Skyline Views {A Three Things Thursday Post}

A new fancy gym all to myself!

1. The YMCA recently opened an annex in a new downtown building/development. The gym was to be part of the corporate perks for employees of the company spearheading the project but it was also opened up to serve downtown office types. While there's a Y branch downtown, the annex has more boutique offerings, awesome new equipment and a functional fitness area. I wanted to be a complete nerd and try it on opening day but alas, that's when Miles was sick.

However, I finally got over there today and it was great. The treadmills have touch screens and you can watch TV, pick a workout or listen to the radio. For this HGTV-loving, non-cable subscribing gal, it was bliss. And on a more fitness-related note, I was impressed that you could have a negative incline ont he treadmill so you could replicate rolling hills.

2. As awesome as the new gym was, my run not so much. I know I'm not even two weeks out from Carmel but I just feel so slow and any faster effort feels like death. I tried to pick it up to half marathon pace for a half-mile, and it felt like the end of a 5K. OK. Maybe it wasn't *that* bad but it's frustrating to feel as if I've lost all the fitness I gained during my Carmel training cycle. Rationally, I know that's not true but it's still challenging.

3. The biggest bummer of the morning, though, was not the run but that I got a parking ticket! I paid for an hour at a meter and the attendant must have been watching it tick because the ticket was stamped at 9:30. Grr! It's only $10 but still. And the funny (ironic?) thing is that I was talking with the Skyline YMCA staff about the parking situation. There is a garage attached to the building but signage made it unclear as to whether I could use it. I can and the rates are about the same as metered parking on the street ($1 an hour). With the garage, we all said, you don't have the risk of a ticket and you don't need cash.

I wish I could say my run and new gym experience was worth $11 (my ticket plus the $1 I put in the meter) but ... yeah. The lesson: Stop being a baby and run in the rain. Or, park at work and run to the Y – which is what I hope to do this summer, taking advantage of the lunch hour classes. Friday PiYo at noon is looking mighty enticing.

What Fills You Up {A Three Things Thursday post}

I was tired, overwhelmed and emotionally drained.

As I sat in the multipurpose room at a YMCA branch, I knew this training and my subsequent work with cancer survivors would be fulfilling but it would be a project that would require me to be far more emotionally invested in my participants than I have ever been.

Then, as if on cue, the Livestrong trainer acknowledged that the 12-week program could take its toll on instructors. Patients face setbacks, relapse, die. They also fight, win and offer an amazing perspective on the world. To cope, we would have to recognize how we were feeling and know how we could recharge ourselves.

And what better way to do that with a fun group activity? Because every training session, Y or otherwise, needs a worksheet-guided activity.

Now, sarcasm aside, the activity was probably one of the best I've done and I couldn't help but share it here.

We were asked to think of ourselves as an engine, one that operates on fuel.

At that time, right then, how full was our gas tank? Were we operating with a full tank, a half-tank, one-quarter? Or, were we on empty?

I don't often think about how I'm feeling until it's too late. I might be tired one day or happy another but I rarely consider my emotional well being. I take on project after project until I can't and then I wonder why I'm screaming at Si for pulling my hair.

What is draining your tank? Work, family, not enough sleep?

My kids. I couldn't even write it down on the sheet – I felt guilty. I'm nearing the breaking point with nursing and pumping, and the competition for attention feels difficult to juggle. There are other things, too. I'm too quick to say yes to subbing classes and taking on commitments because I want to be seen as valuable and a team player. However, doing too much leaves me with not enough time for myself and my family, further exacerbating the displays of neediness from the boys.

What can you do to fill your tank?

Easy answer, right? Running. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that running cannot be my only outlet. When I'm tired and stressed, I can't always lace up my shoes and go. Heck, sometimes the mental fatigue of an intense training plan can drain my tank as well.

So I've been thinking about other ways that I can pump myself up:

1. Laughing with Mark. I'm not talking giggling about something the boys have done but joking around to the point that I cannot stop the giggles. Thankfully, Mark is easy to laugh at ... I mean with :)

2. A hot bath. I didn't realize how much of a luxury baths were until Miles started insisting on joining me. As a 40-pound toddler, he takes up 3/4 of the bath and his required accessories (sword, rubber duck and monster truck) take up another 1/8, leaving me with a sliver of water to splash up. But, if I wait till after bed, I can draw a hot bath and soak in epsom salts as I page through the Ulta catalog.

3. Spending quality time with the boys. I'll admit it: Sometimes I think that I need to get as far away from my kids as possible to have a moment of me time but I learned a lesson last week. The sun was shining and the air was warming as I picked up Miles from school and Si from daycare. It was the perfect day for the park. And though I had things I could do at home, we turned right instead of straight and found ourselves parking next to the playground.

Miles was so excited that he ran to the swings before I even had Si out of the carseat. I guess we were swinging, I thought. I got Si situated in one and then Miles next to him. I pushed one then the other, Miles pumping his legs to go even higher. Right hand, left hand. Push, push, push. Legs reaching toward the blue skies, hands holding tight. Laughs escaping from their mouths.

I swear we spent 20 minutes just on the swings and in those 20 minutes, I felt like a new person. A better person. A good mom.

How do you refill your tank?

On making things work and being responsible

There's something going on in my house, and I am not so sure I like it.

For the past two nights, Miles has been up several times. It's not the kind of wakings we're used to - the ones where he will stand in his crib talking or singing "round and round all through the time." The disruptions we've had the past two nights involve lots of screaming and inconsolable crying.

Wednesday night, Miles was up at 10:45, midnight and 2:30. At 2:30, as I rocked him, he pulled out his pacifier and said "cookie" through tears followed by "snack" (his word for cereal bars). He had eaten poorly that night, and I wondered whether it was just hunger. I took him downstairs, gave him a cup of milk and half a cereal bar as I changed his diaper. The cereal bar did little to dry the tears as he cried for another 5 minutes after I put him down.

Trying for a better night Thursday, we made sure Miles ate a bit better at dinner and gave him a big cup of milk before bed. There was no way he was going to be waking up hungry. Like clockwork, though, he was up at 10:45. Mark and I tried all that we could but ended up bringing him to bed. Until 2:30 when we could no longer take the feet in the groin and fingers in the eye. There was more crying but after what I'm sure was not as long as it felt, he fell asleep.

And though we did get back to sleep, it was not enough and when I rolled over at 5:10 - the time when I was supposed to be getting up for a hill workout - I knew it wasn't going to happen. I thought I'd try again when Mark got up but the comfort of the couch called to me. As I laid there, the scenarios began to run through my head: RAW this morning, run tonight; call in late and do RAW + run at the YMCA; go to RAW and push run to tomorrow afternoon; get up early tomorrow, run and then lead BODYPUMP launch.

The ideas swirled at lightning speed - quite an amazing feat for my brain considering my fatigue - but I knew there was one option that was better than the others: skip RAW and runt his morning between dropping Miles off at daycare and going to work.

I made it with a heavy heart. Not only have the RAW workouts become a beloved part of my routine the past month but it would probably be my last class.

Our trial membership to the YMCA ends on Wednesday and after much discussion and creative thinking, Mark and I know that it's not the right time for us to add another monthly bill. It might be different if we didn't have access to a treadmill and were going to use it daily but it as difficult to justify the cost when we were using it for three group classes a week.

It totally sucks. I love the class, the instructor and the group exercise environment, and I almost feel like I'm doing the instructor a disservice. It was also a good learning experience for me as I look toward maybe, just maybe, getting a personal training certificate. But what's a girl to do?

Well, I guess there are some things. I have Bob Harper's "Total Body Transformation," which will be good for strength training; Turbo Fire has some longer HIIT workouts that will have some of the cardio conditioning benefits of RAW; and I've put out a Facebook plea for Insanity in he event that someone has a set collecting dust.

Oh, and then there's Zuzka Light. Nothing like having a hot Russian with enormously fake ta-tas make you do round after round of burpees. Now if she could only put Miles to sleep.

Note: I don't mention finances to garner sympathy. It's just a fact that money is tight, and it's tight for a lot of people.

Three Things Thursday: Own it

Walking into the aerobic room of the YMCA, I knew what to expect.

Lots of high knees, tuck jumps, mountain climbers, planks and squats. It would be the exact same workout that I did last Wednesday - a workout that had me feeling defeated and weak. But this time around, I was going to get after it.

And get after it I did.

The key to beating the workout wasn't magically getting stronger and fitter in the past week, though that is a nice thought. Nor was it the pep talk I got last week. Rather, the key to owning those 45 minutes was focusing on a few small things. Things that I could control.

1. One for the money. Stealing this from Dimity of Another Mother Runner, I decided to pick one exercise that I was going to nail 115 percent. Emily, the instructor, sets up the workouts to be performed four weeks in a row. Weeks one and two are to learn the routine, and weeks three and four are challenge weeks. I remembered the exercises that made me want to give up most, and I decided that I was going to beat the push up-mountain climber combination. I would do my best, of course, in the other exercises of the shoulder circuit but I wanted to do every push up, every mountain climber and twisting mountain climber in the three rounds. Even if I had to modify on my knees.

2. Take a good look. I am sure there are people who don't like the two walls of mirrors in the aerobics room but I, for one, appreciate them. During the high knees that were a part of our cardio-ab circuit, I started checking myself out. Not only could I see that I was lifting them higher than I thought but it motivated me to go even higher. I didn't want to look at myself half assing it, did I? Bonus: It took my thoughts away from what other people were doing and how well they were doing it and, subsequently, feeling bad that I wasn't doing what they were doing.

3. Know your limits. This "thing" came by mistake. We were told to grab medium and heavy weights. Last week, I think I had a set of 10-pounders and 12-pounders, moving down to eights for the mediums. For whatever reason, this week, I grabbed a set of 5s and a set of 10s. The lighter weight allowed me to perform all of the exercises as well as some of the advanced options, such as adding the jack to the squat-overhead press combo.

Now don't get me wrong - the workout was tough, and I was a hot mess when I left. But I felt strong and proud. I felt like I owned it.

How do you take on tough workouts?

Don't forget to ask me questions. I'll be answering them in a post next week.

Got it

For the second time in as many days, I dropped off Miles at daycare while I was wearing workout gear. I'd like to think I'm preparing him for the embarrassment that will be his elementary school career but really I'm just trying to fit stuff in and sleep more.

As if that's possible.

Anyway, this morning Miles jumped out of my arms to antagonize his friend in the bathroom, leaving me to chat with one of the helpers. A mentioned that I looked comfy and I told her that I was headed to a class at the YMCA before work. (Yes, that class.)

"What kind of class is it?" A asked.

A little of this, a little of that, I told her. And a whole lot of making me feel like I'm out of shape. Seriously. On Wednesday, my arms felt like Jell-O as we did lateral and side raises with dumbbells - and that's with me modifying it and selecting lighter weights than the start of class. When it came time to do a push up-mountain climber combo, I was toast. Lying on the floor in a puddle of sweat toast. I walked out sweaty, defeated and wondering why I was taking on this class.

"It's just a challenge," said A, who is a smidge older and a lot wiser and always knows how to get in my head. "Just like the other stuff - the running, the BODYPUMP - was a challenge. You got it."

I gave her a smile and a sincere thank you, amazed that A knew exactly the right thing to say. A giant frustration with the class is that I can go out and run 8 miles on dead legs and feel OK but I'm ready to give in after five burpees. I forget that there was a time when running five feet was a challenge and lifting 2.5 kilos on each side for biceps was tough. With time and fortitude, gains were made. Just as gains (hopefully) will be made in RAW.

Before I left, I tried one last time to procure a hug from Miles. Yet another challenge to face. Thankfully, one of the other kiddos, a 2-year-old girl, is always happy to oblige my need for affection.

And then I left. Left for the YMCA, where I faced yet another butt kicking. Four circuits, with each circuit repeated three times. There were 72 tuck jumps, 30 squat jumps and 5 millions lunges in the workout. My legs screamed out in pain and my shoulders nearly gave out.

Despite A's assurance, I didn't feel like my body "got" it but, today, my brain did. Mind over muscle, baby.

Excuse me, I burpeed.

I have an exciting recipe for you today. It's so exciting that I'm not even going to bother coming up with a story to serve as a clever introduction. Nope. Just the recipe for us.

Humble Pie

1 semi-in shape gal
1 12-pound dumbbell
2 10-pound dumbbells
25 rounds
32 ounces water
120 burpees

Directions: Do that shit.

A local YMCA branch offers a class called RAW for advanced exercisers, promising them a challenge and a chance to take their fitness to the next level with circuits, strength work and plyometrics. I sampled the class last week for a column, and I knew immediately that it could do amazing things for my running.

I headed back on Wednesday for the class, which one participant described as like "Insanity," but what I took was just insane.

The instructor had a 365-rep class to kick off the New Year, with everyone doing one rep for each day of 2013. There were 25 exercises, to be performed back-to-back with little rest. The kicker? Every other round was a set of 10 burpees.

I'm fairly certain that she modeled the class after one on ZuzkaLight.com but she took it to a whole new level of pain by incorporating challenging burpee variations. We did two round of burpees with tuck jumps. There were pure competition bupees. There was a variation with a frog jump and another with a jump forward. One round incorporated a tricep push-up and jumping with the weights. Two more included the obliques - one set jumping side to side, the other a side plank with rotation.

The Mac Daddy of them all? A single-arm burpee with shoulder press at the end. And, yes, there were two rounds - one for each side. I'm going to go ahead and be honest. I didn't even try that most challenging variation. The idea of face planting after 300+ reps, 100 of which were burpees (at that point) didn't seem like fun.

What did seem enjoyable, apparently, was attending the class for a second time - this time being more sociable and dragging Mark with me. The jerk could, of course, do the single-arm burpee but did find it a butt-busting, ego-crushing workout just as I did.

And he will tomorrow, too. Of course, he doesn't have to teach BODYPUMP. Now that will be fun.