Category Archives: balance

Being Balanced – Physically

  By Crystal Clarke | January 25, 2016 - 2:38 pm | , , , , , ,
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When I stand on one foot I wobble; balance is not something that comes easily to me. When I get on my bike, though, it takes a lot to push me over! Right now I have imbalances that are creating turmoil within my body, mostly in my muscles. The first step to solving a problem is identifying it, right? This summer, as you may remember from my incessant whining, I broke my left foot. I have always had issues with my left IT band and knee, which likely contributed to the rolling of that ankle and the impending break. I spent 6 … Keep reading →

My November Challenge

  By Crystal Clarke | November 5, 2014 - 7:00 am | , , , , , , , , ,
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Time for change

Every month I set up a money budget. I don’t follow it to the penny, but it gives me a sense of control and understanding of my spending habits. It helps me to plan ahead. I’ve been following my budget for over a year and it has reduced my life stress by a lot. Last week I was thinking about my training schedule and it occurred to me to make a time budget. For a few years now I have felt like I don’t use my time wisely and my theory is that it’s because I don’t allot enough of it … Keep reading →

Benchmark

  By Crystal Clarke | November 11, 2012 - 9:48 am | , , , , ,
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Before starting a training program, it’s important to know where an athlete is at. You have to get a benchmark of her fitness level. This brings me to my own benchmark of fitness. In the last 5 months I have gained 12 pounds, have went on a few bike rides, ran a handful of times, swam not at all, did not race, and walked a few times. Obviously my fitness level is not going to be very high. In the last 10 years of training and racing I have learned that there are times when a person needs a break. In … Keep reading →

The Juggling Act featuring Moi

  By Crystal Clarke | January 24, 2012 - 8:23 am | , , , ,
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I have a little juggling act going these days. We are really pressing forward right now on fundraising because our recommitment date for the marathon is coming up on February 1st (!!!!). We would have liked to be almost done fundraising by this time, but we are far from it. Our upcoming fundraiser will be the real showing of where we are at with our fundraising commitments. The preparation for this fundraiser has been taking a lot of time lately. On top of that, MellowJohnny and I are training. You know, for this, like, marathon thing we’re doing in April. … Keep reading →

Water, Water, Everywhere, not a drop to drink… only to swim in!

  By Crystal Clarke | April 9, 2008 - 5:25 pm | , , , ,
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I have really been focusing on my swim for the past couple of months. I’ve always considered it to be my weakness because I use my legs a lot and have little upper body strength. However, with my coaches help, I’ve been increasing my strength through calisthenic exercises and through freestyle pulling. With my foot being sore (but is healing now!) and my trainer not being appealing, the swim is all I’ve had until now. However, it is now nice enough to bike outside, which is exactly what I’ll be doing next week. I’m so excited to get out onto … Keep reading →

Balance

  By Crystal Clarke | December 13, 2007 - 11:36 am | , , ,
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In yoga, balance is my biggest problem. Some days are better than others, but usually I have a hard time standing on one foot for too long. This is quite opposite from when I was a kid and the balance beam was my favorite part of gymnastics. So it really isn’t surprising that I need more balance in my general life as well as in my yoga practice. Last night I went running with my friend and her baby. It was snowing and we got a few centimetres of the white, fluffy stuff. We went for about 40 minutes (according … Keep reading →

Balance shmalance

  By Crystal Clarke | June 25, 2007 - 9:39 am | , , , ,
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I know it has been almost a month since my last update. There really is no excuse. However, I guess it could be seen as I’ve been training more than putting time into the internet… and I have. I have been in emotional turmoil about the upcoming Iron(wo)man and considered dropping out. Not because I couldn’t do it, but because of the anxiety that I have felt surrounding it. Alas, I decided to suck it up and push on. So that’s what I’m doing. I have a whole list of bike ride times that I’ll put at the bottom and … Keep reading →

Going Long

  By Crystal Clarke | April 17, 2007 - 1:14 pm | , , , , , , , ,
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I can’t believe it has been so long since I updated. Sometimes blogging just slips my mind. Easter weekend was basically a write-off. Between family, moving, and relaxing, training was minimal. I did do a lot of lifting and reaching – I’m sure that can be counted as weight training. I did go on some long walks with my partner and my family’s dog, but it was really cold that weekend and it was Easter. A good time for some time off. The week after Easter was crazy. I did do some biking on my trainer, but I have been … Keep reading →