Lost & Found?

No. Lost & Not Found-- Sorry Lake George!!!

If anyone out in the middle of Lake George near Rogers Rock finds a small, clear plastic, semi buoyant nose clip, it’s mine. Oops.

And where were my spare clips? Back in my car. Oops.

Yes, I packed snacks to practice consuming, a spare cap in case my new one didn’t work out, and a water bottle. I started for the lake as Judy Walker was getting her kayak situated, and had to go back for my earplugs (don’t want swimmer’s ear to come back!), but did not grab a spare clip.

It was a beautiful morning— lots of blue sky, some clouds still tinged by the sunrise, the water felt great, and we were off on adventure. After about 50 minutes, I figured it was a good time to practice getting something from my snack pack. Judy go the lid of my drink bottle as I got my clip off and tucked it on the hair elastic I wear on my wrist in lieu of pockets. After a quick guzzle, I went to get the clip back and it wasn’t there. Did I say oops??? Big oops.

I started wearing a nose clip a few years ago when all fresh water gave me sinus infections after swimming, and chlorine impacted my breathing. It has made a world of difference. Now, after 50 minutes with the wind at our backs, I needed to swim back to the beach with my face out of the water rather than risk a sinus infection by bedtime. Had this happened during my marathon swim, I would have just kept going and risked it, hoping to make it to the end of the swim without consequences. For today- backstroke, sidestroke, and a bit of breaststroke.

Judy was a sport, continuing to maintain a very helpful position for me to navigate from. Seeing the sky was fun, as was a bit of chat while we meandered back.  Judy asked, “What do you think about on these long swims?” There’s a question! Everything, nothing, songs, stories, snippets & phrases, occasionally an old argument if I need to power up for some reason.

I became aware of the sounds of my breathing, normally muffled by exhaling into the water. I still got a bit of water on my face, but after a while, my throat got very dry. Not typical while swimming. My main thoughts were to maintain good in-line stabilization from my neck through my spine, and to vary my strokes often enough to give different muscle groups a break. My front crawl muscles are very well toned and ready for action, but moving in different ways works different muscles, and I wanted to avoid soreness later on. I’ve been working on varying my stroke for a few minutes now and then to be ready for anything in the swim, but a straight out mile of backstroke wasn’t something I was trained for. So far, so good. I’m more aware of my trapezius muscles (across my upper back) than usual, since front crawl tends to get more power from the latissimus dorsi in the mid and lower back.

Once we got back to the beach, Judy loaded up her kayak to start her day on land, and I got one of the spare clips from my car and got back in the lake to do a few beach laps. I was feeling the muscles that had gotten an unusual workout, and wanted to stretch out and keep warmed up for a bit. I did about 3/4 of a mile, feeling fine, and then headed home for a resting day. I’m expecting to swim a lot both days of the weekend, but likely not do huge miles much past Wednesday.

So far, I’m breathing easily, although a bit sniffly. I’ll be keeping Vick’s handy, in case of any stuffiness.

This is why we practice. And one more example of why it is good that I’m starting the marathon swim at night- plenty of time to check and recheck my swim packs for the kayakers.

The face of Rogers Rock from the Ticonderoga Beach at sunrise.

Not Your Typical Event Fundraiser

I have been asked by many if my solo swim of Lake George is a fundraiser, like so many athletic events out there.  Rather than narrow it down to a single cause, I would like to invite anyone interested in my effort to consider supporting any cause of personal significance.  It’s a DIY fundraiser!  Don’t send me anything.  Feel free to name a cause you support in the comments of my Facebook page- can we get a list of 32 causes?  Specific or general.  Let this list serve to bring attention to your cause or causes.  Just a list— no need to announce a pledge.  

There are a few groups & causes which resonate with me as I swim:

The Food Pantry

Boy, can I relate to needing help getting food!  So many families depend on access to a local food pantry to make ends meet.  While swimming, people on my support boat will need to toss or hand me water bottles and food products that I can consume on the go.  It isn’t easy to ask for help, but I can’t do it alone.  Local and regional food pantries are a great resource for millions of people nation wide.  

Hanna's Hope Fund

This foundation addressed the lack of treatment available when one family had a child receive a diagnosis of Giant Axonal Neuropathy (GAN).  GAN is an orphan disease- it affects so few people that funding research is not profitable. Hannah’s Hope Fund set goals and faced uncertain outcomes, and after years of work (because when you have a sick child, your first thought is to establish a world class research team, network, and bring about clinical trials, right???), Hannah’s family has kept going, and clinical trials started last year.  I have thought of Hannah and her family on several of my longer training swims, and it always helps me get through rough patches.

The Arlene Kuhner Memorial Scholarship

Go Seawolves!  Dr. Kuhner was the chair of the English Department at the University of Alaska, Anchorage, and my first advisor when I declared my major.  I took many courses from Dr. Kuhner, from Renaissance Drama to the contemporary short fiction of Canadian women authors.  Lap after lap, I often run lyrics of songs and poems in my mind, and when I can’t recall verses I once knew, I envy Dr. Kuhner’s effortless recall of what seemed to be the entire literary canon, verbatim.  Has an educator or school made a difference to you?  Pay it forward. Get involved.  

 YMCA, The American Red Cross, US Masters Swimming

I learned to swim properly at a YMCA day camp over the span of several summers, working my way from Minnow to Shark.  I remember thinking that being a Water Safety Instructor (WSI) would be the coolest thing ever.  After almost 30 years,  I have taught hundreds of swimmers of all ages and skill levels- as it turns out being a WSI really is the coolest thing ever.  My cousin, Erin, has done YMCA swim-a-thons with her team to raise money for swim scholarships, and is now a lifeguard willing to help with my swim! (And likely try it herself one day.)  

The Environment

I swim in that water! I want it to be clean.  I want to see to the bottom where it is shallow, I want to see the funny fish and turtles swimming around.  I like that it tastes good.   I love seeing how the landscape of the Adirondacks frame the lake, and how the mists rise off it in the morning.  Since the swim will take me about 24 hours, I’m looking forward to the stars at night, away from the light pollutions of cities.  I’m also looking forward to a lot more open water swimming in many more bodies of water in the future.  Clean water.  Healthy water.  The cool thing about supporting the environment is that you can pledge to save money, and it helps the cause!  

Do you groove on sports?  Support a team or player.  Want to be more active?  Pledge to spend 32 minutes a few times a week doing something- walk, stand instead of sit, dance.  You name it!  

Here is my list so far: 

The Food Pantry

GAN

Education

YMCA/Red Cross

The Environment

And how about:

St. Mary's School

Your alma mater

A predetermined sum shared among street performers

A visit to a nursing home to say hi

Animal shelters

 Libraries

Bonus points for me if what is important to you motivates me to power through the water more. 

Thank you!  

Marathon Math

32 miles (the length of Lake George) = 56,320 yards = 1,126.4 laps in a standard 50 yard pool.  

The most commonly accepted estimate for a mile in a pool is 36 laps, or 1800 yards (A real mile is 1,760 yards).  So, 32 pool miles = 57,600 yards.  That is 1,280 yards more than real miles!  (Wow- I should be ready for anything, right?)

Sometimes I can swim 50 yards in 50 seconds.  That is 2 miles an hour.  

In a magical world, I could maintain that to swim 32 miles in 16 hours.  

Reality check:

540 laps (15 pool miles) took me about 10:14.  

The first two miles took me 1:12, the last two took me 1:27.  

If all 32 miles are at a rate of 2 miles every hour and a half, I can expect to swim for 24 hours.  

A portion of each mile will likely be spent slowing down or stopping as briefly as possible for food and/or water, as well as adjusting goggles, maybe replacing a nose clip, changing swim caps, or rubbing on more Destine. Whether I add 15 seconds or 2 minutes of non-swim time to my miles, I could add anywhere from 8 minutes to more than an hour of in-water time to my swim time.  Then, there are variables like the course from start to finish, wind, and other boat traffic.  

I am not the fastest open water swimmer by any stretch, and I’m ok with that.  I do hope to get faster as I train, but i also love swimming long distances, and right now, my priority is adding my ability to continuously swim for hours.  Since January, I have increased my long swims from just a few miles to fairly steady 8-13 mile swims.  Doing a 15 mile swim the day after a 10 mile swim was challenging, and I was a bit slower for a few weeks after.  Between now and July and August, I think it is much more reasonable that I will be able to double or triple the number of consecutive miles I manage, rather than cut my mile times by 1/3.  Dropping my mile time from 38 to 35 minutes, with the occasional 34 minute mile is reasonable, so while I may incorporate sprints into my workouts, my overriding focus is on gaining the power to swim the distance.  

I will get there. . . 

Mid-Course Correction- Ish

Ok, I was a bit late to the pool this morning and someone ELSE was already in Lane 2 (the one without the jet with warmer water at one end, and the one close enough for me to usually see the pace clock). Lane 3 was nice enough, even with the disturbing cloud of warm from the jet, so on I slogged. Yes, slogged. I took a short break after about a half mile to have a small snack, and chat with an incoming lap swimmer. Jill is nice, and good to have in a nearby lane.  She also appreciates long swims in open water.

The Lane 2 girl was motoring along in a way that made me work to keep up, which was good, even when my breakfast expired. (Waaaa.) I scanned my lap counter to see that, yes, I was slogging along. Back to laps, and after a short while, I stopped to look at my lap counter and saw 8. Huh? I had gone over 20. Oops-- I hadn't clicked out of Review, and instead of logging new laps, when I hit the lap counter button, it just reviewed the times of finished laps. So maybe I had done 3/4 of a mile? Well, that was what I decided to go with. Reset, start at zero. Move on.

So, my first complete mile took just over 38 minutes. Yikes. Nothing hurt, I wasn’t tired, I just wasn’t peppy- even with company nearby. I tried to look at it as an experiment with snacking and hydrating. Blah. Then the sun seemed to come out— at least, it looked brighter out the windows than it had. I started to think of contingency plans. My original plan of 8 miles was not feeling like it was in the cards (or lanes). It’s Sunday. I was going to be back in the pool in the morning. I had a wee girl home from school, and a few other things to do. I’d finish a bit more and head out.

Lane 2 girl was gone! Not long gone, so I moved my stuff to the end of that lane, got out, and ducked into the locker room to say hi. I also wanted to let her know how helpful she had been with her steady pace for her long workout. I’ll take all the motivation I can get! She was pleased. It’s nice when people in the pool are nice. I got back in, finished enough to feel fairly sure I had done three whole miles, and figured I’d stay later tomorrow.

I went and got a haircut, picked up a few things at the grocery store, picked up some paint chips to consider for my house, and headed home. It rained on and off on the drive home, but it stopped in time for me to do gardening and for my wee girl to play with her friends outside. The weeds have been thinned, a few plants moved to places they should enjoy more, and the compost piles are well turned. Given the rainy forecast, cutting short a sloggy swim in favor of other activities (that were actually active) was not a bad thing.

Since Friday afternoon, I have swum 9 miles. I may get 5 in tomorrow, and a few may be fast because I’ll be coaching Wendy, who is a powerhouse triathlete. Not a bad weekend. I feel on-track for my Lake George Solo swim. Fortunately, today was not the usual swim day in the pool. One of my goals for the Solo is to see how far I can go. I have to want to go. Turning training into dreaded drudgery is not going to be productive. I took a little more time between laps to visit with other swimmers, rest and let myself cool down so the water felt fresh again, and mainly have a happy time at the pool. Happy is good.  

I have a lot more training to do, and some of it will be hard, and some of it may make me sore for a few days, but I’m doing this because I want to. And when someone asked me last week why I want to do the solo swim, my first response was, “Because I can.” I’m sure of it. I have a plan- it is fluid, but I think that all things considered, a swim plan sort of needs to be fluid, eh? I need to continue building strength & endurance, try to pick up a bit of speed where I can, and continue to test what foods are most compatible before and during a swim.  

But I also have other things to do- teach swimming lessons, hike up Mt. Defiance, garden, go to the library and playground with my daughter, get my house painted, work, finish knitting a pair of socks, and finding someone willing to pilot a boat for me.  

If the idea of sitting in a boat moving at my swim speed for about 24 hours appeals to you, please get in touch. If you think of anyone you believe may groove on that, pass on my request! It is called a solo swim, but I really can’t do it alone.  

Getting A Bit Of My Own Back

When my Hague 10K swim turned into a 7.5K swim, I was very upset with myself for several reasons, but my main problem was that I lost my focus.  Live and learn.  

Missing the mark that day was hard, but it prompted me to continue to train.  I had been considering Sharkfest Boston Harbor, and finally registered for it.  I found a campground that was close enough for packing up the morning of the race, and I headed off on adventure.  

I am so glad I went to Boston.  Finding the campsite took forever, but was great once I arrived.  Finding the race venue the next morning was tricky, but I got there in plenty of time to hunt down a Starbucks for bagels, a banana, and chocolate milk.  I stashed my belongings in a secure location and waited to take a ferry to the starting point across the harbor.   

It was a cool September day, but warming in the sunshine.  All around me, people were getting into wetsuits!  Someone said the water was around 68F, which is warmer than the ocean I had been in a few weeks prior, and about what Lake George was at the time.  I wasn’t worried, but I saw fewer swimsuits as time went on.  I started to wonder how many in my age group would be wearing wetsuits.  Awards are given for both wetsuit and non-wetsuit swimmers, and it was looking like I might just stand a chance at placing in my age group!  

Jumping off a dock into chilly water isn’t my preferred way to get wet, but it’s what we had to do, and after the initial surprise of the chill, I found my bearings, and headed off past a few moored sailboats.  My goggles needed frequent attention, which was a bit frustrating, but I felt solid in the water, and kept a strong pace throughout.  Once I was able to discern the finish area, I was able to dig up a burst of energy to finish with power.  

Redemption.  

Finishing felt great.  Wearing the shirt that says “I Swam Boston Harbor” is a treat.  Getting an award for finishing third in my age for non-wetsuit swimmers was the frosting on the Boston Cream doughnut.  I was much happier ending the open water season on a positive note.  

Not everyone swimming that weekend had a good event.  

While the skies were clear in Boston, the Lake George Marathon Swim Event in upstate New York was facing a brutal weather forecast.  Due to start at 4:00pm, many solo swimmers, relay teams, kayakers, and boats set out into some of the worst wind sweeping up the lake that anyone could remember.  Chop grew into waves, boats were pushed too close and too far from swimmers, and after about 6 hours, the whole event was called off.  After months of training, and swimmers traveling from all over, the timing couldn’t have been worse.  

Upon my return to New York from Boston, I started tracking the progress of the pods of swimmers and support boats until no data was updated any longer.  A few days later, one relay team still in the area took advantage of a shift in the weather to give it a try, and they were successful.  

The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to swim Lake George.  And the more I thought about it, the more confident I became that I could do it.  I wasn't sure how, but I had a few ideas.  Reading about Diane Struble, the first person to swim a documented solo of Lake George, it occurred to me that she likely did not have access to winter swimming pools.  Maybe if I worked on increasing my time spent in motion, I could be ready for distance swims longer than what I had done before.  I walked.  I ran.  I started hiking up Mt. Defiance, sometimes once, sometimes twice.  I used some weights, I did range of motion exercises, and I researched.  

I swam in Lake George for the last time in 2016 on October 21.  I swam about two miles in water under 60F.  A few of my late season swims had been in about 55F, and I was able to tolerate the initial chill long enough to get a quarter mile behind me.  After that, I felt good.  

Really.  

Surprisingly.  

I was going to hold that thought until spring, when I could once again work on getting used to functioning in cold water, so I’d know I was ready for any cold pockets the lake might throw at me on a mid-summer night.  

For information about the swims in Hague in August:

http://www.lakegeorgeswim.com

To learn about the documented solo swims of Lake George:

http://db.marathonswimmers.org/events/lake-george/

To find a Sharkfest swim that sounds cool to you:

http://sharkfestswim.com 

Hague 7.5

It was a beautiful day for a swim in Lake George— clear skies, warm sunshine, and ideal water.  

But it was not my day for the 10K.  

I started off with the group and spent the first 1/2 lap of the course finding my groove, so to speak.  Some days, everything is off kilter for a bit while I warm up, get moving, and start to feel fluid.  I reminded myself that I did the 5 miles in the Chester River in just under 3 hours, and that I had 4 hours to finish the 10K.  It would be close, but I felt like it was reality based.  Periodically, I swam alongside another swimmer for a while before one of us pulled ahead.  Having another swimmer in my sight line is hugely helpful, as it keeps me focused and I push a bit harder.  As a slower swimmer, any boost I can get is good.  

One of the things I love about open water swimming is that time and distance don’t feel the same as on land, so you could tell me I’ve been swimming for 20 minutes or two hours, and I would have to trust you.  This was not in my favor today.  I did have a watch on, and checked my time after each lap of the course.  I was taking about an hour each, which was cutting things a bit close.  During the stretches when I swam alone, my mind wandered a bit.  For more than one lap, my mind kept wandering into less than optimal places.  Sometimes, if you are driving and getting sleepy, thinking about an old argument or grudge can boost your adrenaline enough to jolt you to attention for a while.  For some reason, I kept remembering some of the more negative comments I’ve gotten about my swimming this summer, and my arm strokes kept them stuck in my head like a broken record.  I know better.  When I swam Champlain in 1999, I remembered my high school lifeguard coach saying I didn’t swim well enough to pass, and I went past Juniper Island and the Four Brothers chanting, “I can SO swim!”  (For the record, I didn’t do well enough on the written test, but maybe he thought I’d rather think it was about the swimming? Regardless, I passed when I took the course in college, and am currently a certified guard. Neener, neener, neener.)  

Lap 3 was the clincher.  I knew that I had to round the green buoy and be on my fourth lap by 11:00am or I would not be allowed to start that final lap.  I focused as much as I could, helped along by a few swimmers coming into my range (the 5K swimmers started after the 10K swimmers, and many of them flew by).  At one point in the third lap, I saw that it was about 20 minutes until 11:00.  I thought if I could round that buoy by 10:50, I could take the few minutes needed to get a drink at the support boat before starting my last lap, which would give me a bit of a boost.  The second half of lap three was the time for maximum power— a sprint into the wind.  Fortunately, I had a more positive mental image working for me:  Aunt Julia in the swim cap I gave her, with her wacky, curly, windblown, swimmer hair escaping around the edges while she used my shoulders to hang ten and surf her way across Lake George toward that dratted green buoy.  If that doesn’t get you moving, I don't know what does.  

By my watch, I rounded the green buoy at 11:00.  You know the saying, “A man with one watch knows what time it is, but a man with two watches is never sure”?  The only watch that mattered was the official race time.  When I got to the double yellow buoys which marked the start of lap 4, a kayaker told me that I needed to exit the race via the beach.  

Do I think I could have finished Lap 4?  Absolutely.  

Was I going to argue with the race officials?  Absolutely not.  

Leaving the race let me watch some of the other swimmers finish— a few people trying open water for the first time, which is very cool.  I was able to visit with other swimmers who have done some races I’ve done- that is the good thing about race shirts!- like the Chesapeake, Swim for Life, and even one with a shirt from the Potomac 7.5 mile swim.  Swimmers came from all over.  It really was a great day, and a great event to be a part of.  And one I plan to do again.

Plan.  I need to make my own plan.  I need to trust my own plan.  

I need to not be distracted by anyone else’s idea of what my plan should be, or if I should do something at all.  I do not ask anyone to take on open water swimming who has no interest- I encourage people to try if they show any interest, but don’t feel confident in their abilities.  I do not need anyone to look at me with a face that almost seems angry or offended that I would dare swim near the Statue of Liberty, as if it were a stew of sewage- it was NOT.  I don’t need people telling me that cold water is cold, or implying that because they can’t imaging doing it, that it is somehow stupid.  If I get a chance to do some mileage in open water over the next few weeks, I will take it.  I have a wetsuit, but am not obliged to use it.  I prefer to NOT use it.  

Did I do my best swimming today?  No.  It has been an up and down summer for my swimming.  Swim for Life was a great 5 mile race in which everything worked as hoped, even in the super warm water.  I felt I had prepared properly, both with training and breakfast.  Lady Liberty Sharkfest was a treat by the nature of the course— The Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, the skyline of the NYC Financial District, and great water.  Getting to Misquamicut for a training swim was a good day- swimming the length of the beach in rough water several times in any amount of time is priceless.  

Lake Placid was disappointing, because while I was swimming both the 1 and 2 mile races, I could feel that I wasn’t swimming to my potential.  I managed to improve my times from last year, but did not achieve what was possible.  Honestly, if I had swum slower than last year in Lake Placid, but felt like the effort of the day was everything I had to offer, I would have been happy with my swims.  Every race is unique, each day is different, and water conditions vary.  

Even with a qualifying swim of 5 miles in under 3 hours, the 10K today (6.2 miles) was a risk.  Given the range of my mile swims over the summer, I could have taken anywhere from 3.6 to 4.10 hours.  Knowing the risk, I needed to pick up my pace and stay focused.  The pace I need to maintain is very manageable if I stay focused, stay on course, and have good weather.  No excuses.  

So now what?  I am where I am, and I’m here for a while, so I have to continue to train and make progress to meet my goals.  I have a lot of swimming to do, and taking another crack at that 10K is part of it.  Not all of it.  I’ve swum greater distances, and will again.  I’ve swum faster, and while I may not recapture the speed I had 17 years ago, I’m not ruling it out.  I may not have a job giving me access to many indoor and outdoor pools to train in year round, but I am a coach and a personal trainer, and I have many other people I can tap for training ideas and feedback who are like-minded.  

I’m listening to the positive- and thank you to everyone who has offered good wishes and moral support, and to everyone who has shared the water during training swims.  Anyone with a negative comment can save it— I really do look at all aspects of what I do when I swim.  I’m aware that the local lakes freeze in the winter.  I know I have to go to work.  I know how far away races are.  I know what they cost.  I know I get cold when the air temperature is low, and I keep a leather jacket in my office for after a morning swim, even if everyone else is sweating.  

When I pay attention and do the work, swimming is powerful.  I had some moments of that today, and was glad to see so many other swimmers having great swims.  I have plenty to build on.  And I’ll be back in Lake George in the morning with anyone who wants to start the day with The One True Sport.  

Enough is Enough!

That's not a complaint, or a rant- it's a fact.  

And it can be a very good thing to recognize and even celebrate. 

What brought this on?  A salad with dressing on the side.  Well, that was my order, but the waitress brought me a salad with dressing all over it.  Smothered in it.  I could make out some lettuce peeking out.  Fortunately, she realized that the whole order was wrong- I had asked for a different dressing on the side.  The creamy mound was whisked away with a smile, and her assurance that she would be right back.

  

The salad she brought me to go with my lovely soup was the sort of colorful explosion of vegetables that you dream of all winter when the produce in the store looks limp and picked over, and the garden is in stunted disarray.  The tomatoes were firm, red-orange wedges, the cucumber slices were crisp, and an array of greens were an actual array of greens!  Peppers, onions, tissue thin shavings of parmesan cheese.  This salad was out of control.  The dish of dressing looked like it held a full 1/2 cup of dressing.  It was delicious, but I didn't use much.  Dipping the salad into the dressing, or dipping my fork in first before digging into the salad, offered plenty of flavor- more flavors than just the dressing.

How many "combination" foods do you regularly enjoy?  Do you automatically reach for a topping or companion food?  Are you "elevating" one food with the other (as they encourage on Food Network shows), or are you using something like salad dressing to hide the taste of the salad?  Do you actually enjoy pasta, or is it a vehicle for the sauce?  This is not a judgement, this is a reality check.  What are you selecting to eat based on enjoyment, and what is based on habit?  And are you selecting foods you think are good for you, but that need to be disguised to be palatable to you?  Your choices should have value in terms of nutrition, but also in terms of your own appreciation for them.  

Having the opportunity to ransack a garden for foods fresh in the sun, without taking the time to add the usual salad components renewed my appreciation for each flavor.  And lest this seem like the wholesome philosophy of healthy food zealot, I have come to realize than in many cases, when I have an urge for an ice cream sundae, what I really want is a mix of toppings.  A little whipped cream, some sauce of some kind, maybe sprinkles.  Yum.  In many cases, the ice cream itself isn't needed.  Sometimes, it absolutely is, and sometimes it is great on its own.  

So, when is enough enough?  When more than enough is too much.  Enough is when you still have the JOY of enjoying something without guilt or discomfort.  Enough is also not going to leave you feeling deprived or punished.  Enough can be challenging in terms of overall fitness and wellness.  It is fine to have plenty to reach for, just as it is fine to have salad dressing available to make your salad just the way you want it.  It is also fine to stop when you have had enough, whether that is food or exercise.  Enough is when the workout lets you know that your body has done good work and will still function in the morning.  More is not always better.  We may know that on some level, but it is hard to find the balance which will keep enthusiasm from morphing into burn-out.  Even when we strive to meet goals, it is good to know that at some point, we may achieve those goals and have to reassess how we maintain our fitness, or if that level is even what we want long term.  For some of us, training for a marathon may be a goal, but it is rarely something even serious runners think of as a daily routine.  At some point, enough is enough, even if we love it.  Changing our workout routine can mean adding a class or workout, and dropping another to achieve balance and avoid burnout.  More is not the only path to progress.  

When should you stop and appreciate enough?  When you eat enough to savor the flavor and still feel wonderful.  When you exercise enough to feel invigorated and powerful, but not beaten into the ground.  When you do enough laundry to not run out of underwear, but not so much laundry that you don't have time to get outside before the clouds gather and dump rain. 

Enough takes less time.  

Enough may cost less.

Enough may allow for more another time and less stress now.

Enough is enough- Enjoy it!

(Published in AKWA December, 2016/ January, 2017)