Tempted

Last week I posted this on my Facebook page:

"The more I hear about my friends signing up for next year's triathlons, the more I realize my multi-sport days are over. It's kind of a relief, in a way, to finally accept that I'm just not into it. However, I will be the best spectathlete out there, cheering for my pals from the sidelines. :)"

I meant it at the time, and I think I still do now.

My main problem is that I want to WANT to do tri. It's not so much the act of triathlon that I crave, it's the sense of accomplishment, the challenge, and yes, to be honest, the kudos that make me want to "tri" again. And triathlon, more than anything else, seems to deliver the sense of pride, and yes, the kudos, that I crave.

I was (am?) seriously tempted to register for the Kansas City Triathlon 5150 distance while it's only $50--a downright STEAL for a tri of any distance. Unfortunately, my bike situation sucks, and I know that riding the required 40k on my current hybrid would be hell, and since don't really have the financial means to invest in a different bike there's Strike 1. The race is May 20, which means odds are good that the lake will still be freezing cold and I don't own a wetsuit. (Again, lack of financial means=no wetsuit for me.) That's Strike 2, if you're counting. Strike 3? I absolutely, 100% plan to participate in the Heartland 39.3 half-marathon series this spring which means halfs April 14, April 22 and May 12. I imagine I'll be happy if I can simply walk after finishing that many races in 4 weeks, let alone completing a tri at the end of it all. (And let's not even get started on how I'd manage to fit tri training in with half-marathon training...)

3 strikes, I'm afraid. Definitely out.

But I am still sad--again not so much because I can't tri but because I have to say "no." I have to draw the line financially and physically and from a time standpoint. And I do admit to being jealous that K will be able to do all of it. It always sucks to feel left behind and left out, but I guess that's life. Right?

However, I did promise K some kick-ass spectathleting, so I'd better warm up my cowbell now!

And speaking of temptation... I managed to survive Thanksgiving relatively unscathed. Yes, I ate and ate and ate, but I didn't feel guilty. I kept up with my workouts as best I could and didn't sweat it when I couldn't. I even earned my turkey with a T-Day 5k. The weather was awesome and the crowd was amazing. I didn't PR and I missed another sub-30 by 5 seconds, but I can live with it. I had fun anyway! And my sweet kiddo ran her first 1k. It wasn't without tears and she definitely wanted to give up more than once, but she FINISHED and we all know that's the important thing.

Here we are, finishing strong!

And now, to check in on my goals from nearly two weeks ago:

1. Run 10 miles--Missed it again. I haven't managed to hit 10 yet!
2. Try a new piece of gym equipment--Yes! Thanks to small-group training, I was able to try out the Bosu and the Paramount cable cross thingymabobby. 
3. Compile Thanksgiving shopping list and finish all shopping-- Duh. Easy-peasy. ;)

New goals!

1. Run 8 miles--10/week isn't working for me, so I thought I'd try a smaller number. 
2. Attend Sunday yoga--I haven't been to yoga in a long time and I miss it! 
3. Plan meals from our freezer stockpile--We have a small chest freezer FULL of food and it needs to get eaten!

Do you have goals this week?

Goals and stats

It's a new week and that brings a new set of goals! But first, let's check in on last week, shall we?

1. Run 10 miles total: I ran 8. Not quite the amount I wanted, but better than in previous weeks
2. Read three chapters of Jillian Michaels' "Unlimited": I did NOT do this. I read the intro and the first chapter and decided it wasn't the book for me. Took it back to the library. I don't feel too bad about missing this goal. Meh.
3. Plan Thanksgiving menu: DONE! (At least I got one thing done, too bad it's the least fitness-y of the bunch!)

My goals for this week, Nov 13-19 (and I'm adjusting my "week" so that it runs Sun-Sat to match my 500 in 2011 challenge week):

1. Run 10 miles
2. Try a new piece of gym equipment (pull-up machine? Bosu ball?)
3. Compile Thanksgiving shopping list and finish all shopping

What's on your list this week?

To switch subjects....

If you're interested in other people's body stats, the next bit should interest you. Kristina hooked me up with the body composition machine thing at the gym since I never got my post-bootcamp comp profile. (Which is just as well since I missed more bootcamps than I attended.) Here are my numbers:

Weight: 172.2 (clothed, no shoes)
BMI: 24
BMR: 1558kcal
Fat %: 34%
Fat Mass: 58.6lb

Desirable range:
Fat %: 21-33%
Fat mass: 30.2-56.1lb

Target body fat (my goal, which was just randomly selected): 28%
Predicted weight: 157.8lb (hahahahahaha, in my dreams)
Predicted fat mass: 44.2lb
Fat to lose: 14.4lb :P

And it also gives the fat % for each limb

Right leg: 36.9%
Left leg: 36.7%
Right arm: 28.5%
Left arm: 30.4%
Trunk: 33.1%

I don't know that any of this is useful beyond general curiosity, but there it is anyway. I hope I can get another assessment someday so I can see if anything changes/improves! If I do, I'll be sure to post the stats here.

Weekly Goals: Nov. 7-13

As I'm sure I've mentioned before, I'm a ship without a rudder if I don't have a goal or event to work towards. I tend to float aimlessly, skipping workouts, finding excuses, generally undoing all the hard work I've put in the months prior. And with the winter race doldrums nearly upon us, there are fewer and fewer events to set my sights on. I do have several big events in the early spring, but they're still too far out to keep my focus intense. Add in some holiday time-off and all that general wackiness looming ever closer, and I'm setting myself up for a couple of tough months if I don't stay busy.

Therefore, I've opted to focus on the short-term and set my sights on some smaller, weekly goals. I hope that having fewer items to accomplish in a shorter time-frame will keep me focused and entertained in the short-term, and that will make the transition to the BIG goals a bit easier, when the time comes.

And with that, my goals for this week are:

1. Run 10 miles total
2. Read three chapters of Jillian Michaels' "Unlimited"
3. Plan Thanksgiving menu

If you're interested in the "Why" behind the "What," keep reading. If not, well then, stop here and have a great day! ;)

1. Why 10 miles? At the beginning of the year, I committed myself to a "500 miles in 2011" challenge. As of this week, I'm sitting on 433 miles, which means I need to get around 67 more before the end of the year in order to complete the challenge. At one point in the year, I'd have thought I'd be done with the mileage well before now, but since I've finished training for the half-marathon, my running miles have dropped off to where I'm averaging about 3-5 a week. Yikes. Time to kick it in gear before I run out of year! (Ha! I rhyme!)

2. I'm a JM fan (or at least a fan of her workout DVDs), but I'm not a big fan of self-help books. Okay, okay, I've never read any self-help books because I always think of them as mostly cheesy and filled with Stuart Smalley-esque platitudes about how, gosh darnit, you should just like yourself! But I do know I could use a little help breaking out of my rut in areas of my life beyond fitness/health, so I thought what the heck. My hope is that JM is a little less "woo woo" cheeseball and more practical information We'll see if it's worth the time.

3. For the first time in at least 10 years, we don't have to travel for Thanksgiving! Hip, hip, hooray!! However, staying home means I'm now I'm responsible for cooking Thanksgiving dinner for the hubster and the kiddo, my parents and possibly the in-laws. It won't be a large gathering, but it'll still require all the traditional fixins, which in turn require a fair amount of planning. And because we're staying put this year, I'm finally able to do something I've wanted to do for a couple of years now: run a Thanksgiving Day 5k! I'm excited, but that does mean a bit more strategy on my part so that dinner is ready at a reasonable hour later that day. It'll all work out, but I'd rather plan now so I can play later.

So that's what's on tap for this week. Wish me luck!