The Sun Will Come Out...Tomorrow

Got sunshine? 

It didn't happen in Iowa this past week. Not to worry, I know the sun is always shining even if it's hidden by a few (or several) clouds. There may have been some rain, and the temps were on the chilly side of Spring, but all went well. This next week is looking like a 180, though.

Before I give you the details, welcome to the weekly 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 the scoop on what went down, this week, in my little corner of the universe:

Never miss a Monday!

After waking up in Florida, and boarding a plane, the hubs and I were back in Iowa before lunch. I had the day off from work (last day of #vacay), and there was rain coming down. Finally, by mid-afternoon, Momma N granted me a brief window of dryness, so I got out for a 3-mile run. Funny how the rain seemed to have followed me back from the "sunshine state." Later, I knocked out 10-miles with Sebbe (my indoor bike) and set a PR with a 39:24 finish time.

Typical Tuesday.

Nothing fancy or ground-breaking, but after the previous evening's biking I felt it smart to take things easy. Four miles on the elliptical and a 1-mile walk to greet my morning. And that was it for the day. After being away from the office for three work days, I had 107 emails awaiting my return. We'll just leave it at that.

Wowza Wednesday.

With another #5at5 rained out, I headed down to the basement. It had been a few weeks since I'd done a good, intense stair workout...so that was the plan. Then, I got the idea to create an interval workout alternating in some biking segments. Alas, I did five circuits of 20 stair flights / 2 biking miles. Each 20-flight segment (double-stepped) took about five minutes and each 2-mile bike ride took about eight minutes. So, in just over an hour, my legs saw a lot of action. Have I ever mentioned how much I love stair-climbing? Also, there was a 2-mile shake-out walk after work.

Beating-the-rain Thursday

Wednesday's #5at5 was on for Thursday morning. Temps were nice (42F with only 3mph wind...I almost didn't know how to act). Barb and I met up for what seemed like a grand reunion (even though it had only been a few weeks since our last early-morning 5-miler). Lucky us, we were done well before 6:00, but just missed the rain...and the rain continued to fall all day.

Friday fitness.

With a 5K happening on Saturday, I wanted to keep things easy on my legs. Eight miles of biking and some upper-body strength work for the win. After work, Max took me for a 2-mile walk.

5K Saturday!

The forecast had been showing rain, but it had gone from 46% down to 41% by the time I'd gone to bed Friday evening. Imagine my elation to awake, Saturday morning, and see it had changed to 11% by race time! The Chocoholic Frolic 5K (Iowa City, IA) had a 9:00 start time, and the sun tried to poke through the clouds (briefly) as we drove there (title pic, above). Temps were still chilly, and the air was damp, but the rain was a no-show. The race went well...one of those days when all the stars aligned. The weather played nice, the legs felt great, and I nailed the layers with perfection (which can be tricky this time of year). The course ran a bit "long" (3.2 miles), but my 27:06 finish time reflected an 8:25 average pace. Stay tuned, I'll be recapping the race this week.

Whoa, a sunny Sunday!

After many days of clouds and grey skies, Sunday morning presented me with sunshine! I don't usually run long on Sundays, but I'd had the 5K (on Saturday) and much better weather forecast for Sunday, so I made an exception. Well, the sunshine was beautiful, but the wind didn't play particularly nice. Thankfully, I layered up appropriately for the 36F (28F feels-like) temps. I left the house at 7:00 and  met up with Barb for eight miles. YES! Eight miles! My longest run, post-stress fracture! My legs felt a bit sluggish, but my average pace reflected a different story. I still haven't mastered the pace perception skill, but I just run by-feel anyways. If I'm feeling good, and able to talk non-stop, I guess I'm not over-doing it. And, thankfully, eight miles didn't feel any harder than last week's seven miles. Onward!

In summary, the week went well despite the less-than-desirable weather. Running saw 20 miles. Walking was low, with only six miles (but more will be happening in the Sunday afternoon sunshine). Biking had 28 miles, and the elliptical had four miles. One upper-body session. I'm counting Wednesday's stair workout as lower-body strength (though it also gave me some good HIIT equity as well).

 

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

The Great Equinox Escape

Favorite Vacations Runs & Races

5 'Fessions for (Fake) Spring

In other news:

Friday Fashion Flair!

Featured this week was the combo of brown and black. Yes, my friends, you can wear brown and black together. The cheetah print blouse just wasn't cutting it (temps were damp and chilly...again). I thought a brown sweater would look too predictable, so I grabbed a black one instead. Problem solved. Also, tall gals can wear heels, we just have to be careful walking through doorways LOL. As always, you're welcome to join the fashion party each Friday on Instagram...post a pic of your outfit, grab the hashtag (#FridayFashionFlair) and be sure to tag me (@runningonthefly).

I saw it was National Puppy Day last week. Truth be told, we celebrate our little Max every day. We didn't know him as a puppy, since we rescued him when he was already five years old...but he acts like a puppy all the time. He has so much energy for an 11-year old! This pic was taken after we'd had him for a couple months, and his bad "shelter-dog haircut" had grown out. Doesn't he look like a puppy, though?

So, there you go! It appears Spring is in session, and I'm looking forward to even more time outdoors, on foot and on wheels.

How are things in your world? Did you see a lot of sunshine this past week? Any great workouts to brag about? Any upcoming in-person races that you're training for?

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