Race Report: 4x400m Relay

Previous PR: 1:22 (2016, anchor leg)
Previous Race Reports From This Event:2016 1, 2016 2, 
Goal: don't get injured, have fun
Result: 1:17 (PR)

Atlanta Track Club puts on these awesome community track meets, "All-Comers", each year that are TOTALLY FREE on Tuesdays in May and June. For the past few years, they've also included some Grand Prix (year-long points-based member competition/series) events, which has boosted participation. 

4x400m Relay
The Running Mamas had planned on putting together a team for the 4x400m relay. Unfortunately, one of our members was sick the morning of, but we were able to substitute another mama's training partner as our fourth. 

We actually missed the first (and second?) call for the 4x, but were able to slide in and have another heat created just for our team... and then that filled up too, with some CRAZY FAST people. We ended up just trying to stick with a team comprising a single family (#lifegoals); with two adults and two kids under ten, they still ended up smoking us. Haha.

so, what do we do with this baton thingy? 

I took the lead leg because I knew it was my best chance for not feeling like I had to push the pace, and I didn't want to overdo anything after this morning's HAAAAAAAARD track workout. Still had to push a little to keep pace with the family's 10 year old, and finished in a strong 1:17, muuuuuuuuch faster than I'd expected. Definitely came off with some confidence for this weekend's mile. 

so proud of our team!

Also did the Shot Put (because was a Grand Prix event):

Had NO idea what I was doing, but Rachael, our former NCAA heptathlete, was super encouraging with last-minute guidance on form. Ended up doing reasonably well (or so I'm told?), though they haven't published points yet. Look for that in the weekly recap entry coming on Sunday. 

waiting in the queue
(but where's Brad?)

this ball is HEAVY

throwing

Braves Training: Week 2/3

Monday
Scheduled: 2mi + 5 strides, nada
Did: 4mi + 5 strides WITH THE STROLLER (10:04/mi avg, strides @ sub-6:00/mi)
I'd planned on taking the Memorial Day holiday as a true rest day.... but then I got the notice I'd be traveling for work on Wednesday, which would force a rest day. I went back and forth between what to do day, and woke up with tentative plans to go out for a family run. But when one of the running mamas, who's been in overseas for the past few weeks and arrived home yesterday, asked if anyone would be up for a stroller run today, I couldn't pass the opportunity up. 

Still, I wanted to get some sort of speedwork in. Real workouts aren't exactly social, and they're also near impossible to do with a stroller (at least safely). I compromised and decided to join the girls for an easy 3-4 and just fit in five strides as I had the right terrain to do it safely. 

It's fun to go fast. I took the "out" easy, to warm-up, converse, and scout out the best places along the route for strides on the return. The strides on the "back" felt GOOD. I had zero issues with my calves or any other part of my body. The hardest part, in fact, was realizing I couldn't use my arms AT ALL; having a kiddo along for the ride necessitated keeping both hands on the stroller at all times for the strides. At least I know I actually do use my arms when I'm running normally ;)

Hello! 

Strides were all a bit shorter than usual (normally ~30s), but I was also beholden to the terrain, which meant slowing up "early" due to turns, change in surface, other pedestrians, etc.
Feelin' pretty good about hitting 5s WITH A STROLLER, even if it's only for, like, 100m

Tuesday

Scheduled: 1.5WU, 3 tempo @ 8:00, 1.75CD

Did: Nailed it
I'm sure I've done it recently, but this was my fourth consecutive day of running, and it felt like I hadn't had a rest day in FOREVER (even though I had one on Wednesday). Combine that feeling with: 
1) this being the first day back after a holiday weekend, 
2) baby crying out a few times last night and waking me up,
3) this being the first workout I've done since... March 28

I was nervous about this morning. I haven't pushed myself in so long, and I was scared of not being able to do what I was supposed to do, feeling the burn of a hard workout, etc. This is the first time in quite awhile that I've set out to run with an actual goal in mind, which meant it was the first time I could actually "fail". That's always a little intimidating. 

The first mile was "a Kenyan warm-up". Once upon a time, Coach Amy told me that the Kenyans usually warm up with a 10min mile. Ever since, B and I have enjoyed joking that we train like Kenyans. lol. Within the first tenth of a mile, I was bringing up the rear. I had no problem running solo if that's what it turned out to be. I'd rather go nice and easy on my warm-up if I was going to have three hard miles to do in the middle. 

Mile 1.5 came too quickly for my liking, and Brad and Brandi took off. Even though I wanted to run around an 8:00 for my tempo miles (pace for a 50:00 10K), I didn't want to get caught up on the pace. Brad was well ahead of us, and I let him go, choosing, instead, to focus on my breathing and just run a "comfortably uncomfortable" pace, whatever it ended up being. 

Tempo Mile 1: I was comfortable, and keeping an eye on my watch to make sure we weren't too far below the 8:00 pace, because I had concerns about keeping it if I started out too fast-- no trouble. 

Tempo Mile 2: Decidedly not comfortable. There were some hills that I never knew existed on the 10KTuesday route until I had to do them at a pace. This was very much a "just get through it" mile, and I wished at the end of it that I only had two tempo miles to do instead of three.

Tempo Mile 3: This was the real workout. I was fatigued and wanting to stop, but gutted it out, literally thinking through laps on a track, and trying to just keep Brad and Brandi in my sights. I was beyond glad when I finally felt the mile vibration in my wrist and could stop. 

Oooooh, data

As soon as that last tempo mile was over, I stopped and walked for about 45s, and then jogged as slowly as I could (clearly not that slow since the pace was still under 10) for the cool-down home. I finished sweaty, disgusting, exhausted... and really proud. It feels good to be back "in training", even if I don't know what I'm training for :P 

Wednesday

Scheduled: rest

Did: site visit for work, 15min airport yoga
Did a decent bit of walking a job site; definitely ate like a construction worker today (I don't think ANYTHING I consumed today would have qualified for last week's "Partially Whole 7"); had a delayed flight home so I did a 15min yoga YouTube in an empty corner of the terminal 

Thursday

Scheduled: 1mi WU, 10x300tempo/100m recovery, 1mi CD

Did: scheduled workout; total = 5.07 @ 8:33/mi avg

​

I'd planned on slowly wading back into speedwork with 4x400/400. But then I talked with Coach about the potential to do the mile at Braves last night. 

So... I suppose that means I'll be racing the mile next weekend. 

...and then I asked her how to spend the next 10 days.

Hard workouts? Lots of intervlas/
Erm... but, why? 

Fortunately, I've got a group to get me through the hard workouts. #SpeedworkThursday resumed this morning, with three new members (from the #10KTuesday) crew. Though we had three different workouts scheduled between the six of us, starting and ending together was enough motivation for us all to get out and meet up at 5am.

#SpeedworkThursday, getting it done 

My workout was 10x300m hard/100m jog, with the hard being more of a tempo than a true push. That's 10 laps in the track. While it pales in comparison to some of the workouts we did for Chicago, or even the first 5K of the year, I was dreading it from the moment I saw it.  

It ended up rocking rhombus. I had anticipated something like a 8min/mi on the hard intervals. Noppppppe. Sub-7 on ALL of them. :D 

Though, disclaimer: the distance reading on my watch is more than 300m.
I ran 300m by track markings, so, even reducing the GPS distance to the 0.186mi (300m), I'm still sub-7

Random thoughts about this workout (I had a nice summary written, but computer lost it):

• focused a lot on my arms (since that was a weak link from the Little Kings Mile) 
• paid attention to my form too
• proud that I didn't stop for water until lap 7 (normally I'd stop at the quarter points of a workout, etc)
• workout only started to get "hard" after lap 6... which is clearly why I was assigned 10 repeats
• I freaking love the track 

WEEEE, SPEEDWORK GRAPH

Friday

Scheduled: DIY strength 

Did: 32min weight lifting - BOOM
Traveling again today. Enjoyed getting an opportunity to just lift. My only goal for the day was just to do 30min of whatever sort of lifts came to mind. Did lots of stuff that I've forgotten in the past 48 hours since I didn't write it down. :P 

Wee, muscles!

Saturday

Scheduled: easy, XT, or off

Did: 3.43 @ 9:00/mi avg, Big 5
Wanted 5-6mi, but wasn't able to make that happen due to schedule constraints. Normally, I just get up early enough to get whatever miles in before my obligations for the day begin. Today, that wasn't an option. I drove my planned route before running it, and found myself SUPER creeped out that on the entire four miles, I didn't see a single other car or person. It was eerie, and I didn't feel safe running it... which sucked. 

I waited until sunrise, and was still able to get ~3.5 in. It wasn't the route I wanted, but it was really nice to run around my alma mater... and take a few pics along the way. I didn't run while I was in school, not really, at least. My senior year, my sorority little and I used to walk/run a 2.5mi loop around campus Mondays and Wednesdays to make up for our Friday morning bagel and coffee dates, but that was it. A lot of the parts of that route that felt like mountains back then weren't even hills to me today. That felt good :)

Sunday

Scheduled: 3-4 with stroller

Did: 3.1 on the treadmill @ 6.5mph (~9min/mi), Big 5, foam rolling
Unpredictable pop-up thunderstorms forced the running mamas to cancel our stroller run this morning (I actually ended up driving out to rescue Jerry who was already part-way through his 12-miler when I heard the first thunderclap). I wanted some mileage, but the rest of the day had 40% chance of thunderstorms, so I turned to our handy-dandy basement treadmill, something I haven't used in.... awhile. Very glad to have it, though! 

KindofWhole7

A lot of my friends have recently done this Whole30 thing. I found myself intrigued, but also very realistic that I was unwilling to commit to such a long period with so many changes to my current nutrition. Instead, I decided to try a seven day period of avoiding super-processed foods. Basically, I wanted to cut out eating all of the boxed crap. I decided milk, yogurt, cheese, rice, and a few other things would be "OK", but focused on not eating free breakroom snacks (nutrigrain bars, cheese crackers, etc) or the snacks we keep in the house for the boys (poptarts, goldfish, oreos, ice cream, etc). 

Here's how it went:

Sunday: lots of eggs, lots of frozen veggies, cooked broccoli... decided alcohol didn't count against me, and allowed myself six Triscuits with my morning fritata  :P 

Monday: breakfast was HARD this morning, because I usually eat cereal pre-run... ended up having some cheese (another thing I decided didn't count against me) and calling it good; stopped at Chipotle for dinner after three hours of dance class at 9:54pm and got a steak bowl (also didn't count against me with my "rules")

Tuesday: had overnight oats for breakfast (I suppose plain quaker oats are "processed", but, again, this is why I didn't want to do a real Whole30-- because I'm unwilling to change my lifestyle SO much), and found them pretty disgusting... need to try adding other things beyond plain yogurt and oats; was pleased that our catered lunch at work had lots of veggies, baked salmon, and salad

Wednesday: overnight oats were better with milk and yogurt, but still not very palatable; ate tons of brown rice, broccoli and cooked turkey for meals; felt like it was getting easier, but that I still really wanted some freaking bread or crackers

Thursday: overnight oats were disgusting this morning-- too much cinnamon, didn't eat them and ended up with yogurt for breakfast instead; didn't have a good snack for work and ended up caving and taking one of the free snacks from the break room (potato chips); they were delicious :P; got back on the wagon for dinner

Friday: nailed the overnight oats (at last!) with yogurt, milk, and a banana; kind of "cheated" with catered chinese for a work lunch (white rice + chicken + broccoli, though, so it was a "healthier" option); was STARVING when I got home and enjoyed salmon, asparagus and rice (yay, grocery shopping) 

Saturday: this was a challenge, since today was full of eating out; after a 10mi run, B and I did Flying Biscuit for brunch, where I had a veggie egg scramble (good), fruit (good), and a biscuit (not good... but I ran 10mi and was STARVING, so I ate it); my sis and I were out at an art fair over lunch and stopped into a deli, where I had a delicious salad (no dressing, 'cause I don't like it); dinner was taco eggs (beans, eggs, peas, salsa, cheese)... and then I wanted ice cream, but Jerry guilted me into just having plain yogurt instead 


All in all, I think it was a good experiment. I know I can be eating healthier, and I didn't do too badly considering that, when I decided to do this, we hadn't grocery shopped for it, so I was improvising a lot. When we made this week's list, I actually planned out some meals, so hopefully that'll help me continue. I'm not going to be as regimented this coming week, but I am going to try to make a conscious effort to choose what I eat a bit more diligently than I have been... at least until Peachtree. 

I'm not motivated by trying to lose weight. I'm really happy with where I'm at on that front (god, it feels so good to say that). I do, however, want to:

• get my cholesterol levels in the healthy level (HDL is too low, LDL is a little high-- this was a bit reality check/disappointment at my recent biometric screening at work)
• continue to feel good (I physically feel better when I eat right)
• help my times on the shorter distances by eating right
• stay fit and healthy to be able to bounce back (again) from the eventual Potato #2 in the coming years 
• set a good example for the existing Potato 

Biggest struggles: 

• wanting convenience (if it's between spending six minutes mircowaving a sweet potato to eat or just grabbing a nutrigrain bar from the break room, I struggle to do the prep work) 
• missing crunchy stuff like saltines, tostitos, bread, crackers

Best hacks to combat that: 

• microwave in a bag stuff-- frozen veggies, brown rice, etc
• single-serving bags of veggies
• prepping things early and just having them there to "grab and go"
• overnight oats
• small tupperwares of pre-chopped veggies
• baking chicken early, shredding/dicing it up for easy salad topping
• hard-boiled eggs

Braves Training: Week 1/3

Next Race: Atlanta Braves Country... though I'm still unsure whether I'll be running the 5K or the mile. :P That's something for my coach to figure out once we see the course maps. Either way, it's three weeks out, so it's time to make something happen.



Monday
Scheduled: 2mi + 5 strides, strength
Did: 2mi @ 9:34/mi avg, bootcamp with 4x240m @ 6:20ish plus 2x320m @ 7:28/mi
Did NOT want to get up this morning. Thank goodness for training partners. If bailing on my workout didn't necessitate standing up a friend, I totally would have bailed this morning.

Took the 2mi very easy (like, approaching an 11min/mi to start) and decided I wasn't feeling strides, so we didn't do them. This turned out to be an excellent decision, because bootcamp had short runs mixed into today's workout that I ended up using as pseudo-strides. 

It took me until halfway through the workout before I was awake. This is why I pay for bootcamp. Because I literally don't have to think at all. Our instructor makes the workouts, shows us the workouts, times the workouts, and we have at least another half dozen people all going through the workouts at the same time. SO NICE.

Today's circuit was 4x45s work/10s rest on
1) leg raise with hip lift/cross sit-ups (alt each round)
loved the cross sit-ups; I've gotten so much stronger at sit-ups in general since starting bootcamp last December
2) jump forward, squat back/high knees (half time on each)
3) tiger push-ups/rotational push-ups (alt each round)
no knees on the push-ups! boom!
4) Russian twists/knee-to-chest-grab-foot thing (half time on each)
5) touchdowns/lateral out-out-in-in run (half time on each)
6) prisoner squat/mountain climbers (half time on each)
mountain climbers no longer suck :)
7) loop run (~240m)
Focused on my posture, stride, and arms... and consistently found myself encouraged to go a little faster by another athlete. That's one of the many great things about these classes: team motivation. I was glad we hadn't done the strides on our pre-workout run, because these ended up being kind of like those might've been (6:20 pace).

...and then we went right into 2x through:
1) fence run (~340m)
2) 15 deadman burpees
ooooooooooof

And, later that night, I took three one-hour dance classes.




Tuesday
Scheduled: 10K
Did: 6.34 @ 9:34/mi avg, 1.5mi walk for client meetings during work
Hamstrings, lower back, and obliques are SO SORE from dance class. Today's run started off really slowly (10:40/mi), and gradually fell into a low-to-mid 9 pace. Yet another run that wouldn't have happened without training partners and the hashtag. 


Wednesday
Scheduled: rest
Did: rest
Back is still sore from dance. Had a somewhat stressful day of work. All in all, good day for a rest day.


Thursday
Scheduled: 1mi WU, 4x800/2min, 1mi CD
Did: 4.58 @ 9:30/mi avg
I had the best intentions of doing speedwork this morning, but B's work schedule changed last-minute and she needed to be done with whatever workout we were doing and back at her place by 5:15am. We opted for a 4:30am meet-up at her house, and just had a nice, easy run/therapy session. So much for getting back on the training wagon... 



Friday
Scheduled: bootcamp
Did: bootcamp
Kind of bummed we didn't run this morning, because the weather was glorious. Had the option of doing yesterday's strength workout, but, since it's untimed and we'd have to do our own counting (I know, sooooo hard :P), B and I opted to just do the scheduled workout with the rest of the class.

Workout

Commentary: was able to finally do the suspended/high rows for the specified duration (with much modification, but this is still a huge improvement); rope snaps are still a big challenge for me

Commentary: This gem brought my humility back. I was good for the first 20 wipers... and then it got hard. I was good for the first 5 burpees... and then they got hard. The fence run was a nice break, but still harder than usual with burpees on either side of it. Round 2 of burpees was easier than the first, but I still broke it in to two sets of ten with a 20s rest. 

Saturday
Scheduled: 10mi easy
Did: 10.16 @ 9:19/mi avg
No ATC training meant that Jer could take the baby, giving Brandi and I a rare opportunity to do our Saturday long run somewhere other than the shaded, flat, and car-less greenway (since I won't run roads with a stroller). We opted for a "Tour de Roswell", starting at 6:15 (just before sunrise-- another perk of not running with a stroller), and hit some of the places I've driven by and thought, "Man, that looks like a nice place to run". 

NOT on the Greenway today!

I haven't run double digits for awhile (maybe since Publix?), but it felt so good and easy. I love that I never worry about making it through my runs or dread the mileage these days. This morning was just a guaranteed 1.5+ hour scenic chat with a friend, with the promise of brunch afterwards. 

We enjoyed running through historic downtown, along some new gravel trails (though we opted against the narrow ones that actually went through the woods... since we didn't know them well enough not to get lost), and up along an old route of mine I used to run a couple years back before chorus rehearsals. 

Throughout the run, there was NO talk of pace, and neither of us even looked at our watches at all (except to make sure they were re-started again after the few road crossings). Surprise, surprise: we had THREE sub-9:00 miles to close out. #winning

m4 involved a pretty cool climb out of the valley
very happy with this run

Sunday
Scheduled: 4mi stroller run
Did: 3mi stroller run @ 9:36/mi avg
Severe weather almost forced a cancellation this morning, but S and I persevered and found a good time to go out safely with the kiddos. We kept the run easy, but ended up still hitting a really good pace. So glad to be back doing some regular stroller running. 

#MotherRunners 

  

...and now for something completely different

Before I had my baby, I danced on a semi-regular basis at Dance101. My favorite class was taught by a woman who ended up having a baby of her own a few months after I had mine. When I heard she was going to be subbing for a class at the studio near my house, I took the opportunity to get back over there. Of course, when I went to sign up for her class, I saw a lot of others that caught my eye… so I turned it into a whole evening last night.

I danced growing up, taking ballet, jazz, hip-hop, and modern classes at a studio, competing with my school winter and colorguard units, and then continuing through Clemson Dancers in college. It was such a joy to rekindle my passion last night, even though I have definitely lost a lot in my two off years. 

winterguard state championships 2004

Clemson Dancers Pom 2007

Contemporary Ballet w/Rachel: this was EXACTLY the sort of class I’ve been dreaming about. We had a barre warm-up, followed by beautiful and emotional choreography that gets you completely swept up in the music… well, once you know the moves :P I found myself struggling to recall all the technique and terminology for the barre warm-ups, but pretty proud at how much actually did come back, since I haven’t had a true ballet class since I was, uh, 14? Watching myself in the mirror, I couldn’t escape the fact that I definitely looked like an athlete instead of a dancer. I had strength and stamina, but not the easy grace that the other students had. Still, I hope I can come back and do this class again.

Hip-hop w/Tanya: YASSSSSSS. The instructor for this one was incredible, and I found myself pleasantly surprised at how much easier this style came back to me than ballet. I was able to nail the warm-up choreo as well as the routine, and even be the student that was interacting with the instructor during the performance part of the class, as if we were putting on our own show. While I’m in pretty good shape when it comes to strength/circuit training and excellent shape for running, though, I was definitely feeling fatigued halfway through class. One of the other students, who was also in great shape and killing the choreography, joked, “I just realized I need to do more cardio” as we hit the 30min mark. My cardio was fine, but my legs and back (muscles I thought I used, but clearly don’t) were sore and heavy. Still, SO MUCH FUN.

Stilettos w/Sahrit: This is a fun character sort of class. I have the character down, but there is SO much technique that I’m missing. The choreography was simple, but the timing went with the music, which was a song I’m unfamiliar with, so that was a challenge. I tried to do part of the class in my 3” heels and found myself pretty embarrassed that I wasn’t able to execute the choreography as well in them, partially due to fatigued legs, partially due to my tailor’s bunion acting up (has been since I put it in a too-tight shoe in Cincy—boo), and partially because I don’t normally dance in heels. I ended up taking them off and going barefoot for the last few run-throughs and doing much better.

I came home a hot, sweaty mess, with sore legs, back and obliques. The evening was a great success… though I had a hard time getting to bed, slept terribly, and struggled to get up for 10KTuesday. Fortunately, the hashtag was enough motivation. :)

Another Interim Week

Monday
Did: 1.05mi on beach @ 8:43/mi avg
Set out for a walk, but couldn't help but want to run as the sun rose over the shore. Pretty cool to see how my footprints looked in the sand- a straight line of "ball of the foot"-prints. :) 

Tuesday
Did: 6.26 @ 8:37/mi avg, Big 5
When Jer and I lived in Charleston, we used to run 2-3 miles from our apartment along the West Ashley Greenway. We always said it might be cool to, someday, be able to run the whole length of it (almost 8mi), which, at the time, sounded impossible. Today, we at least ran the "last half" of it as an ONB 10KTuesday, so now I've run its entire length. 

It was really fun to run with my husband! We don't get these opportunities very often. During the week, I run before work and he runs after due to commute+childcare obligations. On Saturdays, one of us coaches for the track club while the other does a stroller run with baby boy. On Sundays, I have my running mamas group. When we have had the occasion to run together, our pace difference usually presents a bit of a problem. 

Today was awesome, though. I've gotten fast enough over the past year that I'm not only able to keep up with him, but also hold a conversation, which feels pretty amazing. We had a GREAT time running together at a pace that was comfortable for us both, and even finished off with a really fun kick at the end. This wound up being both an all-time 10KTuesday PR for me as well as the second fastest 10K I've ever run. <3

morning runs: 1000x better of a date than going out for dinner
(though we did have coffee together after)  

Wednesday
Did: nothing
I wanted to do bootcamp this morning, but realized we just had too much that needed to be done for the family this morning to make that viable. Planning on doing my own strength training tonight before bed... so we'll see if that happens. 

...nope, sure didn't. Oh well. Probably needed a rest day. 



Thursday
Did: 3mi PRO @ 9:34/9:23/8:53, Big 5, plus bootcamp with 3x~225m @ 7:59/mi
Getting up at 4:10am after sleeping in (until 6- lol) most mornings for the past week was a bit rough. Still, it was wonderful to have a run with B. I've missed her!

Our run felt really good as we warmed up over three miles, unintentionally turning it into a progression run. Bootcamp was great, too. I'm always amazed by how "good" I feel there. Not only do I have a good workout, but being around the people and our instructor just puts me in such a great mood for the rest of the day. I'm beyond glad that we started... and came back. 

Today's workout was four rounds through:

1) modified pull-ups
These are the hardest for me. I have to really focus on using my arms/chest/back instead of just letting my quads do most of the work. 

2) toe touches/angled toe-touches (alternate each round)
Definitely felt it on the angled version

3) wall balls
Used 10# ball and felt like these were "easy", even getting into a deeper squat and throwing higher. Sounds like it's time to upgrade to the 20#!

4) hamstring gliders (alternate between singles and both legs)
Kept arms off the ground for alternating single legs, but had to rely on elbows for grounding on the "both leg" ones

5) kettlebell OH press/speed floor press (alternate each round)
Definitely used the right weights for these: OH press = 26#, floor press = #35. Was just getting to failure by the end of each time period. 

6) box shuffles/lateral runs
nothing to talk about here ;) 

and then three rounds through:

10 deadman burpees
20 kimura situps
~225m run

Found it REALLY hard to go right into the kimuras after the burpees. Runs felt good. I like the short distances we do at bootcamp because I can use them to focus on my form. Today, I thought about leaning forward and keeping my arms at a 90 degree angle.

Friday
Did: 4.12 @ 9:34/mi avg, Big 5
Even at 4:30am, Hotlanta is living up to its name. Oh, the humidity! Felt sluggish, but the last mile was a 9:01, so there's that...

Sidenote: I really like being able to be home and showered before the family gets up and we start our day. 


Saturday
Did: 7.04 @ 9:10/mi avg, 20k steps, Big 5
Unexpected travel took me away from Brandi for yet another Saturday run this month. Fortunately, I found a great place to run around where I was staying. I wasn't thrilled by the prospect of 6-8 miles by myself, but it ended up being a really great start to a hard day. It's always fun when you plan out a new route away from home and see other runners within the first mile; not only do you know you picked a "good route', but it's always nice to have some "company" on the roads. 

Despite actively trying to "take it easy", I was a pretty consistent 9:13/mi for the first 5K, slowed to a 9:36 on the "trails", and then picked it up for the last bit on the roads. It's runs like this that make me feel really confident in my abilities, especially when they happen at times I'm not expecting them to. 

Saw this gem about a mile in. #itsasign

Sunday
Did: ~2mi walk with the fam, Big 5, 2 Jeopardy episodes of weight lifting
Easy stroll along the riverwalk, then some miscellaneous weight lifting while watching DVRed Jeopardy episodes that I'm going to count as strength training

Gorgeous :)

Also:
I've recently been inspired by a host of friends trying the Whole30, paleo, or just other "healthy eating" plans. As much as I'd like to jump on the bandwagon and go hardcore/all in on one of these things, I know that's unrealistic for me right now. I am, however, making a conscious effort to go one week without eating "processed crap". I'm not being super regimented about the criteria I use, but I do have criteria and, today, I met them. That's one day down, six to go. 

Post-Race Week

Monday
Did: traveled 9 hours home, unpacked, blogged... rest day? 
Felt a little soreness in my left calf- not a strain, just the "yeah, you had a hard race" soreness. 

Tuesday
Did: 10KTuesday @ 9:52/mi avg, Big 5, 400m 
Had a little residual leg soreness and took 10KT really easy. We had a fun little celebration for Brandi's 100th consecutive 10KT run, and then it was back to reality with a quick shower, rushing off to work, and settling in for a long day at the office. 

Had planned on going to the All-Comers track meet tonight to run the 400, but then I realized:
1) my left ankle felt a little funny from stepping on uneven sidewalk on my way to lunch
2) it would take me an hour to drive to the meet after work
3) my event wouldn't start until at least 8pm
4) it would take me at least an hour to drive home after the meet

which brings us to

5) I just didn't care enough.

...and it felt REALLY good to say, "No, I don't feel like making a monumental effort to go do this thing." I can't remember the last time I did that. 



Wednesday
Did: 12min of core/arms + 1.53mi @ 9:15/mi avg with stroller, Big 5
Took some time over my lunch break to work my core and arms.

3x20 15# dumbbell chest presses
3x10 straight leg lift with hip raise
3x20 15# dumbbell rows
3x10 cross sit-ups
3x10 5# dumbbell bicep curls
3x20 Russian twists with volleyball for form

This past weekend, baby boy demonstrated a clear enthusiasm for being in his stroller (crying when he saw the portable one collapsed and saying "oh no! oh no!" until we unfolded it... and then running to the other side and saying "ride! ride!"). I didn't need or really want to do any miles for myself, but loved the idea of spending some time with baby boy and "treating him" to a stroller run. 

So we did a mile and a half, and he LOVED it. It brings such joy to my heart to hear him say "wee", "yeah!", and "ride" while we run. <3 I'm pretty proud of us for being the sort of parents who have been able to foster a love of the outdoors in our little one already.

Thursday
Did: easy 2.07 @ 9:47/mi, bootcamp, Big 5
Super easy run with B&B, right into an untimed (rep-based) workout at bootcamp. Brandi and I both have a harder time pushing through the untimed workouts, but I still got a lot out of this one. 




Friday
Did: bootcamp 
Man, yesterday's jackknives, tricep extensions, and Hindu push-ups were a serious workout. I was sore by Thursday evening. :) 

Felt like a total BA getting up to go to bootcamp again today (gotta get my 2x/week) while I was still feeling the previous workout.

We did 3x48/12 of:
1) flat palm situps on the wavemaster
2) split squats with 15# dumbbells- probably could have gone heavier?  
3) suspended rows-- still hard for me, but I was able to make it 1.5 cycles without too much modification
4) stability ball rotating planks- weee, abs!
5) step downs on a 4 step stack
6) 26# KB overhead press (3s slow down/explode up)- proud of this one
7) mat sprints and back pedals- man, I cannot wait to get back to the track next week. I feel a need for speed!
8) alternating ropes- SO HARD
9) slider pike ups- really enjoyed these 

and then 3 times through:

~0.2mi run
15 deadman burpees -- had to mentally break these into sets of 5 when they were bookended by runs, but felt really proud to get through them 

starting to see some definition in my arms- weeeee!

Saturday
Scheduled: stroller run, Peachtree Jr
Did: 5.73 @ 9:14/mi, quarter mile walk
Kids' race was cancelled due to a high risk of pop-up thunderstorms, but we still had a nice family morning on the run. The three of us were already decked out in our ATC gear, so we hit the greenway for 6mi... and let the little potato "run" the last quarter mile himself. 

Sunday
Did: beach fun with the fam
No run today, but several rounds of Potato Thrusters (launching a ~30# kiddo into the air at the shoreline from a squat position)