For those of you that seemed to have forgotten

Which I know really isnt possible...  right?  I did celebrate a birthday in there as well.  And that didnt do well to add to the workouts either.  It was a week of quasi-celebrating my birthday.  I have yet to have the chocolate mikshake or ice cream cake that I was hoping for.  But we did go out on the town.  And boy oh boy was it fun.  It was a bit of work getting ready - as some of us did get together to eat before hand.  So there was the house cleaning and food prep - oh and CO2 detector replacement - before hand.  And the party itself did entail a mile walk between locations. 
Overall it was a lot of fun.  Everyone seems to want to do it again - with better shoes next time.
But there was a lot of sleep lost that weekend.
This past week - I was planning on getting back into the swing of things.  But that old saying to be so sound that nothing disturbs your peace of mind was out on holiday.  So the soundness wasnt there and the desire to go to the gym was missing.  Lot of changes at the office.  Lot of reminiscing.  And overall stress malaise and sadness.
So today I am packed fro MS - that always gets to me too.  I have been going there for some time now and a number of the people that I interact with are no longer in the mix of the trip...  But it will be a nice time.  And very busy. 
I have packed my workout stuffs but not sure it will be used.  Lots of early mornings and speaking engagements could make me too tired to want to try.  We shall see.
But then that's pretty much it for the rest of the year - so that gives me 8 weeks to get on top of the fitness again.  YAY!

I was doing so well

But that MKE trip just threw me for a loop of eating well and exercising.
And it seems to have been all down here from there.
I need to get back on that game plan.

From there Milwaukee

Ironically I want to post these pics to the Bermuda blog...  Mostly because the Harley Davidson Museum had a small snippit reference to scooters.  And the Mitchell Domes had a tropical section that reminded me of Bermuda.

http://bermudafuldream.blogspot.com/

Hilton Head

As mentioned I went there for a friends' wedding.  I took some pics of the beach.  Not many at the wedding.
I will have to post the HHI pics to the beach blog.
http://to-the-beach-2009.blogspot.com/

I only took a few pics as I sat on the beach and had coffee that morning.

things i have done when i havent been going to the gym...

I went to Hilton Head, Milwaukee and had a birthday celebration AND I took pictures.  I thought I would perhaps put them on my blog.  But it seems there is so much more traffic with people on FB.  And I dont think I have the time or desire to do both.  Decisions Decisions....

sooooo offfff the workout wagon

sad to admit but i had originally wanted to lose 40 pounds by yesterday - i know probably not 40 there to reasonably lose but i figured this 10 here 10 there goal wasnt working for me...  but the BHAG didnt work either... and not only is the food thing kind of out of control but so is the lack of working out...
sore still from the gardening - not good
and after work bday plans all week - went shopping last night - not a hobby of mine - it was rather nice for a change - just dont know how people do it week in week out... then out to dinner with a friend..
a good day - but no exercise
and tonight is a new moon night - which has been on the agenda since bermuda but has just been scheduled - so i am going to not see the gym again today
well maybe tomorrow ---- 

memories...

i guess if i scroll back far enough i may find an entry for last year... i remember it pretty well... 
well my birthday always reminds me of someone and then i think back over the 6 years and remember that party i had - was it really for 35? i had a new job. i had a party.  my dad made some kick ass baby back ribs...
last year my party was earlier in the month
and i found myself briefly in the office - on the way to MS - MGV and the other KP decorated my office...
i landed in JAN and they gave me a car with satelite... and i listened to Robbie Williams live at something ballroom - gosh it had a name... then i had dinner of wine and wedge salad and i beleive some fish at giardinas...  maybe too much wine
later that weekend i went to vicksburg
and the highlight of my birthday travels was being in the middle of vicksburg and gettting the news of little greyson's arrival... he will be ONE this week - which is far more exciting than my silly birthday
but hey - thanks for remembering

what does gardening count as

i havent done much gardening since the beginning of the season
i cleared the land and planted seeds and then just let them do their thing
which turned out to be a lot of things... ground cover and vines everwhere
i kind of liked it - i am sure my neighbor hated it - oh well
so earlier this month i decided yesterday would be the day to start to take it apart
i knew this would be a bit of a workout
given the continued high heat we had all summer, not only did the flowers do well, but the weeds took over too... they were coming up in between everything - the lantana, the gardenia... a bit out of control to say the least...  i had been ignoring them - which also didnt help
so yesterday - i pulled most of the weeds - i have about a quarter of the front yard that still needs weeding - i want to know WHERE is the darned mimosa tree that has created all these saplings in my front yard - eeeerrrr.... i trimmed back the gardenias and some of the lantana and most of the other flowers
next weekend will be the rest of the lantana and the weeds
then i am not too sure what i will do with the vacant land - i thought pumpkins, pansies and mums could be nice
and if i make a flat enough clear enough space i could do some inflatable holiday art come december - ok that wont happen but it's good for a laugh
and as expected the backs of my legs are a bit sore today

MMM - need to add some fish(bone) into my diet

Fishbone came up in conversation the other weekend as well.  We had a good random conversation on Lalapalooza 1993 while dancing to Just Breathe by Pearl Jam.  The conversation started innocently about can you be a fan of Pearl Jam AND Nirvana or did the grunge movement have 2 sectors.  If it did I would be in the Pearl Jam camp.  I do not own any Nirvana.  And boy oh boy do i love me some Eddie Vedder.  And the next thing you know - we are on the topic of one of my favourite bands...  So incredibly random. 



Need to add this and some others to the workout mix.  If you dont find yourself moving fast and running to this you may want to check your pulse.

oops - bad business travel

i was doing so well with working out while on the road.  that is until this last little jaunt.  oops.  i knew i was on the path of not working out the first night.  i just didnt have that go back to the hotel and use their gym motivation. and it is a nice gym.  i have used it every other time.  just didnt happen.  i did do some site-seeing however.  so will be adding pics and comments at some point about what i did instead of the workouts.

concrete pumps, power tools

Fond memories
Makes me smile
Well back to work
Thankfully not that cold here - at the moment.

That looks to be bleeding kind of bad...

SO SHOULD HAVE GONE TO THE GYM!!!  Instead I went by the Y to pick up forms to cancel my membership.  I drove right by the new gym - one of the selling points of going to the new gym.  But I kept on driving.  I still had 2 more loads of laundry to finish to finish packing.  And it just loomed over head that it would take forever and I would still be tired from the weekend if I threw a swim into the mix.
Well, the frozen lean cuisine pizza didnt have much appeal and when KP called and offered home-made potatoe soup... how could I turn that down.  I had to eat right?
Well, when I arrived the scene was a little different than anticipated.  RP1 slipped and fell somewhere between the invite and my drive time.  He was soaking wet with a gash - not better way to describe it - in his shin.  For some reason all their talk about how it wa a gash and wasnt bleeding but now was didnt do wellby me.  I mean I have had a gash in the side of my face where I could feel the layers of skin under my fingers and the blood.  I would say I did OK in that scenario.  But for some reason this one didnt do well by me.  So I had a cup of soup; listened to some debate as to what to do about the gash; and came home to the laundry piles on the floor.
Thinking about it again makes me a little queesy.  I wonder what is up with me with that?
Anyways in hindsight, I should have just gone swimming. 
I did finish my laundry, watched, some NCIS, and packed.  And if I keep true to form - I wont fret too much about the workout scenario while traveling.  I have been doing a pretty good job of keeping up with it from the road.  HECK, I may even be better at it from the road than I am from home these days.
I will keep you posted :)

Laundry, laundry, laundry, pack

So I had made notes for my intended swim/workout schedule would be over the next few weeks.  Yesterday was to be a swim day since I was home.  I never anticipated having THAT MUCH laundry to do.  So the gym did not happen.  It was just hours of laundry after work.  Shoot, I am still doing laundry this morning.  I did do a little 15 minute walk to get the blood flowing this morning. 
I am thinking I could squeeze a swim in this evening.  I really need to get in the water.  I think I have everything clean that I need to pack for the rest of the week.
I probably should plan on packing a suit with me as well.  The hotel does have a little pool.  Just to keep the limbs moving etc.
That gets me through to Saturday/Sunday.  Sunday DEFINITELY needs to be a swim/bike/run  day even if its not in that order.  I promised myself I would continue riding even when the race was over but the season was still warm.  And that it is.  So I need to do that.  And there are only a few weekends left for it so I must get to it.
Met another road biker over the weekend who yet again was selling me on the concept of upgrading my bike to a better road bike and I would enjoy it all so much more.  Maybe next season. 
Riding bikes into bodies of water - not a good idea.  That is not what they mean with the swim/bike/run combo of a triathlon.

MMM - it's not Phair

Some inspiration for this week's post...  for the boy named after the city...  why yes, there are some of us out here that know who Liz Phair is...
i tried to pull something not as cliche as this song but had trouble narrowing in on the older stuff and then was so shocked at quite the makeover ms phair has had...

what to do today...

Today is supposed to be a swim day.  Just not sure there are enough hours in my day to do it all.  I have 2 office days to getg a bunch done before I am out onthe road again.  That makes for a pretty jam packed work day (or two).  And then I need to get laundry done so I can pack....  So we shall see.
With the new gym I do have the luxury of swimming later in the evening so I may put that to work for me.  It's a shame that laundry is such a babysitted chore - you know you cant leave all that unattended. 
So we shall see.
Feeling a bit sore from the yoga today.  And a bit sore from the dancing out on the dane floor too.
It was a great weekend. 

10/10/10

nope those 6 pack abs did not happen
now working on swimming a mile before the end of the year
but first some more hotel fitness center work out - well actually first is a good night's sleep after this weekends festivities and laundry!

that was a workout!

I decided to take a leisurely walk down the beach. I thought I would see if M&L's house was in walking distance. I suspected it was under a mile so doable.
Thankfully found some sunscreen in my gym bag and headed out. As expected, it took about 20 minutes to get there. I could tell it was them as there were towels hanging on the rails and people milling about.
OH BUT the workout did not stop there. I ended taking part in an hour yoga class. We all set up on the second story balcony overlooking the ocean. It was a great class. I may even have to search out the studio where she teaches. Then walked back via the road - more of an attempt to stay in the shade than anything else.
I jumped in the pool to wash off the extra sand and sweat. BBRRRRRRrrrrrr!!!.... Think I may try that again :)
Ate a fried chicken sandwich - don't know what I was thinking there. Now drinking a beer listening to some live music at the beach bar.
AND IT IS OCTOBER!
Ah, living in the South!
Wedding is at 4 so relaxing for a bit before showering and changing.

sitting on the beach

I decided to grab a coffee and head out to the beach. Then I remembered another plus to not having a rental car... Beach chair is in the trunk. So now I am sitting on the beach listening to the waves roll in. I tried to do absolutely notthing without falling asleep. There is some zen aspect to that. I did pretty good for about an hour or so. There is a surfer on a longboard down the shore from me. There are commercial fishing boats moving further and further off the horizon. A little boy that was jogging with his mom has given up for the lure of building a sand castle. And the tide is coming in and my feet are getting bathed by the Atlantic on a little more frequent basis than an hour ago. A jog on the beach sounds appealing but going to concentrate on this concept of nothing for a bit. That and another coffee and maybe sunscreen in my gym bag. Happy Saturday.

STARS

I may have commented on this in my Bermuda blog. And I was reminded again last night. When I left last nights festivities the walk to the car got suddenly dark. Very dark. As I waited for my eyes to adjust - the instinctive voice in my head said look up. Good suggestion. Wow, will you look at all those stars. I don't get that in CLT. It is never that dark. There are never that many stars. It was beautiful

today i wake up in hilton head

So nothing in the form of exercise - unless you count the flat out 5 hour drive - was acomplished. I am here for a friends wedding. Last night they had a low country boil dinner party for everyone. It was great food, cold beer and a good opportunity to meet some people. I only really know the groom and bride. Today will warrant some beach time. YAY!

Wilmington

I was productive in Wilmington - even if my menu decisions weren't all that healthy.
I did 30 minutes on the treadmill the first night. The second night I ran through the neighborhood behind my hotel. It was a golf course community and I checked with the front desk - it was a safe venture on my part. I jogged a mile in and a mile out staying on the main road so I would not get lost :)

Only Three Times?

Yes, because I find myself on the road again. Also why I am sitting in bed in a hotel room catching up on my blogging this morning. (Please no comments from the peanut gallery on beds and hotel rooms). I left for Wilmington (aka Cape Fear) NC on Wednesday. So Monday and Tuesday were entrenched with working late and packing. Depending on my eta tomorrow I may make it to the gym.

joined a new gym

I can't recall if I had mentioned this or not. But a new gym is being built closer to my home. It is actually on the way home from the Y. So while sitting in traffic on my way home from ATL I called and joined the gym. Craziness I know. I had been considering it for a while so it surely wasn't spontaneous on my part. It was cheaper. A little closer to home. Longer hours. And has a pool. So I considered it a no brainer. I have been 3 times so far and am enjoying it.

Monday after the race

I left for ATL for work. What a crazy day that was. Some vine/plant/something had been growing in the power lines that feed power to our office. I got to the office to get some things done before heading out. It was pitch black. I ended up sitting on a friends couch and chatting for most of the morning. Thankfully I was able to get everything done in time and head on out.
That night I did 45 minutes on the treadmill. It was the first time I was on a treadmill in quite some time. It felt good to be moving after such a non productive day.
The next 3 days I also worked in ~15 minutes on the elliptical each morning. This was a major feat for me. I have always struggled with that machine. So now I consider it part of my travel mix.
In the evenings I did a loop through an office park that is just short of 2 miles. I enjoy getting out there and working that loop.
It felt like a productive outing.

day of the race

I did get out on my bike some the day of the race. I took it out for a 20 minute spin. Nothing major. When I started coughing up a lung in the midst of climbing a hill I decided my decision to sit this rae out may not have been a bad idea.

NO RACE

I have been neglectful of blogging as it would mean I would have to put the facts in writing about the last race. That would be the race I chose not to do. With the change of seasons my allergies were acting up on a regular basis. Not much of an excuse but it was really hard to motivate and move when the head is constantly pounding. It lead to some chest congestion as well and the whole cardio piece was put to the side. I had a medical procedure as well. That didn't bother me at all physically except for a short 12 to 24 hour time frame. Again in the midst of it there was mostly an overwhelming sinus and head pain. And then the stress of it all seemed to be weighing on top of me. Which is hard to explain. The stress seemed to just add to the tension. So I decided to let myself off the hook. At least for a little while. Of course 2 weeks later I still feel incredibly guilty but what can you do about that. Eventually that will fade.

been a while

have lots to say as to why it has been while but just dont have the energy or desire to sit here and type right about now...
the summary is sinus pain, sinus infection, sinus pain, travel, sinus pain, colonoscopy, sinus pain, no triathlon, sinus pain, sinus pain...  finally back into the swing of things after a few weeks of distraction...  with the cooler temps i am just hoping the sinus pain stays the heck away!

MMM - a little JT and JF

Jimmy Fallon doing a little running man while singing golddigger in a suit... impressive... i have never been able to master the running man...  i find it oh so frustrating just cant get my knees and feet and music to all coordinate...