Tags

dreaded, hiking, nature

Right now, I am in the middle of soccer season, so I either have practice or games everyday, yet this weekend I decided to join my family on a hike. On Sunday, January 29th, I woke up and ate cereal, and was still barely awake when my family asked me to go on a hike with them. Usually, I’m the one begging to go on hikes when we get together as a family, but this morning/afternoon, I woke up tired, and ate cereal, so I didn’t have a good breakfast meal to do a workout. Yet, after a few minutes, I realized I didn’t want to miss the opportunity, so I quickly changed and headed out.

My dad told my brothers and I that we were doing a hike down our hill to Ralphs. I’ve done that trail many times, and I knew that there would be some hills, as expected in Whiting Ranch, so I prepared myself for a light hike. He said we were hiking to four corners then back across. Yet, as we started hiking, we walked down the trail from our house for awhile, then we had to hike back up another way to get to our trail. As we turned the corner to the trail, all I could see was a steep uphill. At first, I lost hope. Then, I decided to sprint up the first part to get a workout in, then resorted to walking. I run everyday, so I decided to walk in order to work different muscles. Once we got going, I made it my goal not to stop til the top. At the top of the first hill, I was so happy I made it to the top! Then, I turned the moment I arrived at the top, I could see the next hill just a little ways ahead. I got into a hiking position, slightly bent over, and started walking at a decent pace, way ahead of my family. It was nice to be out in nature with time to think, and ti hear my footsteps on the dirt, and enjoy the scenery. As I rounded the corner of this hill, another hill! Then, at the top of this hill, another hill! Then, another hill, and another, and another, etc! I kept my pace as I hit more and more hills, and didn’t stop til I reached the top, then I waited for my family to catch up. We then had to hike down a bit to get to the four corners area, in which 4 trails meet. This entire time, we thought we were on the four corners trail, yet we reached the bottom and there was the sign “Dreaded.” He tricked us. Once I got past the initial angered response, I realized I was really glad we hiked this trail. I was able to challenge myself to work hard and push myself, and I had a good workout. I was also able to spend time with my family, that I’m not able to do very often do to a busy schedule.

 

kickboxing

Tags

Action, kickboxing

Yesterday, December 23rd, I went to kickboxing with Bella. I have been wanting to try it for a long time now, as I hear Bella talking about the great exercise and how fun it is, yet with school and soccer, I hadn’t been able to. Finally, this Thursday, my coach cancelled soccer practice due to rain, so I could go! First, I had to buy hand wraps, then use a machine to unwrap them and re-wrap them in a different direction. Then, as Bella wrapped my hands (as shown above) I was getting more and more nervous. I was scared I wouldn’t be in good enough shape to keep up and I wasn’t sure exactly what to expect. As I think back, I realize the warm up was the hardest part. Then, we did some technique with different punches, where we would lightly hit the bag then bend over and punch it again with a full thrust. After practicing this with partners, we then added a kick. At first, I was kicking with my foot, because I was so use to with soccer, then some others in the class behind me warned that I could break my foot and I should kick more with my shin. We used our outside hand to block a punch, then used our other hand to hold it to the side while simultaneously kicking from the side we used to swipe the punch to the side. Although this sounds very confusing, after a few trys I got the hang of it. I wasn’t able to use much force or use special maneuvers, yet I started to get the technique down. To finish, we did some abs by doing leg lifts. After leg lifts, I moved into situps while I waited in order to get a better workout. The entire time, I felt so weird and awkward doing all of the maneuvers, yet Bella confirmed that we’re supposed to look this way and she said I was doing really well. Although I did not get as big of a workout as I wanted, and I am not sore today, I feel like I am already getting used to the techniques and I am excited to be able to try again. I think my nightly pushups and ab workouts, and fitness during soccer season definitely helped me not to feel sore and to be used t the exercise. After this one session, I feel like  am already more prepared if I were ever to get attacked and if I needed to defend myself.

Race Day!! 10/9/16

We did it!! I was so surprised and pleased I was able to finish and run despite the setbacks.

First few easy, but feet hurt throughout, ran with Ally for first 3.5 then ran ahead alone staying at the pace. She did amazing! She went into it planning on run/walk the whole thing and she was able to run continuosly for the first few miles and she finished with a great time! Going out to run 13.1 miles without having trained would be really hard yet she managed to pull it off! Everything i was worried about not staying together and being ahead vanished as T’s mom said we all have our own paces. I wish I could’ve finished my training and i probably would have finished close to 2 hours, based on my training run paces!

I Had water at almost every stop as I ran, but no electrolites, I stayed at 10 minute/mile pace, for most of it but then at 10 miles, i had 1 drink of the electrolite drink, then my stomach cramped up and i had to walk/run the last 3 miles, as my calves burned and my stomach cramped. The last 4 miles were the hardest, but i wish i could’ve kept running, I was far ahead of the 2:20 pace runner and I was on track to finish under 2:10, yet I had to stop and walk. Every time I reached people cheering us on it helped so much, saw how much others can help

After the race, I immediately sat down and stretched. I drank the bottle of water they gave us and a chocoate milk my friend brought. After sitting for awhile, we started to head out to the car, and I could barely make the walk. My stomach had a constant pain and sharp pains. None of us felt well after the race, Ally went home and rested, T had to go to the bathroom and threw up, and my stomach hurt. When we stopped as T threw up out the window, I ran to a porta potty, yet my stomach hurt the whole way back. I had to stay hunched over and could barely move. Then, when I got to my car (I parked at T’s and her family drove), I tried driving for a few minutes, then I had to stop at Ralphs. I could barely walk into the store and after about an hour, I managed to head home. For the next few hours, I layed down on bed, as my dad instructed my brother to put ice packs on my head and neck, and have me sip on water and smoothies, and pretzels for salt (my dad was at my brother’s game). I still couldn’t move for hours, yet it finally started to wear off later in the afternoon. I didn’t realize how important the electrolytes were, and since I basically had none all race, my body needed a lot of them. Lack of electrolytes causing a stomachache? Never would have guessed.

Running has been such a great experience and it has taught me so much. I have been able to work on my weaknesses and improve significantly, work with others and experience some challenges and benefits of collaboration, become healthier and reach goals I never imagined possible. I can now do so many pushups and I can see my arms toned! I plan on conitnuing to do daily abs and keep improving and maybe even get to 100 pushups! I pushed myself through the pain both in running and doing abs and motivated myself to work hard. Running helped me to feel better everyday, feeling in shape, fit and healthy and gave me a new confidence. It pushed me to become healthier, and to avoid all treats! Even though I won’t be on a training plan anymore I don’t think it’ even possible to go back to where I was a year ago. Maybe I’ll have a few treats here and there, but I have experienced how good it feels to eat healthy and how gross I feel after eating treats. I am proud of being able to avoid unhealthy food and stick to my diets with others, as I have learned from sticking to a gluten free diet. I think both my diet habits and wanting to exercise everyday will help me throughout my life, especially i college when I’ll be able to avoid unhealthy options,workout, and avoid the “fresman 15” Overall, running has completely improved me and helped me to become a better person.

Race time!

Tags

CAS, halfmarathon, healthy, long beach, October, running, schedule

Honestly, the past few days I have had so many mixed emotions for this race. After the major setbacks, I feel like I’m starting over, as if I’m going to go out and run the 13.1 miles with no training. I worked so hard and trained for so many months, running alone when my teammates didn’t want to, and running through the pain and soreness. And now.. I’m going out to try and run 13.1 miles, with what feels like no preparation. When I ran 5 miles on Thursday, I had trouble finishing, I was out of breath, my legs hurt, and I was sore. At this point, I 5 miles should’ve been really easy, a warm-up run, yet instead I struggled. It felt like one of my beginning runs all over again, like I was starting over with only 3 days left til race day.

Monday, I did 20 push-ups, 50 sit-ups, then 25 sit-ups, and 20 more push-ups, along with a 3 mile run. Since it was later, my mom didn’t want me to run alone or in the dark, so I had to resort to the clubhouse treadmill, and could only do 3. It felt so good to run again, and it just made me realize how exercise empowers me and gives me a sense of confidence. Starting out, I was actually scared to run again and had to push myself to get out and run. I was scared not on.y to see how running would feel again but to see if I lost what I had worked so hard to gain. I still had it, supposedly. Although it felt like I was going fast, I still took longer than I thought I would to finish. After finishing my run, I felt dizzy, as I had the last time I used the treadmill.

On Tuesday, I had soccer, then I did 20 pushups, 50 situps, and 20 more pushups. I have to push myself every time to get to 50 situps, yet I am so glad how far I have come. Even after the half marathon is over, I want to continue doing ab workouts and running to keep my body and mind healthy. Wednesday, I had soccer and 50 situps and 25 pushups, then Thursday I ran 5 miles. As I mentioned earlier, the run did not go as I thought it would. The first 2 miles felt great, and I ended up going faster than I thought I was, with 8:30 miles, when we are aiming for a 10 minute mile pace. Every mile, I slowed down without realizing it, and I got so out of breath I could barely finish my last mile. It could have been an off day, or my rapid start, but this run increased my fear for Sunday.

On Friday, I felt sore from my 5 mile run, so I rested and did 25 pushups, 50 siutps, and 20 pushups. Saturday, I walked around for hours and did a small jog along with a stretching routine to get my legs ready for tomorrow. All day, and all week, I have been scared for tomorrow. I really wanted to feel prepared and ready to run, but I don’t. I realize now that to one extent I have to accept that I let my body heal from being sick, it to another I wish I had gone out and made myself run (even though this wouldn’t have worked out). I think I could’ve also gotten to higher mileage earlier on if I had stuck to training on my own, yet I waited for T to get back and to catch up for runs. I honestly ended up doing all my long runs alone, so I should’ve just done them in the first place. Also, towards the end she started running with her mom early in the morning, when I was sick and I wasn’t able to, which was hard for me since so many times I rearranged my schedule to be able to train together. It seemed like she kind of left for her own and now we are on completely different tracks. I know she needed to run while I was sick, but even so many other times she just wanted to run on her own.

After the expo today, I started to get excited going to all of the booths and getting our bibs, although my fear is still there. Tomorrow, I am going to go out and do the best I can. I did what I could at this point to prepare and so I hope it will all work out and I’ll be able to keep jogging through the whole thing.

Setback

Over the past couple of weeks, I hit a few goals, yet I also had a setback.

Over the weekend, the 17th-18th, I felt like I was getting sick, so I started doing everything I could, including taking Airborne, immunu-plex vitamins, getting extra sleep, and drinking tea. Yet, I still got sick. On Monday the 19th, my planned rest day, I came home after school and couldn’t even force myself to do any work until later that night. I felt feverish and my head was pounding, I couldn’t think, and I just had to rest. Then, Tuesday morning I woke up feeling fine, so I went to school. I also have missed little to no school throughout my entire life, I think I missed one day of school freshman year for a soccer tournament, but other than that I’ve gone. After 6th period Tuesday, the sick feeling and headache started to come back, so I sat out of soccer. I also almost never sit out of soccer, as I’ve tried to play with a concussion and sprained ankle in the past, yet this time I had to. When I went home, I felt even worse than Monday afternoon, and all I could do was lay in bed all day, I couldn’t think, ibuprofen didn’t help, and I couldn’t even force myself to do work. On Wednesday, although not planning on going to school, I woke up sick with my head still pounding, so I just stayed in bed all day. I could barely get around the house and overall I was just sick. On Thursday, I made myself go to school, because I didn’t want to miss anymore. I felt fine in the beginning of the day, yet as the day went on I felt worse from class to class. Since I was coughing and still felt sick, I didn’t run during 7th. Then, right after school, I had to head home, make food to bring (because I can’t eat the gluten), and pack then go to someone’s house form Varsity to start the long night of the Varsity initiations. For a few hours we made shirts for ourselves and everyone who was going to make varsity, then we went around for 2 hours “tping” houses, then we came back for an hour before we had to start kidnapping the new varsity members. From 2am-4am, we went around kidnapping the 7 new players, by going into their room and screaming then taking them with us to the next house (we had parental permission). After staying up all night, I could barely stay awake Friday during school, was struggling in every class, and probably did not do well on my Spanish quiz. When I got home from school around 330, I went straight upstairs to my room and passed out til 8am Saturday.

On Saturday, I still felt like I had a cold and cough but much better than before, so I went to my soccer game. Upon arrival, I found out we would be short 3 players, so I would have to stay the entire game (thought about stopping at half so I don’t overdo anything). As I started playing, I realized that being asleep, I hadn’t had any food or water and I was still tired from being sick and the kidnappings, so I truly had no energy for the game. I did my best, scoring 2 goals, and assisting the other 2, yet I just wasn’t myself and made other mistakes in the game. After, I definitely regretted my decision. I came home and had to lay down and rest for awhile, since I felt like I did on Monday and Tuesday last week. After this week of craziness, I am really worried about getting behind for the half marathon. We only have 2 weeks left and being out for the week might really hurt me, and after playing today and feeling terrible after, I’m worried I won’t even be able to do my full training.

Tags

Action, CAS, fit, half marathon, health, IB, running, September, training

On Thursday, I did a 2:30 wall sit, 30 push-ups, and 50 sit-ups. I was very happy with this length of time, as most of my previous ones were around 1:45. Towards the end I as shaking, yet I forced myself to keep going to hit my goal. I am also happy with the amount of push-ups I am able to do now, as looking back I could barely do 10.

On Friday, I did a 1:45 wall sit, as my legs were tired from the day prior, 25 pushups and 50 situps. On Saturday, I did laser tag for almost 2 hours, so I was running around for most of the time. When I go home, I did 25 pushups and 50 situps.

 

On Sunday, September 4th, I did 9 miles. T and I made a plan to run 9 miles this morning, as Ally couldn’t go that early. When I got there, she suggested 6 since she had to be back to leave with her family. Hearing this, I was disappointed since I felt like I kept hearing 6 miles and I really wanted to get in a longer run. For the first 2 miles, the run was easy and I felt light, then during the 3rd I suddenly felt heavier, with both my legs and lungs. For the next 3 miles, I felt pretty good, but I was breathing slightly heavier than my normal breathing. We kept a pace of about 10 minutes per mile, which is faster than T and I usually run at, but still slower, closer to the same as the pace I run alone. I had to push myself up the last hill, about .4 miles, back to our cars, but I was glad I could keep my pace up. Then, once we got back, I still felt like I needed to run 9 miles to train for the half marathon and to feel like I can be ready in time, so I decided to run 3 extra on my own. I stretched with T for a minute, drank a sip of water, then went back to running. The next 2 miles were easy and I felt light, then I hit 8. For the entire last mile, I was out of breath, my legs became heavy, and I was debating stopping to take a break. As I ran, I thought about how disappointed I would be if I stopped, and I also pictured T and Coach Arroyo pushing me to continue. This was one of the hardest miles so far, but I finished! I was able to keep up a good pace , faster than past runs despite my trouble. At various times throughout the run, my stomach and back would hurt,but I kept going. I am glad I had T next to me for the first 6 miles, to push me to keep going. I wish we could’ve done the last 3 together as well, and she would’ve been there to push me to keep going. At the same time, I’m glad I was able to do it alone, knowing I can push myself. Also, I was able to keep going, keep up the pace, and finish, whereas I may have needed to stop if we were together. I’m willing to stop if she needs it, yet I think there are times when we need to continue the whole run. After the run, I felt sick for about an hour, so I decided to go back to my plan to not eat any treats. I have been limiting myself to 1 treat a week, yet I think for this last month, I need to avoid all treats and eat healthy to train properly and feel good.

August 15-August 30

Tags

Action, CAS, cross-training, fit, half marathon, health, healthy, IB, running, training

Since the 8.7 mile run on the 8th I have felt disappointed and like I lost a lot of progress. I did workouts almost everyday, yet I didn’t get as any runs or mileage in as I would have liked. I think some of the workouts will help with speed and I stayed in shape, yet I am now worried about longer mileage. I am really happy with my progress with my abs and continuing to workout so I hope it pays off in the half marathon.

On August 15th, I did the Cardio fix extreme video for 30 minutes. I found it a bit difficult, as many of the exercises were unfamiliar and I was out of breath. The squats to jumping jack with weights gave me the hardest time, yet non of the exercises were easy. My mom was able to watch me for a few minutes to make sure my form was correct and give me tips. It helps having someone else in the room so I push myself even harder and make sure I complete the whole video. After, I did 10 pushups and 50 situps.

On August 16th, I texted T and Ally to see if they could run in the morning, as I was volunteering at the library for registration, yet neither of them could. Then, it hit me that I could ask Sandra, as she was also volunteering and we had talked about getting together. We planned to run at 7am, and do a mile timed and a 2 mile road run, yet Sandra got there closer to 730, so we had to cut it down to volunteer at 8. During the 1.68 miles, in 18:57 minutes, it felt really slow and harder than it should have been. I may have felt this due to my workout the night before, yet I still go stressed out, as it was less than 2 miles in 18 minutes, when I can do 2 in less than 16, even closer to 15. Then, Wednesday August 17th, I held an all-nighter at my house for my extended essay experiment to test how sleep effects the brain. In order to ensure everyone else stays up and I test them properly I slept in and took a 2 hour nap Wedesday so I could stay up all night.

On Thursday, I mostly slept all day. Yet, I also managed to get in a 20 minute ladder speed workout, ball touches, 15 pushups, 75 situps, 10 pushups, 15 hip dips per side, and two 1:30 wall sits immediately following eachother. I was surprised how good I felt working out since I hadn’t slept the night before, yet I was able to push myself in the ladder workout and every time I went through the ladder I did a sprint (as I learned from multiple soccer practices that this builds speed). Every time I made a mistake with one of the drills, I did it again 2 times, or until I could do it perfectly.

On Friday the 19th, I did 10 hip dips, 20 pushups, and 50 situps, as I was exhausted. Then, on Saturday I left for San Diego with T and Ally for the weekend, for a quick vacation. Our goal was to see 3 national monuments (La Cabreo, Fort RoseCrans Cemetery, and the lighthouse), and take 3 forms of public transportation. We met a man at the cemetery who left a great impression on me. He asked us to call so that they would allow real flowers, showed us where T’s great grandparents were, gave us a recipe, and gave us some voting advice. He was just really sweet and we were all amazed at his spirit. Throughout the whole trip, I kept trying to plan a run for us all, yet Ally didn’t want to and it ended up not happening. Saturday, I did 25 pushups and Monday I did 50 situps and 10 pushups, then we left Tuesday. When I got back Tuesday the 23rd, I did the 30 minute cardio fix again so I could keep working on improving. I felt better and was more comfortable with a lot of the exercises, yet the squat with weights to a jumping jack still challenges me. I did as many as I could, yet I had to go slower. After, I did 25 normal situps, then 50 with the legs, 15 hip dips each side, 15 pushups, 10 pushups, and a 1:30 wall sit. I also did a 6 minute workout with the ladder to improve speed. I want to keep doing hip dips every day so that when I go back to the other tape I won’t struggle as much.

On Wednesday the 24th , T, Ally and I ran! It was the first training run we had all done together!! I felt really good throughout the entire run, yet with a  couple miles left my feet started hurting because of the new running orthotics. They were crampiong yet they were also burning. 2.2 miles in, T and I had to leave Ally, as she had soccer the night before and was sore, so she turned back and T and I ran out to 3, to get 6 miles in. My arms and back were sore from the cardio workout, yet I still did 15 pushups, 50 situps, and 10 hip dips on each side.

Then, Thursday I did two hill sprints (bigger hill than normal). My family also went to the moonlight theater to watch Titanic, and the play wasn’t the best, yet it was the first time I had seen the story in at least 6 years, and the tragedy and reality of the story hit me.

Friday August 26th, I did the 30 minute cardio workout, then 57 situps (since I did 7 then my brother talked to me and I stopped), 25 hip dips per side, and 2 sets of 15 pushups. During the workout, I pushed myself harder than I had been able to before, did more jumping jack squats, and ended sweaty and out of breath.

On Saturday, I did 5 miles alone. I set out to do more, yet as I ran I started to feel sick. At 4 miles, I could barely continue, but I wanted to get just one more in. I was so glad I oushed that one extra mile, yet very dissapointed I felt sick and not as light running. My orthotics were also hurting my feet and legs again, so I was running through feet and stomach pain. I hope this was a one time pain and that I will feel good again the ext time I run. I did 25 pushups and 50 situps to finish the day.

On Sunday, I did some jumping, then 75 situps, 10 hip dips per side, and 45 pushups in sets of 15. I was so happy with my aility to do so many pushups, since I started out barely able to do 10 while looking up!

On Monday, I ran 3 miles with T and Ally. To start off the run, I was frustrated. We had all been texting that we wanted to pick up the pace to be ready, so we would do 8 miles Monday. Yet, every time I asked, they didn’t have a time so it kept getting pushed back with no time ever set and I wasn’t sure how to plan for my homework. Since it was the first day of school, it took awhile to get started with homework, as I was talking to my mom and brothers (they both started middle and high school). I also was asking for them to meet me half way, since it takes me awhile to get to school then to have to drive back down to El Toro again can be hard with homework. When I pulled up, I was frustrated, yet as we started to run I cheered up. We ran a bit faster than normal when together so I was really happy and was pleased when T and I agreed to pick up the pace for training. It got dark quickly since we started so late so we ended up doing 3 miles. It was weird though, every time we compared what mileage we were at, T and I had the same (using garmins), yet Ally’s fitbit always said she had done an extra .3 miles. I think I need to trust the Garmin, yet how trustworthy is it truly?

Today, Tuesday August 30th, T and I ran 7 miles. During the first 2 miles, my legs felt so heavy, so when T suggested we stretch at the 2 mile mark I agreed. As we started running again, my legs felt a lot better and I felt light running. Here,2 suggested we go 6 instead of the planned 8, yet I said 7 because I wanted to get more miles in. For the way there, I was getting ahead of T, and I wasn’t sure if I should wait for her or stay ahead or go slower, but I ended up staying ahead and looping back a bit, because we had the conversation about a faster pace, even though I wasn’t really going too fast. At 3.5 miles, we ran into Jack in the Box to grab some ice water, as it was 93 degrees. My watch saved the run at the first 3.5, so I and to start another one on my watch. I felt fine and didn’t really want to stop but I knew the heat was hitting T and we should hydrate. I felt good til a little over 5, then my legs started to burn again. We finished the run strong, striding the last .1. I wis we could keep up a faster pace, yet I think getting miles in is also important. Prior to this run, I was uneasy and worried about getting enough mileage in before the half marathon but I think we will be able to do it! This run helped me to gain my confidence again, as I felt pretty good and ran faster than normal. I did 25 pushups and 50 situps, then when I got home I realized the one week that I really needed to worry about was the 14th to 20th, yet other than that I have actually gotten a decent amount of miles in.

2 months to go…

Tags

Action, CAS, cross-training, fit, half marathon, health, healthy, IB, training

Monday, August 8th I ran 8.7 miles. Originally, I set out to do 8 miles, as I looked up the night before the longest way to my dad’s office, as there was one way that was 7 miles, one that was 7.5 miles, and one that was 8 miles. I thought the 8 mile run would be perfect, because I would be able to time it so I could get treated once I arrived and then drive back home with him, while also having the opportunity to run 8 miles without having to run out 4 and back 4. In the beginning I could feel the soreness from the workout on Sunday, and I honestly debated doing a 3 mile loop instead. I knew though that mental toughness is so important and in order to make it for 13.1 miles I would have to push myself every day. A couple of times I almost had to stop because my stomach was killing, yet after a few seconds of running through it, the pain would go away so I kept going. At 5 miles, I felt like if I stopped I would have had a good run and workout, then at 6 and 7 I had to keep counting down the miles left. It felt good to run at a fast pace, yet at the same time this run was really difficult. I had to keep pushing myself to keep going along the way, and it felt weird to run along the road and see the lights that I usually drive by on my way home from school. Once I hit 8 miles, I decided I had already made it this far and I wanted to just keep going to make it to the next light. But then I hit the next light… and I figured why not just go until I get to my dad’s office? Then, I mad it to my dad’s office and I was at about 8.66 and I wanted an even number so I ran in front of his office til I made it to 8.7. During almost the entire run, I ran between a 9 and 930 mile pace, and I am so glad I was able to keep up the faster pace the entire time. In the last few miles, once I was off the trail, I hit a few red lights so I kept running back and forth while I waited, but my mile times were definitely shorter for these miles. Since I was running alone, I was able to go at my own pace, but since I am training with T and we have different paces, I think after all the months of training we should cross the finish line together. My goal for myself would be 2 hours, so I am excited to see what we can do together! I have significantly improved in my ability to not only hold a pace but to keep up this faster pace for so long. If I had the time, I would do cross country. I remember running with Aubrey and trying to keep up with her for all of the runs, as she was a year older and already in high school cross country. By the time we ran the half marathon, I had not trained at my own pace, so I wasn’t able to go as fast as I would have liked. This time, I think I have switched roles, yet having that experience I am so glad she pushed me, but at the same time, I don’t want to push T past what she can do. I am realizing I am again not running at my own pace but I know that I am capable of it. After the run I did 20 push ups.

On Tuesday, I rested. My legs were sore from the past few workouts, and I had some trouble sitting and going up and down stairs, so I thought I should take a day to rest. Also, on the original schedule for the first month that Coach Arroyo had given us she had rest days before and after the long runs, but I have found I like a short run the day before the long run. I also did my daily 10 push ups.

On Thursday, I decided to do a hill workout. All day yesterday and today I felt really tired so I was debating if I should run or rest, but since I had rested the last 2 days I felt like I needed to run. I ran the same workout that I had done in the past, 10 hill repeats up and down my neighborhood, for a total of 1.28 miles. I felt good physically and I thought I could run even more, yet my breathing felt heavier than normal. After running, I did 1 90 second wall sit, 20 push ups and 50 sit ups.

On Friday, I did 50 push ups, 80 sit ups, then a 90 second wall sit. Then, on Saturday, I was working all day on cleaning my room and painting it, finishing late at night, so I decided to do another workout from the 21 day fix tape. I chose the 10 minute hardcore, as I didn’t have much time, and challenged myself by making the leg lifts harder. Instead of doing cuts all the way up and down, I stayed in one place, because it felt like I was resting on the way up. I found the majority of the workout to be really easy, then I came across the hip dips. I’m not sure if I’m weak int his muscle area, or if I’m doing them wrong, so I plan to add them into my daily abs from now on, and hopefully I can strengthen this area. After the workout, I did 20 push ups and 50 sit ups to stay consistent with my workouts and because I didn’t find this one to be a huge challenge.

On Sunday August 14th, I did another ab workout, with 80 sit ups, 10 hip dips on each side ( I figured out it is much easier if I put a towel under my elbow), 10 side crunches, 20 push ups, and  2 minute wall sit. Although I am happy with the progress I have made with my abs I am disappointed how I feel more out of breath when I run that I used to, and it feels like I am back at the beginning. Next week I hope I can get some longer runs in but also some speed and harder workouts.

 

 

Dilemma

Tags

Action, CAS, cross-training, fit, half marathon, health, IB, training

On Sunday, July 31st, when I was texting Ally and T to try and plan a run for Monday, I reached a problem. As I typed “8 miles” I realized that we were on different levels and experience another challenge with planning. Some of the planning has gone smoothly, as I text then we choose a time and most of the time there is a time that works for us. Yet, Ally hasn’t trained with us yet, besides a couple times at zumba and the two runs we did, one before school got out and other other in June. I wanted to text both of them so we could all run together, and I thought we should be at 8 miles and that we need to push our training with some slower days, yet I also knew that Ally wouldn’t be able to do 8 at this time. I sent the text to try and include Ally, yet I wasn’t sure what to do. Ally already had plans to go to the beach so she couldn’t run, and T and I ended up doing the 8 miles on Monday, yet I am a bit dissapointed that all three of us haven’t really had the chance to train together yet. I think that there is still plenty of time, since we started training really early, so we can do shorter mile runs with Ally and then hopefully she can catch up!

On Tuesday, August 2nd, I did a lot of walking while working on my service project at the spectrum, then I did 30 pushups in intervals of 10 and 50 situps. On Wednesday, I was planning on going to my dad’s office to shadow him for the day, and I knew T had something at night so I texted Ally and T to see if they could run early in the morning. T could run at 7 am, yet Ally was leaving at 7 am for Disneyland so she couldn’t run. Again, I felt bad for continuing to train without her, but at the same time we have to keep training to be ready and stay in shape and motivated. So, we met on El Toro and ran out about 2.5 miles to the trail end, then on the way back, we made a detour on a side path and ran out about .3 miles so we would be closer to 6 when we got back. We ended up having to continue out another .2 miles past our starting point, yet it was much better than having to run another mile once we got back. For the first 3-4 miles, my legs were really heavy and the run felt slow, yet on the way back for the last couple of miles I felt like I could’ve ran for much longer and I felt lighter and fresher. I am definitely not a morning person, yet getting up and going felt great because it wasn’t as hot, there weren’t as many people out, and I felt energized for the day. When I got home, I did 20 pushups, 50 situps, then 10 more pushups before I showered. At my dad’s office, I felt so much better having ran. Also, by shadowing him for the day, it helped me to realize I might want to go into chiropractic when I am older. Growing up, I got quick adjustments every now and then, yet recently has been the first time I have truly seen what he does and experienced the full treatment. In addition, I got to see other types of treatments to his patients, and I saw the effect and value he has to his patients, as one even cried. I also feel so much better once he treats me and I would love to help others feel this way.

On Thursday, I did 15 push ups and 50 situps. Then, Friday I had Zumba (see blog Action 2). Then, I did 30 minutes jumping up and down a stair on each leg, then 1 minute with both, then a 1 minute 30 second wall sit, 30 push ups in intervals of 10, then 75 sit ups. Although I was shaking as I did the sit ups I was glad that I could make it and increase the intensity. On Saturday, I swam for about an hour, then later in the day I went on the trampoline for an hour, doing a variety of exercises. I ran laps around the trampoline, jumped at variuos times, and got touches playing soccer. I also did 10 pushups and 50 situps to finish the day.

Today, August 7th, I went to UCI library to research for the extended essay, then I came home to workout. While I was there, I ate gluten free paleo bread that Bella had made, and it was amazing, yet at the same time it was weird to eat bread again since I have mostly been avoiding it, and finding alternatives for lunch. When I got home, I did a 33 minute upper body workout, then a 33 minute lower body workout using a tape we have. We worked all of the upper body muscle and the leg muscles, yet because we did 1-2 exercises for every muscle it did seem very difficult. There were a couple of times I was shaking, mostly because my arms are not as strong as I would like them to be, but the overall workout was not impossible. I used 8 pound weights for my heavy set, and 5 pounds for my light set, so I think next time I will use 10 and 8 pound weights. For the majority of this workout I used the 8 pound weights even when we switched to light so that I would get a harder workout, and because they are not very heavy to start with.

Soccer camp

Tags

Action, CAS, half marathon, health, healthy, soccer, training

This week, soccer camp took up most of the training. On Tuesday, we ran 2 miles, yet I ran in the back with Ashley in case any of the girls fell behind, so we ended up having to walk the majority. I also did 10 push-ups and 50 sit-ups as part of my daily routine. On Wednesday, we did a lot of jumping as our fitness, along with holding push-up position for a long time so that others can crawl underneath you. I was very happy as I breezed through the jumping and wanted to do even more, yet when we had to hold push-up position I was shaking. I did 6 push-ups at camp, as I did 2 every time someone ‘megged’ me, and then 10 when I got home.

On Thursday, I could feel the soreness in my arms from the workout the day prior, yet I was pleased to know that I pushed myself. For the 3 hours of camp, we did soccer Olympics, which included games of football, juggling, shooting, and many more. In order to count this as my workout, I added additional running to every step as I was sprinting to shag balls and running around the majority of the time. On Friday and Saturday I rested as I was sore from the week.

 

On Sunday, I decided to run 2 miles to loosen my legs as I was planning on running 8 miles on Monday the 1st. Running around the neighborhood, there are hills in every direction, but I decided to take it slow just to get loose. I felt very tight and slow anyway, but from training so far I have realized that running after 2 days of rest is very difficult, so I was trying to make the 8 mile run go smoother. After the run, I did 10 push-ups, a 30 second wall sit, 50 sit-ups, and 10 side crunches on each side.

 

 

On Monday, I ran 8 miles with T. Although we ran very slow, I am still glad we were able to finish the run. During the run, my back and knees hurt at times, but I pushed through. Afterward, my legs felt like jello, but overall I still felt really good. I am excited that we are back on track and making progress, as I was slightly worried after not being able to run much in Colorado. I have also realized again how exercise relieves stress and creates endorphins, so that I feel so much better exercising everyday. When I was in Colorado, all I wanted to do was go on a run, and I fell so much better once I exercise. During the school year I am going to do my best to exercise everyday and push myself. I also noticed at soccer camp how I was able to just keep on running and how the cross training helps. I think I definitely need to do speed workouts on top of the distance training to stay in the best shape. I have also realized that I am able to push myself and motivate others by my actions and by planning and organizing the runs. I think that this process has helped me to know myself better and that I push myself harder than others might around me, but I also realize that teamwork can push me and helps me to stick to a plan. Some days I think we should do 5 miles, then I talk to T and she was thinking 6, so we do the extra mile, and I am so glad that she pushes me to do better. Her mom also helps to motivate us after we run and encourages us to keep working.

I have also noticed a major difference in training due to my diet. When I ran the half marathon in 8th grade I would feel sick often and had many problems (as discussed earlier). Now, for the first time, I have avoided desserts and any type of treat for almost a month, as the 4th of July was the last time I had a treat (frozen yogurt), and prior to that i was already eating healthy. Writing down everything that I eat has definitely helped me to eat better, as I don’t want to write down chocolate, so I don’t eat it. For the past couple of weeks, I have stopped writing everything down and I have trusted myself to avoid these treats, as I realize how it makes me feel after and how bad they are. In the past few days, I have been tested, as my mom brought home amazing gluten free cookies that I had tried in the past, then I had Sees candy right under my nose, yet I managed not to eat it. I have seen many others who don’t completely stick to their diet in my past, so I have tried to completely stick to my goals. After the month is over, I may try to limit it to one treat a week or day, but now that I have avoided it for this long, it is hard to see myself going back to eating and treats.