Friday and getting back into running....for now.

Friday~ Early Spin class! It was a fun interval style today. A few big hills that got progressively steeper as the climb progressed. After that I lifted weights! Yay! Full body lifting.

3x10
Chest Press (apparently my shoulder still hurts)
Squats ( in the rack!)
Dead lifts ( Free motion-first time using this)
Bicep 21's (body bar 15#)

Short and sweet. I met my goal of lifting for this week! I hope to keep it up!

Saturday~ 11.5 mile run. Was supposed to do 12, but the route was off for some reason. It was a tough run and I did not feel the need to run the last half mile. It's been a while since I actually did a long run ( 10 mile race, spin class, duathlon, spin class....), so yeah, it was tough today.
It was humid and I got a mean tan (even though I used sunscreen!) but the good news is I looked fashionable in my running skirt and green Adidas top. I got many compliments on my *outfit*. It had me laughing! Another tie in to my Examiner Article on being Fit and Fashionable! I guess I thought I had to try and look cute since I knew I was going to struggle during today's run! Although, by 3 miles in most of us in the group looked as if we had run a 10 mile race--the humidity was awful and we were drenched. I actually wrung my skirt out during the 9th mile it was so heavy with sweat-gross.

Weekly wrap up:
Miles: 18
Spin classes: 3
Weights: 3
Yoga: 0
Road bike miles:0
Other: 1 (TurboKick class)
Gym cardio: 20 minutes on elliptical

After looking at my wrap up, I hope to run more miles, bike more miles, do yoga and maintain the rest. We shall see! With that being said, I am pretty sure I am teaching Power Spin next weekend and then going out of town the next! I need to figure out when to fit in my long runs.

A kind of maybe sort of Tuesday and Wednesday....

Tuesday~ What the heck did I do on Tuesday anyway? It was such a long time ago.........
Oh yes, I taught a Cardio Sculpt class. I had one person show up!! ( Thanks Kristy!-- she is my die-hard athlete mom of 3!) She had her very own personal training session of sorts. She's tough and proved it!
After class I headed over to the E. side ( of Grand Rapids) for running club. On tonight's torture: after the standard 2 mile warm up the advanced group's workout included (12) 200 meter sprints with a walk/jog recover of 200 meters. Yup, 12!! It actually went by a lot faster than I expected and it was actually fun ( kind of). I really enjoy running with my buddy that is faster than I am. She pushes me just enough to where I did not think I could go. I am not sure why I enjoy that, but I do! After the workout is the 2 mile cool down and then that's all! It was a good Tuesday!

Wednesday~ Spin class instruction. I actually had a request to repeat Monday's Race Day format--nope! I stuck to the plan and did an interval ride. I stayed at the gym to welcome a new instructor as she taught Turbo Kick! I am trying to motivate myself so I can get back into Turbo Kick. I plan on taking this class as often as I can until I am comfortable teaching it again...maybe.
I failed to get up early today and do a lower body workout. I did do my own version at home while watching The Young and the Restless though. I did everything with 10 lb. weights.
Just a very simple workout before I get back into lifting heavy.
3x10:
1 leg dead lifts
Plie squats
Lunges

My day was jam packed today with stuff, but that's that way I like it...kind of.

And even more spinning...and weights!

Sunday~ I decided on this day to start lifting weights again. I know, I know..who cares??? I do!
It;s been a while since I was lifting regularly, so I figured Sunday was a good day to start. I usually start everything on Monday....so this is new for me!
I made it to the gym and did a light cardio warm up for 15 minutes on the elliptical.
I chose to only do my upper body because. I went in without much of a plan but hit every upper body muscle at least once.
I did 3x10:
Chest Press
Biceps Curl
Triceps Ext.
Shoulder Press
Rows

I used 15 lbs dumbbells for everything. I could have gone heavier, but I am being smart about it and easing my way back into that!
I thought for sure I would be sore today. It might come tomorrow though!

Easy tie in for soreness: My Examiner article about DOMS If you want, you can subscribe and also comment on the site. If ya want! Thanks!

Monday~ Spin (duh). haha. I think I need to enter more bike races (indoor spin races???) I do more Spinning than running these days.....It was another tough class. I used a portion of the spin race I did on Saturday- I just modified it a bit.
I probably lost 3 lbs in sweat alone. Awesome.

Spin, spin and more spin!

Friday~ Early Spin class. That was all I did! (well Totally Toned was at noon and all I did was bark orders and I did the side planks-slacker!)


Saturday~ No running for me today. I was able to sub the Power Spin today. I was sad to miss the run until I woke up...to rain! I was GLAD to be indoors working hard instead of outside in the rain. It was a race day too. 1:15 minutes to be exact. I did a Spin class rendition of The Tour De France Stage 15. It was bananas. So very hard. I get caught up in the excitement of some of the yelpers in class and really pushed myself to utter wooziness on the bike. Good thing I did not fall off. One Stage 5 hill was about 12 minutes long. Ugh. The class did awesome though!! It can be intimidating subbing a class that everybody loves. I will say it was nice to know that they requested me as the sub--I guess they like my music! I'll take it!
I was so hungry after class. I am still doing the cleanse and wanted so badly to veer from the specifics of the diet, but I held strong and followed the rules. I feel good!
*If I am lucky, I hope to get in some running miles on Sunday....I sometimes forget that is why I am here! ;-)

Crazy for Cardio...... Or just plain crazy.

Tuesday~ 800's on the track (3:28 ish pace) with equal recovery time. I wanted to do 8, but was totally fine with 6. It was hot and humid and I felt I could have thrown up. Awesome. My breathing was not the best, but I tried to ignore it. The weird thing is I had my vocal cords close up for about 10 seconds during my .75 of a mile cool down. It was at a snails pace because I was so tired from the workout! Not sure why that happened.
The 800's were very hard. I am not sure if it was because I an doing a cleanse right now that I felt different or what. Oh-it might have been do to the fact that I taught Cardio Sculpt at 4:15pm--how could I forget that??? It was kickboxing with some power moves thrown in for fun and weights and abs. I am still sore. It's been a while!

Wednesday~ Spin intervals that were hard. They were hard(er) for me due to my Tuesday stuff I think. I thought about running a few miles and the feeling passed almost as soon as it popped into my head.

Thursday~ Yoga..I made it. It was slightly difficult. Lots of hip openers (which I need BAD) and lots of hamstring stretches Ommmmm.
Before yoga I walked on the tread slowly with a bit of an incline for 30 minutes.
Depending on how I feel the rest of the day I might go for a walk or run or go to the gym for some light cardio. We shall see.....

Headsweats Review

I had the opportunity to try out this awesome visor from Headsweats this past weekend during my duathlon. I normally would not try out something new during an event, but I had a good feeling about it as soon as I took it out of the box! I received the SUPERVISOR in black and was in love immediately. I can sometimes have a hard time fitting hats on my head. I am wearing braids currently, but still find that my hats are kind of tight. The visor was perfect.

From the site:

**SUPERVISOR
The most popular visor in the triathlon industry and trusted companion of thousands of Ironman® finishers, the SuperVisor is durable, lightweight, and keeps you dry.

Product Details
Classic, straight fit.
COOLMAX® fabric wicks away moisture for optimum comfort and performance.
Super-soft COOLMAX® terry sweatband creates maximum air flow and moisture transfer.
Black undervisor reduces glare.
Elastic back provides custom fit without any adjustments.
Machine washable. **

I know I must have stumbled onto a great product because I saw at least 6 other athletes at my race sporting Headsweats headgear! I did not get any sweat in my eyes and it was a hot and humid morning. I ran a total of 6.5 miles during the race and the visor exceeded my expectations. It cut the glare and soaked up my sweat--exactly what I needed it to do. I also loved the fact that it was not tight or binding on my head; specifically on my temples. I hate that with my hats! It's machine washable which is awesome because after my race it really needed to be freshened up. Head on over to Headsweats and check out their sweet visors as well as their other great performance gear.

I highly recommend the SUPERVISOR from Headsweats.

Monday, Monday......

Sunday~ OFF
Monday~Spin class --it was a hot one! Intervals galore.
Totally Toned at noon. Biceps galore!

I started a 10 day cleanse on Monday and feel great thus far. I am in the beginning stages of cleaning up my less than perfect diet. I am basically flooding myself with even more water than normal and eating tons of veggies and fruits. That's funny; isn't this how I should be eating?!??! Duh.
On tap for later today is speed work at running club. 800 repeats on the track. It could be worse and the weather could be worse too. SO I better count my lucky stars!

My 6 year old is funny. Yesterday she changed into her running gear and Nike running shoes. She told me she was going for a run. She proceeded to run up and down our street (sidewalk) for a good 10 minutes. She came back inside and told me she had to go teach a spin class! Love her!

Tri Del Sol Duathlon recap....( I medaled!!!!)

I was up all night ( I forgot to mention that hubby is out of town with the kids--I can't sleep when he is away!) So I was up before my 4:45 AM wake-up call. I was super tired ( still am).

Anyway on to the race. I placed first in my age group! Funny thing is ( to me, anyway) is that I was almost 2 minutes slower than last year and I placed 6th then! Oh well...I'll take it!

My Garmin biffed when I tried to download the info. Total bummer.

So the race started at 8am..... the run was hot and humid already. 2 miles in 16:04. Not to shabby for me this year.

My transition was over 2 minutes. That is too shabby for me any year! UGH. I can't believe I took that long to transition!! On to the bike. I did so much better than last year! That happens when your bike is in tact! The 18 mile bike took me 1:02:15. I am happy with that. I learned a lot from my buddy. He coached me basically the whole 18 miles!! The seconds transition was over 2 minute AGAIN. Boooo!!!!

The last 4.5 miles was basically hell on earth ( or as I imagine it to be). My legs were jello, and my lungs were heavy and closed. Not good. But I finished; albeit slow. 2:03:58 was my official time.

I always sprint to the finish no matter how sucky a race I feel I am having. In the duathlon you are marked with a "D"on your arm and leg to indicate that you are in the duathlon and your age as well. Some lady in my age group passed me with less than half a mile to go. Oh no she didn't!! She was the first person in my age group that I had seen all day. So I basically stayed on her butt until the final stretch--I beat her by 1 second. I actually felt bad, but I did what I had to do!

After over analysing the race, I feel I could have beat my time from last year just if I had gone quicker with my transitions! I hope to do another Du this summer. I plan on practicing my Bricks ( bike to running) a lot more too.

It was a fun, hot and GREAT day!

Me no sleepy....

I should be sleeping not blogging! I can't sleep!! I have to (I mean get to) get up at 4:45 to get ready for my duathlon! I am excited and nervous ( hence why I am here typing!).
It will be fun. I am going to run, bike and run again with a fellow spin instructor at my gym. He is the biker and I ( not lately) am the runner! So, we hope to motivate and push each other to the finish! I hope to get under 2 hours.....last year my time was 2:02:02! I should have played the lottery that day--I bet it was worth at least 2.2 million.

Anyway...today I taught spin and tried to control myself. I had to make up and switch the music. Don't worry--I was prepared, BUT 2 of the spinners that came this morning ( they never come on Friday) were at my Thursday class. I decided to recycle that class for Friday morning. Sooooo I had to change the music and think up a good spin ride in about 9 minutes. I did and it was pretty good. I hope I did not fry my own legs! I included a lot of speed drills and a few heavy climbs and bouts of endurance. It got hot up in that spin room!

I did a 20 minute yoga video later at home--Ahhhh! Ommmmm! Yeahhhh!
OK I better get to bed..starting to feel my eyes droop.

A day of good intentions......

I had great intentions of getting up today to ride 6 miles and run 3. Well......before the alarm went off I awoke to thunder and lightening. I am fine running in the rain; I actually enjoy it. I am not one to ride or bike in a thunderstorm with lightening. I made that mistake once and never again! I rolled over and slept in- I actually slept in until almost 9 am. I could have slept until noon fo sho'! I love sleep. I must have really needed it.
I taught a noon spin today and tried to go easy on myself because of the race this weekend, but 15-20 minutes into class I could not help myself. Maybe I should start playing crappy music so I won't feel like working hard-nah!
That's all for me today. I need to hit up a yoga or at least stretch on my own. These muscles are tight this week. I have spin in the morning and totally toned at noon and then it's off to sign up for Tri Del Sol duathlon! Me scared.....

Wednesday Spin Day....

Whew! My legs were tired, tired, tired today. Last nights track workout was no JOKE. I need to take it easy since my du is Saturday. Too bad I have to teach Spinning tomorrow and again on Friday....blah! (meant in the best way possible) I plan on doing a short ride in the morning and a harder run directly after ( brick). I also plan on taking it easy in both Spin classes--easier said then done for me, but I will give it my best effort.
That's all for today!

Wordless Wednesday (sort of)

Here is a sneak peek ( kinda sorta) of the picture that might be in Fitness Magazine this fall. I participated in a running shoe review and had to send in a pic of me in the show I loved the most. Aren't they neat looking!??! I am cleverly sporting my Fluid Flair tee shirt too-I love it that much!

Tuesday- Part II

Well......I kind of bagged out on my Cardio Sculpt class today! Don't get me wrong- I had a great workout planned, but decided my legs were about to get a beating at running club. I set up a cardio circuit and in between rounds we all did weights. I got a bit of movement in myself. It was still a great workout even though I usually save circuit for the half way point ( week 4) and not week 2! Needless to say I am very glad I set up a circuit.
The warm up today for running was 4 miles (for the advanced runner's--that's me I guess!) I was about 1 hour early to practice, so my buddy and I knocked out 2 miles to get them over with! We did those at about an 8:40 ish pace. We then headed to the track which was about 2 miles away. Our pace slowed to about 9 minute pace. We did the same workout as last week, but added a new exciting part ( sarcasm).
~(6) 150 meter sprints
~(3) 60 meter sprints
~(4) 120 meter sprints* new
2 mile cool down.

My legs ( who am I kidding---my WHOLE body is feeling this!) It was kind of exhausting, but I feel so good once it's all done. Next week we move up to some fun 800's.......

Tuesday--Part I

Tuesday AM- I plan on an afternoon and evening workout as well...nuts.
I rode my bike for a bit over 10 miles this morning and then ran 1 mile after that. The run was HARD!! But, I better get over it. My duathlon is in 4 days. Eeeek!
I have to teach cardio sculpt and then run later ( if it's not thunder storming!) at the track for some speedy sprints! That's it for now!

Monday, Monday......

Monday~ Spin instruction this morning. I taught an interval style today that was mostly hills with some endurance thrown in. I started and ended class with an 8 minute standing climb. I think it went over well. It was kind of challenging.
Totally Toned was at noon. I did the whole class too. Haha! I only used 8 lbs weights, but sadly it felt heavy to me! I have been out of my lifting game since starting XFit--- I will be glad when it's over. I really like it because it's different, but with all I already do it's beginning to be a nuisance! A few more weeks I believe ( even though I was unable to go today--it was nice to not get up at 4 am!) Anyway-- class went something like this:

Dead lift to shoulder press
forward lunges
hammer curls
step touches ( exertube)
standing side bends with exertube (60 secs)
2 sets of 10

Wide Pull Rows
push ups
Pelvic lift march
plank row
bicycle crunch (60 secs)

2 sets of 10

After both sets were done we then went through everything 1 more time.
There was still a bit of time left so I threw in some cat/cows, lower back exercises and butt exercises until the class was complete! A well-rounded class I think. I was a sweaty pig--what else is new?!?

I hope to get up at a decent time so I can ride on the road. It's confirmed. I WILL be doing the duathlon this weekend!!! Yay and Eeeek!

Runnin'!

Saturday-OFF!!!
Sunday-It was a hot 8 mile run. I dropped off my water so I could drink it at mile 5. Guess what? I lost it!! I never even saw it. I was dying from thirst!! I must have trekked right past it-I was probably delirious. But I did it and I am happy about that. I had to do it by myself too.... with a busted iPod ( it failed me after mile 2).
All in all it was a good week.
If things go as planned...I will be doing a duathlon (run/bike/run) on Saturday! I did this same race last year with a broken bike--I must redeem myself!!

Yoga, Spinning and running fast.....

Thursday~ I did yoga! There was a sub. I think I like the normal instructors style a bit better. That is all I did today- Ahhh!

Friday~ Spin instruction. I taught the same class as Wednesday. Lots of speed work with a brief hill interval in the middle. Whew. I then went to the track with a fellow RunGr member to do Thursday's workout on the track. My legs were pretty much already dead, but we did it!
(6) 150 meter sprints....and (3) 60 meters sprints. I love sprinting for a short distance! It's over quickly. Very effective too! Burns fat and it helps with fast twitch muscles!
I might even end the evening with a long bike ride. That's still in the works though.

Saturday will most likely be an off day. I am going out of town for most of the day. I plan on doing my progressive long run on Sunday. The run is to be progressive in speed--up to half marathon race--not looking forward to doing that by myself!

The week so far.......

Sunday~ I actually went to the gym. I was not as sore as I expected to be from good ole' T-Rex! I did the elliptical at an easy pace for 30 minutes and then the Ergo meter for 2000m. I can't remember how long it took me. I ended with some stretches and a lame attempt at core!
Monday~ X-Fit. Because we just came off a holiday the X-Fit instructor decided to take it easy on us ( HA!). We all jumped on the treadmills for our tabats ( 20 seconds work 10 seconds x8!). We all started at 8.0 mph with an incline of 12%. That's NO typo. The first 2 sprints were doable-until the instructor saw that I was not struggling! He made me bump up my speed to 8.5! I did sprints 3-7 at 8.5 and the last one at 9.0. It was awful. I could have easily tossed my cookies! One girl did excuse herself to go to the bathroom after the 3 sprint. OY. It was hard. 4 minutes of torture.....after that we played a game of full court basketball. That was fun. I don't do basketball! I made 2 shots though! My team lost, but it was kind of fun.
Tuesday~ I am back to teaching classes at a corporation. They took a 2 week break. The break was nice, but it's also nice to see my class participants again. The class is called Cardio Sculpt. We did long intervals of cardio and sculpting. After that I went directly to running club-- to run hills--in 95* weather. Not so smart. I did 10 hill sprints. It was painful, but I need to build my strength! It was also not a good day to forget to take my allergy meds and a puff on the inhaler. Ugh. High temp. and humidity = poor breathing! I made it out alive though....
Wednesday~ X-Fit at 5 AM. Today's workout was called FRAN. I liked her a lot better than HELEN (look at Wed. recap).
Fran went like this: 3 rounds consisting of
Front Squat thruster ( front squat to a press 45#)
Jumping pull-ups
1st round 21 reps (!!!!!!!)
2nd round 15 reps
3rd round 9 reps
He said a good time is under 5 minutes. I was done in 4:19!!! The first round was the hardest for me. 45 reps in all...nuts! The pain is starting to set it!
Spin was at 10 am and it was a killer. I am not sure how I muster out the energy sometimes..... today's class was all about the fast intervals....and the strong climbs and then with the intervals again. We finished off with 2 good hard sprints. I had a full class today which made it even HOTTER in class then usual. I am parched!
It's been a great week of workouts so far this week.
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Planning ahead:
Thursday: Yoga and maybe some light cardio
Friday: Spin class and maybe a long bike ride with a friend.
Saturday: OFF
Sunday: Long run

Race Day! T-Rex!

I came. I ran. I conquered! Well, not really, BUT I did win my age group (somehow!!)
This trail race was NO joke. It started off all uphill-to set the tone I guess!
My splits are crazy. I averaged about a 10 minute mile. That is slower than my long runs, but we don't do long runs on steep trails with sand etc. If I do this race next year, I vow to hit the trails beforehand to get a feel for trail running.
The weather was pretty good considering. I was grateful for the moments of shade from the trees; even it was momentary. It was nice.
I will honest and admit that I am not happy with my time. I walked A LOT today during the race. The hills were nutso and so were the flats for that matter!
I should be happy with my time though-even a cool 1st place age group finisher medal did not change that. ( I was totally surprised when I was handed the medal). I still had a good time ( I think), it was just a challenging and humbling experience. I had moments of energy and then BAM-I was walking. It was weird. Oh well...there is always next year!!
Here are the goods: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/39053022

T-Rexin' it today!

It's Race day and one again I am up way too early. But somehow I will still end up scrambling around to leave my house on time! How does that happen?!?!

I am looking forward to this race. It's more of a fun one, so I am told. It's too hard to try for a goal time; especially since it's my first time doing this race. It's mainly trails and hills. Cool and yuck! The weather is supposed to be quite warm, but at least the humidity will stay away until tomorrow.

I have quite a few friends running this one too. We all have different paces and goals so it will be interesting to see what happens. Will I let my competitive side take over and try to keep up with the faster guys OR hang low and really enjoy myself and run alone or with my conservative buddies? Come back later to find out!!!

Week in review-- I can still breath and I am still ( kind of) fast!

Monday- XFit and Spinning.......Spin was a race day! HR was up, up and away!!!

Tuesday- 4 mile warm up
Sprints-150m x 8-- I could breath and I was pretty fast! Yahoo!! I think this helped me get more confidence back too....Let's hope. My coach had a little crowd gathered to watch me run my sprints--funny. If that does not make you run fast and your best! Saturday will be another test.
2 mile cool down. I talked to my running coach and he thinks I should do the advanced 1/2 marathon training-eeek! Hence the 4 mile warm up instead of 2!

Wednesday- XFit and Spin class.
Thursday- Spin class ( I subbed)
That's all I got!

I am super sore...I think the XFit, sprints, and spin classes have me beat!
I am hoping tomorrow I can get in some yoga since I failed that this week...I need it MOST this week too.

On tap for Friday: Another spin instruction. YOGA and Hydrating for my 10 mile trail race on Saturday!! It should be fun..it starts at 9 am and the forecast for the day is HOT. Awesome!