About Me

Sunday, July 26, 2020

Just go ahead and GLOW


There's been all kinds of glistening and glowing in my world this week.

I'm quite alright with that. It's summer in Iowa; it's gonna be hot and it's gonna be humid (and not necessarily in that order). Besides, a little bit of sweat never hurt no one.

It was another week of (mostly) outdoor fitness, and I'm alright with that, too.

Before I share the details, welcome to the Weekly Run Down

I love hosting this link-up with Deborah (from Confessions of a Mother Runner)! If you write a fitness-based blog, you're invited to join the party. The link-up opens at 1:00 (EST) on Sundays and remains open through noon on Monday. We love reading about everyone's weekly fitness endeavors, training highlights (or low lights) and race recaps. We ask that you link back to both hosts, and we encourage you to read/comment on the other linked blogs as well...please don't link-drop & dash ;-)



Here's what went down in my little world of fitness this week:

Never miss a Monday
I had the best intentions of running three miles, but those early-morning temps felt so good and I just couldn't get enough of that cotton candy sky...so I ran four miles instead. After work, I met up with a friend for a 2-mile power walk, and then took Gustavas out for an easy 9-mile ride.


Easy-does-it Tuesday
I kept things easy-peasy with a 2-mile early morning walk, and then another 2-mile walk after work. One walk was cool (though humid), the other was steamy and muggy...any guesses which was which?


Double workout Wednesday
Wednesday morning started out innocent enough with the weekly #5at5 with Barb. Temps were in the mid-60F's, but with 91% humidity things were a bit on the balmy side. But, wow...that sunrise!


The hubby was out of town, and I felt the pull to take a ride out on the hilly bike trail after work. I texted Barb, and she was game to join me. So, it was a date, 12 hours after our morning run. Let me just say, even with a tail wind on the return trip from the lake, this trail is SO tough. The hills are crazy and there are no less than 13 of them...and over the course of 14 miles, they are condensed in between the 3rd and 12th miles. Back in town, I rode an extra mile (on flat ground), then went for a 2-mile walk to shake out my legs.


Double workout Thursday
Oh, there were a few DOMS at play upon wake-up. I kept things focused on the upper-body, and also went for an easy 2-mile walk before heading to work to keep the legs in motion. I've said it before...movement is medicinal for me, and my legs felt much better after that walk.


The hubby returned home by afternoon, and wanted to hit the stairs...so we headed over to the outdoor stairway. Another brick (of sorts) workout, with a 1-mile walk over, 50 flights of stairs (ahem, that would be 900 steps, just saying), and a 1-mile walk back home. As you can tell from the pic, there may have been a little glowing going on for both of us, but we felt pretty victorious conquering all those steps in the summer heat. Wouldn't you?


Recovery day Friday
Amazingly. nothing felt off Friday morning, but I knew my legs needed a break. Temps were in the mid-60's (again), which feel chilly on the bike, especially when there's a strong wind. We kept things on the down-low with a 7-mile ride and three total miles walked for the day.

      


Virtual racing fun for Saturday
Remember me talking about the heat and the humidity? Well, both were front and center come Saturday (how does 74F with 95% humidity at 6:00a.m. grab you?). It also was the day of the Quad City Times Bix-7 virtual race, and several blogging friends, Barb, and myself had a race to run. I'll share a brief recap this next week, but suffice it to say the hilly bike trail sufficed as an adequate substitute for the actual Bix-7 race course, as did the hot and humid temps. After returning home, I felt like I'd run double the distance. I changed into some dry clothes, got comfy on the couch (with Max) for a few minutes...and woke up 90 minutes later. Whoops!

With Barb...that sunrise was like none other!

...and with Team On Fire (literally)...Rene'e, Montana, Kim, Zenaida, Cari, and myself

Later, the hubby was itching to return to the Chichaqua Valley Trail, for a (somewhat) short out-and-back ride with a quick meal sandwiched in the middle. We arrived on the scene just after 6:00, rode from Mingo to Baxter (9.3 miles) and shared a heavenly hamburger. On the return trip, we tacked on a little more distance to end the day with 19 miles of riding. The temps may have been hot, and the humidity still heavy, but at least you create your own breeze on the bike. 


Keeping-it-simple Sunday
On the way home from our Saturday evening ride, we stopped at a nearby brewery. My strawberry brew had me zonked shortly after we arrived home, but I awoke bright and early on Sunday morning. Temps were flirting with another heat advisory (91F feels-like with the 77% humidity), so I opted for a 3-mile walk (with the hubby) instead of a recovery run. How ya like that glazed donut glow?


All in all, it was a pretty active week. Running wasn't too high with mileage this week, but those 16 miles had plenty of sweat equity in them. Walking took an upswing with 20 miles. Biking saw a lot of action, rolling out 40 miles in the heat. Strength work involved both the stair workout (lower body) and arms/shoulders on Thursday. With Saturday's hilly virtual race, I took a pass on speedwork and HIIT, so I'm hoping to work that in this next week. My mileage for the Great Run Across Iowa has me at 302.6...so I've passed the 249 goal and will be passing the 315 "grand" total this next week. I'll share the medal and shirt next week after everything is official.  

In case you missed out, here's what all went down on the blog this week:

In other news:
Friday Fashion Flair! Nothing ground-breaking about this week's featured outfit, but I do prefer 3/4-length sleeves in the air-conditioned office, and there's nothing wrong with a bright color. I should mention the funky and chunky necklace I'm sporting is actually a belt (which has never adorned my waist). Go bright or go home! As always, you're welcome to join me on Fridays...post a pic on Instagram, grab the hashtag (#FridayFashionFlair) and be sure to tag me (@runningonthefly).


I don't normally share a lot of personal stuff here, but we've have had nonstop excitement  and celebrations this month. The latest? The oldest daughter's boyfriend became her fiance' last Sunday!


And, I received word recently that I was accepted into the BibRave ambassador program! I'm really excited for the opportunity to get a peek at new fitness gear, accessories and gadgets. Heck, maybe there will even be some opportunities to experience new races when live races make a comeback. 


So, that's the latest and greatest. Summer keeps happening and I keep happening with it.

How was your week? Any fun happenings? Are you able to get outside, or is the heat keeping you indoors? Virtual racing?


You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

33 comments:

  1. I don’t feel like I’m glowing — more like I’m melting into a sweaty puddle. Love your runrise photos! Congrats again to your daughter

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    1. Well, I was a major melted mess after my run yesterday...I just prefer to say it's a glow rather than a mess LOL

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  2. OMG, so exciting for your daughter!! Isn't that funny how it can be cool temps but so humid! I did experience that a few times this week too. And I got an amazing sunrise too! Great job on the workouts - and those stairs!!

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    1. And congrats on the BibRave ambassador gig!

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    2. The cool temps and humidity always throw me off...depending on the day, sometimes it feels comfortable, other times it feels cold. Either way, the sweat happens LOL

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  3. Congrats and best wishes to your daughter! That's so exciting! It's so great to see your hubby participating in some of your workouts too. Thanks for the linkup!

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    1. Thank you, Marcia ;-) The hubby has really gotten on board with my workouts, so that's been fun!

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  4. Congrats to your daughter! How exciting!

    I agree with Coco, there's no glowing over here. Just ick. I'm not enjoying this current situation one bit. Looking forward to some more tolerable temps this week.

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    1. Summer sweating is what it is...I'm just trying to keep my sense of humor through it all. I'm certainly not sweating any less LOL

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  5. Congratulations to your daughter, love the picture. And well done on your active week. Not too hot here again thank goodness, though a little sticky at times.

    I'm not doing a round-up this week as I caused an issue in our running group today/this week by feeling I needed to keep it to four not the government-permitted six running together, so I'm upset and don't want to remind people / be reminded. I am going to have to look at what I'm doing generally and in the group and come away from group runs so as not to exclude other people. I am struggling with breaking out of wanting to stay quite locked down when others are moving forward, going on trips and holidays, etc.

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    1. The lockdown has caused so much stress for everyone. We're all in different cities, different situations, and we all have very different levels of comfort and away-from-home obligations to figure out. Sorry for all the ill feelings in your group...it's probably not anything you did, but just a culmination of all the factors mentioned above. I hope things turn around...

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  6. I love how you embrace the hot weather - you know I run away from it, lol. Thanks again for letting me know about the Bix 7 miler. It was a lot of fun running virtually with you and the other ladies!

    Congratulations to your daughter - what an exciting time!

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    1. Yes, I do my best to embrace the heat because I detest the cold. In Iowa, our winters seem to last 6-7 months, which is far too long for me. UGH...I'm not a fan of all the layering and questionable street conditions.

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  7. Huge congrats on the engagement! How exciting for you all. Welcome to Bibrave :) they are a nice bunch. Glad you all had fun with the Bix miler. Stay cool!

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    1. The Bix was the best it could be, given the 2020 conditions. Having a gang of friends along with me certainly made it much better than expected with the virtual format. Bummed you had to sit it out, but I know it was necessary. Heal up!!

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  8. Best wishes to your daughter - so exciting!

    And, welcome to the BibRave Family! Hopefully this will give us a chance to catch up at a race next year!

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    1. Oh, I'd LOVE a chance (or several) to catch up in person at a race...someday!

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  9. Glazed donuts FTW! I think this group is well qualified to say that sweating never hurt anyone, it's just a little unpleasant when I load my workout clothes into the washer on laundry day. Yesterday when I got home from my 7 mile run and saw that it was the Bix-7 I almost felt like I bandited the race;-)

    Congrats to your daughter!

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    1. I had to laugh at your comment on Insta about banditing! My clothes were embarrassingly sweat-saturated yesterday, I thought my shorts were going to fall off they were sagging so badly!

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  10. The humidity leaves me drenched- not glowing, but a puddle of sopping grossness, haha :)

    Agree with Birchwood Pie above that it makes the laundry a little unpleasant too.

    Congratulations to your daughter! What a great photo.

    Thanks for hosting the linkup Kim!

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    1. Oh yes, I'm there with all the laundry. I leave the daily clothes air-drying over the shower/tub so at least they're not a wet mess in the clothes basket...but yuck.

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  11. I gotta admit I'm not getting out as much as I was -- but still out there every day for some amount of time.

    Yesterday's run definitely drained me! No nap, but not motivated to do much else the rest of the day.

    Your workout ethic is inspiring, Kim!

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    1. Thank you, Judy ;-) It's my goal to get outside everyday for something...at least a walk if nothing else. I'm up early, though, so that helps avoid the worst of the temps.

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  12. Congrats to both you on the BibRave and your daughter on the engagement!

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    1. Thank you, Laura! We have a lot of excitement on the burner ;-)

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  13. Congratulations to your daughter! Also congrats on being a BibRave! 10 miles or 16 miles are still miles and you were still very active with walking and riding your bike.

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    1. If I was training for a marathon (in any other year LOL), I would probably have snuck in an extra day in there, or run a few bonus miles after yesterday's Bix...but it was kind of nice just calling it good and feeling no regret ;-)

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  14. I guess you could call it glowing. I will go with soggy.

    Congratulations to your daughter and way to go on BibRave!

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    1. Well, I'm definitely soggy (and yesterday, I was dripping #eww), but "glowing" sounds a lot more glamorous ;-)

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  15. So much fun to run "with" you. And congrats on BibRave. So awesome.
    That's awesome that your work schedules allow for long workouts before/after. Is that a COVID/summer light situation, or was your normal before?

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  16. Congrats to your daughter! This was such a hot week. While I like summer running, the heat and humidity have just been out of control with no breaks at all. How exciting to be a BibRave Ambassador!

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  17. Wow, 900 steps in that heat is impressive! And congrats on the ambassadorship and congrats to your daughter on the engagement :) It sounds like a good week.

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  18. You had another great week of workouts and man-oh-man do you have energy after work to be able to go out for a ride followed by a walk. High five to you!

    I totally missed being able to linkup this week. I didn't get my RunDown finished until last night and forgot to link up before going to bed. By the time I had a break in my morning client schedule at noon and remembered to link up, the linkup had closed. Oops!

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