Just another Magic Monday

Every day, you can choose if you are going to have a good day, or a bad day.  Granted, sometimes life throws a curve ball and tries to convince you to change your mind, but even then - you can maintain your choice with some effort (And perhaps some denial of reality.)

As an example, I had a rather interesting week on the first week I stopped posting.  You may (or may not) be aware that I work in the Information Technology field.  I m the Director of Information Systems for a non-profit that covers 2 states, plus Washington D.C..   As you can imagine, we use quite a bit of technology.  We ran into a problem, that we were not getting enough power into our main office.   Seriously.  Everything would be fine through the night and first thing in the morning, but as people arrived (and turned things on), lights would start to flicker, computers would reboot and battery backups would start to squeal in outrage.   Throughout this week, people were a wee bit amazed I was still able to smile and joke around.. My response to it?  Hey, at least we are getting it all out-of-the-way at once!  This could be random issues popping up for the next three months!  Look how lucky we are!

You see, computers require power.  I know this might be a shocking realization, but when they aren't getting that power, they fail.  This is also true for computer-related equipment (such as IP Phones.)  In fact, steady power hits can lead to a loss of programming for phones.. Hypothetically, lets say you could lose 3/4 of your phones this way..

Needless to say, it was a very exciting week.  This was followed up with a flying trip to NY to see friends and family - with a focus on whatever my daughter wanted to do.  See, my son had a great weekend away with his choir, so we wanted to make sure that Elspeth had a special weekend as well!   Then last week was dedicated to ensuring that the previous week's issues didn't recur.

At the time this all went on, I was not running.  To be blunt, There were not enough hours in the day, or enough sleep hours available.  I was a little bummed by this, but life hands you certain cards and you play what you are dealt.  Yesterday, the weather was nice, if a wee bit chilly, so my son and I headed out for a nice run.  He did a fantastic job, and pounded out 2.4 miles faster than he ever has.  He didn't need very many walking breaks and kept a great spirit.  I finished up with another 2 or so after dropping him off at home.  It seems that my two-week break went along way toward healing me up from my coughing-injuries (boy that sounds stupid.)   No recognizable hernia pain either then, or this morning.  When I did my 3 miles on the treadmill I could feel that my hips were a bit sore (it was a hilly course yesterday), but nothing that didn't fade after the first half mile.

So it seems my "unfortunate" running break, was actually a wonderful healing time.  This is why I try not to get upset over "Bad" things.  They can often to turn out to be the opposite once you have a chance to view them in hindsite!

I did gain 1 pound in my non-running time.. But really, the food that I ate to do so was really yummy.. So I am not complaining. I am still 15 pounds down from where I was!   I figure its time to look at adding some strength training, and I am currently looking at the current options:

1) Join Gold's Gym.  They are about 1.5 miles away from me, which makes it a great distance to run to & from.
2) Get a Total Gym.   I had one in NY and actually liked it.  The delay that switching the machine around for exercises is annoying however.
3) Get  a Bowflex.  These seem like a solid workout machine that allows a lot of variety.  Like the Total Gym, I can get one very reasonably of craigslist.
4) Insanity - Do the Insanity workout DVDs.

I am leaning toward #3, but my neighbor just started working out at Gold's.  There is something to having a workout partner that helps, but I'm not sure of his schedule or what sort of workouts he does.

So do you incorporate strength training into your workouts?  How? What machines (if any) or weights do you use? Home or Gym?