Haha!

Okay, apparently it's time for me to write a new blog post. For the past week, I've had people gtalking me and calling me and one of the first things they ask is....are you okay? are you still sore? how is your cold?

Well y'all, I am fine. I was very intensely sore for about four days, but gentle stretching, massaging, and hot baths with essential oils really do help. The next kickboxing class, the instructor had us doing more of the same jumping up and down off the ledge, and I came home a little stiff, but was fine again by the end of the day. Personally, I find this to be an amazing testament of how our bodies are made. Dude, in a matter of a few days all a sudden my muscle are like... oh! That's what you want me to do. Cool. I can do that. Pretty awesome if you ask me.

And... I'm one of those people that a lot of the world loves to hate (or maybe it's just my family) because I'm sick for only a day or two. Then everything is back to normal and I'm ready to kick butt again. Take that, common cold!

Insanity is going great! Every night I go to sleep super excited about how we're going to rock the workout the next morning. I'm getting more and more inspired because I can see how in the not too distant future all the other things I can push towards (keep reading for more info on that).

I decided that after Insanity ends in July, I'm going to take up running again. I did it for a while in highschool, but then (due to bad shoes, bad form, high arches and lack of knowledge), I got a bad case of ITBS or "Runner's Knee." You can get Runner's Knee from a variety of sports and has a variety of ways it exemplifies itself, but it's most common in runners and dancers (hence the name). I found out recently (after doing a bit more research) that I got it from my bad form and bad foot support so basically my bones got slightly misaligned so the physical stress of the strike on the ground was not evenly distrusted between my muscles. This, combined with high arches and bad shoes, basically just caused a lot of pain. It came up again a little bit with our first round of Insanity, but now I know why... so we're adjusting ourselves to prevent it from happening again (p.s. Ibuprofen and ice help too).

After talking to a few people, though, I've decided to try again - this time with appropriate shoes and working on it slowly so that I'm getting my form right and not hurting myself again. The reason for taking up running again?

Hehehe. I've also decided to work towards two goals for end of 2012 and into 2013 (provided the world doesn't end before then). I'm going to be running a Spartan Race (at a date yet to be specified) and a Tough Mudder in April 2013 (and probably some other runs in between, like a 5k, 10k, and possibly even an Army 10 Miler). If you don't know what a Spartan Race or a Tough Mudder is... well.... I feels sorry for you. Cuz they're only the coolest challenge runs ever.

Spartan includes an 8 mile run combined with up to 15 obstacles that you have to conquer. These obstacles could include climbing over 10 ft walls, javelin throwing, dragging 40lb rocks, crawling under barbed wire, etc. And then at the end you have to fight off the "Spartans" who are crazy dudes with big cushioned'ish things to hit you with and try to keep you from crossing the finish line. Basically... it's awesome. My sister and brother in law are doing one in August, but I don't think I can get trained enough to do it by then, so I'll be looking for others later in the year or early next year.

A Tough Mudder is more of the same just.... more (to put it in very simplistic terms). 10-12 miles with 25 military grade obstacles. Originally created by the British Special Forces, the course tests every part of you: mentally, physically, stamina, and teamwork. It will also test your worst fears (in my case... electricity). What most appeals to me about the Tough Mudder (other than that it looks like the most difficult and most fun thing I could do physically), is that it thrives on teamwork, requires you to overcome your fears, and proceeds go towards the Wounded Warrior Project.

So yeah, those are long term plans! I'm super excited. More will come as Insanity keeps going, running starts, Tough Mudder approaches, and we all get healthier!

Peace!