If you don't use it, you lose it.

That statement pretty much sums up what has gone on for me in the last 9 weeks.

If I was to compare the amount of physical work I've done in the last 9 weeks to any other period over the last 18 months I have been a lazy sack of hammers....

With my goal to do 2 IronMans (New Zealand in March, Canada this weekend) in about 6 months my training for the last 18 months had been consistent, with huge improvements in my bike and run. I thought everything was going well for me until 10 weeks ago.

Training had been going pretty good, and I felt I had a huge amount of base that could push me through race day. I had been running with shin splints for quite some time (about a year), and although they were uncomfortable, I felt the issue wasn't getting worse, so my doctor and I saw no reason to adjust my training. Well that all changed when I got a bone scan that revealed 12 medial-lateral tibial stress fractures (yes, 6 on each side).

Was I disappointed, yes? But after wallowing in my sorrows for a weekend , it was time to move on. I've spent the summer building my business, having more free time and trying not to think about my running shoes and bike that sit by the door, sad and unused.

Ok, so fast track 10 weeks which brings me to now.

Just got back from my first opportunity to get back into some sort of shape, Usana's Children Hunger Fund Run. A 5km run to raise funds for the Childrens Hunger Fund in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Now I won't go into depressing details, but I will say that my 1 minute run, 4 minute walk put my 5 km time about 4 minutes slower than my best 10km time.
Right now, running for a minute was tough! my feet hurt, my lungs burn- I'm going to blame that on the 1400m of elevation, and my ego has been checked nicely into a small box.

So what did I think about during the run? How my heart was pumping 35% less blood per pump, that 10 weeks ago I had a much better body composition, with these great Type 1 muscle fibers that got me to where I wanted to go with minimal energy expenditure, the electrical conduction that regulates the rate and effectivness of my heart were not as in sync as they were at one point, that my brain and muscles were wishing there was more of those nice hemoglobin molecules to help deliver precious oxygen to the tissue that it desperately needed, and that at this elevation the partial pressure of oxygen makes it harder to go from my lungs to my blood, and even harder to get out of the blood to where it needs to go.... Yes, these are the thoughts that passed through my mind as a struggled to keep a smile on my face.

But here's one thing I know, it can only get better from here. And that today was my big take home message- if you don't use it, you lose it. Your body doesn't care if you did run a marathon a few months ago, or if in your younger days you were an elite athlete. We all need to exercise frequently and consistently!

Going to start training for real this week- starting with a few run/walks each week starting with 1 minute run, 4 minute walk, and building from there. Some water running, some swimming and a bit of biking until the weather forces me inside.

Now the silver lining is that I was able to raise over 500$ for a charitable cause. Thank you to everyone who was able to sponsor me for this event.

Looking forward to the day when a 10km run can be done as a normal maintenance session. Until then I'll keep my ego in that small box next to my shoes and bike.

Entourage tonight

Entourage tonight

The days are getting shorter

A quick blog entry..... well more like a tweet than an blog, but anyways.

Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to stop by our business website:
www.waterswellness.ca

We'll be fully functional in the next 2 weeks.
in the mean time:
Twitter: waterswellness (blog to come soon) & come check us out and we'll send you a note to let you know when to come back.
Facebook: We have both a business page and a fan page. Come check it out: waters wellness consulting

We're branching out a bit this year and will be launching our Boot Camps in the early fall '09.
We will start out with two camps. (Your feedback would be greatly appreciated)

Bridal Boot Camps--> Looking your best on your day!


Milfs in the Making--> target audience 20-45 year old moms who are looking to cut out a few hours in their busy weeks to work on themselves.


Both packages are looking to include:

• Comprehensive fitness structures with a wide variety of exercise
• Your choice of 1, 2 or 3 sessions per week for 90 minutes of high energy, fun, fitness in a wide variety of locations around Kamloops
• The opportunity for personal one or one or two on one (Hey, maybe a bride and a groom want to work out together) training sessions at your home, in our facility or at the park
  
• Nutrition tips and seminars for healthy weight management and weight loss with a Registered Dietitian
  
• Answers to the FAQ's that help demyth what the media says about weight loss, body building, exercise and nutrition
• Networking opportunities to direct you to other licensed professionals that include physiotherapists, nutritionists, personal trainers, personal chefs, wedding planners & counselors
  
  
  Off to work and play out of town for the next few weeks. Vancouver, Victoria, Seattle & Salt Lake City. Highlights include: some needed downtime, scuba diving on Vancouver Island, day trip to Bowen Island & networking with some of my mentors.
  
  Talk soon,
  
  Pw.
  
  Next post: CrossFit, Can it deliver the results you are looking for?