Tai chi & yoga

February's activities included Feb Club for Old People,



Beach Vacation for Old People,



and, after yoga and tai chi at the Sonesta Coconut Grove (Miami) on Thursday evening, yoga & tai chi for old people. Let's just say that yoga in NYC is a very different beast.

(Quoth my friend Adrian, who lives in LA now: "Every day in New York is a war.")

I followed it up with some hot tubbing and cold dipping and rooftop pool swimming.

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Treadmill

On Tuesday the 26th I was supposed to lift but I don't like the kind of body I get while lifting. Plus, at an alumni event on Monday night, I spoke with two fellow crew alumna (a few years older than me) and they agreed that the kind of body you get when training for Div I sports is not exactly the kind of body you want as, say, a civilian. So I'm redlining lifting from my workout routines as a general rule.

Instead I tried the treadmill for the first time ever and must say I really liked it. I never know how fast to run so the quantifying of my mile split was important for me. I also tried running without socks which I also liked.

In sum, I think I am definitely going to pony up for the Garvin GPS workout tracker that my basketball teammate Lisa suggested, buy some new running shoes, and let this gradual increase in my physical activity go ahead and take root.

• 2 miles on the treadmill at a 9:20 mile split
• 2 intervals on erg (1 minute on, 1:30 off @ resistance = 4)
• 1 set of 8 on the lat pulldowns @ 90 lbs (couldn't resist)
• Sauna

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Walkin'

I got off the wrong subway stop uptown on my way to meet my date for the Yale - Columbia basketball game last night, and ended up walking a couple of miles around Harlem.

Luckily I was in my collegiate prep outfit which consisted of my soon-to-be-retired running shoes and my orthotics.

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Workout recap

Was in Aruba the past week sans Interwebz so here's a roundup of my recent workouts:

• Tuesday 2/12: 7:45 p.m. hoops game. I think we won. I definitely scored some points.
• Friday 2/15: Got a lot of swimming done in Aruba. It counts. My heart rate was up there. Although I definitely like the strokes that involve lying on your back better. My friend Rachel commented that my swimming is stronger and more confident this year, which we attributed in part to the swim class I took at Baruch this past fall. Even though I only made it to three classes I have to agree.
• Saturday 2/16: Went for a run on the beach for half an hour at sunset. It was sprinkling rain which felt super-nice. Must admit that the sprinting and lifting have made me thicker which I do not like, so I guess it's back to yoga and distance runs. Oh, vanity. I wonder if there's an exercise I can do that only makes the hindparts get big? I miss my sprinter booty.
• Sunday 2/17: 4 1/2 hour brunch / snorkel cruise. Ton of snorkeling in. Fishies are adorbz!
• Monday 2/18: Lots of swimming, including some snorkeling. I like feeling the burn in my thighs when I powersnork.
• Tuesday 2/19: More swimming. Burnt my back while I was at it, in an unenlightened move that involved no suntan lotion. DUH.

That's it. I'm in the market for a device that tracks distance run as well as heart rate, perhaps with an iPod synch, and also in the market for new running shoes. Am considering doing the corporate challenge in mid-June.

Looking forward to a run next Thursday while I'm in Miami for work.

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I have no idea what that is. I tried to make a snorkel fin. FAIL

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Lifting

I have an early flight to Chicago tomorrow morning, so I decided not to go to the annual crew alumni dinner tonight. However, I did get in a lifting workout. I based it on a workout that apparently I did while still working at The Bank.

There were a few exercises that I've never really liked, and I know myself well enough to know that I hate distance cardio. So, I said, you know what, I'm just going to do sprint pieces on the erg today.

I didn't give myself enough rest time, though, and combined with doing 20 reps this time, the lactic acid was killing me softly. But, I'm feeling good that this'll be the right approach for me. Sprint intervals, low weight high reps = cut and not puffy. TBD.

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• Erg, resistance 4, 3 sets of 50 seconds on / 50 seconds off
• 221 meters @ 36 spm
• 224 meters @ 36 spm
• 223 meters @ 38 spm
• Stretch
• Lat pulldowns, 3 sets of 20 reps at 50 lbs. This was very manageable and assuming my lats aren't sore tomorrow, maybe I'll bump up the weight.
• Bicep curls, 3 sets of 20 reps at 10 lbs. This was the right weight.
• Erg, resistance 8, 4 sets of 2:48 on / 1:12 off
• 708 m @ 34
  
• 675 m @ 33
• 663 m @ 34
• 665 m @ 34
• 5 minutes easy on erg, cooldown
• Stretch

Good music definitely helps keep the stroke rating up. I think I am going to rest more though. Hafta remember that sprinting workouts are a different beast and the on / off ratio has to change accordingly.

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Vinyasa yoga

For the first time in four months, I went to a yoga class today. 90 minutes. My favorite instructor wasn't there but I liked her replacement.

I love yoga. I remember how afraid I was of yoga before trying it, and how much of yoga -- and life -- is squaring your shoulders to your fears and posting up strong.

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Walkin'

• Walked 18 blocks in 4" heels
• Did two real deal pushups with some contraption that involves rotating your wrists.

In other news, am looking forward to watching Rolling on PBS tonight. My sister uses a wheelchair when she has to walk more than a block, and my brother-in-law uses a wheelchair. Suddenly while blogging this I remember my older sister commenting that she needed to join a gym to lose some of the weight she's put on as a side effect of her medicine.
I remember feeling very protective of her in that moment. I didn't want the people in the gym to look at her and stare. (People always look and stare.)

I hate it when people look at her and stare. That's my sister, I think. Stop.