15. "Hustle Up the Hancock"



From "Hustle Up the Hancock" website.


One thought, one second in time, one conversation, one click...that's all it takes, to walk into the next challenge!  To change your life...to change anything.


It was a beautiful sunny morning after a great weekend with friends, my home was completely cleaned up, everything in order. I was one step away from going to the gym.  All I needed to do was change into workout clothes.


But no, it didn't happen yesterday.  One hour passed, then two, and I knew I had to do something.  "Ok, I'll work out at home," I told myself.  Weights?  No problem--have those.  Ab work and stretching?  Have the mat--no problem there either.  That left the cardio workout.  I was feeling very silly trying to jog in place in my living room, and sillier yet, trying to jog around my coffee table....when I suddenly saw our flight of stairs in a new way.  They became my cardio workout.


Seventeen steps, I trod down and back up, down and back up, down and back up.  Then at the top I added a quick walk around the unit, then down and back up--till I completed 120 steps up.  It felt like an accomplishment.  However, I also thought, "Perhaps this is really just a meager workout.  I'd better think of it only as a start.  I'll add more steps/flights each day."


Later that afternoon, while describing the Eiffel Tower in great detail, one of the facts my French teacher mentioned, jumped out at me--the steps to the second level of "la Tour Eiffel" number just a little over a thousand.  I thought, "Oh, there it is!  I'll set my goal at being able to climb 1,000 steps comfortably."


Until yesterday I'd never given stairs a second thought!  This morning I found myself googling "stair races in Chicago," and discovered a race up the stairs of the John Hancock building.  Set for February of 2011, the race to the 94th floor is already sold out! (1,000-foot vertical climb up 1,632 stairs.)  However, the race to climb the tower steps half way--to the 52nd floor--still has openings.


I registered.


February 27, 2011 is the day I will climb 52 floors of stairs in the skyscraper known as the John Hancock Center.  In the process, my goal is to raise at least $200 for lung disease research and programs (and anything over will be great too!) 

Though we take it for granted most of the time, I believe we should be thankful for every breath we take.  So, while I can, I'm going to be sucking in that air and climbing those stairs for a good cause, while I use this opportunity to keep on track with preparation for the mountain next October...

...one step at a time, literally!

Link to more information: 
http://my.imisfriendraising.com/personalPage.aspx?registrationID=289102&langPref=en-CA


Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Worked out at the gym--elevated treadmill, weights, squats with med ball and lunges.