Sole-less

We finally made it out mountain biking last Sunday. Although TD and I both bike a lot in town, we couldn't remember the last time we went mountain biking (probably 5 years?). TD used to be really into it; two big crashes have made me much more cautious but I was still looking forward to it.

One clue that its been awhile since we have been out was the state of our gear - my hydration bladder gave up the ghost while I was filling it and all of our water bottles were leaky and had been given away. But we persevered and were excited to get to the trail head when it was still cool and misty. We joked about being unprepared (no pump or patch kit) but figured our friends could help us out if we needed it.







But about a third of the way into the trail, I unclipped during a particularly tricky uphill section. Except I didn't unclip, the entire sole of my shoe peeled off, while remaining firmly clipped into the pedal. oops.



The remaining ride was interesting to say the least, trying to balance my now sole-less shoe on the very small clipless pedal. It was my dominant foot of course which made getting started all the more interesting. Thankfully TD was beyond patient & I eventually got some of my courage back and figured out how to coordinate starting off the other foot.

The place was beautiful though, and we look forward to going back. But in the meantime, I am trolling ebay for some new cycling shoes.

What's new around here?

Since I last posted in the fall, TD got hired and then un-hired from a job here in town (it wasn't the best fit, so probably for the best, but still...). So we are (again) looking to both find permanent, fulfilling jobs in the same place. We will both apply for jobs this academic job season and see what we get. It's stressful to still not feel settled but we are thankful for one good job and a great place to live for now.

My first semester of teaching came and went and I survived. I actually really enjoyed it - especially my undergraduate students. I was prepared for a hellacious time, being so busy that I couldn't even eat or shower, so the fact that my semester was a few notches below that was a pleasant surprise.

The other big news is that I joined a gym and TD and I are working out together. We did this pretty regularly his first semester at Harvard, but I literally hadn't darkened the door of a gym in over 2 years (and I hadn't done any other exercise either). The big moment for me came when I basically couldn't carry our canoe back up from the river (never mind lift it onto the roof of the car).

I've been pretty successful at getting into a regular workout routine (for the first time ever?) - we go to the gym together 3 mornings a week & I do 20 minutes of cardio & then lift weights. I am doing 20 or 30 minutes of yoga a few nights a week. I also have been running and I am happy that I can run 30 minutes without stopping (or feeling like I am dying). New shoes help too.

I still am waiting for my canoe rematch. Hopefully all this work has paid off at least a bit.

summer tunes

Since I have been driving to school (since its been so hot) I needed to do something to avoid turning into more of a couch potato than I already am.

*Confession*
I hate working out and rarely rarely do it. I like being active and I like being strong/fit/healthy but I like sitting on my rear end in front of the tv/computer/ipad more. I also think I get easily frustrated with not being "good" at athletic things - Why do I not run faster? Why can I only do 5 pushups? Why can I not do a single pull up? (obviously the answer is that I do not practice very hard at these things...)

Riding my bike to work was the perfect activity for me because it was necessary and thus not easily avoided. Ditto for walks with the dog.

BUT since I am no longer riding regularly AND in an effort to get into better shape, I have started running using the Couch to 10k program. This has been around for a while and I initially dismissed it as something for losers (if you put a gun to my head I could run a 5 or 10k without stopping). But, based on a review from ProfHacker, I down loaded the ap and have been doing it. the basic idea is to do intervals of running and walking, gradually increasing the amount of time running until you can run for an hour.

Surprise - I love it!

You can use your own music which is great (as an NPR junkie, I rarely actually listen to my music). But the best part for me, is that they tell you when to start and stop and when its time to walk and when its time to run. So, when I am getting tired, I know that soon, very soon, the nice man on the iphone will tell me to stop. Genius!

The whole 10k program takes 10 weeks, so hopefully I can stick to it. I'll post an update each week.