Interview w/Myself

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, so I hope Hannah is flattered that I stole her interview format for this post. :)

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So, how was your weekend?

Good.  Busy, but good.

Busy, huh?  What did you do?

Well, on Saturday we had the Cross-Town Tournament: Savoy vs. Centennial at boot camp. 

Today I was up brite and early, rode my bike to the grocery store, did a BUNCH of yardwork, started laundry, made a pasta salad and a pot of soup, went to a cookout for my Mom’s birthday, played with her dogs and came home to some more housework.

That cross-town tournament sounds fun.  Did you win?

Oh, no.  We got smoked.  It was a best 2 out of 3 tournament: Dodge Ball, Danish Long Ball and an obstacle course.  We lost the first 2 rounds so we didn’t even need to play the third.  But we did.  And still lost.  That Savoy team is tough.

Is there anything you didn’t do?

Yep. I didn’t go out.  Not once. Not even to watch the Illini game.  And I didn’t go running, watch any of my Netflix movies OR read any one of the three books I have started.

How ’bout those Illini?

Yeah, pretty awesome, huh? I didn’t watch the whole game, but I kept checking the score.  Too bad the Cubs had to disappoint.

How’s the running going?

It’s going good.  Week 4 is really hard.  I decided to take the day off on Saturday because of boot camp.  I’ve been working out 6 days a week and I’m starting to get a little fatigued, so I took today off, too. (Yard work and household chores have to count for something right?) It puts me a little behind schedule, but I’m in no hurry.

Anything else you’d like to add?

Yes, watch Mad Men.  It’s getting REALLY good.  Also, make sure you’re registered to vote.

Toot! Toot!

I hate to toot my own horn but, well, I deserve it!

Tonight was night 1 of our last session of boot camp.  The first night is always the assessment and we convinced Bobbi to do some of the same assessments we did the first time around.  And, boy, have Kim and I improved.

This time, I ran the hill (same hill, same distance) in 29 seconds… a personal best and 10 seconds faster than my original time!

And I nearly doubled my score on the crunch test, doing 72 in a minute compared to 38 last time.  Granted, the test was slightly different (we had to use a ball the first time), but it’s still quite an improvement.

Kim’s numbers improved dramatically as well. Her hill run went from 57 to 36 and her crunch score went from 35 to 73.  A big w00t w00t to Keem!  

These are really encouraging numbers after a 3 1/2 months in “camp.”  Bobbi is an amazing trainer and we’re soooo going to miss her when she leaves.

Bye Bye Bootcamp :(

Remember back in my Choosing Topics post where I mentioned that sometimes posts start with just a title? This is one of those posts.

The original  title of this post came to my while working out. Since starting boot camp, I’ve pretty much neglected the gym.  But I recently decided to start training for a 5K, so I’ve been forcing myself to go back.  And you know what?  I kinda missed it!

So, I was going to write a post called “My Love/Hate Affair with the Gym” and I was going to explain to that, even though I love boot camp, I’m looking forward to getting back to the gym full-time this winter.  How it’s closer, cheaper, and more convenient than boot camp.   How the gym is a solitary experience.  A chance to put on my iPod, work on personal goals and tune everything else out

And then our boot camp leader, Bobbi, dropped a bomb. 

She’s leaving.  No more boot camp after October!

It came as quite a blow to many of us.  As much as I was looking forward to a reprieve from boot camp this winter, I wanted to be able to go back to it in the Spring.   

Unlike the gym, boot camp is a social experience.  Yeah, we work hard, but the women in my group are like friends. We’ve spent 3 days a week together for the last 4 months.  We know about each other’s jobs and families and we support one another throughout the workouts.  Although I might recognize people from the gym, I don’t know them—I don’t say hi when I see them around town.  Hell, I don’t even know most of their names.

And then, there’s Bobbi.  She’s a great trainer and leader.  She puts up with a lot of complaining from us and helps us stay on track.  She varies the workouts so that we don’t get bored and keeps us accountable by scheduling workouts 3x a week. 

I guess the old adage is true:  You don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone.  These last 6 weeks of boot camp will be bittersweet.  Yeah, I can find other classes to take.  And I might even be more devoted to running if I don’t have boot camp to “distract” me.  But I’m gonna miss it nonetheless!

What I’ve Been Up to Lately

It’s hard to believe it’s already almost the end of July.  Summer always seems to fly by.  Most of my free time has been filled by the following:

• Boot Camp– We started the second session of FitCamps4Chicks.  I can’t stress how much I’ve enjoyed these sessions.  The trainer, Bobbi, is great and the workouts are fun.
• Biking– I started biking to work last week. I was only able to bike 3 days and I’ll probably only get 3 days in this week, but I’ve finally figured out my route and I’ve worked out a few kinks, so I’m excited to get back in the saddle.
• Boat Trip– Our annual girls’ boat trip is next weekend.   This year we’re combining it with Kristi’s bachelorette party.  A day on the lake with my fave girls in the whole world.  Can’t beat it!

• Work– well, it always takes up my time, but I’m nearing the end of a huge project and I can’t wait.  One more week and then vacation!
• Pool– My friend Kim has been nice enough to let me use her pool all summer.  As a result, I actually have a bit of a tan.  It’s nice to not have to worry about being pasty white in July.

Fit/Fat Camp: Day 1

To add some spice to my workout routine I joined FitCamps4Chicks with a friend of mine. Today was the first session and it went something like this:

1. Fill out paper work

2. Roll call/introductions

3. Warm up– running in place/high knees

4. Fitness assessments:

• Crunches– do as many crunches as you can in 60 seconds with ball over your head. Shoulder blades must come off the ground and ball must hit knees. My best: 38 crunches; near the bottom of the pack
• Wall sit– sit on wall (or, in our case a tree or fence) for as long as you can with your knees in a 90 degree angle above your feet. My best: 3:02; second highest in the group (first highest went to a girl who has done ALL the fit camps, so I’m pretty proud of myself!
• Running test– run around a fence and then up the big hill at Centennial Park. My best: 39 seconds; fifth highest in the group… a little above average. But, I think the best time was, like, 30 seconds so I did pretty well, considering how much I SUCK at running!

As you can see, I’m pretty competitive and I’m bound and determined to do better on these next time. The camp meets 3x/week for 4 weeks. I’m excited for the next session!