Virtual Backup

So...even though I totally visualized myself doing both the step and pump classes today, followed by a good five mile run...I just couldn't quite trust the virtual calorie burn. So I ran 8 miles on my treadmill. Just in case the first workout didn't take. How many calories is an 8 mile run worth these days? 701. Yep. And yes...that's with my heart rate monitor. I really have a love/hate relationship with that gadget. I tried to incorporate some of that visualization into my run today. I tried to visualize myself running along the beach in Hawaii, because running in sand is much tougher and a better workout than just running on a plain old surface. But apparently my brain must have wandered a bit and focused more on the palm trees, blue waters and slow and graceful ways of the sea turtles I encountered there because that first mile was only worth 64 calories! Tomorrow I will have to try imagining that I am running alongside the Nile with a pack of starving crocodiles snapping at my heels, trying to take a chunk out of my butt. We'll see if that helps keep the pace a bit! In the meantime, I abandoned my visualization efforts and just bumped up the speed. I bumped it up a bit and watched to see what the old ticker would do. Bumped it up some more. Watched some more. There is a training zone indicator on my treadmill. Blue is warm up and cool down mode. Green is fat burn. Orange is aerobic. Red is endurance and the WORD Performance is there...but I have NO IDEA what color that one lights up to be because I do not possess superhuman speed. I spend a lot of time in the upper orange range. Even the first red bar is familiar to me. But today, spurred on by my technology, I found myself in the third bar of the red range. Now...for me...the red range is like "Alert, Alert! Danger Zone!" It's just the mental jump that my brain makes. Can I just tell you that I was hauling butt?! I mean....FLYING! That was all good and fine for a bit...but after a short time...I'm like "For crying out loud...I'm EXERCISING! Not running for my life!" And so I backed down a bit out of the upper red zone and hovered at the lower red/upper orange zone for the rest of my run. Why you need or would want to know that? NO idea whatsoever. But I already typed it. So there it is.

I notice that I run a lot farther when I have lots on my mind. I guess today is one of those days. There's that whole crazy Gyno Spa thing (see previous post) that keeps popping into my brain (and WHO needs something like that rolling around in their head...I mean GEEZ!). And school will start here sooner than we think. Activities are mounting up and I find myself constantly telling myself that there are only 5 days in the school week. Our Ben is being scheduled for surgery for a hernia here soon. And I am NOT excited about that one bit. I should also mention here that Ben is even LESS excited. He's not one bit happy about it. And so...that's like a huge stressful cloud hanging over us. To the point that my stomach hurts today. I think that he and I both lost some sleep over it last night. Part of why I did not make it to the gym today. Anyway...lots of thoughts rolling around in my brain...it's like a big huge jumble. I feel like I can't think straight. So naturally...I just run. And before I know it, I have hit the 8 mile mark. And while that all feels good and fine at the moment, I imagine that tomorrow, those muscles I just put through the ringer might not be singing songs of "thank you"...know what I mean?! The day is getting away from me. I still feel discombobulated. I'm hungry. And right now I am sweaty beyond belief and smell really, really bad. (Aren't you glad I shared that with you?) I think there is a hot shower there calling my name. Along with a large supreme pizza from Mama's! Just kidding. I mean...I totally hear the pizza calling me. Don't get me wrong. No mistake about that one. Uh-uh. But I'm going to ignore the pizza and eat something much more reasonable and infinitely less satisfying. Then...my mop and I may do some bonding. I find cleaning to be pretty therapeutic. And...it burns calories too! Well...I'm off. Between all my workouts today I am bushed!