Jan 3, 2014 - The oddness of fitness

A late night last night made for a later morning this morning - an 8am start for me.  My first 2 hours of the day were spent clearing the snow from the driveway, and then a 4 mile run on the treadmill just to prove to myself I was really insane.  I had intended the run to be 8 miles, but had to cut out halfway in.  The left knee was a little odd (probably due to the long trail run yesterday), and I didn't want to push it too hard.

Then, in line with my New Year's resolution to be more present with my kids, I spent an hour in the Lego room, sorting through Legos and preparing to start building a large Lego car.  My objectives right now are a working steering wheel and locking doors.  It is going to be a much-larger-than-Lego-scale vehicle.  It was nice to hang with Jake and Libby for an hour.  Then I made pork chops for the missionaries for dinner and delivered it.  And now my day is about done.

The subject of today's post is one I've meant to write for quite a while.  Here are some odd things I've learned through my process of weight loss and training since March:
1) weight loss happens all over your body, not just where you think you look chubby.  I was surprised to find the rubber gloves I wear at work fit much better than they used to - I used to have to wear the XL gloves or my thumbs would get sore.  Now the L gloves are perfect.  Who knew I had hand fat?  Weird.
2) shirt sizes are determined both by weight and length.  My long sleeve shirts are L, or the sleeves are too short. My short sleeve shirts are now M, or the chest is baggy.  It's a problem I'm happy to have.  I've had an M shirt for 10 years that I have been unable to wear for 8 years.  It is now my favorite shirt.
3) I read in a book recently that intense exercise is addictive.  I find that I do have withdrawal if I skip a day.  I get jittery, and can't wait to spend some energy working out.  I can concentrate better and work longer more comfortably now than I used to.
4) The protein shake thing works.  I started drinking a chocolate whey powder, and I think it's helping to bulk me up a lot.  I thought it was snake oil.  No longer.
5) Strength training helps with distance.  This was a real surprise.  I trained for the first Tough Mudder solely on the treadmill.  It never goes above a 4% grade on a program.  The second Tough Mudder is on a ski slope, very hilly, very steep.  So I've started doing my 5K short runs with a 10% grade for much of the distance.  It is quickly exhausting, and I can't go very fast.  So I settle in for a 10-minute pace for a mile or so at the 10% grade.  It's kindof like doing a couple thousand single-leg squats in a row.  Now I routinely find myself in reach of record times on my flat runs of 3, 5, or 8 miles.  The only thing I've changed is adding the elevation to the shorter runs.
6) The endurance mind game is all the same.  Whether running or biking, you reach a certain point of zen, and the most complicated thing going through your head is  "Is this how fast I want to go right now?"  At first, learning to run, how to warm up, build a cadence, etc, takes time and concentration.  And then muscle memory takes over, and your mind is free to defocus on details.  I expect swimmers experience the same thing.  I hope to find out in the Spring.   I have my sights set on a triathlon in 2014 (a small one, not an Ironman)
7) A marathon doesn't scare me from a muscle perspective.  My knees couldn't take it, but I can certainly keep up a 6 mph pace for 4 hours in a day.

Despite my long history with biking, I think the last 7 months of running and strength training has changed my body more than those 10 years of consistent cycling.  It's a holistic thing, and fascinating to experience.

I took my new snowshoes for a spin this afternoon, and had a Grizzly Adams moment, looking back at my snowshoe prints and our snow-covered cabin in the woods.  Snowshoes are cool.  My mom has great taste in Christmas gifts.