Ready for Spring

Spring 2023 arrived this week, and not a moment too soon.

After the previous week's winter grand finale antics, this week's milder weather, increased sunshine and much more desirable temps were welcomed with open arms. 

'Nuff said.

Before I disclose 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 during the first week of Spring '23:

Sunday - ready for sunshine!

After several days of dreary weather, it was so nice to be greeted with a blue sky and full sunshine upon wake-up. Granted, the 10F (with  a 0-degree feels-like) was still cold, it was bearable with the minimal wind. This was Day-6 of my Week of Pi fun, so 3.14 miles of running, followed by a 3-mile walk (mid-morning) with Amy and some core work in the evening.

Monday - ready for Spring!

The afternoon temps were looking warm, so I opted to start the day with a 10-mile ride inside. 

As promised, the afternoon was beautiful, so I got in a 1-mile walk at work. Later, I headed out for my final Pi run and ran into Allison, so she joined me for the final two miles. Afterwards, I got in two additional miles of walking.

Tuesday - ready for some low-key downtime.

Although my Week of Pi ended on a grand note (with my fastest and "easiest" run on Monday), I knew it would serve me well to leave the running shoes unoccupied for a day. I did 3-ish miles on the elliptical (about 20 minutes), and also three total miles of walking for the day. 

Wednesday - ready for a double workout day.

Nothing earth-shattering...a 10-mile ride on the bike in the morning, followed by some upper-body strength work.

After work, Barb and I met for a #5at5PM (five miles at 5:00PM). It had been awhile, but this run had been a long time coming. Hopefully, as the temps continue to warm up, and the daylight increases, we'll be resuming our regular early morning 5-milers.

Thursday - ready for a friendly chatter session

Deb and I resumed our virtual ride & chat routine (though I may have dozed briefly, after my alarm went off, and arrived at the party a few minutes late). I got in 15 miles of pedal power before heading to the office. Also, the temps were amazing, so Michele and I got in two (1-mile) walks during our work breaks, and I also took a 2-mile walk before dinner.

Friday - ready for the weekend.

Not only did I have the Cherry Blossom 10-mile happening in a week (April 2nd, in Washington DC), but the Fight for Air Climb was on deck for Sunday morning. I needed to keep things low-key. I started the day at the "Breakfast Barre, serving up some lower-body and core to ease some muscle tightness and keep things low-impact.

 

As the day wore on, the forecast was showing possible snow for Saturday morning. I had been contemplating a 15K run. Not only was this an optimal "long-but-not-too-long" distance (for the last "long" run before the Cherry Blossom), but there also was a Garmin badge up for grabs. All things considered, I'd much rather run those 9.3 miles in the late afternoon sunshine (and on dry streets) than on potentially messy streets in much colder temps. So, I made a command decision to just get it done. So I did. Even in the pleasant mid-50F temps, the wind was rather beastly at times, but it wasn't anything I wasn't used to, LOL. Despite the spontaneity, these 9.33 miles really felt good! I thought I was holding back on my pace, but the intermittent tailwind intervened (I guess?), so I was really surprised to see a 10:06 average pace when I finished. Needless to say, this gave me a huge boost of confidence as I taper-back, this next week, in prepping for next weekend's Cherry Blossom.

Saturday - ready for a recovery day.

Wouldn't you know? Despite the snow-encompassed forecast, there wasn't a trace of the white stuff, or hardly any wind, come Saturday morning. I probably could have ventured out for a short recovery run, but I opted for a 12-mile bike ride instead (and a quick 1-mile walk). I had a busy morning on the roster anyways (memorial service for a high school classmate, and a gathering with fellow classmates), so I didn't have a lot of extra time.

...and what about Sunday?

The morning will find me climbing 90+ flights of stairs in downtown Des Moines for the Fight for Air Climb. If the weather stays nice, there will probably be some walking on tap for the afternoon. And more NCAA basketball (the University of Iowa women's basketball team made it to the Elite Eight, and play Sunday evening).

So, this week was a nice one! It was so great to finally have real spring weather. That said, I know there will still be some intermittent winter-like weather mixed in for awhile (this is Iowa, LOL). My running mileage saw its highest number since last fall...approximately 20-1/2 miles logged this week, thank you very much! Walking made a decent effort with 17 miles, and biking flirted with a low-key 47. 

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

Almost Blown Away

A Very Windy Week of Pi

In other news:

Friday Fashion Flair. As mentioned, Friday was a beautiful, sunny spring day...and who doesn't love that? Or random polka dots? With ruffled sleeves? And a punch-of-color cardi?

While I have seen a few robins in the past 10 days or so, it wasn't until this week that I was finally able to capture a picture of one of them.

This week also saw the emergence of my daffodils and tulips. I love how green they look!

So, YES! It does feel like SpRiNg has sPrUnG! Although summer is my favorite season, I cannot deny the joy it brings me in seeing spring arrive. 

Does it look and feel like spring has officially arrived in your area? Any fun workouts this past week? Weekend racing? Ever done a spontaneous long run a day early?

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