Oh, what a shame to rise from bed at 5 am. Have I mentioned that I am only doing this four times a week?
Workout
My workout this morning looked something like this:
3 sets of 15 alternating chest press and fly on bench (12 pounds)
3 sets of 15 standing row (12 pounds)
120 tricep dips (20 at a time in between sets, using body weight)
3 sets of 15 military shoulder presses (10 pounds)
3 sets of 15 bicep curls (8 pounds)
I don't switch up my bicep and shoulder exercises very much.
For the lower body, I did:
2 sets of 10 single-legged squats, holding onto a chair for balance
20 alternating walking lunges
20 regular squats
20 sumo squats
20 side lifts on floor on each leg
I didn't use weight on any of these lower body exercises, and I didn't want to work my legs too hard. Just as I was getting ready for bed last night, the pain set into my right leg from running. I didn't feel discomfort while running or after, which makes this whole situation even more frustrating. I'm not in a lot of pain, but it's still uncomfortable to do things like put on a pair of jeans or walk down stairs. The real no-no is lifting my knee up to my chest. My muscle fires up every time that I do it. It could be sore from the long run yesterday, but I know well enough that my leg still isn't healed.
The exercises I did today, like the single-legged squats and the forward lunges, are exercises that my mom's personal trainer told me to do in order to strengthen my sartorius muscle. When I did them this morning, it felt amazing. I felt like I was stretching the muscles and not irritating them. I also just started doing a new stretch that she told me to do a few months ago (but I of course ignored her advice). I'm also rolling on the Grid two times a day on my outer and inner thigh. I'll start stretching twice a day as well as using heating at night and before long runs and ice after exercise. I just want this stupid leg to get better. Is that too much to ask?
For now, I am still running the half marathon. I'll probably see my mom's personal trainer a few times during my training. If she tells me not to run it, then I won't. She did fix my mom's bad IT band and hamstring while she was training for the Chicago Marathon, though, so I'm hoping she can help me.
Workout
My workout this morning looked something like this:
3 sets of 15 alternating chest press and fly on bench (12 pounds)
3 sets of 15 standing row (12 pounds)
120 tricep dips (20 at a time in between sets, using body weight)
3 sets of 15 military shoulder presses (10 pounds)
3 sets of 15 bicep curls (8 pounds)
I don't switch up my bicep and shoulder exercises very much.
For the lower body, I did:
2 sets of 10 single-legged squats, holding onto a chair for balance
20 alternating walking lunges
20 regular squats
20 sumo squats
20 side lifts on floor on each leg
I didn't use weight on any of these lower body exercises, and I didn't want to work my legs too hard. Just as I was getting ready for bed last night, the pain set into my right leg from running. I didn't feel discomfort while running or after, which makes this whole situation even more frustrating. I'm not in a lot of pain, but it's still uncomfortable to do things like put on a pair of jeans or walk down stairs. The real no-no is lifting my knee up to my chest. My muscle fires up every time that I do it. It could be sore from the long run yesterday, but I know well enough that my leg still isn't healed.
The exercises I did today, like the single-legged squats and the forward lunges, are exercises that my mom's personal trainer told me to do in order to strengthen my sartorius muscle. When I did them this morning, it felt amazing. I felt like I was stretching the muscles and not irritating them. I also just started doing a new stretch that she told me to do a few months ago (but I of course ignored her advice). I'm also rolling on the Grid two times a day on my outer and inner thigh. I'll start stretching twice a day as well as using heating at night and before long runs and ice after exercise. I just want this stupid leg to get better. Is that too much to ask?
For now, I am still running the half marathon. I'll probably see my mom's personal trainer a few times during my training. If she tells me not to run it, then I won't. She did fix my mom's bad IT band and hamstring while she was training for the Chicago Marathon, though, so I'm hoping she can help me.
Getting Ready for School
During my biology lecture last Friday, I was falling asleep. I find my class to be fascinating, and my teacher (who is an M.D.) is one of those smart people you can listen to for hours. I wasn't tired because I was bored; I was tired since I was up at 5 am. This morning, I had some extra time to make tea. I figured I could make a double black tea, and I would be wide awake during my lecture.
WRONG. I still almost nodded off. I tried to find coffee during my break, but no luck. I'm going to have to start brewing coffee every morning and bringing it in a big mug. I haven't done that in so long.
Now, going back to earlier this morning, making tea in my house is something that always makes me laugh. For one thing, we have never owned a kettle. I didn't understand the importance of one of those until I had roommates in college who loved tea. As a result of not having a kettle, I use the microwave to heat up my water. In addition to having to microwave our tea water, we don't drink tap water in our house. Most suburbs of Chicago have lake water, meaning that they have purified tap water from Lake Michigan running through their pipes. In my home growing up, I always drank straight from the taps. Then, we moved to a new suburb that uses well water. We have to use water softener, which removes the calcium and magnesium (which could clog the pipes and also may prevent soap from lathering with mixed with the water) through reverse osmosis. While the water is perfectly drinkable, it has a bitter taste to it. Therefore, we only drink bottled water. I hope you enjoyed that explanation :)
WRONG. I still almost nodded off. I tried to find coffee during my break, but no luck. I'm going to have to start brewing coffee every morning and bringing it in a big mug. I haven't done that in so long.
Now, going back to earlier this morning, making tea in my house is something that always makes me laugh. For one thing, we have never owned a kettle. I didn't understand the importance of one of those until I had roommates in college who loved tea. As a result of not having a kettle, I use the microwave to heat up my water. In addition to having to microwave our tea water, we don't drink tap water in our house. Most suburbs of Chicago have lake water, meaning that they have purified tap water from Lake Michigan running through their pipes. In my home growing up, I always drank straight from the taps. Then, we moved to a new suburb that uses well water. We have to use water softener, which removes the calcium and magnesium (which could clog the pipes and also may prevent soap from lathering with mixed with the water) through reverse osmosis. While the water is perfectly drinkable, it has a bitter taste to it. Therefore, we only drink bottled water. I hope you enjoyed that explanation :)
To make my tea, I open up a cold bottle of water, pour it into a mug and heat it for one minute in the microwave.
It's not any more work than using a kettle to boil water, but it's still funny that my process for making tea is so different.
I ate another wholegrain bagel with regular cream cheese while drinking my tea. If there is one thing I have learned over the years, it is that bagels don't do anything to fill you up. I was hungry about an hour later.
I also found Mickey hanging out in his typical spot in the laundry room. I wasn't surprised to find him there, but I was surprised to see that he was hoarding biscuits. He's such a funny dog. Unlike the other ones in the house, he doesn't like those biscuits that you see below. When any of us give him one, he'll take it in his mouth but not eat it. He walks away with it and keeps it near him so that none of the other dogs can take it. I'm not sure if he ends up eating them or not. I'm also not sure how he ended up with five of them this morning!
I ate another wholegrain bagel with regular cream cheese while drinking my tea. If there is one thing I have learned over the years, it is that bagels don't do anything to fill you up. I was hungry about an hour later.
I also found Mickey hanging out in his typical spot in the laundry room. I wasn't surprised to find him there, but I was surprised to see that he was hoarding biscuits. He's such a funny dog. Unlike the other ones in the house, he doesn't like those biscuits that you see below. When any of us give him one, he'll take it in his mouth but not eat it. He walks away with it and keeps it near him so that none of the other dogs can take it. I'm not sure if he ends up eating them or not. I'm also not sure how he ended up with five of them this morning!
Lunch and Dinner
I love being able to come home for lunch, because I can whip up whatever I want. I also don't have to pack anything to take with me. For lunch today, I ate a Trader Joe's Southwest Salad. I love making my own salads, but pre-made salads can be a lot of fun.
This salad came with shredded cheddar cheese, onions, red peppers, cabbage, a corn salsa (with black beans) and some yummy dressing on the side.
I always prefer to dip my salad in dressing on the side rather than pour it on. As a result, I always lose things in my dressing! The salad didn't blow my socks off, but I really enjoyed the barbecue ranch dressing. It's hard to not enjoy it!
I still wanted to much on something before my second class, so I chopped up a Pink Lady apple. I discovered this kind of apple in Australia, and it's now my favorite. I was so happy when I found out that we have them here!
I made the sliced apple even more exciting with some almond butter. I've actually never had it before, and I am now shocked that I've been alive this long and never experienced it. It's amazing! It's so much better than peanut butter. I would have licked the whole jar clean, but then I remembered that it's smart to eat this stuff in moderation.
After a rather stressful day in chemistry, I came home to make myself even more stressed. I have quizzes in both of my classes tomorrow. I planned on studying over the weekend, but then I didn't do it. The stuff is pretty easy, but I'm still worried that I don't know the material well enough. I still have more homework due tomorrow, and I have to study for the quizzes. AND it's 10 pm! I'm supposed to be up in 7 hours. Strong coffee tomorrow morning, yes? So if I post something tomorrow night that seems completely incoherent, you will know why!
Dinner, like lunch, had a Southwestern theme. We made black bean quesadillas, which we make all the time in our house. My dad makes the filling by heating and mixing corn, tomatoes and black beans in a pan. We then make our own quesadillas.
Dinner, like lunch, had a Southwestern theme. We made black bean quesadillas, which we make all the time in our house. My dad makes the filling by heating and mixing corn, tomatoes and black beans in a pan. We then make our own quesadillas.
I added shredded cheddar cheese and Greek yogurt. I've never added the Greek yogurt before, but I certainly will in the future. The quesadilla was delicious, despite the fact that it looks very boring on my plate.
Ok, well I am going to get ready for bed and then study until I cry or pass out. We'll have to see. Biology should be fine, but chemistry doesn't come very easily to me. I'll have to work extra hard if I want to get a good grade!
I already can't wait for my coffee tomorrow. Have a great night!
I already can't wait for my coffee tomorrow. Have a great night!
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