The schedule continues to be jammed packed – tis’ the season! Always grateful for the sanity balance that working out provides.  Here’s a quick peek at my fitness week.

Keeping it Low Key

Monday — 2-mile walk & Yoga for hips
Tuesday — 3-mile run, Core & Stretch
Wednesday — Bodyweight Strength & Hip Mobility
Thursday — 3-mile walk, Core & Stretch
Friday — 3-mile run
Saturday — Upper Body Strength
Sunday — 3-mile run & Stretch

The workouts continue to be low-key but the running has been pain-free. I’m certainly not mad about that! So while not terribly exciting, it’s clear that this slow and steady approach is paying off.

Happy Mama Moments:

The highlight of the week was seeing my high schooler perform in his school’s winter concert. His group played 3 songs and as the drummer, he was front and center. Out of respect for the privacy of his bandmates, I won’t share the video here, but trust me when I say he crushed it! And this week, I’ll be picking up my college boy as he wraps up exam week so you know I’m looking forward to having us all back under one roof for a bit.

In case you missed it:

Fit Five Friday – Stocking Stuffers for Runners

How was your week? Are you feeling the pinch of the season?

I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down.

And, just like that, we’ve hit the last month of what has often felt like a sprint of a year. It was another busy week as everyone at work tries to jam in “all the things” before year-end vacations kick in. On the fitness front, I’m still trying to decide what my new, off-season routine will look like. Here’s how this week played out:

Week 48 – Hello December!

Monday — 3-mile walk, Hip Mobility & Core
Tuesday — Rest day
Wednesday — Peloton Bike, Core, & Stretch. I started with a 20-min HIIT ride that included 16 sprints…ouch! The cool down ride and stretch were a must! My legs were jelly.

Thursday — 3-mile run. Day 1 of Peloton instructor Robin’s #3for31 challenge – run or walk 3 miles or move 30 minutes daily in December. I also paid a visit to my massage therapist – I was long overdue!
Friday — Lower Body Strength, Core & Stretch
Saturday — 3.5-mile run. The wind was just rude! I certainly chalked this up to resistance training.

keeping my hat was a struggle with the wind!

Sunday — 3-mile walk and planning for some time on the Peloton bike post-coffee

Just 2 runs for the week, but both were pain-free so I’ll take it! Overall, the goal for this month is simple – do what’s necessary to heal my lingering hip flexor/quad issue.

How was your week? Any big goals for December?

I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down.

November has been a fun month…and I’ll freely admit that I’m tired! After 3 straight weekends of being on the road, it has felt so nice to be at home this weekend. My workouts this week were intentionally minimal as I shifted into recovery mode.

Scene from Sunday’s miles

Week 47 – Recovery Mode

Monday — While I’m usually a proud card-carrying member of the #nevermissamonday club, I took a pass on working out. My hip flexor was letting me know just how much it hadn’t appreciated being pushed during Sunday’s race. So I took a rest day…I didn’t even plank for Planksgiving…no regrets.
Tuesday — 2-mile walk, Core (including planks), & Yoga.
Wednesday — Peloton Bike, Core with planking, & Stretch. It’s been quite a while since I’ve done any indoor cycling! I’m grateful that riding doesn’t bother the flexor so I have a feeling I’ll be doing quite a bit in the coming weeks.
Thursday — 3-mile of virtual running with friends! Grateful for the connections running has brought into my life.

Thanks to Cari for organizing!

Friday — Rest day with Planksgiving. Yep, a second rest day…it was rainy and cold and a lazy day with the family, hanging on the couch reading and checking out the online deals seemed like a good plan. Giving my body what it needs.
Saturday — 2.1-mile walk, Upper Body Strength, & Core (with planking).
Sunday — 3-mile run, Planking & Stretch.

Now that my races are done, I’m looking forward to settling into a new routine with rehabbing the hip as the main focus – there will be mobility work, time on the bike, and yes, some easy running.

So tell me, are you training for something, in maintenance mode, or somewhere in between?

I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down.

Happy Sunday!

This week had me flying home from wine country, working a couple of days, and then back on a plane, this time Philly-bound! My usual workout routine has been taking a hit, but I’ve been fitting in what I can where I can. Here’s a quick peek at how the week played out.

Week 46 – On the Road Again

Monday — 2.5-mile walk, yoga, Planksgiving day 14. It was nice to get a little workout in before the long flight home from California.

Tuesday — Planking, overwise rest. After arriving late Monday night, I was up and out early to commute to the office and followed a busy workday with a “goodbye” drinks staff gathering.

Wednesday — Flash 15 Strength, Planking, and Stretch. It’s rare that I have back-to-back days of commuting, but I was back in the office again. I love these Flash 15 classes on the Peloton app – Jess Sims really packs a lot into those 15 minutes – perfect for when I’m short on time!

Thursday — 3-mile run, Core (with planking), and Stretch. While I didn’t have to commute, my day started with an early board meeting Zoom call so I had planned a lunchtime run. Schedules collided and by the time I was free to run it was dark out. I had no motivation to run in the dark so it was a treadmill run.

Friday — 3.25-mile walk, Planking & Stretch. My husband J and I did a short walk after we arrived in Philly, then hit the expo and called it a day.

Saturday — Philly 8K! Had so much fun out there – recap to come.

Sunday — The marathon route goes right past our hotel so we’re planning to get out early to spectate before heading to the airport.

It was a chaotic but fun week! And, now I’m looking forward to the Thanksgiving week and things settling down a little.

How was your week?

In case you missed it:

Western Mass 10 Mile Race Recap

I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down.

What a month it has been! This October will definitely go down as one of the busier months. With my organization’s fundraising gala on Thursday evening and still contending with a sometimes irritable hip flexor, my workouts were fairly low-key this week. Here’s how things played out:

Monday — 2 mile walk & Yoga, plus another trip to the acupuncturist.
Tuesday — Uber-early commute to the office, so rest day.
Wednesday — 3.1 mile run, Core & Stretch.
Thursday — 3 mile walk & Core.
Friday — 2 mile walk & Yoga. I had a run on the schedule, but after being on my feet (in heels) for 7 hours there was no way a run was happening.
Saturday — 1.5 mile walk, Upper Body Strength, Core & Stretch.
Sunday — 4.5 mile run & Stretch.

The upcoming week is race week with the Western MA 10 miler happening next Sunday. My hip flexor keeps me guessing – sometimes it’s completely quiet and other times it’s very cranky. It has felt better with acupuncture, so needless to say I’ll be going back for another treatment this week. My long runs this month have hovered between 7 and 8 miles so hitting 10 shouldn’t be an issue – how speedy a race it will be is anybody’s guess – my goal is to run and have fun.

How was your week? Do you have any races coming up?

As always, I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down.

This was one of those weeks where I felt like I was juggling all the things — work has been off the chain (good stuff, just need more hours in the day!); my hubby and I celebrated our 30th anniversary, my college boy came home for a long weekend (his college had a mid-semester break), and it was homecoming for my high schooler. All good stuff – no complaints!

However, in the midst of all this, I tried to focus on keeping my hip flexor happy and my November race plans alive.

Caught the sun just starting to rise at the end of Thursday’s run

Week 41 – 3 Weeks and Counting

Monday — 2-mile walk & lots of stretching.
Tuesday — Rest day.
Wednesday — 3-mile walk, Upper Body Strength & Yoga.
Thursday — 3-mile run, Core & Stretch.
Friday — Hip mobility work, Core & Yoga.
Saturday — 4-mile run & Stretch. It was fun having my husband join me on the road as he’s gearing up to run for the Philly 8K!
Sunday — 6-mile run, Core & Stretch. I had hoped for 8 but my hip flexor was not happy, and when my gait started to get wonky around the 5-mile mark I didn’t see any benefit in pushing it.

Sadly my right hip flexor has grown increasingly crankier since last week’s 8 miler. I paid a visit to my acupuncturist – we agreed that I may have downshifted on appointments a little too soon into my treatment (it had been a couple of weeks since I’d last seen her). Needless to say, I booked another appointment for the upcoming week.

There are 3 weeks until the Western MA 10M and I’m feeling fairly confident that I will be able to run it. Where I’m less confident is the thought of the Philly half just two weeks later. It may be time to think about dropping down to the 8K. I’ll see how this week goes…

Tell me, how was your week? 

As always, I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down.

Well, it’s been a couple of weeks since I last checked in for the Weekly Run Down link-up – thanks to Kim and Deborah for hosting! Fall running weather is here in full effect and I’m embracing every moment of it! Here’s how this week played out…

Week 40 — Embracing Fall

Monday — Yoga. I woke up feeling extra creaky following a fun Parents Weekend so I skipped my planned strength workout for a couple of Peloton yoga classes.

Tuesday — 1.5 mile walk otherwise rest day. Tuesdays are my “in office” days so with the early commute and long work day I’ve just given in to making Tuesdays a rest day.

Wednesday — Upper Body Strength & Core.

Thursday — 3 miles & Stretch. I wasn’t paying attention when I headed out for my run and missed how low the battery was on my phone. Does the run still count if you don’t have photo documentation?! LOL

Friday — 3.3 miles, Core & Stretch. Just to keep us on our toes, Ma Nature decided to throw in a day in the upper 70s so it was back to tank and shorts weather.  I was able to slip out for a runch – a great way to shift into long weekend mode!

Saturday — Full Body Strength. Sometimes I forget how challenging bodyweight workouts can be. I focused mostly on my upper body to save my legs for Sunday’s long run.

Sunday — 8 miles & Stretch. It’s been more than a minute since I’ve hit this distance. I’ll get no style points for the last 2 miles thanks to my hip flexor but overall was happy with the run.

I’m heading back to the acupuncturist tomorrow. The hip flexor has been fairly quiet over the past couple of weeks since I last saw her, but given the crankiness towards the end of today’s run, I’m glad I had an appointment already scheduled.

How was your week? Are you embracing the fall weather?

This week felt long for so many reasons….

…there were long commutes to the office – the roads were extra crowded after the long weekend

… there was trying to settle into a new routine as my highschooler returned to school – navigating the drop-offs and pick-ups

…. and yes, there was the heartbreaking news of Eliza Fletcher – she was in my thoughts during each run this week.

As always, running and working out provided much-needed stress relief. Here’s how the week in workouts went down.

From Friday’s late-day miles

Week 36 – Back to School

Monday — 1.5 mile walk & Yoga. I woke up tired from a poor night of sleep – thankfully I had the day off for the holiday. It was rainy so it was a day of indoor projects.
Tuesday — 2-mile walk, otherwise rest. A l-o-n-g workday – I was happy to slip out of the office for a head-clearing walk.
Wednesday — Full Body Strength, 1-mile walk & Stretch. I stacked a couple of Peloton’s bodyweight strength classes and was reminded of how great of a workout you can get without weights! I popped out for a quick mile walk to keep my #OptOutside streak going.
Thursday — 3-mile tempo run, Core & Stretch.
Friday — 4-mile run & Stretch. This was a rare late-day run – we had a surprise party on Thursday night for our CEO who’s retiring soon. It was so much fun, but after dancing in heels, my legs needed a minute before they were ready to run.
Saturday — 2-mile walk with a friend & Upper Body Strength.
Sunday — 5-mile run & Stretch.

Work will continue to be off the chain this week, but I’m hoping to find more of a groove with the school schedule.

How was your week?

I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down. Join us!