Anaerobicize!

Today was my first foray into the grueling world of anaerobic training. What's that, you say? Well, according to our training guide that we received from BCF: "anaerobic exercise is high intensity training, typically greater than eighty five percent (85%) of your maximum heart rate. This causes the body to function in the absence of oxygen for short periods of time and helps the body to tolerate higher levels of lactic acid in your system. Anaerobic exercise shifts your aerobic training zone and lactate threshold higher allowing your body to perform harder activity more efficiently."

In other words, you push yourself to the point of the inability to breathe for about 20 minutes with a couple short "breaks" in there somewhere.

I'm pretty sure this training would be nearly impossible to do without someone guiding you -- it's just too hard and your body naturally resists going there. ...Or maybe it's just me. But Wednesday is Wade day. Wade is the CLIF trainer that I've been working with the longest so he's really taken me from pretty much zero to my high level of athleticism today :). I trust him & he says I'm ready, so bring it on!

The best way to anaerobically exercise is interval training which for me meant being tethered with a bungee while I ran forward, backward and all ways sideways and picked up a 15 lb medicine ball. Fun, right? Then because it's good to mix up the activity so your heart is forced to circulate to differing areas, I did some improvised "swimming" with resistance bands and some "speed skating" on a slide board.

Wade's sweet personality offered up his regular dose of positive reinforcement throughout, but I really couldn't hear him over both the voice in my head that was telling me I was going to die and the incessant pounding of my heart trying to keep up. So I limped out of the gym with a serious cough even after a self-imposed 5 minute cool down.


I proceeded to cough for the next two hours. To the point where co-workers asked me if I was OK. Strangely enough, I just had to mention anaerobic training and because CLIF is so full of athletes, they all knew what I meant. They, too, had felt lungs burning so badly that it felt like smoking 2 packs in a day (not that I would know what that feels like.)

But after what felt like 8 gallons of water and a few more hours of just breathing, I felt a little better. My snarky side felt even better still when Abbs emailed me and said Wade enjoyed what he did to me so much that he did it to her, too.

Is that wrong??! -W