Definitely back into the groove

So it's been a while since I've been in this space, but I must say my healthiness journey hasn't lacked. I completed the Crescent City Classic 10K in late April. I didn't complete it in the time that I wanted, but I did it despite the excessive heat that morning. Since then I've completed a 5K in mid-May and numerous runs just to keep me on my healthiness journey.

I just checked my stats and as of today, June 30th, I have 208.24 miles. The end of June 2010 found me with 163.12 miles. I'm 45 miles ahead! Sweet!

I've tried to embrace the treadmill since it's been excessively hot. There were two days over the past month where I ran in the evening and it was brutal. Brutally difficult! If I'm going to log miles during the workweek, it's going to have to be at the gym on the treadmill. Not ideal to me, but there are some benefits. I think the treadmill will help me developing a consistent stride and with my pace.

Yesterday I did a 30 minute interval run: 1 min at 6.0 speed and 1 min at 5.0 speed. That was my first time pumping the treadmill up to 6.0. I was pretty impressed with myself! I'll continue to do the interval run as such and gradually increase the time for 6.0 speed. It can only help!

I'm still going to run on the road, mainly on Saturday & Sunday because I'll get out early in the AM. I wish I felt comfortable running early in the AM during the week, but I just can't see getting out there when it's too dark. Must stay safe!

Anywho, just wanted to provide a brief update on my running.

Blue Level

I've reached the Blue Level (syncing 621+ miles) on Nike+. Sweet!

January Plans

As stated over the weekend, I was successful with my cardio blitz in December and now it is time for a change. I'm going back into the weight room this month and will continue to cardio as well. Since I'm still at a new facility (today was first day in weight room), I still have to learn what's all available. I don't know what's in there and how to set-up my weights routine just yet. Therefore, this week I'll play it by ear until I learn what's there.

This month, I'm also going to get back into a regular routine of moving my body by walking/running. I've already started with the walking/running by putting in 3.6 miles on January 1st. Yay! This morning I put in some time on the treadmill and logged the miles with Nike+ GPS. I've never done that before, but decided why not since there's the treadmill option in that app.



I then moved to the weight and did an arms workout (biceps, triceps, & shoulders). I finished out with some abs, push-ups, and stretching. All in all a good workout.

I hit the pavement after work for some more miles:



By the numbers:

3.62 miles
25 minutes of weights (upper body), abs, push-ups, stretching

All in all, a good day!

1st miles of the New Year

Started the New Year off with a walk/run with my guy!



It was much needed after yesterday's workout. Oh gracious am I sore in places I didn't think I could be sore. I had no idea that muscles on the top of my feet could be sore, but they are! Lesson learned. The workout today was a 1 mile run to my guy's house then a walk for the remainder of the time (he's not a runner). We walked onto local HBCU's campus which is close to our neighborhood and included a walk over a bridge. That might not have been a wise decision as when I got to the top I informed him that it was painful, and of course we had to walk back over it! Sheesh! Am I glutton for punishment or what?

2010 Mileage recap

2010 was an up & down year for walking/running for me. Mo total mileage for the year 330.97:



Not too bad considering I didn't log any miles during the month of June (did a lot of traveling that month including Europe! much fun). July was also pretty sparse along with December. I logged the least amount of miles in December although I did get a lot of exercise in due to cardio blitz.

I took an account of where I was for 2010 back in September. Although not stated there, I really wanted to surpass my 2009 mileage (239.17) by 100 miles. I didn't quite make it (8.2 miles off), but that's okay. I'm not going to belittle what I did accomplish. I did a lot for a person that didn't start running for exercise until my mid-30s, and then I only did so halfheartedly. It was only until 2009 that I really started keeping track and pushing myself. I'm really proud of what I've accomplished and I look to continue the effort in 2011.

The majority of the mileage I logged in 2010 was training mileage either. I did participate in 2-10Ks and several 5Ks, but I didn't really train for them. I just did them because I knew I could due to my running consistently.

For 2011 I've already signed up for 2-10K events (February and April). I'm sure I'll sprinkle in some 5Ks in there as well. Not sure if I'm going to train for them or just have fun with the event. Only time will tell. I'm enjoying the adventure of running and I don't want to make it seem to tedious by forcing myself into an uncomfortable position. I want it to be fun! When it ceases to be fun, I'll resent the exercise and not want to do it. Therefore, I'm just going to go with the flow.

Happy running!

Cardio Blitz - recap

So December has come to an end and I successfully achieved my goal of 40 minutes of cardio for at least 4 days per week. I did that for 5 weeks! Go me!

The first 2 weeks, I exercised in the morning prior to work, Monday through Thursday. I rested on Friday, Saturday, & Sunday. I changed it up, not intentionally, during week 3. I did the normal AM workout Monday-Thursday for 40 minutes. I also added a Zumba class that Wednesday night, and on Saturday I ran to and from the gym and did a Zumba class. All in all, I got in 7 workouts of (on average) 40 minutes.

During week 4, my workout changed just slightly. I still got in the 4 days of 40 minutes, but my rest day came in the middle of the week. I exercised Monday-Tuesday and Thursday and Friday. I also did a run to and from the gym on that Friday.

This last week, I changed it up again. This, to me, was the most intense week (again unintentional) in that I did 4o minutes of cardio on Monday and followed that up with a boot camp class. Whew! It was quite intense and the soreness was major. I made it the gym the next day, Tuesday for 40 minutes, but needed to rest on Wednesday. I was back on Thursday and Friday (today) for a short session on the elliptical and another exercise class.

All in all, I'm really proud of myself and glad at what I accomplished:

• 2 Zumba classes
• 1 boot camp class
• 1 HABIT class
• running to and from the gym
• engaging in group exercise classes
• utilizing the treadmill

This was a good month! I'm looking forward to doing more in 2011 since the gym is so much closer to my house. That, I think, makes a world difference and will allow me to increase my workouts and offer diversity (more on that later).

So glad I ended 2010 in this manner.

Cardio Blitz - day 15 & 16

I failed to update the blog yesterday even though I completed cardio yesterday. I was too busy baking and prepping for a party last night.

So, yesterday I completed 44 minutes of cardio, 22 minutes on the elliptical and 22 minutes on the bike. I didn't go as early as normal since I was off from work, but I did go in the AM.

Today I did 30 minutes on the elliptical, but I book-ended the workout with a run to and from the gym. Doing so gave me 35 minutes of running for just over 1 hour of cardio today. Bonus! So, although I didn't make the gym 4 straight days this week, I did get in 4 days of cardio. I guess Wednesday was my rest day!

Cardio Blitz - bonus day

I decided to get in an extra day of cardio over the weekend. As I stated before, I joined a new facility which is quite close to my house. It is so close that I can walk, run, or ride my bike. I debated about using my own power (not a car) to get there on Saturday morning, just to see the distance and time it would take me. I left it up to the weather on Saturday morning as to whether that would take place. It turned out to be pretty nice, so I set out to do a walk/run.

I needed to be there for 9:30 as that is the time the Zumba class I wanted to take began. Now, you may think I'm crazy to do a walk/run to the gym, do an hour Zumba class, then walk/run home, but that's what I aimed to do. And I did!





As you can see, from the images, the walk/run there took me just over 1 minute longer. I can only assume that was because I was engaging in exercise on the way to the gym on a cold body. Whereas on the way back, I had the walk/run, then a full hour of cardio so my body was warm and much more ready to move on its own power for the walk/run back.

My goal is to be able to run the entire distance to the gym in about 12 minutes. That will probably take some time since the only day I can really run to to the gym is on Saturday. It gets dark too early to do so during the week. In due time though!

Cardio Blitz

To combat holiday weight gain last year I did strictly cardio during the month of December. At the start of 2010, I hadn't gained any weight due to holiday eating, drinking, & gallivanting. I hoping for the same this year.

Starting today and concluding with the last week in December, my aim is 4 days of at least 40 minutes of cardio. I'll do a combination of the bike, elliptical, stairmaster, and arc trainer. I'm also going to include running as I'm going to do a 10K come February. So 2-3 days per week, I'll get out on the road to run 30-40 minutes at a time.

I'm also going to attempt to blog regularly (as I noticed I hadn't been in this space since late October!) over the next few weeks noting my progress. I probably should have stepped on the scale this morning, but I forgot. I'll try to do so tomorrow morning.

On track

Despite, changing my routine, I'm still on track to reach my goal of 40 miles for October. As you can see, from the image above, I'm 16 miles from 40 and I still have 2 weeks to go. My running goal is up to 12 miles during the weeks. So, I got this!

Victory! 45 miles!

With 4 days to spare I logged 45 miles in 4 weeks! Yay!

500 Miles!

Okay, I had no idea I was close logging 500 miles total since I began using Nike +. Well, I crossed that threshold with the run on Monday evening. Go me! Here's my congratulatory video from Nike +:

Planning

I'm already packed for my gym workout in the morning, and my lunch and snacks are packed for the day. My plan was to also get in, at least 2 miles, of running after work. Unfortunately, my car decided it wanted some attention so I need to take it in for some service after work. Then it hit me! Run while the car is being serviced.

So I packed another bag of clothes to change into at the end of the workday. I'll change at the office then head to the car place, which happens to be at the mall. I'll run the outskirts of the parking area while they work on the car. Score! I'll also take some water so I have some when I'm done.

Planning. Yay!

Reached the Goal!

Reached my goal! 40 miles in 4 weeks! Woo-hoo!

Mileage update

Last year I logged 239.17 miles for the entire year. By the end of August I had 170.77 miles. Not to bad as I logged some miles each month from January to August. Wasn't a lot of miles for June & July, but some miles nonetheless.

Looking at the chart for 2010 and I should surpass the total mileage for 2009 by early October, perhaps in later this month. We'll see. I'm at 207.58 (well ahead of the total at the end of August, 2009!) and I'm going to aim for 30-40 miles for each of the next 4 months.

8 more

I set a goal on August 7th to complete 40 miles in 4 weeks.

I'm 8 miles away!

I'm sure I can get those 8 miles in by Saturday. Of course, the weather plays a part. Let's hope the rain stays away. That's why I have not runs from the 16-21!

13.3 miles

That's how many miles I've logged thus far since May 1st. Not too bad considering I only achieved 16 miles in the entire month of April. Of course, that was due to injury. I'm determined to be go beyond those 16 miles this month, and I'm well on my way! Yippee!

Last Monday I was fitted for orthotic inserts. I'll pick them on Wednesday of this week. Next week I hope to add in some jogging to my walks.

Sidelined

My left ankle began to swell this past Thursday. Over the course of the day, the pain increased steadily and I was unable to put weight on it. I took some Tylenol PM, elevated it, and went to sleep. It was not as swollen Friday AM, and I was able to stand on it with not as much pain.

I went to work, stayed off of it as much as possible. I iced it Friday afternoon and relaxed the evening away. It was still swollen on Saturday morning, but not as painful to touch. I decided to get it checked out anyway since I'm about to start some travel for work.

I was diagnosed with Achilles tendonitis. Bummer. The symptoms listed on the linked website is exactly what I felt. I've been told to ice & rest my ankle. Therefore, no running/walking for the next few weeks. Actually, that is not so bad since I'm traveling for work over the next few weeks. Yes, I'll do a fair amount of walking (I'll be at a conference), but it won't be at a fast-pace, it'll be leisurely.

I've also been told to get some custom orthoctic inserts from my shoes. I know a few people who have those items, and they speak highly of them. So, I'll get those in the next few weeks.

Needless to say, I'm not going to reach my goal of 45 miles for April. I also may not reach my overall goal of 480 miles for the year. We'll see how well I rebound from this.

One More Mile

The cute shirts I purchased at the expo last weekend came from One More Mile.

Cute shirts

Purchased these 2 shirts at the expo on Friday night: