teh weekendzar

so for eleventy billion reasons that I don't need to go into (read: laziness), I didn't go to the gym on Friday.

Yesterday I did a LAST CHANCE WORKOUT before assessments.  A bunch of us went to this little roller rink that is usually deserted.  I wanted to try out my wheels again and my new toe stops, both of which rule.  As I expected, my hamstring started bugging me (GODDAMMIT) but what can I do at this point? Not much.

So now it's Sunday and I didn't want to go to the gym today either (especially since Maverick was at a friend's house - that right there is prime nappin' time) but I went.  I HOPE THE POWERS THAT BE ARE HAPPY.  But, fortunately, my least favorite machine (the assisted dip/pull up) machine was broken, so I had a legitimate reason not to use it YAY WAHOO.

And now my right knee hurts for some reason.  I CAN'T WIN.

Tomorrow evening is my assessment, we'll see what happens.

hrapy birfday roy

Today is Roy Underkill's birthday. He's 41.  When I met him, he was 25. Yipes.

Because of that, I am going to the gym right after work, rather than later tonight.  He took the day off from work so he can be home when Maverick gets off the bus.

well, that's interesting

More fun with Kyle last night.  As I was doing some weight machine that involved my arms, I looked at myself (I was right in front of a mirror) I was surprised/shocked/flabbergasted to see that my right shoulder was much higher than my left.  Freakishly higher.  Like, I thought my shirt had bunched up higher.

Kyle said he'd noticed it before, and also commented on the fact that I had no idea where to hold my upper arms, which apparently means I'm a lot more flexible.  Who knew?  He said that there's a strength/flexibility tradeoff, which may or may not have something to do with my shoulder issues in the past.  He also commented on how unless you actually pay attention to how you move and stuff, certain muscles will compensate in movements and strengthen, while others atrophy.  Apparently this is starting to happen with my right shoulder.

Then he had me try to do bicycle crunches on a bosu ball.  Good Lord that was an exercise in futility/hilarity. I could go for about half a second before I fell off.  I have no balance.

other summarizy stuff

(Maverick did awesomely at his tournament - 112, 96 and 102 for his three games.  Plus, the tournament used his book average (his average last year),which was a 65, so he did phenominally.  We'll find out in a few weeks how he did overall.)

Tonight is another appointment with Kyle.  I do a much better workout when there's someone standing over me telling me what to do.  I can't slack off.  Apparently at any point from now on I can do my followup measurements (it's been six weeks since I started the PT).  I really don't feel any different.  We'll see what happens.

so how did I start this anyway?

so I don't recall if I ever mentioned how I got into this whole roller derby thing in the first place.  I did at my normal, everyday blog which I never update anymore, but I'll go into it here, too.

It was July 7, 2008.  Roy and Maverick and I decided to go out for dinner, but we didn't go to the place we usually go, which is this little diner that serves really good food really cheap - we went to Famous Dave's.  We got there and I ended up sitting within viewing distance of a TV showing one of the local-ish sports channels.

And they showed this film clip bit.

Usually we have to tell Maverick to stop watching the TV in restaurants, but this time it was me. 

I have to figure out a way to do that.  I'd roller skated a lot when I was a kid*, and was really good at it, but hadn't been in years.  I really need to figure out a way to do that NOW. NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW.  The roller skating, the hitting, the attitude....it spoke to me in a way I hadn't been spoken to in years.

So I get home and Google "Rochester Roller Derby".  And lo and behold, I find a Craigslist posting.  There's a league forming!   If you're interested, come to XYZ rink every Wednesday. 

So I pull my old garage sale skates from the garage and go to the rink on Wednesday.  It was the rink's Adult Skate night, so there were lots of other people there, but we were able to do a pace line, weave through it from back to front.  I hadn't been on skates at all in years, and not seriously in probably at least twenty years, but it was like riding a bicycle.  It all came back to me.

When I got home, I wrote in my blog: "I AM HOT AND I AM SORE AND I AM SWEATY AND I AM GETTING BLISTERS ON MY FOOT BUT HOLY PINK AND PURPLE FLYING COWS** THAT WAS THE MOST FUN I HAVE HAD IN ELEVENTY BILLION YEARS."

And out of such humble beginnings, Queen Kicktoria was born.
_______________
*A lot.  Before I got a pair of roller skates, I would stand on Fisher-Price cars and use those.

** I wrote that way because my mom reads my blog and she gets weird about me swearing.  It should read OH MY FUCKING GOD".

okay

so all of the no people who read this blog probably remember the entry where I talked about going full out Sprinty McSprintenheimer on the gazelle machine for two minutes and being all HELL YEAH I AM AWESOME, only to remember that for the WFTDA thing I have to do 25 laps in 5 minutes.  Here is a linky link to that entry.

So Sunday I did kind of a half-assed workout (my elbow bugging me so I skipped the assisted pull-ups, Vinny was working with someone in the stretching area and I wanted to avoid him so I skipped my crunches), but I decided I would try the full out Sprinty McSprintenheimer on the gazelle for the full five minutes.

And I did it.

And then my heart exploded.

Whee!

So I realized that my Sprinty McSprintenheimer routine is a form of HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training).  Perhaps I should do a little more research into that.

Anyway, my tryout for the league is scheduled for February 1. It's essentially a formality, and I know I will pass it with ease, but I'm still a little nervous.  I want to completely crush the 25 laps in 5 minutes, and I'm still a little nervous about how my leg will react. (And my new wheels.  They are kind of slick and I'm worried I will lose control and crash into the wall.)  But we'll see what happens.  I also got new toe stops, big honkin' blue ones that, from what I have heard from other skaters, are awesome.  I didn't have them last Sunday so I couldn't try them out, but I am thinking I might try to go out to one of the rinks this week and get accustomed to them.

miscellany

so it's Friday and therefore my regular usual go to teh gymzar night.  It's bright and sunny outside and the parking lot here looks dry and I so so so so want to put on my skates and go around.  But first I'd need to put my outdoor wheels on, since, like, my skates have no wheels on them right now (I am in the midst of cleaning my bearings).

plus it's probably about ten degrees out. (checks the news website) well, 36.  Hm.

a bunch of people are congregating tomorrow morning to skate, but I can't go 'cause that's when Maverick bowls.  Did I mention he bowls?  He's pretty damned good, too.  Eight years old and his average is in the high 80's.  Roy is a bowler.  His high game is something insane like a 287 or somesuch.  I usually end up in the 110's and have to stop after one game because my hip hurts too much.  Sigh.