I’m a little thankful the holiday season is almost over. I feel much better now that I’m back to my semi-regular lifestyle of exercise and healthy-ish eating. (No, my typical day doesn’t usually include eating pumpkin pie, sugar, and watching A Christmas Story on the couch).
I’m still at home in Iowa (missing NYC oh so much) but have been enjoying the time with family and friends. Yesterday I visited the new recreation center at the University of Iowa. I was in awe.
Training for a tri here would be fabulous. And I love it when pools have designs on the bottom. (Go Hawkeyes!)
The university was lacking a decent fitness center for years. I’d say they totally made up for it with this place.
After some exploring, I found the track. It’s probably only about 200 meters all the way around, but I was itching to test out my legs again after my less than stellar Christmas Day run.
I started with a slow warm-up jog for 3 minutes. I then started picking it up on the straightaways (probably about 50 meters) and jogging the curves. I did this sequence about eight times. I stopped at eight because I started feeling a little something in my hamstring/knee. I completed a quick cool down and moved onto weights and core work. I wanted to check out the fancy-looking treadmills so I hopped onto one that overlooked the university and did a half-mile of uphill walking. Walking uphill doesn’t bother my leg much.
We meet again, treadmill...
There were all sorts of fancy options that I would have loved to try out (like the timing tests they do for all the different branches of the military-I’m competitive and wanted to see how I fare…probably better that I don’t know, HA!)
Post-gym, I spent some time at the bookstore. I love going through the fitness, health, and sports sections and looking for new books. The bookstore here in my hometown has a different variety of books than the one I go to in NY, so that was exciting. (That’s what I get excited about these days. Sad). The fitness section was a little more packed, as I predict the gym will be for the first few weeks of the new year. Anyone else notice how the rush tends to die off after awhile? Proper goal-setting is key! Emily has some good advice on that here.
Anyone read this? I like the plans in the book...didn't buy it but am debating.
Today, however, I don’t feel so great. The back of my knee/hamstring has been hurting. I don’t know if it’s from the running, lifting, or both. I am occasionally feeling a random, throbbing pain that is increasingly frustrating. I want to go to the doctor to end this once and for all, but I don’t currently have health insurance. My PT said I could email her anytime, so I think I’m going to shoot her a desperate message asking her for a magical exercise that will make everything go away.
Next on my agenda is teaching my Dad how to strength train properly. I bought him a big book of exercises and after watching his form during things like squats and lunges, I’ve decided I need to take this matter into my own hands and teach him a thing or two!
Cheers!
ooooooooo I love those treadmills. my gym promised me new treadmills in January. they had better deliver!!!!! i’m curious about that marathon book too! i need a good one!
They are awesome! They had a bunch of pre-set routes and workouts, and you can hook it up to your iPod to track what you do. So fancy! I hope your gym delivers on their promise…I get so excited when my gym gets new equipment!
Oh and I’ll let you know about the book- I just got a coupon for Barnes and Noble so I think I’m going to spring for it