Weekly Wrap — Page 11

RnR Philly Training Week 4

July 24, 2016 by Michelle 21 Comments

Happy Sunday all!

Just checking in for a brief recap on Week 4 on the road to Rock ‘n’ Roll Philly….

Monday, 7/18: Rest Day

Tuesday, 7/19: Rest Day

Wednesday, 7/20: Woke to a rare cool – ish morning. After two full days of nothing more than icing and rolling I was itching for a run. Seemed like the perfect time to run my Guitar Solo Virtual 5K! I drove to one of the flattest streets near home and busted out 3.1. No leg pain certainly called for a little post-run air guitar 🙂

Thursday, 7/21: Cross-training = 40 minutes on the Arc Trainer

Friday, 7/22: Rest Day.

Saturday, 7/23: 8.2 miles. It was 75 degrees with 93% humidity when I checked the weather just before heading out. Note to self…sometimes ignorance is bliss! I was holding together relatively well until somewhere in the middle of mile 6. Then the struggle bus pulled up and I hopped on board. I’m grateful my husband J had decided to run with me, and at his suggestion we switched to a 2:1 run walk for the final two miles. Mentally, it got a lot easier to run when I knew it was only for short bursts.

Sunday, 7/24: Strength day – lower body focus

So just 11.3 miles this week. But thanks to sticking to the plan of rest, rolling and icing – plus a trip to my massage therapist, they were pain free miles – so that’s a big win in my book! The RC coaches have revised my training plan and assure me I still have plenty of time, and I know they’re right. This week I’ll be aiming to return to at least 3 days of running, plus 2 strength workouts.

So that’s my #WeeklyWrap! Thanks to Holly and Tricia for hosting this linkup!

Filed Under: #261BeFearless, half marathon training, RnRPhilly, Weekly Wrap

RnR Philly Training Week 3

July 17, 2016 by Michelle 24 Comments

While my goal this week was to ramp up the mileage, the nagging discomfort in left leg, quickly made it clear that I needed to play it smart and go easy on the running for another week. So how did things go?

Monday, 7/11: Strength day

Tuesday, 7/12: 3 easy miles, plus squats (the challenge continues).

Wednesday, 7/13: Strength session with Trainer Stacey. Wednesdays have really become my fave workout day of the week lately.

Thursday, 7/14: An unscheduled rest day. I woke up just feeling really off and it never got better, so I passed on my 6 mile cutdown run and skipped the squats.

Friday, 7/15: 4 miles on the mill – I just was not up for dealing with the oppressive heat, so off to the gym I went. Oh, yes and there were squats.

Saturday, 7/16: Rest day scheduled. It was parents’ visiting day at my son’s overnight camp so this “rest” day included 4.5 miles of walking and hiking the trails in and around the camp.

Sunday, 7/17: 8 miles scheduled – 5 miles done. Saturday’s camp fun followed by a 3+ hour drive home left me feeling pretty beat up Saturday night. I should have rolled, but instead I crashed on the couch and caught up on House of Cards. When the alarm went off Sunday morning, my legs already felt tired. The nagging pain in my left leg returned in the 4th mile, and as I reached mile 5 I knew it was better to listen to my body and stop. I walked another mile until my husband came by to pick me up.

What’s so annoying about the left leg is it only gets aggravated on hills…and it’s practically impossible to run in my town without encountering a hill.

Icing and rolling does help – so guess what I’ll be doing this week?! I’m also headed to the massage therapist – always a good thing! The RC coaches are tweaking my plan (there will be no hill repeats, as originally planned), and I’ll give 8 miles another go next weekend.

So that’s my #WeeklyWrap! Thanks to Holly and Tricia for hosting this linkup!

Filed Under: left knee, RnRPhilly, training, Weekly Wrap

RnR Philly Training – Week 2

July 10, 2016 by Michelle 22 Comments

Well, another week on the road to Philly is in the books, and I have to say it was a mixed bag at best.

Monday, 7/4: Core and upper body strength work – giving my legs a rest after the previous night’s 10K (accept I did do my 50 squats)

Tuesday, 7/5: Scheduled rest day – and I needed it! Squat challenge continued.

Wednesday, 7/6: Strength session with Trainer Stacey. This was another awesome session with everything from Turkish getups with weights, to pull-ups to circuit training with a medicine ball, kettlebell and free weights. We worked every muscle group and kept a good pace on the circuit.

Thursday, 7/7: A crazy work day combined with a sick kiddo meant I missed my scheduled cutdown run. 50 squats done.

Friday, 7/8: Strength work – core and lower body focus.

Saturday, 7/9: 7 mile LSD. My left knee really started to squak at me around mile 3, and I debated whether to cut the run short. I’m glad my husband J had decided to run with me – it gave me the nudge I needed to keep pushing to finish the run. Lots of icing and rolling followed.

Sunday, 7/3: Cross-training was on the schedule, but my legs felt meh after yesterday. I’m fairly sure the knee pain was actually a combination of a super tight quad and ankle, so I opted for yoga and some yamuna body rolling.

So the mileage was way down this week, but the strength sessions went really well…like I said a mixed bag. I slacked on my rolling and icing and I think that contributed to my cranky leg on Saturday’s run. So I’ll be rolling like it’s my job this week, as I up the mileage.

I’m linking up with Holly from HoHo Runs and Tricia from MissSippiPiddlin for their Weekly Wrap link up. Link up and join us!

So tell me, how’d your week go?

Filed Under: RnRPhilly, training, Weekly Wrap

RnR Philadelphia Half Training – Week 1

July 4, 2016 by Michelle 20 Comments

This past week marked the 12 week countdown to the RnR Philly Half Marathon! After having to step down from the half distance to the 5-miler for Boston’s Run to Remember, I am really more focused than ever to get back up to 13.1 miles.

Looking forward to adding this one to the collection!

So how did this week go?

Monday, 6/27: 3 easy miles

Tuesday, 6/28: Threshold intervals – 3 x 1600 meter repeats, plus warm-up and cool down. OK I only did 2 – I decided to go late in the day to help adjust to Sunday’s upcoming 10K, and the humidity was just soul-sucking. I knew I was in trouble after just the mile warm up and it went down hill from there.

Wednesday, 6/29: Strength work with Trainer Stacey! We focused on glutes and obliques. There was a lot of sweat, swearing and laughing – a good session!

Thursday, 6/30: Rest Day: Got a much need sport massage.

Friday, 7/1: 5 mile steady-state run – nailed it! Also started Marcia‘s squat challenge. My goal for this week – 50/day.

Saturday, 7/2: 1.25 mile shakeout run with my son & husband at the track. Another 50 squats.

Sunday, 7/3: Finish at the 50 10K – race recap to come! (And, yes, I did get my 50 squats in)

All in all a good week!

And don’t forget, if you join me in Philly or at any of Rock’n’Roll’s fall races (I’ll be running Brooklyn and Vegas as well), you can save a few bucks by using my discount code ROCKATTITUDE.

I’m linking up with Holly from HoHo Runs and Tricia from MissSippiPiddlin for their Weekly Wrap link up. Be sure to stop by and check out what they’re up to.

Filed Under: RnRPhilly, training, Weekly Wrap

Weekly Wrap – Regaining My Footing

June 26, 2016 by Michelle 24 Comments

There’s no sugar coating it..this was a tough week!

We lost our beloved family dog early Wednesday morning – it was sudden and unexpected, and hit our family hard. I’m grateful that by Thursday afternoon the boys were re-telling funny stories about him, and asking if we would be getting another dog at some point – we will! But for now we adjust to a much quieter house.

So needless to say I’ve been a little off this week, but running has provided a much needed retreat.

Monday: Strength work – core and glutes!

Tuesday: 3 miles

Wednesday: No way I could focus – Trainer Stacy and I agreed to move our session to next week

Thursday: Opted for yoga instead of intervals

Friday: 3 miles

Saturday: 6.5 miles

Sunday: Rest day

All of my runs felt really good this week. I was especially pleased with Saturday’s run – it was a hilly loop and I attacked the hills well and felt stronger than I have in a while. I’m feeling good about where my training is right now and am looking forward to adding in some speedwork and spending some time at the track – my happy place 🙂

I’m linking up with Holly and Tricia for the Weekly Wrap. Join in and let us know how you’re week went!

Filed Under: training, Weekly Wrap

Weekly Wrap – Sprinting through days

June 12, 2016 by Michelle 20 Comments

This time of year is always so hectic at our house as we inch our way closer to summer – and I’m sure I’m not alone on this. I really thought this image perfectly captured how I’ve been feeling. And, while it’s been crazy busy, it’s also been a lot of fun!

On Thursday, we enjoyed a great graduation ceremony and celebration for my oldest son, followed by my youngest son’s 4th grade concert on Friday (both boys have banned me from sharing photos). Then it was on to our final lacrosse games of the season.

Our town hosts a big tournament every year, and round-robin games kicked off Friday evening and went on all weekend. My husband J was coaching , both boys were playing, and J and I were also on the organizing committee so you can imagine what the weekend was like! Way too much take out has been consumed and everyone is exhausted, but it was great family time and I wouldn’t have it any other way 🙂 Though I must admit I’m looking forward to having some lazy Sundays ahead…

On the workout front, I managed to keep focused on my new training plan, with only a minor adjustment or two:

Monday: Despite a migraine, I did manage to get a short run in – and a chance to try my new kicks from Ampla Sports!

Tuesday: Unplanned rest day
Wednesday: Strength work: Core & Glutes
Thursday: Another 3 miles
Friday: Cross-training on the Arc Trainer
Saturday: 5 miles more before spending hours on my feet volunteering and cheering at the lax tournament
Sunday: Rest day – I had though about squeezing in a few miles this morning, but my legs quickly let me know that would not be a good choice!

I’m linking up again with Holly & Tricia for the #WeeklyWrap — big thanks to them for hosting!

Filed Under: crazy week, training, Weekly Wrap

Weekly Wrap – All lacrosse all the time

May 22, 2016 by Michelle 20 Comments

It’s Sunday evening and I am t-i-r-e-d y’all. But it’s a good kind of tired – the kind that comes from a fun whirlwind weekend.

Before I get to the weekend activities, a quick re-cap of the week’s workouts (and, yes, the daily planking continues!):

Monday: Strength day.
Tuesday: 3.25 mile run.
Wednesday: Strength with Trainer Stacy.
Thursday: Migraine = no run.
Friday: Yoga. I had wanted to make up Thursday’s run, but my head wasn’t having it.
Saturday: My hubby J ran with me again – 4.25 miles done. I have to admit it makes me crazy that he takes the hills with such ease, but it pushes me to keep up.
Sunday: Yard and garden work.

So the big question of this week was how much lacrosse can you fit into 7 days? Well, we started with 3 games for my oldest son with his school’s team during the week. I really don’t know why the Athletic Director allowed 3 games in one week, but we were there to cheer him on.

That’s my kiddo in the black jersey

One could say that was plenty of lacrosse right there – especially when you add in that my youngest son had practice twice this week. But the big doings came this weekend, when we made the trip down to Providence to see my alma mater take on Navy in the NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Quarter Finals. Our tickets covered two games so we first got to see Maryland vs. Syracuse – a great match up, though we were rooting for Syracuse. Then it was on to Brown vs. Navy! We withstood some rowdy Navy fans and cheered our hearts out through a nail-bitter to see Brown move on to the semi-finals!

Source: Brown Lacrosse Instagram

You’d think we’d be all-lacrossed out by this point right? Nope. Both boys played for our town teams this morning (with J coaching), and then watched the other two quarter final games on ESPN this afternoon. Yeah…it’s a bit of an obsession in my house.

This week should be the usual mix of work, school, runs/workouts, and yes more lax…oh and I’ve got the Run to Remember 5-miler next weekend. I haven’t figure out what, if any, my goals are for this race…more on that later.

How was your week? Does your family have a sport obsession?

I’m linking up again with Holly & Tricia for the #WeeklyWrap — thanks to them for hosting!

Filed Under: Lacrosse, Weekly Wrap

Weekly Wrap #17

May 16, 2016 by Michelle 16 Comments

It’s Monday which means it’s time to wrap-up another week!

Monday: Strength day.
Tuesday: 3.25 mile run.
Wednesday: Strength day.
Thursday: 3 mile run. (The group run with BGR didn’t come together but we’re going to try again this week)
Friday: Spent the day with a friend – lots of walking.
Saturday: J decided to join me for a run – 4.25 miles done. Followed by an afternoon of yard/garden work.
Sunday: Rest day.

Plus daily planking continued!

For the most part it was a pretty routine week around here. Mother Nature continued to show she has a sense of humor – after last week where I was prepared to build an ark, this week she flipped the heat switch! I was so not ready for the 30 degree jump in temps and there may have been some whining while running.

I did get a nice surprise of winning a pair of Zensah Well Rounded Shorts during Tuesday night’s #BibChat. Zensah is my go-to choice for compression gear so I’m very psyched and cannot wait for them to arrive in the mail! And, speaking of fun things in the mail, I came home Wednesday to find these books waiting for me.

As a little perk to the Rock’n’Blog team, we each got to pick a couple of books from a collection of great titles from VeloPress! I started reading Racing Weight last night – review to come soon!

Have you read either of these books? How was your week?

I’m linking up again with Holly and Tricia for the #WeeklyWrap.

Filed Under: #RocknBlog, Weekly Wrap

Weekly Wrap – Getting Stronger

May 9, 2016 by Michelle 20 Comments

Happy Monday!

I’m happy to say that last week felt like a turning point for me – dare I say it…I felt stronger…stronger during both my runs and my strength workouts. Still a ton of work to do but last week felt like real progress!

Monday 5/2: Strength work and PT exercises.
Tuesday 5/3: This was suppose to be a run day, but I had an awful night of sleep and could not get my face out of the pillow when my alarm went off. The pouring rain did not help…and this run did not happen.
Wednesday 5/4: Session with Trainer Stacey.
Thursday 5/5: Still raining (seriously I was considering building an ark this week!), but I was up and out early – 3.5 miles done. Deep tissue massage in the afternoon (always a win!)

Friday 5/6: Yoga.
Saturday 5/7: Another soggy run – 4 miles.
Sunday 5/8: A rare appearance of the sun, so I couldn’t resist starting Mother’s Day off with a 3 mile run to make up for Tuesday.

I also managed to get back on the daily plank bandwagon – thanks to Marcia’s #plankyplanky challenge on Facebook.

The sun is hopefully here to stay this week so I’m looking forward to no more soggy runs, and some cross-training…aka, yardwork, to add to the mix this week. And, I’m hoping to meet up with a crew from Black Girls Run for a group run on Thursday!

So how’d last week treat you? Join the fun group of bloggers for the Weekly Wrap and let us know. Tricia and Holly are great hosts and I swear this link-up gets bigger every week!

Filed Under: Weekly Wrap

April Wrap and May Goals

May 1, 2016 by Michelle 32 Comments

And just like that another month comes to a close! As always, I’m joining Holly & Tricia for the Weekly Wrap. When you’re done here, please visit these two great ladies and all of the other bloggers linking up.

For April I set 5 goals …so how did it go?

Run all the miles — Hmm a bit of a mixed bag. As I mentioned in my Runfessions, my body is just not tolerating the mileage build up yet, so while runs were not missed, they were sometimes shorter than planned.

Lose the negative thoughts — While there is still work to do here, I think I did much better with this over the past month.

Return to morning runs — YES!

Step-up the strength work — Another big YES!

Lose 3 pounds — Um no…hence the commencing of the food journaling.

All-in-all I would say it was a fairly solid month.

With my first race of 2016 coming in a few weeks, my goals remain pretty much the same. I want to build on the progress I made in April and be able to answer a big YES to all of these by the end of this month. I’m also going to use May to explore training options for my fall races, because the way these days are ticking by, summer training will be here before you know it. Would you believe it’s just 20 weeks until #RnRPhilly in September?…yes, I counted…don’t judge.