Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a good weekend and got some of the nice weather we got in Pittsburgh. My weekend was fun, busy, and blog-free, which is why this recap is a day late.
I’m a month into my off season and loving it. I’m able to run just for the fun of it, and when the weather is particularly bad like it was last week, I don’t have to run. While I don’t have problems being motivated to continue to run and work out, I’m feeling like there’s so much I want to do (like more strength training and yoga) that I need to set goals. I’ll be doing a post on that later this week.
On the shopping front (just as important), I checked out the Lululemon in Ross Park Mall, and they have tons of stuff marked down. I was able to get a long sleeve Swiftly, which I wear religiously as a base layer on winter runs, for $20 off and also got a run hat and gloves marked down. If you live near a Lululemon, it’s worth stopping in to check out their marked-down stuff. Also, if you need new winter workout clothes, be sure to sign up for email notices from your favorite brands, because the majority (though not Lululemon!) will have Black Friday deals this week.
This past week I increased my strength training from two to three days and had some really nice runs. Weekly mileage was 18. Here’s how the week went down.
Monday
Morning: plyometrics strength training
Evening: 40 minutes Yin Yoga
Tuesday
We got hit with awful, frigid temps with highs in the teens and lows below 10. I was fine with skipping my run!
Morning: 23 minutes Core Yoga from Runner's World
Evening: 30 minute plyometric cardio routine on the Bosu ball
Wednesday
It was still only about 13 degrees in the morning, so I postponed my run until the evening.
Morning: 30 minutes core and glutes strength training
Evening: First run with my greyhound (recap)—about 1 mile (better than not going out for a run at all)
Thursday
Morning run on the river trail: 4 miles, 45:55 11:28 pace
28 degrees felt positively balmy after the previous two mornings! It was good to get out again.
Evening: 20 minutes strength training, with an emphasis on arms and legs
Friday
Rest day! I had the day off work and really wanted to get a run in, but I stuck to walking to rest up for a weekend of running. I did a walk commute to the Strip District and back for a hair appointment and then went on a long walk with Django on the river trail in the afternoon. He loves walking in cold weather as much as I love running in it.
Saturday
10 miles, 1:51, 11:10 pace
Amanda was running her last long run at North Park to prepare for the Nittany Valley Half Marathon in two weeks, so I joined her. The first five-mile loop around the lake went so quickly and easily that I decided I was up for another loop. We stopped at our cars to take a gel and some water and headed back out for the second five-mile loop. It went just as quick and felt just as easy as the first loop. Time sure flies when you’re busy gabbing! My only problem was my frozen fingers. It was 26 degrees when we first started, and it never felt like it warmed up. I was warm except for my hands. I must have poor circulation in my hands, because my fingers always turn into popsicles in gold weather, no matter how heavy my gloves. On the first loop I kept my gloved hands clenched with my top pulled over them to keep them warm. But I regretted not carrying my water bottle so decided to carry it on the second loop. Because I couldn’t nest my hands in my shirt, my hand carrying my bottle froze. It was very painful, so I tried switching back and forth between hands but each time the exposed hand froze. I learned a lesson to a.) use my water belt instead of a hand-held when it’s really cold and b.) layer mittens over my gloves, and/or use hand warmers. By the very end of the run, the freezing rain had started and the last stretch of sidewalk was slippery. We tried to run in the grass beside the sidewalk, but it had a lot of stones and divets. Instead, we just went very slowly until we got back to the parking lot. Despite my frozen fingers and slippery sidewalks, it was a really fun run, where the miles just flew by. And even though it was a faster pace than my usual 11:30-12:00 easy run pace, the pace didn’t feel hard at all, though I was huffing and puffing on some of the hills.
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| Bundled up! With Amanda at North Park. |
Later that afternoon, Dave and I took Django on a walk to West Park in the Central Northside, and there was still ice on some of the sidewalks and it was 45 degrees!
Sunday
3 miles, 30:43, 10:13 pace
What a gorgeous day! It was 60 degrees when I went out to run, and it felt fabulous after the cold spell. I didn’t have much time to run so decided to bump up the pace. It was an uncomfortable pace for me, but I didn’t let up on it and ran the last mile faster than the first two. Splits were 10:18, 10:18, and 10:05. I was happy I was able to speed up in the final mile. I wore a long sleeve top (my Turkey Trot top from last year) and capris and was pretty hot, though.
It was my husband’s birthday, so he wanted to go on a little day trip. After my run, I showered and got ready and we headed to West Virginia and spent the afternoon exploring Weirton. There is not a lot to see in Weirton, other than the mammoth, active steel mill. It is huge! Django always likes exploring new places, though, so he enjoyed walking through the town. He also got a treat, a buttermilk biscuit from Tudor’s Biscuit World, which he loved (though he pretty much loves all food.) The other exciting thing to note about Weirton is that high school students get to wear shirts that say “Weir High.” Ha!
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| Django could care less about the giant Santa. |
This Thursday I'll be doing the Turkey Trot 5K before heading to my family's for dinner. I did the five-mile race last year, and it was a lot of fun.
Have fun running and working out this week! Are you doing a Turkey Trot or other workout before Thanksgiving dinner? Labels: django, weekend running, weekly recap
