working out

I’m going to “TRI” real hard…

Posted on February 8, 2016 by Gigi in Fitness 1 Comment

Inspiration comes in many ways. I was minding my own business when a client shared she was doing the Pasadena triathlon, one that I participated in last year in the swim portion on a relay team. Then my daughter who just launched a fitness IG browngirlsdoitwell, asked me for a photo from a triathlon I had did in the past, she was doing a “throwback” post. That was enough for me to dust off my running shoes and think about starting the process to whip this body into “tri” shape in the next 4 weeks. I work best when I have a goal, so this event is perfect and obtainable, I think…

Transition Area

My First Tri

The Pasadena triathlon is March 12, it is a little sprint, 5k, 10 mile bike, and 500 yard swim, and no, I am not the type that can wake up and drop a “tri” with no training like my husband can, but I know I can finish.

I’m excited that this is going to be the perfect way to implement my 2016 fitness goals. January has come and gone and I have not been on my program. I found this 8 week guide to training for a sprint triathlon that I will modify for 4 weeks, yes I am an ambitious old thing.

triathlon training plan

My off days I will add yoga.

So I started the (run/walk) this past weekend, and hmmm I have a lot of work to do. I noticed after about 10 minutes my legs began to itch like crazy, so much so that I had to stop for a moment and try and relieve myself. I know what this is- as my heart rate goes up, blood flows faster, and the tiny capillaries and arteries in my muscles begin to expand rapidly, these stay open when you are fit but if you have not been on point, your capillaries tend to collapse. When your capillaries expand, the surrounding nerves become stimulated and send messages to the brain which read as intense itching! I learned all this when I trained for a marathon many years ago…

What are you fitness goals for this year? If you are mature like me, what are your obstacles if any? And how do you stay motivated? Btw you could always sign up for the Pasadena Triathlon…I’d love to know.

Happy Monday,

Xoxo,

Gigi

LIVE TO BE 100 ?

Posted on October 27, 2013 by Gigi in Aging 2 Comments

Today I read this article, that appeared on my facebook news feed, it was about this vibrant 90 year-old lady. Of course I was impressed, being on the other side of 50, you pay attention to articles on the aging process, antioxidants, powerful skin creams, hormone changes and such. Phyllis Sues, the woman featured in the article is extremely active, she practices yoga, dances the tango, and took up the circus trapeze in her 80’s. She is always learning something and challenging herself to do something new, doing some yoga poses that I can’t do yet. While it would be nice to live a long life, and possibly reach the ripe old age of 100, I would want to be healthy and vibrant like this 90 years young lady.

Phyllis Sues age 90

For the most part I live an active life style, occasionally I go on binges where I become fixated on an activity and become obsessed, like yoga, spinning, bootcamp or training for a tri, and sometimes I take a little unintentional hiatus-not good at my age. 3 weeks ago I got my mojo back working out almost daily, and of course like always I feel great. I’ve been doing bootcamp, hiking and working with a trainer. I took a yoga class this weekend, and realized that it is a critical part of my well being, and it took being away for a moment to see how much my body and my mind missed my practice. My yoga teacher said something that stuck in my head, “We are always comparing/competing–stop it!” with that I did my best, not beating myself up for being so “tight” and feeling as though I lost all the gains I had made in my yoga practice.

What is your workout routine? How do you stay motivated? When you really think about it, there is no excuse, the benefits are life saving and although sometimes it is difficult to be consistent all the time- you just have to do it! A few more golden warriors.