I’m finally doing the marathon!

About time, eh? You can definitely thanks Kirsten for that (LOVE LOVE LOVE FOREVER).

I never really thought much about marathons that much because I wasn’t entirely comfortable running more than 21.1km. The thought about injuries and setbacks made me a little nervous. I know that eventually I will have to do it if I want to attempt an Ironman…so this is the time. I am getting rather excited actually :)

Because of my crazy schedule next term (2 courses + thesis + possible PT), I won’t be able to do the full out training like I did in undergrad (run 4x a week). My game plan is to continue doing my triathlon training and hope that the training will keep me up to speed with the run plans. So here is how it might look like:

- swim 3x/week (M W F)
- spin 2x/week (T Th Su?)
- strength 2-3x/week (F Su)
- run 2-3x/week (T Sa)
- core 1-2x/week (W Su)

It looks really packed. I think signing up for the gym close to my place will definitely help with early morning exercises (since they open at 5am…instead of 7am like the school gym). I really hope it’ll work out, and cross my fingers for no injuries!

My main goal for this event is to enjoy it and not get obsessed about finishing under a set time…however around 4hrs is good for me. I heard this one was a nice one (scenic wise)!

I am really looking forward to the medal…I need some massive bling around my neck this time :)

Happy Holidays!

I know that this is a little late, but I am hoping that everyone is enjoying their time off with their families and friends. I really love this time of years because it’s always a very happy time for me!

I really like this time of year because it means I get to buy brand new shoes! My Brooks Adrenaline GTS 10s are finally done. The sole of my right shoe has worn down a lot to the point that my right foot tilts outward. These are my most favourite pair because they are so comfortable! I was really sad that I couldn’t find another pair!

I went into the Running Room today to take advantage of their Boxing Day sales. I decided that I should no longer be testing shoes and stick with shoes I like. I was a little skeptical about new models of shoes, but I tried these on and they felt like heaven (again!). I was very happy with them and decided it was safe to pick up two pairs hehe

My family had a huge feast on Dec 24th, took a break for the 25th and had a yummy dinner today :) Can you guess what we had for dinner.

Again, I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday :) I’ll leave you with a Christmas card I made. I was going to write Merry Christmas, but then realized that Happy Holidays was more appropriate since Christmas did pass by :P

My Tea Story

Yeah I know, another post on tea, but this is my blog and I can talk about ice creams, unicorns, and rainbows if I wanted to :P

My roommate made the comment the other day regarding that people are becoming hipsters for tea at DAVIDsTEA. I found it quite hilarious because I did not notice the trend until he mentioned it. There is nothing wrong with it, I just thought it was funny. Even one of my office mates claimed it was like the Apple or Starbucks of the tea world. That’s how tea is marketed and David Segal definitely did a great job of doing so! I really don’t find anything wrong with people becoming more responsive to tea. I think it’s a great thing!

I have drank tea since I was really young (ultra burnt jasmine tea at dim sum anyone?). However I was only exposed to a limited range (I thought all teas were green). My dad was more of a tea enthusiast back in the day. Whenever he goes to China, he would purchase the crazy expensive teas due to its claimed benefits (some that are not available here). He wouldn’t share them, he liked to keep them all to himself!

Fast forward to first year of university where I started exchanging teas with one of my classmates. Could you imagine the weird exchanges of teabags? :P I purchased loose leaf for the first time in Ottawa and saw a hip loose leaf store lol I still drank bagged until I dated a guy who only liked loose leaf (if you are reading this…thanks!). Then I completely switched over hehe. I was always on the hunt for new tea places and was always disappointed with what I had purchased. This was mainly because that the smell never came through in the taste. But I am super glad that I check out DAVIDsTEA because the quality does show!

I’m glad that people are getting into tea just because the NA society is becoming more obese and there is a need to become more health conscious. The only thing I don’t like about tea is that people will take that to their advantage.

I hope everyone has a happy holiday. Sorry that this month has been rather sucky posts and nothing other than tea. It’s one of those things that are keeping me going lately just because my body is like FUUUUUU or something similar on most occasions. I am hoping that once the new year hits, my motivation and goals will start to crystallize.

No snow!?

Right now it’s pouring outside and I am pondering about if we’re ever going to have a white Christmas. I guess not!

I’ve been continuing with physio and my physiotherapist has been applying lots of friction on my sore tendon then applying ultrasound. For a 15 minute it’s $50! Good thing I am covered by the student plan…this would be too costly!

Mr. Noodles is doing much better. He started sleeping in my bed at night with me and it’s super adorable :) Yesterday he jumped on my bed and started rubbing his head on my feet! It was really ticklish and made me wonder if my cat had a foot fetish lol

I joined!

I’ve finally joined the bandwagon…well sorta. It’s just been a long while since I’ve joined an actual gym. I don’t know if YMCA counts because it’s a level up from a community centre. I didn’t join Goodlife just because I hate how all the people there try to get me to join…I only find myself in there if I get a free pass for a week. Even with the free week and trying out their gym…it was meh for the most part. Too crowded and to save a spot for a class I have to be there 30 mins early?! That really sucks.

I never used to feel happy about going to a gym because my school gym is pretty terrible. Machines/equipment always broken (even the new ones) for months. I can never go past 9am because then it starts to fill up quickly…and forget going past 1pm…it’s too crowded for me.

I really enjoy the gym I am at. Online reservations for spots for a class, lots of equipment so the gym is reasonable most of the time, very clean, extremely friendly people, and just so much more. The price is a little steep for my liking $60/month, but I am definitely making it worth it. Ever since I have joined, I’ve felt a lot more motivated to get back into working out. Especially with Kirsty at this gym too, it helps to get me into doing workouts. I guess I am never going back to my school gym again haha.

Free gyms suck…especially if the community knows about it =_=

So…I have tendinitis

Since last Wednesday’s swim, my shoulder has been aching to the point that I threw the towel in to see the physiotherapist. I am a bit of a stubborn person and I will hold off on seeing a professional as long as I can handle it. My shoulder usually has a numbing pain underneath the deltoid and it was recently that my shoulder was in great pain, could not move it, felt like someone punched me, etc. I was freaking out at this point and decided to seek help.

Fortunately for me, my physiotherapist says that it is a acute tendinitis in my shoulder. She did a series of movements in my arms to trigger a bit of pain. In the end, my injury is related to my posture for the past 23 years. Who knew that slouching could cause shoulder pain? In short, there are four tendons in the shoulder, by slouching I am putting a lot of strain on the back two. When I stretch out when swimming, I am putting further strain on my tendons, finally hurting it. To fix this I have to begin sitting properly and changing a habit is really hard to do. I have 5 exercises to do everyday for the rest of my life pretty much. Unfortunately swimming and spin are out of the picture until physiotherapist says it’s ok…so I am stuck with running for now. It kinda makes me upset that I have to work with this, but at least its the holiday season. I still don’t feel good about saying that though…*sigh* I wish I was progressing.