shuffle chafing

Last night I did a 5K run. This morning when I was in the shower, I felt a little stinging below my neck. Dripping wet, I stepped out of the shower and found this in the mirror. (Note: I dried off and got dressed for the photo - didn't want to scare ya'll off, ya know! See the wet hair?)

Apparently, I didn't find a good place to hook my shuffle to. This is how I wore the shuffle during the run:

I guess it kept hitting my lower neck. Hence, the chafing mark. Today's fierce runner lesson? Find a better place to hook your shuffle - preferibly where it won't chafe. Those kind of marks are a little harder to explain in the running world.

CrossFit One World W.O.T.D.

Freddy captioned this: Swallow your chewing gum and bad things can happen. It took me a while to understand what he meant. Now I get it Freddy! ha ha ha!

Warm-up
I did 60 minutes of yoga before class.

WOD
Run 5K.

Notes (to myself) about this workout:
I like running. I like it more than I hate it. To me, the key to running is good shoes and gear, and good music on your ipod (personally, I'm a shuffle kind o gal). The 5K was two rounds around the extended block around One World. I didn't realize we had to do it twice, so I came back to the studio after the first round and Jolie pointed out that I had to do another round. No big deal. I kinda felt like the 5K went a little too fast. I know it's been a while since marathon training, but I definitely know what 5K feels like. Twice around the extended block felt more like it. The first round flew by and I felt really light. It's a good feeling when you're running to feel light. The second round was a little heavier, but I was still energized when I hit the finish. UGH! Let's hope the weather stays as decent as it was today so that I can find the inspiration to run more.

Yoga in the evenings has been great. I've noticed that my mind is clearer and I'm able to do things I couldn't do like bind this one pose. It helps when you don't think about it too much. Just do. Allow yourself to be surprised. That's been my yoga week.

uninspired.

I don't know why. But these days I'm uninspired to workout. Maybe it's the weather. Maybe it's my frustration with CrossFit. Maybe it's me not knowing when to workout. Whatever it is, I gotta get out of this funk! UGH! Any suggestions?

donate to a good cause: help a pinay sista out!

Hello all!

I wanted to pass on some information about a fellow Runbu-Runner, Nerinna Valera. She's participating the the AIDS/Lifecycle this year. It's a really great event and she's raising money for a wonderful cause. I'm especially impressed because Nerinna has had to slow down her workout style this past year because of some health issues. Now, she's back on track and I'm really proud of her.

If any of you are interested, please donate and support a sista, will ya? Below is Nerinna's most recent donation letter. If you'll notice, Nerinna is also an amazing photgrapher. She's offering services with a minimum donation. Details are below. Thanks!

Hello friends and family,

As many of you already know, I'll be participating as a cyclist in AIDS/Lifecycle, a 545 mile cyling journey from San Francisco to Los Angeles. Since the 5th of this month I've been hitting the road putting in the mileage along with cross-training. My legs feel stronger, I'm cyling faster, and lovin' it. It's a little hard when it's raining but rain or shine I'm out there.

I know it's only been a week since my last e-mail but for the fundraising portion I wanted to thank those who have donated. Every bit does help. And to encourage those who haven't yet had a chance to donate, I'm offering photography services. As some of you know, I'm a photographer and I will gladly spend one hour photographing you, your family, your children, baby, dog, cat, parakeet, and/or goldfish if you donate $100 or more. You'll receive a CD of high resolution images which are up to poster size printable, online viewing of images will be available, and your $100 is fully tax-deductible. Your contribution will go towards two wonderful nonprofit organizations and you'll be getting a great photo deal! Christmas is next week and New Year's is around the corner...it could be a holiday present to self, family, or pet. You won't be disappointed. Samples of my work can be seen at nerinna.com or on my photo/cycling blog at http://nerinna.bigfolioblog.com.

You are an incredible and important part of reaching my fundraising goal and I do hope you will support me, the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, and the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center. Again, no amount is too small. Also, please send me names of friends or family members who have been affected with AIDS/HIV. I will fit their names onto my jersey to remember who I'm riding for. Hope you all are looking forward to some time off and fun during the holidays.

Hugs,

nerinna

Make a donation now on my personal page:
https://www.aidslifecycle.org/donate/2324

CrossFit One World W.O.T.D.

Okay. So you might think this is a little disgusting. You've heard of snow angels, right? Well, this is a sweat angel. After a CrossFit workout, you're literally dripping wet with all that sweat, so this is the mark that you leave on the floor. Granted, my sweat angels tend to look a little weird because I lay on my stomach and there's usually two circles denoting the my bust. I refuse to take a photo, so I figured Austin's sweat angel would be good enough. ha ha ha!

Warm-up
Run around the block (1.1 miles)
Stretch session

WOD: "Twenty-One"
20 push-ups/1 sit-up
19 push-ups/2 sit-ups
18 push-ups/3 sit-ups
17 push-ups/4 sit-ups
16 push-ups/5 sit-ups
15 push-ups/6 sit-ups
14 push-ups/7 sit-ups
13 push-ups/8 sit-ups
12 push-ups/9 sit-ups
11 push-ups/10 sit-ups
10 push-ups/11 sit-ups
9 push-ups/12 sit-ups
8 push-ups/13 sit-ups
7 push-ups/14 sit-ups
6 push-ups/15 sit-ups
5 push-ups/16 sit-ups
4 push-ups/17 sit-ups
3 push-ups/18 sit-ups
2 push-ups/19 sit-ups
1 push-up/20 sit-ups

No time recorded.

CrossFit One World W.O.T.D.

Warm-up
Jump Rope - 5 minutes
THREE rounds of:
Samson Stretch
10 shoulder rolls
10 overhead squats
10 GHD sit-ups
10 GHD back extensions
10 band assisted pull-ups
10 dips

WOD: One If By Land, Two If By Sea
Complete five rounds for time of:
Run 400m
Row 500m

No time recorded

And then...
25 GHD sit-ups
25 GHD back extensions
25 Abmat sit-ups
25 Supermans
100 twisters

CrossFit One World W.O.T.D.

Warm-up
TWO ROUNDS:
10 jump rope rotations
10 shoulder rolls
10 jump rope rotations
10 overhead squats
10 jump rope rotations
10 band assisted pull-ups
10 jump rope rotations
10 dips

WOD: Burpee Complex
Complete five rounds for time of:
5 squats
5 squat sprawls
5 push-ups
5 squat jumps
5 burpees

Joanne's Final Time - 9:53

And then...
25 GHD sit-ups
25 GHD back extensions
25 Abmat sit-ups
25 Supermans
25 Hollow rocks (or my own pathetic version of hollow rocks)
100 Twisters

Notes (to myself) about this workout:
This WOD sucked. However, it gave me a better understanding of burpees, which makes me appreciate them a little more.

CrossFit One World W.O.T.D.

This is Jolie, one of the instructors at One World. She was the cover girl for this month's CrossFit Newsletter. Here's what Freddy posted: By now, all of you should be subscribed to the Crossfit Journal, but if you are not, here's another reason! Our very own Jolie Gentry is the cover story of the January 2008 issue. It's a great article. Jolie shares her thoughts on being a female athlete, her start with Crossfit, and a little insight about her job (she's a cop and a SWAT operator if you didn't know)! Congrats Jolie and way to start 2008 off with a bang!

Warm-up
Jump rope
THREE rounds of 10 reps:
Shoulder rolls
Shoulder press
Push press
Push jerk
GHD sit-ups
GHD push-ups

WOD: Jelly Legs
Complete five rounds for time of:
500m row
25 squats
25 box jumps 12"

Joanne's Final Time: N/A

Notes (to myself) about this workout:
This was my first CrossFit workout of the year. A little late, I know. It's just that I've been busy finalizing plans for the Philippines, taking care of the stupid things I put off during the holiday, and helping my brother move into his new place (don't get me started on that!). I did his WOD instead of the one posted because I didn't want to lift max weights after getting immunization shots.

I like WODS like this because they're long. I think I took over a half hour. For me, that's an ideal WOD because it's both cardio and strength over a good amount of time. I'm definitely out of shape, but I need to just honor the fact that I'm back on my feel wa-hoo!

fierce products: weekly fitness journal

A few weeks ago I wrote a rave review about the Streaming Colors Fitness Wall Calendar and mentioned that they had a new Weekly Fitness Journal. After what felt like an eternity of waiting, I finally received my weekly calendar in the mail this past Friday (Jan 4th). Admittedly, I was a little disappointed because I lost a few days. However, I'll spare the company forgiveness just because I like them so much!

Unfortunately, I have a lot on my plate and haven't been able to fully appreciate the planner because I'm up to my eyeballs in planning for the Philippines and getting my fellowship stuff done. UGH! It doesn't help that yahoo! isn't working right now. Right now, I hate you, yahoo! I hate you!!!

Okay... back to my point... Here is my assessment of the new weekly fitness journal. Some things I really like...
- I like how colorful and clean it is, just like the wall calendar.
- There are a lot of great tips in this planner that I really appreciate.
- It's nice and light, so you can take it places (as long as you have the right size bag).
- I like the milestones and accomplishments pages (but I wish they happened at the end of each month).

Some things I think need some fixing...
- Though I appreciate the square format to match the wall calendar, the size makes it a little hard to carry around if you have a smaller bag. There is a 3-column format to the pages, and I think it should be cut to two columns so that the overall planner can be thinner. (If your planner stays in one place, like the office or your bedside, this isn't a big deal. However, I like to carry it with me, so it's a little inconvenient.)

- I think there needs to be a way to mark (1) your currently monthly color guide and (2) your current week. Franklin Covey planners allow you to do this with their adjustable bookmarks. Right now, I'm doing it by using post-its and bookmarks which works, but I wish there was a more efficient way of doing this. A lot of school planners allow you to tear the corner of the bottom page so that you can sift to your current week. Maybe this would be a good way of doing that.

- I wish they kept the squares the same as the wall calendar. This is what the wall calendar looks like:

I really like this format. Unfortunately, The weekly calendars don't have all the lines in between. There's just one large square, like this:

I like seeing a lot of color, so I wish there were more lines in the box to allow for that. It would also make the wall calendar and the weekly planner consistent.

- They have a "Food Diary Worksheet" and a "Food Diary Quick Look-up Chart" which I think is nice, but I think the "Food Diary Worksheet" needs to somehow be incorporated weekly or daily. I also think there needs to be more "Food Diary Quick Look-up Chart" pages.

In this design, one week is on one page and I was hoping that one week would be between two pages, like a lot of planners out there. That way, you have room for your coloring activities, plus your food and exercise journal. Also, it would allow you to give yourself a weekly kudos and such. Granted, this would make the planner a little thicker, but more comprehensive.

I have to say that my review is still a little early and I'm still trying to navigate my way through this journal. It's a brand new product and from what I can tell, the company is still looking for opinions on this. I firmly believe that things take a while to perfect. As a first try, I sill like this planner. Also, I think folks should invest in this planner or the wall calendar because it really is a fun way to get your fitness on.

If any of you have suggestions or would like to share how you're using it, that would be great! I'd love to hear some ideas!

2007 Final Count

Using my handy-dandy Streaming Colors Fitness Calendar from 2007, I decided to tally up my workouts. Here is my final count...

CrossFit: 69 hours
Krav Maga/Fit-2-Fight: 8 hours
Spin: 34 hours
Running/Walking: 12 hours
Yoga: 54 hours
Bellydance/Salsa: 53 hours

Total workout hours: 230
Average workout hours per week: 4.42

In looking back in my calendar, it was interesting to see what months I was really on and what months I was totally off. Early in the year, especially in February, the workouts were slim because I sprained my ankle and busted my knee open. Remember that? I sprained my ankle again not too long after that. Needless to say, it was a pretty rough start. I was pretty consistent (to my surprise) for the rest of the year, except the holidays.

I was also surprised to discover that I'm about 12-15 pounds lighter now that I was this time last year. I think it has to do with the byetta I've been taking. Also, I was in a relationship last year with a guy that didn't have the eating restrictions I had, so I just faltered. Lesson learned. When in a relationship, you have to stick to your own health goals. In 2007 I think I learned a lot about health - especially in the latter part of the year when for some reason, my health seemed to be in a more crucial state.

One of the most important lessons I've learned last year is forgiveness. In this culture, we're so fixated on being perfect that we forget that real learning comes from the mistakes we make. I've learned to forgive my body and to honor it for what it does, as opposed to focusing on what it is not. My body is not a size 2. I'm okay with that. I forgive my body for that because this non-size 2 body does so much more. Hence, the hours of CrossFit and dealing with THREE sprained ankles quite gracefully.

In 2008, I'm hoping to do more CrossFit. In fact, each month, I'm going to record my goal hours with each exercise and see if I actually make it. Also, with my challenges, I've decided that taking away food isn't the best thing because it makes me want it even more. I can do that for a short period, say 30 days. But the more I do it, the less healthy my relationship with food becomes. So my next resolution is to make sure I'm eating a serving of fruit and/or veggies at every meal. It's been working nicely so far. Maybe that's my first resolution. More on that to come!

Healthy New Year Advice

I opened my email this morning and received the following article. For those of you who don't know, I subscribe to the Hungry Girl newsletter. When you go on their site, you can sign up pretty easily. Their advice is pretty sound - especially if you're looking for interesting snacks and food. Anyway... I never really know how to start the new year with resolutions and all. Though I believe in resolutions, I believe they should happen all year long. Hence, why I haven't drawn any new ones just yet. I'll get back to that one though. Anyway... in honor of the new year, I wanted to send out some friendly advice that the folks at Hungry Girl sent out today. Good luck with your own resolutions, whatever they may be!

Dear Hungry Girl,

I know so many people make New Year's resolutions to eat better, and then they give up within a week or two. Why do you think this is the case, and what can I do to avoid falling into that same trap?

Addie Wants Advice


Dear Addie,

Happy 2008!!! Great question. You're right! So many people say they're going to start eating better in January, and then two weeks later, they're back to their old habits. I have a theory or two about this -- and basically it all boils down to setting realistic goals. Here are my TOP ATE tips for successful eating in 2008. Ready? Good...

1. Don't go "on a diet". While diet plans can be helpful, if you think of yourself as being "on a diet", everything will be too black and white. If you're on a diet and suddenly you have a little setback, you may decide you're "off your diet" and go back to your old ways. Think of your new eating plan as more of a lifestyle change -- one that will have ups and downs, with good days and bad.

2. Don't deprive yourself. Remember, your new eating plan shouldn't be about dep rivation. It should be about SATISFACTION. Find foods you LOVE -- ones that satisfy you but are better choices. This is KEY.

3. Drink lots of water. Water is good for you. It's good for your skin and your metabolism. And it helps fill you up. Plus, not enough water can make you cranky and more likely to make bad food choices.

4. Listen to your body. It knows things. If you know that eating cereal for breakfast makes you hungrier throughout the day, then don't eat cereal in the morning. Pay close attention to your body cues. This will help tremendously.

5. Live one day (or even one MEAL) at a time. Don't be discouraged and beat yourself up if you fall off the wagon and eat badly -- just be more aware of what you eat during your next meal.

6. Get exercise with activities you enjoy. I used to HATE exercising. I feared it. Now I exercise but only do what I like (which happens to b e walking on a treadmill 5 times a week while watching reality TV, and weight training 2 times a week with a friend). Find something you actually like to do, and you'll do it. Don't take on an exercise routine that causes pain or discomfort -- you'll just end up ditching it completely. (And I know this isn't an EATING tip, but it's important!)

7. Let yourself cheat a little. Everyone strays once in a while. It's totally normal. Splurge when you need to, and enjoy it (don't feel guilty)! Then get RIGHT back on track, and prove to yourself that you can handle a cheat meal now and then.

8. Keep track of what you eat. Write it down. As dorky as it sounds, you WILL 100% without a doubt do better if you hold yourself accountable for what you eat by keeping a food journal. Just do it -- even if you only write in it every OTHER day.

Good luck -- and have fun!