Cross Training

So, today was a rest day in my eyes, although my training plan said to cross train. Now, this is supposed to be some other type of muscle, endurance building activity that is not running. I guess it helps trick your body. Sort of like a, "Sorry body, about that 20 minutes of running yesterday, in the heat. I guess I got a wild hair up my butt and decided to try running. But, today, don't you worry, no running. Today we are just going to do a 25 minute video, in the nice cool air conditioning." Well, work got the best of me yesterday and there was no time for the above mentioned video. SIDENOTE: Work really did get the best of me and it wasn't just an excuse. I was marketing to some new, very interested referral sources of 10 orthopedic doctors, so the fact that I even worked right thru my lunch, was no big deal if I can get them to send their patients to my facilities. SIDENOTE OVER. By the time I got home, I only had time to cook up a quick dinner. (Shrimp over veggies and brown rice, yum!) Then quickly head off to the Y to coach my little cheerleaders. Once I got to practice, I realized, heck, I will fit in my cross training here with the girls. So, I stretched my old tired muscles with them, that counts as cross training. I stretch in my video. Next we worked on tumbling. On the squad there are four coaches, each of us with our own area of expertise. So, the fact that I am in charge of the tumbling portion should come as no surprise to you or I. What does come as a surprise to me is the days, such as today, when I decide that I am 12 again and can still do gymnastics. Some things are not too bad, like forward rolls, handstands, cartwheels, roundoffs. However, before I do any of these skills for/with the girls my mind can't help but flit back to the night I decided to do a back flip on the tumble track and then could not move my neck for the next 3 days. This was no minor injury, like oh I slept on my neck wrong I can't turn it to the right. This was, I can't lay down, I can't turn my head to the left or the right, I can't look up or down. It was terrible! Thank god for the wonderful therapists I work for and for the person that invented the ultrasound machine that saved my neck and most recently, my knees. However, I do not thank the man who invented the gel that they use for the ultrasound because that stuff does not come out of your hair easily. (Notice how I said "person" that invented the ultrasound machine, this is probably invented by a man, but could be a woman, but I said man for ultrasound gel. This was definitely a man, because a woman would not make that shit so sticky) So, I guess this memory did not stop me from thinking I could do a back bend walk my feet up a mat and then kickover. (I was trying to demonstrate to two girls how they could practice back bend kickovers at home without a spotter. You should try it if you too are trying to get your back bend kickover for YMCA Starlite tryouts or you just want to add some excitement to your life or you simply need a vacation from it all and think spending a few days in the hospital is the perfect place to go. You can use a chair, a wall, a large mat, a couch, etc.) I tried to pay no attention to the "pop, pop, pop, poppity, pop" of my back as I did the back bend or the fact that I couldn't breathe as I walked my feet up the mat and kicked over. See, then I have to act like it is no big deal and that the girls should have no problem doing this. But damn, that was really hard. I don't remember it being that hard when I was 8. Why is it so hard now? Oh yeah, you dingdong, you are 27!!! So, along with the tumbling I demonstrated for the girls and the hour and a half of spotting girls on various tumbling exercises, and the stretching, I feel as though this counts as my cross training. My body sure hurts like I did my 25 minute video, twice. I know this can't count all the time as cross training and not simply because we only have practice on Monday's and Wednesday's. I know I need to get some serious weight training action in with my plan. But for tonight, this counts. Right along with the nachos I ate at Tequila's with the coaches after practice.