I called it my nagging hip for TWO years .... before I went to these guys. They fixed that all up, and now I keep going to get all the kinks out... with all kinds of adjustments and massages and/or ART and ESTIM...about once a month. Lets me try all kinds of new things and helps when things get a little off... and some days, like today, you become such a fashion statement!!!!!
Look what I got!!! Some fancy new tape. Can't believe it took me so long... yeah,
I called it my nagging hip for TWO years .... before I went to these guys. They fixed that all up, and now I keep going to get all the kinks out... with all kinds of adjustments and massages and/or ART and ESTIM...about once a month. Lets me try all kinds of new things and helps when things get a little off... and some days, like today, you become such a fashion statement!!!!!
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There is a first time for everything! And if you think that by a certain age you will get to the point that you've seen it all or done it all... well think again. I still sometimes question why I am doing this, and if you know me, then you know that I analyze everything.. it's who I am; it's what I do. It may be the reason why I didn't quit other things when they got a bit overwhelming or difficult... because I understood that if it doesn't challenge you, it doesn't change you. But challenge is not always comfortable. Challenge is scary. So if you hadn't seen Water Wimp or other swimming posts, I'm still at it with the swimming! And after swimming with flippers (and possibly the false confidence that gives), I made a goal for August to do an Open Water Swim. Logically it made sense... it's the right time of year.. the lakes are probably the warmest they'll be... and I felt I was ready. But swimming is soooooooooooo different. With running, if you get out of breath or need to stop... you just stop; Not something you can do in 10 or 20 feet of water 100 yards from shore. I knew I needed to work on breathing on the freestyle... but and again if you know me, coordination got left off the plate when they created me. I make and struggle with coordination all the time... things like breathing and moving your arms and legs in certain ways does not come as naturally to me as others. Yes, I can walk; yes, I can run; I can even stand on one leg and balance for minutes at a time..... but putting my face in the water and figuring out a "rhythm" of breath to stroke to kick is coordination that I know I just need to work on... probably more than the average person... but I also know it will come... So yeah, I wanted to try swimming in the open water. It just made sense to do. And Jen offered her lake and told me she used to be a swim instructor and her specialty was "timid adults". Not quite sure she fully understood who she was dealing with, but I took her up on it and went out to her lake for my very first open water swim ... not ever... but probably in the last 3 (or 4) decades!. The entire way there I looked at the scenery and the nice horses in the meadow and the quaint little country roads... yeah, anything to not think about where I was going and what I was dong. When I got there, I thought... What the heck am I doing? Why am I here? Because Carol wants me to do a Tri with her? And how did I let myself get suckered into this? And why am I doing all these crazy things? And why don't I just stick with what I know? I'm too old to be trying these kinds of things for the first time! Ok, yeah for a few seconds... maybe a few minutes... all those rambling thoughts were going through my head... but it was still with more calmness than when I kept Carol up all night (at least that's her story) less than a year ago when we stayed over night down the cape before doing a 7.3 miler .... Yeah, how crazy is that... a 7.3 miler is a drop in the bucket (not really, but I am talking about water --- oh, that's bad) in the grand scheme of what I've done in the last year. Jen would be right there with me in a kayak with an ore and a life preserver if I needed it. At first she mentioned swimming ACROSS the lake .... Ummm, no! At first glance it looked like 50 miles (I know it wasn't)... and I have no idea on endurance or speed or anything... so we settled on a smaller path staying closer to the shore. I'm sure nerves played a part in it and the fact that I couldn't touch the bottom... but I didn't do the freestyle as much as I wanted to. I felt more out of breath than I do in the pool... and was concerned with pacing myself to be able to make it to the destination. It didn't have to be pretty. It didn't have to be one stroke over another. The goal was to see if I could do it... or what I could do. And since there were no lines on the ceiling or flags or lines on the bottom, I guess I wasn't exactly staying in a straight line and kinda zig-zagged but that's ok... something to pay more attention to. And it seemed to take forever... but made it to a dock on the shore which was almost as far as the ski jump destination. I could stand there and waited and caught my breath before the [long] journey/swim back. Jen offered that if I wanted to take the kayak and she'd swim back or if I wanted to swim back with a life preserver or if I wanted to swim back and she could throw me a life preserver if I needed it.... I opted to swim back and after more zig-zagging and more back strokes and more out of breath freestyle and then some playing with the breath and trying to slow down the stoke to fully exhale to be able to fully inhale made it all the way back without holding on to the kayak and without the need for a life preserver! Yay! But I was very glad to be back! Thank you, thank you thank you Jen for your patience, encouragement and guidance (sometimes literally with the ores). It made a huge difference to both helping me determine where I am and what I need to work on. When we got back and looked at the clock, I believe it was 30 or 35 minutes. Jen said we had only stopped for about 3 or 4 minutes at that dock we had stopped at... It really felt more like I was swimming for 2 hours and the rest was more like 30 minutes. Very strange. Track workout was that night... so went to that and told the Ladies about my very first open water swim. Now this is a triathlon group, so these folks are swimmers... I joined for the running, but the encouragement I got from these folks was amazing. You tell people who already do the same thing you are trying for the first time... and they welcome you into their circle and do nothing but encourage you. Really, really cool! When I got home, I was exhausted... but it was a weird exhaustion... Nothing really hurts, nothing was overworked. Think it's a combination of mental and physical and doing something for the first time. And now my fleeting questioning everything I do has been properly put in it's place. I'm sure those feeling will not always stay dormant... but, yes and I realize it's easy to say afterwards... but why not? Why not take the Challenge? Head on! And do the best you can and work on what you need to improve! Why not always, always strive to make the best possible version of yourself? Not taking the challenge is the easy way out. Taking it will give you confidence, ability and strength in so many different ways and probably in ways you never even knew about. Special thanks to both Carol for even suggesting this in the first place and to Jen for being there, guiding me and helping me that very first time. An Olympic? Huh what's that.. Just when I figured out what the difference between a mile and a "K" and a 5K and a 5M and 10K or half or full marathon, a bunch of new terminology gets plastered on my horizon. You may remember my recent post on the Patriot Half Ironman where I discuss some of the Triathlon terms etc. Well yesterday, I got to volunteer at the Cranberry Olympic. Cranberry Olympic is another Triathlon event, this one with a distance classification of Olympic which covers a .9M swim, a 26.2M bike and a 10K run. We are actually now getting into distances that I can even kind of comprehend ... at least with the bike and the run... Still working on the swim ~ but we'll talk about how that's all going at another time. Cranberry is actually a Tri-Fest; and over the entire weekend, it offered Sprint and Olympic distance races, plus a kids's duathlon. I had originally told Carol I'd volunteer for the entire weekend and there was even talk of staying over in a hotel to make the early morning 5-6 arrival times easier since it is over an hour a way and the events actually start on Friday. But then... in honor of the olympics and just because its a good idea my entire neighborhood decided to create the very first Neighborhood Pub Crawl.... where each house is responsible to represent a country of their choice with authentic food and beverage. Wait!!! Are you kidding me? A Pub Crawl! The first in my neighborhood, and I'm committed to do something else! Awwwwwwww ! Sooooo, the compromise was that I'd skip the Saturday Volunteering to be able to do the Pub Crawl.... The Pub Crawl was a planned in excess of a 10-hour event. Most folks figured on sleeping in the next day! Geesh, I wonder why???? But, nope not me, I needed to leave the house by 5:30AM.... ummmm something I *NEVER* do even on a regular day... so the fact that this was coming off of a pub crawl is and forever-will-be in my mind an absolutely heroic (and kinda crazy) thing to do. But, I was good.... very good.... and you know what, I had a fantastic time at the Crawl... Yeah, I might have done things a little differently had I not been getting up so early. But everything we do, every single day is a series of choices, and I chose that I wanted to do both, so I moderated (and in truth, probably not by all that much) one to be able to do the other But I divest too much about the alcoholic nature of my neighborhood ~ at least for this officially proclaimed annual (and likely even more-often) event. Back to my intended subject of the Cranberry Olympic. So after a less than full nights sleep and a series of shutting off at least 3 alarms (Yeah, I wanted to make sure I got up), I had my favorite shake and energy drink and headed off arriving in Lakeville shortly after 6:30 AM. Signed in and was at my Post by 7:15. This event, they were extremely short handed for volunteers on the bike course, so my post was a 1/2 M from the start and, because the course looped back on itself, was a 1/2 M from the end. At first I was alone waiting for things to get going. Then when the first bikes started coming, I was joined by 2 Cops who were there to direct traffic. They had gone over what to do in a medical situation or crisis, but when I saw them I knew they could evaluate and get much better response. Phew, so that was covered.... Hadn't really thought too much about safety before... But I've only ever dealt with runners not folks traveling as fast as these bikers were. The pix above show my post. Heading out on the course it was a downhill and a pretty sharp turn. I was in the center of the island initially directing the bikers (in the center pix) along the route marked in red from the top left to the bottom left. At first there were a few coming through, and my first thoughts were ... this is sooooooo quite. It was very early, so not many cars; the birds were chirping and the bikes came whizzing by in excess of 20 MPH. Some slowed to go around the corner... some cut way out in the road before making the right hand turn. This was kind of scary when there were cars behind them... But then I had to tell myself these folks ride all the time. I'm sure they know what they are doing.... but glad for those Cops being there. So for runners you can pretty much wait for them to be on top of you before telling them where to go, but I quickly figured that I should get the bikers attention while they still have enough time to make the decision as to which way to go ... and because it was a sharp curve... I wanted to give them as much warning as possible.... So I waved my arms ~ sometimes 2 at a time; sometimes one ~ and I kept waving them... for every biker. And they got tired.... so I figured out ways to rest them or use one or the other. Relax the shoulders or they're gonna get tight. But these guys needed to know where to go.... By the time the last bikers were starting, the faster bikers were returning. The Cops didn't do too much on the way out..... but on the way back...it was later, traffic had picked up and the bikes now needed to cross this very busy intersection... so they were very busy. One stopping the traffic coming from the top and the other directing the traffic going down the street that the bikers were crossing. I kept my eyes on the bikes, but the cops couldn't always see them... so I'd yell "Bike" to let them know to stop traffic. For safety it was good that it was a 2 cop event... and if they had had more volunteers a 2-volunteer post would have been good... Then one person could rest their arms! haha And to complicate things even more, random people would just stop in the middle of the road and ask the cops questions or chit-chat or who knows what while the cops were trying to direct traffic around the bikers! So if you've ever done a race and have ever crossed an intersection, this is some of the stuff that goes on. I have so may different observations of the fantastic folks that took on this endurance race than I did with the Patriot Half Ironman . With the Patriot, I was at the finish line and got to see them all realize their accomplishment. But for Cranberry, I saw them heading out on the bike (2nd of 3 events) and heading back. The runners also ran by this spot on their final mile of the run portion, so I got to see fastest of the runners while still waiting form the bikers to finish. Again, the bike was so quite. Right at the start, something fell off of someones bike and he had to circle back and get it without disrupting the others.... I saw someone lose a water bottle and then a car run over it and spray water all over everything. I saw a girl running her bike in due to something wrong with the chain. It must be devastating when you train your body for something like this and may not finish as expected due to an equipment malfunction. I studied their bikes and their Tri-Suits (which BTW, most wear for the entire event - i.e. no changing from swim to bike to run). The fastest have amazing bikes. The slower had lesser bikes... but I didn't see anyone who had a bike quite like mine. Maybe a 20 year old bike that weighs a lot won't cut it in a race situation??? I watched the way they seemed to arrive in groups or single file. Some yelling on your left or right as they came around the corner. Not sure I know all the bike etiquette on passing etc... but somehow don't think I'd be passing many / any? if/when I actually do one. A lot of them thanked the volunteers... It is nice to be thanked while you're standing there alone for 4 hours in an increasingly hot day when you forgot to put on sunscreen and you're waiting for that last bike to make it's way back so you can get something to eat. Although I wasn't really alone. And I talked a bit to the Cop, an older fellow, who was at the intersection closest to me. I told him how I had just started running less than 3 years ago and my running buddy wants me to do one of these things, and that I was working on my swimming. He told me he wanted to see me there doing the event next year. I told him I'd do it if he did. Then the fastest of the fast runners started coming back... heading into the Finish line. They had done it... but from my vantage point, there was no fanfare. I didn't have the energy... my arms were pretty tired. I was hungry and hot and I knew I didn't have the voice to be yelling anything encouraging to the runners... and I really needed to still focus on any straggling bikers coming down because they needed to know where to go and needed to have traffic stopped for them as well. One of my runner observations was: None of them are walking. They look tired, they look like they may be limping, but not one of them was walking. So then I thought, well, that's it, if no one walks in these things, then I'm not ready to do one... Can you say Over-analysis.. or worrying for nothing? These were the elite athletes.... I was only seeing them; so I'm sure the later ones did do some walking and even more importantly, who cares if you walk or not! Then the last biker came through and I was so glad! I was pretty tired. I had done a track workout the day before which included 5 minutes of mostly squats and that was taking it's toll as well.... so went back to all the festivities and grabbed some lunch. Joined Carol at finish line to see if she needed help, but then Liz comes over and asks if I want to hand out awards. Ummmmmm, Well that would be a YES! So I got to hand out all the awards to the top, relay and age group winners. Soooooooo Cool. Then I hung around and helped break down the entire setup. There is so much that goes into an event like this. Loved being a part of it! But was sooooooo very glad to get home, the day's before crawl and squats, the lack of sleep, the standing for hours in the sun with no sunscreen, the arms, the take down... it was an extremely long day. I was the first one in bed last night But you know what, I'd do it all again in a second. Next time I volunteer at a Tri, I really want to check out the transition areas and especially the swimming.... BUT, then again, who knows, maybe I'll actually **DO** a Tri before I volunteer for one next time! You just never know! What is your why? Just stop and think a bit about why you do what you do. You have the same 24 hours in a day that everyone else has. What you choose to do with it is up to you. I am constantly on the go. Looking back, I believe I've always been constantly on the go. I distinctly remember College Days working 30 hours a week to pay for it while going to school full time. There wasn't much extra time for anything. I remember early marriage days with 2 and then 3 young kids, working full time with a hubby who traveled at least half of the time. Between work and school and homework and sports, there wasn't much time for anything. I absolutely love the term "Pockets of time" and "Carving out some time" because that's absolutely what needs to be done. I was talking to my 11 year old niece about her interest in running and telling her to just get out and run for 20 minutes 2-3 times a week. She told me she didn't have time. Huh, Wait... really on summer vacation, she didn't see how she could find 20 minutes a couple times a week. Yup, lots of folks think that way too, and everything is a balancing act. So back to my why. And my actions have changed significantly in the last 3 years. I totally get how life can put you in a rut ~ without even realizing it ~ you get into what I called "Existence Mode" and simply try to get through it day-by-day. It can be overwhelming, stressful, exhausting and just plain not much fun. Somewhere along the way, I found some of those "Pockets of time" and it made a difference, and so I made finding those pockets more of a priority and it made more of a difference and so I eventually mandated carving out time to continue to make a difference. My Pockets were all centered around wellness, fitness and nutrition... and the physical and mental changes (documented throughout this blog) continue to amaze me. I have done so many things in the last 3 years that even my 20-year old self would never have imagined doing. I have discarded medications that I now no longer need. And I still have energy to do and want to do more. So my Why ... is for me ~ to be able to continue to be, to do and to feel amazing ... is for my health ~ Who chooses to just exist? Who chooses to struggle going up a flight of stairs? Who chooses to be on medications that might be unnecessary if they were living a more healthy lifestyle? ... is for my family ~ to be with and do fun things with them and to be there for them and to dance and my grandkids (don't have any yet) weddings ... is for my friends ~ funny how when you feel good and have lots of energy, carving out the time time to maintain old or create new friendships is so much easier. ... is for my life ~ I don't know if I will ever have enough time to climb all 48 of NHs 4000 footers (since I got such a late start - LOL) but I plan on going strong for as long as possible. Make room for those pockets. Getting out of a rut and finding those pockets and doing something can be a struggle mentally, physically and even financially. Choosing superior nutrition, consistent workouts; treating and fueling the only place you have to live with the respect that it needs and deserves is a commitment that should not be second to anything. Hey all... I'm in a music video!!!!
Life Lesson : If you get a chance to be part of a music video, you say YES.... and that's *exactly* what I did!!! :) This is why I was practicing lip syncing..... #MadeTheCut.... See ~1:03 and 3:03 ➜ Share with everyone you know... we want this to go Viral Check out the world premiere of "We Believe" written & performed exclusively for From Fat To Finish Line by artists Martin Reyes & John Danny Madden. The video features #FFTFL community members from all over the world! See the film that has inspired a movement by watching it on iTunes: https://itun.es/us/vB9Qcb or Amazon: http://amzn.to/29kDEGl #FFTFL #MoreThanAMovie Sometimes you just don't know what you don't know! KT tape for ... wait for it ... the jaw. Yup, really! So today, was a regular monthly Chiro... Everything seems to be going really well now so I'm just going for maintenance visits to keep everything in check or address anything new that comes up.... like those toe cramps while swimming... ok, well adjust the toes and fix that right up! or the calf tightness after the 10 miler ~ that took a couple of visits with targeted ART (Active Release Technique) along with my own discovery that a golf ball works wonders. As I'm sitting there after saying that nothing is bothering me, the thought occurred to me to ask about my jaw. But this guy works on backs and muscles; but he also works on toes... so maybe it's worth the ask. I think I clench and grind my teeth at night. Told the dentist and she said yup you do and fitted me with a mouth guard and said the pressure I've been feeling in my jaw should be helped by the guard. Ok... but there are some times especially at night where I can't even roll over without my right jaw being in serious pain... Have actually been experimenting using and then not using the guard to see if it makes a difference. So I asked! And he said he could absolutely help me. He did all kinds of active massaging of my temple, cheeks, outer mouth and chin as I opened and closed my jaw... then he did some manipulation of my neck. With all other "adjustments" he'll say something like "oh, much better" and ask if I can feel it and Nope, I can never tell right then and there, but then notice it later on. But with this, I immediately felt a difference ~ almost like my mouth was open wider or that I was taller and could possibly even breath better through my nose! He tells me that TMJ (Temporomandibular Joint ... ummmm where your jaw hinges) issues can lead to headaches, sinus pain etc. He had one patient who had such headaches from TMJ that she was wearing the KT tape all day! He then showed me how to put the KT tape on the jaw, and it felt phenomenal. He recommended trying at night and see how it feels. I could tell a difference right away with the tape on, almost like it was holding my mouth open. Again I say, you don't know what you don't know. I can't help but come away from this with what everyone keeps saying... Your body is your only place to live... take care of it; feed and nourish it well (at least 80% of the time); Listen to it and take care of issues when they come up. The body is such an amazing thing and the abilities it has given me just by treating it well continues to amaze me every day! |
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