The weather’s finally warming up here in Toronto and I have been kicking my training into high gear. So many goals, so little time.
Some may think I’m crazy for taking on so many things at once but I genuinely love it! Keeps me moving and there is never a dull moment. Even though in the moment I may be struggling a lot, I know deep down it’s the journey and payoff in the end that’s the true reward for me. Crossing that finish line at the Lululemon Seawheeze half marathon, getting a kettle PR (aiming for MS this time!), and becoming a better soccer player (I am probably the worst player but they took me in because I have heart). I hope to achieve all 3 of these goals by the end of summer!
With the Lululemon Seawheeze Half Marathon rapidly approaching, I have been trying my best to get out for at least a couple of runs every week.
Being a non-runner means I generally have to work a lot harder to log those kilometres in, so to help motivate myself to run more, I got myself some early birthday presents 😀 The first thing I bought was a pair of Saucony Kinvara 6 running shoes which will offer a bit of extra cushioning over my Nike Frees while still being lightweight and giving a natural running feel. I still love wearing my Nike Frees for short 3-5km training runs, but I know my feet will appreciate a bit more cushioning and any possible advantage they can get for those longer runs.
Next, I got myself a Garmin Forerunner 220 running watch to track and give me feedback on my runs. I’m a bit of a data whore and love tracking my fitness but don’t always want to be carrying my phone with me and looking at it to see my progress, so this was the perfect companion! It has a colour display (though could be a higher res & brighter IMO), is waterproof, comfortable, and I love how it beeps and gives me updated stats every time I complete a km then summarizes how I did on each run. All your data would then be synced to the Garmin Connect phone app and as of early March this year, it now has added compatibility with the Nike+ run app, which I was really happy about, since that’s the app I’ve been using to track all my runs up until the time I bought this watch.
The last time I carried my phone with me on a run, this happened 🙁
Scraped up my leg, got a hole in my shirt, and cracked my phone screen! Ugh, it must’ve been the most embarrassing and stupid accident ever! I was running along the boardwalk and maybe slipped on some ….sand? Not exactly sure, but once it happened I just had a quick glimpse of a few people looking at me and and an elderly lady who asked if I was ok as she was walking by. I quickly got up, said I was great, and ran as fast as I can away from the scene to assess the damage. My leg was all scraped up and bleeding and the bottom right corner of my phone screen shattered, but on the bright side, it did break my fall, saving my palm from getting scraped up. I was also only 1km into my run and felt it’d suck to just quit now so I actually slowly ran another 3km or so with my injured leg.
Aside from that incident, the training has been going well and I have seen improvements in my speed and endurance. Paul and I have both been fitting in at least 2 runs every week and try to run together at least once. I usually struggle along, dread my runs, and make quirky comments while Paul is all relaxed and can keep running. I always feel I am having a constant argument between my legs feeling tired and wanting to stop while the brain is telling me to fight it and keep going. Our longest runs to date have been 7.8km and 8.15km. Hoping to hit that 10km mark soon then work our way up to doing a half marathon distance – 21km. It will happen. Thank goodness we still have 13 weeks to train.
My kettlebell training took a bit of a detour since the Cali Open due to some recurring allergy and skin issues that I just couldn’t get rid of for the longest time (more about this in another post). So once again, everything feels soooo heavy and I am working my way back up to doing a full 10 minute set with the 20kg kettlebell. I was sad I had to miss my friend Tricia Dong’s kettlebell lifting event in April but I did have the honour of designing a logo for her event tshirts!
The Inukshuk Snatchman is proudly Canadian and represents the power and strength of the girevik and is a reminder of our dependence on each other and the value of strong relationships – in our case, Chu love and camaraderie. <3
This time around, my goal is to earn my Master of Sport rank in 20kg Long Cycle at the Niagara Falls Kettlebell Sport Open event in June. I would need to get at least 112 reps at my current weight, or 106 reps if I can drop a weight class by then. The training is going well and I’ve been doing short sets 3x a week with the 16, 18, and 20kg bells, while slowly increasing the length of each set. I will get there!
As for soccer, I played as a sub for my friends’ soccer team with Paul last year and really enjoyed it. This summer I officially signed up to be part of the Pink Elephants soccer team. I’m so excited and at the same time know that it will take some extra effort on my part to learn more about the game, what the role of each position is, and to brush up on my ball handling skills and where to be on the field during an actual game. We had our first practice last week and I was dying on the field. So much running and so many skills to brush up on. My foot had a couple of blisters afterwards too 🙁 It’ll be another learning curve, but I’m up for the challenge and am partially driven by the fear of screwing up or letting the team down, so yes, gotta become a better player…no pressure though, but it’s a good thing we will be having practice every week until the season begins.
It’s going to be the Summer of Stell with tons of goal crushing ahead!