Well Rested; Quite Thankful

What a busy week, full of all things family, food, and (some) fitness.

Thankfully, I'm feeling so much better than a week ago. It pays off, with huge dividends, when you scale back on the activity and take time to not only rest and recover, but to also enjoy the finer things.

In addition to the low-key (on the rebound) fitness, our house was full of family fun. The Pennsylvania daughter (and her dog and boyfriend), the UofI son and the Indian Hills CC daughter were here for most of the week as well. Let me just say, my heart was full and my smiles were nonstop.


Here's what all went down...

On Monday, I got out relatively early for a couple of miles. I seriously love my early morning outings, but especially on Mondays they help to "up the mojo" for the new week.

#nevermissaMonday

For Tuesday, I did my usual early morning walk before heading to work. Later, I got busy on the stairway with a full-body circuit:

Stairway Full-Body Circuit (2 sets)

**15 (weighted) squats

**15 bicep curls

**10 flights of double-steps

**10 push-ups

--------------------

** 15 burpees

**15 triceps extensions

**10 flights of double-steps

**10 push-ups

--------------------

**10 (weighted) walking lunges

**15 upward rows

**10 flights of double-steps

**10 push-ups

2 sets of the circuit netted me 30 squats, 30 burpees, 20 walking lunges, 90 arm reps, 60 flights of stairs and 60 push-ups. There was plenty of sweat equity going on and it felt so good!

#notjustarunner

Not much on tap for Wednesday. There were a couple of power walks (with each of the dogs) and my routine exercises (leg lifts, push-ups, planking, etc.).

#MaxtonMcArthur

Thursday started off great with our local Turkey Trot. A friend and myself have been overseeing this event since its inception in 2012. We don't have any registration fees, no timing mats or prizes. We have options for 1-mile, 2-mile or 5K routes. Participants are encouraged to bring non-perishables for our town's food pantry. This year, we had cold temps, but a very sunshiny sky. I haven't heard back on the final numbers, but I think we had our biggest turnout yet.

#turkeytrotting

#GetIntoGrinnell (our town's motto)

Later, our Thursday got crazy. Our son recently had an abscess drained from his throat, and earlier this week some of the pain returned. Our family doctor (on Wednesday) thought it looked fine, and prescribed rest and Tylenol. A day later, he had a slight fever and intense pain. The hubby took him to our local ER just as the rest of us were sitting down for the traditional Thanksgiving dinner. A cat scan showed the abscess was "filling back up" and, per consultation with the University hospital (where he'd had it drained two weeks prior), they wanted to transfer him to the UofI ER. Not a life-threatening situation, by any means, but frustrating that our local people couldn't do more for him. So, the hubby and I brought him home, regrouped briefly (in other words, took a few family pictures by the Christmas tree LOL), and then drove an hour to Iowa City (with the IV still intact in the son's arm). An ENT physician drained the abscess, and we were back home shortly after midnight. Whew.

Friday arrived, bringing with it more sunshine. I did an easy-paced 2-mile run before heading out for a little Black Friday shopping with my sister. Already, by late morning, the son was feeling better, and able to eat, swallow, and talk without wincing. But he will be getting his tonsils out over the winter break. Merry Christmas to him.

#gopinkorgohome

We had even more bright sunshine Saturday morning, and the 35F temps almost felt tropical. My goal was to walk for one mile, then run that same mile back...but the hamstrings were feeling good. So good, in fact, that I couldn't resist breaking into a run after the first two blocks and finished with some strides. 

#milingandsmiling

Sunday
Momma N is a pretty fickle friend, and she can turn on you ever so quickly. After a few days of sunshine and mild temps, she taunted us with snow and ice. My solution? Beat her at her own game and head outside before she drops her wrath. Just a 1-mile run, and I was totally alright with that because the wind was nutzo. Besides, I'd run seven miles in the past three days, which was more mileage than I'd done, recently, in that time span. Later, I fired up 'Milly for a couple miles of walking (I know, UGH, but the walking miles aren't as annoying as the running ones on that contraption). I also did some yoga and stretching.

#optoutside

All told, it was an interesting week. As usual, it went way too fast having all three kids under the same roof. My running mileage was still on the conservative end (10 miles), and my walking was pretty low-end as well (12). It felt good to get busy on the steps with the 30-minute HIIT workout this week. I'm still doing my daily planks, leg lifts and push-ups. The hamstrings are still a bit wonky, but overall, are feeling MUCH better. I know I'm still not out of the woods, so everything I'm doing (running and otherwise) is with the utmost caution. This is my off-season, after all, and I have ZERO big races on the calendar for several months.

I only had two blog posts this week, here they are in case you missed them:

Enter Off-Season

Ever.So.Incredibly.Thankful 2018

In other news:

Did you catch my #FridayFashionFlair post on Instagram? With all the craziness on Thanksgiving, I did manage to get a pic of my outfit and chose to showcase that on Friday (it was a lot more fun and funky than my Black Friday shopping outfit). It's no secret I love my cheetah print and white skinny jeans. A pop of red is always a festive and colorful touch, right? Although, in taking survey of all the pink I wore for my workouts and runs this week, I probably should have grabbed a pink scarf instead. Oh well. As per usual, you're invited to join me on Fridays...post a pic of a favorite outfit, grab the hashtag (#FridayFashionFlair) and drop me a tag (@runningonthefly). Don't be a stranger!

As in years past, it's time for the annual Runner's World Winter Streak (Thanksgiving through New Years Day). I have done this for the past five years, so it's just a routine thing for me anymore. I am not an advocate for daily running, but I do this streak every year to switch things up for me. It also gives me something to focus on and get me through the holiday hoopla. Basically, I do an easy-paced 1-mile run on what would usually be my non-running days. No sprinting, no speedwork, nothing crazy, nothing excessive. My mileage still remains conservative because there's only an additional 3-4 miles run each week. And, I always do these streaks knowing I have the option to end at any time if things don't feel right. So here goes...stay tuned.

#RWRunnersStreak2018

The Christmas decorating has begun. So far, I have both trees up and partially decorated.

And, finally, here's a pic of the family. We had to act quickly to get this pic, in between ER visits on Thursday, because we didn't know if they would want to admit our son or not once we got to the UofI hospital. The Pennsylvania daughter (and company) was scheduled to leave early on Saturday (like, 3:30 a.m. early) for their trek back home, so we figured this was our best opportunity. Priorities, right?

So, that's another wrap of another week. My fitness mojo has returned, but now I just have to keep things conservative as my hammies (and tendons) continue to rebound. The house is, again, void of kids but we have Max and Mizzy (the new guinea pig) and Donatelo (the daughter's turtle) to keep us entertained. Not many dull moments, and that's just the way I like it.

How was your week? Family visiting for Thanksgiving or did you travel? Did you host and if so...are you still eating leftovers (I've had turkey and gravy every morning for breakfast LOL)? Any turkey trotting?

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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