Aerial Yoga Teacher Training

This past weekend I did something really fun: I got certified to teach aerial yoga! When I first saw that the training was being offered at one of my favorite studios, I was really torn about signing up. It sounded so amazingly fun, but it was a big commitment, both in terms of time and money. My husband works on weekends so it meant finding 3 full days of childcare. It also meant giving up a day of paid work and paying a significant tuition.


In the end I decided to take the plunge though. I had been feeling a little burnt out and like I needed something exciting, inspiring, and fulfilling in my life. It's been awhile since I immersed myself in something new.

The training was 3 full days and it was a mix of yoga practice, classroom instruction, and practice teaching. It was so fun to learn some new aerial tricks, but I actually found it just as fun to practice teaching. Teaching aerial is a unique challenge because many times your students can't see you. So you really have to use simple, clear, cues to guide them. It's a good mental challenge to design a balanced class and then lead that class effectively.

I'm teaching some practice classes in the next month (they are free and at Tula if you are local and want to come and then I hope to be able to teach at least one class a week going forward. But even if I don't end up teaching, I'm glad I took the time for myself to dive deeper into a new passion. 

A New Job!

This morning I got to do something that I've wanted to do for a long time........ I taught my first class at my gym!

For years there was a metabolic conditioning class at 8 am Saturday morning that I loved. It was a great workout and I made a whole group of gym friends at the class. Our instructor left in May right as the gym was being sold. They ended up putting a different class in that time slot and we were all disappointed. We all gave it a try, but it just wasn't what we wanted. So we made our own class! For months I've been coming up with workouts for us to do out on the main floor. Our renegade group kept growing to the point where they asked me if I was interested in teaching an official class. I definitely was! I really enjoy putting the workouts together and leading them. Getting paid for something I like to do? Bonus!

I had 18 people at my first class this morning and it went really smoothly. The hardest part was getting myself and Cooper up, dressed, fed, in the car, to the gym, and into childcare in time to get ready for class!

It's really exciting to have something new in my life that I really enjoy!

What's new with you?

Rite of Passage

Last night I reached an important parent milestone- I caught my child's vomit in my hands. I'm a nurse, but I hate puke. Blood, poop, urine, pus, mucus- none of them bother me. As soon as I'm near vomit though, I start gagging.

Yet last night, when Cooper started to heave I instinctively held my hands in front of him. I get it now. It's really a selfish act. After cleaning the baby and myself the last thing I wanted to do was have to clean the carpet as well. Unfortunately, last night my hands couldn't contain the contents of Cooper's stomach. Luckily Rory was home and he took care of the carpet clean-up. That's love my friends.


What's the grossest thing you've done lately?

All the Bad things I Forgot About Long Runs

I've done 8 marathons and a lot (I've lost count)of half marathons, so I've done my fair share of long runs in my life. However, I haven't done one in more than 2 years and somehow in that time I forgot about all the not so pleasant things. It's just like childbirth- you forget all the bad parts. Yet this week's 11 miler brought it all back to me.

Chafing
Y tho? Seriously, how can my own skin inflict so much pain on itself? I forgot how much chafing sucks. It totally takes all the pleasure out of the hot shower after a run. And for 2 days afterward people keep asking if I'm okay because I am moving so weirdly. I've already put the Body Glide front and center in my bathroom so I can't forget this week.


Carrying Water
I have tried every water carrying device ever made and I've yet to find one I like. They ride up and fall down and usually lead to chafing (see above). Lots of public water fountains is maybe the only thing I'd like about living a big city. Here in Maine my only options are dirty snow or salt water.

Post Run Hunger
 I wanted to eat ALL the things. And I deserve to right? (this is how I always end up gaining weight when training for distance events).

What are your least favorite things about long runs?

Comparison

This morning I ran 9 miles, the longest run I’ve done since having a baby. It was wonderful. Despite starting at 530 am, I felt great. It was mild, the roads were clear, and there was a stunning sunrise. It was one of those runs where everything just clicked.

Then I finished and saved my run and saw that my over-all average pace was 9:47. My pride started to dissipate because I thought I was running so much faster. Then I went inside and looked at my phone while I stretched and saw that 7 years ago  today I had just finished the Antarctica Marathon, 4 years ago I was in Japan after the Tokyo Marathon, and 3 years ago I was in New Zealand getting ready to run the Mountains to the Sea Marathon. Suddenly 9 miles didn’t seem like such an accomplishment.

I’m finding this training for my first post-partum half marathon more challenging than I expected. Physically, my body has changed and I haven’t run longer than 6-7 miles in 2 years.  Practically it is really hard to fit in the training around work and being a Mom. It’s still too cold and snowy to take Cooper with me, so I have to run when someone else is around to watch him. Mentally, I struggle with comparing myself to what I used to be able to do. I used to run marathons and I used to run faster.

I’m trying to remind myself that I am in a different point in my life and comparing myself to what I used to do (or to other people) serves no purpose. I am doing the best I can do right now. But taking it easy on myself, is not one of my strong points.

When I Have Kids, I'll Never #2

As Cooper grows, so does my list of things I do as a parent that I said I’d never do. I did a post like this when he was just a few months old and I thought it was a lot of fun, so here’s #2!

1)      I said I’d never let my kids in the bathroom with me

I like my privacy. I don’t want my husband in there when I am going to the bathroom and I said I’d never let my kids in there either. Well it turns out letting Cooper in is easier than having him standing outside the door screaming and pounding on the door. Or even worse, hearing nothing but silence from outside and worrying that he has found a new way to try and kill himself.

2)      I said my house wouldn’t be overrun with toys

I am a neat freak, so I planned to be a minimalist parent. My kids wouldn’t need a thousand toys. I'd have a place for everything and clean up every night. Well it turns out people love to buy babies lots of toys (and we do appreciate it, really!) and that babies get bored quickly and do need quite a variety of stuff to keep them amused. As for keeping everything neat and organized? Our collection rapidly outgrew our storage containers and we quickly acquired some large items that didn’t fit in containers. By night time I am so completely exhausted that the last thing I want to do is clean, especially when I know it will all just get messy again first thing in the morning.

3)      I said I’d never let my kids eat in the car and trash the backseat

Cooper is not a fan of the car right now. Turns out I’d rather have to vacuum up huge quantities of Cheerios every few days than listen to him scream the whole time we are in the car.

And then of course there is the whole separate category of  things so strange that I never even imagined I’d be doing them. Like try to get a decent picture of your child’s butt crack in order to show the doctor his diaper rash. It involved multiple lamps to get the right lighting and then a lot of coordination as I tried to simultaneously hold his cheeks apart so you could see the rash, keep him from launching himself off the changing table, and hold my phone and take a picture.

Total Body Drop Set Burnout Workout

My gym has cancelled a lot of my favorite classes. But every cloud has a silver lining, and in this case it has forced me to get out on the gym floor and create my own workouts more. I really have enjoyed this. It has forced me out of my rut of always doing the same exercises for 3 sets of 12 reps. I created this one Tuesday that was inspired by this workout on Peanut Butter Fingers.

A drop set workout was a great change of pace and a good way to really fatigue my my muscles! I was SO sore after this workout!

For superset 2 I did all the reps on each leg for the squats and deadlifts.

I used a mini band for all of super-set 4. It was easier than putting on just for the monster walks and it made the jump squats and long jumps harder!

Inspire me- what workouts are you doing lately?