Physical Therapy: Grinding the Buns

Back at boot camp early this morning. I continued the moves from last week plus some additional ones. The routine took well over an hour and looked like this:

• warm-up: stationary bike for 10 minutes
• heel raises on platform (3 x 20)
  
• *new* one-legged squats (each leg, 3 x 10)
• squats on smith machine with 30 lbs added to the bar (3 x 15)
• leg press machine, 100 lbs for two legs (3 x 12)
• leg press machine, 70 lbs for single legs (3 x 12) *hard as hell*
• kickbacks on weighted machine (each leg, 3 x 15)
• walking lunges with 8lb dumbbells (3 x 8)
• one leg balancing on wobbly board while passing a weight (2 x 20)

Intense! Grunting and panting like a water buffalo in quick sand. I think that even when I was running 7+ miles, that I never hurt like I did today. It's fascinating the science behind getting strong as opposed to developing endurance---well, not opposed to, but rather, as a complement to. The PT instructor I was with today told me about a woman who did 21 mile training runs and yet she could not balance on one leg for more than 30 seconds. Wow. Guess one can deduce why she ended up in PT herself.

Just more proof for why so many components of your body need to be functioning optimally so that you can achieve your strength, endurance and racing goals. Now I need to do some arm weights and ab work so that I don't look like a stick figure perched atop tree trunk legs!!