...and just like that, summer seems to be in full throttle!
School's out, the heat is on, the daylight is long, and it's time for some coffee and chatter. Although I won't be partaking in actual coffee in my cup, rest assured, I'll still be drinking something hot and steamy. I'll also have plenty to chat about.
Shall we get started?
If we were having a coffee & chat session, I'd tell you about my May fitness stats. While my running mileage seems a bit low (probably due to a couple different weeks of recovery and taper mixed together), the walking and biking well made up for it. In fact, I think this may be the highest number of miles I've ever walked (other than a few token months after my emergency surgery, in 2017, when I was banned from running while recovering). I expect that trend (with both walking and biking) to continue through the next few months of summer.
If we were having a coffee & chat session, I'd share a bit of a core work 'fession.
I spent the previous four weeks dutifully following Olivia's Core Challenge on Peloton. I liked her workouts because they were short (most were 10 minutes) and she incorporated a nice variety of moves. Also, most of the moves were easy to modify if they were too challenging or not challenging enough. BUT, I had a busy 3-day weekend (a 10-mile long run on Saturday, and two 25ish-mile bike rides on Sunday and Monday). I may have skipped the core workout Monday. And Tuesday. Oops. I did the Wednesday workout and that's all she wrote. After doing four continuous weeks, I felt more than satisfied with my progress. In other words, ZERO guilt for bailing on these last few final days, LOL.
If we were having a coffee & chat session, I'd share my excitement for long rides in the summer heat.
Not only have I been back out on the hilly bike path four (count 'em, four!) times already, but I've been knocking out some long rides. I even bit the bullet and rode a 25-miler all on my own last weekend.
If we were having a coffee & chat session, I'd show you a Garmin hack for the bike.
I already have a substantial Garmin tan line on my wrist (I blame the day-long antics of the recent
Market to Market Relay). Before Sunday's 25-miler, I noticed the souvenir wrap-around koozie on my bike (from a previous biking event), and got the idea to attach my Garmin to that instead of my wrist. I already have a bike computer that measures the mileage, output, speed, etc., but I've become one of those people who seldom leaves home without the Garmin. Although it doesn't measure my heart rate while attached to the koozie, it still shows the distance, speed, and elevation. I'm completely good with that!
Finally, if we were having a coffee & chat session, I'd gush a tiny bit about my favorite race.
This will be my 15th time running DAM to DSM. Technically, it's my 16th year doing the event, but it was virtual in 2020, due to Covid (and I had to bike the miles because of my stress fracture). This is the third consecutive year the extreme weather has been an issue. Race officials are giving participants the option to run virtually (and actually encouraging it for those who may not be in prime 13.1 condition). I love this race so much, I'm just excited to be back on the iconic course. While I don't seem to be affected by the heat as much as others, I still respect Saturday will not be a day to shoot for a PR. In fact, the route will have a few brief detours anyways (due to construction), so a true PR wouldn't even be in contention. All the more reason to simply run my favorite race for the pure joy of being there (and I'm bringing along my own water bottle to keep hydrated between the aid stations). I'm looking forward to it!
Well, I guess I've had the floor long enough. I'll refill my virtual cup and give someone else the chance to chat, LOL.
So, how about you? What would want to chat about, if we were having a coffee & chat session? Did your May play-out well with all your fitness endeavors? Ever ridden an especially long bike ride solo? Have you found a unique way to "wear" your Garmin (or watch, etc.). Would you consider going virtual if a race was encouraging it, due to extreme weather conditions?
Since it's the first weekend of the month, I'm linking this with Deborah and Coco for the Ultimate Coffee Date.
By the way...are you following me on social media?
No more virtual races for me!
ReplyDeleteI almost always do my long runs and bike rides solo. I actually enjoy it. It's nice to focus on what's going on around me!
It is nice having that solitude.
DeleteI was happy to finish Olivia’s core challenge and also enjoyed her classes. She was not my go to before but I will keep her in the mix for sure. Now I need another challenge! Have so much fun this weekend and good luck out there
ReplyDeleteI really liked her workouts! She was engaging and I never got bored with her.
DeleteWe have the same sterak but mine's for a 5k... GL this weekend.
ReplyDeleteI wish I could love biking... but no... maybe I'll give it another try.
I love biking much more than I ever would have guessed. I'm glad it entered my life (kind of by accident due to injury).
DeleteReally? How hot is it going to be? Seems early for extreme heat- but as we know, anything can happen with the weather nowadays.
ReplyDeleteWow, your walking hit almost 100 miles last month! And that's a lot of cycling miles. Someone's enjoying the warm temperatures : )
Good luck this weekend and have a great time!
The weather wound up being in the high 70F range, and the humidity was heavy. We also had full sun, it got a bit steamy, LOL.
DeleteI'm very curious to see how much biking I will end up doing on vacation next week. I'm going somewhere that's very bike friendly and I've got a lot of ground to cover.
ReplyDeleteUgh the extreme heat warnings on race day were the bane of my existence as a runner. A good part of why I gave up running was because it was getting to the point where it just didn't feel safe anymore. So hopefully all of the folks in my camp will heed the warning and run virtually. And you lucky folks who can take the heat will have a great race day!
I'm so excited to hear how much you're embracing biking!
DeleteNice stats for May! I did enjoy Oliva's challenge though I skipped a couple of days here and there - while I do enjoy these challenges I always get a little bored with always taking classes with the same instructor.
ReplyDeleteHave fun this weekend - hope it's not too warm!
I didn't get bored with Olivia like I have with other instructors. That was a nice surprise!
DeleteThat would be a hard decision on whether or not to run the race virtual. I probably wouldn't, because it just doesn't have the same feel. I have run a lot of very hot races, one or two that maybe should have been canceled that weren't. I've always survived, but it really can be dangerous!
ReplyDeleteI seem to tolerate the heat pretty well, so I wouldn't go virtual if a live race was still an option.
DeleteI don’t do well running in the heat, so I’d probably take the virtual option and slog it out on my tread.
ReplyDeleteI made it through 3 weeks of Olivia’s core classes and wanted a change of pace.
I haven’t ridden my bike alone, except to meet up with a friend.
I'm a little surprised you haven't done any solo rides, given all the cycling you do. I guess I'm a mix of solo rides and group rides...I love both!
DeleteI wore my Garmin while riding bike once and it clocked all my distances as PR's...lol. ( it was set for running). It took me a while to figure out how to reset it! Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteI have done that a fee times when I hit the wrong setting by accident, LOL.
DeleteThe virtual races were a good experience in that bad period.
ReplyDeleteUsually I run solo but sometimes I join a group of friends. I prefer "solo" because I like to run in the morning (in this period early morning) while my friends make their workouts in the evening.
Have fun this week end!
I don't mind running solo, but I also enjoy the conversation that comes with a group run.
DeleteI know how much you love this race! So, I'm curious what the weather will be. I've been in a few "heat warning" events, but for us in Florida, it's usually manageable. I might take a virtual option in bad rain, if it was offered.
ReplyDeleteThe weather felt especially hot because it's still pretty early in the "hot" season here. There had not been much opportunity to train it.
DeleteI'm assuming you are at your race now, hopefully it's not going to be as bad as they expect. I don't like it as much but I can take the heat more than a lot of people here, and for some reason Ron really thrives in it. but he also loves hill sprints, the big weirdo haha!
ReplyDeletesuper great stats for May. I'm also happy with what I was able to do too. and I did do my first long bike ride last week. We just decided to take a short break in July so we'll take the bikes with us to Friesland and do a few days biking and a parkrun for good measure.
I like my Garmin tan line. It's the only tan i get (I am Miss SPF 50 All the Time) haha!
Well, I'm also a weirdo who likes hill sprints, LOL.
Delete
ReplyDeleteI had to take a short break from being consistently active due to a minor mishap on a moped but will be hopefully back in action soon! Props to you on getting so many rides in already! I hope you have a lot of fun at the DAM to DSM race!
I feel like the very hot Chicago Marathon 2007 changed the way lots of races deal with heat. It's great they offered a virtual option, although I wouldn't really want to take it.
ReplyDeleteNo more virtual races for me no matter what! ;-) I am a solo runner and like it, but sometimes I do feel like I am missing out.
ReplyDelete