Location: Terry Hershey Park
Distance: 2 mile warmup, SMARTie Hops, 2 mile cooldown

• Made it out to Terry Hershey Park for my first SMARTie Hop workout.   All SMARTie groups (Memorial Park, Sugarland & Terry Hershey) were supposed to meet at Terry Hershey for the workout - about 15-20 people showed up in total.  We set up our 5lb weights and towels/mats in a circle by the parking lot, and then headed out for our 2 mile warmups.  I like Terry Hershey - it's clean, beautiful and the rolling hills provide a smidgen of hillwork in pancake-flat Houston. 
• I got to run with Barb, and heard about some of the behind-the-scenes work she's doing coordinating the Houston Half Marathon.  Barb said it wasn't too bad….but I have a feeling she was being modest, especially since it's the first race in the annual Houston Marathon Warmup Series so the turnout is always big.  Anyways, the 20k/Half will always have a special place with me - it was the first long distance race I'd ever done, and was a huge boost to my confidence that I could actually run (and complete) a marathon. 
• After the warmup run and stretching exercises ("silly walks" thanks Joe!), it was time to start the SMARTie Hops.  For the workout, everyone stood in a circle with Lee leading us through about 11-12 different pylometric exercises.  Don't be fooled by the funny names - these were some challenging exercises.  And our soundtrack?  A compilation of Weird Al, courtesy of Steeve.  Awesome. 
• Some of my favorite Hops: 

• Toyotas:  For this exercise, we would jump straight up, kicking our heels as high as possible.  Just like those "Oh what a feeling….Toyota!" commercials from the 80's.  
• Fast Steps: For 60 seconds, we'd run at a really high rate, making sure our feet hit the ground at least 90 times during those 60 seconds.  It probably looked like we were doing really fast shuffling up and down the path….like we were having a Baby Steps race.  I had to laugh at the people passing us, looking both surprised and slightly alarmed.
• Wall Toe Raises: This one was the hardest for me.  We were supposed to lean backwards against the fence, our legs straight but slightly angled away from us.  Then, we'd lift our toes up, keeping our heels on the ground.  20 slow "pulses" followed by 30 fast pulses.  Watching Lee demonstrate, it seemed pretty easy - lean against a fence, and lift your toes just an inch or so. woohoo. But it was MUCH harder (and painful) than I expected - my calves/shins were totally burning after just 20 slow pulses.  By the middle of the second set, I could barely lift my toes. OW.
• Maniac: This one was the BEST.  For this exercise, we'd run in place as fast as possible.  But just before we started, the music switched from Weird Al to "Maniac" from the movie Flashdance.  Ha!   All of a sudden, Steeve yells to Barb "Come on, Wifey!" and jumps into the middle of the circle, doing a pretty good job channeling the spirit of Jennifer Beals.    Apparently impressed, Vic says "Steeeve, I'm picturing you in a thong."  Hilarious. 

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