Motivational Mondays (June 28)

On Wednesday, I have my first physical training session. It's nice and early, 7 a.m., and it will last 50 minutes.

I'm not quite sure what to expect. Part of me is worried just because I haven't been doing any cross training in so long. And whatever the trainer has me work on, I'll have to respond (I will refer to the trainer as PT now, Personal Trainer... which also happen to be his initials).

But I know that I can handle it. No matter what PT throws at me, I'll do it. If 300-plus pound LB can handle PT, I'm positive the current LB can handle his training methods.


Of course, PT won't try and make me deadlift 400 pounds or squat 275 pounds right off the bat. In fact, I'm not sure how much actual weightlifting he'll have me do. PT was into having me do lunges, one-legged squats, combination lifts and the like. Very early we used to do jump rope, sprints, a lot of work on the steps you'd use in an aerobics class. I think initially that was to help boost my cardio because my heart used to work quite hard during those sessions.

I'm curious now to see what he'll have me do. I don't need work on my cardiovascular system, at least not like before. I know he's there to work for me so when he asks me my goals, I'll tell him what I want to work on.

1. Core. I need to work on my core. Your core is probably the most important part of your body because it leads to pretty much everything. Having a strong core is vital, and I don't bother to work it out. FAIL for LB.

2. Lose weight. I can stand to lose a few pounds. Not 100-plus like the first time I met PT but I could lose 10 pounds for sure.

3. Get my "boy buff" back. I coined the term "boy buff" to explain to Yvie what I was doing in the gym while she was at the kid's club inside the gym. She was three I believe when I explained to her that I was working out but she didn't know what working out meant. So I told her that I was getting muscles, but she wasn't really sure what muscles were. So I just said "Daddy's getting buff" and I explained to her that buff meant being strong. Buff. Boy buff. I told her that the girls at the gym were getting "girl buff" and that one day she'd have girl buff. Basically, I need to get some muscles. I don't need bulging Popeye arms or anything but some definition on them.

I guess my overall goal is to become a more efficient runner. I'm hoping all of these things will help me not only do well in San Francisco (and honestly there might not be enough time to reap the rewards so soon) but once I get past SF and get into a stretch of time where I won't have a race to prepare for. I can build a solid fitness base so when I do get out there for my next race following SF, the Long Beach Half Marathon on Oct. 17, I can have perhaps my best performance then.

Wednesday will be my first real non-running workout in a long time and I'm looking forward to it. I might feel wasted the rest of the day, might be sore for a couple of days but it'll be worth it.