Jan. 1-11.

Posted on January 11, 2016 by HaleyComet

Well, I procrastinated. I’ll condense each day to save the reader from boredom. To really write about my workouts (for myself), I need to not have more than 5 days in a post.

Jan 1!: EPSCAR (El Paso County Search & Rescue) 5k: “rain, snow, or 20 below.”
Huge fans of the search & rescue, saving people from Pikes Peak, the Incline and other areas of the county. And feel sorry for them when saving ill-prepared tourists from tackling our outdoor attractions.

I didn’t feel great about my pace, but then I looked at the elevation profile from my watch.
Screen Shot 2016-01-11 at 2.11.44 PM
2: 30min walk at dog park. Kettlebell: 50 swings, v-ups, presses.
3 & 4: Forgot! Can’t recall, but I *know* I did workout. This is why I need to log…It’s really bothering me that I can’t remember.
Tuesday, Jan 5: CrossFit: 8 rounds: 100m row, 10 squats (w/35lb kb)
Jan 6th : 2mi walk-Garden of the Gods.

Same spot: 1 day difference! Wed walk, Thurs walk.

Jan 7th:1.5mi walk-GoG
Jan 8: Skiing. 3hr. (UGH. Terrible drive through a storm and was really tired. Good snow and no people though.)

9: Yoga: 1hr “active recovery”. It was not as yin as it usually is. Felt hard.
10: 30min walk, dog park. Kettlebell: 50 swings, 20 presses, v-ups, Russian twists.
11: Warmup: airdyne. Workout: Weightlifting (pushpress, front squat), prowler (40kg+heavyassprowler), 20lbs. slamballs.

Push press warmup. It’s hard to get lifting pics when there isn’t anyone to take one!

FOOD! I’m doing Whole30, and I’m not caught up enough to log each thing I eat per day. I’d like to get back to that, but not right now. The first couple days weren’t as hard as I thought, thankfully. Guess I’m used to doing these.
Some notes, new things, & recommendations:
I made my own ghee! It’s not perfect, but my first batch was pretty good. I thought I burned it, but when it cooled, it was a nice buttery color.

1. ghee, 2. furikake (delicious so far), 3. addicting mayo, 4. Grapefruit season!

NomNom Paleo’s spicy tuna cakes are really good-and really easy! I ate on them for 2 days.
Primal Kitchen (from Marks Daily Apple) chipotle lime mayo is better than I expected. I like it better than the regular mayo. (Found at Whole Foods)

1. Eggs w/veggies & tomatillo salsa, 2. spicy tuna cakes w/brussels, kale & spinach, 3. Big tuna salad, 4. carrot & short rib stew

I had seafood 4 days this week. I’ve been craving it lately.

I leave you with this!

2015-2016.

Posted on January 11, 2016 by HaleyComet

Well. I don’t know where to start, it’s been so long.

2015: moved to CO. Bought a house less than a month later (originally unplanned). Did Pikes Peak marathon. Started school a couple weeks later. Fall semester KICKED MY ASS. Didn’t work out. Got ~~fat~~ (ok, how do I strike through here? Oh! Found it.) unhealthy.

Last January I blogged my 2015 “goals”. I didn’t even come close to 365 days of working out. I don’t even know when I quit that, but it was pretty early. Then:
Other goals:
knit at least 5 projects (making my way through my neglected project box)
read 10 books
3-5 new marathon states (Booked: South Dakota, the rest…up in the air)

Reality:
Knitting: 2 projects. I call that pretty decent considering I hadn’t knitted anything since Dec. 14.
Books: more than 17! I have 17 saved on my Goodreads acct, and I know I forgot to put in several. Between driving across the country (Texas) several times to/from CO, I listened to some great audio books as well.
Marathons: 3 (all new states). Whew, just under the wire here. I had planned on 2 more, but new house/K’s work travel cancelled those. I couldn’t leave in the middle of the move (that I mostly did on my own). That’s ok, life things that are more important than races and I’m totally fine with it.

Food/weight/fitness. I fit all the food in my mouth. Gained a bunch of weight. (UGH. Mad at myself but really trying hard to not beat myself up) I know how to fix it. The fall semester was horrible for these things as well. Workouts were very sporadic, until Dec break, I hadn’t been to a CF class since Oct/early Nov. NOT GOOD for my physical and mental being. I was not a happy person. That’s ok….again, other things were more important, but I really suffered.

I did get a 4.0. Whoo! Whew. That will really help later.

So, what else? 2016? This is a HUGE question mark. I’ve feel like I’ve been treading water/flailing for 2 years now. Since the end of 2013 (end of my first 365), I had “finished” losing weight, and finished the 100miler. I don’t do well without goals, purpose, or vision. Being unstable in where we were going to move, not having fitness goals…just doesn’t work for me. So, I guess the good news is I have something to work towards: getting healthy. Again. (Ugh. Why is this a pattern?)

Health/weight: 365 days of doing something active! 2 Whole30’s. ‘Easy’ to tackle with my routine. Just takes time. I hope I can do this no matter what. I’d love to do 4 again this year, but I don’t know if that is feasible, (more on that below) so, 2 is a reasonable expectation.

Running: not too sure. Depends on the year. If things don’t change, I’ll get a couple more states this year. Not sure which ones. If they do, I suspect I’ll actually get more running in.

Challenges: There are several big unknowns/events on the horizon that may or may not happen. If they do, it’ll be big changes. If they don’t, then things continue on mostly the same, which is good too. Routine is good for me and I know I can focus on getting my ass into shape, no matter what happens. This possible change would be huge, and amazing, but I’d really be denying myself if I didn’t enjoy the full experience. We’ll see.
Others:
House projects. We have a 3 page running list and have stalled on some things as they snowball. For example: “lets redo the floors!” Great. No problem. Well, now I hate the fireplace (with a PASSION) and it’s not staying. (Fireplace Dr. appt next week! One step.) So, can’t redo the floor before we do the fireplace. Need a new storage cabinet/island in the kitchen, but should get a new stove first…And on. And on. This will also be easier when I’m working again. So, maybe 1 big project and a couple smaller ones are a reasonable goal.
Reading: I exceeded my goal and don’t anticipate this falling to the wayside. Our library is EXCELLENT and it’s much easier now that it used to be. (LA libraries & education system are awful) So, no set reading goal.
Knitting: 2-3 projects. I feel this is more reasonable.

BLOGGING. I need to keep this blog up. 1 post per week, minimum. Should be reasonable as well. I do well holding myself accountable when I write it down, and it’s “out there” for the world. If my life changes happen, I suspect this will be far more frequent to keep it documented.

Side note: so many people are against resolutions. Sure, it sucks when you fail, but making a conscious effort to change, or work on something, usually leads to good things. “Losing weight” “eat healthy”, those things don’t usually get people anywhere. Specific goals, usually do.
What am I doing to keep up my goals?
1. this blog
2. getting strict with my food again. I know I”m not a moderation person, I shouldn’t try to be.
3. Fitness/goal journal. This is new, but I hope that seeing it on my table every day will keep me accountable. I can ignore the computer and this blog. Harder to ignore the physical book.

Update (post day): I wrote this 5 days ago and never hit ‘publish.’ Oops.

I doubt anyone read all of this, but if you did, I leave you with this.
Apparently, one can’t leave boxes, and boxes, of LaCroix and Pelligrino in the garage when living in Colorado. I pretty much blame my Yankee husband for this as he pointed out we have tons of shelving storage in there AND he should have known that they would have turned into frozen projectiles, as he is from the frozen tundra of Ohio and I am from the south (and have never lived somewhere this cold). Thankfully only the garage lights were broken, and not the windows in my car. Whooops. That was a terrible mess to clean up!

Nothing like trying to clean frozen, exploded, water.

Super sad face.

This week: 6/23-26/15

Posted on June 28, 2015 by HaleyComet

I still have a TON of life things to do (and I’m writing this instead of weed-eating or mowing or cleaning the chicken coop), but I made myself a priority this week. Unpacking and cleaning can wait a couple hours a day. Whew. So. Exhausted.

6/23: back to CrossFit! I hadn’t been in about a month. And what a month it was. I still did things. A lot of things. But they weren’t at the CF gym.
WOD:
(Can’t get the bold off. Stupid formatting. Whatever.)

Four sets of:
Seated Overhead Press with Dumbbells x 10-12 reps
Rest 45-60 seconds
Strict Supinated-Grip Pull-Ups x 8-10 reps
Rest 45-60 seconds
Bent-Over Barbell Rows x 6-8 reps
Rest 45-60 seconds
Band Pull-Aparts x 20 reps
Rest 45-60 seconds

B.
Complete as many reps as possible in 6 minutes of:
Dumbbell Man-Makers (Push-Up, Power Clean, Push Press)

THEN:

RUN: midday. Ran an errand. Literally. Ran 2mi to the shop, then walk/jog back. Lots of stop signs & several lights. Fun, but hot. I love functional runs.
4mi 40:14
Of course my Garmin died .2mi from my front door, thankfully I had started the stopwatch on my phone.

Out: 18:13
Back: 22:01

6/24: CrossFit
This one was tough. Don’t feel like writing too much about it
Every 6min, for 30min (5rds)
400m Run
12 OHS (45lbs)
12 Chest to bar pullups
12 box overs.
Pretty much scaled it all except the run and box jumps.

6/25: Attack Pack trail run!
4.85mi: 1:02, 6,xxxft-8,000ish ft. (asked a guy at the turnaround and he said “8”. Don’t know the start exactly)
I found this group on FB. They run 2 days a week, sometimes 3. I’m SO glad one of the members replied to a totally different post about hiking and 50k’s…and I saw it. So, it was my first run with this group and it was TOUGH. I’m definitely the slowest by far (and the biggest, but whatever). I can’t hang with their posted paces, but I emailed with the organizer and since I’m ok being last, he’s ok with me joining. My mentality is that I won’t get better if I don’t go and push myself. And they are officially a no-drop, friendly group, so we’re going to make it work. They’ve had members be the slowest and over time, they become strong enough that they run pack pace.

This run was an “up and down” up a mountain fire road. It used to be a dirt road people could drive on, but the floods last month washed a lot of it out. So now, it’s pedestrian only.
The run was officially 1-on-1-off, up up up the mountain. After a couple minutes I was down to 30-30, then, 30 and walk a lot of minutes. But, I kept going up. The Pack came back a couple times on their “1 off” to check on me, but I told them to keep going up. I wasn’t going to get lost on this road, doing an out-and-back. IT. KICKED. MY. BUTT. Fabulous.

After 40min it was time to go back down, and we bombed down the hill at a pace of 7:30’s-9min/mi. I was able to keep up then! At least I can run safely downhill. Small victories.

So, I am going back on Tuesday. I haven’t been so excited to be the worst at something in a long time. When they run trails (not this kind of out-and-back hill training), they wait at intersections for the stragglers (will be me), and the ones who don’t want to wait run back and run the last people in, adding mileage for themselves. I will feel really bad about that, but I need to get over it. That’s part of running in a group. Hopefully I’ll make some new friends too. Seems promising.

6/26: CrossFit
Backsquat sets, to 1RM!
85,115, 135×3, 145×2, 155, 160, 165, 170!

Terrible pic and not great form. BUT, it was a max on tired legs. I’ll take it.

Not sure if this is a max or tie my max (since my last gym didn’t save my data in Wodify…effers), but it’s the top so. Either way…I’m happy with this. Last high weight was 145 in May!

WOD:
21-15-9 front squat + toes to bar
I did: 15-15-9. My legs were fried from the backsquats and the hill work on Thurs.

6/27: rest day. Took the dogs for a long walk.

Since this post is boring and doesn’t have interesting pics, I leave you with this:

Some workouts!

Posted on May 18, 2015 by HaleyComet

Monday, 5/18
CrossFit
“You can’t spell legendary without leg day.” -coach Loree

I felt rushed during the squats, so I don’t feel I did my best. I could have gone heavier. But, the 6th set of 6, definitely hurt. So, I guess I ‘saved’ the set in the end.

WOD:My hands. Ooof. I went pretty conservative during the WOD. More of a slow-and-steady pace. I want to workout with more volume this week, so I’m dialing back the intensity. We’ll see how it goes.

Tuesday 5/19
CrossFit
My plan to not go 100% yesterday didn’t really help. Sore as he**! My abs! Oh, we didn’t do abs yesterday, you say? Right. Heavy squats, pullups, pushups, some gymnastic mobility…no, none of that uses abs.
Anyway, today’s WOD:
The KB bench press wasn’t too difficult, but I went a little lighter since I’m sore. I think tomorrow is going to HURT.
The WOD was strict technique work and SHOCKER…was hard. I didn’t think that a minute of work, with a minute rest, for several minutes would hurt so much. But, it did. Welcome to CF. Our score was based on how many total pullups we did.
Last Friday I took one of K’s friends & old co-worker from Lake Placid (she was here for work) to the Incline. She lives at 3,000ft, hikes often and is training for IMLP. Oh, and she’s 23. Ooof. She did just fine. Despite taking time to chat, talk to other climbers, and take pictures, I finished 5min faster than the last 2 times! Whoo! I’m still REALLY slow, but I can see progress. I was faster this time and didn’t feel like I pushed it harder. I will feel more comfortable pushing it like a harder run once I get to the Dr. and get a new inhaler Rx. Until then, it’s a good strength day and time on the trails!
After the Incline we went and rode the Terror-dactyl, a super-touristy ride. It’s a slingshot type thing over a canyon. It was awesome.
This isn’t us (obviously), but we didn’t want to pay for the GoPro video that’s just a face shot. Stupid. Anyway, the canyon was fun!

“That looks like fun!”

Posted on May 13, 2015 by HaleyComet

The worst words one can mutter when looking at the CrossFit WOD. Sigh.

So today I was pretty excited about the WOD!
Running: check
Heavy kettlebell swings: check
Double Unders: check

All 3…for 30minutes. At altitude (no, I’m not acclimated yet). Sigh. Wait, I can’t sigh. I can’t breathe.
So the WOD was:

Every 5 minutes for 30 minutes. I averaged about a minute rest at the end of each round: Not. Enough.

In the class, I did fine. I went heavier on the KB (45lbs) than all the other ladies except one. Was really glad I didn’t stick with the 53lb, like I had originally picked up. Whew.
The one faster female (ex track runner) crushed me the first 2 rounds, then she really fell off at the 3…then nowhere close to the front by the last 2 rounds. So, even though I’m not acclimated, TERRIBLY out of shape, overweight…this proves: CrossFitters don’t run.
Now, I don’t either, but I guess I’m damn proud of myself for knowing how to pace, and mentally am tough enough to push it moderately hard for 400-800m (or longer). In my mind…it’s just so short. At least I’m good at something. The bar. It’s low.
Rounds 3 and 4, I was really cursing myself for not knowing where my inhaler is, that I haven’t found a Primary Care Dr yet and haven’t gotten a new Rx. I *NEED* to get that done before my next marathon and before Pikes Peak marathon ramps up.

Running: each round was 2min or under. Not nearly my best, but pretty happy with that for where I’m at right now. If I had to hold an 8min/mi, it would hurt bad. But, it’s coming back.
KB: swings were fine. I could have done 53lbs, but I probably wouldn’t have finished each round in time. So, I judged well.
DU’s: They’re coming back! After a short breathe break after the swings, I was able to string together 15-20 each round. *golf clap*
Finally, Coach was AWESOME today. She was high as a kite on caffiene, waaay too much coffee. It was hilarious. It made the class very fun –but still motivating and she was still respectful, respected, and in charge. The energy was great!

Tomorrow: I’m sure it won’t be so pretty. In fact, it’s a suck-fest. I’m not sure if I’ll do the WOD, maybe only the strength portion (Back squats: whooo, hello ass!) and then the 5k “fun run” in the evening. We’ll see. My point is: not every day is a good day. Even when it it’s horrible and amazing at the same time.

Hope you enjoyed all the memes…I didn’t take any pictures today. Haha.

April 2-first week?

Posted on April 4, 2015 by HaleyComet

I kept procrastinating…didn’t feel like uploading pics, then was busy, then was VERY tired…then having tons of fun…I attempt to catch up…

April 2… Weather was less than pleasant this morning and kind of threw off my day.
Nothing special food wise…
Breakfast: bowl of red curry veggies, 2 pieces of bacon
Lunch: big bowl of brussels/broccoli salad, bowl of curry
Dinner: ugh, I’ve forgotten. I really need to type it up after every meal or take a pic.
RUN: 1mi, 9:34.

April 3: early morning into Denver. I forgot to eat breakfast and used the last of my coffee. I was so worried about getting my stuff together, making bone broth for my travel mug, and getting out the door…I was very ‘off’. I even took salad out of the fridge and left it on the counter. Sigh.
“lunch”: stopped at Mmmm…Paleo for a coffee. Saw they had several Whole30 compliant options and picked up a meat stuff, bacon wrapped date. DELICIOUS. I never would have thought of this. Cheese stuffed, almond stuffed, bacon wrapped…yes. Meat? Never crossed my mind. It was great to have a safe option while I was out all day, since I failed to prepare. If you’re in Denver, I recommend stopping in!

turkey enchilada stuffed date wrapped in bacon…

Dinner: RAVENOUS when I got home. Well, not ‘ravenous’, but I was crashing hard.
Big piece of salmon and salad. Sauteed that sucker in bacon grease and coconut oil and it was so good. Wish I had bought more. Oh well.
RUN: 7p, after dinner settled. I was so tired and hadn’t eaten enough, but I did it. Why bother to change out of your fuzzy house socks? No need!
1mi: 10:27

High fashion running

April 4: CF in the morning, then errands and dog park. Didn’t eat enough–again. Sigh.
We tried Skirted Heifer and it was great! What a good option after CF.
(grass fed beef, egg, jalapenos, avocado, etc)
RUN: 1mi: 10:51, even after a hard CF workout and being out all day!

April 5: BUSY FUN DAY!! ❤
Garden of the Gods, then the dog park, then after a very quick stop at home to drop off the dogs and grab some veggies for me, we went to Pikes Peak. It was 2p-ish and getting late, but we could see the weather up there was so clear that we took advantage of it.
EXHAUSTING day.

avocado, red pepper in lettuce. Gourmet, right?
(not shown: brisket)

K’s first time up Pikes!

April 6: Today wasn’t great. I was really feeling my dehydration and under nutrition from the weekend. It really caught up to me. I felt really horrible all day. Still ate great though!

smoked chicken leg

April 7: My appetite is really suppressed….not getting hungry until lunchtime.
B/L: BIG bowl of roasted veggies and a chicken leg.
red curry, 1/4 sweet potato
Dinner: broccoli brussels salad
I went to an REI Outdoors class: How to Hike 14ers. GREAT teacher (72 years young, climbed all CO’s 14ers TWICE, Denali, Kilamanjaro, Leadville & Hardrock 100, etc etc etc)
However, a Boy Scout Troop was there as part of their plan to hike Pikes in June. Well, these ‘boys’ were probably 13-14ish years old. They were more interested in texting and talking to each other than listening. I was LIVID. The instructor wasn’t a loud talker and didn’t have a mic (which was fine), but I couldn’t hear over their conversations. What made it worse was their leader didn’t make them shut up! I wanted to walk out so badly, but K said I really needed to go to the class as it did provide great tips and insight. Really ruined what should have been a great evening. Effing uncontrolled kids.

Guess I need more coffee. Now I’m in a bad mood thinking about last night!

In summary (if you’ve bothered to read this far):
Whole30 is going great! Haven’t felt the carb withdrawl, anger, ‘flu’, etc that I was expecting! GREAT news. Guess I wasn’t as far off the deep end as I thought (despite what my too-small clothes and scale says). And, we’re having tons of fun!

On a good note, here is a pic of the eclipse from near my house!

Into the light!

Posted on March 9, 2015 by HaleyComet

Pikes sunrise

…I see the light! In a good way. I haven’t had time to blog (isn’t that always the excuse?). Or I should say, “my life has been so crazy and stressful and changing, I had to set anything that wasn’t essential, aside.” So, blogging was one of those things.

What has happened since the last time I blogged? Gosh, when was that? Let me check…Jan 28. Bwahahahahahaha! Well, exactly a month after that blog, I was standing on a street in Colorado with full list of rental houses to check out. How did I get there?

Well, the last blog I wrote I as close to having peace and I could see the light. My husband had one offer in Virginia (at Quantico, DoD). An excellent job and offer, doing what he has studied and trained to do. An area we know well, were comfortable with, but not ideal (expensive, too far from the mountains/active lifestyle, but we’d make it work). He was thrilled about it…until Jan. when he progressed though the interview process with an opportunity in Colorado. We just didn’t think it would ever work out. Over 150 applicants, not gov’t related (what he had been focusing on), and when it seemed like he was a top contender, we didn’t think the offer would come close to the VA offer. Well, it did. And then some. The benefits were better, more stable work hours (not at the mercy of when units want to train), and COLORADO. All along I’ve told him that I would move wherever his job took him (within reason ~~NEVER THE MIDWEST~~, my opinion did matter), as we moved to the New Orleans area for me. So, it’s his turn. I told him we could be happy at either location, but I have no shame in saying now that I pushed for CO. It’s more “us”. Way more us.

So, a week after he got an offer, he left Lake Placid, went to Ohio, came back to Nola. Less than a week after that we were on the road to CO.

Cadillac Ranch. Finest TX has to offer.

Found an old friend on our first day!

Girl Scouts at the library. He couldn’t resist.

Hotel takeout and House of Cards binge watching

I spent his first week of working desperately searching for a place to live…the rental market is insanely competitive! For instance, we found a charming little house and looked at it at 9:15am one morning. When we arrived, another couple was there (9am showing). We left that house to STAND IN LINE for an open house (for a rental!). Interviewed with the landlord. Put in application. Left there and went to the library and put in an application for first house. The next day we got a call that the 9am couple put in an application LESS THAN AN HOUR before us and they were approved. I did another interview with house 2, and we were one of the “top 3,” but didn’t get it. WTF.
Some highlights of our stressful week:

Cozy mountain house: not bad for our first local dinner with friends.

When there isn’t room in the freezer, apparently the porch is an acceptable option.

Cute!

Pickle bar?! Be still my heart.

We can pickle that!

Neighborhood view.

On my last scheduled day there, I had all but given up and accepted the fact that we’d rent an apt for 3-6mo and buy a house. We had originally planned to live there for a year, then buy next spring/summer. I was leaving worried, not knowing when I’d be back. See, I didn’t want to move all our things and the ~~children~~ dogs until I knew we had a place to live!
I looked at the house, had a long interview with the landlord hanging out by the wood burning stove in the living room…paid her all the money, and immediately drove back to Denver since my flight was the next morning. Stopped at Whole Foods, rudely texted Bridget asking to celebrate that evening on no notice, picked up some fun things, picked up K from his conference, and went to her house. Oh, did I mention how awesome it is to have people I know that I can text and see within a couple hours?! FRIENDS! I’ve missed them!
In the end, everything worked out. I found something and I think it’s going to be great. It’s an old cottage (100 years) last remodeled in the 70’s-80’s. Haha. But the neighborhood seems great and our landlord is the bomb. Super cool and laid back, big time cyclist. She didn’t flinch when I said the 3rd bedroom would be the “bike room”. She replied “oh, any bike person is good in my book!” (I’m not the bike person, he is) We got along great and we both think we’re a ‘good fit’ and she felt that was important.

Some points I sent out in an email to my family (with some edits for privacy):

IVYWILD. How will I not walk here every day for coffee? First world probs.

The rest of the house may be outdated, but the working stove sealed the deal.

“We’re in the revitalizing Ivywild neighborhood. Ivywild is a huge, old school. They have: a coffee shop, a bakery, a charcuterie, a farmers market, a bike shop (K is excited about that) and a brewery…all in the school. The old gym of the school is still used as a gym with workouts and movie nights.
The house is about 15min from Pikes Peak. That’s just one of the many hiking areas. So many mountains and trails are close and all the ski resorts are about 2 hours (with lesser known ones closer).

It’s less than 10min (about 7, parking to parking) to Garden of the Gods, a huge free park with 15miles of trails for walking and hiking. Great rock formations.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garden_of_the_Gods

2.8 miles from 7 Falls, a waterfall park. It has some trails, but has tons of stairs to climb to the top of the falls.
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g33364-d276141-Reviews-Seven_Falls-Colorado_Springs_El_Paso_County_Colorado.html

Finally, Red Rocks is a park and amphitheater. It’s 4mi west near the Gods and Pikes peak. It’s open for hiking, climbing rocks, running in the amphitheater, when there aren’t concerts. Also free. ”

What I found out while browsing the web at the airport* to fly back to Nola, was that the best CrossFit & Weightlifting Club gym in the city is really close. REALLY close. Walkable, ride-able, maybe 5min in the car depending on stop lights? CLOSE.
* I do not recommend Googling something that has the potential to be VERY EXCITING, or you may end up not stepping on the airport escalator correctly, and falling down. In front of many people. I was that person.

SUCH a far cry from our life the past 2.5 years. Our gym was an hour away. Great restaurants and farmers markets and Whole Foods was 45min-1hr. All this stuff…just about walking distance now…AND running, riding or a short car ride to all the outdoor activities that were our priority (why we wanted to live on the West Side of town).

There you have it! We are THRILLED. I think I’ve found my place. And already, some people. (I’ve missed having friends close!) Or, at least my state. I’ve loved CO since I was a kid. I told K that he will have to drag me out, kicking and screaming. I’m ready to settle. I told him that I really don’t think I’ll want to leave CO, unless it was another western state like UT. Maybe.

Now, I’m back in the Dirrrty South, packing up our house. ~~We’re~~ I’m doing a POD move. Expensive, but we don’t have enough household goods to justify a moving company 18-wheeler (and more expensive), and a U-Haul is ridiculous, not reliable, and takes forever. Not to mention, I’m probably driving back to CO alone, and I wasn’t driving a U-Haul across TX and pull the car on a trailer. So stressful. Anyway, so far I’m a fan of the POD situation.

I’ll be back in CO soon, once the POD is picked up and I finalize my travel plans (can’t drive across TX and not see friends and sightsee!). I should be settled in the new house well before April 1, which has been my mental “life will be different and settled by then” date that I gave myself in Dec. So, it’s been a long several months, but totally happy with the way it’s all worked out.

Don’t expect another update for several weeks. I’ll just be realistic about that this time.

Shouldn’t have gone to REI on our first day, and 3rd day, and 4th day…

Days 8-11

Posted on January 28, 2015 by HaleyComet

Getting close to having peace! I see the light at the end of the tunnel with our uncertainty and I’m so, so happy about it. There are still several ways things can go, and I prefer one way over another, but I’ve made peace with whatever happens. Hopefully just another 2 weeks of this juggling act. I was sleeping so well the last week, but last night I was back to tossing and turning and thinking “what if”. I’m mostly excited and just anxious. Need to turn it “off” at night until decisions are made. Easier said than done.

Day 8: Kettlebell: swings, snatch, squats (10min)

Day 9: some HIIT
Rounds: 5
60 battlerope (30 reps per arm)
10 KB snatch (5 each arm)
5 goblet squat
Extra: sledgehammering the tire, sideways

Warm enough for shorts, but my feet were cold.

Day 10:
Tabata airdyne (4min), + 2min warmup, 1min cooldown.
Then, 5min AMRAP
10 T2B
15 pushups
5 jumping squats
2 3/4 rounds. My T2B sucks and the rusted pullup bar really hurt my hands.

Unattractive, I know. You’re welcome.

Day 11 (Jan 29): Pre-log: 2 sets of stairs at the big building. 20 minutes. Maybe more at home later.
I’m taking my computer into to be serviced, again. Apparently them replacing most of the major components didn’t fix the issue. So, going to run the stairs after I drop it off. Won’t get it back until next week.

Until then…

I am loving this Beyonce cover for the Fifty Shades movie. (I did not read the book and will not see the movie, but it’s so good on the trailer so I downloaded it)
Also on repeat: Mark Ronson/Bruno Mars Uptown Funk and Hozier Take Me to Church. That video though, I cannot link it. I don’t know if I love it as much anymore after seeing the video, because now the song just might make me sad. Heartbreaking, but relevant.

I made eggs and bacon for dinner two nights ago. I got up to get pepper and when I came back, this was left on my plate. The dogs are thieves.

At least they left me one piece of bacon.

2015. 365. Goals and shit.

Posted on January 20, 2015 by HaleyComet

Last year I didn’t have my heart into the 365 days of ‘purposeful’ workouts. I don’t think I even made it 2 months? And many aspects of my life suffered. My health, mental health, motivation…it’s all related. Since I’m a fan of the positive snowball, I’m doing it again this year. And will finish. It seems manageable since I had a VERY successful 2013 (19 marathons/ultras +100miler, fast, strong, healthy!), took ’14 ‘off’ and was sick and unhappy way too often. Just looking back on the end of 2014, I was sick in Sept, again in Oct. and most of Dec. and at least 10 days in Jan already! Definitely related. Now it’s time to hit it hard again this year: take care of myself, get healthy, get strong.

Now, it’s not going to be easy. I’m already very unsettled right now with a major life change(s), but it’s nothing I haven’t been through before. It’s the uncertainty that I’m not thrilled about. Hopefully things will be figured out in Feb, then finalized, by the end of March, so the end is (again, hopefully) near! But, any routine and taking care of oneself only helps these stressful times, so that’s what I’m going to do. Try to maintain some semblance of health and stress reduction during this time. (oh, and these are all good changes, btw!)

For many years, I’ve had the goal/resolution/life rule to learn or do something new every year. I don’t have anything specific this year -yet- but with the changes happening, I’m not worried about it. I know that life will settle down and I’ll find a new hobby or trip to throw my money and time at (Hello, Skeleton School in Lake Placid or Park City…I’m looking at you). Things in the past have been: learning a new sport, run farther (50 & 100 miles), a certain trip/experience, learning to knit, etc. SOMETHING new to grow as a person. I visited at least 2 new places and did new things at those places last year (Zion NP & Lake Placid), and learned some new knitting techniques (how to make a hat, knit with 2 colors, new stitches). So, the “learn something new” thing will work itself out.

Other goals:
knit at least 5 projects (making my way through my neglected project box)
read 10 books
3-5 new marathon states (Booked: South Dakota, the rest…up in the air)
These ‘goals’ feel pretty random and I don’t feel commited. So, many I shouldn’t even write them. I really am more worried about, and concentrating on, getting healthy physically and mentally. Overall, I’d like to get through this big change with some sanity, grace, and not lose my mind. Which is probably where those 3 items come in: they are balance. They balance the mental, the physical, and the feeling that I am accomplishing things. I am aware that I can’t control a lot of this right now, and I’m choosing to take a lot of this on myself as it helps my partner and our finances, so when/if it gets hard and stressful, I need to remember those things. I think I can do all this, as I’ve done it before. Just keep telling myself that…

HERE WE GO!

Since I was traveling, then sick (again!), I’m starting my 2015 on Jan 19. Who says the 365 days have to start on Jan. 1? Not me.
For a while, I’m going to log some food. I don’t know how much I’ll keep this up, but I need to get back in the habit.

So. Let’s go 2015!

Day 1, Jan 19: 40min walk with my cousin. Easing into this.
If it’s in the 60’s and I can wear sandals, it’s time to walk! (I wore real shoes for my walk)
Day 2, Jan 20: CrossFit! 1hr. Tried the new location of the old gym we used to belong to (2012-13). I enjoyed it.
Squat Snatch: 2x35lbs, 2x45lbs (way too easy), 3x65lbs, 2x75lbs.
WOD: 3rds for time RX
400m run
15 push press (65lbs)
15 toes-to-bar
15 box jumps (20in)
Food: 3 boiled eggs, 1/2 grapefruit
1/2 apple pre-wod, 1/2 after
2 burger patties, big salad, 1 sweet potato
another burger, salad
Oooof. My hands are not in CrossFit shape! Not acceptable!

Day 3, Jan. 21:
AM: 40min walk
2 pieces bacon, 1/2 grapefruit, handful of nuts….uhhh…it’s 2:30p and apparently I need to eat!…big salad w/tuna.
CrossFit workout didn’t look fun, so I decided not to go.

UPDATE: Jan 22. (I will workout today, but not yet. That entry will be the next blog post. I just wanted to get this published.)
Life has thrown another curveball, and my knee-jerk reaction is to protect myself, our little family, and our finances. So. I don’t know what CF gym I’ll be joining again (I wanted to go back to our old, good, place). I don’t even want to go back to the place where I was going in Nov or Dec (that’s half the price), because I feel like I’m in survival mode. I can workout at home. I’ve got weights, tires, a pullup bar and plenty of places to run. We’ll see. I’m sure my husband will completely disagree and tell me to go back to the gym, but I just don’t know if I’m comfortable with that right now. I can get by on my own through March just fine.

This year…oof. I hope it gets a lot better.

I wanted to end my blogs with something light and funny, and I’m lacking pictures in this wordy post, so I’m leaving you with my attempt at a food pic. The dogs were waaaaay too interested in my lunch.

I can haz tuna?

Where I try to catch up.

Posted on November 19, 2014 by HaleyComet

That’s probably worthless and boring, but I’ll add hit some high and low points in the last couple of weeks.

Non workout related: the maps people are making on FB of the states they’ve visited make me laugh. Many people are counting states they’ve driven through, on their way to visit another place. The people who are NOT doing those maps? My runner friends who are chasing 50-States status. Like my friend who has done a marathon in all 50 states, 3 times. I’ve been keeping a map of the states I’ve done marathons in for 5-7 years now. So, I will not be participating, but you can check my map that I keep here! (I’ve visited far more states than I’ve run in, btw)

Good stuff: great workouts until about a week ago, Thurs?. I even was FIRST female in the gym ranking on 11/6! So cool! Of course it was a moderate weight, long workout, with running. Right up my alley. Or, trailer park. (The term du jour is “wheelhouse.” I loathe the term. So, when someone uses it, I reply with, “Oh your trailer park?” Yes. Yes, I do.)
Anyway…
10 rounds (for 10 years), of 11 air squats, 6 hang cleans, then 2004 m run.

(10/27) We did Helen too. I love Helen. I am at least 2+ min slower than my PR. 😦 My pullups need some work, and my engine could be a little stronger, but I’ll get there.

Speaking of working on pullups, a week later we did this killer WOD. It was a LOT of push jerks and pullups. It was a miracle my hands didn’t rip and I’m so glad I did it Rx.
For the 2 of you that care, that’s 10, 9, 8…1 of push jerks, and 2, 4, 6…20 pullups.

Random workout pics:

knot in my back hurt, stopped at 6rds instead of 7.

Veterans Day: 3 Wise Men. Named after the 3 Wise brothers, 2 of whom died in combat. 3 WODS.

THE WISE BROTHERS.

What I wore on Veterans Day. Tights are black camo.

Painful 3-6-9 workout of hang cleans, burpees, and squats. 18 solid rounds though!

That’s enough “catching up”. The last time I blogged workouts was the end of Oct. That’s too many days. Moving on.

The not-so-good: I slept wrong on Wednesday night. Or had poor posture. Or both. I don’t know. I felt a knot in my shoulder and it was uncomfortable. It got worse as the day went on. Friday, I was pretty miserable. I went to the gym thinking I could roll it out on the lacrosse ball, heavy duty foam roller, and other Mobility WOD torture toys. I couldn’t lift my arm, I had shooting pain up my neck. I was nauseated.
Unsuccessful (multiple) calls to my massage therapist, and no ART practitioners were open on the weekend.
Let’s just say I spent the weekend doing a recovery WOD:
hot pad on the floor.
Lax ball.
Epsom bath.
Stretching.
Sleep.
Repeat.
Repeat.

Tuesday (yesterday) and I went to the gym as I was feeling more functional. Spent many minutes on the Mobility ball. Did a scaled workout. Felt ok. The knot is still there, but it’s tolerable. I have the number of a masseuse the women at the gym recommended.
Scaled workout: 3 rounds of 50 double unders, 10 power snatch (45lbs). Time: 16:15.

I leave you with this funny. I was thinking about providing a fun little snapshot at the end of the blog, sort of like Anderson Cooper’s Ridiculist.

Would have been wrong to hit this car? I think this is even worse than taking up two spaces. Let’s just park right in the driving lane, shall we?

haleycomet365

365 days of workouts, Food, and hopefully some fun!

Tag Archives: CrossFit

Jan. 1-11.

2015-2016.

This week: 6/23-26/15

Four sets of:
Seated Overhead Press with Dumbbells x 10-12 reps
Rest 45-60 seconds
Strict Supinated-Grip Pull-Ups x 8-10 reps
Rest 45-60 seconds
Bent-Over Barbell Rows x 6-8 reps
Rest 45-60 seconds
Band Pull-Aparts x 20 reps
Rest 45-60 seconds

B.
Complete as many reps as possible in 6 minutes of:
Dumbbell Man-Makers (Push-Up, Power Clean, Push Press)

THEN:

Some workouts!

“That looks like fun!”

April 2-first week?

Into the light!

Days 8-11

2015. 365. Goals and shit.

Where I try to catch up.

Four sets of: Seated Overhead Press with Dumbbells x 10-12 reps Rest 45-60 seconds Strict Supinated-Grip Pull-Ups x 8-10 reps Rest 45-60 seconds Bent-Over Barbell Rows x 6-8 reps Rest 45-60 seconds Band Pull-Aparts x 20 reps Rest 45-60 seconds

B. Complete as many reps as possible in 6 minutes of: Dumbbell Man-Makers (Push-Up, Power Clean, Push Press) THEN:

Four sets of:
Seated Overhead Press with Dumbbells x 10-12 reps
Rest 45-60 seconds
Strict Supinated-Grip Pull-Ups x 8-10 reps
Rest 45-60 seconds
Bent-Over Barbell Rows x 6-8 reps
Rest 45-60 seconds
Band Pull-Aparts x 20 reps
Rest 45-60 seconds

B.
Complete as many reps as possible in 6 minutes of:
Dumbbell Man-Makers (Push-Up, Power Clean, Push Press)

THEN: