Refing seminar

Yesterday, I attended a USA ice hockey referee clinic- which is a mandatory task each year you want to ref. Overall, it went well- for not skating in almost 2 years anyway. I admit that I was the first ref to take a fall on the ice. Another, older ref gave the" you owe me a beer" signal. A few minutes later, he was down on his keester. That's usually how those things work isn't it? You make fun of someone and then you find yourself in the same spot. This type of picking is expected at these clinics, so I took it all in stride with a big smile and laughing it off. Later, when we had circled up at center ice, following the warm up, one of the instructors made a point of mentioning that when the level 4 refs" shoot the duck" they fall. None of the level 2 refs fell during shoot the duck. His comment made me feel justified in falling earlier.

Again, for at least the third year in a row, I was the only female level 2 referee on the ice. Women refs are a rare breed in ice hockey. New referees, in general, only 10 to 20% come back for the next season. In my own district, there are only 4-6 women refs each year. I mentored a first year female ref one year for one game- I haven't seen her, or her name on any communications or at any events.

There is a glass ceiling in refereeing- women refs in the NHL for example. The district 1 referee in chief, had officiated some of my college games, and I asked afterward what I have to do to move up in the referee world. He gave me a list, and told me it was too late this year to do h.s. league because everything was already assigned. I told him that was ok, and I hadn't expected to move up to that level this year since I had a baby in June. I think I surprised him in my resoponse, that I needed to know so I can work towards it.

Overall, it felt really good to skate yesterday. I am reminded of muscles I had forgotten about.

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Anxious....

Its been difficult to stay on track with my return to work, my fiancees return to school and new work schedule.  I'm eager to get a gym membership again- one with childcare- now that I'm working again.  I had to give up my Snap Fitness membership because of lack of child care and lack of cash flow.

When I went up to Fargo-Moorhead for homecoming- I wasn't ready to run the 5k.  On a positive note, I was able to run at the hotel fitness center- I only ran for 20 minutes but it was a mile and a half straight- without stopping or slowing.  Towards the end I was challenging myself to run faster each quarter mile.  It felt good.

I'm eager to run more and have the "click" that I've felt with running before. To run a 5K or more.  To be a good example for my kids and to feel like I can and am able to run and play with them without a problem.

Reporting in with the running....

This is my second full week of running- and it's going pretty well.  I've been following the plan from the Fitness R/X magazine that I had in my three ring binders stuffed with workout information.  Since I'm not completely new to running- I started at the beginning as suggested but then gauged how easy the workouts were.  I skipped forward a few days because jogging for 30 seconds and even a minute was a bit too easy for me.  I was excited to do this since I was worried about starting to run so soon after delivering our second child via c-section.  There was no way to know how well my body was going to do with recovery this time or with running.  I am excited to report- that I am already weighing less than right before I got pregnant!  Just 5 more pounds to my first weight goal (putting me just under 160).

I skipped 5 days total- which sounds like a lot now that I think about it!  Since I started the running program- I've lost 2 inches and average daily weight is down 3-4 pounds from where it was.  Currently, I'm walking 5 minutes and jogging 4 minutes- which is not impossible but I can feel how hard it is on my body- specifically my knees.  I've always been worried about shin splints since they plagued me in my middle school and high school track and field days but so far they have been kept at bay.  I've also been acutely aware of my foot strike as I have been walking and jogging- hoping to keep the shin splints and other injuries away.  To digress back to the knees though- ouch! I think I might have to start taking a supplement for them- I took one in the past from GNC called GLucosamine/Chondroitin and it seemed to help.  I think those are again in order.  But I'll keep working on the mechanics of this running thing.  I had to be more mindful of them today because 1. my ipod battery died and 2. the pain has only intensified.

I was talking to my fiance's cousin about my starting to run again and she mentioned how she would love to start running too.  We talked about how it can be  hard to start- especially when  you don't know what kind of pace to start out at- how much is too much- what will discourage you.  I've had a desire to be a runner for a very long time.  I was sad in the first grade when in my heat of the 50 yard dash I came in 4th.  The older boy that I sort of knew from school saw I was disappointed and told me that I should be very happy with fourth place as I looked down in dismay at my yellow ribbon.  I still have that ribbon somewhere.  My desire to run continued in elementary school- where my gym teacher at Poplar Bridge in Bloomington, MN always had us running relays and around this make shift track he would set up with orange cones.  I joined my middle school cross country team in the 6th grade for intermurals- still wanting to be this great runner, and joining the track  team over and over again through middle and high school but could never get this running thing down.  In high school, I remember the day you have to suddenly run a mile and be timed.  What kind of test is that?  When they don't really teach you how to run or help you get conditioned to run?  That's not very helpful to just say 'all right- today is the day we run a mile'.  I realize they probably have to do this test for some requirement- but at least help us with it somehow.  My very earliest memory of running is with my neighbor on Como Ave- he would his two daughters along with him and I would go sometimes too- we would run around the track by Como Ave and Highway 280 behind Health Partners.  Always a terrible terrible runner- no stamina. Period. 

In College, my sophomore- something clicked with me and running.  I would go grab a treadmill in the fitness center and just go- tune into my favorite program on my personal television and escape.  Since I was watching and listening to something else I didn't have time to think about what was hurting or burning or how out of breath I was getting.  This sudden "clicking" of the running on a treadmill and not getting shin splints- I loved.

Now to get that back and back into those jeans I had bought two years earlier.  I still have the jeans- they are my ultimate goal.  When I get to put the jeans back on again- I'll probably be 130-something.  I really like those jeans- and I really liked the way I felt when I could do all of that running.

Gettting back to running...

I found an 8 week long program in the magazine pages I kept to ease back into running.  I'm excited to get started and work up to a 5k.  It would be great to run the 5k for homecoming at Concordia- but that might be a bit too soon for me to run that far.

Here's the program I'm starting from Fitness R/X magazine in August 2006:

Week 1:
Monday: Walk for 20 minutes at a comfortable pace. Since this is your first workout, take it nice and easy. Walk at a pace that gets your heart rate up and makes you breathe heavier than normal, but you shouldn't be out of breath.

Tuesday: Walk for 30 minutes at a comfortable pace.

Wednesday: Walk for 30 minutes at a comfortable pace.

Thursday: Walk /jog for 30 minutes. Walk for five minutes and then jog for 30 seconds. Follow that sequence for the entire workout. This is your first taste of running. Don't run for more than 30 seconds at a time. Run at a pace that is fairly comfortable.

Friday: Rest. Let your body recover from its first encounter with running.

Saturday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Walk for 5 minutes, jog for 30 seconds. This is the same workout as Thursday. Keep your pace comfortable.

Sunday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. You make a slight increase in the jogging interval here. Walk for five minutes and jog for one minute. You'll start making consistent increases in the time of your running intervals.

Week 2:
Monday: Rest. Every Monday is a rest day in this program.

Tuesday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Walk for five minutes and jog for one minute. Keep the pace fairly comfortable.

Wednesday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes.  This will be an easy day. Walk for five minutes and jog for 30 seconds.

Thursday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes.  Walk for five minutes and jog for one minute.

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Walk for five minutes and jog for two minutes.

Sunday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Walk for five minutes and jog for two minutes.

Week 3:
Monday: Rest.

Tuesday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Walk for five minutes and jog for three minutes. Keep the pace nice and easy.

Wednesday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes.  Walk for five minutes and jog for two minutes.

Thursday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Walk for five minutes and jog for three minutes.

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Walk for five minutes, jog for four minutes.

Sunday:Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Walk for five minutes, jog for four minutes.

Week 4:
Monday: Rest.

Tuesday: Walk for 30 minutes.  You eliminate the running portion for this workout because you have made a lot of increases in the last two weeks. This will give your body a little more rest this week.

Wednesday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Walk for five minutes, jog for five minutes.  You are now jogging as much as you are walking. Remember to keep the pace fairly comfortable.

Thursday: Walk/ jog for 30 minutes.  Walk for five minutes, jog for four minutes. You back off a bit today to recover from yesterday's harder workout.

Friday: Rest..

Saturday: Today you'll start to decrease the amount of your walking intervals. Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Walk for four minutes, jog for five minutes.

Sunday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes.  Walk for four minutes and jog for five minutes.

Week 5:
Monday:Rest.

Tuesday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. You'll make another decrease in your walking interval today. Walk for three minutes, jog for five minutes.

Wednesday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Walk for four minutes and jog for five minutes.

Thursday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes.  Walk for three minutes, and jog for five minutes.

Friday: Rest or cross train.

Saturday: Walk/ jog for 30 minutes.  Decrease your walking interval to two minutes. Walk two minutes, jog for five minutes.

Sunday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Walk for two minutes and jog for five minutes.

 Week 6:
Monday: Rest.

Tuesday: Walk/jog for thirty minutes. Decrease your walking interval to one minute. Walkd for one minute and jog for five minutes. If at any time you feel you're struggling, back off to the prior week or to a point at which you feel more comfortable. Remember, however, that you must push yourself to make improvements.

Wednesday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Walk for two minutes and jog for five minutes.

Thursday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes.  Walk for one minute and jog for five minutes.

Friday: Rest.

Saturday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Today, you'll decrease your walking interval to 30 seconds. Walk for 30 seconds and jog for five minutes.

Sunday: Walk/ jog for 30 minutes. Walk for 30 seconds and jog for five minutes.

Week 7:
Monday: Rest.

Tuesday: Today you're going to do something different. Warm up with vigorous walking for 10 minutes and then jog 2x1 mile repeats.  To perform this workout, jog one mile and then walk for five minutes. Then jog another mile.  Cool down with 10 minutes of walking.

Wednesday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Walk for 30 seconds, jog for five minutes.

Thursday: you'll extend the distance of your workout today.  After a 10 minute warm up, jog for 1.25 miles.  Cool down with 10 minutes of walking.

Friday: Rest.

Saturday: Warm up for 10 minutes. Jog 2x1 mile repeats. Cool down with 10 minutes of walking.

Sunday: You'll extend your workout again today. Warm up by walking 10 minutes. Jog for 1.5 miles.  Cool down with 10 minutes of walking.

Week 8:

Monday: Rest.

Tuesday: Warm up by walking 10 minutes. Jog 2x1 mile repeats. Cool down with 10 minutes of walking.

Wednesday: Walk/jog for 30 minutes. Walk for 30 seconds, jog for five minutes.

Thursday: Warm up by walking for 10 minutes. Jog for 1.75 miles. Cool down with 10 minutes of walking.

Friday: Rest.

Saturday: Warm up with 10 minutes of walking. Jog for two miles. Cool down with 10 minutes of walking.

Sunday: Warm up for 10 minutes. Jog for 2.25 miles. Cool down with 10 minutes of walking.

New Arrival...

 My prediction was correct - our son arrived a week earlier than the scheduled c-section. Which was two weeks early from my estimated due date (July 2).  I'm thrilled that he is here and so far- seems like an excellent eater AND sleeper.  Big brother is doing really well also- he helps when he can and has not shown a single sign of aggression or jealousy.  AMAZING! LOVE IT!  Even though he was two weeks early- the new guy weighed in at exactly 8 pounds and 20 inches long.  Since I had already been to the hospital two other times in the past month, I was worried that I was blowing things out of proportion but my doctor said that I did the right thing calling her and coming in- this baby was ready! 

Recovery is already a lot easier than last time- but we'll see what happens.  One of my nurses got a bit off on my pain killer medications and I could definitely tell a difference.I walk around.... or shuffle my feet around like I'm going on 100 and not 28. I'm hopeful because of opting to go straight to the O.R. and not laboring- my body is exhausted but not doubly exhausted..

Speaking of exhausted- I'm off to feed the new guy and head to bed.

The end of this pregnancy....

It almost ended a whole MONTH early.  That was a bit of a shock- lying in bed asleep to find that our bed was soaked.  Nothing was packed and ready to go- afterall, we had a whole month to go right?  I called the Doctor and she said that yes- she agreed it sounded like my water had broken.  I went to the MAC, and stayed the entire night- contractions varying from every 3-7 minutes.  It looked like it was going to happen. Forget the month to go- forget the second scheduled c-section....

7am rolls around- everything stopped.  No more contractions- nothing.

My doctor says it was probably a rupture- the nurse who I spoke with the discuss the day-of c-section items with said it was probably one layer of the membrane that ruptured and not the whole thing. (This explains why some women have their water break multiple times).  The doctor says when/ if it happens again- it will be "IT".

I'm eager to meet baby number two- take the two kiddos on walks and build up to running again.  I had just started running again before finding out I was pregnant again.  I refused to run at an unhealthy weight (more than 20 lbs over is considered harmful to your joints and can cause extra, unneeded injuries).

Thus far, I've gained a mere 18 lbs- in contrast to the 30-35 I gained with our son.  That makes me hopeful that I'll get fitter faster- after all, I won't have to battle the same number of pounds - SO happy about that.

What I'm not looking forward to is the exhaustion- but who does?

A quarterly report....

I haven't been on here in forever.  That's what happens when you have a toddler to chase after between naps and prenatal visits.  This Friday marks week 33 of our second pregnancy.  So far, I've gained a mere 10 pounds.  I'm excited about that- less to lose afterwards.  The doctors and nurses say its fine because it has been consistent.  When I expressed my concern about having a higher BMI to start with and a portion of my family that has struggled with their weight they  reassured me that I was just fine- especially since there hadn't been large jumps in my weight gain between any of my vists. 

Others have not been so supportive or understanding.  I had one appointment where I was told "You need to gain 4 pounds in one month ."  I walked away and wondered- what if I don't gain 4 pounds? What if I CAN'T gain 4 pounds?! 

So here I am- with about 7-8 weeks left of being pregnant- and then recovery and more mommy-hood.