Pushing Up

After a morning spent waiting while the "professionals" installed our new hot water tank in such a way as to prevent me from moving the dryer back into it's spot, then waiting another hour plus while they fixed the problem (you'd think that they would figure this stuff out, what with having to do these installs all the time!) I finally made it to work around 1:30. Not a good thing after a week and a half off, but what's one supposed to do?

I stayed late at work to make up a little bit for the lost time, and when I got home I got to the Week 6 Day 1 set of push ups. These went 45-55-35-30 and then a max set where I managed a more than decent 85 for a total of 250. I felt pretty weak actually, most likely as a result of the cross country skiing over the weekend. The most painful spots are the hips flexors though and I didn't anticipate any problems anywhere else. I guess in the end it didn't matter very much as I completed more on the max set than I thought I would.

Tomorrow it's back on the chin ups I think, and I am contemplating getting back to running soon. The foot, although I still feel something there, has reached a point where I now can call it a "discomfort" rather than pain. I am thinking of taking it really easy for the first few weeks, just running short distances (ie. 5k or so) and not faster than 6 minute kilometres (9:40/mile for my American readers). Then if all goes well I can start upping the mileage a bit more in February. I think the cross country skiing will do wonders for my legs as well since that seems to work the hip flexors that running tends to neglect.

X-Country Pics

Just thought I'd post a couple of pictures of the boys from our cross country skiing outing while I have a moment as our hot water tank is being replaced and I am forced to "work from home" for the morning...

The boys getting used to their skis:



Owen already kicking his Dad's ass:

Skiing with the Boys

First, I did some more push ups last night. It was the Week 5 Day 3 section of the plan, and I did OK, all things considered. I must admit that doing the push ups, even though I haven't accomplished the 100 consecutive thing just yet, has been gratifying and has kept me sane while I wait for the foot to let me run again. I will also have to get back on the chin ups workouts too since those were going well before getting sick derailed me for a while. Anyway, the sets went 20-20-24-24-20-20-22 and then I maxed out at 72 for a total of 222 push ups. It was hard, but it was also late into the evening and I was getting things ready for our planned cross-country skiing trip...

That happened today. We left at 7:45am with my Mom joining us in the caravan. Owen and Malcolm are both signed up for lessons that go every Saturday morning for eight weeks, and today was the first day. Hardwood Hills is a bit of a drive away (1.5 hours in total), but it is totally worth it. The trails are awesome!

We had a great time! Owen loved his 2-hour lesson and at the end had the rosiest cheeks I've ever seen. I assisted Malcolm in his lesson and he had a lot of fun, even if he didn't actually learn a heck of a lot. While the boys and I were occupied with lessons, Monica and my Mom went off on their own and put in a solid hour and a half of skiing.

After lunch it was my turn and I was really looking forward to a good (impact free) workout. I picked an 8km trail and was off. The Garmin showed that I am an awfully slow skier, but the heart rate jumped right up to the 150s so I knew I was giving my heart a decent workout for the first time since November. The 8k took me almost 50 minutes to complete and I was totally overheated by the end of this one.

Since Monica and Owen were still not back from their run, and my Mom was hanging out with Malks, I decided to get rid of one layer and hit the trails again hoping to catch up with M&O. This time I picked the shortest trail (5k) and was trying to go faster. The Garmin once again indicated that I am slow as molasses, but the heart rate proved that it indeed was a workout. I completed the 5k route in about 32 minutes and was drenched with sweat. Within about two minutes of finishing, while standing outside with the rest of the family (who had congregated outside by now) I was totally frozen and decided to head in and call it a day. All told it was a great experience and I look forward to the next 7 Saturdays! It was also great to pull the Garmin out of storage and make sure it was still working OK...

The foot feels OK after the skiing, at least better than I thought it would, but I'm sure that I'll feel all sorts of aches and pains in places that I haven't felt before. It's all good though since I think it will only be the good kind of pain.

Garmin don't lie #1 and #2.

Back on the Push Ups

Just a quick post so that I can continue to keep track of my continued efforts towards achieving 100 consecutive push ups. I have lost quite a bit of strength over the Holidays, partly due to the stomach virus and partly due to the copious amounts of food, junk or otherwise, that I've been ingesting.

I started back on the plan a couple of days ago, though I felt really uninspired and couldn't even be bothered to turn on the computer and verify what the Week 5 Day 1 workout was supposed to be. I did 35-45-40-30 for a total of 150 and couldn't even attempt a max out set.

Tonight I did the Week 5 Day 2 workout and managed 19-19-22-22-18-18-22 and then maxed out at 62 for a total of 202 push ups. It was really tough, and I think going back to Week 5 of the plan is the right move. Better late than never, right?

Also, yesterday we spent the entire day cross country skiing with the boys and then did awesome! We were planning on a short introduction, maybe an hour or two, just to ease them into it prior to their lessons starting this Saturday. They both loved it so much that we ended spending 6 hours on the trails! I will bring my Garmin next time and hopefully get to go out on my own once to get a real workout in. The foot still aches; what else is new...

A Quick Update

It's been a great Christmas in our house and everyone had a great time, especially the kids. They were, once again, spoiled beyond all sense and reason, but given that we and their extended family love them so much it is no longer a surprise. Things are going fairly well for us right now and we can afford to let them have a few things that maybe we won't be able to afford in more lean years.

I haven't done any push ups or chin ups this week and have written off the attempt at the century for the moment. Next week I will redo Week 6 again and then (hopefully) be ready to get 100 in a row the following week. The foot is still hurting a little, but I know that if I stay off of it for a while longer it will completely heal. It certainly isn't as bad as it was before, and I continue to wait for that elusive pain-free state before contemplating running again. Starting in January we'll be cross-country skiing every Saturday, with the boys taking lessons and us off on some much needed cross training. It should be a blast, and with it being low or no impact, the workout will pay off in the long run cardio wise.

Not sure when I'll get back on the computer (and the only reason I have it on right now is because I had to call the hot water tank people to get a new rental unit installed since the one we own is starting to leak), but I wish everyone a safe and happy New Year!

Merry Christmas!

All the best to all who celebrate the Holidays this evening (us Europeans I suspect) and/or tomorrow! Also, same wishes to everyone who doesn't celebrate Christmas specifically, but enjoys the Holidays based on their own traditions and beliefs.

I considered attempting the 100 push ups last night, but was feeling too weak and tired to do so. I cranked out one set of 50 just as a test, but it wasn't all that easy. I think I will do some more sets over the next week and get back in shape and then attempt the century. The chin ups have fallen off as well on account of the stomach virus, but I'll have to get back into that as well.

I keep seeing people running through the snow and am appropriately jealous, but the foot is not yet 100%. It has been feeling better, but with all the walking I've been doing (shopping and all) and then the three snowstorms we've had to shovel the foot has flared up again. This morning I spent an hour shoveling super heavy snow, which fell over night and then turned to rain making for great snowballs, but crap crap crap for lifting and throwing. I guess that's cross training or something...

What a scattered post! The New Year should get this whole running and blogging endeavor back on track, but for now it's time to celebrate the Holidays with the family and reflect on a great 2008. All the best everyone!

The Lost Weekend

Man, it's been a hell of a last few days... After a Saturday spent shopping, putting up the Christmas tree, then more shopping I began to feel sick. Yup, the stomach virus was not going to pass me by and I felt more and more nauseous as the night progressed. By 1:30am I was praying for the inevitable resolution, but my stomach would not oblige. It wasn't until 5:30am Sunday, and after I had completely drained the hot water tank of it's contents while sitting in the shower, did my body cry "Uncle!" and let me puke my guts out.

Suffice it to say I've been less than active over the last couple of days, but am well enough today to get to work and (hopefully) get some last minute Christmas stuff done. My 100 push up attempt may go tonight, but I feel pretty weak and have lost about 7lbs as a result of not being able to eat much of anything for a while. We'll see what happens...

Getting Close to the Century

Toronto got hit with a lot of snow, and the place is absolutely covered! I love it. We'll be shovelling tomorrow morning for a while, but we'll definitely have a nice White Christmas. Last year we also had a snow storm a week or two before Christmas, but it all melted away by the 25th. I don't see the same thing happening this year since there is more snow in the forecast on Sunday and again on Tuesday.

Tonight was a bit surprising as far as the push ups were concerned. I did the Week 6 Day 3 routine, 26-26-33-33-26-26-22-22 and then maxed out at the surprising part: 95! The total added up to over 300 push ups (309) and becomes a new standard for me. It's amazing: the total for my first day of the challenge was 95, and now I can do THAT in a row! Perhaps the challenge should be to do 100 after doing a bunch of sets...

Still, I'd rather be running.

Status Quo - All Quiet Except the Weather Forecast

Not much going on, and I really should get cracking on Christmas preparations since we're hosting this year. Malcolm's daycare had their Christmas concert this evening and the kids did an amazing job and had a great time. Three of the older kids performed a great version of the song "The Polar Express" with what I can only assume were completely unintentional harmonies, but it worked so well!

Tomorrow will be a snowy snowy day in the T-Dot, and I will not be biking to work. This means that I will not be swimming, and I missed my lunchtime swim today because my manager took us all out for lunch, and that was awesome.

Tonight I did some more chin ups, this time doing 10-10-10 pull ups and 10-10-10 chin ups for a total of 60. I think I have to start getting past that 10 barrier if I am ever going to get to 20...

Aftershock

The stomach flu, it seems, has not finished running it's course. Malcolm was sick in the middle of the night and I spent the day with the poor little guy at home. On top of all that his cheek started to get really red and inflamed, hot to the touch, which meant only one thing to us: infection. Off we went to the doctor and sure enough that's what it was. Now he is on antibiotics for the first time in his life and I hope he doesn't have any adverse reaction to the medication. A long time ago when Owen was on antibiotics for an ear infection his whole personality changed while taking the drugs, and that was a bit weird to witness for us first time (at that time) parents.

Anyway, Malcolm seems to have rebounded quickly and he was good enough to go to his Junior Kindergarten Christmas concert. It was so cute, and I managed to take some video clips which I will post here at some point.

Before going to the concert I managed another Week 6 Day 2 routine of the hundred push ups challenge. I did 22-22-30-30-24-24-18-18 and then maxed out at 70 for a total of 258. The max set included Malcolm climbing onto my back at the 40 push up mark, which forced me to put my knee down and get him off, so 70 was a good surprise given all that.

Foot still hurts, and I think this tendinitis, plantar fasciitis thing is just going to take a while to heal. Damn!