Training Log Archive: kissy

Celebrating the birthday of the guy on the left, Graham.



He turned 20 today. I have no more teenagers. Don't know if that makes me sad or happy, but I am happy about how Graham is turning out. A little bit of a rough start, but all is good now.

C • Happy birthday to Graham! 7

My last PT session...for now. My doctor wants to try viscose shots again, when I have nothing else going on so we can truly see how long they last. The last time I had them was at the same time as my micro fracture surgery, so it was a little difficult to see what was doing what.

If the shots don't help for at least 6 months, then I'll go back in for arthroscopic surgery to clean out scar tissue. This time I'll be able to go right in to PT after the surgery, unlike last time, when I was on crutches for 6 weeks.

We'll see what the future brings.

After a long, hot day in the garden, I decided to go for a bike ride and explore the Platte River trail heading north out of Denver. While it's definitely more scenic than heading south, there were decidedly more homeless people along this stretch of the trail. Denver has a very big population of homeless people and I guess in the summer, it's nicest to stay along the river. The only issue with so many people is that they would occasionally be hanging out on the trail and I'd have to maneuver around them. My bike handling skills aren't that great yet, so there were a few moments of panic, but no falls, so all was good.

Green course at Peaceful Valley. What a great day to go orienteering, and I am happy with my result. One problem on #1 until I remembered the meet notes stating not to rely on the trails around the camp area since they are always changing. Once I ignored the trails, I was fine.

Didn't have any real issues with the other controls. Peaceful Valley is deceiving because there is so much open space you think it's just going to be a lot of running (or walking), but once you get out of the open spaces and into the woods, it can be a little tricky. Thanks to John Crowther for a fun course.

I also helped a teeny bit with registration, which is fun and a good way to get to know people. And I think I might have volunteered to be a course setter this fall.

Green - Splits

A new class at the gym...Total Body Conditioning. It was really good.

Not really "power" yoga, but I don't feel like creating a new category. More like "this feels like a wonderful stretching session on a Friday afternoon" yoga.

Today was the first day since I took that devil barre class that my triceps weren't making arms useless, and that I didn't have to walk on tippy toes to keep my calves from cramping up. I can't wait to go again next Monday!

Warm up

I went with Marnie to her barre conditioning class today and all I can say is that I almost passed out half way through. I thought it was going to be this little ballet-type exercise class, but it was way more intense. My heart was pounding, I was sweating profusely, and my legs and arms were very shaky. Most excellent!

C • Sweating 4

A nice hike around Wash Park before having brunch with my girlfriends and a visit to the Denver Art Museum to see the Yves St. Laurent exhibit.

I switched gyms since my old one was pretty far from my new house. Same chain, just a different location. So, I started off my membership with a Group Power class...basically weight training and core conditioning combo. It was a good class, but I had to modify a bit.

The most disturbing part, though, was the instructor. A very nice guy, but an UNBELIEVABLE sweat machine. He had to keep moving to a new spot so he wouldn't slip. And he kept wiping off the weight bar because it was sliding in his hands. By the end of class, he looked like he had just taken a shower. Not sure I'll be going back to this class.

C • What, that's not a turn on? 3

No yoga for me today, so I took a trip around Wash Park. Along the way, I saw two disgusting AOWN sightings. One: a patch of grass about 9" x 9" that, from a distance, looked like it had been sprayed with a dark brown substance. Upon closer inspection, the dark brown stuff was actually a layer of ants...gazillions of them!!

Two: on the cinder path, a pile, maybe 12" by 3", of what looked like droppings from a tree, some kind of catkin pile. Again, upon closer inspection, it was a pile of bees! Some were dead, but most were alive swarming around. And I had just about stepped on it.

Both of these sightings taught me *not* to give anything a closer inspection anymore.

C • Insects 3

Green course at Rainbow Falls. Not a stellar day by any stretch of the imagination. I started out fine to #1, but then made a big error to #2, going too far east. Finally, a line of rocky areas clued me in to where I was. Then it was good until #8, when I started going down a parallel reentrant. It took until about halfway down the reentrant to realize what I had done, and then climb back up the ridge to get to the reentrant on the other side. And, finally, on the last control, another parallel error where I was just being totally sloppy.

I wore my brace today, which helped, but the extreme up and down took a toll on both knees. I iced when I got home, and took some Aleve.

Green - Splits

I'm back in NJ for work and was able to get out today at exactly 5:00. So, I took Marnie to Jockey Hollow for a hike, and she loved it.

Event: 33rd West Point A Meet
 

Short walk in Wash Park, in between errands. Furry Scurry, a huge dog walk, was in full swing, and I kept thinking of all of the orienteers who would not enjoy running in the park today.

C • I can't imagine 3

I went the other way on Cherry Creek bike trail this time, out to the Platte River. Then, I headed south for awhile on the South Greenway Bike trail. Cherry Creek trail was nice, but the Greenway was pretty industrial. I think I'll try heading north next time.

The weather was pretty hot, but it's supposed to get colder over the weekend. Still plenty of bugs out (and in my mouth) and a killer headwind heading back north. But, still, a wonderful way to close out the day.