TandemHearts

If Tucker ever gets out of my lap, I’ll head out for my last run of 2010.  This will make my third month in a row of actually making my monthly running  mileage goal.   I’ve discovered that keeping my goal reasonable means I actually do it.  I’ve run more in these three months than I ever have since I started training for triathlon.   December’s runs have mainly been on the treadmill although we did get in a nice three mile run outside on Christmas Day in Maine.  Running in the cold (27 degrees)  must make you faster because I had my best average pace EVER.

Since I’ve had such success with my running,  I’m going to add a spinning goal – 180 minutes per month.  That translates to one 45 minute video each week and  should give me a pretty good base when I start serious training in March to prepare for Barb’s Race at the end of July.

Weight management is going well.  Somehow I lost a pound while on vacation.  We did walk about 25 miles while in DC, did three upper body workouts and I ran 16 miles.  The goal is to be at 18% body fat (or less) when I start training in March.

Tucker is still sprawled across my lap and left arm.  Poor baby missed us while we were gone.

The tiny shrimp in our 3 year old Ecosphere recently moved on to the big Ecosphere in the sky, so when we saw this electronic Butterfly in a Jar at Thinkgeek we decided it was a must have item.  Thinkgeek sold out very quickly, so we’ll have to wait until after the New Year to get one to put on the desk at work.  In the mean time, the kitties are fascinated with the Yellow Swallowtail.

See it in action:

After too many years of sitting at my computer during lunch, I’m cultivate the habit of going out with a camera in hand to see what I see. Last week produced these.

Part of every Monday training session includes some plyometrics. They are exercises designed to produce fast, powerful movements.    I think they are a lot of fun and I can feel the increased power when I run up hills.  This week’s session involved standing jumps up onto a step – 15 jumps at a time alternating with various other exercises.  We started with nine steps and moved up one step each successive rep.  A couple of weeks ago I had set a record for myself of eleven steps.  Eleven steps is pretty high and I was fairly nervous about each jump.  Santi, the other trainer at the gym, gave me some advice.  Basically it boiled down to, “You’re strong enough to do this.  Your fear is holding you back.”  I don’t like having fears, so I jumped.

We got to eleven steps this week and  I just kept that in my head.  “Don’t be afraid.”  For the next set, Shawna asked me if I wanted to go up to twelve.  “Do you think I can do it? “  I asked her.

“You did 15 clean jumps at at eleven steps.  I think you can do it.”  We went to twelve steps and I did 15 clean jumps.

Final set, Shawna just looks at me.  I nodded my head and we went to 13 steps.

Thirteen steps is 26 inches high and comes to about my mid thigh.  I finished up with 15 clean jumps.  I guess next time I’ll be looking for fourteen steps.

Dangling on a wire 150 feet above the ground in a redwood forest.  Is there a better way to spend a sunny day in late October?  Probably not.  Redwood Canopy Tours offer zip line tours near Santa Cruz, CA that have you flying through the air amoung trees that are hundreds of years old. The tour was great.  The guides did a fine job of enouraging tour members who were not comfortable with heights and kept things zipping along nicely.

Before the tour, we killed some time at the local park.