Fall EquiNOT (WW # 164)

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Ladies, I'm going to keep this short.   Suffice it to say, our summer is still raging with triple digit heat indexes.  I ran three times totaling 16 miles, which is more than last week.  Here's how that went down.

Another perfect Sunday evening spent on the lake.

Monday morning found me bright eyed and raring to go crawling out of bed to begin the week. Nothing active happened that day nor Tuesday.  I know, I know.  This has been my theme of late and I can't blame it on water skiing muscle soreness this time.  However, I will continue to blame the weather.  {Wink}

After a lot of stern talking to myself, I got up early Wednesday morning and ran 6.2 miles.  This was a strong run, although not speedy.  I needed this run.  I felt encouraged by my solid effort in our never ending summer.   Side note:  humidity causes such blurry pictures. 

My second run was Friday.  It wasn't quite as strong as my prior attempt but it wasn't as horrible as it could have been either.  Winning.  I clocked 4.5 easy miles before work.   I always feel rewarded if I can catch the sunrise. 

After bailing on my planned 30+ mile bike ride, I worked in the yard all day Saturday...well, until it was time to watch college football.  Roll Tide.   Which brings me to Sunday where the scorcher of my first official FALL run of this season found me seeking the shade in our neighborhood park for the final portion of my hot 5.3 mile run.  I picked up the pace a bit in the final miles and...survived.  

I've been watching this little flower bloom for a while through a tiny crack in the pavement at one of my U-turn points.  It's amazing how that can happen, isn't it?  What a great lesson in perseverance. 

 

And that's a wrap!

 Do you notice little things on your runs 

that provide a bit of encouragement?

Did you watch college football?  Did your team win?

Is it Fall where you live?  No no, don't tell me (ha ha)!









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Summer Continues (WW # 163)

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As usual, Monday had me reminiscing about my favorite summertime activity and taking a rest day [mmm...OK, two] to recover from said favorite activity.  The skiing Sunday evening was some of the best this year and I skied several times for countless miles until I could simply no longer hold on. Plus, the sun was setting.  If you're curious, my hands always give out first.  And -- TMI alert -- they are often bleeding inside my padded gloves when I finish.  A hand model I will never be.

The best way to end a Sunday evening!

For risk of sounding like a broken record... IT'S SO HOT!  I'm trying really hard not to sound whiny here.  But, the heat indexes were over 100 every day this week.  And, it will not be any different this coming week.  I managed to get out for three runs totaling 12.8 miles...not quite what I had in mind.  I planned for Sunday's longer run to be at least seven miles.  Unfortunately, the heat and humidity had my crying "uncle" by mile three.  I just didn't have it in me to continue and did not document the short run with a picture.  

The only thing fall-like about Wednesday's run
 was my pumpkin colored tank tap.

Thankfully I felt good about Saturday's bike ride.  I rode 27.5 miles non-stop in this stupid heat on my extra hilly route and was able to maintain a speed of 14.1 mph.  If you could see my hills, you'd know why I'm proud of this number.  My heart rate averaged 156 for the nearly two hour effort.  All in all, a fantastic cross training workout.  

What's that stuck in my top, you ask?
That would be an OFF insect repellent wipe.

I did two pre-hab routines this week.  I'm hoping when cooler air finally arrives, I'll be in good shape to start training for something.  At this point, I don't really have the desire to run any race of any distance.  Surely that will change with the weather?  Only time will tell.

Sunday afternoon will be spent on the lake where I'll ski in water that is 92-23 degrees, maybe even hotter.  It's my reward for slogging through another sweltering week.  Pretty, smooth hands be damned.

And that's a wrap!

Tell me, what was the highlight of your week?





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That Stings! (WW # 162 )

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the sole purpose of supporting active women.
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Just a spray from last weekend ...

The week began with the Labor Day holiday.  Par-tay!  I was hoping for a second day of water skiing.  But, after being stung 7 times by yellow jackets Monday morning...that didn't happen [cue deflating balloon noise].  I learned from Dr. Google that yellow jackets can both bite and sting.  And unlike a bee that stings only once, they sting multiple times.  I wasn't worried about an allergic reaction.  After all,  I grew up in the country and have been stung by everything imaginable.
 

Evil creatures!

However, those sting locations were on fire; the worst two being behind one knee and on top of the other.  If you are curious, I had on long sleeves and pants to avoid mosquito bites while working in the yard.  I was stung through my clothes.  I'm sure I looked quite comical: running toward the back yard, slapping at myself to kill the attached evil buggers, and trying to peel out of my sweaty clothes all at the same time.  Anyhoo, I did not sleep well for a couple of nights and did not run until Thursday morning.   After taking last week off from running, this was just an easy and slow 4.5 miles.

I returned to the streets Saturday morning where I pushed the mileage to 6.1.  This run was one of the hottest I've done all summer.  Why yes...I know I say that all the time.  But I swear, it was.  I swear. Kidding aside, I am happy not be training right now and will do nothing but easy base building runs for the next few weeks.

As seen on my ride...are you kidding?

I did two of my typical pre-hab sessions this week and went for a 21 mile bike ride for cross training Sunday morning..  It was so August Hot, I just couldn't believe I was seeing Halloween decorations already. 

At least I can report the week ended better than it started! 

And that's a wrap!

When is the last time you were stung?  By what?

Are you training, base building or just maintaining?

Any cyclists out there?  What's your favorite distance to ride?

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Happy Labor Day! (WW # 161)

Wendy and I host this linkup for
the sole purpose of supporting active women.
We thank you for linking your 
FITNESS  RELATED  POST  with us!

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First of all, CONGRATULATIONS to Lisa @ Mile By Mile!  Lisa won our third anniversary giveaway.  Speeding toward Lisa is a gift certificate from On Your Marq.  We hope Lisa enjoys spending it and we thank her for being such a loyal linker over the years!

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I hope everyone is enjoying a restful Labor Day holiday weekend.

  

I think Rocky has the right idea!

Aside from my usual pre-hab routine, I wasn't very active this week.  There is little to wrap up.  I have no excuse.  Being honest, my motivation and energy were simply in low supply.  By Saturday, and after two large mugs of coffee, I felt a little peppier and decided to take my bike off its trainer and outside for a spin.  When I put my helmet on, I discovered the timing tag was still attached from my last Century Ride.  That was in October.  I should be ashamed.

My usual route -- and the one I feel safest on -- is a 4-ish mile loop through an adjoining hilly neighborhood.  The streets are extra wide and the traffic is minimal.  It is rare I have to come to a complete stop at any intersection.  My heart rate averaged 160, which is pretty high for cycling.  I suspect the extra coffee had something to do with that.

This route puts Sanity through all of her gears!

We should be on the lake most of the day Sunday where I hope to be kicking up some ski spray.   I'm not sure what's on tap for Labor Day.  Maybe we'll return to the lake.  Or, we may just take a cue from Rocky and lay around in the back yard. 

And that's a wrap!

How do you find your missing motivation?

What are your Labor Day plans?



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A New Normal (WW # 160)

Wendy and I host this linkup for
the sole purpose of supporting active women.
We thank you for linking your 
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I feel like my life has been crazy lately!  The nest might be empty, but there is little time to dwell on that. Trying to stop the madness, this week marked my attempt to settle into a normal routine...whatever that might look like these days.

Monday is my usual pre-hab day.  My typical routine consists of various exercises, mostly lower body, of 350-380 reps on each side.  It takes 30 minutes to complete.  I repeated this routine again on Thursday.  As part of my new normal, I'd like to do these twice weekly. I admit, many weeks lately I've only done it once.   And umm...sometimes nonce. 

Tuesday morning brought my first run of the week.  It was super steamy and I took it easy for 5.5 miles.  On Friday, I did another 5.1 miles; this time my favorite -- a progression run.  The dew point had dropped and I didn't want to  miss out on the opportunity to breathe the drier air and push my pace.  Sadly, it didn't feel much different.  I still sweated.  Buckets.   My pace?  Not very pushed.

Wednesday night has always been my favorite for cross training.  I increased my indoor cycling to 50 minutes while jamming to my normal 70's funk.  I'm always happy when I can keep my heart rate in the 140's!  For me, it is very difficult to do this on a bike.  Wearing a heart rate monitor in a must for keeping track of it.

I had Sanity's front tire repaired this week.  She now has a Gator Skin tire [calm down, not real gator!].  I planned to ride outside Saturday morning but it was disgustingly hot and humid.  Plus, I had a lot to do around the house.  It instead became a rest day; if you call cleaning out the closets "rest".  I must have gone up and down our staircases a hundred times.

Sunday I hit the road relatively early and ran another 6.3 miles.  This brought my total to 16.9 miles in three runs.  I hope to be on the lake later this afternoon enjoying a few week-ending ski sprays.

With the running, cycling, water skiing and two pre-hab sessions, I'm pleased with how my "normal" week went down.  Plus, I got a lot done around the house.  Normal for the win!

And that's a wrap!

*** Don't forget to link with us!  In honor of our third anniversary,  everyone linking on the Weekly Wrap this week will be entered into a drawing for a pretty cool prize package!   The Weekly Wrap stays open until Wednesday night.   Please join us...you still have plenty of time!

How was your week?  Did it feel normal?

Are you training for a Fall race?  Which one?

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