Headstands for Days

Since the beginning of the year I have been working to increase my attendance at yoga classes, and with that work on some poses that I haven't been able to do before.  I've been pretty regular at the Wednesday morning Vinyasa class, and catching a Flexibility class here and there, but this month I have stepped up my game. I've hit up Flex 2-3 times a week, and added Ashtanga yoga to the weekly class mix. I'm feeling pretty good about my progress, and am glad to be adding more variety to my fitness.

Yesterday in class I was able to do a headstand - my first in the Wednesday morning class, and my first really that I can remember. Needless to say, I was a little giddy about the whole thing, and had a huge smile on my face. My instructor was pretty excited for me as well. So last night while my littles were at their karate class, I messed around a bit more with them, and came up with this.

Headstands in INKnBURN Crane tights and Lotus pullover

My legs aren't straight up, and my feet aren't together. And I was a bit wobbly. But practice makes progress, and I'm pretty proud. Ok, and full disclosure, it took several tries to get this. I fell a lot, and have it all tucked away on grainy cell phone video. But it is a start, and I'm going to keep on keepin' on. Cause headstands are fun.

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Race Recap - Hangover Half 1.1.2017

Yeah, I know this race was a few weeks ago, but cut me some slack. I'm trying to get back in the habit of blogging, and sometimes habits take a while to form. <sigh> Anyway...

January 1 - and I woke up bring and early, maybe even too early for a 9am race start, to run the Hangover Half Marathon, a new race put on by KC Running Company at their Leawood, KS store. It was a small race, less than 200 people for the half distance, but that doesn't make it any less fun. I was running with a fellow KC Express member, Courtney, and it promised to be a good morning. Several other KC Express members were there to run the half or 5k option. We got in a selfie as always.

KC Express in a pre-race selfie

As Courtney and I were about to head out, I took just a picture of us. Can you guess which one of us may have still been drunk from the night before?

Humm....

The course was out along the Indian Creek Trail system that runs over a large portion of Johnson County. It is pretty, paved, and well maintained. The course was an out and back route, so we made it to the half way point!

Ohhh. We're halfway there! Ohhh, livin' on a prayer...

After turning around we made the 6.5 mile trip back to the Leawood store. The sky was gray and overcast, but overall it was great weather for a run.

Jumping at the finish line!

We finished the race with a time of 2:33:34. Not the world's best time, but we weren't out there for time. Just a nice, healthy way to start the new year. Thanks for the run Courtney! Let's do that again sometime.

Cheers to our finish!

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2017 Fitness Goals

I posted my 2016 goal review a little late, so I figure it is okay to post my 2017 goals a little late too. I mean, I had them posted in Instagram on time, so that counts for something, right? Okay. Good then.

Anyway, I had a pretty rad fitness year in 2016. It is going to be hard to beat. But I'm going to try. I mean, that's all I can do right? Try? I set some pretty big goals for myself - the biggest I've ever set before. I'm trying hard to stay on track. I hope to check in around June to update and see how the progress is coming. Someone remind me to do that please. And thanks.

So, here are the goals. Written in Sharpie so I can't erase them, and so that I stay sharp and focused. (See what I did there?)

What are your fitness goals for the year?

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Putting my shoes out to pasture

In 2016 I really made an effort to keep track of things. Classes attended, pace times, and miles run just to name a few. I also started to keep track of my shoes, and how many miles I put on them. I found it easy to do with the Garmin Connect software. I entered in my shoe brand and model, and a short description about them i.e. Pink Hoka One One. After each run or walk I would log into the Connect App and give details about the activity like "treadmill run" or "track walk" or "street biking". One can also assign gear to the activity, so I would tell the app I was wearing a particular pair of shoes, riding my bike, or on an elliptical machine. The app would then keep a running total of the miles on each pair of shoes. In early 2016 I made the switch from Newton Running shoes to Hoka One One, and I mainly rotated through three pairs of shoes. It was fun to see the totals on each shoe rise, and also to see which pair I liked the best, or needed to use a it more.

On November 17, 2016 after 89 activities and 384.57 miles, I retired my first pair of Hokas. They were Sunny Lime Clifton 2s, and I really liked that pair. Connect allows one to "retire" the shoes, and they are moved from the Active Gear display to the Retired Gear display page. It's almost like a little scrapbook of shoes past.

The Hoka One One Clifton 2 in Sunny Lime

As a new year approaches, I always make it my goal to use up all the bits and bottles before using something new. I try and cook with what is in my pantry and freezer, clean out cupboards, and use up what I have. I applied that same thought process to running shoes this year, and have been working towards putting the last few miles on some shoes before I open the shiny new pairs.

So, on January 6, 2017 I retired another pair of Hoka One Ones. This time it was a pair of Stinson Lites with 393.2 miles on them. Also a great pair of shoes with lots of good runs.

The Hoka One One Stinson in Acid Aqua White

And on January 21, 2017 I put my last treadmill miles on a pair of pink and white Hoka One Ones. I don't know the style. I purchased them on the internet last winter because they were my size and really inexpensive, like $40ish. Can't say they were my favorite pair, or the most pretty. But they served me for 311.2 miles, and I certainly got my money's worth out of them.

Hoka One One in pink

I'm excited to open a couple boxes of new shoes. I have another couple pairs of Clifton 2s to wear, and I found a pair of Infinites on sale to try. I hope to get around 400 miles per pair...wonder how long that'll take...

 

#shoeporn

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2016 Year in Review

Good-bye 2016. So long, and thanks for all the fish. You've been a great year for fitness goals, and I've had a lot of fun completing them.



For those of you, myself included, who may have forgotten my fitness goals, let's remind ourselves.

I'm happy to report I met 2/3 of my goals!

Let's break down the year.

Races

5k (3.1 miles)    - 3 races

4 miler               - 1 race

10k (6.2 miles)  - 1 race

1/2 marathon (13.1 miles) - 10 races and 4 of those as a Smart Pacer

I PR'd on my 10k time at the Plaza 10k in Kansas City on September 11, shaving 7:03 off my previous time. That brought my pace down to 8:40 per mile.

I PR'd on my half marathon time at the Independence Day race in Independence, MO on May 1, shaving 13:30 off my previous time.

I made some great gains in the CrossFit Box, including

Bench Pressing 100 pounds

Dead Lifting 205 pounds

Power Cleaning 90 pounds

Push Pressing 90 pounds

Back Squatting 135 pounds

And I know what all those terms mean!

I ran my fastest mile - 8:00.1 at the Hospital Hill half marathon, and I hit the 1000 mile running mark on September 20. I ran for 112 days in a row (a run streak) starting on June 6, and ending on September 25 at the Chicago Half Marathon. I was active for 338/365 days of the year.

I kept track of my fitness this year, and here are my stats by the numbers...

1 Surf Fit Class

1 Bootcamp Class

30 Yoga Classes
31 Jazzercise Classes
152 CrossFit Classes


1.61 miles on the Elliptical Machine
28.41 miles on a Bicycle (stationary or road)
87.18 miles Walking (treadmill or road)
1325.2 miles Running (treadmill, gym track loops, or road)

I'm looking forward to moving forward. 2017 will only be as good as I allow it to be, and I'm not planning to let up any time soon.

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