This morning I completed the Run with the Duck 5K. The rain pelted down on shivering runners, who were surprisingly unprepared for the wet weather. (It’s Oregon… It’s not like Oregonians are new to rain.) The packet pickup line stretched far enough that the race began about 15 minutes late. Boyfriend, coffee in hand and deckedContinue reading “What Running Has Taught Me”
Category Archives: Exercise
Dirty Duck 5K
I crossed the finish line with green and yellow powder paint in my nose, ears, and mouth, and feathers floating off of me. I looked through paint-covered sunglasses for Sister and Boyfriend. It didn’t take long to find them standing off to my right, outside the Wild Duck. I smiled a green and yellow smile and met upContinue reading “Dirty Duck 5K”
Time and Motivation
I don’t have time. it’s one of the primary excuses people have for not exercising regularly. Another is motivation. People start feeling discouraged – because results take time, and the work is hard – and after a while, they loose their motivation to keep going. These are similar to the issues I’m facing, but in a weirdContinue reading “Time and Motivation”
My Happy Place
Seven miles from my house, and about 1,500 feet above the valley I call home, is my oasis – my happy place. I love to hike, it’s one of my favorite ways to exercise and push my body to get stronger. And all the while I get to clear my mind, find some inner peace,Continue reading “My Happy Place”
Living the Life
Not all that long ago, the thought of working with a personal trainer terrified me. I always considered personal trainers to be people who have been fit all their lives and I was embarrassed by my less-than-fit condition. I remember working out at a 24 Hour Fitness in the Bay Area and seeing someone workingContinue reading “Living the Life”
Filling the Fitness Need
I have been a long-time subscriber of popular health and fitness magazines. I keep trying to find the one that really speaks to me, but there are subtle little things that keep me from really loving most of them. What really kept me interested were the success stories from real women – the ones whoContinue reading “Filling the Fitness Need”
Fitness – It’s a Lifestyle
In the past couple of weeks, I’ve had to make some choices that I felt were needed, but still left me feeling a little bit guilty. One, as I’ve talked about, was that I made the choice to take a week off from kickboxing when my morning routine got bumped up a notch as IContinue reading “Fitness – It’s a Lifestyle”
Sweet Rest Days
This week has been challenging. I entered the second mesocycle of the DailyBurn workout program that I’m doing, and it’s been a wonderful but exhausting change of pace. I’ve gone from roughly 30-35 minutes of cardio and strength training to about 45-55 minutes. At 5:30 in the morning, that’s really saying something. And while inContinue reading “Sweet Rest Days”
Burpees
Where do I begin? I guess I’ll start with my first ever experience with burpees… It was a dark and stormy night – OK, OK, for real. I was living in the San Francisco Bay Area and a bunch of friends from work wanted to try this kickboxing gym. It was a nice little hole-in-the-wallContinue reading “Burpees”
Oh Weekends
During the week, I am a machine. I get up, engage in 30-40 minutes of sweat therapy, then drag my happy ass to work. After work – a few days out of the week – I then go to the gym where I spend another 30 minutes sweating through nine rounds of kickboxing, punching andContinue reading “Oh Weekends”
Badass Is the New Skinny 