Week 3

Monday, May 26, 2008

Ahhh, sweet relief! A day off. My back still hurts as do both ankles/heels.


Tuesday, May 27, 2008.

Since my back is still hurting whenever I make a "jolting" move (such as running) I'm regrouping until things calm down. I decide to switch to riding the stationary bike when I'm supposed to run. So, tonight, I rode 10 miles in around 28:15. I'm a bit frustrated with the back, but with the riding time, I feel that I'm at least pushing myself. Stargate SG-1 remains a nice distraction.


Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Back is still sore. Bike ride runs 28:28. My wife is in the entertainment room (I'm still up in the air about whether exercise constitutes entertainment or not but the bike and the DVDs are there...) so we watch The Rockford Files.


Thursday, May 29, 2008

I'm beginning to be concerned about my back. Since the bike riding does not make the back worse, and since I'm noting some endurance improvement, I continue on the bike. I finish 10 miles in 28:31. Rockford again.


Friday, May 30, 2008

Another rest day. The ankles/heels still are sore but improving.


Saturday, May 31, 2008

A walking day. I'm feeling fairly good (except for the back) so I increase my walk to 4 laps (roughly 2 miles) to the sounds of Yes' Tales from Topographic Oceans. I finish in 33 minutes. I'm noticing that I'm starting to sweat sooner in the process which I recall from my exercise physiology class is a good thing.


Sunday, June 1, 2008

Another 2 mile walk, this time to Todd Rundgren's Todd. I finish in 33 minutes again.


Mental Skills Used for the Week: Dissociative Thinking - This is still my best friend, especially as I start to push myself a bit more.

Associative Thinking - I'm continuing to learn to relisten to my body. The back is bothersome but based upon the feedback I'm getting from my body, I'm adjusting my workout so that I'm still moving forward and not making the back worse.

Goal Setting - I'm trying to adjust goals (performance goals, specifically) by changing both what I think my body can handle and the times I'm trying for. Keeping the goals attainable (i.e., challenging but not ridiculous) is helping with motivation. Again, I'm not stubbornly sticking to goals and am adjusting them as appropriate.

Motivation - I'm maintaining my motivation by noting the goals I'm achieving and making sure the goals are doable (as I note above).

Flexibility - Gotta have it...

I'm out of town next week but plan to adjust my exercise schedule to accomodate the temporary situation.

Until next week...