Sunday, February 16, 2020

Can You Say Daylight?


Can you say Daylight?

Somehow, over the course of the past couple weeks, it seems like the daylight has tripled in extended hours. And I'm not complaining.

Now, if only the temps would have a similar exponential increase...

All is well, though. Winter 2020 has been on the tame side, for the most part. It did get a little tricky this past week, though, even with the extra daylight.

Before we get into all the nitty gritty details, 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 1:00 (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 ;-)


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

Not another Manic Monday
In keeping with my recent Monday ritual, I did some early-morning fasted cardio (hey, it's my coffee LOL, don't judge) and postponed the run until after work. The early morning saw a 1-mile power walk with Milly, 20 flights of stairs and 20 push-ups. After work - can I just say the extended daylight is intoxicating? - I did 20 flights of stairs, a 5K run and 20 more flights upon return. Oorah!


 Take-it-easy Tuesday
Just the minimums in the morning (20 minutes on the elliptical, 20 flights of stairs and 20 push-ups), but another outdoor adventure after work. I went for an exhilarating 2-mile walk around the college campus...the sky may have been a bit cloudy, and the air was a bit chilly, but the daylight was ever-so-bright.

Weekly #5at5 Wednesday
I met up with Barb for our weekly early-morning adventure. I sandwiched the 5-miles in between 10 flights of stairs before/after. Temps were cold (yes, I'm still in Iowa, and it IS still Winter), but there was another Arctic-ish blast headed our way, so we knew the single-digit temps were the warmest we'd be feeling for a few days.

Stuck Inside Thursday
 As forecast, the temps started a rapid decline Wednesday, and the snow fell all day. By Thursday morning, the air temps were at -7F (with a -32F feels-like). I managed a quick 20-minute snow-throw set outside (for a warm-up), and then got busy with a brick workout (inside) of 20 stair flights/2-mile inclined power walk with Milly/20 more stair flights. There may have also been some push-ups (for the cool-down). It also was #ThankfulThursday. Let me just say I'm quite thankful for the availability of photo filters in helping make another boring treadmill pic a little less boring.


Just-The-Bare-Minimums Friday
As I said on Instagram and Facebook, "From my heart to yours, HaPpY VaLeNtInEs Day!" I kept things to the bare minimum for Friday...inclined power walk (one mile) sandwiched between some stairs (two sets of 10 flights). And a few push-ups...can't forget the push-ups!

Fighting-the-Elements Saturday
Although the morning was still cold, the above-freezing temps were a good 60F warmer than Thursday's windchill. Also, just before race time, the sunshine broke through the clouds. That said, the wind was strong (20mph), my nose was like a running faucet (sorry for the TMI), and there was something "off" with my right hip (it felt like it was oddly out-of-joint?). All made for a hard-fought morning on what would have been a relatively fast, flat and easy race course. I did manage a 3rd place AG (and Barb got 1st place in her AG!), but it didn't come easy. Stay tuned, I'll be rehashing the race recap in a couple days.

Sunday-Sunny-Sunday
Although the hip (joint? flexor?) was feeling much better, my gut told me to take a pass on a recovery run in the wee hours. The hubs and I took Max for a 2-mile outing before church, and he was ever-so-exited! The sunrise was so beautiful, and the cold (but calm) temps felt quite refreshing. I may (or may not) venture out for a short run later...or I may just go for another walk. I don't need any specific mileage right now, so it's just a matter of how things are feeling later in the day. Kind of nice to have that flexibility!


So, there you have it! Another interesting week, but I'm good with all that went down. The running was kept on the light spectrum (13 miles), but walking is staging a gradual increase...13 miles this week (thanks to the increased daylight after work). As per usual, there was one elliptical workout (20 minutes), and a 20ish minute upper-body session Thursday after work. The stair workouts are my main focus this month, and 210 flights were knocked out this week. The daily push-ups are still going strong (20/day most days) as well. Onward!

In case you missed out, here's what all went down on the blog this week:
Outside Is Alright
Running & Racing; Then & Now

In other news:
Friday Fashion Flair! Did you don the traditional red on Valentine's Day? Red is one of my favorite colors, but there's a part of me that likes to funk it up a little...so I added the white/black cheetah print cardi and a multi-patterned scarf. Why not? As always, you're welcome to join me on Fridays...post a pic on Instagram, grab the hashtag (#FridayFashionFlair) and be sure to tag me (@runningonthefly).

Every year, I dig this pic out of the archives....I made it way back when I first launched my running page on Facebook. That's back when I was still wearing all things Nikey. Maybe I should make an updated pic featuring all of my Brooks kicks?

As mentioned, I'm doing a lot of training on the stairs this month. Not only have the stairs been a great asset to my fitness, they are a key part of the Fight for Air Climb. I've done the Climb since 2013, and it's an event that's very near and dear to my heart. I know a lot of peeps who  have successfully quit smoking, but there are many others who are still fighting that battle and/or lung disease. My late MIL suffered from COPD in her final years, as well. I have a fundraising page (HERE), for those who are interested in supporting my efforts with the American Lung Association.

Enough about me...

How was your week? Are you noticing a lot more daylight, too? Still able to get outside, or did you have to hibernate indoor a little this week? Any racing over the weekend? Big events coming up?


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32 comments:

  1. Feels like -32. Aaack!! Good job on the race! My nose ALWAYS runs. Outside (all temps) and even at indoor track. At least it doesn't while I'm on the treadmill at home. thankful to have sleeves and gloves at other times. haha

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    1. My nose was such a mess!!! I have never mastered the snot rocket (nor do I want to LOL), so my poor gloves....

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  2. Uffda! We had the same Arctic blast on Thursday, it was terrible! So ready for shorts and sweaty runs :)

    Great job on your race! I hope your hip is feeling better now.

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  3. I agree about the daylight! Actually twice this past week I heard birds chirping when I was leaving for work. I think they were confused because it finally wasn't pitch black outside, haha.

    We had our arctic blast yesterday. I woke up and it was -4 and I was like "no thank you, i don't want this", LOL

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    1. The daylight is euphoric! I swear, I saw the days getting longer (like a month ago), but it seems really dramatic just recently :-)

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  4. Man, you are killing the stair workouts. Way to go!!! Our temps here in PA have been cold but only for the last two days. Last night our town had a little "Fire and Ice" festival (food trucks, chili cook off, laser and fireworks show, and ice sculptures) and we took our grandkids. It got down to about 25 and that felt COLD! Mimi only lasted about 2 hours in those temperatures. I am appreciating the extra daylight time too. Only 3 more weeks until Daylight Savings Time. Yay!!!

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    1. I'm eager for DST! I keep counting down "just four more #5at5's" until DST, "just three more #5at5's..." Basically, I simply just want my summer back LOL

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  5. We had the freezing temps hit us this week, too. I opted for the dreadmill those days.

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    1. I've been able to run outside, but I have been walking on the 'mill a lot lately.

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  6. Congrats on your AG award! Hope your hip continues to feel better. I like my flexibility right now, too. Seriously, Winter running (for me) just sucks. All the gray. Blech.

    No racing any time soon.

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    1. The hip is just feeling wonky. It's been a little strange ever since my last race (three weeks ago). It doesn't hurt, but just feels out-of-joint (?)

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  7. Well done, you, Kim, and Barb! Awesome that you got 3rd place despite the hip feeling off.
    So happy that you are finally getting more daylight! You are so brave for getting out the door and facing those icy cold, dark winter mornings! Spring is around the corner.

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    1. Oh, that wind was so brutal yesterday! Thank goodness the course was so flat, or it really would have been a doozy LOL

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  8. Eek on -32 but congrats on a great race, I can't wait to read about it. We just had our first single digit day yesterday but had a warm up so I was able to get outside today. Fingers crossed that this is winter's last gasp. I love having to wear sunglasses on the drive home, and it's still a big light out when we take the dog for a walk after dinner.

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    1. I keep hoping the worst of Winter 2020 is over and done. It's been mild for the most part...but I'm ready for (much) warmer temps.

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  9. If I weren't working so late, I might have enjoyed more afternoon daylight. As it was, I think it just let me work later before I noticed how late it was, LOL. Congrats on your race. I thought of you when I went to hot yoga instead of running when it was in the 20s, but I still opted for yoga instead.

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    1. I'm just loving that I don't have to feel rushed in getting home after work to get a run done in the daylight. I mean, I'd still run in the twilight (or dark), but it's so much nicer having the sun still shining :-)

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  10. I love it when the extended daylight becomes noticeable - I feel like it gives us so many possibilities!

    Keep up the great workouts, Kim, and congrats on your race AG place! You're killing it!

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    1. Thank you, Debbie :-) The daylight has been SO noticeable in recent weeks....totally makes me giddy!

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  11. The increased daylight is a gift despite the frigid temps!

    Congrats to both you and Barb - looking forward to your recap!

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    1. I'm loving the extended daylight! It really is a gift and makes the cold more bearable.

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  12. Nice job battling the temps for the AG award! My nose ALWAYS runs. On Saturday, if I looked down while running, it was running like a faucet. Even snot rockets were taking care of it. Thankfully, my glove was soft because I needed something to wipe it on. Lol! And yes, my gloves went in the washer immediately post run. :)

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  13. I think your wish for warmer temps is going to come true! I see they are predicting 50s over the weekend? Let's see if that comes to pass.

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  14. I am loving the extra daylight. Nice job on the AG award! Still running on the treadmill. It isn't that bad but this week I just couldn't get motivated. I have a race in 2 weeks and I am excited but also nervous about it.

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  15. Honestly I feel like I've barely noticed the extra daylight! I'm hoping this week maybe there will be a bit of a sunrise as I am finishing a morning run. Glad you had a good race and congrats on the award!

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  16. The days are definitely getting longer here. Summer is on its way. We did have some nasty rain this week, and I've been hermitting for quite some time as it is, but it's nice to have brightness again.

    Great week for you and congratulations on an awesome award.

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  17. Congrats on your race placing!

    I've just starting seeing some daylight when I get up in the morning, but DST is about to come and take it away again, so I'm just pretending the whole situation doesn't exist.

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  18. how odd about your hip Kim! it's ok now? Congrats on 3rd place though! and GO BARB!

    definitely more daylight here. now if we can just stop with the storms... first we had Ciara, then Dennis, now Storm Ellen is going to wreak havoc on our weekend again!

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  19. hope your hip feels better. It was so great to feel some sunshine but now it's back to winter. At least the days are getting longer but winter is far from over. Congrats on your award.

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  20. I am actually excited for the return of daylight. It has been extending little by little here. I missed my gorgeous sunsets! Now I'm starting to get to see them again!

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  21. I commented earlier but I think it must have gotten lost in cyberspace. I probably said something about just finally noticing that it's getting lighter earlier, which makes me happy because this girl doesn't like to run alone in the dark. Though it's better now that I've got my canine running companion. I hope your hip is feeling better!

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