Some things . . .

Wow, so much to talk about! I guess that's what happens when you let a week and a half go by without posting, eh?

First let's start with some bad news I received about a week ago. I always like to get that stuff out of the way first so that I can move onto happier things :) Sooooooo . . . my pops was diagnosed with prostate cancer last Friday. Bummer, right? Who wants to actually be forced to think/talk/etc. about their father's prostate? Yikes--no thanks! But in all seriousness, if he has to have cancer, prostate cancer isn't the worst thing ever. It still sucks obviously, but there are far worse cancers out there. At this point in time, we're waiting on results of a bone scan to see whether the cancer has spread to his bones at all. Luckily, my father is a pretty fit, healthy dude (he's a runner too) . . . so we're pretty optimistic that no matter what the prognosis, he'll be just fine. Still, we could definitely use all the prayers, happy thoughts, finger-crossing, etc. you can spare!

Okay, now moving on to happier items: I am in love with school. I mean, seriously in love. Like, I would probably consider cheating on Wilson if school was a person. Luckily, school is not a person. But I digress . . . it is honestly going just INCREDIBLY. I feel like I have learned such a crazy amount of stuff in such a short time (only 7 weeks so far!). That's the reason I haven't been posting much about what I'm learning . . . it's kind of just like, "Where the hell do I even start?!" The one thing I WILL say is that resistance training can SERIOUSLY improve your running--and yes, it is important to do some resistance training for those legs of yours, homies. Trust me on this one--you WILL see improvements in your running if you train your legs. And we're not talking crappy leg press, leg curl, leg extension machines here . . . we're talking body-weight squats, lunges, step-ups, box jumps, hip extensions, calf-raises, etc. And guess what's awesome about all of that stuff I just mentioned? YOU DON'T EVEN NEED A GYM TO DO IT! Sorry, y'all . . . no excuses. Anyway, I'll talk about this stuff more at some point, but if you don't do these exercises now, think about adding some in.

My new favorite thing at school is the "make-up sessions" we can attend on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. Basically, we can only have 2 unexcused absences during the program if we want to graduate--and if you happen to have more than 2, you are forced to attend evening "make-up sessions" to cancel out the extra absences. I went to the first of these sessions not really sure what to expect. I'd only missed 2 days (one from my Chicago trip and one because I was sick) . . . but I figured it would be smart to earn my free days back just in case I happen to need them later on. For the first part of the session, our instructor had us clean the gym. BO-RING (and also, EW). But then, he put us through some crazy-difficult circuit training. It was HARD. Two dudes puked--not even kidding--because the point of these sessions is to be so difficult that they prevent people from missing too many classes. But, I am such a crazy masochist that I have decided to just go to all of these sessions I can make (which, lets be honest, is all of them--I have no life!) because I REALLY love having my butt kicked. I figure I might as well get my money's worth and do everything I can at school, no?

The only issue with this is trying to figure out when to fit my training runs in. Ha. Between the daily workouts we do--which are pretty hard core (all kinds of super-setting, compound-setting, etc.)--and then these extra sessions, it's hard to figure out when to run. But I think I finally figured out my schedule. It will involve "two-a-days" 5 days a week . . . so hopefully it won't kill me. But if it becomes too difficult, I can always drop the extra sessions at school (or at least one a week):

Monday:

-Resistance train upper body/interval training (at school)

-Evening run of 4-8 miles

Tuesday:

-Resistance train lower body/core/interval training (at school)

-Circuit training (evening session at school)

Wednesday:

-Resistance train upper body/interval training (at school)

-Evening run of 4-8 miles

Thursday:

-Resistance train lower body/core/interval training (at school)

-Circuit training (evening session at school)

Friday:

-1st of back-to-back long runs in the a.m. (7-10 miles)

-Resistance train upper body/interval training (at school)

Saturday:

-Long run (12-20 miles); core (optional)

Sunday:

-REST DAY!

So um, yeah. Ha, I guess that's a lot. But I'm feeling stronger than ever . . . and my body composition has already changed SIGNIFICANTLY. As in, none of my effing clothes fit me anymore. I know I shouldn't complain about this, but I AM kind of bummed that I'm going to have to basically buy an entire new wardrobe when this whole thing is over! Talk about unexpected expenses . . .

In other happy news, I got to visit my older sister and adorable niece again last weekend. My sis had some girlfriends in town for a "girls' weekend" . . . and I was the designated babysitter/kiddo distracter since my bro-in-law was out of the country on business. First things first, the drive was FAR more successful this time . . . I didn't even run off the road once! Go me! Second of all, Iris and I had A BLAST together coloring, riding bikes, looking at stingrays in the river and doing all kinds of puzzles. The only time we seemed to butt heads a little was when she tried to convince me that Halloween candy and cookies would make a "good lunch." No, no, little one. Sorry, but your Aunt Bailey is learning all about nutrition at school, and she is not going to be fooled into believing that! We settled on grilled cheese, yogurt and a banana. Overall, though, she was VERY well-behaved. I was impressed. Still, I was definitely exhausted come the end of the weekend. Here are a few photos of Iris and I hanging out together that one of Mallory's girlfriends took:

Oh my gosh, and I just remembered that I have even MORE happy stuff to talk about. Guess who I get to meet this weekend? ONLY YOUR FAVORITE REDHEAD EVER!! Aren't you jealous? We had planned to do a long run together on Saturday, but it turns out she has a 10K to rock on Sunday. Most people would simply cancel and try again another week . . . BUT NO! She is officially the coolest person EVER and she offered to ride her bike beside me while I run! How incredible is that?! I'm so excited to finally meet her!

Okay, well I THINK that's all for now. I'll probably think of something else right affter I hit "publish" . . . but I guess I'll have to save whatever it is for the next post ;)

Hope you all are having wonderful weeks . . . we're ALMOST to the weekend! Hang in there ;)