Flying Trapeze: Learning My Swing

I love flying on the weekend.

Sunday morning, I headed to class. It was foggy and sprinkling rain so I kept checking my phone to see if class was canceled. The forecast had said cloudy, but it lightly raining at my house.

I drove to the rig, and sure enough there were people there. I pulled out the rain jacket that lives in my trunk (from college) and set up shop in one of the white plastic chairs. Class was on and the rain was dying down.

The ladder wasn't slippery and neither was the bar. In fact, the net wasn't wet like I thought it would be. The weather wasn't really an issue actually. I would have preferred sunshine, but it was dry enough to safely fly and I had a blast.

Class was eight people. Four regulars (I'm including myself in this!), two middle aged lady, and a couple. The girl was an experienced flyer who'd been to two other rigs, and her boyfriend was a newbie.

Today was the day I practiced my swing. Or at least the back half of it. You learn it in pieces.
(All the regulars practice their swings, so to me, it's a step that I'm moving up! I was ridiculously pumped to learn this.)

There are so many things to learn so I'm fine with this.

First time up, I don't go on hep. Haha. After one night of one-handed take-offs I'm still getting used to it.

The swing is: (my version of how I remember it is)

Take off

Hang straight

Towards the end of the arc, arch with your feet behind you.

Then, it's three kicks: forward, backward, forward.

You practice this a few times, and then it's the bullet drop.

You eventually drop straight to your back on the net.

My first time up, I swung way too hard. I also dropped like a dead bug to the net.

Shain told me to swing SMOOTHER and connect them together.

I was happy that I swung big enough. I've been doing these awful tiny swings so, I'm probably overcompensating.

The regulars tell me learning your swing is frustrating. Shain says not to try to be perfect the first time. I think I made a valiant an un-embarassing effort.

Try two: Take off was better. I think my bullet drop was closer to straight. Not quite there. Shain tells me the goal is to get into a rhythm, to try and get there.

Try three: More swinging. I'm trying to make it smoother. And I'm trying to anticipate the calls (which is bad, Just listen to Shain!) My drop on this one was awful.

We talk about it. I don't understand what I'm supposed to do for the drop. Am I suppose to kick on the "ready" call ? I will work on this more next week.

TRICKS
For my trick, I'd been doing a straddle whip for a few classes (and catching it), so Shain suggests a back end straddle. I've got this. He has Laura demo it for me.

I go up on the board and they put the lines BETWEEN MY LEGS.

Well this is weird. I take off. And when I straddle the LINES POP OUT TO THEIR NORMAL POSITION.

And IT IS THE WEIRDEST FEELING EVER. Am I supposed to move my legs out of their way? My brain is exploding. What am I supposed to do? And then I remember that Shain said that was supposed to happen and that means I did the trick right. I straddle. And whip for the catch. And save it.

It's not a perfect first attempt. I tell Shain the lines confused me. He said for a second I tried to thread my leg through the lines. But figured it out.

At this point, it's time for catches. I get lucky, because the couple has to leave early, and the ladies said they were done, so I get one more practice run while Alex puts up the catch trap (the bar the catcher swings from. Note: I save the day, with my Lululemon small towel, that they use to dry the bar).

And I get it! I don't let the weirdo lines between my lines phase me. I straddle, I reach. I fall to the net.

"Do it just like that for catches," Shain says.

Yasss, I am so awesome, I think.

Now, time for catches. After two practice runs, I get my catch. And I think it's beautiful. My toes are pointed. I catch. I sit perfectly in the mat. I look at the video and wonder I'm going to learn RETURN TO THE BAR. Look at my height. (Ha ha, I know this is months away. I also bent my arms on take-off, but this is a work in progress. I'll get there.)

My second catch is a little messier. But I didn't record it, so it doesn't count. I kicked backward when Shain said forward (brain, muscles? Hello, what are you doing) and had to muscle up to straddle, so my timing was a tad off, and then the catch was barely there—because I was searching for the catcher, while he was searching for me. I grabbed his wrist (no!) and it counts.

So for next week: Need to work on working in hands.

I know I'm not supposed to reach for the catcher! But some part of my brain wants to keep me safe and wants me to reach. (Maybe we should blindfold me? Doesn't THAT sound safe?)

And I want to work on that bullet drop. I need that explained again, to watch a few people do it.

But overall, I'm super happy with the class. I started working on my swing. (Yes!) I went two for two on catches. I'm making progress, learning new things and getting better with (most) every class.

Shain said "Good job today" (Shain's the tough one, so this is awesome.)

Rod, the white haired guy who'd never seen me fly before, told me I was amazing. Yes, I can catch my trick after two practice runs!

(I also love watching the other girls get so much better! It warms my heart to see a girl that was awesome before, be a total bad-ass in the class. Erica and Tara! This is you).

Flying trapeze made my weekend so happy. Now I have to wait another week to do it again. See you soon, trapeze!

Lunchbreak 5k

After two weeks of running a lot of trails, I headed back to the indoor track today. It was my lunch break. The goal was just to get some miles in.

I ran that first lap at 46 seconds, which was smoking. I felt fast. After taking Thursday off, I felt great.
I wanted to know how fast I could run a mile: 7:26. I was competing with a walking class and dodging people so that's not bad!

I went on to run 3 miles in 24:14. I let out a whoop when I was done. I shaved off 20 seconds from my previous fastest time. (And that was better than my fastest cross country time sophomore year.)

How awesome is that?

I feel like all those trails are really paying off. Trails are hard and I don't feel like I've run that many hills, but just been getting more mileage in and that bit of hills in the trails, my times are dropping.

Granted,  running trails really hard on my body. My back's been really achey. Everything hurts. I think I need to to go to the indoor track once a week or so because it's not as hard on my joints or lungs as outside. But it was awesome to knock that workout on my lunch break. It freed up my evening, so the husband and I went to get cheap Mexican. After smoking that workout, I totally deserved fish tacos :)

Happy running!

Flying Trapeze: One Handed Take Off

I am official in the intermediate trapeze level. Tonight I learned a one-handed take-off.

A few of the staffers have been asking me for weeks if I'm a one-handed take-off yet. And as of tonight I am! Wa-hoo! I am finally getting there.

To prep, I watched videos online. It looks easy. Like when you jump off the board, your second hand comes to the bar, so you're never really hanging one handed off the trapeze. (Could I hold myself with one arm? Kaz said yes, but it would hurt.)

Kaz took me aside at the beginning of the class. We used the practice bar (the kind I caught with my single reverse) and by holding on to one of the rig poles.

You stand on the board like normal. You put your right hand on the bar, like normal. But here's the difference. When you bend your knees on the "ready" command, you're also going to dip the bar down and to the right. On hep, you snap the bar up to center and kind of jump and grab the bar with your other hand at the same time. You want to catch the bar at eye level. (My interpretation. I could be really off!!!) That jump/ arm and bar swing combo will give you more momentum. (In my mind it's sort of jump a gymnastics punch into the air.)

And I was thoroughly confused by the explanation.

It looked so easy in the videos, I said. "Is it easier to do than explain?" I asked.

Then, I climbed up to the board and practiced a few times. Only I was doing a set straddle, so my hand goes in the middle of the bar, so I just pull the bar up and down—not so much right.

The first time off the board, I felt like I stalled. I thought the staffer wasn't going to let go of my belt. So I stuttered off the board. AND then my arms got all tangled up.

Because I did a set whip instead of a set straddle.

I thought I remembered the trick last week, but I didn't. (My muscles remembered something close.)

And I confused the line worker, so I just sat down on the net and laughed.

I am the queen of epic fails.

I went over to the practice bar and practiced the set straddle. Hands together, feet outside on the bar in a frog position. Ahh, that's better.

I tried the take-off the second time. And I'm bending my arms, and pulling up on the bar. Which also isn't right. (I have been practicing my pullup, so this makes sense.) I went over to the Tivo and watched this. My arms were so bent. NOT GOOD.

So now there are lots of things to remember: KEEP MY ARMS STRAIGHT. LOCK THEM OUT.

Kaz also told me to really exaggerate the motion. To swing down a lot, and explode up/out (I don't remember which, but explode).

(We had a discussion about down/forward and which direction to go, which confused me since I am completely dyslexic with directions. Seriously, I have this alien sense of direction and don't see them like other people do.)

I had one swing where I went out, and then realized my hands were supposed to be together, so I shifted my hands mid swing, so I could save my straddle. (I think they were ready to bring me down. But I can muscle it. Maybe not safe, but ha ha).

My hands weren't together, because I WASN'T LOOKING AT THE BAR ON TAKEOFF.

Not sure what I was looking at. I was probably worrying about straight arms, so I didn't think to look at the bars (SO MUCH TO REMEMBER)

Other corrections for the night:

1) It's a set straddle not a set split. So toes down more and not out. (What's the point of having a killer middle split then?)
2) Don't kick up my feet when I let go for my catch. (I swear they told me last week to explode more and kick my feet, but apparently I remembered it wrong. Haha.)
3) Don't look for the catcher (with you hands). It makes their job harder when you're both searching for each other. Just present and let them find you. I got this correction twice. I know not to do it. But on some primal level, my brain thinks I must.

I got both my catches for the night (same as last week). I'm not piking as much on the catches (still a baby amount directly after) but it's getting better. My sits are getting better after the catch releases.

Next week: LEARNING MY SWING!!!

I will really feel like I made it when I learn my swing. Wa-hoo!

SUP: Sunk Cost

My brother-in-law on his paddle board. 

This post should be about StandUp Paddle Board Yoga, but I didn't go.

UGA's rec sports offers a class at nearby Lake Chapman. I thought it would be a cool class to try on my list of fun things to try.

The class sold-out quickly. I got on the waitlist. A few days before the class, I got off the wait list and paid $35 to go on the trip, which was a mistake.

I had thought it would be an hour-long class. But it was listed as a trip from 11 a.m.-4 p.m., which is way too many hours in the sun for someone with fair skin like me. I figured I could always leave early. (And paddleboarding seemed a tad boring last time I did it. Not sure I have the attention span for that.)

Then, a cold front came in. And the weather was 63 degrees, which is way too cold to play in the water. And the trip leader moved the trip back to a 9:45 a.m. start.

I don't own a wetsuit. Or even a rash guard. I live in Georgia where it's 80 degrees until October.

And I'm really sensitive to the cold. I hate it. I shivering when it was 68 degrees last night. I've been kayaking in this weather before and I was miserable. I've even gotten bronchitis from cold wet weather.

So I wasted my money and decided not to be cold and miserable. Instead, I went to body shred, got groceries and did my Sunday chores. Oh well for the wasted money. At least I didn't get sick.

Lululemon upload: Faves for this week....

Oh Lululemon.

Another week, another upload. If only I had money.

I've been waiting for another Run Stuff Your Bra. But even though Canada has a ton and there were a ton at SeaWheeze, still no new stuff your bras. Maybe next week. I need another one ASAP.

If I had money, there were a few things I'd like to try in this week's upload.

1. Go The Distance Short in ghost dot/black slate
I love polka dots. And I like these shorts. They're a nice length (too short shorts make my thighs chafe.) They're reversible too. (I have the butterfly print pair.) They are kind of heavy though, and not as comfy or fabulous as the tracker shorts (which do make my thighs chafe.) Don't have to have these, but might file them away for later.

There were also new tracker shorts—in a color that was already marked down in the shorter Run Times short.

2. Give me Qi Crop
I want to try these on. I love the pattern with a color blocked side panel.
Also, I'm curious about the purple ones.
Wish I had money.

3. Circadian Short Sleeve Tee
I'm a sucker for a nice T-shirt. I hope my store gets these.

4. Circadian tank
This looks soft, like something I could wear on Saturday to get groceries in. It comes in black too. I'm curious about this one.

Nothing ordered for me this week. Holding out for a new bra.

And ugh for all the camo that came out this week. It is so bizarre and tacky.

Yoga Cat helps with Crow pose

I am not a yogi. I have done exactly one yoga class in my life and it was one the trampoline. I keep wondering if yoga is something I should take up.

The problem is I'm pretty ADD (not diagnosed, but super short attention span). So maybe it's worth researching the different types of yoga. I like athletic feats. I like learning poses. I did try acro yoga (doesn't count) for a few classes.

The one takeaway from that first workout was the L handstand, which I really like. It's super challenging too.

I was wasting time on the inter webs last night and saw an article about how to do a handstand. Yes! This is where I am. A year later and still working on my handstand.

One of the steps was a yoga pose called crow. It requires strength and balance—the same fundamentals you need for a handstand. I decided I immediately had to try it. The steps were really helpful. It took me a few tries to hold it more than a millisecond. (The toes together trick really helped!)  I did fall on my face once (and did not break my glasses). I put my iPhone on selfie mode, because it helps to see my form, to see where I'm struggling or if I'm getting it.

And the cat decided to plop himself down about two feet behind me. So I had to not fall on him.

I guess he wanted his picture taken.


And here's how to do crow pose, if you're interested: http://www.popsugar.com/fitness/Yoga-Pose-Week-Crow-1556159

• Begin in a Wide Squat. Place your palms firmly on the ground in front of you.

• Now straighten your legs slightly and place your knees as high up onto your triceps as possible, toward your armpits.

• Shift your weight forward into your hands and see if you can lean the weight of your knees into the backs of your arms. Then try lifting one foot off the ground and then the other. If you can bring your toes together, you'll feel more compact and it'll be easier to balance. Squeeze your knees together slightly and pull your belly button in towards your spine to give you a sense of lightness.

• Stay here for five breaths or you can work on straightening your arms.

Nerdy Girl's Guide to getting lost on a trail run

I used to love to run trails. Love. The nature. The way it cleared my head.

I'm trying to get back into running so I decide a Saturday morning trail run was exactly what I needed.

Let's be clear, I haven't done this in 15 years. I run the intramural trails with my husband on occasion, but it always kicks my butt.

I can run 3.5 miles inside no problem and need to increase my mileage, so I google nearby trails and decided to go to the State Botanical Garden of Georgia. They have PDFs of their trail maps. I look at them. And decided the white trail, at 3.22 miles was perfect. Finish in 27-30 minutes is my goal.

The trail is a 5-minute drive from my house and I get there when the garden first opens. I find the trail head no problem. I put my iPod and my iPhone in my sports bras pocket and go for a run. 7 minutes in and there are hills! Like hills at a 50 degree angle. I'm dying. I try to get to 10 minutes before I walk. And I'm clearing all of the spider webs as I run. And freaking out about spiders falling on me. (I think I only get bit once by a baby spider on my elbow.)

And the trail is narrow. Grasses are whipping my thighs as I whip through thickets. (I'm worrying about chiggers).

I'm running and worrying about snakes. And the trail is difficult. There are roots sticking out everywhere. There's rocks to avoid and sharp turns and steep angles.

And I realize that running a 3.2 mile trail BY MYSELF is probably a bad idea. I have my iPhone, so should I twist my ankle I could call for help (I'm somewhere on the white trail.) The trail runs by streams. I could fall in and short my iPhone and be stranded until someone comes nearby.

I see a deer. And aww....this is why I run trails. And it feels so good to speed down an uneven slope and know that I can gauge my stride exactly. And that I know what I'm doing and feel great.

And then there are the hills. I let myself walk some. This is about getting back into running shape.

The run goes on and on. And I know my time won't be great. I check my distance traveled on my iPhone, and its 2.8 miles. I've got another half mile in me so I run some more. And more and more.

The trail is very well marked. There are signs that say white trail constantly, and trees marked in white paint so you know you're going the right way. But when my GPS says 4.2 miles—I know something went wrong.

I ask Siri how to get to the parking lot. She asks me what parking lot. Maybe the IM fields parking lot. I tell her I'm lost. She's no help. Grr!!

At this point my goal is to just get out of here. And I find a map. I take one way. And double back. And finally I get back on the never-ending white trail. And I see the road that I drove in on! The trail seems to be leading away from the road, so screw this trail. I climb down a ledge to the road. I will not let this trail beat me. And I find my way back to my car. 4.6 miles and 50 minutes later. I wanted to increase my distance, but that's not quite what I wanted.

So maybe not my best idea. But I need to conquer this trail (the website describes this trail as "our longest trail and our most chal­leng­ing to hike." I want to go back so I can best it. And see if it is 3.2 or 5 miles long! Maybe I should walk it first.  Or go with a partner that can run ahead of me and clear the spiderwebs.

Celebrating after making my way back to civilization.

Review: Glyder Apparel

I heard about Glyder Apparel through some Lululemon blogs. They have good prices and frequently have sales. A Fourth of July sale convinced me to buy some crops. At 30% off, I got two crops for less than $100. There was no sales tax and I didn't have to pay shipping.

I ordered the Mosiac crop—because I'm obsessed with mesh inset capris. I love the way they look. Fierce? Sexy? The mesh is functional in that breathes well and keeps you cool during workouts. I like how mesh panels are extra flexible behind knees and on calves usually too big for normal crops. These are soft, stylist and a much cheaper alternative to all the mesh Lulu has out this summer. That said, I'd be careful  wear I wore these: running, barre, inside workouts. Probably not trail runs or anything too crazy where it might snag. I have plenty of other pants for that. I haven't had any of my mesh snag yet (knock on wood.)

I also got the cardio freak crop—because they also have mesh panels and I tend to wear my black crops a lot. They fit well. I wear them all the time. The cardio freak crops also have a lot of pockets, which is really nice. I ended up liking these better than the mesh crops (which is what drew me to buy in the first place.) Mostly because of the pockets—there's one in the low back and one in the waistband. So a pocket for your phone/ipod and then a separate pocket for keys, inhaler misc. They're just sporty and go with everything. Actually I'd buy more from them given a sale or new product drop.

I actually ordered a pair of Glyder ninja crops on Hautelook for $36 (+$8 shipping boo). I wanted to try the ninja crop (in purple!). I'd been eyeing the cutouts for a few months. So I got the black/grey spacedye when it was on discount. Haute said the item would ship in 2-3 weeks. I received it in 2 weeks (minus a delivery delay, because in the 30 minutes no one was home Friday, they tried to deliver them and a signature was required.)

The ninja crops are soft like Wunder Unders—a little more synthetic feeling than the cotton feeling of Lulu. They stood up well for my run. They had a single pocket for my iPod. My iPhone 6 did not fit in the pocket. They were pretty snug, because I had a line on my legs from the bottom of the crops and also from the seam, just above were the cutouts start. Nothing unreasonable. I have big calves and this happens with most crops. I thought the spacedye was a nice alternative to black, without being too loud of a pattern.

I'm pretty happy with all 3 of the crops. The cardio freak is probably my favorite of the 3 because it has mesh insets and lots of pockets.

Sizing: Glyder runs true to size. I wear a small in Victoria Secret, Under Armour, Fabletics, Nike and a 6 in Lululemon and I wear a small in Glyder. Their website said to order a size down. Don't. I did that and got crops that were too small.

Returns: I'm going to be honest and that Glyder needs to improve how they handle returns. I mailed in those crops that were too small. And for two weeks I heard nothing from them. (I had delivery confirmation, I knew they got them.) I didn't know if I should file a claim with my credit card or with the USPS (I bought insurance.) I finally emailed them and they apologized for the delay. A week later (three weeks after my return) they finally shipped the new crops. Three weeks is entirely too long.

So I ordered fourth of July weekend, and finally got crops that fit Aug. 11. I seriously hope I never have another return with this company again.

Timeline:

July 4, order placed

July 13: Receive crops, email about exchange

July 15: Mail crops back. Paid $9 in shipping.

July 17: They receive crops back.

July 30: I don't have new crops yet. About to file a claim with USPS. I email them and they tell me the exchange is in the works and apologize for the delay.

August 5: new crops shipped

August 11, new crops received.

I was pretty grumpy that it took five weeks to get crops I paid $100 for. I could have ordered another pair of mesh crops from a different brand—but knew these were coming and didn't need two pairs of the same thing. And now I know my size so hopefully this won't happen again. Now, if only they restock the ninja crop in purple.

(Update: I don't actually wear any of these crops all that often I was wearing the Cardio Freak Crop a lot, but the pocket isn't big enough for my phone on trail runs, so I don't wear them. )

I hate my thighs....but I'm working on it

I see how fat my thighs look here. 

I hate my thighs

I hate my thighs. I really shouldn't. I try not to.

They are good thighs. Thighs that can help me run two miles in under 20 minutes after not having trained at all. After not running for more than 10 years. Thighs that can do the splits, do a back walkover, get me through the toughest Pure Barre class.

Bridge kickover from last year

The thing is I've got muscular quads. Not the pencil thighs you see on all the models.

Not what my thighs look like

Even when I was in high school—when I was running twice a day and weighed 108 pounds, I still had quads. I still didn't have the thighs that looked good in shorty shorts.

I remember being in fifth grade—asking the other girls when I would be old enough to wear the short shorts that looked hot on other girls, that made me look like an overstuffed sausage.

My self-loathing went so far that for a few years I stopped wearing shorts completely. Because I hate the the way my thighs looked.

I was 28 or 29. At my highest weight. I saw a picture of me and my sister and stopped wearing shorts. I didn't want to look fat.

At 30, I started working out like a beast. And going the gym has really helped with my body confidence.

Just seeing other body types helped. Seeing muscular girls in shorts—and thinking they look powerful (not fat!) has helped me with this ridiculous demon.

Ever so slowly I've started wearing shorts again.

At first, I was worried about my leg's paleness, about a few spider veins.

But I looked around, and no one was grossed out because I didn't have model thighs (and never will).

I've purchased more shorts over the last year. I've started wearing them and not caring if my legs are pale.

The cut of shorts does help. Some will never work on my body type. I still can't do the super short shorts. But there are shorts out there for athletic girls. And sure, I might take selfie before heading out to see if the shorts work. Not all of them do.

I try not to look a picture and see how fat my thighs are. Focus on my smile or arms instead.

It's my demon—this thigh hatred. And I know I'm not alone.

For now, I will work on getting over it.

I see pictures of girls with too skinny thighs. At least I'm not that girl.

I've got real thighs. Unphotoshopped thighs. (Thigh gap, I laugh!)  Thighs that are strong and fast and can do amazing things.