"Listening" Pays Off

Persevere (verb) - to persist in anything undertaken; maintain a purpose in spite of difficulty, obstacles, or discouragement; continue steadfastly.

Yesterday morning I woke up bright and early and was able to see another glorious Colorado sunrise. It's mornings like those that make me realize how blessed I am and how every morning is another chance to shine.  How we should never take the little things for granted...how there is such peace in an early morning when most of the world is still sleeping.  It's a time for reflection, a time to plan for the day ahead, and a chance to be thankful for the day that has past.

After a lot of travel over the past 6 weeks and being completely out of my workout regimen, I was a little nervous to go to the PT yesterday and hear what he had to say about my hamstring and my road to recovery.  I had followed his guidance and had cut way back on running, had been working on my strength training and stretching as often as I remembered.  Like everyone, I have goals...some I have vocalized and some I have not.  Playing soccer this fall, running the stairs at red rocks...those are goals for sure, but ones that give me a little bit more time to heal.  The Manitou Springs Incline closes this weekend for the remainder of the year as they do some much needed trail maintenance.  For those that have been reading from the beginning, you know my obsession with this thing and also how I haven't been able to do it in months because of my leg.  Secretly, all I wanted was a green light to attempt the incline one more time this calendar year.  And this brings me to yesterday's appointment...

First off Marty Levine, my physical therapist at Push Fitness (http://www.pushfitnesscolorado.com) is so amazing!  Not only is he super easy to talk to, but he explains everything that's going on with my body.  Because of my background he gives me a very scientific explanation as to what's happening and why and what I need to do to try and fix everything.  He always makes sure I fully understand what he's said and then walks me through the next set of exercises I'm allowed to put back into my workout routine.  Yesterday was no different.  After explaining to me that my medial hamstring on my left side is still weak, we went through several exercises to help strengthen that as well as work on my glute strength.  Because your glutes act as both a stabilizing muscle and a source of power/strength...working on them has been a key component in my recovery.  After some work on the PT table, we then found ourselves on the gym floor working on a few new things.

After our session was over, Marty asked me if I had any questions.  After I hesitated for a minute, he knew something was up and I was deciding whether to ask or not...so I bit the bullet knowing that he could possibly say no and then I would be disappointed.  Me:  "What do you think about me doing the incline?"  Marty:  "When are we talking?"  Me:  "This week."  Marty:  Silence.  After a bit of a sly little smile on my part, he knew that this was something I really wanted to do and knew that the trail was closing, so....he agreed, but not before he gave me some tips on how to do it and not lose everything I've worked on for the past 6 weeks.

So...with that being said, the incline it is this week!!  Marty couldn't help but smile when I walked out of his office because he for the first time saw my genuine smile...the smile that was brought on by LISTENING to him and others regarding my recovery, by my own perseverance to not let this injury stop me from my goals, and by me finally seeing a light at the end of the tunnel!

It might not seem like much of an accomplishment by many, but being given the green light to go ahead and do the incline was monumental to me yesterday!  Like Martin Luther King Jr once said, "If you can't fly then run.  If you can't run then walk.  If you can't walk then crawl.  But whatever you do you have to keep moving forward."  So moving forward is what I'm doing, and later this week...moving up as well...about 2,200 feet up that is!!!

Accountability - No Excuses

"You must take personal responsibility.  You cannot change the circumstances, the seasons, or the wind, but you can change yourself.  That is something you have charge of."  - Jim Rohn

It's pretty amazing how fast time can sneak by us.  Be it the hours in a day, days in a week or weeks in a month.  Somehow life keeps moving and we sometimes fall behind in the things that we have comitted to doing.  It took two separate people yesterday sending me texts saying that they missed the blog posts and wondered what had been going on.  Well I can sit here and say that I started a new job, have been traveling a lot and just purely did not have the time, but those are excuses...there's always an additional 10 minutes that I can find to help motivate the same people that motivate me on a daily basis.  So here it lies...me being held accountable.

In preparation for this week, I spent yesterday catching up at home.  I set up a very OCD organized home office, complete with a wall system that allowed me to use my newly purchased electric screwdriver (haha that's a completely different story, but lets say there might be a few extra holes in the wall given the serious power involved in this)!!  I finished laundry, cleaned up a bit and set my weekly goals so that I could wake up this morning and start fresh.

Because I'm still not able to sleep, I woke up at the crack of dawn and started in on some work stuff.  After spending the past week in Seattle with coworkers I had a lot to try and figure out.  Thankfully I have a pretty amazing team and they have helped me work through this transition.  At about 7am, I put on my sneakers and hit the ground running.  Although still on a very strict running regimen, I decided to do a run/walk mix for 3 miles.  In 28:34 (at a pace of 9:30), I finished those 3 miles.  Definitely not where I want to be BUT it's a step down the road of recovery.  Post run, I did all of my "at home leg workout" stuff that the PT has me doing.  Lunges, dead lifts, leg lifts, etc..I threw in a few abs and some push ups and there it was...my workout completed.

It's true that life can be an excuse at times as to why we are not doing certain things, but I am no longer making excuses...I'm holding myself accountable and am looking forward to both my recovery and some serious personal progress.  In fact, it appears that on 8/1 I will be part of a trial group for a new exercise program designed by a close friend of mine...I can't wait as it should be fun and a great experience.  Even better, I can't wait to share my results with everyone afterwards and have the opportunity to sell you all on this wonderful program!  Stay tuned...many updates to come on all of it!  In the meantime, please join me in holding ourselves accountable for our own personal successes and failures!

Get Outside

"Physical fitness is not only one of the most important keys to a healthy body, it is the basis of dynamic and creative intellectual activity." - John F. Kennedy

It's amazing how much time you can actually spend outside being active when you just "live."  After having a close friend's 10 year old son drive with me from NYC to VT for a few days, I realized just how exhausting, yet rewarding it is having a child around.  Not only did I find out that I am my own mother...crazy tendencies and all (neurotic seat belt checks, chew with your mouth closed, don't drag your feet...those kinds of things) but I realized that I'm going to be one active, constantly on the go mother one day.

Noah and I were so jam packed with activities so that he could truly experience Vermont, that I don't think we stopped for much more than quick meals the entire time he was here!  From a visit to the State Capitol building, to a Ben & Jerry's plant tour, fishing, boating, jet skis, hiking, morning runs, baseball in the front yard...you name it and we did it!  There are SOOOO many opportunities in life to get outside and play with your children, there should be no reason to not take full advantage of the days when they are young enough to make an impression on them.

Hiking with Noah and my two little cousins in Vermont!

Noah was a trooper on our morning runs!

Working on our pop fly catches in the yard!

Granted, these few days I was on "vacation" and wasn't working full time, but Noah was also here full time and not in school so we were truly able to maximize all of the day together.  But even if it means you wake up in the morning and do a quick walk as a family and then eat breakfast together during the week, it's setting a good example for your kids.  If the mornings are too crazy, play outside with them when you get home from work.  It's just so important for children to understand the meaning of "play" and that being active can and should be fun!  And truthfully, if you're like Noah and I, you do these things and have a blast while you're doing them!  And the best part...after a crazy, action packed day, you're able to enjoy moments like this in the evening! 

It was very obvious during this time spent together that Noah's parents have raised him the same way that I was raised.  He doesn't sit in front of a TV playing video games and doesn't sleep in late...he gets up early and wants to spend as much time as he can outside and being active.  His parents are the same way and are constantly being active as a family.  From an outsider's point of view, it makes a HUGE difference on the life of a child.  As Alan Thicke once said, "Fitness needs to be perceived as fun and games or we subsequently avoid it."  So get outside, play and have fun!!!

Thrill Seeking

"Sometimes we are so stuck in a past that we cannot change, or so afraid of a future over which we have limited control, that we don't really appreciate the present - the very moment before us.  We worry about what happened or what will happen, and we forget about what is happening.  We squander the one thing we have for certain - now."  - Sandy Eisenberg Sasso - God's Echo

For all of us, I'm pretty certain that I can safely say we are guilty of not always living in the present but worrying about what's to come next or what has happened before.  We get caught up in these thoughts and lose sight of how precious the moment we are in is.  Today's adventure was about forgetting everything that has happened or what lies ahead of us in the coming weeks, but instead living in the moment and laughing all the while.

Today we found ourselves down in Idaho Springs, CO with the Arkansas Valley Adventures company (http://www.coloradorafting.net/) for a full day of white water rafting.  After arriving at AVA we found ourselves gearing up...fully covered with wet suits, bootie socks, PFD's, splash jackets and helmets.  The woman in the store let us know that the water was a balmy 38 degrees!!  In fact, the runoff from the mountains literally had ice coming into the river!!  After we were all geared up and listened to our safety training, we were in the van on the way to our drop off point.  We went over a few paddle commands and from there we were in the water and on our way down the river!

Our guide Kevin was truly amazing!  Not only did he answer EVERY single question that we had but he kept us laughing (and safe) the entire trip!  Now the first half of the trip I was fortunate enough to sit in the middle section behind my friend Brett.  To say he helped break the impact of those waves on me is probably an understatement.  After going over some pretty crazy class III and class IV rapids, we found ourselves "eddying" off and grabbing a terrific BBQ lunch.

After lunch we geared back up and headed back down the river for the remainder of our trip.  Now, the second half of this experience I was not so lucky and ended up sitting right up front.  I got CRUSHED by the waves...CRUSHED!  And although those wet suits are great, they are definitely not waterproof. Teeth chattering and all, fully soaked from head to toe in 38 degree water, we continued to paddle our way over some amazing white water.  Ducking under bridges (because the water is at record highs and moving UNBELIEVABLY fast) we found ourselves going over not one, but 2- 10 foot drops!!  

The trip was incredible!  From Kevin, our guide, to our driver, to our safety kayaker the team at AVA were amazing!  Nobody fell out of the boat, we laughed all day, and walked away with another Colorado experience checked off of the bucket list!  For those 5 hours, I can safely say that none of us thought about the past or worried about the future...we just truly enjoyed the moment and held on for dear life! 

All Checked Off

It's AMAZING how good you can feel when you accomplish something!  How reaching a goal or completing a task can just bring a smile to your face.  Well I'm for sure a competitive person, even if it's just with myself and now with running on the back burner I have had to find other ways to experience that feeling of accomplishment and achievement.  As I said in my last post, I was creating a goal list daily to try and organize myself and get more done in those 24 hours.  Yesterday was day one and man did I accomplish quite a bit!

I woke up yesterday morning and decided to take a 30 minute walk outside just to get myself into the mode of work for the day.  Nothing really beats the sunshine and the fresh air first thing in the morning.  Throughout the day I was able to fit in a 30 minute bike ride, a bicep/tricep strength training session, two sets of the exercises the PT gave me (along with a little core work) and complete over 15,000 steps (my daily goal) on the FitBit.  I kicked butt at work, truly following up on everything I needed to do.  I was able to get some housework done, a small tan at the pool, grocery shopping, and even remembered to take my vitamins!  By 6pm I couldn't believe how much I had done and how great it felt!

After all of that I was able to join a friend for a walk at Wash Park with his three furry friends.  Now walking around Wash Park is fun all in of itself as there are SO many people to people watch.  It's a breeding ground for the "outside of the box" kind of people.  From rollerbladers, to volleyball players, to a string quartet and runners it is filled with so many different people from so many different walks of life.

But in true Heather fashion nothing is ever quite simple or as relaxing as it should be.  So these "three furry friends" are labrador retrievers...all of which are pretty strong and fast moving and fully grown.  Now imagine me, holding these three dogs by myself with a gigantic mastiff walking down the path towards us.  Now if you don't know how big a mastiff is, I suggest you google it.  This dog was AT LEAST 150lbs and would stand taller than me on his back legs.  As my friend had walked away momentarily and left me with the 3 labs, I'm now seeing this mastiff get closer and closer.  I don't know if I was more afraid the mastiff was going to snap at us, if the three labs were going to take off after him and leave me on my back with my feet in the air or if it was going to be an all out brawl.  But in that moment, I had all 3 labs sitting, their leashes clenched tightly in my hands and a sheer look of panic in my eyes.  The whole event ended up being very anti-climatic as the mastiff was super sweet, the owner completely friendly and the 3 labs so UNBELIEVABLY well behaved!  But for everyone else that could see my face, I'm sure it was quite the hysterical moment.  :)

So my point in all of this, because I become so easily distracted is that I found such happiness and accomplishment in creating that list yesterday.  I was able to get so much done that come the end of the day I was able to truly enjoy myself and not worry about what else I needed to get done.  So much so in fact that I was able to take in this fantastic sunset just as we were leaving the park!

Time Or Lack Thereof

It's amazing how fast 24 hours can go by.  How fast a week, a month, or even a year can slip past us.  Lately I find myself wondering where the hell the time has gone?!  How is it that I wake up at 4:30 in the mornings and yet still can't find enough time in the day to get done the things that I need and want to?!  It's crazy, simply crazy!

The past few weeks seem to be a whirlwind for me.  Professionally, I'm in the process of winding down one job and starting another.  I couldn't be more excited as it's a great step for me in my career and I'm eager for a new beginning and a company that I feel I can dive right into.  Physically, it's been a tough few weeks as I'm still actively seeing the Physical Therapist and working on this issue with my back and legs...all which seems to be stemming from a sciatic nerve issue.  But when you take two big milestones and mix them with social obligations, personal workout schedules, and just everyday life, you realize that you find yourself wondering when you get to eat or sleep.  So begins the OCD style of me again...

I have decided that every morning when I wake up, I'm making a goal list.  These are things that I hope to get done that day.  I have two pages to this list.  One is professional and the other is personal.  It doesn't matter when or in what I order I accomplish these tasks/goals, but that I complete them by the end of the day.  Hopefully this will help me to keep everything in order professionally, kick my friends butts on the FitBit steps :), increase my strength and endurance for upcoming adventures, and be able to maintain a good work/life balance with everyone.  So tomorrow it is...tomorrow is the day that starts this new OCD process of organization...maybe then I will get back on track with posting workouts/recipes and overall fun stuff on this blog!  :)

A Small Step Backwards

I'm holding onto the saying, "two steps forward, one step back."  After meeting with the Physical Therapist today and hearing how running is out of the question for a little while I was ultimately discouraged.  Running is not something that I just do to stay in shape, I use it as a stress reliever, a chance to enjoy the sunshine and the beautiful trails of Colorado and just to be able zone out and have some "me" time.  Running is part of my daily regimen...so now without it, I have to get creative.

After my PT appointment today, I was thankful to have a few things lined up in order to enjoy the sunshine and get a little workout in.  In addition to the exercises I have been told to do by the PT, I was able to spend a little time at the playground with an adorable little two year old!  While we played on the jungle gym and ran around the park, I was also able to get a little upper body workout in climbing around on the monkey bars!  What's better than a lunchtime hour spent outside in the beautiful sunshine, on a playground with a little munchkin?!

After the work day was over, I met a friend for a little vinyasa yoga at the Prana store in Cherry Creek. Throughout the hour class we worked on several inversions and had a hardcore ab workout.  Knocking out my headstand was definitely the highlight of my practice tonight!  But it was during our meditation at the end of class that I had a chance to really free myself of a few things and set forth my intentions for the next few weeks.

On my walk home from class I decided that I was not going to let this "no running" thing discourage me.  So while this might be a step back in my fitness regimen, I now have the opportunity to focus on a few different things.  I can step up my yoga practice (something I've been meaning to do for months).  I can work on my upper body strength (something I've always been horrible about doing) and I can focus on working more on my core strength.  So even though I'm discouraged about the no running, I'm definitely excited to take my fitness in a few different directions.

Sometimes it takes a step back and a few weeks of "rest" for us to be able to fully gain acceptance for who and what we are so that we may leap forward and take those next two really big steps!  In all walks of life, that's what it's about.  Two steps forward and one step back...  This time it's the opposite...one step back and two steps forward...I'm looking forward to those leaps!