Running at 9,000 feet

Vacation in Estes Park, Colorado

I tried to run last night as to stimulate my bowels into action (I'm desperate), and was laughing about trying to run uphill at elevation. I made it all of three minutes before having to stop and walk for a while, and then three more minutes after that. The descent was strictly a controlled fall. On my way back up to our I stopped to check out the laundry facility, where I found a woman cleaning up - I thought she worked there. "No, I don't work here. I came here to visit my son who's been here working for over a month, and he hasn't done laundry ONE time. So I gathered his smelly clothes and brought them here to wash. I just couldn't stand it because I've had to change my socks twice a day - everything gets so dirty!" I had to laugh. I'll be doing some laundry tonight, because our pile is also smelly and very large. While I was cooling down after the run I stood quietly watching a young female elk grazing. When she caught wind of me she just walked right over to me, and I went running like the ninny I am. Those years with moose in Alaska have me well trained to avoid them all - I do not discriminate when there is risk of hoof to head.

The Gauntlet

There is a cardio machine, usually found in most gyms, that I like to call the gauntlet. It’s real name is something like ‘Step Mill’. It is basically a revolving staircase type of contraption, and you have to hold on to two hand rails and climb the thing to get started, and you are really about 2 to 3 feet off of the ground. It takes some getting used to – especially that feeling that you might fly off of the back of the thing with one small misstep. My fear is always that the machine will somehow swallow me whole, so the motivation to keep stepping is high.

You’d think that just stepping up on a revolving staircase might be relatively easier that climbing actual stairs, but in reality it is actually much more difficult. I think this is due in large part to the psychology of being killed while using the machine. I sometimes see people up there stepping away while reading a book and I fear for their lives. Seriously.

Yesterday I found a less threatening and more enjoyable form of the gauntlet while hiking in Boulder, Colorado. There is a trail here called the Mesa Trail, and it involves many up and downhill treks, which reminded me of using the gauntlet at the gym, but I was oh so much happier outside hiking. Moral of the story: if you want a great workout, take a hike! Or just jump on the gauntlet when you’re in the gym next, but don’t miss a step!

Lunges

Let me tell you right off the bat that my relationship with lunges is purely love/hate, and sometimes just hate/hate. They are challenging (love) but sometimes painful (hate). Yesterday after finishing an easy six mile run my legs felt a little tight so I (stupidly) thought, ‘why don’t I just finish up with a few sets of walking lunges?’. At the time it seemed perfectly reasonable, but now, 24 hours later, I’m walking like I just got off of a five day trail ride. My hamstrings are singing something that sounds like the blues.

I highly recommend walking lunges as a REGULAR part of any workout routine, but be prepared for the pain train if you’re only doing once every other month, and make sure you stretch your hamstrings thoroughly afterward. Walking lunges are the fastest path toward buff glutes and hamstrings that I know of, unless you are already a track star (which I am NOT).

Needless to say, I won’t be running today. I’ll be stretching, though, and limping just a bit. Walking will be a great alternative. Moral of my painful story: buck up