I wont quit

So this past weekend brought a lot of self thought which is always a good thing....  I had a great workout on Friday (see below), rested Saturday, and Sunday evening did the "Rose Bowl Hill Runs" that Tom turned me onto. 

I realized that I am too much of a reactionary.  This race is all about teaching yourself to get through adversity no matter what.  I tend to perform and do my best when my surroundings are doing well.  And I get frustrated when things are not.  So this race has been perfect at helping me to try and understand balance.  That's one of the things I love about Tom....no matter what is going on, he keeps his cool.  True leaders have that quality and I am doing much better at it.  This race has opened my eyes to that. 

Had a great Easter with a nice mass on Thursday, Easter Egg Hunt with Madison on Saturday, and Sunday Mass with Madi.  Did some shopping, had a nice dinner on Friday, so all is going well.  Taking it all in one step at a time and reminding myself life is a marathon not a sprint!

One thing that keeps me going is the fact that this race wants to break you.  There is certainly an element of us (racers) vs. them (race directors/promoters).  I find myself when I begin to get tired to hear Andy and Joe telling me to quit.  I actually play them saying "quit, quit, go home".  It pushes me knowing there is this big great white out there that wants to break me.  I typically don't perform well under that type of negativity, but I think i understand what it is all about....this race is my Can Tran, my fight with Booze, my struggle with anything.  The question is what are you going to do when life tells you to quit?  Give up and go home, or push through..... I am going to do my best on this thing.  I actually find myself saying out loud when I am tired "to hell with you Andy and Joe".  "Take this Death Race".  This race is about so much more than a finish line.....  I am thankful to be a part of it all....

Friday
Target - Legs (calf and quad) - Biceps
I am amazed how far along I am....I can feel my body and endurance level changing...
Split Stance Squat, Iso Preacher Curl, Butt Blaster, Curls, Med Ball Squat Jumps, Med Ball Abs, Jump Rope         
3x
13 Min Stair Master (1.4 Miles, 70 floors), 2 Shuffle Steps around the track    
2x
Cable Cross Over Curls, DB Lunges, Power Crunches, Jump over DB, Pull Ups, Cable Curls, Seated Calf   3x
6.5 Min Elliptical, Alligator Push Ups, Dips
2x
Incline DB Curls, Incline Squats, Wrist Curls, Power Cleans, Med Ball Lunges, 1 Lap with Med Ball over head
3x
Sauna Stretch
35 Min Sauna Cardio work...(17 exercises)

Sunday
Rose Bowl Hills (I have learned to pace myself....problem is I always feel like I can do so much more)
2 hours - not sure of distance figured about 12 miles or so.  I don't count miles anymore its all about the quality and time of workout....this run I one time around the Rose Bowl, hitting all the hills.  I didn't like just doing the hills so each hill I made myself do something extra at the top.
Hill 1 - Step Jumps (every 4th or 5th step), Box Jumps 2x
Hill 2 - Same
Hill 3 - Rock over head
Hill 4 - Dips
Hill 5 - Shuffle Steps up, Push Ups
Hill 6 - Squats
Hill 7 - Rock over head
Hill 8 - Box Jumps
Hill 9 - Side Steps Up, Burpie Push Ups
Hill 10 - Bicycle Abs
10 50 Yard Sprints
High Knees
Lunges
Shuffle Steps
Hill 11 - Jumping Jacks
Hill 12 - Mountain Climbers