Tough Times

It's been a tough week.

Physically, things have been alright. There's been some good runs, lots of walking, and a little bit of strength training as well. On the emotional front, though, things have have been tough.

But first let's chat a bit about the fitness and how I got my sweat on this week...


#nevermissaMonday
I was up and out the door relatively early, just before 6:00 a.m. (so I had some daylight). I have been doing 3-mile tempo-ish runs (with pick-ups in the final 400 meters or so) on Monday mornings for the better part of the summer. I was contemplating adding a fourth mile, but didn't get started quite as early as I'd have preferred, so I stayed with the usual three miles. My weather app showed a mere 10% chance of rain...and that 10% showed up in the final mile. Nice. Thankfully, it was a light rain and actually felt quite refreshing in the humid morning air.

A little bit of rain never hurt nobody. No harm, no foul.

Another typical Tuesday

You know what they say about the best-laid plans, right? My plan was to take Max along for an invigorating fasted-cardio power walk, but he had other plans....like to putz along and take his sweet time sniffing every stray blade of grass along the street. After a couple blocks, and maybe 15 stops, he did his business, and I promptly took him back home. And then I headed back out on my own.

2-mile power walk around the college campus (still sporting the R'n'R Las Vegas timing tag from last November)

Wednesday's workout

I met up with my runner gal pal, Barb, for our weekly early-morning 5-miler. The temps were chilly and, having heard the sad news about Mollie Tibbetts the day prior, our conversation was heavy (more on this below). Our #5at5's are almost in complete darkness now, especially when there's heavy fog.

A chilly 5-miler in the wee hours

Thursday's white flag

Having not yet done any HIIT workouts for the week (they usually happen on Tuesday evenings), and being Thursday is my "usual" day for speedwork, I had the bright idea of combing the two into an action-packed multi-tasking endeavor. The thing is...sometimes your heart, soul, mind and body just are not into it. I had not slept well the past two evenings, my mind was overloaded with thoughts of Mollie, and my body was feeling pretty rundown. 

The plan was to do six sets of a basic HIIT circuit, and end each with a sprint around the hilly block across the street (which is 1/3 mile in circumference):

*15 arm or shoulder reps (with 12-pound hand weights)

*10 burpees

*10 push-ups

*1/3-mile hilly sprint

After three sets, I called it good. I did get a little bit of arm work, 30 burpees, 30 push-ups, and a mile in total distance (with negative splits at least). Not bad for 20 minutes of sweat equity, but it still was only half of what I had set out to do. Oh well. It's alright to cut a workout short once in awhile, especially when you're just not feeling it. And I definitely wasn't feeling anything on Thursday.

just not feeling the workout...

Finally Friday

Woot woot! How about some rain to start the day? Even though Friday was a rest day, I still wanted to get in a little bit of fasted cardio before heading to work. I grabbed my umbrella and did a short 1-1/2-mile power walk around the college campus. Problem solved.

just walking in the rain, I'm walking in the rain...

Saturday's sweat session
Barb and I had a 6:00 a.m. start to our 15-mile long run (or possibly a 16-miler, if things went really well). In keeping with the recent return-to-summer temps (and humidity), we had heavy fog and what felt like 100% humidity in the thick air. I was a soggy mess already by the third mile. We pulled over for a potty stop at the 9-mile mark, and when we headed back out a few minutes later things got a little tough. I definitely felt recharged from our brief stop, but I could tell my body was starting to do that gradual shuffle/drag thing where it gets increasingly more difficult to pick up one's feet. Barb was fighting a side ache in the final miles, and my feet were getting heavier by the minute, so there were a few walk breaks. I was completely saturated...I could feel my shorts clinging to me (not necessarily in a good way) and every piece of fabric was dripping, literally (as evidenced in the pic below). We made it to 15, and decided that would do quite nicely. Besides, as tough as these miles were, they weren't about us...they were run in honor of Mollie

15 tough #MilesForMollie

Sunday sweaty Sunday
I got out for an easy-paced 2-mile recovery run, and things all felt good. Honestly, at mile 14 on Saturday, I was wondering how I'd muster the strength to go 12 miles farther come October 13th...but everything felt nearly fully recovered Sunday morning. Isn't it amazing what one's body can do?

Even though it was only two miles, the sweat was dripping off me...again

Overall, most of the workouts went off fine (except for the near crash and burn on Thursday morning). My running mileage continues to increase slightly each week, and tallied at 26. My walking came in at 18 (but there will probably be a few more miles walked after this goes live). I'm good with everything. This next week will be slightly scaled back as I have the NewBo Half Marathon next Sunday. Crazy how 13.1 miles seems almost like nothing after having run 14 and 15 miles recently.

In case you missed them, here's my posts from last week:

It's The Humidity

#MilesForMollie

In other news:

Did you see my #FridayFashionFlair post on Instagram? I love a great denim jacket, and I have had this one for several years, so it's a much-loved piece in my closet. Honestly, it goes with everything, including a funky-patterened maxi dress! Of course, I added the sparkly sandals, just because.  What do you think? Do you have any similar pieces in your wardrobe? As always, you're welcome to join the party...post a pic of a featured outfit, grab the hashtag (#FridayFashionFlair) and drop me a tag (@runningonthefly).

Don't forget the lipstick!

Ahh, these darn kids. Why do they have to grow up? We loaded up the youngest daughter and got her all moved into her dorm at college.

Finally, the big elephant in the room....Mollie Tibbetts. Most everyone has heard of her tragic story by now. Although I did not know Mollie personally, our youngest daughter did. She lived in Brooklyn, a small town in central Iowa, a mere 20 miles down the road from my hometown of Grinnell. To say that this has been a tough, emotional week would be a nasty understatement. So many have been affected by her tragedy...family, friends, Iowans, runners and women. Having a daughter that knew Mollie, and given their closeness in age, this hit way too close to home.

There has been much discussion in the news and on social media on where we go from here. I am sickened by what happened to her. I know it happens elsewhere, and this is not the first time. That said, I am a firm believer that we need to fight for our freedom to continue running as we always have, but we also need to be mindful of our surroundings. If we keep ourselves locked up inside, we are letting the evil ones have power over us. Personally, I'm not okay with that.

We cannot let evil win

A beautiful thing has been happening, though...runners have been rallying. It's been all over social media this week...the #MilesForMollie movement. Mollie was an avid runner. The running community is strong and loyal; when one of our tribe is taken from us, we run in their memory as a means of honoring them. It's been empowering to see all the runners who have rallied on Mollie's behalf. If you were one of the #MilesForMollie runners, thank you!

Coincidentally, I was approached by Angelina Salcedo, a reporter for WOI out of Des Moines. As part of a feature on the #MilesForMollie movement, she wanted to hear my story (as well as a few other women in the area who have also been running for Mollie). If you're interested in seeing the story, the video is HERE.

So, that's a wrap on the past week. It's been busy, It's been emotional. And it's been tough. But that's reality...things aren't always picture-perfect, nor do they always make sense.

How was your week? Hot and humid weather return (or maybe it never left)? Did you partake in the #MilesForMollie movement?

I'm linking up with Holly and Wendy for the Weekly Wrap. This weekly check-in is such a great place to connect with fellow fitness-minded peeps. Please join us!

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