Keep Breathing

I have a barely there cold: sniffles, clear mucous, a non-sore but irritated throat that makes my voice deeper. After two days, the cold is already fading which I chalk up to my otherwise good immune system. There were just too many sick people within spraying distance.

There are days when I wonder if I have the stamina to do anything and today was one of those days. It's not just a question of stamina. It's more like -- do I have it in me and how long will I have it in me?

I had been looking forward (can't believe I just wrote that) to my regular Tuesday class, Cardio and Muscle, with Ms. Kate especially since I didn't go last week because of my work schedule.

After feeling like taking a nap around lunch time, I got a second burst of energy.

During Kate's class, I tried to keep my moaning to myself. Oh my God just came out automatically at times. Kate's arsenal of fast feet, jumping jacks, squats et al. will elicit such a response.

I kept thinking to myself this is going to hurt in the morning but I also tried to listen to Kate who continuously said keep breathing along with her other command of suck in those abs.

When You Are The Motor

You need something with a motor a man commented as I loaded my bike. I told him that my legs are the motor and when you are the motor, you certainly think about mileage differently. I bicycled for about 16.5 miles. I wanted to go for longer but the to-do list awaits.

I had more stamina than last week. Brandi, a former trainer at the YMCA, said as much one day when the weights that I was trying to lift seemed so much heavier than the last time I was in class. She said that your body is capable of different things on different days. Of course, that makes perfect sense but...

I maintained a steady pace although I got passed up by the serious bikers with their padded biking shorts and jerseys but slow and steady works for me.

It does irk me when I have to get off the bike to walk up hills or if I lose my grip when I rock climb or come up short while doing the front crawl. In due time... I was actually able to make it up one hill that I had to walk the bike up before.

Here are a few of my favorite things from today's stint on the STL Riverfront Trail.



On a side note, I took some Propel in addition to water. Propel is made by Gatorade and doesn't have high fructose corn syrup. What it does have is sucrose syrup and sucralose which made for a super sweet drink. I only drank about a fourth of it and couldn't stomach the rest.