Yesterday, I challenged the 1200 steps again. This is my 3rd attempt at the full climb, and I am making progress:
1st attempt: 27:00
2nd attempt: 21:30
3rd attempt: 18:11
The goal is under 16:00, so I'm thinking I would like to be able to do it on the Stairmaster in 15:00 just to be on the safe side. I wonder if the ACTUAL stairs (which include a landing and turns every 1/2 floor) will be harder or easier than the stairmill. Also, the ACTUAL stairs have a railing that you can use to pull yourself up with... something NOT doable on the Stairmaster!
Ooooohhhhh... my legs are S-O-R-E!!
Monday, January 2
This was a "rest day" for stair climbing training, so I went to Cardio Strength class at the Morrison YMCA. This class is an "upgrade" from the "Strength Light" class that I used to take, so it was a little tougher. To keep things easy on the knees, I made adjustments to a couple of the moves, but this was a REALLY good class that worked my muscles AND got my heart rate up. Since this was the last day of the YMCA Fitness Challenge, I even swung by the Ballantyne Village Y (my home base) to log my minutes in the book. I feel good about finishing the challenge strong by adding points for my team.
Tuesday, January 3
Stair Climbing training day...
Crazy night! Met Mom and Aunt Jill for dinner, raced home, changed, and zipped over to the Y just in time. Got my 1200 steps done in 21:30 today--GREAT improvement! I finished up with 30 minutes on the bike, shutting the place down at EXACTLY 9:00! I don't know which was more strenuous--the workout itself or just getting there!