No more Rum.....now I have to run!!

Well here we have it 2 days post Belieze!!
What a great week it was. As I posted before I left I overtrained a little bit and was feeling the effects in my back.....a week off in the sun was just what I needed.
I took the week off and enjoyed it with my best bud Tammy from Houston and 30 of her closest friends to celebrate her 40th Birthday....and celebrate we did!!
So instead of swimming 2000 metres I snorkeled for about 30 mins then cooled off with some rum punch
Instead of biking for 3 hours I threw on a super hero costume and joined in a parade of 30 other super heroes on route to the bar for more rum punch.
Instead of running 20 km I relaxed by the pool and drank more rum punch.
Instead of drinking protein shakes.....I ATE a whole tin of PRINGLES!!

So yes I indulged a bit on my week off....BUT IT WAS SOOOOO WORTH IT!

Today being January 24th we have 7 months until Ironman....so no more rum punch....and no more pringles.....but that fantastic week was just what I needed to get me re focused and on track for the next 7 months.....

next time I am on a beach I will be in a full wet suit and ready to swim 4 km in a cold lake.......so I will keep this memory as long as I can :-)

Hard Lessons...

Okay well here I sit with some of the most intense pain I have felt in a while.....
Let me back track......last Thursday I taught a class Body Sculpt. Nothing out of the ordinary but I did go a bit heavier with the weights and we are coming off a 2 week break of classes.....so with that I felt pretty sore the next few days especially in my back.
As I said in my last post last week I know I did too much...on top of 6 classes I also did 6 hours of training....so for week one of this year I knew this was too much.
So after my rest day Sunday I felt okay...still feeling it a bit in my back.....which really should have told me to take it easy...
But no I went into my 6 am TRX class and did the class (yup I did not listen)....left that class and my back was a mess again.....it started to feel better later in the day....now instead of resting last night...I jumped on my bike....for about 40 mins....again felt okay but my back was pretty tight...

So woke up today (Tuesday) it is snowing....today I teach TRX then I run. So I knew my back was tight but I thought it will be okay....and the snow.....ahhhh we can handle that...it is ALBERTA!
So I got to class...started the warm up...and BAM out of no where felt like I got stabbed in the back with a knife!! The pain was intense! I tried to do some of the moves in class but by now even standing there was killing me. Now I knew I had a problem. Then a little voice in my head said.....okay maybe if I run after it will work this out?? I know what you are all thinking....yup I was thinking that.
By the end of the class well I could barley walk...so I knew the run was out of the picture...which upset me.
I got into the chiropractor and well it was a rib and my hip out of place...so she got it back....but the pain is still there....because I am so damn tight! So I took some pain killers and that has helped a bit...
I am hoping the massage tonight will also help.

So here it is.....I know you are reading this and what you are thinking...Candice you need to take a break. I know that. So I am a personal trainer and I am very good at telling my clients to watch their limits and how rest and stretching is important. I will be the first to admit I don't follow my own advice. I have a very competitive personally and obsessive about training and I know that. If I don't get a certain workout in I loose my mind. I have been lucky in the past 15 years of training in running and triathlon I have not dealt with any major injuries...until now.
This is a wake up call for me.
I am NOT in my 20's anymore...lets be honest I am pushing 40...so I need to act like it...
I am hoping I have not done crazy damage and this can be fixed but I am going to listen and take it down a bit for the next bit. I want to do this race and I want to do it well so it is time for me to practice what I preach!

So that is it a bit of a confession and to all my client's.....you have the right to yell at me I deserve it :-)

Candice

First week done!

Well the first week of the first year is done...and well I feel every ounce of it!
This was the first week I did all my training workouts...so that was 6 training sessions plus I taught 6 classes........all I can say is OUCH!
I learned a lesson this week....I cant do that....over 12 hours in week one was too much!

So I am not juggling a full time job while training for an Ironman I am juggling being a fitness instructor while training for Ironman...
My issue is I am not the type of instructor who can just sit on the side lines and YELL...don't get me wrong I love to YELL....but I also like to participate and yell at the same time :-)

So what I need to focus on now is how I can still be a good instructor but not overdo my body at the same time....so less doing and more yelling ;-)

So as the next 5 months move on my training volume will increase and I know my body will adjust. I need to adjust my teaching style as well and this will also be a learning process for me....Where I do want to still use my muscle conditioning classes as my strength workouts for my training as well...so it is just finding that balance!

I am excited for the months that lie ahead and the challenges I know I will overcome....

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Well it is the first day of 2012....for many people this is the beginning of new goals and challenges....or time to make a change in their lives...
For me it is the year I conquer the biggest challenge and goal I have ever set and that is Iron Man 2012.
My plan for the fall was to maintain my fitness level and not loose any of my endurance and strength. I am happy that I achieved this goal by maintaining weekly workouts that were not too intense but enough to keep my fitness level up.
Now that is it January 1 my training jumps to a new level and the plan for training for Iron Man 2012 has begun!
Now my official training program from my awesome coach Jen will not start for a few weeks....she wants me to wait until I get back from my trip from Belieze mid January....
I have wrote out a plan for this first month that strats to build my endurance for this first phase of my training program.

My biggest challenge for these first couple of months of training will be the run...I HATE running when it is cold! I also do not have a treadmill so my options are limited.
So this will be an ongoing struggle if the weather turns cold again.

So I will start to blog more frequent as my training gets underway..I am sure you will see posts of my successes as well as my struggles...and I hope this blog helps encourage me as well as some of you that regardless of your goal, big or small anything is possible if you set your mind to it.

I saw this great picture on facebook a while back and it really hit home to how I feel when I do a race or even a long run and I wanted to share

I hope everyone had a wonderful start to your New Year....and reach for your goals and know ANYTHING is possible!!

Friends......

When people diecde to set a goal like to complete an Iron Man one of the best things to have is a great support system!
And one of these I have. On top of having a wonderful supportive husband and family...I have the best group of friends a girl could ask for!

When I announced that I was doing this crazy race....which I don't think many of my friends were surprised ;-) I could not believe the response of people who told me they wanted to come watch.
At first I thought well ya people say that just to be polite but who knows if anyone would make the trip...

Well....I can say I am so touched to have so many friends making the trip to watch me take on this challenge!
First off my best bud from Houston Tammy has booked her flight and I know will be one of the loudest cheering people in the crowd!
My sister and her new husband and my parents are also making the trip from Vancouver Island...

Then their is My Okotoks Mammas!! I have lived in Okotoks for about 4 years now and I have met some of the most amazing girls in this town!
A few months ago Sarah (or as Brad calls her Wine Sarah ;-)) made a Facebook group `Candice`s journey to Ironman 2012`and pulled together a group to see if anyone wanted to make the trip to come wacth the event!
Now the wheels are in motion and they are booking accommodation....and I am so touched they are coming to cheer me on!

So now with big team coming to cheer me on the pressure is on!! I cannot disappoint my crew! So this is putting my fuel into my training knowing I have a wonderful team that is going me there cheering me to the end!
I can't wait to give them all a HUGE HIGH 5 as I cross that Iron man Finish line!

Love you all!!

Candice

Back in the Pool....

Well I finally did it.....3 months after my last race I finally got back in the POOL!
Like I mentioned before my "formal" training does not start until January...but I still need to maintain my levels of fitness up to then.
Jen "my coach" told me not to worry to much about "training" right now since I do have a higher level of fitness.
For me though it is mental. I know if I wait till January to get back in the pool those workouts will be that much more challenging. So for now my goal is to get in the pool once a week.
So yesterday I did just that....of course my plan to get to the pool for an hour did not quite work out! Getting two kids into the Rec centre and into the child care room took more time then I anticipated.
So by the time I did that I got ready I had 30 mins to swim...
My plan was to jump in and just swim 1000 metres and check where I was at. So I swam 1000 metres with a few breaks :-) It took me 26 mins.....so I was okay with that.
Of course all I could think about is HOW am I going to go this for over 4000 metres without going crazy?? I guess only time will tell....

I am also feeling it in my arms today.....it is funny how I can do TRX 3 days a week and I go and swim 1000 metres for 26 mins and I can feel that even more! Just shows why we need to cross train and challenge our bodies in different ways.

Working and training.....this is a challenge!!!

Hello!

Well I have not been the best blogger that is foresure...but really it is just due to lack of time!!
It is November 1st today and WOW what a FALL!
When we started our business almost 4 years ago the plan was it to be a nice little "side gig" while we were stay at home moms!
Well I can say in our 4th fall season this is WAYYYYY more then a "Side Gig"....we are sooo happy that C&C Fitness is such a success BUT this has now become a full time job for us!
The good part is I do LOVE IT! I love every minute I put into teaching and the business...the down side is now finding the time to train!

My plan until January was just to maintain. Keep up with teaching my classes (which I teach about 7-9 a week) plus adding some spin class, a weekly run as well as a weekly swim.
So obviously I am teaching all my classes.....plus every week I have been adding new personal training client's as well.
Unfortunately I have only made to to spin 3 times since beginning of September and well I have not been in the pool once! Also the running is a bit of a issue since I hate running in the cold...and really it has not been cold....so I will get out there this weekend!
My plan is to swim this Friday so lets hope all goes according to plan.

I am hoping once my training moves into high gear in January I will be able to balance things a bit better....but if things are going at the same rate they are right now I am going to need many more hours in my days!!

I always said I don't know how people work full time and train for Ironman...but I think I am seeing now how this is quite a challenge!