Tuesday Night WO 1:24:16

Tuesday, January 30, 2007

We started our warm-up early tonight so we could run most of the WO in the daylight. The WO this evening was 7 x 5 minutes with 90 second rests. We started the intervals on Cadboro Bay Rd, wound our way down to Beach Drive past Cattle Point, retraced our steps back to Cattle Point, turned back one last time and completed our last interval on an uphill heading up Beach Drive back to Cadboro Bay Rd to Cedar Hill X-Road. My legs were a bit tired from Sunday’s race so I concentrated on keeping my length (running tall) and a quick turn-over. Although it wasn’t the friskiest WO I’ve done, I put in a strong and consistent effort from beginning to end and had a good practice keeping a quick cadence going on tired legs. After an easy cool-down we trotted over to the track just as IRR was finishing off their WO. No groin pain tonight at all…go figure.

Double Monday 1:29:11

Tuesday, January 30, 2007

I was running around Cedar Hill just before 7am this morning with Matty. I am so proud of myself. I can’t believe I am getting up this early to run on a weekday. FJ says it’s the only thing I would ever get up that early to do… he’s right…although I could also get up to walk my dog…or for an ice-cream eating contest…! Seriously though, I am starting to enjoy these morning runs and to know I only have to do 50-60 minutes after work is a good motivator. It was nice to be running on the actually cedar trail rather than hard-packed ice. Our route this week took us just under 30 minutes - a bit quicker than last week since we weren’t slipping and sliding everywhere. My legs felt good. Some soreness will likely hit me later in the day or tomorrow.

Yesterday was the start of my hard week. Next week will be hard too but a bit easier and the week after I get an easy week again. It’s going to be a big week so I am going to try and get as much sleep as possible.

The running shoes were back on my feet right after work.  It was still light enough this week for us to do a full hour on the UVic trails. Spring is not far away! My legs were just a bit stiff in the first few minutes of the run, but no major issues. The shake out run this morning was probably a good idea. We finished off with a few strides but unfortunately my groin freaked out so I had to stop. I swore a few times, tried again, stopped, and swore some more in frustration. I was so discouraged particularly since I haven’t had any problems these past few weeks. I was thinking I was finally rid of this problem. I am now fine while I am running but it’s when I stop and then try to start again like after a workout (the cool-down) or a longer easy run (strides) that it flares up. Matty pointed out that at least I am getting periods where I have no pain at all and that I am no longer in pain during my actual runs. He’s right of course but it’s still annoying. I was pretty grumpy last night. Good thing FJ was out! Ha!

Mill Bay 10 km 1:23:12

Giuse and I picked Matty up on the way to Mill Bay. I had a decent sleep last night (Yay!) but Giuse was not as lucky.

We warmed up with Jen Mac, picking up Nanc along the way. We ran to the 2km marker commenting on how cold it felt despite the sunny conditions. After a quick change into a dry shirt and flats we headed to the start, did a few strides and we were off! Jen and I ran for a few kms together. Lance coasted by us a few times on his bike telling us we were on pace for 35 minutes. Oh crap. We knew we started out a bit quick but there was nothing left to do but just keep going.  Rob Hasagawa cruised up to us as we were approaching 4km . I taunted him a bit, called him a name or two and told him he smelled as he passed. This shameful tactic did not work. He just kept pulling away so I decided I was feeling good enough to go with him. I shadowed him and could see after the tturn-around we were slowly closing in on the pack of runners up ahead. We agreed to try and reel them in. I hung on comfortably until we approached the last hill. Rob pulled away and all I could do was to try and keep the gap from getting wider. Once I got over the hill near 8km, I regained my focus ignored the pain (sort of) and made a last ditch effort to catch up. With a few hundred meters to go, Rob purposely slowed up, letting me pass him while encouraging me to go hard to the end. What a Mensch!

Once again, as I got tired in the last couple of kms, my arms were a problem. Matty said my arms were crossing in front of my body and knees were low. I have to learn to concentrate more at the end on form rather than the pain. (ya, right!) Lance reminded me to fall forward at one point in the race. As soon as I did that I could feel the release in my legs and hips and my cadence quickened. I have to do the falling drills and practice that again too so that it becomes engrained. Otherwise though, I felt very strong for the first race of the season. I had no idea where my fitness was at going into today’s race. I knew I felt a bit fitter than I felt last year at this time so I was expecting something in the low 38s or high 37s. I didn’t look at my watch so I was surprised to see the time on the clock as I crossed the finish line in 36:42.

Maestro ran a fab race! He ran a PB on the course with hardly any training! Amazing! Jennie brought Clooney to watch the race. Joey hadn’t met him yet. He loved him right away!

After a 25 min cool-down, a quick change into dry clothes, we went for brunch before heading back into town. The views as we drove along the Malahat were stunning!

Joey and I spent the rest of the day together hanging out, walking downtown and then going for a big steak dinner.

The Day After 45:22

Saturday, January 27, 2007

Matty and I ran to Cedar Hill from my place this morning. It felt too early for me. Thank gawd it was an easy run. I was a bit drained from staying out “late” last night (so pathetic) and Matty too was tired after his late night (what’s his excuse at 25 years old?). We finished off with a few drills and strides. I should be good to go for tomorrow’s race…after a good cup of coffee…Why did they change the time to 9am!? Arg! Joey has decided to race. Go easy there Sparky…it’s just the first race of the season, remember!

I met Lise, Jennie and Jen Mac for brunch at Willie’s Bakery. Shan couldn’t make it this time but we’re going to plan another girlie date soon. Jennie had Clooney in the car so we got to visit with him for a bit. What a gorgeous dog! He is so calm and noble looking!

Joey’s rehearsal ended in the late afternoon. We had just enough time to make it to Willow’s beach to catch the view of Mount Baker reflecting the light from the sunset. What a nice way to end the day!

Big Night Out

Friday, January 26, 2007

It was pretty bright and cheery in the office today. The sun was pouring in so I cranked open the windows to let some fresh air flow through the room! It was glorious!

After work, Joey and I met up and had a nice dinner together. He had a rehearsal to go to so he dropped me off downtown so I could meet up with Jennie, Jen Mac, and Lise at Lucky Bar. They invited me along to hear Craig Cardiff perform live there. I was very excited to be out past 8pm but was already starting to yawn as we lined up outside to get in. Jennie and I got carded and when the bouncer saw how old I was, he let me in for free…it must have been Senior’s Night. The show was really quite excellent. I really like Craig Cardiff’s voice…very sincere without being over the top…very mellow.

I hopped back on my wheel chair and scooted out to pick up Maestro leaving the young folk to party on. I was beat!

Short Hills for Shorty 1:16:40

Thursday, January 25, 2007

I set up a voice lesson with Ben Butterfield for next week. Selena said Benj would be a perfect set of ears while she is away since he studied with her and teaches the same principles. I will also pick his brain about whom I should be auditioning for and what repertoire would be appropriate. I have to be prepared to sing at least five opera arias and five arias from oratorios (although they’ll likely just want to hear one or two) and in addition to English, three languages have to be represented (Italian, French and German). I have a lot of music on the back-burner but I need to narrow it down to specifically what I will be auditioning with and work those pieces thoroughly enough so that they are  “audition ready”….kind of like peaking for a race! Ha! Anyways, I look forward to working with Benj!

Matty and I ran around Beacon Hill before meeting IRR at the “Y”. Tonight’s WO for me was short but intense. The IRR gang was assigned 6 x long hills and 3 x short with the strides in between. Matty had me do 5 x short with the strides. Brent was hustling me up each hill again this week but the leggies understandably felt a bit heavy tonight. They did a lot of strength work this week and they were less than frisky! That was ok since it was such a short WO. I know this strength work will pay off in a few weeks. I did a nice long cool-down, again circling around Beacon Hill to shake them out. Joey said he felt good tonight. He looked very strong every time I saw him attacking the hills. He has almost forgiven me for Wednesday!

Simon posted some pictures on his blog from their training camp in Flagstaff. That just looks like the most amazing place to be! I know they work so very hard when they are there, but boy, does it ever look like fun! I would love to spend my days training in such a scenic place. Something tells me I would be the type that would love an intense training period like that. Heaven!

Joey's Fun Run! 44:30

Wednesday, January 24, 2007

Tonight’s run was much like Monday’s. We did a 15-20 minute warmup around the UVic trails, squeezed in between some locked gates to get into the soccer field, 20 minutes of Matty’s circuit and a ten minute cool-down. The circuit wasn’t as brutal for me tonight. Maybe it was because we took a bit more rest time between the drills or maybe I am enjoying the pain more…could be. They are a lot of fun and different (the squat jumps are still deadly).

I got home a few minutes before Joey. I came to the door to greet him. As soon as he came in he gave me that look. I had forwarded an email from Boob inviting a bunch of us to go for a run. I couldn’t make it but I suggested Joey go and assured him that there would be a few runners there that he could pace with. Instead, it was just him and Boob! Ha! They only ran for 40 minutes, but I know it wasn’t at an easy pace. Poor thing! I felt so badly. Heh…heh…

Before dinner I did my weight circuit. Matty said to leave the leg strengthening stuff out since we did enough of that sort of thing this week already. Tomorrow will be a short version of the hill WO…likely 5 short hills. So, this week we eased up on the volume, concentrated on strength with some turn-over. My back/groin hasn’t been bugging me at all these past couple of weeks. I believe Matty’s strength circuit and doing the Pose drills routinely have been key. Thanks, Fatty! The next two weeks will be hard weeks (I am scared!) so I am going to enjoy these last few easy days while I can.

Who Turned the Heat On? 1:09:09

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

It’s warm outside! What an awesome night we had for a WO. Downright balmy!  There were at least 20 people who showed up at the track tonight…lot’s of smiling faces. Everyone is happy to see the snow gone and to feel the spring-like temperatures. Boob was away tonight but left us the WO. Matty gave a second option of running 8 x 2 mins with 90 sec recoveries on the road. There were about six takers while the rest stayed and ran on the track. LeRoo had a last-minute meeting so she emailed to say she would have to run Matty’s WO later that night.

My legs felt good in the first few sets but were starting to feel a little heavy about half-way through, so Matt suggested breaking the interval in half, running the first minute a bit easier and then moving it more on the second. This felt better. I think I was muscling the speed a bit plus yesterday’s strength WO was a doozey. It was a beauty of a night though. Shan brought Lola so we got to have a quick visit before doing the cool-down. I wanted to stay and play. Lise was there tonight too…Yay!!! 

Is it Friday Yet? 47:38

Monday, January 22, 2007

Mondays are brutal. Everyone seemed to have a problem that I had to fix. What a day. Oh well…they can’t all be winners. I was so thankful to be out of the office in my running gear walking over to the UVic track. It was raining and I didn’t care. I just couldn't wait to be running on the trails! We saw Wayne up ahead so we caught up to him and chatted a bit. He ran yesterday’s race in a nice time of 31:39 placing him 2nd in his age division. Way to go! After a 15 minute warm-up, Matty and I tried to find an unoccupied field to do his drills on but there were soccer players practicing everywhere. We finally found an empty soccer field but we had to squeeze ourselves in between the locked gates. Matty put his timer on and we did twenty minutes of the strength drills/fast strides around ¾ of the field. It was a tough WO, no question. The double legged jumps are the toughest! We did a 10 minute cool-down and finished off with some Pose drills/strides on the track. Joey in the meantime ran a few times around Ring Rd doing a gradual pick-up. He is trying to decide whether or not to run the Mill Bay 10km this weekend. He hasn’t been able to run these past two weeks because of time commitments. We’ll have to see how he feels later on this week. As long as he doesn’t race like a maniac, he should be just fine.

Relaxing Sunday 1:18:47

Sunday, January 21, 2007

Matty and I drove out to the lakes for this morning’s run. We headed clockwise again, figuring the section of trail near Hamsterly would still be under water. This time we went backwards from what we’ve done these past couple of weeks and headed out of the park along the fire road to Oldfield Rd, looped back towards Bear Hill and went up and over the back side which lead us right back on to the trails at the lakes. We were both a bit bagged from the past week of training and the steep climb up Bear Hill nearly made us weep, but we kept going, whimpering most of the way up (for the record, Matty complained more than I did!) We made the run a bit shorter since we were both pretty knackered. Matty said today’s shorter run can be the start of my easy week. Next Sunday I will be running the Mill Bay 10km so that can be the first day of my hard week.

After a quick shower and downing a homemade protein shake, Squintch swung by and picked me up on his way back from his swim. He has been swimming a lot lately and is really enjoying it.

After a yummy brunch at Avalon we boogied over to Island Runner. Phil had some awesome new Adidas pieces waiting for me. Thanks again Phil!

Joey was away guest-conducting in Hamilton Ontario this past week so I picked him up at the airport. (: (: (:

Sunny Day! 1:19:28

Saturday, January 20, 2007

The workout this morning at JdF was run in the sunshine! Hallelujah! It sure was nice to be wearing sunglasses again! The group today was small but feisty with Pierre, LeRoo, Dawn, myself and Matty. After a 20 min warm-up and a few strides we did Matty’s suggestion (Boob couldn’t make it this week) of 10 – 5 – 15 mins with 2 mins recoveries. LeRoo and I ran the sets together. The intervals felt very strong and consistent. We got three shots at doing the long hill on the far side…ugh! A fantastic WO, with great friends,on a gorgeous day…what could be better?!

Hill Repeats 1:25:14

Thursday, January 18, 2007

There was a nice turnout tonight at the hill WO including another new girl…yay! We had a super fastee chick (Melina) show up at the track on Tuesday so we’re getting a nice group of strong women coming out to train with each other. Judith met up with Matty and me doing our 20 minute warm-up around Beacon Hill. She is going to try and run with us as much as she can. This will be awesome for me!

The WO tonight was 5 long hills and 5 short hills up Gonzales, with strides in between the repeats. Judith and I ran the 5 long hills together. She wanted to do a few more long ones so Brent was nice enough to run up the short ones with me. He rested a bit while I did my stride and then he challenged me up each hill. It made such a difference. I put in a stronger effort with him pushing me. It was brilliant! My energy was really good tonight despite coming close to the end of my third hard week in a row. We did a good cool-down around the park. I felt like I could have kept going for some reason. Matty will have me do an easy week next week with some drills and strides. The stupid thing I did to my back last weekend is getting better every day and although it is still a bit stiff when I bend over, I have no discomfort at all while running.My groin (knock on my head!) hasn't been acting up at all!

Eve of the New Moon 1:23:27

Wednesday, January 17, 2007

I headed out the door this morning to meet Matty at 7am for the first run of our second double day this week. I have to say that even though I detest waking up earlier, I am enjoying breaking up my run in two on my easy days.

There were still large sections of ice on the trails at Cedar Hill, forcing us to stick to an easy pace (not a bad thing). We were still in the dark for almost the entire first lap but it’s getting lighter earlier every week. The air was really crisp and clear so for a few minutes before sunrise the conditions were perfect for us to catch a cool and rare view of the moon’s underside edge glowing close to the sky’s horizon. Only a very thin, crescent-shaped sliver was reflecting light with its night side still clearly visible. How's that for prolific writing. That's it for me for the year. 

We tried to run on the trails at UVic after work, bumping into Paul O’ as we started (what a great and chipper guy!) but the trails were now a slushy, soupy mess. I was getting grumpy sliding around so Matty quickly got us back on the roads before it got too ugly. We did the same route as on Monday, bopping down to Oak Bay and looping on to Beach Drive, Cadboro Bay Rd and then up Sinclair straight into campus, yakking the whole way. Matty is always pretty entertaining. We did a short pick-up along Ring Road just to get feel some faster turn-over. My leggies felt good tonight….could have been the three cups of coffee I had...or maybe yesterday night’s WO perked them up. I gave up trying to figure out my body’s rhythms. We did 32 mins in the am and 53 mins in the pm.

Good WO! 1:27:51

Tuesday, January 16, 2007

I finally started some new vocal repertoire this morning. I tried a couple of pieces that I found very difficult to sing a year ago and they feel pretty easy now. My high b flats, b's and c’s are popping out very easily right now, so I am doing some of my harder repertoire while it’s working. I need to get some tunes coached and get prepared for auditions. It’s time I give it a go.

The track was covered with snow and ice tonight but someone actually shoveled out one of the lanes. It was too funny! Boob had the group do 300s on the track while Matty and I and a few others ran on the roads. He had me do 6 x 5 mins with 90 sec recoveries. I felt much better this week than I did a couple of weeks ago. I felt stronger and I was recovering quickly. I may have done the first one a bit on the fast side but I found a rhythm in the second one that I could hold on to for the remainder of the WO. Matty reminded me of the tap-tap-tap….quick, light contact, don’t worry about the speed, and just make sure the legs are firing quickly. I was able to keep that feeling right to the end of the last interval so I was pretty happy with the WO. Matty had a great run too saying he can feel the improvement weekly.

Double Monday 1:22 33

Crap! I got so behind in my blogging...

Monday, January 15, 2007

I hit my alarm clock this morning at 6:30am, knocking it on the floor. I spent the next minute or so groping around in the dark, trying to find the stupid thing. I put my gear on as quietly as possible trying not to wake up Joey but I think thescenario with the alarm stirred him…ooops! I met Matty at Cedar Hell at 7am. It was still dark and freekin’ cold and I couldn’t believe I was out there.  It took a good ten minutes to warm-up but as usual, once we got going, it felt great! We did about 30 minutes at an easy pace. I didn’t feel as perky during the day as I did last week when we did a double. I think the excitement from the weekend caught up to me so I was really dragging my butt around at work.

I met Matty once again at Uvic after work for our second run of the day. We started on the trails but the snow had been packed down and a hard layer of ice had formed so we moved to the roads. We wound our way down some residential streets to Oak Bay then ran back along Beach Drive, finishing off at the top of Sinclair. We did a short pick-up towards the end. My energy was low tonight. I felt really wussy going up Sinclair. Oh well, I got it in and I am sure I will bounce back tomorrow after a good night’s sleep. We rantonight for about 50 minutes.

Maestro had his big concert tonight with the symphony. Matty and I were in the audience cheering away. There was a huge turn-out and the orchestra really sounded wonderful. Yay!

Gorgeous Run!! 1:25:29

Sunday, January 14, 2007

I met Er, Cheryl and Pete at Demi-tasse for breakfast this morning while poor Joey had a rehearsal for a concert that was scheduled for later that afternoon. After dropping Er off at the airport, I met up with Matty for a long run along Dallas. We did an out and back starting at Cook St. getting as far as Willow’s Beach with the Omypic mountains as clear as day. Mount Baker was in full bloom, completely white and absolutely stunning!! How lucky we are to live here in this beautiful city!! We saw John B on our way back and he called out as we passed each other that he and Hillary had gone to the concert. We wrapped it up a bit early since we were running entirely on the road today. My back felt good … a great relief to me, although putting on socks and shoes is tricky.

Fun Day! 46:51

Saturday, January 13, 2007

I didn’t do the WO this morning at Juan de Fuca but instead went for an easy run around Cedar Hill with Matty. I was a moron and did my weight routine when I got back home and managed to throw my back out doing too many sets. As soon as I did it, I dropped down on to the floor and I lay flat on my back doing the Alexander technique stuff while cursing out loud, nearly in tears. Luckily, I had an acupuncture appointment scheduled an hour later so I got stuck with a pile of pins…ouch! It was not fun but took away some of the pain. Thankfully, I was able to stand and walk without any discomfort but sitting was brutal. I squirmed around in my chair every time I was sitting down. The audience probably thought I had a fidgeting problem…or gas. Charming. The concert went very well. We had to have the dress rehearsal an hour before the show and ran the entire program which wasn’t ideal. It sort of made the concert feel a little anti-climatic somehow but what can you do. My running fan club was nice enough to sit up in the balcony so I wouldn’t see them and get distracted. It was so great having them there! Thanks guys! I was pleased with how the Mozart went although there was a moment near the beginning where the quartet got off sync for a measure or so. The Bach felt a little disjointed for me mostly because Joey’s podium had been moved a bit too far forward by accident. I couldn’t see him even peripherally so it was a bit unnerving. All in all though it was loads of fun! Joey was pretty pleased so I was happy for him and the VCS that it was a success.

Rest Day 00:00:00

Friday, January 12, 2007

Work was insane today. I had four deadlines to meet and just barely made it. The concert is tomorrow night so Er is flying into Victoria from Calgary in an hour. I am going to the airport and pick her up in a few minutes. We’re going to have dinner together and get caught up. Yay! One of her daughters has been fighting the croup all week so she must be pretty tired. She says she good to sing tomorrow night. I would be in a coma. Good for her! The weather looks like it’s going to hold for tomorrow…No snow in the forecast as of yet so we may actually, finally do this darn concert! Ha! Joey in the meantime, is rehearsing like a maniac for two more gigs after tomorrow night’s concert, one on Sunday and a big one with the Victoria Symphony on Monday night which includes Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4. It’s a biggie. Go Maestro!!

No WO for this diva tomorrow. I'll need to rest. The concert will be finishing way past my bedtime!

Dallas Road Tempo 1:00:20

Thursday, January, 11, 2007

I sent out an IRR email to let people know the WO was still on for tonight but only a few brave souls showed up. Matty and I were planning on a tempo run so that’s what we all ended up doing. We warmed up around Beacon Hill, circling down to Dallas Road a couple of times. A few kids were sliding down the hill in the dark…lucky buggers. I loved doing that when I was a kid.

Matty’s plan tonight for me was 25 minutes of tempo running. The first five was a gradual pick-up into the tempo pace. We ran along Dallas and at 15 minutes turned around part-way up the Big Hill and then made it back to Clover Point to finish off  the run. We did a nice, easy cool-down back to the “Y”. My butt was frozen solid for most of the run (a mystery to me since that is where I have the most insulation, shall we say) but other than that I felt pretty good. My groin has not been giving me much grief this past week at all….knock on wood!

Matty came over for dinner (the guy was planning on eating KD at homefor Gawd's sake!). I swear his and Patty’s eating habits kill me! Anyhoo, we are planning on running the Carlsbad 5km this April. I have a gig in Montreal and Quebec City at the end of March, so I am going to fly directly to San Diego from Montreal the morning after the last concert. Matt is going to fly from here and meet me in SD and then we’ll head to Carlsbad together. It should be a blast! The race is supposed to be a lot of fun and one of the fastest 5km courses in North America. We went on line, looked at flight options and I booked the ticket…so it’s a go!

More White Stuff 59:37

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

It started snowing just as I was heading out the door this morning for my appointment with Mike Coey. I got there just as it was really coming down. I was hoping for a snow day at work but it stopped as I was heading to UVic. We got a small dump today making the run tonight a blast! Matty and I buzzed all through the Uvic trails which were lit perfectly by the white snow. The dog field really fun to run around since the snow there was the deepest. Mystic Vale was a bit more challenging but still way better than being on the streets. We couldn’t really find a spot to do strides so we called it a night. I did Rol’s new strength routine tonight too. It’s brilliant. I am to do it Wednesdays and Saturdays. Generally I’ll do two sets with three sets on volume weeks and just one set on weeks leading into races or recovery weeks. My neighbors below are going to really love the squat jumps.

Cold, Wet and Happy! 1:08:53

Tuesday, January 9, 2007

I heard the ticking sounds of hail hitting my window at work today at about two in the afternoon. Great. The track’s going to be fun tonight. Fortunately, in typical Victoria style, the hail gave way to sunshine (for a whole 10 minutes), then it rained, then it cleared up, then it rained some more. This went on for a couple of hours and when I got to the track it was just plain windy. Matty and I got a good 25 minutes of running in before meeting the IRR group for the dynamics. There was a large group out tonight and I was thrilled to see LeRoo! We did 3 x 600m, 3 x 400m, 3 x 200m with 200m breaks and 1 lap between sets. About half-way through the WO it started to rain and it was coming down sideways. The wind picked up at the same time making the whole WO seem ludicrous. I asked myself what the heck we were doing running around a track at night, with gusts of wind and rain whipping at our faces. When we finished and I looked around and we were all smiling. I had my answer. We’re all just screwed up!

We had a nice little group with me, LeRoo, Rhonda, Deby and Pierre keeping each other company as we did the intervals at a good, steady pace. All the reps were very consistent and we kept moving through the breaks. I felt pretty perky afterwards and did two loops of the ring with LeRoo. I am so happy to be running with her again!

Next week Matty and I will not be running the track but will still meet up with the group for the warm-up and cool-down. The plan is to do some longer intervals on Tuesdays nights until February sometime.

Double Day 1:16:03

Monday, January 8, 2007

I crawled out of bed at 6:30 this morning, threw some running gear on and met up with Matty at Cedar Hill for the first run of today’s double. It was dark as we jogged along the trail clockwise but the houses along the trail’s edge gave us just enough light to see where we were going. By the time we did the second loop (we just did the bottom half the second time around) the sun was just coming up. We ran a total of 31 minutes. I wasn’t as sleepy as I though I’d be. I even had time to sing for 20-30 minutes before heading off to work. Things have been very consistent these past two weeks in the singing department. I am really looking forward to the concert this weekend!

I did my second run of the day after work on the trails at UVic. It’s just about light enough now that we can see where we are going through Mystic Vale. It’s still a bit on the dark side right now but I’d rather run there than on the roads and it’s kind of fun in a weird sort of way. Nothing like the thrill of wondering if you are going to do a face plant with every step you take! Last week we heard the owls hooting in the trees right above our heads. That was cool. The run lasted for 45 minutes and included a climb up Mt. Tolmie which felt much better than last week. We finished off with some Pose drills with the bungee chords and strides.

I had just enough time to get home, take a quick shower, eat dinner and meet Rol at the gym. We went over a new weight routine he designed for me to do at home that focuses on strengthening my lower back, core and balancing muscles. I think it’s a great routine that will help the problems with my back/groin.

Joey rented the original version of “The Producers” with Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder. I fell asleep about thirty minutes into the movie with Joey next to me giggling away.

Flipper Time! 1:35:26

Sunday, January 7, 2007

Waking up this morning was painful. The pride I felt for staying up late last night was replaced by self-hate the moment the alarm went off this morning. Why did I do that? Whyyyyyy??!

Joey took one look outside and that was it for him. He was staying in…one down. Pierre emailed last night to say he would be bailing…two down. LeRoo called shortly after moaning about the weather…another down.

Heartier souls Jen and Nanc, met Matty and I at the lakes. We knew the trails were going to be a disaster but it was a lot worse than we imagined. We got about 300 meters into the trail going counter-clockwise when we had to turn around. The lake had completely swollen over the trail all the way to its far side. As we approached the lower p-lot, we saw that the normally slow moving creek with the bridge was now rushing wildly with the bridge barely visible. Once we got past that bit, the rest of the trail to the fire road was fine. There were a few deep puddles, but nothing that we couldn’t jump over or run through. It was so much fun! We made a detour along the fire road to get to the base of Bear Hill. Gushing down the trail head was a river of water. It was as though we were salmon spawning as we ran upstream. Finally, after about 300meters, the trail veered away from the water’s route and we were once again running on a regular (albeit wet) trail. We followed the same route as last week, heading down the other side of Bear Hill (I stopped my watch while going down the other side since we were walking to avoid wiping out) to Keating X-Road, up Oldfield and then eventually back to the fire road, retracing our steps around the lakes to the p-lot. It was such a fun run and luckily for us only drizzling on and off and with very mild temperatures! The pace was easy to moderate and felt even better than last week. There was a lot of chatting with the odd bit of “push and runs” here and there. Mind you our feet were so wet; it really didn’t matter if you got elbowed into a puddle. Matty and I did a bit of extra running once we got back to the p-lot to add on some extra time.

My heart goes out to anyone who's home got flooded this week. We passed several houses on Oldfield Rd. that were completely surrounded by water, not to mention all the farmer's fields. So very sad.

As soon as I got home, I made myself an egg, cheese and ham sandwich, watched some tube and then actually fell asleep for over an hour while Joey worked on his music. My New Year’s resolution this year is to give myself more recovery time especially on the weekends and not to wait so long after I run to eat…Matty’s orders. I have been eating a banana or some other snack after my big runs to tie me over before I can get home and eat a proper meal.

Juan de Fuca 1:23:23

Saturday, January 6, 2007

I took my usual day off yesterday from running. Instead I made dinner, giving chef Joey the night off. Matty came by for a bite before heading off to a concert downtown that started at midnight…crazy, young man. He will pay for it tomorrow, I told him…and he did.

Joey and I picked him up on our way to the Juan de Fuca WO. He looked a little crooked…ouch!

Today was our first Saturday WO of the year and we had a great turn-out with an equal number of women to men for a nice change! The dames were Shan, Lis, LeRoo, Jen Mc, Lisa and me while the dudes included Joey, Boob, Matty, Pierre, Brett and Mike. Rocket Rob will have us do 30 minutes total of tempo running each week. Today’s WO was 8-7-6-5-4 mins with 2 min recoveries. We did a solid 27 minute warm-up (it was beautiful out), did some strides and then started the WO going counter-clockwise on the cedar-chip trail that loops around the fields and golf course there. The trail was surprisingly dry and it was extremely quiet so we didn’t have to dodge puddles, pedestrians or dogs. I felt great today. I kept the turn-over going especially concentrating keeping my feet fast going up and over the long hill. I made sure to stay in the zone where I wasn’t going too hard…just a quick and steady tempo. My groin didn’t complain one bit today for some reason…whew! We did a nice leisurely cool-down around the trail to finish off. Everyone had a great time and since it’s so dry at JdeF, we are going to stay at that location for at least a few more weeks. Boob also mentioned that the route and running surface at JdeF is so great for strength building much like Cedar Hell. Very true.

Joey and I made some pancakes and sausages for brunch and then I flopped down on the couch and had a little snooze while watching a movie while Joey worked on his scores for some upcoming concerts. In the late afternoon I dragged my groggy self off to Costco to buy a few things like a 6 month supply of t-p, one large case of V8 juice cans for work, a large vat of almond butter and other items we probably didn’t really need.  When we got back I sang for a good hour then cleaned up the place just in time for Jarhead and T’s arrival. Two large pizzas were ordered from Il Greco….mmm! Soon after, Squintch and Carolyn arrived. We played a few games of Uno (Joey and I won a game each while Squintch’s win was questionable). We got Carolyn up to speed on Squintch’s habits and tendencies. She really should know what she is getting herself into. When Pan and Lin showed up we got the Taboo game out and played that until about midnight. Once again, Lin was a star. Jarhead was pretty quick too! I would just like to congratulate myself for staying up until midnight. Thank you.

Hills and Strides 1:21:07

Thursday, January 4, 2007

I had a tossy-turny sleep last night…gotta hate that! Is it the full moon? I’ve heard that it can make you feel restless. Work was super busy today so at least I was distracted from how sleepy I felt.

Joey and I showed up at the “Y” a bit early. Matty and I wanted to do an extra 20 minutes of easy running before the hill WO. As we were waiting in the lobby when we got back, LeRoo showed up to do her own WO at the “Y” so we’ve made plans to run together on Sunday. Yay!

It was another gorgeous evening...no rain and clear skies. Boob gave us 5 x the entire length of Gonzales hill (long) and then 4 x ¾ of the hill (medium) with 50m strides between each hill. I was feeling pretty intimidated especially after the way I felt the night before. I eased my way into the first hill and felt pretty frisky so I cranked it up as I went along and continued to feel very strong. I tried to give myself short recovery times between all the hills and strides, concentrating on transferring the quick turn-over I got doing the strides all the way up the hills. I was very pleased and surprised at how I felt. I did one extra medium hill and stride while the rest of the group was finishing up. Joey and Wayne both had good WOs. Matty flew up each hill effortlessly. Helena had her hair down and looked like a young teenager…I think she is a young teenager!

I tacked on an extra 10 -15 minutes of easy running at the end to add a bit of mileage. I was tired when I finished but it was a good tired!

Fun Run 57:20

Wednesday, January 3, 2007

The singing this week has been going very well for some reason. I haven’t had to warm-up very long. The alignment already seems to be there. I don’t want to jinx it so I’ll say no more about that. I am sure you are all disappointed about that! Ha!

I rushed out of work right at 4:30 so Matty and I could run the trails at Uvic for a bit before the sun went down. We got in a good 30 minutes on the soft stuff before we had to hit the roads. There was the usual elbowing here and there until Matty lost his mind and purposely smacked a deep puddle sending a load of water right up the side of my body. Big mistake. The revenge did and will not not come right away. No, instead Mr. Brat kept looking over his shoulder and darted every time he thought I was making my move. This was far better than any payback I could think of. He was a Nervous Nellie for the rest of the run. He even tried the ol’ ‘let’s call it a truce’ line. That was pretty amusing…like I was going to call a truce. He really has no idea who he is dealing with. I bet you my brothers are reading this with evil grins on their faces. I’ve learned from the Masters.

Back to the run. We headed up Mt. Tolmie towards the end of the run. I thought I was going to die. I nearly did. Tomorrow night’s hill run should be fun.

I did a solid session of weights and core exercises when I got home, ate dinner and then hit the couch just in time to watch Medium.

Back at the Track 1:12:20

Tuesday, January 2, 2007

Waking up this morning for work was pure torture. I really just wanted to die. I think I actually groaned as I pulled the duvet off to the side.

It rained pretty much the entire day. Joey called me to say he was going to bail on tonight’s WO because it was so miserable out but miraculously at about 3:30 in the afternoon, the rain stopped. I called him to him to say so but he didn’t change his mind. I tried. I walked over to the track and although it was drizzling a bit, it was very warm. Matty and I managed to get some running done on the trails before it got too dark. We did a good 30 minutes of running before meeting up with the IRR gang. Our fair-weather runner Joey decided to show up after all…way to go FJ! Tony-baloney was welcomed back after being away for about two months. He looked all tanned and relaxed. There were quite a few people out tonight including a few new faces. It sure was nice to see everyone again.

Matty thought that this week we would skip the track and do 5 x 5 minutes with 90 second recoveries. We did the drills with the group before heading out to Ring Road. Our intervals took us along Cedar Hill X Rd to Cadboro Bay Rd then along Landsdowne up to Henderson and finishing off with a loop around Ring Rd. The effort tonight felt pretty even in each interval and I managed to keep my cadence quick so I think I ran the WO well for this stage of the game.

It turned out to be a beautiful evening complete with a clear sky and a bright, full moon. The IRR gang looked happy after their WO. We showed up just in time to run the cool-down with everyone.

Joey and I got home at 7pm, showered and still made it to our dinner date on time with Rebecca and Mike downtown. They are such a fun couple! Rebecca is so cool. She’s into scotch and Cuban cigars. A real chick…and she’s a singer!

Welcome 2007! 40:06

Monday, January 1, 2007

Happy, New Year!! Looking back at this last year has made me feel very thankful and blessed. It was an extremely busy year for both of us with many, many happy moments most of which involved great family and friends. We are so fortunate to have so many wonderful and supportive people in our lives.

The first day of the year began with a run, of course. Matty and I met in the rain at UVic. We did an easy 40 minutes on the trails and roads nearby. We then hopped the track fence and did one set of Matty drills, the same ones we did last week followed again by our Pose routine and strides. I almost didn’t make it back over the fence and Matty was kicking himself that he hadn’t just left me there, stuck at the top of the fence in the rain…nice.

I got a good hour of singing in when I got home. It had been over a week since I last sang. My voice really needed a rest. I sang my face off with these past two gigs and I figured a week or so off would do those vibrating babies good. I was a bit apprehensive that I would be completely out of shape and would be struggling the whole practice but everything felt just fine. I have almost two weeks to get back into real shape so I should be ok.

Pan-Pan and his family invited Joey and I to their place for New Year’s lunch. We were treated to a fabulous meal prepared by Joyce. We even called the Squintch in New Liskeard, Ontario just to rub it in that I was stealing his spot on the couch (Heh...Heh...) You can never escape my torment!!

When we got home, we made a fire (ok, it was a Javalog!) and watched an episode of one of our favorite series, “Six Feet Under”. It was the last bit of holiday time before going back to work….sigh…

The Last Sunday Run of 2006 1:35:04

Sunday, December 31, 2006

Joey and Shan met at the lakes at 9am this morning just as I was rolling out of bed. Matty picked me up and we were on the trails by the leisurely hour of 10am, crossing paths with Shan and Joey on the far side of Elk Lake. We ran up to the summit of Bear Hill (I had to walk several times), stopping briefly to take in the view, down the other side to Central Saanich Rd. We hung a left on Keating Cross Rd, another left on Oldfield Rd, another left and then we cut in at to the Fire Rd which got us back on the trails at the lakes. I wasn’t feeling too chipper in the first 45 minutes or so but then at about 60 minutes I perked right up and so did our speed, according to Fatty. My breathing calmed down and I finally felt like I was on automatic pilot. We continued counter-clockwise around the lakes, past the p-lot where we parked and did a small loop out to the boathouse and back. Matty suggested I stop when we got back to the fountain while he did another out and back. This part of the run finished off with a dog chasing him in the last 50 meters. I could have run over and helped him out but I was too busy laughing my head off! It’s funny. Dogs seem to like Matty’s legs.

Shan had Joey and me over for brunch. We basically mauled Lola the whole time we were there. That is just the cutest puppy! She has one ear that perks up and one that flops down. Unbelieveable. The rest of the day was spent running some errands and visiting other friends. We spent New Year’s Eve snuggled on the couch, watching a movie. We even ordered pizza so we wouldn’t have to get up and make dinner...excellent!

Holiday Round-Up

Saturday, December 30, 2006

Where did the week go?! I’ve been so lazy in my blogging. I am a blog-slob. Oh well. What can I say… I’m on holiday.

Monday was Christmas day. That was fun. Joey and I did stocking stuffers again this year and gave each other mostly goofy, funny stuff. I love stockings!

Christmas morning in PJ bottoms that Shan got me-Thanks Shan!!

Deby picked me and Joey up late in the morning while the sun was still shining. We did an easy loop picking up Pierre along the way. We finished off with a ten minute pickup just to end with a quicker turn-over.

Joey and I were invited to Wendy and Timothy’s for Christmas dinner. I ate huge portions of turkey, dressing, cranberry sauce (homemade), veggies (3 varieties), potatoes (with gravy) and dessert (three kinds…I tried all three).

Boxing Day. Joey, Shan and Pan signed up for the PIH Boxing Day Handicap Race. Matty and I had signed up too but realized a 10 mile run wasn’t the wisest thing to do. We hung out at the start, cheered them on as they started off and then we headed over to Centennial Park. The little trails there are lovely and dry - perfect for the day’s run. After a 20 minute warm-up we did 6 x 2 mins with 2 mins rest. The aim was to get the turn-over going a bit and not to worry too much about speed. I concentrated on cadence and ok…not stellar but not terrible either. The speed isn’t quite there yet but my turn-over is slowly coming back. Matty then showed me a set of strength drills that we plan to do on a regular basis over the next couple of months. We then got out the bungee chords and did some poser drills. This time we did switched it up a bit and did the pulling from the front and behind. So far, my groin has been pain-free!!!!

The next day Joey and I took the 10:00am ferry to Vancouver with a pit-stop at IKEA. The plan was to hook up with three of my brothers and one of my sisters the next night for dinner. To my surprise and delight, my brother Ed and his wife Jennie showed up. They flew all the way from Ontario to surprise everyone for dinner. Joey knew about the plan all along and managed to keep Miss Nosey here, out of the loop. Way to go FJ! We had such a wonderful time. Only one sister from Ontario was missing. We hope to have a proper reunion with everyone there this summer. I hope we can make it happen. It will be 30 years in 2007 since the seven of us siblings have all been together at once.

 

Lorraine, me, Jen and Eddie!

My bros!

The Girls!

 

We did do some running while we were in Vancouver. FJ and I did a nice 45 minute run together on Tuesday in the late afternoon on the section that is still open along the seawall. Most of it is still blocked off due to the debris left behind from last week’s storm. Wednesday was another gorgeous, sunny day. We did our run in the late morning and it was a bit on the warm side! Joey did an easy out and back while I ran 3 x 3-2-1min with 1min rests and 3 mins recovery between sets. It’s too early to be doing any real speedy WOs at this point so today was all running tall, keeping my upper body from twisting, keeping the arms low and moving strongly and having a quick turn-over. I didn’t worry about speed. It felt good to spin out a bit and just think of form. I am beginning to feel like a runner again!

We took Friday off and spent the day shopping in Vancouver instead. We caught the 6:00pm ferry home so that we would get home at a decent hour.

Matty and I met Rol at the lakes on Saturday morning. We did a simple 20 minute warm-up followed by a 20 minute tempo run and then a 20 minute cool-down. This run was a bit more brutal. After 7-8 minutes, I could feel my lungs were working a bit too hard so I pulled the pace back a smidge and found a more doable rhythm. I have to be careful not to push too hard, too soon. Patience chicky!

We had a few people over after dinner who were all very willing to help us consume some of the alcohol we acquired over the holidays. Joey made some wicked Manhattans and then out came the board game Taboo.

Pano was his usual smug self…he was just lucky to have Lin on his team. I never knew Penticton had a fabled sea creature in its waters!! Lin was the real star although Syl was pretty impressive despite his alcohol levels. Matty was pretty much a disaster, I swung back and forth from being a disaster to having stellar moments and Joey was just plain competitive! It was a really fun way to end the year!