We all have people that care about us; our families, our friends. But it's when you get a group of people that know nothing about eachother except that we share a common trait and within hours of meeting eachother you're cheering one another on, sharing laughs and stories that it hits you ... you're really not alone.
My last post was about my struggles since the holidays. The injuries, the food, the stress. Well, it's all still here, nagging injuries are getting a little better but it's the frame of mind that I have that makes all the difference in the world.
Last weekend with Connected In Motion's Winter Slipstream I had the opportunity to sh
are my experiences of the past year. I also got to know a wonderful group of people that share in the same daily struggles that I do that no one else seems to really understand. We all have Type 1 Diabetes. Some were diagnosed as little kids, then there were others like me that it's just rec
ent. But we all have the same highs and lows (literally!) in life. Sharing how we deal with them physically and emotionally brought us all close together (that and standing on a tiny platform high above the ground). Thank you to all the Connected In Motion folks for helping me get back to my self again. I really needed to hear that we all have our down days and that no matter what, it does get better.
I got back into the hardcore training this week. The major turnaround for me was on Tuesday. I wrote an email to my bestfriend that I hadn't talked to in a while about some of my issues. Felt good to get it off my chest. They responded and were very supportive. After that little chat I headed to the gym for my yoga workout. Somehow there in the dark weight room, just me and my mat ... it all came back together. I was stronger and more relaxed in that workout than I ever have been. My mind settled in on what I was doing, it worked out with itself that even though I've messed up the past 4 wks, I'm still me and I'm strong enough to get back to where I was and to be even better than that. After coming home from work that night, it was like the bad energy was gone. Positivity was rolling back in and it continues to do so even now.
This morning was the second round of fitness testing for the National Women's Dragon Boat Crew. Went into it a little sore after joining in on the killer workout I gave my boys soccer team last night but thought what the heck, let's do it. First up was situps in 1 min. The advantage this time over the first round was that I had someone holding my feet. So by the end of the minute, I had increased my score by 11 over last time. Good start. Next up was the chinups in 30 sec. I see these awesome gals just pumping them out no problems. My hands start to shake (and I know it's not from low blood sugar this time), my mind starts going through the possible reactions that people will have when I can't even do one. Then it gets close to my turn and all fears go away and I tell myself that I'm just going to give it all I have and whatever happens happens. So up I go, pull up off the bench back down to full hang and get about half way up and get stuck ... damn, try as I might my damn body doesn't want to get any higher! So, back down to the bench, try again, same thing happens so after 3 or 4 tries, my time is up. Well, at least it's overwith and time to move on.
Next was a 30 second rowing ergometer test. Now, it's been at least 3 or 4 years since I've been on an erg. I'm not happy to say it but the last time I tested on an erg, I couldn't keep my butt on the seat! I had no idea what pace to try and maintain or what good scores were. I did however realize that the girl before me was super awesome. So sit down, get my feet adjusted and here we go. With in a few pulls I hear from behind me "wow". Ok I think, let's do it baby! I managed to pull myself to the best distance of the day.
Then came the bench press, 3 rep max. I figured I'd be ambitious, why not, go big or go home right? So added 15lbs to what I knew I could do for 5 reps a few weeks ago. Got through it no problem so we added another 5lbs. Just managed to push through that ... not to shabby. New personal best for me :) Haven't lifted that much since I was on creatine back as a varsity shot putter!
Last but not least was the 300m erg test. Again, I knew the super awesome girl was infront of me so I paid attention to the pace she kept so I had some idea of what I should be around to be near the top of the pack. She pulls out an awesome number. Then I'm up. One of the girls sets my goal time for me just as jokes. Then another pipes in with another bet of what I can do ... meanwhile I'm sh*tting my pants as I'm getting set on the erg. Put my head down and just give 'er! I look up a few times to see how many metres are left. I start slip on the seat with about 60m left, I have to let up on the pulls just a little to make sure my butt stays on the seat, I don't want to waste what could be a good test and have to start again! So by the time it finally gets down to 0m left .... my time is faster than the goal my teammate set by half a second. Again, fastest of the day.
Not too shabby. For a gal that was having significant doubts about her abilities and doubting herself, today definitely helped get the confidence back up. Needless to say I was pretty useless at climbing afterwards. Packed it in after an hour and a bit. Slept most of the afternoon.
That's all for tonight folks ... gotta rest up for the 10km run in the morning.
I just got home through the snow from an amazing evening. When Hedia asked for people to ride in the 24 Hour Spin for Heart at practice a while back, I was like, sounds interesting. Then the email came and just left it in my inbox. Another email came saying she still needed people, so what the heck, why not. It's for charity, it won't cost me anything and I get to ride for however long I want. Signed up for a couple hours.
