Thursday, April 30, 2009
Flying Pig Here I Come!
After another exhausting, but wonderfully challenging, week of CrossFit, I am excited about my upcoming race. Cincinnati is known for its hills, but my quads are ready! Can't help but get excited about the expo - pretty pathetic, but it's my idea of awesome shopping! Flying Pig, you *will* be my next PR!
Sunday, April 19, 2009
CrossFit Update
Back from Vacation and quickly moved into our second week of CrossFit...should be our 3rd week, but we were on vacation during week 2 and will make it up the lost time later in the program. The class was for 1 hour on Saturday morning and, as of this afternoon, neither Greg or I can move. My thighs ache as if I had just finished a marathon (you know, can't go down a set of stairs without saying "Oowh"). My arms are useless and I just want to sit for long periods! Thank goodness I got my long run out of the way on Friday. My tempo run is not looking promising for Sunday afternoon.
We did a "circuit" which consisted of rowing, squats, box jumps, push ups, and situps. We were timed and had to complete as many of each of these activities for 20 seconds, with a 10 second rest, 8 times for each, then shout out our numbers. I was lucky I didn't fall off the box when jumping on and off with my amazing agility! I really can't believe how exhausted this made me...and Greg is in the same boat! Best of all (or worst of all), we get to do all of this AGAIN to see if we've improved any as we progress through the program. I still can't believe I VOLUNTARILY signed up for this??!!
We did a "circuit" which consisted of rowing, squats, box jumps, push ups, and situps. We were timed and had to complete as many of each of these activities for 20 seconds, with a 10 second rest, 8 times for each, then shout out our numbers. I was lucky I didn't fall off the box when jumping on and off with my amazing agility! I really can't believe how exhausted this made me...and Greg is in the same boat! Best of all (or worst of all), we get to do all of this AGAIN to see if we've improved any as we progress through the program. I still can't believe I VOLUNTARILY signed up for this??!!
Back from Vacation!
Los Angeles and Las Vegas were absolutely wonderful! First, we flew into Vegas and stayed at the Hard Rock Hotel before beginning our 4-hour trek to LA. Loved the Hard Rock...even considered the whole tattoo thing (still considering it, husband leaning toward it as well). Car ride with a 2-year-old not so bad - thank goodness for the iTouch. Became a huge fan of Kimpton hotels. Stayed at the Kimpton Palomar near UCLA campus. Not only was it affordable (way less than a Chicago hotel), but it was wonderfully stocked with kid stuff and loaned us a fantastic stroller that Pablo Honey actually rode in! Just that small fact made the hotel amazing. Best of all, there was all you could drink organic coffee each morning - forget buffets, just give me a coffee bar and I'm golden. Checked out Beverly Hills - Kid A found out that Rodeo Drive was really not a big deal (especially compared to Vegas) and did some of the cheesy touristy kind of stuff. Checked out Grauman's Chinese Theatre, the star walk and Kodak Theatre. A little gem ended up being the Griffith Observatory. Got some great pics with the Hollywood sign in the background. Pictures will be posted within the next couple of days. Checked out the Farmer's Market on West 3rd and it no where near compared to our wonderful Westside Market on 25th.
Spent Easter Sunday in Santa Monica. I have to admit it was pretty cool looking over during communion and seeing Conan O'Brien. Breakfast at Jack-n-Jills did not disappoint. Greg had PBC pancakes which had Reece diced on top - Wow! Back to the hotel for nap time, while I attempted a 10-miler from our hotel to Santa Monica along Wilshire and around the pier and beach area. I'm a pretty well-traveled person, but I have never before been verbally abused by a homeless person like I was in Santa Monica. The guy called me a "fat ass, piece of sh*t, white trash." The only part that really offended me was the fat part! He certainly helped increase my speed that I was running - damn! We did, however, stumble across a neat little place to eat an early dinner. We originally tried to eat at Your Father's Office due to the great burger review we read. As the 2-year-old sprinted inside to scout out a seat, we quickly were informed "No one under 21." No worries, Greg found a back-up at the Library Ale House. I quickly became a fan of Bear Republic Racer 5 IPAs.
The best day of all was Monday - Meg and I were audience members on Ellen. I could not believe how amazing this would really be. We had front row seats and were literally 10 feet away from Ellen. She's just as great in person as on TV. Jenny McCarthy, Mary McCormick and Natasha Bedingfield were guests. I just can't say enough about how great of an experience this was. Meg and I were exhausted from all the clapping, whooping, yelling, standing, dancing and smiling. Meg said she smiled so much that her cheeks hurt. What a hard life! We topped the evening off with a trip to Pink's. I had the Rosie O'Donnell which had sauerkraut, onions, brown mustard and sauce. Meg had the Lord of the Rings which had onion rings and BBQ sauce drizzled on it. Greg went standard with sauce and onions. Wow - not the healthiest thing to eat...but Wow! That's when you know you're an adult - when you can eat a monster 10" hot dog and call it dinner.
Back in Vegas (after another quick stop to Del Taco), we celebrated Greg's birthday at Kerry Simon's place in the Palms hotel. Better than birthday cake, we had the "junk food platter" for dessert. It had (drum roll, please)...ho ho's, sno ball, cotton candy, cookies, rice crispie treats, fruity pebbles treat, brownies, and caramel corn (in a chinese take out box). They lit a candle in the ho ho for Greg to blow out. Food, drink, music, atmosphere...great place!
Although we did not come back winners from the Blackjack table, we still had another fantastic family vacation. Can't wait to plan another one!
Spent Easter Sunday in Santa Monica. I have to admit it was pretty cool looking over during communion and seeing Conan O'Brien. Breakfast at Jack-n-Jills did not disappoint. Greg had PBC pancakes which had Reece diced on top - Wow! Back to the hotel for nap time, while I attempted a 10-miler from our hotel to Santa Monica along Wilshire and around the pier and beach area. I'm a pretty well-traveled person, but I have never before been verbally abused by a homeless person like I was in Santa Monica. The guy called me a "fat ass, piece of sh*t, white trash." The only part that really offended me was the fat part! He certainly helped increase my speed that I was running - damn! We did, however, stumble across a neat little place to eat an early dinner. We originally tried to eat at Your Father's Office due to the great burger review we read. As the 2-year-old sprinted inside to scout out a seat, we quickly were informed "No one under 21." No worries, Greg found a back-up at the Library Ale House. I quickly became a fan of Bear Republic Racer 5 IPAs.
The best day of all was Monday - Meg and I were audience members on Ellen. I could not believe how amazing this would really be. We had front row seats and were literally 10 feet away from Ellen. She's just as great in person as on TV. Jenny McCarthy, Mary McCormick and Natasha Bedingfield were guests. I just can't say enough about how great of an experience this was. Meg and I were exhausted from all the clapping, whooping, yelling, standing, dancing and smiling. Meg said she smiled so much that her cheeks hurt. What a hard life! We topped the evening off with a trip to Pink's. I had the Rosie O'Donnell which had sauerkraut, onions, brown mustard and sauce. Meg had the Lord of the Rings which had onion rings and BBQ sauce drizzled on it. Greg went standard with sauce and onions. Wow - not the healthiest thing to eat...but Wow! That's when you know you're an adult - when you can eat a monster 10" hot dog and call it dinner.
Back in Vegas (after another quick stop to Del Taco), we celebrated Greg's birthday at Kerry Simon's place in the Palms hotel. Better than birthday cake, we had the "junk food platter" for dessert. It had (drum roll, please)...ho ho's, sno ball, cotton candy, cookies, rice crispie treats, fruity pebbles treat, brownies, and caramel corn (in a chinese take out box). They lit a candle in the ho ho for Greg to blow out. Food, drink, music, atmosphere...great place!
Although we did not come back winners from the Blackjack table, we still had another fantastic family vacation. Can't wait to plan another one!
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
CrossFit Cross Training Program: Week One
Two sessions down! CrossFit has been so tough but yet so wonderful! Day 1 was spent introducing us to equipment and the general layout of the CrossFit program. I've never done so many squats! We used the rowing machine, performed at least 50 squats (which is a lot for a first date!), did step ups and overhead presses. Then we were timed for how long we could stay in plank position. Day 2 consisted of more squats (of course...because who doesn't want to walk like John Wayne!) with an increased focus on arm strength. I can't wait till next week's class. I really want to improve my half marathon time and I'm confident this is the right program. Stay tuned for more information on CrossFit!
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