Fitness Faceoff Friday...Kind of a Stretch

I told my husband last night that I've always felt Thursday nights were the worst part of the week.  Some people love them, I know, because they signal that Friday is on the way.

But I hate them.

On Thursday night, I start getting burned out from the week...and all I can think is, "Great.  I've been doing all of this all week...AND TOMORROW I HAVE TO DO IT ALL AGAIN."

Thank heaven Thursday night is behind us.  From here on we have 6+ days of happiness.

To get on with the celebration, here's a little recap from the last FFOF...

This is our team: Kyle, Bethy, me, Jared, and one of our awesome buddies giving me bunny ears.  (I've known this little dude his whole life...he actually did the 5 mile round trip hike section of the challenge!)

Event organizer Greg

I was so impressed with the level of organization that went into this event.  This was the 4th annual Rattlesnake Challenge.  We all signed waivers, as well as an additional sheet for each step of the journey (two sheets for the hike).  There were 5 check points: one for the run-bike transition, one for the bike-swim, one for the swim-hike, one for the top of the mountain, and one for the bottom/the finish line.  This ensured that no one would be left behind in need of aid. 

We all milled around chatting while the runners stretched and warmed up, and Greg prayed over the event before we got going.

Runners of all ages!

I loved all the younger kids competing, and especially liked to see the variety in teams...some folks did 4 person teams, some 2, some 3, and some brave souls actually did all 4 legs themselves.  Yikes!

Rattlesnake Ledge!

We saw Bethy off for the run, and then drove over to Rattlesnake Lake to prepare for the swim and hike.

I wasn't quite sure when to start warming up...it was a chilly day and I knew the water would be pretty cold, but didn't want to start warming up too early and then be all cooled down by the time Kyle finished the bike leg. 

*I realized I'd left my swim cap and goggles in my bag...which at this point had been taken to the other side of the lake.  Turns out my super-sweet husband realized the same thing and ran all the way back to get them to me in time.*

By the grace of God, I timed my warmup just right, and plunged into the water after the tag-off from Kyle.  There were water-safety folks out in boats on the lake, which was good for me since I started swimming a little off-course, and they straightened me out.

Swimming's never been my strong point...particularly swimming in a straight line.  I always bumped into the buoys in the pool as a kid.  I hadn't trained for this at all, and the cold water made my muscles pretty unhappy.  My mouth kept getting confused and trying to inhale water instead of air, so I'd flip over and swim on my back to keep from drowning (figured that was a good goal - don't drown).

Somehow, I made it to the other side without losing us too much time!

Jared took off up on the "hike."  That man is a serious competitor.  No strolling up the trail for him - he planned to run the whole steep thing.

It was really fun watching the other swimmers make it across and splutter out of the water.  My favorite was watching these two brothers...the littler one (our team photo crasher above) kept yelling, "Tag me up!  Tag me up!" as his brother came out of the lake.

The record time for previous years was around 1 hour and 22 minutes...this year, the record was broken by our first and second place finishers...both of whom did the challenge solo.

First challenger finishing...

Our team finished first for the teams, and in fourth place overall!  (Winner came in at 1:18:25.)

Teams

1:28:02

Elizabeth R, Kyle R, Meghan M, Jared M

Jared running in...

Jared (and water-safety!)

We had such a good time!  I'm so glad Bethy asked us to participate...and that I did the swim leg.  To me, swimming is the worst part...and now that I know I can do it, I'm considering trying the whole thing next year!

Sweaty couples = happy couples

After the race, I changed into my new Nike Frees...first time wearing those awesome shoes.  I'd done a trail run that morning with a girlfriend and took my old, cruddy shoes to keep the new ones nice a little longer.

My mom says this shirt is the most
depressing thing ever.
THERE IS NO FINISH LINE.

This shirt was like a prophecy about my day...trail run in the morning, swimming a race in the afternoon, and then I got roped into playing Ultimate Frisbee with friends at the park that evening.  I'm turning into some sort of monster...who obsesses over workout clothes and feeds voraciously on protein.

This Week's Face-Off: Yoga

As you may or may not know, I'm in my fifth week of half-marathon training...and things are going WAY better than my first.  My endurance is way up, I'm enjoying the running itself more, I'm working on my form and seeing results in my speed.  I've also been really good about cross-training and getting in my strength-training.  But now my body is starting to complain a little about how hard I've been working...since I kinda haven't been great about doing my yoga.

Usually I try to do yoga every day, even for just 10 minutes...but lately, I haven't been very consistent, and my body thinks that a little longer would be good for me.

So, this week, I commit to doing at least 15 minutes of yoga every single day. 

The last thing I want is to get injured halfway through my training when things are going well...and I think really stretching out these muscles, especially in my legs, will prevent my pulling or overworking something.

You tell me: What are you proud of accomplishing lately?  How many Muscle Milks do YOU drink each week?  What's something you're working on incorporating into your life?