On The Road Again

Decided to (re)start the Couch to 5 K training schedule today, since it's September 1 and seems like a good time to start stuff. I was going along pretty good last year with it, but then my Brownie Boo was sent to the Bridge in the middle of week 7 I think, and I could never get up the heart to continue. She used to sit on my sewing table and watch me until she got bored, then she'd go to sleep. She'd wake up right when I was cooling down, and start baowing at me to get OFF that silly contraption and make her a lap for nap time!

So I think you understand what a wrench it was to go do my workout and have no brown cat watching.

Anyway, I started today. Now, whenever I'd start this in the past, I'd have to spend two or so weeks in a pre-training mode, gradually working up to the first official week of 20 minutes, alternating 60 sec jogs and 90 sec walks, including 5 min warm up and 5 min cool down.

I guess once you reach a certain level of conditioning you keep it, because I was able to jump right into the first week! I warmed up to 2.5 mph, then jogged 60 sec at 3.4 mph, walked 90 sec at 2.8 mph, repeated that for a total of 4 sets (10 min total), then cooled down from 2.8 mph to 1.5 mph. I just did break a sweat, and I recovered my wind in about a minute once I was off the treadmill. Heart rate got up to 145, and returned to normal of 66 after 10 min.

I do two more workouts at this level, then go to 90 min jog, 2:30 walk for the second week.

Privilege meme

Originally conceived by Will Barratt, Meagan Cahill, Angie Carlen, Minnette Huck, Drew Lurker, and Stacy Ploskonka at Illinois State University. If you participate, they ask that you PLEASE acknowledge their copyright.

Bold the true statements. You can explain further if you wish.

Personal Note: I don't know how much of this is about privilege and how much is about being middle to upper class and living in an urban area or close to one. For example, my parents were upper middle class, but there were no museums or art galleries near us, so I never went to one as a child. But it's interesting.

1. Father went to college.

2. Father finished college.

3. Mother went to college.

4. Mother finished college. Does it count if she went back after 10 years and then graduated? Not to mention that about 30 years later she went to law school and graduated...

5. Have any relative who is an attorney, physician, or professor. My mother, but she never managed to pass the bar... she always failed ethics because she was too ethical. Really!

6. Were the same or higher class than your high school teachers.

7. Had more than 50 books in your childhood home.

8. Had more than 500 books in your childhood home. All kinds of books -- scientific, non-fiction, history, fiction, National Geographic, science fiction, fantasy... we were always reading at least 2 books at once.

9. Were read children's books by a parent. Every single Dr. Seuss book! My favorite was The Star-Bellied Sneetches. One of my fondest memories is of Daddy reading me that while I was in the hospital recovering from my tonsillectomy. I thought the name "Sylvester McMonkey McBean" was the funniest thing I'd ever heard.

10. Had lessons of any kind before you turned 18.

11. Had more than two kinds of lessons before you turned 18. Took piano and organ lessons, and then played alto sax in the school band. I was the only one good enough to play 1st chair, and the band director had me transpose the first clarinet parts so that I could play them on my sax. Made the clarinet players absolutely hate me, but I didn't care, they sucked.

not sure where 12 went

13. Had a credit card with your name on it before you turned 18.

14. Your parents (or a trust) paid for the majority of your college costs.

15. Your parents (or a trust) paid for all of your college costs.

16. Went to a private high school.

17. Went to summer camp.

18. Had a private tutor before you turned 18

19. Family vacations involved staying at hotels. Only went on one such vacation, but it was fun. Mama and Daddy didn't fight the first time! Now that was a REAL vacation!

20. Your clothing was all bought new before you turned 18.

21. Your parents bought you a car that was not a hand-me-down from them.

22. There was original art in your house when you were a child. Most of it was by my mother, who was an artist. And some was mine.

23. You and your family lived in a single-family house.

24. Your parent(s) owned their own house or apartment before you left home.

25. You had your own room as a child.

26. You had a phone in your room before you turned 18.

27. Participated in a SAT/ACT prep course.

28. Had your own TV in your room in high school.

29. Owned a mutual fund or IRA in high school or college.

30. Flew anywhere on a commercial airline before you turned 16.

31. Went on a cruise with your family.

32. Went on more than one cruise with your family.

33. Your parents took you to museums and art galleries as you grew up.

34. You were unaware of how much heating bills were for your family. When I was growing up (60's and 70's) you just didn't discuss the bills with your kids. I didn't know what my parents made monetarily, either. It wasn't my business as a kid. I find it pretty odd that a parent would discuss bills with their kids when they were growing up...