Rain Dance...Anyone?

Not quite sure what Momma N was thinking this week, but she could not make up her mind.

We had a lot of rain in the forecast, but quite a lot of it missed us. While I don't love a rainy run, I can tolerate those conditions once in awhile. In all honesty, a little bit of rain does feel good on a hot summer day (so long as it's not a torrential downpour or has lightning along for the ride).

I did get a little wet, though, but not all of that was from precipitation. The humidity remained high and certainly kept things interesting, so the "glistening & glowing" was full-on. 

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 8:00AM (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 ;-)

So, here's what went down this week in my little world of fitness:

Sunny Sunday & 4th of July with friends

The morning began with a short 2-mile shakeout run, then we loaded up the bikes and headed to the trailhead in Mingo (about 25ish miles away). We rode 10 miles, along the Chichaqua Valley Trail, to Baxter and back (with a brief refuel stop), then headed the other direction to Bondurant (about 13 miles). After a fun lunch (more refueling LOL), we rode the 13 miles back to the trailhead. We got back home mid-afternoon and crashed for an hour before heading to the town's 4th of July parade. We did stay up to see the fireworks, but after a long warm and humid day, we didn't have any trouble falling asleep afterwards.

Never miss a Monday!

It's not every Monday there's a 4th of July race (on the 5th, none the less). I got out for an early morning 1-mile walk, then we picked up Barb and headed to Sully. The Sully Freedom Fun Run 5K (recap HERE) has become a pretty long-standing tradition. Another local friend, Allison, met us there. The three gals did a 1-mile warm-up run before hitting the start line. Suffice it to say the race went well, and all four of us brought home age group hardware.

A big-time Take It Easy Tuesday

I've been keeping my Tuesdays low-key, and this week it was much needed. I did a 2-mile walk for breakfast, and another 1-mile walk at work (morning break). And that was it. Nothing else. No regrets.

Double Workout Day Wednesday

As of Tuesday, there was rain in the forecast for the next several days. By bedtime, though, the heavy rain had gotten pushed back and it was showing only 33% chance of rain before 7:00AM on Wednesday. Barb and I decided to chance it, and met up for our weekly #5at5. Boy-Oh-Boy, was it a balmy morning (70F temps with 93% humidity)! And, believe it or not, little to no rain ever fell (though the humidity remained quite high). After work, I took Gustavas (the mountain bike) out for 10.5 miles before dinner.

This & That Thursday

Overnight rain had left the streets wet and the air damp (again). I did some strength/core/balance work (via leg lifts) on the deck, then Max took the hubby and I for a 2-mile walk before work.

 

After work, I met up with Amy for our weekly ride on the hilly bike path. I'm not kidding when I say these hills are humbling LOL, but I'm ever-so-thankful to be tackling those hills with Fritz (the hybrid bike) instead of Gustavas. The hills encompass about 12 miles of the ride, but I ride a few extra miles (on city streets) when I return to town...so about 15 total miles.

Finally Friday

There was a light rain falling, so I just did a quick 1-mile walk before work. The rain halted for a while, so a few of us took advantage and went for our usual mid-morning walk. When I got home, around 4:30, the sun was shining! I quickly got into my running gear, in hopes of scoring a couple miles. Well, you can probably guess how this ends...not even 1/4-mile into the run, the sun suddenly disappeared and rain started coming down. They were big drops, but they were falling pretty light...so I pressed on. I got to my turn-around, and by the time I'd gone about 1.5 total miles, it was dry again (you know, when I was just about back home). The weird rain kept coming and going all evening, and actually (finally) rained pretty hard overnight. 

Super Sweaty Saturday

I awoke to rain (as forecast), so I took my time in getting up for the day. With a 10K planned for the evening, I didn't want to run very many morning miles anyways. Then, a short while later, I noticed the rain had stopped. My app showed a much lower percentage of rain probability than before (17%), so I grabbed the running gear and hit the streets. This run felt slow and sluggish from the start. Even with some stretching and a warm-up, my right hip decided to give me a little bit of attitude (nothing painful, but it definitely felt "off"). I didn't have the Garmin with me, so I don't know my pace...and that's probably a good thing LOL. It was horrendously humid (100%, thank you very much), so I know that was a factor. I also had not slept well (#WhompWhomp). I ran five miles and called it good.

Sunday on deck...

Not sure what's on the roster for Sunday. There will probably be a short recovery run in the early morning, and possibly a long(ish) bike ride in the afternoon. All rain, that had been forecast, has now left the scene. Woot!

So, in summery it was an alright week. The biking miles (72) were a little lower than usual, but that's alright. The running miles were decent (21), but walking is still looking rather meager (just 9 miles this week). Somehow,  I spaced off on upper-body strength this week (#MyBad),  but the lower-body balance workout was legit.

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

Facing the Heat Head On

Sully Freedom Fun Run 5K 2021 recap

Racing & Pacing & Placing, Oh My!

In other news:

Friday Fashion Flair! Can you ever go wrong with a denim jacket? I've had this baby for upwards of 15 years, and it's still a staple. I'm also a fan of a funky Aztec print, especially paired with the sparkly sandals.  

Here's a peak at this week's flower display. The daylilies are going nutzo, as are the purple/pink coneflowers and balloon flowers. Also, the tiger lilies made their appearance, and some roses. 

Finally, Saturday evening was Midnight Madness. I was all set for the 10K...only the crazy weather (heavy rain and thunder storms) had the race director scrambling. It was decided to delay the start time (to 8:30PM) and have all the 10K racers run the 5K. Not what I was hoping for, but it was all in the name of safety and prevented canceling the event altogether. Wouldn't you know? By the time 8:30 rolled around, the storms (and all rain) had passed. The temps had dropped (65F), the wind had picked up (10mph) and the humidity remained (93%). I'm not quite sure what happened, but I clocked a 25:06 and brought home a 3rd place age group medal. Stay tuned, this warrants a recap...

So, that's a wrap! How did your week play out? Any races? Crazy weather?

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