Before and After Pictures

I think I mentioned a few posts below that over the summer I drove my car into my bedroom window.

I was working from home and playing hooky - to be more specific, I took a break to go to the neighborhood pool.  I did a quick swim and rushed home to return to work.   I carefully coasted into the driveway, just like I have a hundred times before, and gently tapped the break.  Except, somehow, it was the gas pedal instead.

I jumped out at the car, wearing only a Zoot bikini and flip flops, jaw agape.  I didn't know what to do, so I paced back and forth in the front yard for 20 minutes.  Every once in awhile, I glanced up to see if the damage somehow magically disappeared.

Eventually, I gathered my gall and called my husband.  He handled the words, "Dude, I just drove my car into our bedroom" surprisingly well.  It took me a little longer to come acquire the same ease, however, today I am ready to talk about it.

The previous owner converted the garage into a master bedroom.  David and I never loved the fact that the windows faced the street.   Lets call this the "Before Picture."

And I guess we can call this one the "After I Drove My Car Into the Window Picture" or shorten it to simply the "After Picture." 

The wall was boarded for a few weeks and then reconstructed.  We decided to forgo the window.  After our new wall was complete, I realized that it was now the perfect wall for supporting handstands.  And if I am going to be handstands, I figured, why not stop there?  And so, it has now become a family yoga corner.

Before:

              

After:

               

                                 

So....even though I am very pleased with the end-result, I do not recommend trying this at home.  I can't believe my husband still allows me to park the driveway. 



General Update about Stuff

The kids went to their annual doctor appointment where it was confirmed that they are indeed  taller and heavier than they were the previous the year.

So we have been busy doing BIG KID things.  For example, Brenna and I tried ice skating.  This was a good idea in theory.   It was less of a good idea when I realized I had no idea how to stop and suggested that we just "bang into the wall." 

They are also training for their next race.
So far we do not have the best track record.  During their first race, they sat down and screamed.  And then their second race was canceled due to rain.

Training thus far is trying to make it around the block.  Going around the block can be tedious because there are just so many things to pick up.  Like rocks.  And twigs.  And trash.  And abandoned chewed gum.

And as for me, I have been happily running and persistently swimming.  In fact, I swam 21 miles in August.  For me, that is a lot of miles in a pool.  I was at a pool almost every day!  Even in a lapse of childcare, I still went to Masters.  Thank goodness for computers, tablets and phones and $2 episodes of My Little Pony.

I feel like I should be a good swimmer.  I have crazy long arms and big hands.  Like a monkey.  But, also like Michael Phelps.

But apparently having nearly freakishly sized limbs does not help you at all if you cannot figure out how to control  them.  My elbow does not bend enough.  My hips do not rotate enough.  My wrist bends at the wrong time.  I take too many stokes.  Bla. Bla. Bla.

I strained my lat muscle though so for now, I can only run.  I cannot swim.
I CANNOT SWIM!!!

The injury did not happen in the pool, or even near the pool.  It happened in yoga class, while attempting a forearm stand.

This is my second yoga-related injury.
Who knew yoga could be so dangerous?

Then again, I seem to rather accident prone (Brenna should probably re-think ever going ice skating with me again).  I even ran my car into my own house.  Aside from 9-year old Stephanie Tanner, who does that?

Ah yes, the same person who injures themselves in yoga class.

Chin Stand

Life has been humdrum lately.
I'll say it:  I am bored.
Every day, be it a Monday or Sunday, is exactly the same.

I suppose this is normal when parenting young kids who crave consistency.  Every day they want to eat the same food, go to the same places and watch the same TV show.  Not only the same TV show, but the same episode.  Sometimes I go into the office to work.  Sometimes I go to my chiropractor.

I usually draw excitement from my racing but as you all can tell, it's non-existent these days.  There are a few reasons:
First, I mentally burnt out.
Next, I hurt my while practicing my coveted chin stand.
Finally, the top of foot started to hurt (most likely a pinched nerve).

After 2.5 weeks of bike rides, Master swim sessions, relentless icing, and drinking some nasty inflammatory supplement my mother gave me, I am back to pain-free, yet prudent, running.  Hood2Coast is in less than two weeks so I am teetering that fine line between staying in shape and staying un-injured.

Hood2Coast is going to be amazing - but it's not a typical race. I didn't train, nor do I have any expectations.

There is a part of me that wants to train for an upcoming triathlon, just to get that element of excitement back into my life.  But, you can't fake motivation.  You can only wait for it.

I was feeling down about my lack of progress this year, in ANYTHING - fitness related or not - but slightly uplifted after attending a mid-day yoga class over the weekend.  This is an usual thing for me to do and quite the treat.  I learned a new pose that is similar to the chin stand, but much less demanding on your back.  After failing at my chin stand goal, this gave me a small and much needed lift. Sometimes the small things make me smile the most.

I have no idea what this pose is called, but you start in an arm stand, like you are about to breakdance:

 

And then you tripod using your chin and your arms:

And finally you extend your legs, while still balancing on your arms, into the air!!

This kids are not impressed in the slightest.  But they wouldn't blink if I was doing backflips while juggling bananas so it doesn't put a damper on my only recent success story.  

I also get the satisfaction of crossing "chin stand" off my to-do list.

CHIN STAND

I hope Hood2Coast rekindles my relationship with running.  Although I will be sleep deprived, I think it may also be refreshing.  Even though I have whined and complained about wanting a vacation for years, I cannot remember the left time I left the state.  Maybe we just all need a break, even from the things we love the most.

Feeling a Bit Burnt Out

I don't know if its the summer heat, or just lack of giving myself a substantial break, but I am feeling rather burnt out.   Nik, maybe that is I did not update for a full week - my facebook feed is full of people who are always training for a half Ironman, if not a full Ironman, so it seems a bit wussy to be burnt out from doing 5Ks and sprint triathlons.

My body is not encouraging me either because I pinched a nerve in my lower back.  It either happened from not properly getting out of full-camel position, or during my nightly attempts at chin stands.  I was feeling pretty awesome about being able to do a chin stand, but just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should.  At least without learning the proper form first.

My yoga teacher used the term "over-compressed" so my chiropractor has since "decompressed" me twice.  But, my low back still feels weird.  However, when I was image Googling chin stands to find a picture, I found a bunch of other poses I want to try so clearly I have not learned my lesson.

So, the solution to feeling burnt out seems rather simple - I should just take a break, right?  But my life is so compartmentalized:  my family time - my work time - and my hobby time (with also is my alone time and my social time).  If I don't have my hobby, I have a void.

But it's not so much that I don't WANT to run, it's that I don't want to HAVE to run.

Recently, my son has been obsessed with my Garmin.  Every day, for a few weeks, he has asked for a "running watch that he can put on his bike."  I finally found a stop watch that could fit his little wrist.  It's not a Garmin, but it has stop and start buttons...the only two features he cares about.

It's not unusual for me to feel this way during this summer.  And although it has been awhile, it is not unusual for me to give my Garmin a break and run just to run.   I am considering temporarily trading watches my son.  My only hesitation is can I trust him to not put my Garmin in the toilet?

The irony in all this is I just agreed to get coached.  This was my first week and I blew off 75% of the workouts.  Even though my mind wants to be motivated, I just cannot fake it.  Or force it.

So, despite the fact I do not want to write this, I declare July a recovery month.  In August, I am doing Hood2Coast and I will end the season with one last triathlon in September.

Even though the heat has made me officially surrender, my kids are handling it better than they were a few weeks ago.  We have been having fun at the pool.

And the movies.

And Hayden discovered that if he wears his hat and his sunglasses, the sun will stay out of his eyes!

Yoga.....

I've been feeling a little unmotivated lately.
Not in regards to running, or even biking or swimming....just racing.  And training.

It always disappoints me how quickly I get burnt out.  While my peers continue to train for upcoming half Ironman and full Ironman races, I do a few sprint triathlons and feel the desperate need to take a break.  It's not the amount of activity that wears me down, but the amount of obligation.  I don't want to have to run or have to bike or have to swim...I want to simply do whatever I feel like doing.

Reading that last paragraph alone would make one believe that I have been tethered to a training plan,  committing each morning to a pre-determined workout, whether I liked it or not.  But I have not used a training plan in years, I just make sure I bike and swim XX amount per weeks in addition to my running.  I guess my whining stems from the weeks I don't want to bike or swim.  The weeks I want to trail run every day.  Or sleep in.  Or do yoga.

I really love to trail run.  And sleep.  And do yoga.
And sometimes, I don't feel like I get to do them enough.

Although I always aim for efficiency with any activity, hence my running errands.  I am also known to strike yoga poses anytime the situation surfaces.  Like while I am volunteering at a water-station during a race.

This explains why the kids have been spotted doing downward dog in places where you don't expect to see a butt in the air, such as the grocery store or Home Depot.

 However, we do try stick to more socially-acceptable places, like our living room:

Or backyard.  And while Brenna does have a beautiful one-leg downward dog, she can only marvel at my headstands.  (My chiropractor forbade from headstands so this photo is rather incriminating). 

Yoga is not really about balancing on your head though, it's about balancing life.  And I think that is what burns me out.  It's not really about having to go to Master's swim or ride my bike, but  doing those things on top of all that motherhood stuff.  

Someone suggested I use them as a coach (rather than a recreational track workout) and I want have to the motivation to say, ".Yes, Lets do it!"  I feel like I plateaued this year and this is perhaps the arm to help me pull me up to the next level.  On the other hand, if I cannot even handle going to Master's swim once a week without feeling overwhelmed, how can I promise more? 

I've dabbled in coaching before and I immediately had the urge to break all the rules. I've always been one to do the opposite of what I am told...it's like yoga, something about it just feels good.

Moving Onward

Recovery from my epic fail has been rough.

Not so much mentally - that was surprisingly easy.  I guess I still ask myself, What the hell were you thinking going out so fast??  But it really didn't feel  that fast in the moment.

Ahhh, living in the moment...it has brought me some of my fondest memories, yet it never fails to leave me its mark on me the next day.  This was no different - I woke up on Sunday morning with a feeling that was eerily reminiscent of my Sunday mornings in college.  Lets just say that I lived in the moment quite often.

I think my brain is back to its state of functioning - although since having kids, "functioning" really isn't saying much.  My house is riddled with sticky notes, my phone is set with reminders and yet I still cannot remember anything.  But I am not sure I can blame the kids for that - maybe I should be blaming all those living in the moments moments.

Luckily for my brain, there is no time for spontaneous living anymore since I am too busy hanging out with these two:

You know, doing yoga with Brenna...

and playing dressup with Hayden....


Our big adventure this week was eating hotdogs at Costco:


Yup, it is a very exciting life - we even put relish on that hot dog.  We may not live in the moment but we certainly enjoy them.

And please take note that my kids are eating a hot dog with a FORK.
We are all about fine dining.