Quad Journeys

An update to the April 12th, May 15th, & June 13th entries:

This week marks my 36th week of nutritional changes, 27th week of fitness training, and 19th week of bike specific training.

As many of you know, Enbridge Ride to Conquor Cancer was postponed until August 10/11th due to heavy flooding in Calgary - water in the streets, mudslides, and washed out roads made a ride on June 22/23rd impossible. That gives us more biking to talk about! :) Lucky you! Stay tuned for pics from the trip in just over 4 weeks.

Now, let's look at the update:

36 weeks into my nutritional journey and I find myself revisiting my caloric intake needs as I'm far more active than I was at the start of this journey. I've also built up a fair amount of lean muscle mass (No, I don't look like Arnold) which requires more energy to maintain. I've gone from struggling to reach a 1200 calorie a day goal (meaning I often fell short of 1200 as I just wasn't hungry enough to keep eating at the end of the day) to having a major mental breakdown and needing to increase up to 1300 and then 1500 to now requiring close to 2000 calories a day to keep my body happy.

At the same time, I started my fitness training (27 weeks ago) with 2 - 60 minute TRX classes per week and found myself needing to add a 60 minute Butt & Gutt class as well as a 60 minute personal weight training session as I gained strength and stamina. Believe me, your body tells you when it needs more. Now starting my third session of fitness training, I have 2 - 60 minute TRX classes, 2 - 60 minute weight training sessions, and 1-2 days of endurance biking on my schedule each week.

You might be wondering how I did with my goals from a month ago. I can tell you that I do a pushup with every Burpie (And I still hate Burpies!), I do all of the suspended exercises in TRX and can even do side planks with a crunch (1 or 2, I didn't say I am a super star yet), I can do more reps and at a harder/steeper angle - pushing myself harder, and I can say that my mindset has changed from "can I do that?" to "I CAN do that!". Frequent reminders still needed (habits take practice) that "YES I CAN!!!" is healthier than "can I?" but I'm learning. :D

And the biking. To be honest, I had hoped to be done by now so that I could move on to to hiking and camping in the Rockies but all is not lost. More biking for me, more biking stories for you. Its a win-win! Stay tuned.

Session 2 - Week 11

Week 11 of Session 2 now completed (there are only 12 weeks to a session)! My schedule was as follows:

Sunday June 16th  - Leisurely bike ride

Monday June 17th - A day of rest.

Tuesday June 18th - TRX Suspension training.

Wednesday June 19th - Packing for THE RIDE!

Thursday June 20th - TRX Suspension training after learning that THE RIDE has been postponed until August 10th due to heavy flooding in Calgary.

Saturday June 22nd - Butt & Gutt - personal weight training style with Miss Ashley! We worked the hammies hard! And this was followed by 5 hours of hard-core weed-whacking, raking, bagging, and lawn mowing... more on this later.

7 weeks to go until THE RIDE and so, training will continue...

Session 2 - Week 10

Week 10 of Session 2 now completed! My schedule was as follows:

Sunday June 9th  -70 km ride with the Bulls-Eye Bike Club, culminating in the Rolling Hill of Death...

Monday June 10th - A day of rest.

Tuesday June 11th - TRX Suspension training.

Wednesday June 12th -An evening of rest!

Thursday June 13th - Working late and organizing camping gear for the ride.

Saturday June 15th - Butt & Gutt - personal training style.

Tomorrow morning I expect to ride for a few hours. The Ride is only 6 days away.

Session 2 - Week 7

Week 7 of Session 2 now completed! My schedule was as follows:

Sunday May 19th - If you read last week's post, you know that I rode 45 miles (75 km) on Saturday, May 18th. Today was the first day that I have done back to back long rides. I rode for another 45 miles to bring my 2 day total to 90 miles (150 km). Started off at 7am waiting to meet up with a local bike club. By 7:30 myself and another rider came to the conclusion that there had been a bit of a communications snafu and the ride was not going to happen. So, home I headed to hit the streets myself. By 8am I was peddling off towards Jubilee Park and the Spring Grove neighborhood for a warm up and then hills. Spring Grove is set up so that streets run North/South on a hill so it was good practice for hills. Down the hill, up the hill, repeat. :D And then I was off exploring new areas. Click the link above to read about Sunday's ride. 

Monday May 20th - A day of rest. After my weekend of riding, I was happy to have a Monday holiday. I spent 2 hours digging the weeds out of my "flower garden" and then another hour planting new flowers. By the end of the day, I was pretty tired and still recovering from the weekend of riding.

Tuesday May 21st - TRX Suspension training. This class was a bit different from our normal format in that we were doing counted reps instead of timed sets. A very, very, very hard class. You can read about it here. Legs were the target of the day...

Wednesday May 22nd -An evening of rest! Sore from Tuesday night's class (for the first time in a long time) and happy to relax.

Thursday May 23rd - TRX Suspension training - And more leg work!

Friday May 24th - An evening out with work and early to bed to catch up on some much needed sleep.

Saturday May 25th -NO OPTIONS Butt & Gutt!! Circuit based session with 7 stations, 30 seconds work, 30 seconds rest, nearly every station weighted and no rest for the single leg/side stations. It was brutal! Read about it here.

Tomorrow morning I meet up with Herb of Bulls-Eye Bike Shop to ride from 7am to 12pm. Wish me luck and many miles!

NO Options!!!

Today was Butt & Gutt - NO OPTIONS style! It went like this:

10 minute warm up on the spin bikes using a variety of gears and intensities. Ashley selected the gears and this was only the beginning....

Today's B&G was a circuit based session. There were 7 stations to complete, nearly all of them weighted. What do I mean by "no options"? The weights were selected for us for each station. The format was 30 seconds work, 30 seconds rest unless you were completing a single leg or single side circuit, then you got no rest at all. the stations were:

1. Back Extensions - 10lb weight - complete back extensions for 30 seconds, 30 seconds rest, repeat for 4 sets, holding the 10lb weight at your chest and bending over the machine until you were upside down and then returning to a straight angle with your body. Hello lower and mid back!

2. Squats - 20 - 30lb weight - I picked the 20. Hold the weight at your chest and squat until your butt hits the bench. Return to standing. 30 seconds work, 30 seconds rest x4.

3. Russian Twists - 15 - 20lb weight - 1 picked the 15. Sit in a V leaning back, knees bent, feet off the floor and twist first to the right and then to the left, bringing your elbows as far back around your side as you can in the twist. 30 seconds work, 30 seconds rest x4.

4. Donkey Kicks - no weight, no break - On your hands and knees, bring one knee in to your elbow and then kick it out and up behind you. Keep your back straight and move only your leg. 30 seconds on the right leg, 30 seconds on the left leg, repeat 4 times with NO BREAK in between. You will swear that your legs are about to fall off!

5. Alternating Lunges - 20lb weight - Stand with the weight on your shoulders and lunge forward. Stand back up, switch legs and repeat.  30 seconds work, 30 seconds rest x4

6. Ball Passes - no weight, just a big rubber ball - Lay on your back, hold the ball between your lower legs and bring your legs up. At the same time crunch up and reach for the ball, pass the ball to your hands and lay back down, keeping your hands, feet, and the ball from touching the floor. Crunch up again and pass the ball back to your legs and repeat. 30 seconds work, 30 seconds rest x4.

7. Side Plank with Hip Drop - no weight, no break - Get into side plank position but instead of holding it, drop your hip to the floor and then back up to plank position. 30 seconds on the left, 30 seconds on the right, repeat 4 times with NO BREAK in between.

5 minute cool down on the bike - a great stretch - and I still swear my legs are going to fall off. The great thing is that this is the first time in a while that I have been sore after a B&G class. The really great thing is that I completed the workouts. I look back over the past 20 weeks and am amazed at how far I have come.

Thank you out to Ashley, Trudy, and the girls who are so very encouraging!!! Let's rock it!

45

Today was the first day of a 2 day training ride plan. I had planned to be up by 5am, riding from 6-9am, aiming for 30 miles before my 10am Butt & Gutt session. My body had other plans for me. Being a bit tired, I slept until 7 and hit the road at 8am, riding until I met up with the Butt & Gutt class at 10. I logged 20 miles in those 2 hours (Map on the right).

As I participated in the B&G session, all I could hear in the back of my mind was my mom: "You can't do BOTH bike riding and B&G, Silly Girl. You should just do one or the other." How right she was! B&G consisted of hill running and major leg work today, focusing on the thighs. And my poor thighs were already tired!

However, feeling that I still had something left in me to wrap up the planned 30 total miles for the day, I headed home after B&G for a pit stop, whipped up a smoothie (and downed it), and headed back to the streets (Map on the left). 2 hours, 11 minutes later, I had completed 25 miles and called it a day. And what a beautiful day it was! As tired as I am right now, I enjoyed every last second of sunshine, wind, scenery, exploring new neighborhoods, and kicking my butt! :D

I've planned to meet up with Bulls-eye Bike Club at 7am tomorrow for a 5 hour, many mile ride. See you after!

Session 2 - Week 6

Week 6 of Session 2 now completed! My schedule was as follows:

Sunday May 12th - Rest, sleep, fluids, & good nutrition. Happy Mothers' Day to all the Mothers out there. My son called to wish me a happy day and to plan our visit in July when I head for home. :D

Monday May 13th - A day of rest.

Tuesday May 14th - TRX Suspension training. Plenty of leg work in this session. It has been immensely helpful in getting me ready for the Ride. This evening's class was 40 seconds work with 10 second breaks. Mixing it up and making ourselves WORK! Do a set of tricep presses and then, take a step back and make it harder.

Wednesday May 15th -An evening hike at Chickakoo Lake! 1 hour of hiking the Advanced/Intermediate trails with Miss Ashley "Crunchy Frogs", Ghiry, and Zoie! It was a beautiful evening and the trail was challenging. :D

Thursday May 16th - TRX Suspension training - Tabata style! 20 seconds work, 10 seconds rest, 8 sets of each exercise, repeat!

Friday May 17th - An evening off!

Saturday May 18th - A BIG, HUGE, GIGANTIC ride! :D Started the day off at 8am with a 2 hour, 20 mile ride followed by an hour of Butt & Gutt, and topped off with another 2+ hour, 25 mile ride. 45 miles on the day and scheduled to ride again in the AM for my first back to back long ride days.. wish me luck!

Session 2 - Week 5

Week 5 of Session 2 now completed! My schedule was as follows:

Sunday May 5th - Rest, sleep, fluids, & good nutrition. I'd come down with a bug or cold or something and was just tired all over.

Monday May 6th - A day of rest and catching up on the chores.

Tuesday May 7th - TRX Suspension training. The warmup itself was a workout! 30 Jacks, 10 Pushups, 7 Squats, 5 Pushups, 7 Burpies, 30 Jacks, 25 High Knees, 5 Pushups, 10 Squats, 30 Jacks (or something very close to that!). And then it was time to get to work! The fantastic thing about TRX Suspension training is that it NEVER gets any easier. You are working your total body, using your body as resistance/weight. And Sheila is always coming up with new tricks to wear you out! After this particular workout, I experienced some muscle fatigue in muscles that I'd forgotten I had - obliques and mid back muscles. It was great! Oh, and did I mention my poor glutes?

Wednesday May 8th -An evening hike at Chickakoo Lake! 1 hour of hiking the easy/intermediate trails with Ghiry. Read about it here.

Thursday May 9th - TRX Suspension training -This class included a lot of single hand mode work. This is where you have either 1 foot suspended in the TRX or you are using only 1 hand/arm to do the work. Plenty of single arm rows, bicep curls, single leg lunges, single leg squats, etc. Can you imagine doing a single arm bicep curl, using your body as weight? I couldn't imagine I would EVER be able to do it. But I can! :)

Friday May 10th - 2.5 hours of hiking at Chickakoo! Quickly becoming my favorite easy to get to destination for a change up in my routine. I'd been itching to get on the Advanced trail and that is EXACTLY what Ghiry and I did. Read it here (and see the pix!).

Saturday May 11th - Why, exactly do I wake up before my alarm clock every morning? *sighs* :D Butt & Gutt was held OUTSIDE today! We met at the Boxing Club and walked, lunged, squatted, and jogged to the outdoor destination where we would complete more donkey kicks (fire hydrants) than my bum cares to think about along with plenty of ab work. A quick jog back to the club and a long stretch and I'm ready for my next adventure.... another hike this afternoon!!


Have a super fantastic week and catch you on the other side of the hike! :D

UPDATE: 1 hour and 45 mins of hiking. Amazing how much time you can shave off of a hike when you aren't stopping to take pix every so often. :D We hiked the reverse of Friday's hike - Advanced trail first, then Intermediate, ending on Easy.  Beautiful sunny day (I think I got a tan), no bugs, a little on the dry side but wonderful. :)

Session 2 - Week 4

Week 4 of Session 2 now completed! My schedule was as follows:

Sunday April 28th - First BIG outside ride. The weather was overcast and cool but tolerable with gloves, hat under the helmet and 3 layers - top and bottom. I felt great after finishing 40 miles of street riding. The goal from here is to add time/mileage each Sunday as well as start getting in a couple of Saturday/Sunday ride weekends. Read about the BIG ride here. 

Monday April 29th - A day of rest and a trip to the bike store for some nutritional supplements... only to find that the store was closed. :(

Tuesday April 30th - TRX Suspension training. A Game of Cards! This game included Pushups, Balance Lunges, Suspended Crunches (or sit ups), and Jump Squats along with Burpies and Front Planks. We made it through the deck in no time and started round 2... Triceps and Biceps! 

Wednesday May 1st -An evening off.

Thursday May 2nd - TRX Suspension training - Tabata format - 20 seconds work, 10 seconds rest, repeat each exercise for 8 sets - Jump Squats, Push ups (ugh! there they are again! - personal goal right now is to be able to complete 20 REAL pushups - I'm at 10), Alternating Balance Lunges with a hop, Front Planks, Suspended Crunches/Sit Ups, Bicycle Crunches (legs suspended), and I'm certain there were 2 more exercises but my old lady brain can't recall them right now. :D

Friday May 3rd - Spent 2 hours helping to set up the boxing ring for The Boxing Club's 4th annual Al Harris Memorial Fundraiser on Saturday May 4th.

Saturday May 4th - 2 hours of heavy duty spring cleaning before an hour of BUTT & GUTT! This session was a doozy! The format today was Cardio, Abs, Glutes. 30 seconds of cardio followed by 10 seconds rest, 30 seconds of Ab work, 10 seconds rest, wrapped up with 30 seconds of Butt work and repeat. There were approx 8 combo sets each repeated 2 times. Very fast paced and sweat inducing. A kick butt class for sure! 1 more hour of heavy duty spring cleaning (think scrubbing tile floors on your hands and knees) and then off to the 4th Annual Al Harris Memorial Fundraiser. My very first boxing event! Look for a separate post on this event with a video or 2! :) Home again at 11pm.

Time for some fluids, rest, and turkey soup (I've come down with a cold or something) See you all next week!

Session 2 - Week 3

Week 3 of Session 2 now completed! My schedule was as follows:

Sunday April 21th - Dropped in to spin with the Bulls-eye Bike Club at 6:30am. This is an open spin from 6am - 9:30am until the weather gets warm enough to move outdoors. I completed 2.5 hours during open spin and a 3rd hour during an instructor lead Boxing Club spin. In total I rode 3.5 hours and 75 KM (46.5 miles).

Monday April 22th - A much needed day of rest! My hip has been aching since spin class (old injury from 2011 that decided to tighten up and prevent me from doing squats yesterday). Took the dog for 1/2 hour walk to warm up the hip and then spent a another half hour stretching.

Tuesday April 23th - TRX Suspension training. Squats, leg lifts, arm work, and more!

Wednesday April 24th - A trip to Edmonton to check out Campers Village & pick up a pair of hiking boots for Saturday. I've got plans to hike the Chickakoo Lake area! Picked up a nice comfy pair of Keens! :)

Thursday April 25th - TRX Suspension training - Round 2 for the week. Plenty of leg work in this class with jump squats, sprinter starts, single leg balance squats, & split single leg lunges. And let's not forget the biceps and triceps... no, we wouldn't want to forget those!

Friday April 26th - a REAL day of rest. A couple of movies on Netflix and an early bedtime.

Saturday April 26th - 1 Hour of raking leaves followed by an hour of Butt & Gutt -Crunches, Leg Lifts, Fire Hydrants (donkey kicks), Russian Twists, Crunchy Frogs, Side Crunches, Diagonal Single Leg Lifts with Crunch, and I'm sure I forgot the rest. Sore and tired for the day! And yet.. off I went to Chickakoo Lake for an hour and a half hike to wrap up the week.

Time for some protein, carbs, and a nap! See you all next week!

The Adventures of Saturday

Saturday always marks the end of another week of fitness in the 12 week program that I'm participating in. As usual, there will be a Week Summary post (this is week 3) at the end of the day. But what am I up to today? Glad you asked! I've been up since 6am, washing dishes, raking the yard, eating breakfast, making smoothies (dreaming up new recipes just for you!), and scheming up the rest of the day. 10am will be Butt & Gutt class and then I'll be heading off to Chickakoo Lake Recreation Area for some hiking. Of course pictures will follow at the end of the day! So, stay tuned...

Today I made a variation of the Strawberry Chocolate Banana smoothie. I omitted the cinnamon, added a second TBSP of Cocoa powder, and 1/2 scoop of protein powder. OM NOM NOM!

11:30am - Just back from Butt & Gutt, had a tasty lunch of Kitchen Sink Chili with Quinoa & Rice Noodles for added carbs before my hike.  I've started tracking foods, calories, carbs, nutrients, and protein again after a 3 week break. Using www.caloriecount.com and My Plate at www.livestrong.com. I highly recommend an application like this for anyone who is interested in knowing exactly what they are eating whether for weight loss, training, or general nutrition.
More later....

5:30pm - Had a nice 1 1/2 hour hike at Chickakoo Lake Recreation Area today. Left just before the dark clouds and wind rolled in. More on the hike in the weekly roundup. I'd picked up a new pair of Keen hiking boots and broke them in at the office for the past couple of days. They were comfortable and warm today. Nice to have dry feet on a wet, snowy, and muddy trail. Pictures from the hike can be seen here. 

Session 2 - Week 2

Week 2 of Session 2 now completed! My schedule was as follows:

Sunday April 14th - Dropped in to spin with the Bulls-eye Bike Club at 6:30am. This is an open spin from 6am - 9:30am until the weather gets warm enough to move outdoors. I completed 2 hours during open spin and a 3rd hour during an instructor lead Boxing Club spin. In total I rode 3 hours and 65 KM (40 miles) You can read about the day here.

Monday April 15th - Day of rest! WHOO HOO! :D

Tuesday April 16th - TRX Suspension training. Never the same class twice. 60 minutes of hard work each and every time!

Wednesday April 17th - 1 Hour bike ride OUTSIDE! 12.44 miles (20 KM) completed while checking out the Spruce Grove Heritage Trail. Stay tuned for map drawings on future rides.

Thursday April 18th - TRX Suspension training - Round 2 for the week. Plenty of leg work in this class with jump squats, sumo squats, hamstring runners, and more.

Saturday April 20th - Butt & Gutt - Another circuit style workout where you move from station to station. Today's concentration? All of those tiny little "baby" muscles that you didn't even know existed as you are usually too busy working the large muscle groups. Let me tell you that, today, I know they exist and they are all crying loudly. The things that Ashly comes up with... I just don't know how she does it. Butt & Gutt was followed by 1 hour of spin (Thank you Bobbi for letting me stay and use the bike!) - the format this time was 5 minutes seated, 5 minutes standing for 40 minutes and then 10 minutes seated, 5 minutes standing & 5 more minutes seated. Gears 10 & 16 utilized. 21 KM (13 miles) completed.

Time to head home for some protein, carbs, and a long hot shower and stretch. See you all next week!

Session 2 - Week 1

Saturday completes Week 1 of Session 2 training at The Boxing Club in Spruce Grove. My schedule was as follows:

Sunday April 7th - Dropped in to spin with the Bulls-eye Bike Club at 8:30am. This is an open spin from 6am - 9:30am until the weather gets warm enough to move outdoors. As I had not ridden longer than 1.5 hours in any of my previous sessions, I decided to ride 1 hour with the club from 8:30 - 9:30 and then a second hour with The Boxing Club spin class from 10 - 11. I managed to ride 25 KM (~15 miles) in the first hour. The padded bike shorts are a great help and I won't ride without them! During the spin class hour I noticed that I had a "crick" at what I thought was the top of my inner quad muscles. It didn't get any worse but it didn't stop hurting on being stretched. Turns out I had annoyed my groin on the right side. Though I finished out the hour, by the time afternoon rolled around I was struggling to climb stairs at home. Rest was in the cards for me as I need to be healthy and strong enough to pedal again during the next session so I wrapped up the afternoon with a movie and early bedtime.

Monday, Wednesday, & Friday were rest days. Thought I participated in my regular classes Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, the exercises were somewhat modified to accommodate my annoyed groin.

Tuesday April 9th - TRX Suspension training. This was the first class back after a 1 week break and Sheila had big plans for us. It was great to see a couple of familiar faces and many new ones in our class. Warm up started with jogging the perimeter of the room followed by a calisthenic style warmup with Jumping Jacks, Burpies, Jogging in place while bringing your heels high, Side Lunges, and Squats. 2 rounds and we were ready to take to the TRX straps. A great workout that picked up right where we left off last session - kicking our butts!

Thursday April 11th - TRX Suspension training - Round 2 for the week. We used the same warmup but did a bit more core and arm work than Tuesday's session. I found my calf attempting to cramp several times during any exercise that required we stand on the balls of our feet. Most likely due to the calf raises we completed on Tuesday (hmmmmmm - must stretch the calf muscles more). Outside of this, it was a great workout, much muscles burning & tiredness was achieved by all!

Saturday April 13th - Butt & Gutt - First class in 2 weeks as recovery week started on a Friday. And Ashley was ready and waiting with the Shock Your Body Workout! This was a circuit style workout where you move from station to station much like what I described in an earlier post. However, nearly every station had a weight associated with the exercise. The intent is to push us further, shocking our bodies out of complacency, away from muscle memory so that we work harder. It worked... Thank goodness for hot showers and long stretches coupled with lots of hydration and protein! 

Be Epic!

I have an epic goal:

To raise $5,000 before I ride 200 KM (125 miles) in 2 days as part of the Enbridge Ride to Conquor Cancer - June 22 & 23rd, 2013. 

All proceeds benefit Alberta Cancer Research

Where it all started

Why I am riding

My Training Programs:
TRX
B&G
Spin
Hiking

MY CHALLENGE TO YOU! - Be Epic! I can't do this without you. Will you help me to reach my goal?