Color My World

 

It was a week filled with all things Color (and some  Paint, PTO and a little bit of Patience).

Actually, this colorful endeavor began last Saturday morning and has continued through the entire week. There’s still a lot left undone, but I'm enjoying the process and loving the continued progress. Color totally soothes the soul, much like running (and fitness in general).

Speaking of running (and fitness), it also was a decent week of continuous activity and movement. Suffice it to say my quads saw a lot action on the ladder and my glutes did their fair share of squat “holds” as I painted along numerous baseboards (cross-training, LOL).

Before I dis on the colorful deets 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 blog as well...please don't link-drop & dash ;-)

Anyways, here’s what went down this week in my (colorful) little world of fitness and whatnot:

Sunday - a bluebird sky & a bright yellow sun…

With the Rails to Ales 10K happening mid-morning, I got out for an early walk before running the 1-mile from my house to the start line, at the Chichaqua Valley Trailhead. The R2A 10K was more of an organized point-to-point group run than an actual race, starting at the Unclaimed Rails bar (in Bondurant) and ending at Brightside Aleworks Brewery (in Altoona). We had a beautiful morning, but the 14mph wind was a beast!

Afterwards, we were treated to a free beer, chili and cinnamon rolls. I caught a ride back to Bondurant, walked the mile back home, and crashed for a short nap. That evening, I did some touch-up painting in my bedroom before moving all the furniture pieces back to their respective spots. 

Never Miss a Monday…

The cold morning started with 10 miles on the bike while my nails dried (painting destroys a manicure, just saying). This was manicure update #1 (hold that thought).

The afternoon weather was the polar opposite of the morning. Although I was feeling a bit stiff from the R2A 10K, I simply had to get out for a run in the continuing summer temps. The evening saw more painting (this time, the master bath).

Tuesday - Color me cold…

Brrr, it was a brisk morning when I ventured out for a quick morning walk. It was quite ironic that I was having similar thoughts a year ago (see below, LOL). The temps warmed up nicely, though, so there was plenty of workday walking to be done (five total miles for the day). 

Wednesday - color, color everywhere...

The 4:45 foursome met for our weekly 3-miler, but Kelly joined me for the two bonus miles after Hannah and Bill departed (and she paced the two of us for some unintentional tempo work). Afterwards, it was a full day of PTO and painting (with a relaxing 2-mile evening walk, followed by a new manicure).

Thankful Thursday 

Even without Deb to chat with, I was feeling ambitious. After a good night of very restful sleep, I was up and on the bike well before 5:00 Thursday morning for a 20-mile ride. Afterwards, I grabbed some weights for a quick, but very heated, upper-body workout. I've been substituting 8-pound weights for the usual 3-pounders for some of the arm moves on these "Arms and Light Weights" Peloton classes. The reps are fast (and numerous), so the burn is pretty intense. I also got out for some workday walking in the warm sunshine (three total miles).

Friday - feeling some colorful aches...

I don't know if it was from the repeated daily painting, or the previous day's 20-miler on the bike, but my quads were feeling all kinds of crankiness upon wake-up. I decided to do a few miles on the bike, then summoned the Theragun for some muscle TLC. It was such a beautiful day, I made sure to take advantage with more workday walking (mid-morning and over lunch; three total miles).also, more painting for the evening’s entertainment.

Saturday - Color Me Sore

With continued painting on the day’s agenda, I was up and painting around 5:30 (I was awake anyways, LOL). After I had substantial daylight (around 7:00), I headed out to the nearby trail for eight miles. Boy, oh boy, did my body feel sore! I don’t blame the running; I think it’s from a solid week of daily painting (up & down on the ladder and an infinite number of awkward reaches and squat “holds” with a paintbrush in hand). After returning home, Max took me for a short walk, then he supervised my progress in the living room, kitchen and dining room for  the next 6+ hours. There may have been a third manicure (for the week) afterwards.

…and Sunday? 

Most likely, there will be more painting, but the finish line is definitely in sight. The forecast is looking cooler than we’ve had recently, so I may be walking (outside) or cycling (inside).

So, all things considered, I'm calling this week a success. My legs (especially the quads, ugh!) were feeling so strained by Thursday, I opted to skip the usual Thursday evening group run. All told, running saw 22 miles this week...and all of my body parts are ready for a week of taper as I prepare for the IMT Des Moines Half Marathon next Sunday. Walking was moderate, with 15 miles. Had I not been painting all day Wednesday (or most evenings), I would have logged a few more miles in these continued summer-like temps. Biking remained on the lower end of the mileage scale, with 34 miles (all of them indoors due to the crazy wind). Again, much of my "fitness" time was devoted to the paintbrush. There was a little bit of upper-body strength work sprinkled in. I am taking part in a Coretober challenge (with a few friends, via Peloton), so there’s been daily core workouts as well. 

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

Somewhat Summer, Somewhat Fall 

In other news:

Friday Fashion Flair. Yes, There was another Hawkeye game scheduled for the weekend, and I was back in black (with a little bit of gold...subtlety can make quite a fashion statement, right?).

As mentioned, there was a lot of painting going on this week. I've been in my house over six months now, and the neutral-colored walls just weren't working for me.  The color transformation began last weekend (on Saturday morning and Sunday evening ) with the master bedroom ...

Before:

After: 

The walls are now a medium sage green, but the teal window treatments reflecting onto them really brighten-up the color scheme (pay no attention to the shower curtain on the bed, LOL)

Next (Monday evening and Wednesday morning), was the master bath:

the same beige walls were updated with a darker sage green

Let's not forget the guest bathroom (also Wednesday morning) and the downstairs powder room (Wednesday afternoon):

bye bye, beige walls!

Not pictured (yet) is the accent wall in the dining room, or the living room/kitchen area, but you'll have to wait until I finish the entire downstairs before I share those updates. Suffice it to say, the entire house came with the same beige color on every wall. The original color looked nice; it just simply was not my taste or preference. I'm an art geek and a color freak, don't forget!

So, there you go: the latest and greatest! While I chose to take on all this painting this week, I have no regrets (my quads would strongly disagree). It feels so satisfying to have most of it done! I still have the two spare bedrooms, but I don’t live in them on the daily. They can wait until a cold winter day. 

How was your week? Any fun fitness? Races? Training? Any DIY painting happening in your world? 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter