Time on my hands

Monday mornings are usually hectic around here. But last night I got such a jump on things that lunch is made (a slow cooker recipe for Italian Sunday "gravy") and I may have time for a haircut.

Even at 6 a.m., the weather is just barely tolerable in the park. I see people running at noon and in the early afternoon when the heat is at its peak, and I sincerely don't know how they do it. Back in the day, when I was an aerobics fanatic, some people would complain that they didn't sweat; but that was in Mexico City with its cool climate. Here we are raining down on the running path like a summer storm, which is natural in this horrible heat. My body, however, thinks the world is coming to an end at the slightest suggestion of effort on my part, and it begins pouring sweat immediately. I can't even make a bed without sweating, and the better my cardiopulmonary condition becomes, the faster I start to perspire. I get so soaked that it looks like I did a lot more than I really was able to do. Good. I can fake people out.

The other thing my body continues to demand is more calories each day than I've expended in the entire week. This is one miserable trick of nature, frankly, and we are not amused, as Queen Elizabeth would say. This morning after my workout (Adrián be praised, he prescribed another easy session) I made the mistake of going to the store without eating breakfast beforehand. They say you should never shop for food when hungry. They are right, whoever they are. After stocking up on veggies and fruits galore, a sudden urge to get biscuits and cinnamon rolls hit me. I fought off vanilla ice cream although I came away bruised, and my legs propelled me toward the check-out aisle while my upper body tried to cling to the cooler that had ready-made pie dough. My legs gained the upper hand, so to speak, at least this time. They were caught off guard, however, in the cereal section where I managed to grab a box of chocolate Special K before forging on toward the dishwashing detergents. Even there, however, I grabbed a dishwashing liquid that smells like oranges, and only a sense of self-preservation kept me from taking a swig of it. A virtual running pal suggested protein drinks, and they are the only thing keeping me from gaining weight while running longer. I had this fantasy of the new me, slim and trim, by the time I could hack a 5K, but danged if it isn't the same old Karen complete with washboard fat! Next year I may have to try for a 10K to see if that helps.

Uphill

A series of family emergencies got together and decided to cut loose at exactly the same time. Thus, I found myself in the town of my birth, my husband had to care for his sister who became ill suddenly, and a friend of ours had to honcho up the move from Austin to Monterrey. It has only been a week and a half, but it seems like it was a couple of years. The only upside of this was that I did my second 5K, but it was in the Houston airport and I was wearing sandals.

Thanks to the airplane trip, my ears are acting up again and I am dizzy, but this morning I at least did the mild training session Adrián set up for me--a 50 minute walk. Part of the way I trotted, just for the heck of it, especially the uphill parts. Upon my return I also discovered that a couple of the jerks doing Iron Man training have decided they are informed enough to start their own training groups, and they have abandoned the rest of us, though not without first trying to lure away all the advanced runners/athletes in the group. The whole thing was plotted over coffee one day (according to my spy), and without saying anything to Adrián except "goodbye", off they went. Man alive, you just can't get past politics no matter where you are, even if it's in the park! And for my politically incorrect comment of the day, let me make clear that if you give a Mexican a few ideas and a title (even if it's "I finished the Iron Man!!"), you've got an instant "expert" who casts humility and common sense to the winds. It's one of the national curses.

Nevertheless, just doing the little I did today made me feel alive once more. The heat is so terrible during the day that morning running is the only option, but I have capped the morning's activity by digging in my vegetable plot. This counts as cross-training, I believe. I am going to enlarge the area for next year's veggies and put up a low fence around it to keep dogs and small children out. If any of you out there are gardeners, check out this unbelievable but true fact, straight from Texas A & M, which I have tried and can vouch for: Fungus on plants can be killed by spraying the plants with a combination of skim milk and water. Yes, folks, weird as it sounds, this is a science-based discovery and not some oddball notion thought up by a little old lady who putters amongst her flowers.

Tomorrow is a rest day in my schedule, and it is also Father's Day. All of the family are going to a restaurant tomorrow for lunch to celebrate dads.

Offline but not off street

Due to a number of problems happening all at once, I have had to go to Texas, my husband has had to take care of his sister who became ill suddenly, and at the same time we are supposed to be moving a bunch of furniture from Austin to Monterrey. Although it has been a madhouse, I have managed to go out early in the morning before the dry, blistering heat gets going. My location is considerably higher than Monterrey or Austin, and I can really feel it. So far I have only been able to run about 20 minutes without having to finish up walking, but every little bit counts. My trainer sends me the daily sessions by email anyway, as I asked him, and I have even managed to make my return travel plans on a rest day! It may sound fanatical, but it has taken me six months to go from zero condition to where I am now, and I aint ready to backslide. More later when I get home and am able to get to the park once more.

Mercy was shown today...

Thank God Adrián scheduled an easy workout for today! It allowed me to recover from yesterday. I also saw my horse vet running today, and a friend who is a dentist was strolling along too. The latter used to be very, very fat until he had stomach surgery (I'm not sure what kind, but he had it twice, so the second time it must have been gastric bypass). He lost so much weight that once when I saw him at a restaurant I didn't recognize him, but then he began gaining weight again. I was saddened to see this morning that he is again quite fat, though not as much as before his surgeries.

However, I also noticed that there is a business opportunity out there for me, a niche just screaming to be filled: sports bras for men.

And now this breaking news...

Today I set out without my watch or my Polar monitor, and without my glasses. After warm-up, I set myself a slow, steady trotting pace and concentrated only on maintaining it consistently. And folks, believe it or not, I did 5K today without gasping for air or wondering if my toes were falling off. The circuit including seven sprints as I outran cars and passed clots of strollers and runners coming from the opposite direction. It included four up-hill sections as I trotted over the pedestrian bridges coming and going. At about 4.2 K, I was beginning to feel it a bit, but at 4.5, I knew it was a done deal.

When I say a slow, steady pace, I mean that twice people who were walking actually passed me. They were walking at a good clip and one person had a large dog who was pulling him along. But who cares? Not me! 5K!!!

The Long Walk

Yesterday was a rest day for me in my training schedule, but since I missed three days in a fibro attack, I decided I couldn't afford to do nothing at all. I went out and did a lively walk the 5 kilometers on the running path (which is marked at each kilometer and half kilometer, which either encourages you or sinks your spirits forever, depending on where you are and how tired you are...). We have a series of winding bridges, very attractive, that go over a major street intersection and which are incorporated into the running path. They are shaded by large trees, making the area hugely pleasant. During my walk, I decided that for once I was going to try to trot uphill on those bridges, and to my amazement I did it without even feeling it. That was the positive part--my physical condition is improving beyond my expectations.

But the walk itself was torture. When I trot, nothing hurts, but when I walk everything does. Don't ask me why because it is a mystery. For the rest of the day the only thing on my body that didn't ache was--guess!!!!--my knees. But these training walks are important. They work the legs and knees differently because at least in my case one doesn't strike the ground with the same stride. Unfortunately, today's training program has turned out to be the walk I did yesterday, so for once I'm a day ahead of the game instead of two days behind!

Breaking news: One of my virtual running pals was right--Ski Pole lady is practicing Nordic walking. I have been saying hello to her now for several days, so yesterday I asked her if that is what she is doing. She seemed thrilled that someone knew what her activity was, too. She is a very nice woman, too, with a lovely smile and very upbeat. Just goes to show there are friends everywhere if you can look for them. If for no other reason, running has been worth it just to meet so many happy people!

Back on track, at least temporarily...

After three days of a fibro flare, and in fact three weeks of feeling less than what nowadays goes for optimum, I was back in the park. There was a lovely cool breeze blowing even though it will be fairly hot later today.

There are two kinds of runners that can really get your goat: there are those who come pounding along and practically shove you off the path. These are not the Pounders, those runners you can hear from two blocks away. These latter tend to run in tight groups, and if one should trip and fall, they are all going down en masse. Your only concern is getting out of the way by leaping to one side. No, I mean those runners who simply don't care if you are there or not, it is your duty to get out of the way. I've seen one of these jerks almost hit a very elderly woman who was walking by the edge of the path, and today I got brushed by another of the cretins who mistakenly thought I was simply going to step off the path altogether. I warned Adrián that one of these days I was going to stick my leg out and trip one of them.

The other kind of runner that disgusts me is the group that spits on the path. I happen to think that spitting in public is primitive anyway, but to do so on a running path is an act of covert aggression. There aren't many of either kind of runner; most people are upbeat, courteous, and happy to be there enjoying themselves. One cannot identify the spitters, either, because all you come across is the result of their behavior, since the offender has long gone. Phooey!

Narcissus Corner, however, almost makes up for it. Here is where all the show-offs congregate to lift those ghastly weights and to do chin-ups on the monkey bars. This morning the machos were having a chin-up competition, so each competitor didn't have to look around nonchalantly to see if he was being noticed because all of them were there watching each other. It must have been macho heaven. This is one of the best shows on the running path, so more power to 'em.

Stay tuned, folks.