The Answer is No!: Tuesday 8/17: One Mile Run & Toning Class

I wasn't planning on running at all on Tuesday, but I got to the gym earlier than I expected and could not resist the urge to run on the track just to see how my achilles would hold up after the insomnia run the day before.  I decided to limit my self to one mile because I didn't have much time before class.  I decided to use the indoor track and as I began running everything felt really good, so I thought that this would be a good opportunity to push myself and see just what I could do if I tried.  By about a half of a mile I could tell that I was running better than I had run in a very long time, and that I could still open things up a bit more without risk of injury.  By the time I finished the run I had put down a 7min. mile, which is a really great pace for me!!  I knew that I could not keep that pace up much longer than one mile, but it still felt really good to hit that pace and not be exhausted.  Granted my heart was pounding a bit, and I was sweaty as all get out.  The tough thing was that I still had to do the toning class and could not back out because my wife was taking class with me, nor did I want to slack off in the class.

The class was really rough and not just because of the run!  After the class my wife and several other members commented that the class seem more challenging that it had been in recent weeks.  We did a couple of new exercises, but for the most part I think that it was because we did longer sets on several of the timed exercises like bicycles.  By the end of class I was having trouble staying up in the plank position because I was sweating so much.  It didn't matter how much I dried myself or the floor.  I really think the combination of a good short run and toning class was exactly what I needed.  And, my achilles made it through fairly well, which gave me hope that I would be able to do well in the 5k on Saturday.  By the way after seeing to picture above, I had to ask myself -- Self, am I beautiful when I sweat? -- Self replied with magic 8 ball certainty . . . my reply is No!