When you hurry through life you just get to the end faster

I would have been happy to provide video of me surfing for this video. I'm certainly slow enough...but even without it, this amusing clip warms my island-loving, slow-living-wannabe heart. And that 0 k is right up my alley.

I came. I surfed. I applied ice.

It was an amazing thing to finally get into the ocean and surf!  With its sandy bottom and the absence of rocks and reef, Cocoa Beach, Florida was a great place to learn.  I had one hour lessons for three days from August 9-11.

It’s a really good thing I researched surf schools and instructors because I hit the jackpot with Lauren Holland from School of Surf,  www.schoolofsurf.org. Lauren is a former pro surfer and champion, as is her husband, Todd. Together they own and operate the school. Lauren is very good at what she does - she's professional, keeps you safe, works her butt off and yet manages to be very cool, laid back and good company.

Each lesson started at the School of Surf with instruction from Lauren (technique and safety) and then she'd load the surf board on a cart and we’d walk two blocks to the beach.

I was excited as we got into the water and made our way out. When it came time to give it a go,  I got into position for my first wave. Lauren turned the board toward shore and started pushing it. The wave came, she yelled “pop up,” and surprisingly, I did!

I don’t remember how long I stayed up, but I do remember when I came down on my foot. Ouch. The experience quickly taught me the importance of falling flat off the board without trying to break my fall with any limbs.

The next two days we were in deeper water and I never hit the bottom again (and I think I almost always fell flat and covered my head and nose to guard against the board hitting me).

The lessons went really well and I gradually put things together enough to feel like I was getting the hang of it. I even rode a few waves all the way in. There were a lot of wipe-outs which were useful as Lauren could usually pinpoint what I’d done wrong and I could try to correct it next time. 

Surfing was exhilarating. I loved that it required total focus and kept me completely in the moment. I feel like I should be writing that it was fun, but for some reason, that word doesn't fit. Fun is playing tennis with my kids. This was more than fun.

As the surfers would say, this was epic.

P.S. About that ice, between falling on my foot and the general strain on both feet,  I seriously needed it. (Icing sore stuff is brilliant. I am a total convert). A million thanks to my husband, Greg, for his many ice deliveries to me and my aching, elevated feet. And for his great photography and videography. And for the way he drives a Camaro.  

Surf practice on Lake Wingra

It's not an ocean, but Lake Wingra proved to be a nice spot to put the finishing touches on my preparation for surfing with some stand-up paddle boarding. On Monday, I was lucky enough to be joined by my friend Rebecca (who is the wife of my trainer, Jeff, and is also a fitness instructor at The Fit), who provided some great moral support and a trained eye to troubleshoot my surf pop up technique. 



First, I gave things a try as intended, standing and paddling. I climbed up to stand from my knees and got a feel for the balance of the board as I paddled around a bit.  Next, it was time to see if I could pop up on a board - albeit a big, thick one that is not a surfboard.

  

I paddled hard to get a little forward motion and then...

 

a quick (though somewhat awkward-looking in a photo) movement to...  

STANDING!

I practiced jumping up about a dozen times and managed it just fine. The "atta girls" from Rebecca were icing on the cake. And, bonus,  no dunks into the lake. I made sure I spent some time laying down and paddling and also just standing on the board as the wind pushed me around. It all felt like great prep.

Cocoa Beach,  here I come!  

Fitness Part 2: The Green Light

Yup, that's me, doing one of my favorite gym tricks: box jumping! Mastery of the box jump was one indicator that I am now fit to surf. Many, many lunges, planks, kettle bells, primates, burpees, pushups and lots of other stuff later, my trainer, Jeff, has recently pronounced me as "ready." His exact words were "You're ready. If you can't get up on that surf board it won't be because you're not strong enough." 

Hooray!

We didn't take any body or fat measurements and didn't chart weights, sets or reps, so I don't have any hard numbers to show my progress. I've done a variety of exercises, mostly using my own body weight but some with free weights or straps, that were increasingly difficult as the weeks went on. I've gone from watching Jeff demonstrate an exercise for me to do and thinking "there's no way I can do that" to knowing that I can.

I started being able to do only two push ups on my knees to now three regular push ups followed by eight on my knees. Burpees (jumping from standing to a plank)  seemed impossible and now, not a problem.  I've lost ten pounds in the past twelve weeks of training.

Of course as predicted, the work-out schedule was blown up the minute school let out and the kids were home with me. I was lucky if I got to the pool once a week, let alone twice. My walk/jog has been almost nonexistent. But twice a week scheduled with a trainer goes a long way and that's one of the huge benefits of enlisting the help of a trainer, you show up. I got out for tennis and bike rides with my family and that helped too.

There have been noticeable psychological benefits too, of course. I've been a happier camper this summer. The Title Nine shopping bag sums it up, "Sometimes sweat is the best form of therapy". Each work-out has rewarded me with the feel-good brain biochemicals dopamine, serotonin and epineprine.  I must enjoy that neurochemical cocktail because I've reached a point where I actually look forward to working out. Oh, and one more thing, I feel really good! A little stiff some days, but mostly really good.

I'm going surfing on Thursday and putting all this hard work to good fun use. Whether I can stay up for five seconds or five minutes, my quest to surf has already been a remarkable ride before I even put one foot in the water.

Now for the really hard part: what will I wear?

I admit it - I so wanted some hip surf clothes.

But, despite my best efforts, here is what I ordered - just about the most boring surf clothes you could find. The more I look at these shorts, the more I see Florida retirees on a golf course. And yes, the two pieces don't even go together that well.  But trust me, in the youthful world of surf clothes, it was the best I could do.




The average age of a female surfer must be around 15 because the fun board shorts and cool patterned rash guards are mostly in sizes 4, 6 and 8. Most of the shorts are very, very short, hip hugging, tight and teenagery.  For those of us needing double digit sizes and some coverage, it's slim pickings.




I've already struck out with size "L," (sweet and very supportive Mother's Day gifts from my family that I could barely squeeze into). I was relieved to even find these shorts and this top in XL.

It's probably for the best that this is all I could find. It's age appropriate, that's for sure.

66 miles between me and the sharks

I saw a National Geographic special issue magazine on sharks in the grocery store yesterday. It was published to coincide with their "Shark Week" on t.v. I won't be tuning in to that; watching it would most definitely not contribute to the mellow surfer attitude I'm trying to cultivate. But I couldn't resist paging through the magazine and, holy crap, sharks are terrifying.

In a recent chat with my friend Jarka, I said that to fight off a shark you punch them on the head (I think I was just winging that answer). She astutely  pointed out "What head!? They're all  mouth and rows of big, sharp teeth." The photos in the magazine certainly did confirm her observation.

I didn't have time, or the stomach, to peruse the entire magazine. But I couldn't resist the section on "Deadly Waters." I learned that there are a number of places where one could run into a big, big shark while surfing or swimming: Hawaii, South Africa, Brazil and New Zealand were all worth a special mention. But the deadliest spot is the Red Triangle which goes from San Francisco to Monterey and out to sea for about 30 miles. This is the likeliest spot on earth for a human to be attacked by a great white shark. A hundred or more great whites converge there in late summer every year for the seals, their favorite food, who migrate to the beaches and the surrounding waters.

Man, am I glad I'm not going to surf camp in the Red Triangle! I have a list of places I'd like to surf. I now have a list of places I don't want to surf.

And what about Florida? More specifically the Atlantic coast where I will be surfing? Volusia county, a 47-mile stretch on the central coast, is dubbed the Shark Attack Capital of the World (at least by National Geographic, and they capitalized those first letters, not me). It's the site of  21 percent of the world's shark attacks on humans. Sounds bad, right? Well, considering all the people who swim there (Daytona Beach is in the county) that percentage isn't all that surprising. And all the fishermen don't help - they throw a lot of bait into those waters. But the good news is that the shark attacks are generally minor bites coming from spinners and blacktips, sharks that are rarely longer than seven feet. It's hard to believe that you can put the words "seven foot shark" and "minor bite" in the same sentence but I'm sure glad they did.

I'll be surfing in Brevard county,  66 loooong miles from Volusia county.  So, no worries, right? Right??  Let's go with that.  

They make it look so easy!

Here's a link to a short and sweet video of women, aged 36-66, on a surf trip in Mexico. No giant waves, no aggressive shredding or daredevil antics, just fun surfing with friends. I smile everytime I see it. 

8 Women, 8 Days. Take 2. A Graciegirl surf video clip featuring Jeannette, Robin, Linda, Mary, Brenda, Zeuf, Nancy & Heather.