Here I go with this blogging thing: A recap of what I've been up to since August

So here I go again, starting to write on this little fitness blog of mine.  I wish I could be more consistent with this, but, you know...work and life and stuff. But I really do want to get back to blogging here on a regular basis, because a) it's fun and b) I miss writing bulleted lists and FAQs full of facetious garbage.  That being said, let's catch everyone up on what's been happening with a quick FAQ:

So what have you been up to since you last blogged in August?

Working, working, and more working...not sleeping...and, of course, running.  I ran another little marathon race in October, where I tried to hit a 4:10 on a very hilly marathon (Twin Cities) and failed miserably because I went out too fast like a moron.  But I did nab a 4:20, and I'm slightly OK with that.

Rethinking that whole "I feel great let's go faster at the start"
plan I had for that race.

Oh, I also ran another marathon the weekend after Twin Cities...it's a little race you may have heard of before: the Chicago Marathon.

I'm only happy because I wasn't really racing
the race.

Nabbed around a 4:43 for that marathon...and even though my legs were heavy and dead from Twin Cities, I did manage to run the entire 26.2, so I got that going for me.


Well, that was quite the pair of marathons you ran there.  I'm sure that not running for more than 2.5 hours each weekend is feeling pretty weird for you; what have you been doing to fill the time?

I took it easy for a few weeks after Chicago, but then I decided to set my trusty My Run Plan App to the "half marathon" training plan setting, which involved me putting in "half marathon" and then the app making me run less mileage at the same marathon paces only with slightly different workouts.  But I didn't do it just to run less mileage while still doing speedy runs during the week - I am actually training for the BMW Dallas half marathon.  Normally I run the marathon at this little running event, but I thought it might be wise to back off doing so many marathons in the fall if I want to PR the heck out of my spring marathon. Anyhoo, I'm looking to run around a 1:55 in Dallas in a few weeks..not a half marathon PR for me, but a very decent time for a woman of my advanced age.  Or I think so, anyway.

I have to admit the decreased mileage has been pretty nice...maxing out at 10 miles for my long run is a luxury I haven't enjoyed in a long time.  And not seeing 13 mile training runs in the app on Mondays or Thursdays has also been pretty sweet.  Mentally, this has been a nice break from the usual "OMG twenty BLEEPing miles this weekend..."


When last we left you, you had this weight loss thing in progress.  How's that going?

I am frustrated to report that my weight loss stalled when training for Twin Cities, and I actually gained 3 pounds back because I started eating semi-crappily (meaning: so much chocolate and processed sugar) again.  However, I am also happy to report that I and the dogs have been taken off store-bought treats, and we're now all on this weight-loss journey together eating only things we make at home.  My new rule is that if I want a treat, I have to make it myself to ensure the ingredients are high quality.  The dogs get carrots now instead of store-bought treats, although they feel I should also make their treats now, too, but omg ain't nobody got time for that.  So it's pretty much the stink-eye for me 24/7 about that.

Nothing but stink-eye.

Even though the weight isn't coming off like it was, I do have to say for an old almost-45-year-old broad, I'm in better shape than I ever was in my 20s.  Although I'm not sure that male cat there in the pic would agree with that assessment of my fitness during his random workout inspections.

"Hmm..woman still smells wimpy to me"

Sounds like you've been busy since you've been away from the blog.  How do we know you'll blog consistently from now on?

You don't.  And that's the thrill of this little blogging adventure, now isn't it?  That and the nervous anticipation of what atrocious fitness selfies I'll post.


Are you going to post those stupid non-learning learnings like you used to at the end of each post?

Why, of course!  Prepare yourself for some below:

• You'd think since PR-ing in the spring with a "start slow-get faster" approach to my marathon I would know better than to start a race too fast, but, sadly, this is not the case.
• Chicago was a fun marathon, as it usually is...it's a multicultural celebration of running.  Also of suffering, especially up the final hill right before the finish.
• Cats are rarely impressed by my gun show.
• The dogs are rarely impressed, either, but they fake it in the hopes of getting a store-bought treat.

Tomorrow's workout:  I'm giving thanks for everything in my life by running 9 miles of tempo and then trying to stick to my diet while at Thanksgiving dinner.  I think the latter will be harder to do than the former.

Facetious cycling tips. Because why not.

Today I was doubly blessed with two workouts on the schedule - a weight workout and a cycling workout.

Well, that cycling workout wasn't a blessing--more on that in a sec.  But it was nice to lift some weights and throw that barbell around.

Barbells ALWAYS get a thumbs-up.

And, as usual, there were animals invading my workout on a regular basis.

Hyooman..heard you were being a wimp. As usual.

That was the easier workout of the two, even with animals darting around my legs while I was trying to do static lunges with 20 lb dumbells in each hand.  Why was the cycling workout harder?  I can sum it up in one word:

WIND. 

Freaking WIND I share my FIST at you.

All day I had been looking outside, working myself into a frenzy about the wind by looking at how much the trees were bending.  But because I have a duathlon in about 2 weeks, I knew I had to suck it up, buttercup, and do this ride.  So I bribed myself - I told myself I could ride into the wind as slow as I wanted...and hit up Dunkin Donuts afterward for a huge iced coffee.  I ended up biking slowly through the first nearly 8 miles straight into some gusty winds, which dragged my average speed down considerably.  But I'm not really caring at this point about the speed - the point was to get the ride done.  

And to help others get their ride on, below are some of my super-duper-special riding tips for you.  For whatever riding tips are worth coming from someone who still sometimes falls over when she stops because she forgets to unclip from the pedals.

Tip #1: Even though you have every intention of doing the ride in the early AM when the winds aren't as strong, always procrastinate so you go when the winds are stronger and then your ride is slower.  After all, riding into the wind builds character.  Or at least that's the lie the hubbs tells me every time I do this.

Tip #2: When you're riding in colder temperatures, ride a few rides with cold, numb feet before you remember to dig out those toe warmers you got in your stocking for xmas and actually, you know, use them.  Because cold frozen toes builds character too, apparently.

No frozen toes today, kids!

Tip #3: Never use earbuds while on a ride.  Instead, bring a little bluetooth speaker (pictured above) you can use to blast your music so you still can't hear any cars coming up behind you.  Safety first, kids.

Tip #4: When you come to a steep hill on your bike, don't drop down in gears--just pedal faster to get it over with.  Screw energy conservation for the rest of the ride; I need that hill to be OVER WITH NOW.

Tip #5: Always wear sunglasses while riding, even if it's not sunny.  This lesson was learned after several bugs-to-the-eyes last summer.  Gross.

Tip #6: Never ever attempt to take pictures of scenery whilst in motion on the bike.  I will die if I ever attempt this.  I don't know how all those cyclists I follow on Instagram do it and not die.

Tip #7: Always take post-ride selfies and allow your cat to photobomb them.  As if I could stop the cat from photobombing, anyway.  I'm too afraid they'll kill me in my sleep if I don't let them do whatever they want.

Hyooman. I "buh" this selfie.

Selfie SO BORING

Let's ride on into some learnings, kids:

• I do enjoy biking.  Except I would rather get a root canal that ride into the wind.  Ever.
• Those toe warmers were FANTASTIC.  And it was nice to be able to walk on warm toes after the ride.
• That tri suit is quite nice and comfy.  In case you were wondering.
• Mmmmm iced coffee.
• There's no stopping a cat in my house.  Not while they still have their front claws.

Tomorrow's workout: FARTLEKing.

A few of my mother's nuggets of wisdom

I woke up in a NyQuil haze and stumbled downstairs to eat breakfast and then do Cathe's PHA Training workout.  Here's how it went:

BUH

Since I am still technically sick (my throat was a tad sore and I had a low fever) and had an early meeting, I did one of the many timesaver premixes on this DVD.  Since this workout involves two sets of exercises done three times each, I opted for the first premix that cut out the third repeat of each set.

Choices, choices, so many choices

I've already told you-Cathe has a workout to fit your needs all the freaking time.  No excuses.

So how was the eating today?  It was good..except I was sick enough to not really be very hungry all day.  However, I did have a hankering for some spaghetti on the way home so I stopped at the store and did this crazy thing called "cooking" on a weeknight...but only because making spaghetti is pretty damn easy.

ZOMG DOMESTICITY

And it was good, too.

Yum.  Moe.

With me being sick all day and pretty much trapped in my office in a self-imposed quarantine, I had a lot of time to think about things today.  Mostly I thought about how much work I had to catch up on after sleeping in my recliner all day the day before.  But on those rare occasions (i.e., lunch) when I thought of other things, I thought about why I even came to work today - it was because of what my mother used to always tell us when we were sick as kids:  "Get up and go to school; you'll feel better."  While we always thought this was code for "You're not staying home alone so get up and get your butt ready," she was actually pretty accurate; once I was at school (or these days, work), I did feel better.  This got me thinking of other advice my mother used to give us about fitness, weight loss, and other important topics, and I thought I would share some of these little tidbits of wisdom with you: (please read all of them with a Southern accent)

• My mom on weight loss: "It didn't come on all at once; it's going to take time to lose."  I have always struggled with my weight, and this is a little nugget I always have to tell myself when I get impatient with my weight loss.
• My mom on fitness: "Take care of yourself now and you won't end up in a nursing home!"  There's truth to this - take care of yourself now and you won't have to have someone else take care of you later.  
• My mom on brain-eating amoebas: "If you put your head in that lake you'll get a brain-eating amoeba!"  Oh wait, that wasn't my mom; that was me before my first open-water triathlon.  Sorry.
• My mom on eating: "Calories in; calories out - specifically out on your thighs."  This was often said as I was devouring her famous banana pudding.
• My mom after the first time I went walking with her and her friend and they neglected to tell me they freaking SPEED WALKED: "You wimp.  Keep up!"
• More of my mom on weight loss: "You have to burn more calories than you take in."  The same Mom after coming home from the doctor with super high cholesterol: "You mean I shouldn't have eaten all that apple butter before I had the test?"
• My mom on animals: (not really) "A cat will always photobomb what would have been the BEST POST-WORKOUT PIC EVER." 

My mom also says it's time for learnings:

• Some workout is better than no workout.  Glad I did what I could this morning.
• I can cook.  I just like my cooking easy, like any sane and reasonable person who spends two hours in the car each day and works between those two hours.
• My mom has way more little nuggets than the ones I listed...only a lot of them may not be suitable for general consumption.
• Let's just say we grew up with a lot of Southern sayings where, after they were said, we looked at her like WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN
• Even thought my mom didn't say it, it is true about cats photobombing pics. Because they're jerks.

Tomorrow's workout: 5 mile tempo...and, after a peek at the weather, looks like it'll be on the treadmill.  *quiet sob*