Day Six
09SundayJun 2013
Martha / And on the sixth day we rested – well sort of. Sundays are great because there is no 7 a.m. class and our first scheduled session is breakfast at 8. Following breakfast we checked emails and waited for our 10 a.m. horse trail ride. There was a large group of us and the ride was slow. Marnie asked and received the tallest horse whose name is Goliath and I rode Dino. We rode through some of the trails we had hiked before and truthfully, after not having ridden a horse in decades the pace was probably ok. I did find out later in the day that your butt hurts as if you’ve done a spin class. 
After riding four of us went to town for lunch and to check out the little shops. It is known as the Cowboy Capital and is quite touristy in a limited kind of way. It also is a gathering or stopping point for a lot of bikers. As for lunch we didn’t stay on program but we didn’t do too badly either. As for the shopping – we didn’t break the bank.
Back at the ranch we went swimming. It’s an eclectic group with Loa who works for FEMA, Nikki who is a physician working on getting into residency, Ryan who is a student and painter on the side, Sharon who is in insurance and Tyler and Alex – the cowboy brothers (barely out of high school) who work the ranch and guide the trail rides. Slowly a storm began to move in so we left the pool to get ready for supper. (Ok – if you haven’t noticed a theme yet, when left to our own devices we have a lot of work to do about self-motivation – we didn’t miss a meal and we didn’t even get around to taking a hike – and no Marnie, shopping doesn’t count).
During dinner the storm moved through and cooled our little piece of Texas down. The group decided that Rancho Ball in the indoor pool was a good way to end the evening. After 90 minutes and 3 games in the pool I am a whipped puppy. Marnie forwent the game and searched for an internet connection instead. She is actually handling technology withdrawal better than expected but it’s still not unusual to see her wandering in the yard with her I-pad trying to find one bar.
Tomorrow we start back again in earnest – bright and early at 7 a.m. for our first workout. At 6:30 a.m. we will be trying to convince ourselves it really is a vacation.
Marnie/ I was up bright an early with no place to go - wandered down to get coffee and then relaxed in the room until breakfast at eight. As much as I am looking forward to a day of rest, I am restless. It just feels almost sinful to not have started the day with a workout or a hike. Now that I have embraced the workout concept, I am afraid if I miss a day I will fall back into complacency.
We went riding in the hills and my horse was huge, hence the name Goliath. It was overcast and really enjoyable. Because the group was so large and the pace was snail crawl, Martha and I decided to book a private trail ride on Tuesday, after classes. 
We then ventured into Bandera and made it to the coffee shop before it closed at 2:00. Ahhhhh..... the pure delight of an iced coffee, freshly brewed - My days of lattes and cappuccinos are over.... I don't even want to imagine how many times I would have to push that darn sled across the barn floor to work off the calories in them. Found some cute shirts and jeans, very Texas and very fun and we had lunch at our favorite cafe but did not go too far off the reservation with the food. 
Back at the ranch we hung by the pool for awhile until a small storm moved in and cooled us down. We have been so fortunate to have overcast skies and some great winds blowing through for the last week. The cooler conditions have made the hikes tolerable and almost comfortable. I would have never believed that I could do as much as I have been doing but it really worries me that I will not be able to keep up enough of a level of exercise when I get home to keep me on track. I don't know how many inches or pounds I have lost so far but my jeans shorts had some space in the waist today and that is a first! The problem with being 5'8 is that you can carry alot of weight before you even begin to look heavy as long as you have clothes on. I have been fooling myself for years by never looking in the mirror undressed. Weight comes on very slowly and for me it was only after I could see the "blumpage" with my clothes on that I realized a change had to happen. So, that is why I am here. I am looking at the coming week's schedule and rather than a sense of dread I am excited
to master it! Well, maybe not all of it - you will never convince me that Pilates Mat Classes and Yoga are worth my time. Sorry, Martha, there is just not enough granola in the world!
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