I Bought a Boat!

Whew, I feel like I haven't stopped moving since I got home from Texas. Yesterday I finally got to use a Living Social Deal I'd gotten for stand-up paddleboarding. 

 I roped the new boy (guy I am dating, boyfriend, I don't know we haven't discussed formal titles yet) into coming with me. He was quite handy in strapping the boards to the top of my car, because I couldn't even come close to reaching. We decided to explore the marsh, partly because we thought it would be too windy on the open water and partly because we didn't want anyone to see us looking like fools. We had so much fun. We both fell off a few times as we were getting used to it, but luckily the marsh water was warm. We were going against the tide and wind on our way out, so it was quite a bit of work. My back and abs are sore today! We also went through some shallow places where we had to lay down and paddle or even carry the boards. We saw a ton of cool birds, some fish, and a lot of other random critters. We made it all the way to the open ocean and then enjoyed an easy ride back, propelled by the wind and tide. On a hot day, I was so happy to spend the day in and on the water.



Last night I watched the Olympic Gymnastics Trials with Breezy. Even though I am a runner, cyclist, triathlete, etc now, in my heart I will always be a gymnast. I can only watch with another former gymnast who understand my critique. Non gymnasts just think I am a judgmental jerk.

This morning I was up early for kickboxing. My shoulders and abs were not happy to be working after so many hours on the paddleboard yesterday. Then I took a makeshift shower (meaning I wiped myself down with a wet towel) before running off to meet my Mom, her boyfriend Gerry, and our friends to look at a boat. We sold our family boat 2 years ago because it was totally unreliable and kept leaving us stranded at sea. No fun.

I honestly thought we'd just look at it, find something wrong, and leave since that has pretty much been the story of our boat hunt. But we ended up loving it. So I bought it! Totally unexpected. A year ago I would have freaked out about spending that much money, but I think buying my house made me immune to the shock of draining my bank account.

But then after the thrill of buying the boat, I had to watch my parents drive away with it! We'll keep it on the mooring there, so I won't even get to use it until I go up for the 4th of July. To console myself, and to cool down since it was soooo hot, I headed to the beach. I think the marsh water spoiled me yesterday, because the ocean felt frigid! It made my feet and hands ache. Still, I knew I was so lucky to be able to get cool when so much of the country is stifling.

Have you ever totally surprised yourself by making a major purchase?

Cardinal Fitness in Lubbock Texas

I got up at 4:45 am yesterday to hit the gym before flying home. Then, when I got to the gym there was a sign on the door. "Door lock broken, gym closed." Seriously? They couldn't override the electronic lock? I started to go into an angry tailspin. I NEEDED my morning workout. I had overindulged a bit at dinner the night before (we went out to BBQ) and I was going to be sitting on planes ALL day. Just before I started yelling at the poor front desk clerk, I remembered that I had looked up nearby gyms before I left and one right by the hotel had early morning classes.

I booked it up to my room, got my wallet and keys, and headed for Cardinal's Fitness Performance Training. The guy at the front desk was super nice and scooted me right into PUMP and Kick even though I was 10 minutes late.


It wasn't quite what I was inspecting inside. Instead of a typical gym, it was a giant room of astroturf with lots of cool equipment around the edges. The class I took started off with 15 minutes of contact kickboxing. I slid on my gloves and started going at the bag. I was amazed at how much the stationary punching and kicking got my heart rate up.

After kickboxing we moved on to 15 minutes of sport drills. We did wall balls, close little wall ball bounces that totally burned my triceps, oblique twists, and jump ropes.

For the last 15 minutes we went into the aerobics studio for some TRX, which are these straps that are suspended from the ceiling. I LOVED them! It was a great workout, that totally challenged my strength and balance but also felt like a good stretch. I was like ready to go buy a set because I loved them so much!

 

So a day that started off badly was totally turned around. Unfortunately, I am going to have to be in Texas quite a bit this summer for work (it's just wayyyy too hot for me), but at least now I have Cardinal's to look forward to. 

What new workouts have you tried lately?

What new workouts have you tried lately?

World Famous Mud Run Pictures

My co-worker finally sent me some of the pictures he took during the World Famous Mud Run! They capture the messy fun of the event much better than my summary I did right after the event. So, without further adieu....

Clean, geared up and ready to go

Guns on top of the gun

 

Too Damn Hot

I will never complain about "heat" in Maine again. I am in Lubbock Texas this week and I am dying. It was 109 when I landed yesterday and here is the lovely forcast for the week.

I landed about 4:30 and felt like I was going to melt as soon as I stepped onto the tarmac. After checking into my hotel last night I went down to the lobby for the free cocktail hour (I never say no to free food and booze) and found a whole bunch of people with tri bands and numbers on. So naturally I started talking to them and found out they'd just done a half iron distance. Seriously?? I could barely manage the walk from my car to the hotel with my suitcase in the heat. They are my new heroes. Meanwhile I will be hiding inside with the AC.