SORE!

Wow!  I am one sore momma today:)  I gave myself a 2 month break from riding over the months of June/July because of the heat, the hard footing both in the pastures and the ring, AND getting up at 4:15 am in order to head in to work every other week both months and working until 6 pm.  I believe in giving horses rest, mine is a lovely animal that's 8 years old this year and I feel like the rest is necessary both for his physical and mental well being.

That being said, I started riding again 2 weeks ago.  I was riding in my dressage saddle, which is a saddle designed specifically for flat riding.  It's a comfortable saddle with a nice wide seat and with the exception of my one ride on Friday that was pretty hard I've been in good shape.  Yesterday, I rode a new horse in my jumping saddle, and that one is a little trickier for me.  It's a wonderful shape for my horse, but not "my" ideal.  The seat is a little bit hard, and has a funny upsweep to it, so my seat bones can get a little sore when I haven't ridden in it for a while.  That, paired with a horse 3 times lazier than my own combined to make me VERY sore today!  I even pushed through the pain and rode my horse as well today, and I was wincing in pain the whole ride, but theoretically I should be better tomorrow:)

Yesterday, Cto5K picked up to where I had to run 5 mins, walk 3, run 5, walk 3, run 5.  It was tough, but somewhat easier than my run on Saturday.  I hadn't ridden that other horse yet, so my muscles were not sore.  I have 2 more days to get through, and I BELIEVE the last 2 days of this week involve no walk breaks.

I made some mashed potatoes tonight with milk, plain greek yogurt, and some season salt.  Usually, I make them with milk, mayonnaise, and butter with salt and pepper to taste.  Not surprisingly, they were much lighter and fluffier ... the flavor was a little more mild but they were GOOD.  I am continuing to eat well, and my clothes are literally HANGING off me.  I've had to pair jeans with a belt in order to keep them from sagging well down around my hips.  I'm a little bummed at how flabby I still appear, but I KNOW I've lost plenty because my "fat pockets" around my panty line are disappearing ... my butt is DEFINITELY tightening and shrinking:)  I'm trying to decide if I'm going to run early in the morning (around 6), or if I'm going to run pretty late in the evening.  We're going out to eat with friends tomorrow night and not sure what time I'll get home, so I may try another early morning.  I just need to wake up about 5:45 so I can stretch a little and maybe eat a banana or yogurt or something to put a little fuel in the tank before I head out.  Normally if I do an early morning run, I roll out of bed, throw on the clothes, and head out without so much as a sip of water.  That may be why I found it SO hard to complete my runs correctly (and why I've quit Cto5K 3 times)

Good news is, I haven't quit, I'm actually signed up for my first 5K, I'm riding, running, and cleaning stalls AND my butt is shrinking.  Life is good ... :)

Me and my precious son about 5 years ago