Well, Mother nature can’t make up her mind & I’m afraid I’ve lost all faith in the people whom boast Global Warming, it sure doesn’t feel like it here. It’s warm and sunny one day and pouring rain and bitter cold the next… sometimes even in the same day. Let me give you a big’ole mid-west Welcome; I suppose the only place you can use your heat and air conditioning on in the same day.
This unfortunate internal fight going on with Mother Nature has really dwindled my desire to be outside exercising. All the dreary rainy weather makes me want to curl up in a ball and read a good book or take a nap. I feel like a cat that stands, stretches looks out the window and lays back down.
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I felt the need to update 
It’s that time here in mid-west, the sun is shining the weather is nice and I’ve headed back outside to run… YAY!! I cannot express how much I LOVE being outside, the fresh air, the open road. However, there are things that come with the transition from inside treadmill running to outside road running. Last year I got really aggravated because inside I could run inside for 45 minutes with no problem but when I transitioned to outside I had a really hard time running for 20 minutes. I was really bothered by it but after talking to some other runners they said the transition is hard, the terrain is different and your body has to build up to the changes. That made me feel better at least it wasn’t just me that was having the hard time. This year I’ve welcomed the transition with open arms and have been ‘building-up’ per say walking more than running and only adding little bits at a time. My biggest issue with transitioning is shin splints. That pesky pain you get in the shin after running so what on earth causes this pain and why?? or what?? should I do about them…
As you know, I was in Japan for 9 days. I just got back. It was a shorter trip than last time, and we had a lot to do this time, so there wasn’t as much time to write as last year. However, some new stuff was done, so I wanted to write a bit about that for our readers:)
“Do I HAVE to run?”
“Yes!”
“NOOOOO!!!”
Okay, so many years back, this short, dramatic dialogue was between me and my swim coach. Just thinking about running made me sweat (and that was before the workout began). Imagine what happened when I actually ran! NOT PRETTY, but that wasn’t to say that I had terrible running form because honestly, I didn’t. I ran quite well, in fact. I was smooth and efficient, practical in my pacing, and very willing to commit to the distance (despite hating it the entire time). I had lots of speed, too, and at one point or another I held the mile record for my middle school.
Impressed?
Well, I wasn’t! No amount of running success made me like it ANY better and no sum of compliments made me willing to race around a track over and over again either.
Random people would say, “You need to get that girl on a track team!”
My mom would respond, “Well, I really don’t think Kristin enjoys running that much.”
And I would counter, “THANK YOU MOMMY!” (Of course with a huge smile on my face)
Where am I going with this? (I’m glad you asked)
What’s the skinny on this ‘Big-Boned’ business anyway?? Is it a myth is it truth?! The internet has MANY, many opposing views on the subject. Some say yes, you can have big bones and some say it is a myth. While some boast that you really can have larger bones, based on wrist size per height etc., others veto saying it doesn’t matter how large your bones are, your weight is based on your height. Others say that you should test your body fat or your muscle density & have all these gadgets and such to do so.
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Hi guys, I’m giving you a short update before I give you MANY posts in the coming week: I am currently in Japan for my martial arts seminar (which I wrote about last year).
But before I get into Japan and the things I’m doing here (riding mechanical pandas??), I want to tell you about what happened/was happening just before I left on Friday. As you might recall, in week 3 of our 30 day challenge, I somehow threw my back out. After much discussion and debate, it was decided that the kettle bell workout with Stephanie was NOT to blame for this issue, but maybe wasn’t the best idea to try after my specific level of non-activity. Either way, definitely don’t be afraid to try those workouts and don’t be intimidated! But DO start slow.
Is it week 4 ALREADY?!?! Where on earth does the time go?? It’s like watching my children grow up.. can’t believe my little baby is going to be three this year & possibly started pre-school in september… YIKES!
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I may have thrown my back out. I’ve been laid up since Wednesday. This post was not supposed to end like this. So let me start from the excellent beginning, which was Monday.
On Sunday or maybe Saturday, Steph told me about her kettle bell classes that she takes at the local athletic club. She also mentioned that first timers get to go for free, and that she would go on Monday. I was all in, and super excited about it! Kettle bells have been a bit of a fitness craze over in Europe for some time now, so for there to be a class, led by a woman, that was for beginners that I could take, was an excellent thing! I said yes without even thinking about it.
Hey there everyone! I know I’m a little late in getting to you about my workouts, and I’m sorry about that. It’s been a hell of a week. Or two.
On Wednesday (last week) I flew from Germany to Philadelphia, then took the train with a friend down to Baltimore. So there was no workout for Wednesday, and I knew that was going to happen. This meant that I got to either do one workout, or double up on Thursday.
But Thursday was special, because I was actually at Steph’s condo, staying with her. It should be mentioned that the last time I saw Steph, it was when she and her boyfriend came to visit me in Germany during the summer of 2011. So that was a BFD, as we like to say. It is SO excellent to get to stay with her at her place after so long!!
