Sunday, June 24, 2018

Outrunning the Rain 

And the crazy weather of 2018 continues....

Seriously, this has been the oddest of years in terms of weather. First, our winter refused to pack up and vacate until mid-April. Then, summer promptly arrived on the scene a couple weeks later, giving us ZERO time to acclimate. Just this past week, we celebrated the summer solstice...you know, the first day of summer...with temps in the low-60's. What the WHAT???

If the 30-degree temperature plummet wasn't enough, we also had (almost) daily rain this past week. Thankfully, it wasn't enough rain to cause flooding (at least in my part of the state), but it was just enough to force a bit of schedule-juggling.

Here's what all went down in my little corner of the universe:

Thankfully, Monday was a pretty normal day in terms of seasonal weather. I was able to get outside for a couple of early morning #nevermissaMonday miles before starting my day. A new strategy I've been trying, in the past couple weeks, is to skip my shakeout run on Sundays (following my long Saturday run)...and that extra day of non-running activity has been working in my favor. Monday's miles felt effortless. Coincidence?
early morning miles for the win
Tuesdays are usually pretty low-key. I took Max for his morning walk, and then walked a little more through the 'hood, making it back home just before the forecasted rain began to fall.  I wish I would have documented the day I began my planking streak. I've been doing daily morning planks for a few years...well, I did miss a few random days last summer (when I was somewhat confined to a hospital bed), but I have been disciplined about dropping to the floor pretty much every morning. Of course, my little coach  is usually supervising....
Isn't my coach a little cutie?
Wednesday was almost a flop. The weather app showed a 50% chance of thunder storms, but everything looked (and sounded) clear at 4:30 a.m. I texted Barb, and we confirmed our #5at5 (five miles at 5:00 a.m.) was a go....but then, as I was going down the stairs, 20 minutes later, I heard the first rumbles of thunder. A couple of minutes later, the heavens opened up and down came the rain, in full force. A quick phone call, and we agreed to postpone our run until later, hopefully after work. I laid back down for a few minutes, fully dressed and wide awake. I then made the command decision to grab some hand weights and head outside, and do a #frontporchfitness workout instead. Some arm/shoulder work, with some burpee intervals mixed in, and all was well. You do what you can do, right? Problem solved.
Doesn't everyone take advantage of their front porch when the rain is coming down?
The rain continued on and off most of the day, but tapered off late in the afternoon. Barb and I were able to meet around 6:30, and got our five miles done....in almost complete sunshine! How's that for waiting out Momma N's rain and coming out victorious?
our #5at5 morphed into a #5at630
Thursday brought us the summer solstice, the first official day of summer. Wouldn't you know, Momma N had another twisted trick up her sleeve. I woke up to a 30-degree drop in temps! I had hoped to get in a speed workout, but my body was feeling pretty tired from Wednesday's late-in- the-day miles (coincidentally, which we'd run a bit faster than usual). Instead, I elected to do the speedwork later and go for an early morning walk instead. I didn't know if I should jump for joy, shriek in surprise, or simply grab an extra layer....those temps felt downright chilly in comparison to the heat and humidity we'd been living with for the past several weeks.
Yikes!
As luck would have it, more rain was in the forecast. I got home from work around 3:30, only to hear the rain coming down just after I'd gotten in the house. Ugh. I never, ever, take naps, but I decided a little snooze would be alright. I heard the daughter come home about an hour later, and noticed the rain had stopped. The radar showed the rain was moving out of the area, and the clouds were breaking up a bit. I had come up with an interval workout that I could do near my house (with no street crossings or traffic to interfere), and I was eager to give it a try. I ran an easy-paced mile for a warm-up, and then got to work. I did alternating intervals of one city block/two city blocks, back and forth, with equal recovery "jogs" in between each change in distance. All went well, and most of the intervals showed negative splits. The session netted me three cumulative miles (including the warm-up). Done!
That unsuspecting sidewalk didn't know what hit it LOL
After Wednesday's challenging 5-miler and Thursday's speedwork, Friday was a much needed day of rest and recovery. The weather remained cool, though a bit damp from some (more) overnight rain, but I got out for some walking. Although I think the #FlexItFriday posts are kind of cheesy, I succumbed and posted a pic anyways (I know, my bad). Don't expect a "flexing" post on a regular basis, though.

Saturday morning treated us to pleasant temps (low 70's) and a much welcome break from the humidity. I met up with Barb for seven miles. Although my hammy still felt a bit tight, overall, it was much less angry. Apparently, taking Friday off, as well as lots of stretching and foam rolling, gave it the TLC it was needing. I probably could have added a couple extra miles, but decided to call it good at seven and not risk overdoing it. I'm in between training cycles, anyways, so there's nothing to gain by doing excess mileage. Besides, I had plans of doing some extra walking later in the day.
pay no attention to the mismatched tape on the feet...
Sunday morning was another beautiful day in Iowa. The hubby and I took Max for a 2-mile walk in the early morning sunshine and enjoyed the fresh air. Oodles of yard work was on tap for the afternoon (garden squats, anyone?), as well as some more walking. Maybe even some time relaxing in the sun, doing absolutely nothing....
All is calm, and all is bright in the morning sunlight
Despite the crazy hot weather, and the intermittent rain, I'm happy with all the fitness endeavors I was able to get in this week. My running mileage (Monday-Sunday) tallied at 17 miles. I'm still doing daily leg lifts and wall sits, and random arm/shoulders/abs exercises. We have a new summer challenge at my place of work, so I'll be logging my walking miles for that as well. It will be interesting to see how this summer's walking mileage compares to last summer (when walking became my "running" while I recovered from surgery).

Also, in recent months, I have been trying to get in 20-30 daily minutes of "fasted cardio" first thing in the morning (mainly on the days when I don't have an early morning run happening). I'm not necessarily trying to lose weight, but I am working on cutting fat. I had not taken measurements since mid-February, so I was pleasantly surprised to see I had lost two inches off my waist (#progress). That was another reminder of how little daily things, that don't seem like much, can have a significant effect if you commit to doing them with other focused work. Now if I could just exercise that same kind of commitment to de-cluttering my house.....

In case you missed them, here's my posts from last week:
All is well
Summer 2018 - What's on tap
Post-Worthy Pics-5 recent favorites

In other news:
Did you catch my #FridayFashionFlair pic on Instagram (@runningonthefly)? I respect that neutrals are all the rage, but I usually have to add a burst of color or I just don't feel like myself. I couldn't find my fuschia scarf (I need to de-clutter my closet as well), so this turquoise one was my back-up option. What do you think?  Feel free to join the party...post a pic on Friday, use the hashtag, and give me a tag!

Did I mention how hot it has been? When I left work on Tuesday afternoon, we had triple digits of heat and lots of humidity to enjoy.

feelin' hot hot hot
Last of all, my garden is going bonkers. I have been able to stay ahead of the weeding (thus far...), but our zucchini plant (vine?) is taking over. I have a few varieties of tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and the wayward zucchini. I'm looking forward to making lots of salsa soon!
Can you spot the zucchini? It's on the far right...and working its way across the entire plot
So, that's another week all wrapped up! Did you celebrate the summer solstice, or has it felt like summer for awhile already? Any new workouts you've tried recently? Did you get a lot of rain this past week, too?

I'm linking up with Holly and Wendy for the Weekly Wrap. This weekly check-in is such a great place to connect with fellow fitness-minded peeps. Please join us!

55 comments:

  1. The weather has been so crazy this year! We have had a lot of rain too it seems like. And unfortunately I feel like it has rained almost every weekend. Our temps have stayed pretty consistently warm for the past few weeks which I guess it a good thing! Great job getting in all those workouts around the weather.

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    1. We have really lucked out with the rain missing us on the weekends (except for a few surprise hours of rain over lunch today).

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  2. I'm so jealous. I would give ANYTHING for temps in the 60s right now. I agree though this has been a weird year for weather!

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    1. Well, I don't mind temps in the 60's, but when they just happen overnight it kind of throws my body into shock LOL (and, I tend to forget how to dress for it) ;-)

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  3. You always seem to have a busy week with a variety of activities- all fitness-related.

    I am thrilled not none of my running got rained out. It rained today but it was a rest day.

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    1. The rain was kind of sporadic last week. I'm glad I was able to work around it, but it's stressful when the weather apps are (almost) worthless...

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  4. Our weather had been crazy too and the meteorologists and apps have not done well predicting the rain. Last night I went to walk Scooby and saw it was suddenly pouring. I checked the app to see if it might stop soon and it just said 20% chance of rain. :-/

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    1. I know...the weather apps drive me crazy. I have two that I follow, and they seldom have identical info. They're often similar, but never have the same percentage of rain of temps.

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  5. It's been a total nutbag year in terms of weather. We did not catch one glimpse of the sun on the solstice. So much for the longest daylight. Pfft.

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    1. The solstice was kind of a buzzkill this year, huh! Even the limited sunshine I did have, it was mixed in with all kinds of strange storm clouds and cooler than"summer" temps.

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  6. All the rain. All the humidity. ALL THE THINGS!!!

    PS. I love that scarf! I'm all about the pop of color too. I think we might be fashion sisters (except I don't work in an office anymore and I'm mostly in shorts and a tee shirt these days).

    I had really wanted to get a garden put in this year but I ran out of time (and energy). Hopefully next year I'll have overflowing zucchini and cukes, too!

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    1. I have never grown zucchini, so this is totally like a bad science experiment LOL

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  7. I do always love a pop of color! I don't know why I never post photos of me in regular clothes. June has been pretty rough going here with the humidity and this week does not look much better. I actually like to run in the rain in the summer

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    1. I don't mind the rain, as long as the temps are really warm (like 80F+).

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  8. We have had on & off rain, but nothing like you guys, and I did not get rained on this week.

    I don't usually do a recovery run, although on occasion I do. I think as we get older that our bodies often appreciate some extra rest! Tomorrow I hope to get a swim in for the first time in a long time (long run was today).

    Good job on losing inches!

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    1. My area of the state had minimal rain in comparison to other areas, but it was really sporadic when it happened. It certainly was a challenge to work around it.

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  9. And more rain and heat are predicted for this week. I guess this is the pattern for our summer. I guess we just have to roll with it.

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    1. Fun reality, huh! At least we're not fighting the wind or sub-freezing windchill.

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  10. I love on the porch workouts!! I don't have outdoor space of my own right now, but I have attempted outdoor workouts using benches in the common area of our little apartment "village." Your post makes me want to go out there for some HIIT but it's just so freaking hot! haha

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    1. I really should be doing more of these front porch workouts LOL I get pretty bored just hanging out by the fireplace (inside). Besides, there's NO traffic (or onlookers) at 5:30 in the morning ;-)

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  11. You had a great week despite Mother N's nonsense! I love that you got a porch workout in - can't let the rain stop you, right?

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    1. It was kind of empowering to take my workout outside that morning...almost like I was challenging her to "bring it" ;-)

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  12. I'm all about my back porch. But, I don't think my neighbors would think anything strange about me using my front porch for fitness. Heck, they see me waving to and jumping in front of my mailbox after all. I wish we'd have a wild temperature swing. I'm very jealous of yours! I did some major gardening over the weekend too! I'm afraid my inner thighs may protest tomorrow. Thanks for linking!

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    1. ha ha ha...I'd forgotten about all your mailbox antics ;-) My gardening was a no-show because we had some surprise rain for a few hours (starting around noon), and that muddied everything up for me.

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  13. I also felt like I was dodging rain all week and finall gave up and opted for treadmill long run on Friday. I hope we're done with this monsoon for a while!

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    1. Well, I flat out refuse to use the mill in the summertime... just.cannot.do.it. Kudos to you for having the mental strength & stamina to do it, though ;-)

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  14. Another great week Kim ..you always seem to make the best of whatever weather Mother Nature sends your way! Your garden looks fabulous! I need something like that for next summer.. did your hubby make it for you?

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    1. Yes, the hubby built the raised garden several years ago. I hope I can stay ahead of all the weeds...we've had a lot of rain recently, and that makes everything explode with new growth.

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  15. I took the first half of the week off post-Grandma's Marathon, then nothing but rain and humidity to follow. UGH. I got some gardening in and at least the rain was good for that. Those calf muscles are the bomb!

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    1. Although we've had some "daily" rain, it has not amounted to much. Just enough to be annoying LOL

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  16. Great job!! It's tough to manage workouts when the weather keeps changing, but you always make it work! Our front porch is enclosed, so it doesn't have that nice effect as yours for a workout.

    And I love the scarf!!

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    1. Thanks! I've learned to face Momma N head-on and not let her dictate my livelihood LOL

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  17. We had a front yesterday and it felt quite chilly compared to what we've had. I wanted to read out on the porch, and I was cold! I had layers too, and the wind cut through them.

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    1. It was still chilly this morning....I had to wear arm sleeves for my run

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  18. I love fresh salsa! My parents used to have a small garden, but their neighbors have a much bigger one, so they just "borrow" stuff from them now...ha.

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    1. I love salsa, too! My cherry tomatoes seldom ever make it into the house, though, because I eat most of them as I pick them...

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  19. I am beyond jealous of the nicer weather you that one day had even if it was out of season lol. It's been HOT down here for the last month even though summer technically just started last week. We did get some rain but it's just steamy afterwards and never quite cools us down. Way to get out there regardless!

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    1. It's been weird here...when it rains, it doesn't cool things off, but makes it more steamy...just like you said.

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  20. seems like the weather is nuts pretty much everywhere! ugh!! I'm not a fan of running in the rain at all so beating the rain in the Netherlands is also a game we play here. your garden IS going bonkers! I wish we had veggies that we could grow on our balcony but we've tried before an failed. My summer solstice was "celebrated" by wearing a coat and a scarf outside... of course 2 days later it was blazing outside again. speaking of scarves, I too am a huge fan of adding color by way of scarf :) I'm definitely famous at work for wearing colorful scarves all the time! The hubs bought me several scarves in India over the past several years (he has to go for work occasionally) and they have such amazing patterns and colors to choose from.

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    1. Oh...I'd love to see pics of those scarves from India! I love my scarves ;-)

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  21. Wow triple digits up your way is HOT! It’s been hot down south for awhile. Great week of workouts as usual!

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    1. Yes, triple digits in Iowa! It's been crazy hot here...

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  22. Wow, that was a crazy weather week! I hope that it evens out this week :) And your coach is definitely a cutie!

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  23. it hasn't rained here in a while and we could use it. Not that I mind the heat/summer weather.

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    1. We really do need rain, too. I guess getting a little at a time is better than getting too much at a time...but it does make the days unpredictable

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  24. hahaha, I'm so with you on the weather! It just skipped straight through spring!! We've definitely been getting a lot of random thunderstorms--I want the sun to come back!

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    1. Thankfully, we haven't had much for thunderstorms...just on and off rain...so far

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  25. I agree with you that 2018 has been the year of crazy weather! In NYC today it was kind of windy even though I think it was 80 degrees?! It was just odd!

    Even with the crazy weather you still did a fabulous job with all of your workouts - well done!!

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    1. It was windy today and actually chilly! The temps were in the 70's, but it felt cold to me. UGH.

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  26. The weather here has also been quite the roller coaster. I'm doing my best to take advantage of as much of the nicer weather as I can. Thankfully, my toddler loves being outside just as much, if not more than, I do.

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  27. Great week! Your plank supervisor is so cute! Great job on losing those inches!

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  28. We had some really crazy weather too! It dropped 30 degrees after a cold front came through.
    Way to get in some workouts despite the rain! Your coach is adorable!

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