Thursday, January 30, 2020

Runfessions and Coffee Talk




So, what exactly happened to January???

For one of the longer months (31 days, after all) and a cold time of year, January actually went rather quickly. No complaints on my part. The temps were actually more mild than extreme (unlike a year ago). Although I can tolerate the cold, I'm eager to move closer to Summer (well, and Spring, too).

Anyways, shall we gather for a warm beverage and chat a bit? Better yet, shall we share a few runfessions? Surely I'm not the only one with a few of those...

Let me start...if we were chit-chatting, here's a few things I'd share about the latest happenings from my little corner of the universe:

First of all, I'd runfess that my January goals were kind of a bust. I can't blame laziness on my part,  but I can admit to forgetfulness. Usually when I do monthly goals or challenges, I make them pretty specific. Also, they're usually daily things that don't require much of a time commitment. These January goals were meant to be done on a flexible "now and then" basis, and that was a total fail. They happened, but any semblance of consistency was MIA. Lesson learned; moving on.

Which brings me to my February goals. Let me runfess I've already previewed these daily objectives this week, and they're a hit. Nothing wrong with a little head start, right? I'm all about stair-climbing this time of year, so 20 daily flights are not a big deal. My pushups always need work, and there are many different variations on doing them. And, that daily 1-mile walk? It may happen on the treadmill, on occasion, but it will be an intentional walk...not an accumulation of daily steps. I can do the daily walks easily in warm weather, so this will be a great challenge to make them happen in the cold.

Can we talk about the DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) for a minute? I'm no stranger to experiencing these aches and pains, but I'll runfess I was a bit blind-sided by them this time. Last weekend, I felt like an achy, breaky mess of sorts. Not sure if it was from the heavy snow shoveling and throwing (from a few days prior), the barefoot stair workout (late in the week), Saturday's hilly 5K race (with my body in an already compromised state), or a combination from all the above. All I know, come Sunday (and still on Monday), my legs and back were still a bit cranky. I'm not a "woe-is-me" kind of gal, so I didn't whine much about it, nor did I curl up under my thick blankets and set up homestead on the couch. It did make me appreciate the fact that I can do all that stuff, though, and still function...albeit in a slower state of motion.

Next, I'd share my excitement for the Fight for Air Climb (March 29th, in Des Moines, IA). Can I runfess how weird it was to not take part last year (it was the same weekend as the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10-Miler)? Not everyone embraces the stairs like I do, and that's okay. For me, they're a great lower-body workout as well as a pseudo hill workout (since the incline mimics that of a short, but steep, hill). Other than last year, I've participated every year since 2013 so it will be great to return to the stairs of downtown Des Moines.

Lastly, I'll tell you briefly about the #FirstWorldProb I've been slowly resolving on my blog. I'll runfess that it's an easy fix, though quite tedious. Several months ago, I discovered many of  the pictures had disappeared from several of my 2019 blog posts.  All the text was still there, so that was a good thing, but it was frustrating to have the majority of the pics gone. I used to upload my pics to my drafts, via an app, but said app no longer allowed said pics to upload as of last February. I thought I'd figured out a great alternative (copy/pasting from Messenger)...only learning (several months later) the "links" to those pictures only remained active for a few months, thus the pics would no longer show after awhile. Ugh. Thankfully, all the missing pics are still intact on my Running on the Fly Facebook page, and all of them are still in Messenger. So it's just a matter of going back, accessing the pics and then saving them to my computer's hard drive. I'm not a computer genius, by a long shot, but I'm grateful I discovered this glitch and have found a way to rectify it. Glass half full.

So, that's what I'd be sharing with you, over a hot beverage, in the company of friends.

How about you? Got any great runfessions to share? Any February goals on tap? Ever done a stair-climb event? Issues with disappearing pics from past blog posts?

Since it's the first weekend of the month, I'm linking this with Deborah and Coco for the Ultimate Coffee Date.
The Ultimate Coffee Date
I'm  linking this with Marcia for the monthly Runfessions link-up.


I'm also linking this with Meranda and Lacey for the Friday with Fairytales and Fitness link-up. 

30 comments:

  1. I thought of you and your stair-climbing exercises yesterday. We hiked up Table Mountain and it was just like climbing hundreds of stairs. I think you would have enjoyed it a lot!
    I like your February goals! I have 30 correct push-ups on my list and I'm stuck at 12...

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    1. Yes, that mountain hike sounds fun!!! There are so many variations of pushups...don't stress if they're not all done in a specific position. I have a lot of upper-body strength, but I really struggle with "strict" pushups. I seriously cannot bend my elbows in that straight position deep enough for it to count as a "strict" pushup, and I'm okay with it. I can do a lot of other things (as I'm sure you can, too!), so I refuse to OCD over that one thing LOL

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  2. I love your stair climb and look forward to hearing about it. While I've had this cold and have not been inclined to get my steps in, I've been doing a load of squats every day and double-stair stair climbs - OK, as I go upstairs rather than intentional, but I can get a good few in my three-storey house in a normal day.

    I've said goodbye to my 2020km this year already, as it required 24 ish miles a week and I've dropped below that most weeks this month. So whatever, I will still do over 1000 miles and hopefully beat last year me by a mile or so! No particular plans for Feb except for continue (non) marathon training and get out for a walk every day (oh, and make more time for reading, still).

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    1. I can relate...If I counted each and every time I climbed my stairs (when not doing an actual workout), it would be crazy. I'm kind of absent-minded, so I'm upstairs/downstairs several times for odd things that have been overlooked in all the previous ups/downs :-)

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  3. January can be such a tough month but I feel like this year it wasn't too bad! Your February goals sound great. I am trying to get outside more this time of year even if its just for a short walk on my days off. Thats good that you figured out the issue with your pics! I bet its kind of annoying to have to manually fix them one by one though.

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    1. I don't remember how I discovered the picture issue, but I almost panicked at first. Thankfully, all the text is still there (which would have been a nightmare to re-create), so though it's a tedious fix, it's relatively painless. I've been re-doing the pics from a few posts when I have a free minute...

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  4. The weeks in January felt like they went slow to but here we are just about to FEB! I runfess I'd forgotten how cold it was a year ago. How the heck did I train for Tokyo and London??? Thanks for linking!

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    1. You were a beast training for Tokyo and London! I seriously doubt I could do all those long runs with Milly.

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  5. Oh no to the disappearing pics! That has to be so frustrating. Now that I have a "real" blog (aka I pay for it, if not much), it's really time for an overhaul.

    There hasn't been much shoveling in January. A little, but not much. For which I am quite grateful. And because it's been all about not stressing too much, not too much DOMs either. Never fun, and often not even expected, right?

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    1. There hasn't been much shoveling for me either, other than last week (and that was a doozy). We have a snowblower (it's the husband's toy), so he (or the son) do the driveway and I usually do the walkway, front patio, and backyard deck with the shovel. Last year, though, I did a lot of the driveway on my own when the son was away at college and the hubby was out of town. YIKES, that was tough!

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  6. I saw people complaining about how long January has felt but I’ve needed every second to get my work done. Today is the last day of our fiscal year and I am racing to the finish line! Ugh on the blog issues. I am making a list and then hiring someone to do the little tweaks I don’t have time for — or feel comfortable doing.

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    1. Your January was crazy! Yeah, the blog issues...not a crisis (now that I've figured some things out), but a tedious project. I'm just thankful it's only some of the pics missing and all the text is still intact.

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  7. I have not the disappearing photo issue but have had other annoying little things. I am not so good at fixing those on my own and usually have to go to the web co for help. I am always so impressed w your stair climbing endeavors! That's so challenging. I am sad you won't be here for the CB this year. Maybe you will come back next year? You have an open invite!Thanks for linking for coffee

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    1. Ironically, the Air Climb is on a different weekend this year the CB. Wouldn't you know? LOL I'd love to return for another CB extravaganza!!!

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  8. I've had the opposite experience with January, for some reason it felt like it lasted forever! That's great that you discovered the issue with the photos on your blog and found a way to fix it :)

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    1. January is always a painful month...long and cold. Glad to be moving forward!

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  9. Oh man, sorry to hear about the blog issues. That's super frustrating but it sounds like you have an action plan to fix it.

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    1. It took me awhile to figure out the connection to all the pics that were missing (when some weren't LOL)...ugh, but what a fun project I have ahead of me for the next few months :-)

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  10. I love your stair-climbing workouts. I think I should start doing them. I need something for my calves and ankles.

    Sorry about the blog issues. So frustrating when you have to spend a lot of time on tech issues. They are definitely not the fun part of blogging!

    Good luck with the Des Moines stair climb!

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    1. I really think all my stair-climbing has upped my game (no pun intended), not only with running but with my overall fitness.

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  11. Sorry about your disappearing photos. I admit I'm not terribly savvy when it comes to fixing things on my blog. I'm glad you've sorted out a plan.

    Your stair climb sounds like such an awesome challenge!

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    1. You could come to Iowa and climb with me! I'm also doing a chocolate-themed 10K the day prior...win-win :-)

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  12. I know you love that stair climb! So glad that you are back to it.

    I had the same issue with my pictures on older posts. I also lost about 3 months of posts via an update, and I still haven't gotten over it. I have to start reworking those older posts. Grrrr.

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    1. The missing pics was so odd, especially since some were still there LOL

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  13. I'm not sure if you're aware, but Google is updating Blogger. Maybe that's why your photos disappeared?

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    1. Definitely a possibility. I did notice the bulk of the missing pics were ones I hadn't uploaded directly (or saved on my hard drive). That Blogger app was convenient...until it wasn't LOL

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  14. Oh man, January went by in a heartbeat. Now we just have to get through February, which makes me think of mile 20 of a marathon, just get through the last 6 miles and spring will be here. I love "DOMS always earned never given"

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  15. There's a stair climbing event in San Diego that honors 9/11. I know some people that do it every year but I haven't made there to do it with them yet. Maybe this year. All your star climbing is inspiring.

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  16. I always say I'm going to do a stair climbing workout, but forget... If I do, you'll be the first to know and I'll call it a Kim workout!

    No lost pictures "so far" for me and I hope it stays that way. I'm always so nervous anytime I update WordPress or my theme because one time when I updated the theme, my blog looked very weird for about six months.

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  17. Ah yes it's stair climbing season! I sadly won't be participating in the Philly event this year but I will do all I can to support our team! I'm sure you will do another awesome job!

    I've already forgotten my goals for February haha! I know I wanted to walk daily and I've already fallen short since I can barely get myself out of the house!

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