Saturday, September 3, 2022

Weathering It Out & About


Don't ya just love playing the Weather Game?

When getting outside on a daily basis is a self-imposed obligation, it's often a gamble on when (or if) the weather will play nice. Thankfully, it's much easier to grin and bear it in the summertime. 

This week had a mix of all kinds of weather...rain, heat, sunshine, and plenty of humidity. It didn't keep me indoors, though, and my #optoutside streak is still going strong. It's the little things, right?  

Before I dis on the deets, 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, this week, in my little world of fitness:

Sunday: A mix of sun and fun
With rain in the morning, I kept things easy with a 2-mile umbrella walk (title pic). Later, I got in a 12-mile bike ride (late afternoon) and had another 2-mile walk in the early evening.


Never miss a Monday.
Lately, I've been doing speedwork on Mondays, and this week was no exception. Three miles of fun (with 1/4-mile tempo surges) had me glistening and glowing as if I'd been rained on, thanks to the heavy humidity. This day also was heavy with the walking mileage (five total miles).


Another typical Tuesday.
Keeping the lower-body work on the down-low, I did a couple of upper-body workouts (Peloton app). I also took a couple of 1-mile walk breaks at work and walked with Max over lunch. The evening saw a shortened  bike ride...I was hoping for 10 miles, but called it good at seven due to the diminishing daylight.


Double workout Wednesday.
As is typical, Barb and I met for our weekly #5at5 run, amidst the 94% humidity. What wasn't typical was the (almost) total lack of daylight, due to the cloud cover along the eastern horizon. Ugh...kind of a buzzkill how quickly the early mornings have gotten so dark.


 Later, after work, I met Amy for the weekly hilly bike path ride. As much as I curse the (usual) wind, this week I actually kind of missed not having that cooling breeze in the 86F temps. Those 16 miles sure felt great, though!


A very Thankful Thursday (for my strength, my grit and my discipline).
It's hard to see in the pic, but it was still dark at 5:45, so I had to start with the deck lights on, LOL. Sorry (#notsorry), I just cannot  bring myself to set up shop in my workout room just yet, not when the outdoor temps are still nice. I stacked three strength workouts, and worked a little bit of everything. I started with the glutes & legs...let's just say those single leg deadlifts and lunges are tricky first thing out of bed. Thursday also saw 3.5 total miles of walking.


Friday fun: an early morning 3-miler.
I was laced-up and out the door shortly after 5:30 for another rendezvous in the summer heat and humidity. This run was a wonderful reminder of all things summer...birds were singing, the streets were clear, and the tranquility was like none other. I also got in a 2-mile walk in the evening; a perfect ending to a long day.
 

Long run (and short ride) Saturday.
With a busy day on tap (lots of football to watch, out-of-town), my morning started with an 8-mile run. I'd hoped to leave the house by 5:30, but I didn't make it out the door until 5:45. Just for kicks, I experimented with run/walk intervals, walking for about 20-30 seconds at each mile mark. I got in a little over four miles, looped back to the house for a 15-minute pit stop, and finished all eight miles before 7:30. Then, I jumped on the bike for a fast and furious 5-mile ride to flush-out the legs. I was back home by 8:00, showered, shampooed, and on the road about 45 minutes later. Whew! I also got in a 2-mile evening walk, after returning home from my football extravaganza day.

  

...and what's happening on Sunday?
The plan is for an early walk, then heading out (mid-morning) for a long bike ride. 

So, in summary, this week kept me busy! There was plenty of sweat equity earned and a great variety of workouts to keep the muscles active. Running was on par, with 19 miles. Walking had 21 miles. It was a conservative 40-mile week for biking, but Sunday's bike route will add another 32ish miles to the weekend. The strength workouts felt great, blessing me with a small taste of the DOMS (which is never a bad thing, albeit a bit uncomfortable). 

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

In other news:

Friday Fashion Flair. Sometimes you just gotta go with the tried-and-true classic color combo of black and white. Given the hot mid-90F temps, I also went with some flowy linen fabric, LOL. A little bit of chunky and funky jewelry never hurt no one either.


Finally, this meme caught my eye Saturday evening. Can you say BUZZKILL! 


Well, that's the latest and greatest! With a half marathon happening mid-October, I'm hoping to keep the mileage consistent and any potential injuries out of the picture. My right hammy has been feeling a little tight in recent weeks, so I'm being diligent with stretching, rolling, and trigger-point massage.

Just a FYI, since I'll be leaving mid-morning for my ride, I may be a little late in reading/commenting on some of the blogs linked afterwards. I will get caught up before bedtime, though (#PinkyPromise). 

How did your week play out? Are you getting all kinds of weather as well? Any favorite workouts from this week? Any training highlights or upcoming races? 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

28 comments:

  1. Looks like a great week Kim! The diminishing daylight makes me sad, even though fall is lovely. I love how you take your strength workouts outside as long as possible!

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    1. I agree...Fall is lovely and so colorful. But the fading daylight just isn't right...

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  2. It is pretty dark in the mornings again and that makes it hard for me to get up. way to crush it this week w lots of mileage. Sounds like it's still hot and humid by you as well. Have a great week ahead

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    1. Crazy how it seem like all of a sudden, the darkness has returned to my mornings. I'm thankful I was able to celebrate most of the "brighter" ones while they were there ;-)

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  3. It's after 6 right now and it's basically still dark....and we've got a ways to go. It is depressing. Oh well, fall is a lovely season and I'll lean into that. Great workouts for you this week, Kim!

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    1. I know...I just try to focus on the beauty of the fall season rather than dwell on the minimal daylight. Still a buzzkill, none the less, LOL

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  4. We had a similar meme from our local news this week here too. I already miss the daylight in the morning and at night! Oh well, we do this every year, don't we? Nice job this week staying outside. I love that goal!

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    1. I know! This happens every year, LOL, but still it always takes me by surprise how fast it seems to happen

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  5. We actually had a really nice week of weather until yesterday, naturally. It's cloudy and cool. A little taste of fall, I guess. I'm not ready for it yet!

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    1. I'm definitely not ready for fall either...summer is far too short in Iowa.

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  6. It sure is a game. Everyday I have to decide whether to get up early to run or wait until after work.

    I do manage to get it done... outdoors but it is a pain when the forecast is not accurate!!!

    I'm adding into the mix the flu shot and the booster. If I can a reaction, I don't want it to interfere with my running lol

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    1. Ugh...good luck with the flu shot and booster! I'm glad I won't need the (second) booster for awhile, because those shots totally knock me out. The shots have been far worse, for me, than the virus itself.

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  7. I will gladly welcome some cool fall temps this week... especially next Sunday! :) I am missing the daylight. Guess it will be time to catch up on all of my DVR shows soon as I use the treadmill. I do enjoy that part of it! Great job on the workouts this week!

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    1. I'll keep my fingers crossed for good weather for your marathon!

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  8. Oh yes, definitely riding the weather rollercoaster here. It was an interesting mix, shall we say.

    I love the cooler mornings -- when we have them, which we did not this morning, unfortunately. Enjoy your Sunday Kim, don't worry about commenting, I know you'll get to it.

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    1. Honestly, I don't mind the cooler mornings, they just seemed to arrive a few weeks earlier than usual (and were MUCH cooler than I was ready for).

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  9. I'm curious to hear how you liked the run-walk intervals! I'm liking them, especially in this heat.
    Yay for football! It makes life so much more fun. Baylor is playing Iowa State later this month! : )
    I was thinking about you as I rode my bike home from work yesterday- it got windy and I thought "Oh, this is what Kim is talking about!" Definitely makes it harder.

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    1. The run/walk intervals were alright. I didn't really notice much of a difference with my overall pace (though it seemed a bit slower?)...but I do think they "forced" me to slow down a bit. With my long legs, I really have a tough time making myself run "slower" than what feels natural.

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  10. The weather here at the beach has been consistent - mid to high 70's overnight and high 80's to low 90's during the day. Most of the time there's been enough of a breeze to keep it from feeling too hot. Of course you know what a breeze means... a headwind in one direction on my bike rides. LOL

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    1. Those beach temps sound perfect to me! Oh yes, those breezes feel refreshing, but they are a demon to fight on the bike!

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  11. Looks like a great week! I am definitely missing the early morning light, but do appreciate the cooler mornings. Hope you have a great ride today!

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    1. Thanks, Michelle ;-) The ride went well...though a bit chilly with the cloud cover.

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  12. It’s great that you have friends to run AND ride with! This morning as I was driving to meet Deb and Cari I saw a woman walking in my ‘hood wearing a Peloton top — I wanted to stop and introduce myself!

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    1. Ha ha!!! I know that feeling ;-) Us Peloton folk are kind of members of a secret society ;-)

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  13. We have been getting storms and heat and heat and storms. Awful lightning and even tornado warnings. No thanks. I know you're sorry to see summer go but I need a break from this heat.

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  14. As usual, another great, but busy, week for you! We have had such a dry Summer here - most of the grass is brown :( We are long overdue for some rain, which we might get today and tomorrow. We'll see if that actually happens since the weather people are wrong 80% of the time, lol.

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  15. I am looking forward to the nicer temps and lower humidity, but I will sure miss my sunrise runs. Sounds like a great week of workouts. I love how you do your strength outside. I need to move mine to the sunroom so I can enjoy the views...thanks for the great idea.

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