The plan

“Remember it’s supposed to be challenging.”

Those were the words I got in an email my first day of strength training, and my gawd, was it ever – it was freaking grueling! I was huffing and puffing through the lunges, holding my breath for the planks (so sure that would make them go faster), and cursing anything and everything around me while fighting gravity through pushups.

For those of you who’ve been reading my blog for awhile, you know I’m not about core or strength. Every time I’ve embarked on an abdominal regime, I’ve quit practically seconds in; I absolutely hate the gym, pretty much refuse to go; and sure I did pilates twice a week for more than a year, but I grumbled throughout the entire experience. But, as I mentioned in my last post, this time (with regards to my running) is different.

Meet Coach NZ (formerly known as favourite ironchickie):

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Photos sourced from Coach NZ’s website at www.revolutionzcoaching.com

Coach NZ, the mastermind behind Revolutionz Coaching, has over 10 years of triathlon racing experience from sprints to ironmans, and she was the one, no doubt in my mind, who brought me back from near running death. She was the one who convinced me, after I was diagnosed with stress fractures in both ankles – three months before my second marathon!!! – to put aside my fears of the pool (drowning and germs) and embrace aqua running. Instead of training on pavement, Coach NZ convinced me to train in the water. And I’ll tell you, when I was finally given the go ahead to get back out there, I was a 5,000 times better runner (read: faster) than I was pre-aqua running.

So yeah, I’m all about putting my faith in this chick, which is why she was the one I reached out to when trying to figure out how to start back running post pregnancy.

Coach NZ’s plan for me: No injuries!

It’s going to be a slow go, she said. No 10ks, half marathons, or marathons right off the hop here, oh no, it’s more like learning to run all over again. And you must incorporate strength and core into your program, she said. Ugh. When I heard those words, I scrunched up my face, I grumbled at the notion of running just 4 minutes on, 1 minute off times 3, and I complained to high heaven about having to do squats and planks three times a week.

And yet, because I trust this chick, I am running those extremely short distances (no need for a Garmin here) and I am taking on the walking lunges, side planks, single-leg calf raises… cursing all the way 😉

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Heck, even Little Ring’s getting in on the action, timing me through my planks 🙂

If this means a life of running with no injuries, I’m in.

3 thoughts on “The plan”

  1. Uh-oh.
    I feel your hard-headed determination with every word you’ve laid down, like bricks, in your blog about The Plan.
    There’s gonna be no stopping you 🙂
    So, I’ll just say, ‘Have fun with it’ and heaven help anybody who makes the mistake of getting in your way 🙂

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