The first three weeks of massage school have been totally awesome. I have class two nights every week - Anatomy on Tuesdays & Massage on Thursdays.
I've had my first anatomy test and got a great score, which made me very happy. The test covered the make up of the body with various systems and anatomical terms for body parts, so lots of good info to have as a base for when we get into the bones & muscles. It's full steam ahead in that class with our next text covering the chapters on chemistry and cells.
In massage class, it's been hands on learning since last week. I really like this part of how the school approaches the learning process. We have before class reading assignments where we learn about new techniques, then the majority of class time is spent practicing on the others classmates. Our instructor demonstrates the way to do the technique, then spends the class walking around each set of students and helps us with hand placement and body positioning. The basic technique we've learned so far is called gliding, where you use your hands to glide over the body to increase blood flow and circulation in the body.
I've done three practice massages on friends and family so far and they've gone pretty good. I have learned something new during each one of them. My massage room is all set up now since my table arrived last week, so I'm looking forward to the learning process and continued practice on people over the next few months. We will build new techniques and learn new areas of the body over the next month during class and be up to practicing full body massage by mid-summertime.
That's about it on the school front, I'm enjoying every minute of it and still feel I've made the right decision about things. There's an amazing energy I'm feeling in class that is very positive and exciting. It's something I haven't been around professionally in awhile and it's very cool to feel how that positivity can spread and make you want to learn more, do more, and be a better person. There are 13 people in my class, so they will all become my new buddies over the next 18 months as we go through this process together. We are all different and come from different backgrounds, but we're all interested in massage therapy and have choosen this new path for ourselves so we'll be needing each other to succeed in class and in real life as we move forward. So that's it for now, not sure how much I'll be able to update things here on CincySpin but I'll aim for at least one school update per semester.
Thanks to all for your support, it means so very much to me.
April 21, 2011
April 10, 2011
Running Solo
Last weekend, I made a weekend trip out to Barboursville, WV to visit friends who recently welcomed a new baby girl into their family. We had an awesome visit and I loved meeting their new addition - who for the record is super sweet and cute (just like her big sister!). Now, with being out of town, I knew I needed to stay on track with my half marathon training and we were scheduled to run 10 miles that weekend. Barboursville is very close to Huntington, WV so I went online to the USA Track and Field (USATF) website and searched for pre-mapped runs in that area. I found a "Marshall Alumni 5k", so I built my extra miles off this run and came up with a 10 mile route I would tackle solo with a newly loaded playlist on my iPod.
I drove downtown, parked my car and head out on my run on a nice morning. I snapped a few pics along the way to document my run and overall it was a great day. Starting out on the campus of Marshall University was very nice. There were several other runners around the area which was nice to see along the way.
Once through Marshall's campus, I head out one of the main roads in Huntington and made my way to Ritter Park which is part of the Greater Huntington Park and Recreation District. 
I am familiar with this park because it is where my friend holds the annual Lexi Black walk for SLOS (check out the link for more info) so I knew there was a 1 mile walking path around the park and there are also tons of beautiful houses and side streets to explore in that particular area too. Checking out these houses and enjoying the view of the park made the time pass quickly along the run.
After a few times around the park, I headed out back to the main road that would take me back to Marshall's campus. I did run into some "shady streets" as I made my way back to the other side of town and some of the roads I had marked on my routed ended up being alley ways, so I choose not to run those and ended up running about 8.5 miles total instead of the full 10. All in all, it was a great morning for a run, especially in a new place. Using the USATF website to map out a run is a great way to explore new areas if you are traveling and want to get in a walk or run. Just be flexible if things don't exactly match up and study your route on the map and turn by turn directions several times before heading out to pound the pavement in a new town.
After the run, I headed back to my friend's house, made some coffee and spent the day enjoying the company of two lovey little girls and also loved spending some good quality time with my best friend since 4th grade - hard to believe we've been friends for over 20 years - where does the time go?!!
I drove downtown, parked my car and head out on my run on a nice morning. I snapped a few pics along the way to document my run and overall it was a great day. Starting out on the campus of Marshall University was very nice. There were several other runners around the area which was nice to see along the way.
Once through Marshall's campus, I head out one of the main roads in Huntington and made my way to Ritter Park which is part of the Greater Huntington Park and Recreation District. 
I am familiar with this park because it is where my friend holds the annual Lexi Black walk for SLOS (check out the link for more info) so I knew there was a 1 mile walking path around the park and there are also tons of beautiful houses and side streets to explore in that particular area too. Checking out these houses and enjoying the view of the park made the time pass quickly along the run.
After a few times around the park, I headed out back to the main road that would take me back to Marshall's campus. I did run into some "shady streets" as I made my way back to the other side of town and some of the roads I had marked on my routed ended up being alley ways, so I choose not to run those and ended up running about 8.5 miles total instead of the full 10. All in all, it was a great morning for a run, especially in a new place. Using the USATF website to map out a run is a great way to explore new areas if you are traveling and want to get in a walk or run. Just be flexible if things don't exactly match up and study your route on the map and turn by turn directions several times before heading out to pound the pavement in a new town.
After the run, I headed back to my friend's house, made some coffee and spent the day enjoying the company of two lovey little girls and also loved spending some good quality time with my best friend since 4th grade - hard to believe we've been friends for over 20 years - where does the time go?!!
April 05, 2011
Leap of Faith
April 5th is a big day for me. It's been on my calendar since this past September.
Today I'm acting on a dream I've had for a very long time. I'm stepping out of my comfort zone. Taking a big chance and trusting my instincts. Putting my faith in a higher power that I will find the answers I need to the various questions that are running through my mind about where this new adventure will take me.
I'm about to walk into my first night of school to become a Licensed Massage Therapist.
Excited beyond words, nervous beyond measure, but 100% sure I am where I need to be for me, at this very moment - the rest will come in time...
Today I'm acting on a dream I've had for a very long time. I'm stepping out of my comfort zone. Taking a big chance and trusting my instincts. Putting my faith in a higher power that I will find the answers I need to the various questions that are running through my mind about where this new adventure will take me.
I'm about to walk into my first night of school to become a Licensed Massage Therapist.
Excited beyond words, nervous beyond measure, but 100% sure I am where I need to be for me, at this very moment - the rest will come in time...
March 27, 2011
It's official...
As seen in my email in-box today...
Dear Lenna,
Congratulations! You are now registered for the 2011 Cincinnati Flying Pig Half Marathon...
I've made it official by paying for my registration, so it's no turning back now. This weekend was a drop down week with shorter runs for Tuesday and Saturday. Next weekend, we're back up to 10 miles, which I'll be running on my own and not with the group since I'll be out of town visiting a friend and her new baby girl (Yay!). It will be quite challenging to motivate myself to get out there alone and keep going for 10 miles, so I'll be looking for some new tunes to load up on my iPod to jam out to along that upcoming long run.
That's about it for now - thanks for all the support as I embark on completing my goal of participating in a half marathon!
March 19, 2011
Cincinnati's Bridges
9.3 - that was the mileage on this morning's Half Marathon training run that covered Northern Kentucky and downtown Cincinnati. It was a beautiful morning and a great day to get out before the sun came up to take in some of the lovely sights in the Queen City. The thing about running in Cincinnati is that you'll no doubt find yourself pounding up and down some hills and what some people don't realize is that almost any bridge is actually a big hill. So when you set out to run 9.3 miles and you look at the route laid out by the running coach and you see 5 bridges on the turn by turn directions, there's a bit of an "ugh" feeling that sets in before you even start your first mile.
Alas, I pushed ahead and got moving across the first bridge - The Purple People Bridge - this is a pedestrian only bridge, so it's a nice smooth concrete surface to run along. The bridge goes between Newport, KY and the east side of Cincinnati's downtown area, near the some popular park areas called Sawyer Point and Yeatman's Cove. On most of our runs, this is usually the first bridge we cross, so it's always challenging to start on a hill, but overall I don't find this bridge too tough to handle. 
Up next, the Taylor-Southgate Bridge - this is the bridge that I find gives me the most trouble. It's 850 meters, which is similar to the others, but for some reason it kicks my butt every time I cross it. And today, we had to cross it twice (gasp) - on the way out and on the way back - but I made it, thankfully. One awesome moment from today's run while on the bridge was that the sun was coming up right beyond the bridge, so it was a bit easier to focus on the beauty of that image rather than the pain my legs were feeling while running the bridge.
Bridge number 3 was the Licking River Bridge (click link for photo). This one runs over the Licking River in Northern Ky and there's a long gradual hill leading up the this bridge, so it's never fun to cross this one and the pedestrian lane is pretty skinny along this bridge which is well depicted in the photo link.
The fourth bridge of today's run was the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge (the far left bridge in the photo). This one is pretty challenging, however I really like this bridge because of the views it gives you of downtown Cincinnati. It runs between Covington and downtown Cincy and it's right next to the home of the Bengals, Paul Brown Stadium, so when it's football season, you might be able to catch the players out on the practice field.
So, there you have it - a quick tour of some of the bridges spanning the Ohio River that I traveled on by foot this morning. While very challenging, there's a part of me that enjoys the up and downs of the bridges. Usually the down part is my favorite but hey no big surprise there because who doesn't love a downhill!
Alas, I pushed ahead and got moving across the first bridge - The Purple People Bridge - this is a pedestrian only bridge, so it's a nice smooth concrete surface to run along. The bridge goes between Newport, KY and the east side of Cincinnati's downtown area, near the some popular park areas called Sawyer Point and Yeatman's Cove. On most of our runs, this is usually the first bridge we cross, so it's always challenging to start on a hill, but overall I don't find this bridge too tough to handle. 
Up next, the Taylor-Southgate Bridge - this is the bridge that I find gives me the most trouble. It's 850 meters, which is similar to the others, but for some reason it kicks my butt every time I cross it. And today, we had to cross it twice (gasp) - on the way out and on the way back - but I made it, thankfully. One awesome moment from today's run while on the bridge was that the sun was coming up right beyond the bridge, so it was a bit easier to focus on the beauty of that image rather than the pain my legs were feeling while running the bridge.Bridge number 3 was the Licking River Bridge (click link for photo). This one runs over the Licking River in Northern Ky and there's a long gradual hill leading up the this bridge, so it's never fun to cross this one and the pedestrian lane is pretty skinny along this bridge which is well depicted in the photo link.
The fourth bridge of today's run was the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge (the far left bridge in the photo). This one is pretty challenging, however I really like this bridge because of the views it gives you of downtown Cincinnati. It runs between Covington and downtown Cincy and it's right next to the home of the Bengals, Paul Brown Stadium, so when it's football season, you might be able to catch the players out on the practice field.So, there you have it - a quick tour of some of the bridges spanning the Ohio River that I traveled on by foot this morning. While very challenging, there's a part of me that enjoys the up and downs of the bridges. Usually the down part is my favorite but hey no big surprise there because who doesn't love a downhill!
March 15, 2011
Temptation Island...
That's where I feel I've been living lately when it comes to saying "no" or at least "not so much" to sweets these past few days. I've been full steam ahead with my training for the half marathon and even completed the 8.3 mile run on Saturday without much pain or discomfort when I was finished. So, while I'm pulling it together on the running side of things, I've been struggling with staying away from temptations when it comes to my food choices.
And it seems that sweets have been the culprit as of these last few days - cake and ice cream for a birthday party on Saturday night, more cake with yummy icing on Sunday evening at a neighbor's dinner get together, and then last night was the kicker...a reece cup blizard from the DQ! Now, I did share those last two items with JJ, but let's be honest here, I was the one who wanted them and since he's not huge into sweets, he only had a few small bites of each dessert.
I'm not really looking for any feedback or comments with today's post. I'm just putting it out there for my own benefit and need to "come clean" with myself, so that I can move on with things and get back on track. My water intake is up significantly and today's a new day - one where I will recommit myself to myself. I've got running group tonight, beginner's yoga tomorrow night and plenty of good food choices in the fridge for lunches and dinners, so I'm pressing on, despite this past weekend's minor set back!
PS - Did I mention there's been a huge family size box of Frosted Flakes in the control room at work...seriously...temptations are all around me lately!
And it seems that sweets have been the culprit as of these last few days - cake and ice cream for a birthday party on Saturday night, more cake with yummy icing on Sunday evening at a neighbor's dinner get together, and then last night was the kicker...a reece cup blizard from the DQ! Now, I did share those last two items with JJ, but let's be honest here, I was the one who wanted them and since he's not huge into sweets, he only had a few small bites of each dessert.
I'm not really looking for any feedback or comments with today's post. I'm just putting it out there for my own benefit and need to "come clean" with myself, so that I can move on with things and get back on track. My water intake is up significantly and today's a new day - one where I will recommit myself to myself. I've got running group tonight, beginner's yoga tomorrow night and plenty of good food choices in the fridge for lunches and dinners, so I'm pressing on, despite this past weekend's minor set back!
PS - Did I mention there's been a huge family size box of Frosted Flakes in the control room at work...seriously...temptations are all around me lately!
March 09, 2011
I'm "flying"...
In response to the recent question I asked myself last week - click here for more details - I've decided to participate in the Flying Pig half marathon on May 1st. Just need to actually sign up and pay for the half marathon now, but I'm full speed ahead with my training and now working on making sure I get all my training runs and cross training workouts in during the week. I'm also going to start experimenting with energy products like gu gels and sport beans on my long runs.
So, the countdown is on: 52 days until my first half marathon
Up next: Thursday's shorter run (3-4 miles) and Saturday's long run (8.2 miles)
Today's question to those runners out there: what has been your experience with energy products? Do you like a particular kind or find that a gel works better than an energy bar? Let me know your thoughts and experiences!
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