5k Update & A New Summer Challenge

June is coming to an end, which means that the 5k running challenge will be left in Colorado’s fire’y-ist month.   I wanted to share a quick update on how I did, or did not do.

The first 20 days I ran everyday (except for a day I went hiking for a few hours instead).  On the 21st day I had a dermatology appointment, which resulted in taking off a few suspicious moles and made my running come to a screeching halt.  You can read about that scary experience here.

As I was allowing my new wounds to heal, I dusted off my hybrid bike and rode around the local reservoir.  Less impact = less pain.  Everyday I went between 10-17 miles.   Good enough to keep me feeling active when I was supposed to be inactive.

Now that a week has gone by, I was able to run again today.  I went out for 3 miles and felt like I had lost whatever strength I had accumulated in the first 20 days.   I was baffled by how quickly it can be lost.

A new month is approaching and I am setting a new goal:  30 days of running or core power yoga everyday.  A mini 30 day sweat challenge sounds like a good idea!   The first 20 people that commit to doing a 30 day sweat challenge will get a complimentary life coaching session!   Write “SIGN ME UP!” in the comment section below or if you’re shy, shoot me an email betsy@betsyfrycoaching.com

What are you doing to stay in shape this summer?  Do you have specific goals that are helping you to stay on the fitness track?  Publicly declare those goals in the comment section below and I’ll help hold ya accountable.

Days 360-363: The End of an Era

Day 363: After two and a half years at lululemon, I am sad to say that last Sunday I put in my two weeks notice to leave the company.  The part-time job  took me from an HR world filled with Fenway Franks and a lonely heart to a world filled with deep breathing, living with intention and more black luon than any one person should ever own.   The job has filled my life with more love, friends and happiness than I could have ever imagined.  It was one of the hardest decisions that I have had to make, however I felt like all the signs in the world have been pointing at me to go coach full-time.  Although it’s incredibly hard for me to do, I knew it was time.

Now I am filling my mind with how to get through the transition by filling my home office with as much happiness as I have gained in the last 2.5 years.  Hopefully I can send that on to my future clients.

With that being said, I went to my last staff meeting on Thursday morning and started with a 45 minute yoga flow led by my amazing co-worker, Jessica Lapham.  She led us through lots of community breathing and inspirational messages that made me teary-eyed for the newest transition in my life.

After work was done that day I came home and went on a quick 20 minute run to make me feel more at home in my home.

Day 361: On Friday I went for a 30 minute run in the snowy morning and was wondering the entire time what happened to Fall?  We seemed to have skipped that season in Denver this year!

Day 362:  Yesterday morning was another one of those, “how the heck am I going to fit in a workout?” type of days.  It really rattles me to the core when I feel stressed about how I will find the time, however, it always works out.  I took Mike to work at 6 a.m. and then went straight to Pura Vida gym for 45 minutes of cardio, followed by 15 minutes of weights and 10 minutes of abs.  Phew, got it in.

Day 363:  This afternoon my friend Katie and I went to my favorite Core Power Yoga on Broadway for a C2 class.  She introduced me to yoga five years ago by taking me to Pura Vida, where I fell on my face attempting crow pose in my first class.   After I let go of my ego, I eventually came back to the practice and it’s now changed my life in a way I never would have thought possible.  Namaste Katie, Namaste.

Days 288-289: New Inspiration

Day 288:  Yesterday I went to a Core Power Sculpt class.  No surprise there.  However, I did manage to shock the living daylights out of myself during class.  Typically I am one of the first people to arrive at a studio because I think having my first pick of mat placement in class affects my practice deeply (anyone else do this?).  Unfortunately it did not work that way yesterday.  I was running uber late and ended up having to squeeze into a corner.  This would not have been a bad thing, except the corner was right next to the heater/humidifier that heated up the entire room.  I noticed this 10 minutes into class when my yoga mat that is known for its’ sweat-wicking abilities, was no longer wicking.  It. Was. Soaked.  Normally I would have used this unfortunate corner heat situation as an excuse to say, “go easy Bets, it’s damn hot!,” but instead, I allowed myself to be inspired by the two women next to me who were not phased by this in the slightest bit.  In fact, they were the two overachievers in class who set the standard higher for the other 40 people.  I tried by best to follow suit.

When I came home I drank 4 glasses of water and took an ice-cold shower.  My body was spent, but my mind was proud of my ability to look past my excuses and dig a little deeper.   So thank you to those strangers on the mats next to me that made me realize all that I am capable of during a time when I was blinded (by sweat, of course).

Day 289:  My pal and Bonza Body trainer extraordinaire, Jamie Atlas, gave me a bridal workout schedule and nutrition guide to follow for the next 3.5 weeks.  He told me to ramp up my runs to 50-60 minutes three times per week leading up to the wedding.  Not many things could pull me away from my scuplting obsession lately, except for a badass trainer telling me what could potentially lean me down.  Challenge accepted.

Today I ran 5.5 miles to Wash Park, around the perimeter and home.  I even took a different path to make it feel fresh.  During my run I tried to keep my mind as far from wedding details as I could.  I decided to think about my goals.  Where do I want to be in life in 10 years?  How am I going to get there?  What sort of visuals were popping up for me?  It was awesome. Beautiful.  Plentiful.  And most importantly, it inspired me to keep going and preoccupied my busy mind.

Days 283-287: Colorado Love

Day 283:  As the days of my challenge tick by I am realizing that working out is now embedded in my everyday regimen, blogging on the other hand is the first thing to take the back burner when life gets busy.  I promise to you that I am sweating, life’s busyness has just taken the forefront.

Thursday morning I met a friend in Wash Park for a three-mile run and followed it up with a yoga sculpt class at Core Power (you’ll really start to see a trend here).

Day 284:  Friday morning I woke up in Denver to complete sadness.  My fiance came home from working a night shift at Buckley Air Force Base and told me to turn on the devastating news in Aurora.  Like most tragic events, it took me some time to comprehend the magnitude of what had happened just a few miles from home.  My heart was shattered for our state that has already endured so much pain in the past.

Working out was the furthest thing from my mind.  So much so, that I decided that a picnic in the  (empty) park, followed by an hour-long walk with Mike would have to suffice.  We talked and talked trying to work through the overwhelming day.  Sometimes I think that’s all we can to do find some ease.

Day 285:  Core Power Yoga Sculpt.

Day 286:  Ride to and from work and Core Power Yoga Sculpt.

Day 287:  This morning I went on a three-mile run and then to Bonza Bodies tonight for a bootcamp style class.  As I was in class tonight, I kept catching myself doing the wrong exercises, lifting the opposite leg as my classmates or zoning out to the point of not knowing what exercise my body had just completed.  It was a huge realization to myself that I am still processing some things and feeling a little stressed in life.  Running felt like a gift to my mind and although my body loved the hard class, my mind was left feeling more confused.

Tomorrow I will shoot for a yoga flow that can hopefully give my mind a little bit of a rest.

Days 280-282: Meditation

Day 280: On Monday I went for another hour-long bike ride.  There is something about riding away from the city that makes me feel calmer inside.  And with this wedding coming up, I’ll take whatever I can to help keep me calm!

Day 281:  Yesterday I went for an hour long walk and to yoga sculpt at Core Power in the evening.

Day 282:  This morning I went on a five mile run before it got too hot out.  It’s been awhile since I’ve gone on a run and had it feel good the whole time (I blame the heat!).  Luckily, today felt great and left me feeling positive about my running capabilities.  After I ran, I came home and completed Day three of the 21 Day Deepak Chopra Meditation Challenge.  I apologize profusely for not sharing this with you on day 1.  However it’s not too late to get in on the game if you’re for a game changer in your life:

21 Day Meditation Challenge

Days 278 & 279: Don’t Worry, Be Happy

Day 278:  When I woke up on Saturday morning every single cell in my body was telling me to take a break from working out.  I could actually hear my thighs saying, “come on Betsy, it’s been 277 days without a proper day of rest.  You can skip today.”  It’s a good thing my mind was somewhere else, otherwise this blog would have been a thing of the past.

Instead of partaking in a heart pounding, sweat blinding cardio class I coaxed myself into a nice easy bike ride on my hybrid (despite years of trying, I unabashedly, admit that I still cannot change a tire on my road bike- hence why I take my hybrid when riding alone).  I actually believed myself at first.  I hopped on my bike, went nice and easy down to the Cherry Creek Trail and then turned on Pandora and tore away for 35 minutes out.  I found groups of road bikers and tried to stay at their pace, raced to mile markers and drenched my shirt in sweat.  Then I turned around and rode back in for 40 more minutes.  I think I used most of my energy on my way out because I was exhausted on my way home.

When I got home, I showered and fell asleep on the couch for 20 minutes before hopping back on my bike and heading into work.  It really amazed me how a little bit of a mind games really turned my workout from a “slacker day” to one of my favorite solo rides.

Day 279:  Today I was feeling a little uninspired in life.  Do you ever have those days?  I have no idea why, I just was.  I decided to go to church and follow it up with a Core Power Sculpt class; hoping that the combination of the two would make me feel better.  The pastor’s message was about drawing strength from your faith and those around you.  He shared this video from the 1976 Olympics that filled me up with inspiration and strength.  I left church feeling renewed and I headed to class.  The instructor opened up class with a song that my Mom used to play for me every morning on my Fisher Price record player, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy.”  At first the song made me laugh and then it brought tears to my eyes during a minute long plank (at least I think it was the song and not the plank!).

My day started off feeling blah and by noon I was filled with motivation and reminiscent love.  It catapulted the rest of my day into helping me add new elements to my bride diet/healthy life.  Disclaimer:  I’m not on a real diet, I am trying to make my life healthier and the wedding has helped me make these changes.  I went to the store and (finally) bought Chia Seeds, Probiotics and a food journal.  Here are two links that describe what I am working on and what the heck Chia Seeds are:

Chia Seeds

10 Tips to Get a Bitchin’ Bod (not really the title, but I like it better)

What motivates you when you’re feeling a little blah?  How do you get unstuck when you’re convinced you can’t move?   Besides the obvious 80s songs by Bobby McFerrin, of course.

Days 275-277: Drowning in Sweat

Day 275:  When I first purchased my unlimited month at Core Power Yoga, I made a goal to go to Sculpt everyday for thirty days, but after two days in a row, I tossed that one out the window.  Although it is my favorite workout around,  my body wanted something different…or maybe just not so sweaty (see super soaked bra, eek!).

Day 276:  Yesterday a big group of lululemon friends went to Bonza Bodies for a 50 minute cardio circuit style class.  The room was not as hot as the heated Core Power classes, however it’s quite possible that I sweated even more.  Although I spent the entire 50 minutes catching my breath, it did not seem that bad since I had ten friends going through the same thing and laughing at our instructor, Jamie Atlas.

Day 277:  This morning another group of lululemon friends went to Pura Vida for Billy Potocnik’s 6 a.m. power flow.  He started off the class with a five-minute meditation that focused on gratitude.  It helped me focus on what I wanted to emotionally dedicate my practice to and concentrate on how to stay more present in my life….normally, I would share this wisdom, but I’ve been up since 5 a.m. and now I can’t remember what the key to that was.  I will ask him the next time I see him and make sure to put it in the blog 🙂

After an hour of some intense power yoga, I came home and made my new favorite smoothie and rode my bike into work:

-1/2 cup pineapple, 2 cups spinach, a handful of basil, half a banana,  1/2 cup of plain greek yogurt, 1/2 cup of cucumbers, ice and water*

*I don’t actually measure out any of my green smoothies, this is just an approximate guess.  If you are trying to get into drinking them, just play around with ingredients that you like and you’ll find the right amount of servings of fruit/veggies to put in.

Days 265-267: Yogs and Boards

Day 265:  On Sunday I went to Karma Yoga with my regular yoga friend, Sangeeta.  We flowed for an hour and worked on hip openers like it was our job.  Walking out, my body felt like jelly.  It was perfect.

Day 266:  Less than 100 days left!!  Time has flown by.  These next few weeks leading up to the wedding I will be ramping up the workouts, possibly throwing in two-a-days if my schedule allows.  Mike and I are working on a wedding diet as well, to make sure we are feeling our best for the big day.  This is my absolute favorite summer salad that will be making a regular appearance in our diets:

-3 cups mixed greens, 3 oz teriyaki tofu and a mixture of these fixin’s: almonds, scallions, sesame sticks, avocado, blueberries and dried figs

Yesterday I walked to the closest Core Power for a sculpt class.   I thought those classes were always hard, but add a 100 plus degree day and it takes t to a whole new level of difficult.  Regardless of how I was feeling I pushed through it and managed to make a friend as we left and walked back to our homes together.  Just two neighbors, walking on Broadway, soaked in sweat, talking about life and bonding over sculpting yoga.  It was the great end to a brutally hot class.

Day 267: Today Mike, my friend Jenny and I went to Avon at Nottingham Lake for our first standup paddleboarding experience ever.  We bought the groupons a few months back and decided we should use them before it gets too hot in the mountains.  Unfortunately, we had to use the inflatable paddleboards because the others were too big to fit on our cars (to bring to the lake).   Within the first few minutes of shoving off the land all three of us were in the water.  A few minutes later we had it down.  Well, Jenny and Mike really had it down, I had it down until I fell every three minutes.  I blame it on my lack of ability to focus on one thing at a time…and believe me, you need to focus on only balance or you are in the lake (every three minutes).

After two hours of paddleboarding Mike and I came home and went for a run a Washington Park.  It felt good to get in some more cardio after a day of semi-relaxing on the water.  Happy 4th everyone, I hope you find some time to sweat while celebrating our country’s independence with your friends and family!

Days 246 & 247: Memories and Blisters

Day 246:   I am finally feeling back to normal and full of life after the six-day friend bender last week.  Refreshed, I wanted something to truly kick my butt…and Core Power Yoga’s Sculpt class with Tara, truly did just that. The studio boasts a steamy 95 degrees (or somewhere around there) and is a perfect combo of cardio, strength and balance.  She even blared some TOTO “Africa,” which gets me amped like no other.

At one point I glanced at myself in the mirror and realized that I was running through the motions, but that my mind was so far away…in Vail with my 12 favorite friends, celebrating love and friendship.  I’d start randomly smiling and try not to laugh.  I’m sure I looked like the crazy person in the corner.

Freshly made good memories were the best way to get through a painfully hard class.  What helps you get through your hard workouts?  Do you listen to your breath or drift away to a shining memory?

Day 247:  When my clients give me excuses why they do not work out, I make sure to call them on it.  I don’t like excuses one bit….especially mine.  However, today, I had two big ones called “blisters.”  Last weekend my dancin’ shoes really did a number on my feet and they stubbornly do not want to heal.  Regardless, I wanted to get out and run.  I bandaged up my feet, tied up my new sneaks and headed out.  I made it 40 minutes before I had to call it quits.

I guess those good memories from yesterday made a longer lasting impression on my heels. #blistersmeanfunhappened

Days 230-232: Tie-Dyed Peace

Day 230:  On Monday I went to Core Power for a sculpt class.  I have not been to one in a while, so I will refresh your memory- hot room, weights, yoga poses and lots of sweat.  At one point I started seeing spots, so I dropped to my knees to help me regain some control.  After a 30 second break, I joined the rest of my classmates to finish up.  I made the declaration on that day that I was going to work really hard to have some seriously toned bridal guns for the wedding in 80 days.  In fact, I might need to get a license for these guns…

Day 231:  Yesterday I went for a bike ride on the Cherry Creek Trail.  When I ride alone I like to take my hybrid bike because I think that bike is less prone to flats (aka me getting stranded because I still do not know how to change a flat tire after six years of biking).   I listened to Adele radio on Pandora, sang out loud every now again when I thought nobody was around and pedaled my hybrid-bike-heart out for 90 minutes.

Day 232:   In 10 days 15 of my nearest and dearest gal pals will be in town for my bachelorette party and I want to make sure that I am working my tail off up until that alcohol infused weekend.  So I decided to take full advantage of the two-week trial membership that the Denver Athletic Club gave all the Colfax half-marathon participants.  Today, I got the official tour of quite possibly the largest gym/club I have ever been to.   The membership director even had me get on this large machine (no clue what it was called) that shakes so fast that supposedly it helps rid you of fat.  Actually, I made that up.  I have no clue what it is meant to do besides threaten a possible orgasm in front of Denver’s most elite gym goers.

After the tour I headed to one of the three locker rooms and threw on my tie-dyed swimsuit and headed to the pool.  I swam a little shy of a mile and was quickly reminded of why I used to love to swim.  I lose myself completely within  seconds of putting on my goggles.  All the noises go away under the water and I am left just to think about my strokes.   Speed up, slow down, flip, repeat.  It feels poetic to be able to lose a sense everything else going on.  If you used to swim and you have not done it in a while, then I challenge you to find a local pool and lose yourself.  It’s amazing how good it feels to find some quiet chlorine induced peace.

Fuel of the week:  Greek yogurt with blackberries and strawberries.