Toddler Time, Forced Yoga, & USA World Cup

(subtitle: Part III of why I’ve been MIA)

After another week of running, lifting, yoga-ing…plus an added 2.5 Jimmy Buffett concerts, I was spent.  Exhausted.  And when I awoke – I heard rain.  Hard rain.  It would’ve been perfect to stay in bed or on the couch all day, but that’s something that just doesn’t happen to people with toddlers…Or to folks who must exercise.

The lil monsters in a rare calm mood.

I woke up later than normal (thank you, kids for sleeping in).  I looked at the clock and realized yoga practice was less than an hour away.  I had a decision to make.  On one side there was the tiredness and rain, on the other side…this – I took a step and felt the slightest twinge in the outside of my left knee.  It reminded me of the years long struggles I had against IT Band Syndrome.  I knew I never want to go through that again, and I know yoga is one reason I was able to fight it off.              I went to practice.

Please instructor, can we do child’s pose the entire time.

The class was tough – not what I was hoping for the day after a Buffett concert.  But looking back, I’m glad it was.  That’s why we go – to challenge ourselves.

Afterwards it was a mad dash to get a bunch of errands and chores done before the USA vs POR World Cup Match.  I met a bunch of (mostly running) friends at a local pub.

A part of our World Cup viewing group. The infamous Pepsi even made an appearance (yes, that’s her real name).

If you watched the match, you know what an emotional roller coaster it was.  Disbelief, tears of joy, then gasps of disbelief.  That said, it was fun.  That’s why we watch sports.  And in the end, the good ole’ US of A is in a great spot to advance to the next round.  But it is sports, so we have to wait until their match against Germany!  #Ibelievethatwewillwin

So there’s that.  Plus the previous days of epic craziness (If you missed them, you can read Part I HERE, and Part II HERE), plus life, plus work, plus everything = Scott’s been out of pocket.

Anyways, hoping to get back in a routine and catch up with everything, but we’ll see what life brings!

How bout you?  Ever go to yoga (or any workout) when you (and the universe) said not to?  Where and with whom did you watch the US/Por match?  Do you believe?

-Scott

Weekend Recapin’: Runnin’, Walkin’, & Yogain’

Like most of us, the weekend started with a ‘long run’.  I took our dumb dog with me (the smart one has bad hips in old age).  I didn’t really have a plan, but thought 9 miles would be good.  It was.  I felt aight.  Picked up the pace as I went and ended up with an average pace around 8:30 something per mile.

And of course, since the weather is nice, we’ve been taking the both dogs (dumb and smart) and the rug rats (both are smart, of course) on walks.  They love it when we have time to stop at the park to play.

Keep calm and slide on.

Sunday the weather experts on TV had predicted crazy winds, hail, massive storms, and basically the end of days.  Turned out it was only a little windy.

Either way, I needed a yoga sesh, so I met some friends at Lululemon for their weekly practice.  It must’ve been a tough class cause there was lots of grunting (not from me), and today I am sore in parts.  Afterward I snapped a pic of our group, but didn’t like the way it looked, so it got deleted.

Sorry folks. I know how much you wanted to see another selfie of me and my motley crew.

Anyway, the weather has been pretty decent, and the flowers have taken notice.  Everything is in full bloom now, so my mom took the rug rats to the arboretum check some of them out.

I’d like to point out some of my favorite plants…there’s the green one, and the other green one, and that green one…

And to top it all off, my Dallas Mavericks won their playoff game in dramatic fashion with a three pointer at the buzzer.  Which was good, because when the Mavs win, “It makes for a much more pleasant household.” (according to the wife)

How bout you?  Good weekend?  Flowers flowering?  Run, yoga, or other workouts?  Goin on any walks?

-Scott

 

Running in Wind Tips: Big Wind is Just Like Big Hill

I snuck in a 4 mile runch (run at lunch) this windy day.  Seriously, it was windy.  Just look at the flag.

Everything is big in Texas, even the big wind.

The weather lady on TV said there would be 40 mph gusts.  Sometimes it felt like running into a wall.  But I got through it, and here’s my tips for wind running:

Basically, think of it like you’re running up and down a hill.

1) When it’s at your face, try to lean into it, the same as running up a hill.

2) When it’s at your back, try to loosen your form.  Let it do the work for you, and just go along for the ride, just like running downhill.

3) You can also run in a skin tight body lycra suit to cut down on wind resistance.*

*This is optional.

Anyway, I followed 2 of my 3 tips and it went aight.

I finally took one of those popular pictures of the gps watch after a workout.

But I gotta say, all of this road and wind talk reminds me of this portion of a famous old Irish Blessing.

I wrote that.

I have a 5k this Saturday, so I figured this was good practice in case it is windy on race day.  And if it’s not, then all the better!  Like doing hill work to prepare for a flat race.

In other news.  Our kids are dorks.  They were getting ready for bed and came out dressed like this:

Hands up! You’re under arrest by the fashion police.

They said they were “cold”.  Weirdos.

How bout you?  Ever runch?  Anything other tips for running in the wind?  Where do you think the kids get their goofiness from?

-Scott