blargh, spinning=leisurely bike ride this morning. i couldn't bear to push myself...i think my pain tolerance in general has declined. b/c really, what's the drive? my quads were the limiting factor. quads and calves...so heartrate didn't go up much at all. i couldn't pull with hammies b/c flexing the ankles on the upstroke hurt the calves too much. blargh blargh blargh. i guess it was still better than nothing, but i wonder if a longish run might've done just as well. and to add to the guilt factor, i took the last spinning pass, so jon didn't get a bike, and of course, the class was full, so brad had to kick a girl out to let me in. i'm not saying i was the biggest slacker in the class...just that i should've done more...

so sore...first dragonboating practice saturday totally wore out my lowerback/core. by the end, it was hard even to hold the oar on the paddles up call, but i did manage to hit some sort of rhythm. afterwards, brunched with arati+her parents, and then hiked the twins in 80min. i felt like the uphills were super slow/harder than usual, but i think the times are actually ok. we also ran into linda+hubert in the middle, so spent 5 min or so talking to them (we were on the downhill, so i don't think the rest is relevant). it was definitely a completion=success hike. sunday, disc'd on uberhard fields...first competitive practice so ran some throwing drills (i'm in dire need of them), and then scrimmaged. it's hard to hike/run without your lowerback. today my calves and lowerback are both still sore...so i'm hobbling around the office in heels.

ran intervals this morning. nothing spectacular: 3min warmup (around 10-11 kph) then 8 reps of 1:30 14kph, 1:30 9kph for a tad more than 5k in 27 min. i was tired by the end, but not that tired, which means i coulda/shoulda done the runs on 15kph. it seems i am in awful cardio shape, but my legs are holding up really well. i never once hit lactic acid, but i was gasping for air...it felt like my lungs couldn't get enough o2...which i guess isn't that surprising given i've just gotten over bronchitis and i'm still coughing up random bits of phlegm (mmm...yum!).

disc last night was fun even tho we lost by 2 or 3 pts, which is not bad considering we had 6-7 guys and 3-2 girls to their 5 or so subs. i think we might've won had we played 5-2 the entire game like we were supposed to. instead linda made some wuss call that we should play 6-1 so their girls wouldn't have to be savage (she was tired of covering me--her words, not mine). i caught some pretty sketchy things (almost no spin, but also no wind), and threw some really bad stuff...paulie came down with one of my blades in the endzone, but i had a ton of turns (causing the first break right off the pull, putting up a stall 9 turnover, etc etc). BUT i also had 2 layouts--1 for the catch, but it was more of a going for a low disc, hitting the ground on my back to protect the catch than a full extension. the second was a full extension on a zippy deep throw, i had it in my hand but couldn't hold on when i hit the groud (hand first, which is a bad policy if you want to not drop the disc in that hand). i'm excited b/c i rarely layout, especially not at league. now i just have to get my throwing confidence back.

we did spinning this morning after a month away from the gym. despite the 12km, 2:17 adventure race from sunday, my legs felt very fresh, once again proving that the only things the adventure race strained were my knees. i also suspect that my bike was weaker than normal. the last couple of times, my base was at 5 (feels like freewheeling) with 8 feeling a bit strained and 11 as my base for standing (supports my weight). everything this time was 3 gears up--so i actually managed 20 at the peak of the hillclimbs whilst keeping the pace (80-90rpm). anyways, i was thinking...for ultimate, you can always sprint the end (or the next) regardless of how tired you are. for crosscountry, we could always sprint the end. you never regret it afterwards, promise.

my core strength is shot to pieces. i was trying to work hamstrings on the pb (where you lie on your back with your heels on the ball and pull it towards your butt), but the thing kept wobbling all over the place. i did not look graceful. something to work on.