNLIKE the weather we usually have for spring soccer - I'll take it!!  It was definitely cooler by the 6pm start, but a long-sleeve shirt under my jersey was all I needed by the end.  We won this game, 1-0 which is a fantastic way to start the season. I was exhausted by the end, but loved the feeling of being on the turf, playing with the team again. Boy are my abs hurting today though!  I do a lot of the throw-ins from the side and you probably wouldn't think abs are involved, but TRUST ME - they are the hardest working muscle group. My abs always remind me they're still there after our first outdoor game. Already looking forward to next week's game. Go BANSHEES! :-)

SWIMMING

The pool at the Dartmouth Sportsplex where I go swimming twice a week.

Tonight's workout was extra hard on the aforementioned abs - I'll pay for this tomorrow! But I love it. A good friend of mine writes about her training experiences and how she is realizing that she loves to push herself - I couldn't agree more. I have always loved the feeling of muscle pain after I've pushed myself. (a bit sadistic, I know) Even better is when, like in soccer, I do it without even realizing it.  (Although to be honest, I do try to get the ball further into the field with every throw - my teammates can attest to that!) At swimming tonight we practised our streamline - aka lots of dolphin kicking under the water. Before taking these lessons, dolphin kicking to me was from the knees down... As I've learned, it's much more about the ... you guessed it... ABS!  I wonder if I'll be able to get out of bed tomorrow...

Check back to see how I'm feeling later this week! Until then, be sure to sponsor me if you haven't already!  THANKS!

You can help me reach my goal in support of the YMCA Strong Kids by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=2103855

Thanks for your support!
Corinna