Reveling in the Reprieve

 

Ahhh, it was a fabulous week of reprieve from the winter!

After 10-ish days of extreme winter conditions, Momma N did an abrupt about-face and brought us a week of spring-like relief. Although I knew these conditions wouldn’t last long-term, they sure felt good for the time being!

Before I dis on the deets from the week, welcome to the Weekly Run Down!

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 blog as well...please don't link-drop & dash ;-)

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

Sunday, sunny Sunday

I’d planned to start the day on the bike (due to the continued cold temps, but the sunshine was just too persuasive in coaxing me outdoors. Three miles later, I felt invigorated, inspired and ready for the day. I got out later, mid-afternoon, for three more miles of walking (in much warmer temps). It was a beautiful day!

Never Monday miss a Monday

The forecast was promising a warm afternoon (hello, mid-50F temps!), so I kept the fitness inside for the morning. This week’s workout: three sets of 20 flights of stairs (double-stepped) with 10 pushups in between each set, which netted me 60 total flights and 30 push-ups, all in 19 minutes.

After work, I was simply giddy to get outside…in shorts! The temps felt amazing, my legs couldn’t contain themselves, and the sky was on fire. This run felt simply euphoric, and my pace was pretty much on-point.

Take-it-easy Tuesday

The early morning saw some upper-body strength work. The weather was, again, super bright, extremely sunny and wonderfully warm. I got out for a 2-mile walk over my lunch break, and another 2-miler after work. Total bliss!

Holy windy Wednesday

After a mini sabbatical, it was reunion time for Kelly, Hannah and myself at 4:45 on Wednesday morning. Isn’t it crazy how warm 40-degree temps feel in February (even with wind)? We got in our usual three miles and it felt like the past three weeks were but a memory. Later, I got out for another 2-mile walk, over lunch, and it was even windier than it had been 10 hours prior.

 

A very Thankful Thursday 

Another warm day (temps in the 50F’s), I opted to stay inside for a short 5-miler on the bike. I braved the wind for a 2-mile walk over lunch. After work, I had a quick dinner with my parents then met-up with the running club for another stellar 3-mile run in perfect weather conditions (see below).

 

After work, I had a quick dinner with my parents (in town for the afternoon), then headed over to meet with the running club. Wow, this run was the definition of perfection! The temps were great, the turnout was huge, and the sky was incredibly clear. And my tempo-ish pace? It felt almost effortless.

Finally Friday (and ready for the weekend)

I kept things low-key and low-impact with a 5-mile ride on the bike and a short upper-body strength session. I considered a lunchtime walk, but the wind was simply psychotic (umm, 20mph wind speed, #NoThanks). After work, Max took me for a brisk 1-mile walk in the still-blowing wind, and I called it good.

Simply Saturday

The morning came with revert-to-winter temps (and requisite wind), so I opted for 15 miles on the bike instead. A spontaneous text from Deb came in, just as I was finishing on the bike. A few minutes later, I was layered-up and walking in the (chilly) sunshine with her. Yay! The rest of the day involved prepping for an evening Margi Gras gig.

…and what’s happening on Sunday?

Since I opted to ride the bike on Saturday morning, I’ll be running on Sunday instead (in much better temps). I’m anticipating some fatigue (following Saturday’s Mardi Gras festivities), but I still plan on some early morning fitness.

So, not a bad week! In fact, it was great in terms of weather. The weekly running miles came in at nine, but there will be another 5-6 miles happening Sunday morning. The walking saw 17 miles, which felt oh-so-good! Biking was low-key this week (25 miles). I’m liking the weekly stair workouts, and the daily core/leg work continues. All good things.

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

Feelin’ the Freezeout

February ‘Fessions…just for fun

In other news:

Friday fashion Flair. Although it was a bright sunshiny day, and moderately “warm,” it was cRaZy windy. In other words, it was a day that warranted some light layers, hence the flannel shirt. I call it my Spartan Flannel, due to the green color scheme, LOL. AS much as I’m a Hawkeye, I’m also a huge Spartan fan (due to seven years of living in the East Lansing area). And, the MSU Spartans are having a great season, and are currently at the top of the conference ratings. Just saying (we won’t discuss how the Hawkeyes are doing).

This week also featured the planetary lineup, each evening, across the southern sky. I can’t lie, I’ve been totally geeking-out over this! I’ve always been fascinated with astronomy, and being able to see the planets all on display was pretty cool. I’m grateful for the clear skies we had each night, especially on Thursday (during the group run) and Friday (while outside with Max, though he wasn’t as impressed as I was).

That’s Venus over my right shoulder

So, that’s a wrap! I know we’re not out of the (winter) woods yet, but this past week was such a welcome reprieve from the previous winter nonsense. The fresh air and daily sunshine had me smiling nonstop, and I’m even more eager for the warm weather to get here and stay.

Enough about me, tell me about your week? Did you get a nice warm-up with your weather as well? Did you catch the night sky and see the planets? Any runs, or outdoor fitness endeavors, in shorts?

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