New Year; Same Me

Here we are, one full week into 2023...and, my-oh-my, how time flies when you're having fun!

It may be cliche, but it's true (at least in my world). I've been keeping busy, trying to enjoy the remaining remnants of the holiday season and maintaining all things fitness, so this first week of the new year has flown by. 

I haven't really set any specific new goals for 2023, nor have I made any reflective resolutions. My main focus is to keep on keeping on, and to enjoy this ride called life. So far, so good!

Before I dis on the deets of the week, 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 ;-)

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

A sunny start to 2023!

The first morning of '23 started with an exhilarating 3-miler in the crisp low-30F temps. Although the temps were sub-freezing (27F feels-like), the wind was almost non-existent and the sunrise was beautifully bright. I even had to shed a layer and lose the gloves! Garmin surprised me with a Strong Start badge, so there's that. I also got outside for a 2-mile walk in the afternoon. Happy New Year, indeed!

Never Miss a Monday.

The day started with 12 miles on the bike and a Flash-15 workout (an intense mix of cardio and strength moves, via Peloton). Mid-morning, I headed outdoors for the final run of the RW Winter Run Streak. Technically, the Streak officially begins on Thanksgiving Day, but I'd done a 2-mile run the day prior. Also, since I always run on Mondays, this was a "bonus" day (as were its two miles). Thus, this Streak had a total of 41 days and a grand total of 76 streaking miles. 

Easy-Peasy Scaled-Back Tuesday...

As much as I love doing the annual run streak, I'm always glad to see it conclude. Tuesday morning had me on the elliptical, for "four" low-impact miles of cardio fun. There also was a 2-mile walk after work...and that's all she wrote.

Triple Workout Wednesday (well, sort of...)

Ever have a stray clump of hair magically appear, mid-way through a sweaty workout? This mysterious wayward wispy got my attention by clinging to my neck (and it felt much bigger than it appears in the pic, just saying). After eight miles on the bike, I headed to my weekly PT session. My gal had me do a 1-mile warm-up (on the bike there), then she thoroughly worked me over from the waist-down. Later, after work, Max and I took a short walk in the blistery wind. Back home, I summoned the treadmill for more walking and utilized an arm/shoulder (light weights) workout as I moved. Spoiler: the DOMS, from the morning's PT session, had already arrived.

Thankful Thursday

After a night of snowfall, I had 20-minutes of fast-paced shoveling on deck upon my Thursday morning wakeup. That was just my warm-up, though. There also were 100 flights of stair work happening as well, though Garmin says I only did 33. What the what?  Oh well, just like with most things in life, WE know the truth even its not accurately revealed by others, LOL.

 

Thursday evening, Barb and Allison and I met up for a long-awaited reunion and enjoyed four miles of full moon running. I've said it before, but I'm so glad we started these full moon runs! I look forward to them every month!

Happy FriYAY!

Believe it or not, the DOMS were still trying to cramp my style. We're talking quads and hammies and glutes, oh my! I kept things low-key, with eight miles on the bike before heading to the office. Later, a friend and I got in a 1-mile walk (mid-afternoon), and Max took me for a 1/2-mile jaunt around the park after work.

Saturday's Sweat Fest Extraordinaire

It had been a long time since Barb and I had done a Saturday morning run. We met-up at 7:30, amidst the bright sun and blowing snow. The temps were showing 9F, with a -4F feels-like, and I had no clue how to dress for the occasion because it had been f.o.r.e.v.e.r since I'd done an extended run in such conditions. We ran our #5at5 route, and kept a decent pace, but I was a major sweaty mess after finishing, LOL. So, FYI, your body can get quite hot in sub-freezing weather, though your ponytails will freeze. Once back home, I did some stretching and rode seven miles on the bike...both as a cool-down for my legs and a defrost for my face and hair.

...what's on tap for Sunday?

The early morning temps are looking cold, but the wind is looking rather tame. It might be nice to get some fresh air under the (still somewhat) full moon with a walk. That sounds all well and good, but I'll probably opt for a longish ride on the bike and save the walk for mid-morning, well after daylight appears.   

So, this first week of '23 had some decent action, but also a bit of recovery. After finishing the Streak, I had two guilt-free days with no time in the running shoes. That was a blessing in disguise because Wednesday's PT session was another doozy, and I had the DOMS to prove it. Anyways, running tallied 14 miles this week, but the bulk of those were from Thursday and Saturday. As for walking, this week saw a measly eight miles...I really need to just fire up the 'mill, on occasion. I'm still getting outside, on the daily, but the walking miles seem to take the biggest hit if the weather is really uncomfortable. I even scaled-back the biking, this week, a bit (omitting my "usual" Sunday morning long ride). Total miles in the saddle came in at 36. Extra cardio included Tuesday's elliptical and  Thursday's stair workout. Strength training was on-par with a couple upper-body workouts and all the lower-body PT. 

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

Weather: Say WHAT?!?

Blissful Persistence...because if it ain't broke...

Coffee Chatting in January

In other news:

Friday Fashion Flair. You all know I'm a proud Iowa Hawkeye. Thursday night's basketball game, against Indiana, was a nail-biter in the final minutes. I missed some of the first half of the game, when the Hawks were down by 20+ points to the Hoosiers, but I was there for the big rally-back in the second half. So, of course, I had to don the black and gold, in celebration, come Friday morning. Would you have done the same?

I don't very often have my phone handy on the drive home from work. I stopped for gas, though, and had to capture Friday evening's sunset. I'm excited to see the sunsets happening a tiny bit later and later every day.

And finally, here's another ugly "collegiate" sweater update. I shared a pic of the first sweater (for the  youngest daughter) in Friday's coffee post. I'm approximately halfway done with sweater #2, which is for the son, who is an Iowa Hawkeye graduate. I'm just about to the armholes, so I'll be dividing up the stitches (for the front and back) and then knitting each of the sleeves. It's a lot of tedious work, with non-stop stitch counting, continuous color changes, and a good mix of "visualizing the finished project" each time I introduce another pattern variation. But, that's what makes it fun, LOL.

That's the latest and greatest as we begin this new year of fun and fitness. 

How did your week play out? Any cold (though sweaty) runs to mention? Ever had your ponytails freeze? Got any races coming up, this winter or on your spring calendar? 

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