Pedal Power: ACTIVATE!

So yeah.

I may be a runner, but this week was all about pedaling action. After all, runners don't need to expend all their fitness energy on running, am I right? 

As most know, my cross-training has exploded in recent years. Strength-training had been there all along, but walking earned a valued spot when I was side-lined following emergency knee surgery. Then, two years ago, a stress fracture lead me to the bike...and the rest is history. 

Before I share all the pedaling fun from the week, 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 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 blogs as well...please don't link-drop & dash ;-)

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

A somewhat simple Sunday.

Although my Saturday's fitness antics hadn't been that overtaxing, I was ready for low-key day. The morning began with an arm/shoulders Peloton workout (courtesy of my gal, Tunde), followed by a 2-mile sunrise walk. Later, another three miles of walking action took place.

Another never miss a Monday (and a double workout day!).

Believe it or not, the temps were cool 61F (though still quite humid) at wake-up! Nothing fancy or ground-breaking about this 3-mile run, but the sunrise was another beauty to behold. At work, a couple co-workers and I were able to capitalize on the cooler temps with a couple of 1-mile walks on our breaks.

With the century ride happening on Wednesday, Amy and I bumped-up our usual hilly bike path ride to Monday after work. Seriously, the wind was almost MIA (2mph!) and we almost didn't know how act. I got brave and brought the new Garmin along for the ride (see what I did there, LOL)...so now I have some stats to reference.

Back to my typical Tuesday...

A true low-key (recovery-ish day), I kept things simple in the early hours with a short Barre workout, more upper-body work (with Tunde), and a pre-workday 1-mile walk. A couple more 1-mile walks at work, and that was it.

Finally, the long-time-coming century ride!

Barb, Mike, Amy and myself had the bikes loaded, we pulled out of my driveway before 6:00, and arrived in Adel just after 7:00. We hit the trail around 7:30 and finished our adventure just after 5:00...100 miles done! Our actual time on the bikes was just under 7.5 hours, and we all felt quite accomplished with our 100-mile conquest. I have a recap in the works, so stay-tuned.

A very thankful Thursday.

I slept pretty soundly, Wednesday evening, after returning home from our ride. I expected to have cranky and achy legs upon wake-up...but the legs (and even the bum, LOL) felt great. The sore shoulders, upper-back/neck and triceps, though, caught me off guard. I kept Thursday easy-peasy...two miles of early-morning walking, a mile at work, and two evening miles. 

I had an arm workout on the schedule (as part of the 4-week Arms with Tunde program, via Peloton). As luck would have it, the triceps felt much better by end of day, but this workout was biceps-focused. Win-win!

An easy-peasy Friday...

I'd entertained the idea of a 4-5 mile run, but decided it best to keep the miles conservative (I even left the new Garmin at home). Why? Well, the legs felt like lead once I started running. My pace was alright, but things just felt a little more "stiff" than ideal. Besides, did I mention I had another long ride happening Saturday morning? Yeah. So, I kept the run short, ending with just three miles (but how do you like that ponytail swoosh?). I also got in two miles of walking (one at work, and the other in the evening).

Saturday? Welcome back to RAGBRAI!!!

Last year, I rode Day-1 of RAGBRAI 2021 (recap). Although I didn't feel compelled to return and take on the entire week of riding across Iowa (this year's weekly mileage was roughly 430 miles), I did have an overwhelming urge to squeeze in at least one day. The route was in the northern region of Iowa this year, so the logistics of getting there (and back) were not practical, especially for just one day of riding. Monday evening, though, I decided to roadtrip, after work, to the Friday's host town (West Union, which was an approximate 2.5-hour drive) and then ride the Saturday course. The route was hilly, but the temps were moderate (a chilly 55F at daybreak, warming to the low/mid 80F's by late morning). All went well, and I finished the 65 miles shortly after 12:00. Stay tuned...there's a recap for this, as well, coming.

 

...and what's on tap for Sunday?

We got home late Saturday afternoon from the RAGBRAI adventure. After nearly three hours of car time, my quads were pretty angry with their owner. There will not be any recovery biking (or running) on Sunday, but there will be some walking (and a lot of stretching, foam-rolling, and trigger-point massage).

So, a very out-of-the-ordinary week for me, but that's all good. I like my "usual" routine, but I also LOVE mixing things up now and then. Running took a major hit this week (ummm...six miles, LOL), but walking was on-point with 18. Obviously, this was very much a biking-dominated week...how do 180 miles in the saddle grab you? Amazingly, my "saddle" region is feeling good despite what it had to endure this week (anyone who has done a lot of cycling, in a short period of time, will know what I'm referring to). The Hot Five core challenge is going well (two weeks are done) and Tunde's Arms program also has two weeks completed. With all the biking this week, I opted to pass on any other lower-body work. 

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

Rockin' the Heat

July's 'Fession Festival

In other news:

Friday Fashion Flair. What can I say? Tangerine and turquoise go well together. Throw in some distressed denim and funky sandals, and I'm all set for a beautiful summer day. 

Sigh. Remember this special lily? I made a point to stop by and sniff and admire it every time I was returning from a run, walk or bike ride the past week or so. When we returned from RAGBRAI Saturday afternoon, two of the blossoms were no longer. I know they'll return next summer, but it's a bummer they can't last just a bit longer.

   

So, that's it for this week! I came, I rode, and I conquered. 

How was your week? Did your temps take a bit of a nosedive, too? Would let your running take a (brief) backseat to another sport? Have you ever taken on a century ride? 

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