so, it has not been going well We recently adopted 2 puppies, one with pretty severe separation anxiety. They have made my daily schedule a real challenge, especially the one with anxiety. As adorable as puppies are, they are very time consuming...basically, I have 2 very rambunctious toddlers. I am not a mother. I always knew I did not want to be a mother. My patience is wearing very thin. To add to my frustration, the one with anxiety got trampled by a horse a few days ago and now has a broken leg that will require surgery next week Now the other puppy is becoming the problem because he feels great and still wants to run around like a lunatic and doesn't understand why things need to be calm. Oy! Anyway, I've been struggling to just deal with these 2 and the 7 horses (and their owners) that depend on me. I'm not going to lie, I am exhausted and feel like such a weak person (i.e., failure) because I am so stressed by having to take care of everything. I was an only child and my hubby and I are used to being alone with a lot of quiet time. I love the puppies and am not sorry that we adopted them, but I can't wait for them to be a little less needy so I can have some time to myself. I haven't been able to leave the house much due to the puppy's separation anxiety so no going running or to the gym. I've always hated going to the grocery store, but last night I told my husband that I had to go while he watched the puppies so I could get away from them! I do not know how moms do it!! On the positive side, since the one with anxiety has a broken leg and is on some good pain meds, he is much calmer and I can now start to gradually leave for longer amounts of time. (Back story: he was found alone in a ditch and taken in by a couple who took care of him until we got him. He has really flat feet which makes the vets think he had been crated A LOT when he was younger. He is frantic in a crate so we tried a play pen, which he manages to get out of and drags it around the house. Quite challenging.)

With all of that said, I have been trying to not eat based on my emotions and although I haven't been tracking everything, I have been paying attention. I also bought new running shoes and can't wait to use them. So, since the anxious puppy is drugged, I will do 2 hour-long trips outside today....one to go running and one to ride. I've tracked my food so far today. I hate that I haven't stuck to the plan, but I feel even more motivated now than I did before the puppies came along.

went running today for the first time this year! The puppies survived without me. It was great to get out and do something to take care of myself!

Had a great ride yesterday...taking things back to basics and letting go of the expectation of being where we were before my back injury. He was relaxed and listening. I even rode with a metronome app on my phone to work on a consistent rhythm. He had shots yesterday so he got the day off today, but I did go running...3.38 miles, with only a few seconds here and there of walking. Felt pretty good! Best part? The puppies both stayed in their crates (even the anxious one who had leg surgery yesterday!) and were asleep when I got home

Had a nice ride last night, working on keeping things relaxed and simple. We did a course of teeny tiny "jumps" on a loose rein, mostly at the trot, but some canter if he was quiet. I worked on staying in my 2-point to work the legs and some sitting trot without stirrups, really relaxing and stretching my legs long. Felt great! Today will be running and riding

SharonAnderegg wrote: »

2-point is something I just started working on this season. It works very well during rides especially one with a lot of downhill trail and when my horse starts to get tired. I'm not very strong at it though and can only do it for short periods. Any pointers @crimsongrey?

years of practice Just try to go a little longer each ride. You could also try alternating posting and being up in 2-pt every few steps...post 1, 2, 3, up 1,2, 3... This builds strength and balance and helps with keeping a consistent rhythm. Make sense? It works at the canter as well.

Didn't want to run today, but put my running clothes on the second I got in the house after doing stalls and got out the door before I had time to talk myself out of it. Ran 3.38 miles. Super slow, but I ran most of the way with only a couple of walk breaks. It would've been easy to convince myself to not ride after running, but because I typed my plan on here, I did it! We only did 2, 5 min. trots with 1 min walk breaks and 2, 2 minute canters, followed by a 5 minute walk because it got too dark. He is so good during sets. The second he hears the beep on my watch, he's off! It feels so good to have acheived my goals for the day

3.38 miles...started out tight, but ended up being a good run

a nice gentle yoga class this morning before doing stalls then ran my 3.38 mile route