Are You My Workout Partner?

Yesterday I got the opportunity to run with The Wonder Teen. Her parents were on a golf vacation and asked if she could spend the weekend with us. "Would that be OK?" They asked.

Hmmmm. Let's see, where do we start? She doesn't have an aversion to folding laundry (for one day I did not have overflowing laundry baskets and all clean clothes were put away--Wowza!). She tells "homemade" stories to the girls (as in not read from a book) and sings Aerial songs to them in perfect pitch at bedtime. She has no qualm about spending the day with four kids, and to top it off is an honors student, all-state bassoonist, and played lead in the school musical. That's not even all of it. Now you know why I call her The Wonder Teen. Of course I was happy to do them this little favor.

It was nice to have her around for the weekend and to get a run (and yoga class) in together. For the last year--in addition to earning her title as Wonder Teen--she got up to run with me Wednesday mornings at 6 a.m.

I remember when Workout Pam moved away I put out the call to various neighbors looking for running company (I was like that duckling in the children's book, "Are You My Mother?," who goes from animal to animal in search of his life source. Instead my question was "Are you my workout partner?") As it turned out it was my babysitter--The Wonder Teen--who accompanied me most often. Which brings me to my point (yes, there always is a point, eventually): You never know where you'll find your next workout partner. And my second point: if you want a workout partner they are quite possibly under your nose. And a third point, which I haven't gotten to in this post but did in a former post: You are your best workout partner. A fourth, and distantly related point is: If you start running with your babysitter you'll need a back-up sitter if you want to run with company and without your kids.

The Wonder Teen is feeling a little aimless about her running without our scheduled workouts. You already know I'm feeling aimless too. But I'm certain it won't be for long. I know I'll continue to workout with or without company. I also know I will eventually find new friends to workout with. Most importantly I'm reminded that, workout partnerships might not always last, but the friendships do. And I have been so lucky to accrue so many good friends on the run.

To Everything There is a Season

Remember how, just after giving birth, you have to figure out who you are all over again? Even if it's your second or third (or fourth) child, there's still that hazy period of redefinement, because there is this whole new human being in your life. You may have figured out (at least partially) your role as mother to your other child or children, but now you are mother again to a totally different person and it inevitably means something new for you.

I think that's why I've always wallowed a bit in that "fourth trimester." I don't jump back into any schedule, not quick to return to an exercise routine, I sorta fly by the wakings and eatings of the new kid. Sniff em out. No, literally, sniff them out. As that baby sleeps on my chest I may wonder if I should do something else, but ultimately don't because what is more wonderful than a sleeping baby on your chest with a sweet-as-a-lilly scalp? Eventually--this can be days for some, weeks for others (months for me)--you become grounded in the new normal, which may or may not include more sleep. You become familiar with the new set of expectations and feel a pull to gather up the who, what, why, where and when of your life (or any of that you feel worth holding onto). It's all still there, on the back burner, waiting for you, thank goodness.

In a strange way I'm feeling just like that after moving into our new home. Even though I physically know where I am, unconsciously I feel a little disoriented. And moving into this new home has required so much of my attention and, like a newborn, I want to devote my attention to it. I want to settle in and get to know all the nooks, crannies and smells. I want to hang pictures in just the right place; I can't help but stop and gaze out the windows; I'm learning what it means to have a propane tank; which windows and doors need weather proofing; that I may encounter a snake or frog in the house if a door is kept open too long.

Yes, there is plenty to do these days as I contemplate my new role in this new home. There is no schedule for me and I'm deftly aware that I have lost my grasp on the who, what, why, where, and when of my life. But in these waning days of summer, somehow it seems appropriate to flutter about aimlessly. That's how you come to spend the morning at the beach instead of writing the article due this week, or create a miniature fire pit for the playhouse in the backyard instead of go for a run, or sit a spell getting to know new neighbors instead of tackle the growing mound of laundry.

I can't help but think: "To everything there is a season; and a time to every purpose under heaven."

As I write that one of my almost 7-year-olds has climbed into my lap to snuggle. And that is a perfect use of my time.

Short and Sweet: Sick Kid

The Boy has picked up some sort of crud that is leaving him feverish and clinging to whatever body part of mine he can attach himself to. Despite the list of blog topics I have building up (mostly on exercise getting squeezed due to "temporary imbalances") I am going to send you out to enjoy a post from Mizfit, who shares my devotion for engaging our little chicks in the fit life. She interviewed her most adorable daughter and once I locate the box that holds our Flip cam, you better believe I'll do the same. Check it out:

Exercise, Strong & Support Defined

And one more thing to check out: The Facebook Fan Page for the book, "Hot (Sweaty) Mamas: Five Secrets to Life as a Fit Mom" is up and running. See that new badge on the left of this page? THAT is the cover of our book! With a cover like that how could you not pick up that book at a book store and not put it down? Since the book won't be out until spring, all you can do for now is friend the fan page where we will be providing updates when we have them; but more importantly we will be sharing and collecting from our friends the myriad secrets of life as a fit mom. Please join the conversation!

That is all I can type with one hand. Plus The Boy's diaper is smelling something awful. And something awful is leaking onto my arm...

Dawn of a New Day

And here's another good reason why I race: Because I can.

If you've never finished a triathlon but think you might want to, or want to but hesitate out of fear or deference to all those other roles you play in life, let me tell you what you surely already know: Life is short.

Five months ago, when I signed up for the race I finished on Saturday, I did it so I could be part of a team. This team of 15 women was organized by my friend Jody, to honor her sister who was battling bladder cancer. Jody had never done a triathlon before and never had her sister, Dawn. After Dawn's diagnosis last summer (the cancer was detected during her 6-week postpartum checkup after her son was born) she told Jody she wanted to be able to kick the cancer and finish that race. Jody agreed to sign up and train with her. Twice Dawn had clear scans and thought she might be cancer free. She celebrated her son's first birthday and had a big party for her 42nd birthday.

I had done some riding and running with Jody this summer and heard about Dawn's treatments and prognosis. I thought I would get to meet Dawn at the race. All of us on the team hoped she could race with us, but when the cancer came back last month, we settled for hoping she could be there as we each crossed the finish line for her.

The week before the race Jody found out that her sister had no treatment options left and the day before the race she got the news that her sister might only have days left to live. Jody didn't know if she could start the triathlon much less finish it. Emotions can either drag us back or propel us forward. Jody decided to race, mostly because she knew that's what Dawn wanted for Jody and if she could have had it her way, for herself, too. So Jody knew she needed to go back and tell Dawn what it was like every step of the way.

And that's what Jody did. She finished her first triathlon and picked up an extra metal for her sister.

The next day, Dawn died peacefully and gracefully at home.

What is it you want to do with your life but haven't? Don't wait another day. Life, if you don't know it already, is short.

Why I Race

My one and only sprint triathlon for the year is this Saturday. I've been in a forced taper (that's what I'm telling myself even though a sprint doesn't require a taper) ever since my gall bladder attack. I went another week without any triathlon training once I recovered, because after I got my energy back I had to spend it doing something else--something I haven't blogged about--moving our family of six into a new home. I still don't want to blog about it because it stresses me out even more to write about it. That said, we are finally in our new home, albeit knee deep in boxes. I squeaked out a 25-minute run this morning, I'll try to get to the pool tomorrow, but I will be hard pressed to get on my bike or swim in a lake before Saturday. Life is simply "in the way." So why not ditch the race under the circumstances? Despite the fact I am woefully underprepared, I am eager to get to the start line; to leave behind my responsibilities as mother and wife and homeowner and let myself be a triathlete. And having that race on the calendar is what got me out of bed to run this morning. Having that goal out there allows me to carve out a workout when I might otherwise feel there's too much going on to make it happen. Right now I'm not racing for personal records or chasing trophies. As a busy mom of four with something else she always feels she should be doing, signing up for a race legitimizes my need to workout on the craziest of days and reminds me of who I am.