Subconscious Savior

For those who don't know, I work for the Girl Scouts of CT. 

That's right.  Be jealous!  

I get paid to develop and run programs for kids.  And my fridge might just rival any of you parents' out there with children for the amount of homemade art posted on it.  Normally I work with K through 4th graders, but today we had a day at camp for 5th through 8th graders.  The girls got to do manicures, make journals, some jewelry, practice meditation, and do an outdoor scavenger hunt.  Once the girls open up to having fun, it's a LOT of fun and quite an easy job - even if you have less than half a plan, just give them some materials and their imagination will fill in all the cracks.  As a person who loves to try and stay as connected to the imagination we all had as children, I LOVE this job!

But either way, I didn't get home until six o'clock, so with a 45 minute run and 15 minute warm up and cool down required, today's long run was out of the question.  As awesome as the day at camp was, I wasn't happy having my schedule thrown off.  Then with that and the fact that my knee felt a bit off the other day and my shins have still slightly bothered me (though they still are doing amazingly well comparatively), the athletic portion of my day was getting me down.

However, in my typical fashion, I pushed on with my workouts.  I switched Saturday's long run for Sunday's cross training.  Any guess where I went?  If you said the pool, you'd be RIGHT!  Even as I drove to the gym, I thought to myself, I seem to have some sort of self-destruct default mode.  Even when I'm not really into it, this subconscious me still pushes on. But then I started swimming and everything changed. I've said it before and I'm sure I'll say it a ton more, but WOW do I love swimming.

As soon as I was in the pool, all the stress melted away.  When I'm in the pool, it's like I'm in my own little world, a bubble.  Apparently this "self-destruct" mode is really more like "self-preservation."  I felt great and I'm so glad I went!  And not to mention, my splits were much better than I expected them to be, so that was an extra bonus!!

Swim Workout
1.  500 Warm up (free, back, breast) - 7:34 (1:30 pace)
2.  400 Pull (freestyle) - 5:48 (1:27 pace)
3.  300 Paddle (freestyle) - 4:18 (1:26 pace)
4.  200 Kick
5.  100 Swim (IM) - 1:27
6.  100 Swim (free) - 1:18
7.  200 Swim (IM)
8.  300 Pull, kick, swim by 100s (1:21 pace)
9.  400 Pull
10.  200 Swim (gym closed before I could finish the full 500)
TOTAL: 2700 yards (1.53 miles)

Questions

1.  Do you have one thing (activity or what have you) that always brightens your mood?
Swimming seems to be mine.

2.  Who here was a girl (or boy) scout at one point in time?  Anyone have children in scouting? 
I was a boy scout up until about 8th grade.  I made it to Tenderfoot and dropped it for swimming.  Now I am a girl scout.  And don't make fun!  My boy scout troop was (and still is) one of THE BEST in the entire state of NY and it was until recently run by a mother.

3.  What's your favorite girl scout cookie?
I admitted today to one of my superiors, "I need a shirt that says 'Will Work For Shortbreads'."  They're the classic!  With a glass of milk, they're heaven.


Stay fit.  Stay healthy.