Tag: exercise

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Peloton Classes

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As a sort of Christmas bonus, my husband’s boss gave him a Peloton bike and class membership. I’ll admit, I wasn’t enthusiastic about this, and thought that if the man had ever seen our tiny home he might have realized what an impractical gift this was. At the same time, it was also wildly generous, as anyone who has priced those bikes might attest. My husband accepted in this spirit, and found a place for it in the family room (where I had hoped to put a small sofa, but alas, it was not to be).

Since it was in such a prominent position in our home, and since it was all paid for, of course I gave it a try. The first few rides were hard on rear, but my Google research assured me that this would go away after a few more rides, so I keep on, and Google was right. I thought – hoped? – it might be a good cross-training exercise for me to do on the days I wasn’t jogging as I worked through the Couch to 5K program, and I think it has been very good for that.

The classes are all challenging for me, even the beginner ones, but I’m seeing progress as I keep on going. The instructors are fun, and I’m finding a few favorites. I also recently discovered their online classes for things other than using the bike. I guess they also make a treadmill, that we don’t have, but I can do the classes on the treadmills at the gym using my phone. They also have outdoor running and walking classes I can listen to on my phone, and well as yoga, meditation, and some strength classes.

Since I’ve finished the Couch to 5K program, I’ve liked having the treadmill and outdoor running classes to guide me along sine I’m not really sure what to do for my jogging now. I can’t usually keep up with the paces they are using, but since they aren’t live classes, and no one can see me or know how slow I’m going, I just do what I can, the best I can manage, and it’s been fun. They throw in general running/jogging tips that are great for me since I’m such a noob to the jogging thing and don’t really know much.

They also have ‘achievements’ the program keeps track of like, how many classes you’ve taken, how many days in a row you’ve exercised, how many miles you’ve ridden the bike, and that sort of thing. I’ve maybe gotten a bit obsessed with my daily streak. It goes up to 60 days, and I’ve been determined to make it there. I actually don’t have that far to go. Thank goodness, it will count any class you do. When I was sick last week, I just took a meditation class (and fell asleep – oops, maybe I need more work there too). Tonight, I was so sore from my jog this morning, and trip to the gym for weights, that I didn’t think I could handle riding the bike tonight, so I did a 10 min yoga class, and my streak is safe.

We never would have had the money to consider buying something like this for ourselves. Is it worth the cost though? Since we didn’t pay the cost, it’s hard for me to say. It’s pretty darn nice to have though. I’m very attached to the thing for someone who was resistant to letting in the house in the first place.

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Thoughts on Couch to 5K Week 5 Day 3

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I’m back at the Couch to 5K program. I think it was the same day my surgeon gave me clearance to start exercising again, i went out for the first session. I was told to take things slow and gradually though, so I’ve been doing most sessions twice before moving on, thus turning the 9 week program into closer to 18 weeks. But that’s all fine.

I just finished week 5 day 3. For those familiar with the program, this is the first really big day with no walking breaks. 20 min of jogging. Giving up the walking intervals is intimidating. I was doing some reading about the program, and read that this is the most common spot that folks will quit. The reason I was reading about the program was that I found it strange that this particular session happened at this point in the program, because week 6 day 1, the next scheduled session, has walking breaks back in again. Why would they do that, I wondered? Once you can do a run with no breaks, why go back?

My jogging trail. Photo by Kara Hartz

I don’t have an authoritative answer, but the most common theory I came across it one I think I agree with. I was very nervous going into the week 5 day 3 run. I was worried I wouldn’t make it all the way to the end. Because I’m taking things slow though, I figured I would just try again if I didn’t make it. At the same time, I really didn’t want to have to do it all over again, so I planned to try my best to get through. After that, I’d get my breaks back and I could go along happily. That, in a nutshell, is the theory about why they schedule it the way they do. If the walking breaks ended, and looking ahead at the rest of the program I saw that there would never be any walking breaks ever, my nervousness would have been much worse. I might have decided to stay at week 5 day 2 indefinitely, or until I felt ‘ready’ to move on. I might have quit.

It seems to be a psychological hurdle more, or at as much as, a physical one. Believing you can do it, and that it’ll be okay is one of the main challenges of week 5 day 3. Knowing you just have to get through the one time, and you’ll get walking breaks again helps with the mental battle you have to deal with. Really, the walking breaks don’t last much longer. By week 6 day 3, they are gone for good. They last just long enough to let you know you can do a jog without breaks and you’ll do fine, so when the walks are gone truly gone, you do feel ready.

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Slow Recovery

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I’m back up and around and functional after getting sick last week. I’m doing just about everything normally again, except running. I still have a deep, moderately painful cough that’s lingering. You probably know the type. I don’t think my lungs can handle a run right now since they could barely handle it healthy. I am back to walking though, and each day gets a little better so I plan to start up the C25K very soon.

I’ve reads that if the C25K program is interrupted for illness or injury, or anything really, you need to back up the same amount of time you were out for. So if you’re sick a week, you back up a week in the program from where you left off and start up again there. I was 2/3 of the way through week 2 when I got sick and that was 11 days ago. By my math, I should start the program over again from the beginning. Part of me thinks, “Darn it! I’m tired of starting over.”, but another part thing, “Phew. I didn’t feel good this round. I probably need more time in the early weeks anyway.”

I also started doing more of an isometric exercise for my abs when both my doctor and a very fitness knowledgeable co-worker recommended the same thing to me in the same day. The hope is it will do a better job of strengthening my abused abs more safely than what I was trying before. Haven’t been doing it long enough to have any results to report, but it does hurt much less, so there’s that.

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Couch to 5K Time Again.

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I started up the Couch to 5K running program yet again. This time I’m starting nowhere near NaNoWriMo! Not that it matters.

It was both harder, and not as bad as I thought it might be to get started again. So far, after the first two runs, I am much more winded after the running segments than I thought I’d be. On day 1, the minute of running felt so long. Too long. But today, only the second run, the minute was very do-able. Still I was breathing hard after even that short bit of running. All I can do is keep going, and trust that I’ll get better. If I need to, I’ll do each week twice, but I’ll keep going.

I maybe started a little too soon after being sick, as I’ve fallen into bad coughing attacks at the end of the runs, although today wasn’t as bad as last Thursday. One has to start somewhere though.

The part that was better than I’d hoped was my pace. That’s something that has improved very slowly, over many circuits through this running program. I always think that when I start the program over, I’ll have to start as slow as I did the previous time, but that’s something that seems to carry forward for me even through periods of not running. Unless this app isn’t accurate, which is possible, I don’t think I’ve ever managed a 10:28 pace so early in the program. I suspect as I do longer running intervals that will slow down since it will be harder to maintain lover longer periods. I remember, not all that long ago, thinking how if I could only get up to 12 min/mile, I would feel like I was doing well. 
I guess that’s part of the fun of this process. It’s always a little different, but I always get better. 

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Late Night Yoga

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My husband mentioned that he thought trying out some yoga with me might be good for him. I grabbed that comment and ran with it, getting him to agree to do yoga with me every night for a month (at least). I’m surprised he doesn’t seem to yet regret that promise, but last night, I kinda did.

It was late, I was tired, and SO not in the mood to pull the yoga mat out. But we did our video, and I’m glad. My painful abdominal muscle problem is still a problem in that when I try to do poses or moves that focus just on the abdominals, it hurts like a knife to the gut. On the bright side, we are on day five or six now and I haven’t had any of the cramping or pain at other times of day. So, is that improvement?

I’m supposed to make an appointment with my doctor for my yearly check up (they have left me messages, I really need to call back to get that scheduled – note to self) and I plan to ask about this.

The other night at the end of the video, laying in shavasana I rubbed my tired belly muscles. Then pushed at them to massage a little. That’s when I noticed that when I push in most places on my abdomen I can feel the muscles under the fat as a firm barrier. At my ostomy scar site, I just keep pushing in. There is nothing firm that I hit. I felt like I was poking my liver. Now, when I do this standing up, there is some firmness at the ostomy site too, so there must be some muscle there, but wow was it creepy at first.

I assumed the problems I was having was just dealing with scar tissue, now I’m wondering if there is more atrophy there or some such. Maybe I’m making ideas up, I don’t know. Could that be a thing? Well, I guess that’s on the list of questions for the doc as well.

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Ab Strengthening Setback

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As a follow up to my post a few days ago regarding my search for ab exercises that wouldn’t hurt all my abdominal scars – I guess I’m back to looking.

I must have strained or otherwise done something bad because I have found myself in significant abdominal pain for the past several days. All my ab muscles hurt, all over. Otherwise I might have been concerned there was a medical problem. At times on Friday, I was near tears with the pain. Yesterday was a little better, but only a little. Today is much better, and no longer feels like something is seriously wrong – now my abs feel like an overworked sore muscle.

This is a frustrating setback because of how little I was actually doing with my exercises. There really isn’t all that much I can cut back on. Do three reps of the pathetically easy exercises instead of six? Seriously, that’s about all I could handle doing in the first place. Will doing less even be enough to start building up any strength at all?

Grrrr.

Perhaps tomorrow I will hunt up a yoga routine that includes some ab work and try the ab specific exercises again in a few days. Now I’m not only out of shape and wimpy, I’m scared too.

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Getting Back in Shape – Abs Edition

Kara HartzLeave a comment

The pounds have flown back on since my ileostomy reversal. Some of that I expected – the weight I lost from being very, very sick for example. That was not healthy weight loss and I didn’t expect it to stick. But then, I admit, I let the holidays carry me along their happy cookie filled journey without a struggle. That’s showing up now in clothes that are a little snug, and a heavy sleepiness that hits me in the afternoons the way it hasn’t in a long time.

So it would be time for me to get back on my healthy eating, regular exercise bandwagon even if it wan’t the time of year for that sort of thing. I’ve been at it a few days now, and am already feeling better. The snug clothing part will take a little longer.

One struggle has been abdominal exercises. I’ve never had ‘abs of steel’, or even abs of anything remotely tough. Since the reversal though, any abdominal exercises I try hurt the scars (mainly the huge one where the actual stoma was, but even a little at the colon incision site). If you have an ab exercise you love, this is the place to share it. I’d love to try out some new exercises since I’m just not up for crunches yet.

A friend posted a workout video on Facebook that included a couple ab moves that were merely uncomfortable, not painful, so that’s what I’m doing for now, but I’d love to see what else is out there.

Happy New Year all – here’s to a healthy and happy 2017!

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I Didn’t Mean for it to Become a Trend

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I’m six weeks post-surgery now, so I’m allowed to start exercising and doing things again. So I’ve started up my Couch to 5K running training program. Today, I was looking over my outline as I prepare for NaNoWriMo. Then I realized I had linked these two events together yet again.

http://karabucreations.blogspot.com/2016/03/couch-to-5k-is-my-fitness-nanowrimo.html
http://karabucreations.blogspot.com/2016/06/couch-to-5k-and-nanowrimo-again-and.html

When I wrote those two previous posts, I’d thought it was sort of a humorous coincidence, and I liked the similarity in the determination and self -discipline I needed for both activities. I didn’t mean to forever attach them to each other.

I’d really love to believe this is the last year they will be attached. Not because I don’t love them both. I just hope to stay well enough to not need to restart Couch to 5K from the beginning again. The other times, I knew I wouldn’t be able to finish the program due to health restrictions. Now, however – I hope I remain hale and hearty and running well past the end of the program. If anything, maybe I’ll be looking into a program to take me from 5 to 10 K next year. A girl can dream.

I do plan to keep participating in NaNoWriMo ever year because – why not?

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Couch to 5k is my Fitness NaNoWriMo

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I participate in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month for the theoretical person out there who doesn’t know) every year, even when I know I don’t have the time or the energy to win. I just like to play. Mostly, I don’t hit my word goal.

Couch to 5K (or C25K since we all like to use the lingo, right?) is a running program that takes someone from not being a runner, to being able to run a 5K. I completed the program years ago and was so proud of myself. Then I hurt my foot and stopped running. Last year, when I was fed up with feeling crappy all the time I decided to start up again.

Things were much tougher for me then. I was very overweight and out of shape. After the first couple weeks of the program I had difficulty progressing, so I did each week twice before I felt strong enough to move one. I ran super slow. Most people could probably walk at the pace I was ‘running’. But I was still proud of myself.

Then I got lazy, and we went on vacation, and I generally neglected my running. Still, I wanted to do it, so I started over. That time I did better and got really close to finishing the program. . . and then I thought I had the flu, but actually had a perforated colon and got to spend some time in the hospital. It took longer than I expected to gain any strength back, but when I did, I started C25K all over again. My colon responded by acting back up again. Stupid colon.

Now I’m on the week 3 runs – for the fourth time in the past year, even though this time I knew going in that I would not be able to finish the program. That trouble-making colon is coming out in a couple weeks so I won’t be running for a bit as I recover.

So why bother restarting the training? The same reason I can’t not do NaNoWriMo. It makes me feel good. I’m proud of myself when I do it. Even though my efforts and results are not exciting compared to what I see others doing, they are pretty great for me. So after surgery, when my doctor says it’s safe – I’ll be starting my fifth attempt to get through the Couch to 5K program. Hopefully that will be the one I finish.

Oh – and, I’m signed up for Camp NaNoWriMo 2016 in April. I’m ‘karabu’ over there. Camp NaNoWriMo is similar to the November event, except you set your own word goal, and it doesn’t have to be all on one novel; any project is fine. Stop by and say Hi if you’re writing too!

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Daily Exercise with Books!

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I have been making a very strong effort to do some type of exercise for at least 30 min every single day. I’ve been doing this for long enough now to really feel the difference between when I’m on it, and when I’ve slacked off for a few days. My go-to exercise is walking. I love walking, and it isn’t too strenuous so I won’t try to avoid doing it.

One other habit I’ve developed, sort of accidentally, but it’s working so I’m going with it, is that I save my audiobook listening time for my walks. Now I’ve made it a rule. I can only listen to my book when I’m walking. Now I enjoy walking enough that this rule has never gotten me out walking when I otherwise would have shirked. It has, however, encouraged me to take a longer route, or keep going around the block one more time if I’m at an exciting spot in the story and don’t want to stop yet.

I’m currently on book three of the first Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson. These are big books so even with hour long walks these have lasted me a nice long while. The narrator, Michael Kramer, is amazing. There’s a large group of characters and they all have a distinct voice that adds to their personality. I highly recommend the book, or the audiobook if you want to try the walking thing.

Now my only problem is that now I’m doing the Couch to 5K running program three days a week, and I’ve learned I don’t listen well while trying to run. So I really miss my story on running days. I’m debating about changing my rule to compensate for this somehow. Still thinking.