By Sunday, I will have run 42 miles this week, the majority of them between Monday and Thursday. Given that I also ran Saturday and Sunday last week, I ran 6 days in a row for a total of 52 miles. I had planned to run today, but realized that it was just too many miles too many days in a row. I need to pay better attention to my run scheduling. Nearly every training plan schedules a step back week as part of the plan. Depending on the plan, step back weeks occur every 3-5 weeks and include a drop in mileage of anywhere from 15-50%. I've been doing two weeks of build then one week step back where I try to drop the mileage by about 20%. (My last step back was a whopping 60% drop. Oops.) Here's how a step back week benefits a … [Read more...]
How to live with a Crossfit spouse (guest post)
Today, I'm handing over the controls to a new friend from Elf for Health. She's going to share her expertise about something I know nothing about: living with a crossfit aficionado. Enjoy! (And stop on by Pavement and Pixie Dust to hear me share my expertise... on beer and fitness.) Hi,Becki from Pavement and Pixie Dust here. I’m fairly new to the run blogging community and I’m excited to be participating in the Elf4Health blog swap. Thanks to Erika for hosting my blog and make sure to check out her post over at my spot (rkjalernpan.blogspot.com) I am good at a lot of things. But when it comes to being an expert, I really had to stop and think. The first few things that came to mind were eating dessert for breakfast, talking to my … [Read more...]
Revolve Party!
A while back, RevolveDC offered me a chance to come for a free ride and bring 20 of my local friends. Obviously, I jumped at the chance and sent out word to my local running buddies and some of the moms' groups I belonged to. It didn't take long to fill all of my allotted seats. I rode on Wednesday with a friend and Angel kicked.our.butts. So, I took Thursday as a rest day to make sure my legs were up for a fun ride on Friday. Friday, a decent percentage of women showed up for the ride. (Most of us were moms and we all know that kids can throw a wrench in plans.) Once again, Revolve did not disappoint. Friday's instructor was Grant Hill. This was the third time I've taken his class and he ALWAYS pushes me harder than … [Read more...]
Go big or go home (+ a winner)
Beer Geek has a few days of leave he has to use by the end of the year. Because this year he's covering the office during Christmas week, he's decided to take a few random days off between now and then. Monday was the first of those days. Being the good wife that I am, (stop laughing), I asked him what he'd like to do on his day off. His response? Let's bike to Mad Fox Brewery and back. Although my immediate reaction was "hell.no.", what came out of my mouth was "Sure, I can do that." What??? Let me tell you a little bit about the planned ride. It's hilly. It's 5.5 miles each way. Some biking in traffic is required. It was windy yesterday. And, oh yeah, it's HILLY! And the farthest I'd ever ridden before was 3 … [Read more...]
Get out of the heat with RevolveDC (Giveaway!)
It's hot in the DC metro area right now. Really, really hot. Workouts in my unairconditioned basement have kind of sucked, whether it's a run on my dying treadmill or a weight workout. Even going to the pool yesterday wasn't that refreshing because the water was warm. Ugh! I like sweating because I got a good workout. I'm not a fan of sweating before I even move. Just one of many reasons I like Revolve: a spin studio with air conditioning! Anyways, RevolveDC has offered me the chance to give one of my local readers a 5 ride pack! Not just one free ride, but five! Remember how much I loved my ride? It was pretty awesome and I can't wait to become a regular in the fall. And RevolveDC just won Best Indoor Cycling Studio in … [Read more...]
Revolve DC Indoor Cycling Review
Recently, Revolve DC approached me and offered me a free class. I was really excited to try it, but the only time of day that works for me is 10:00am. With only a few of those classes each week, it took me a few weeks to finally get in. (There are plans to increase the number of daytime classes.) I'm so glad I did! It was a great workout! I took an extended Body Ride class with Grant Hill. Here's their description: Cardio...Strength...Flexibility...Everything you need in one complete class. This all-encompassing workout allows you to maximize the time you have to work-out in one place. Start out strong. The ride is cardio-intense and gets the heart rate up and keeps it there. Stay moving while you strengthen and tone the upper … [Read more...]
#WhatsBeautiful now?
As part of my participation in the Under Armour What's Beautiful campaign, I made a goal of stepping outside my comfort zone. While I haven't exactly managed to do one thing that scares me every day, I did successfully step WAY outside my zone to race a trail half marathon. It was pretty awesome putting myself out there where I had no experience before. OK, maybe the whole time wasn't awesome... But I did it! Now what? There are still four weeks left. I need a new way to step outside my zone. I know. I'll stop running. What???? OK, I won't stop running. I'm just going to make cross training a priority. It's been years since I focused on something besides running for exercise (12.5 to be exact...) and it's time … [Read more...]
Work in Progress: Best Body Boot Camp
I've done a lot of running so far this year. I also did a whole lot of not running while my calf healed. What I didn't do was a whole lot of strength training. My once a week yoga class, while awesome, was not enough to build muscle. I'm paying the price now. I have zero upper body strength, my glutes are mushy, and even my legs leave a lot to be desired. I joined the Best Body Boot Camp to try and rectify the situation. If the first four days are any indication, I'll be in amazing shape at the end. Tina has sent us workouts for each day with prescribed weight workouts 3 days a week + directions for cardio. You can choose any form of cardio (elliptical, bike, etc.) and, as you can imagine, I've chosen to run. At first … [Read more...]
Wordless Wednesday
I don’t like to exercise
No, really, I don't. At heart, I'm a lazy girl who would like to sit on the couch with a book and a beer. (Just for the record, running is not exercise. It's a drug. A very addictive drug.) I'm not a fan of the gym or going to classes or riding a bike for anything other than fun. Oh, sure, I talk a good game. I talk about how I want to cross train. I talk about how zen yoga is. I write great reviews about the awesome class I attended. And I mean all it before AND after. It's the during I have a problem with. I'm the one mentally cursing the instructor. I'm the one hating on the "pain" (ok, really it's just muscle burn). I'm the one peaking at the clock, willing it to go faster. But you know what, I'm still there. … [Read more...]
Refocusing
I love to run. Running has become a huge part of who I am. It's my anti-depressant, my stress reliever, my muse. I need to return to my old running roots. The ones where I ran because I wanted to or needed to. Where I ran the distance or the speed that felt good that day. The place I was before I started training and tracking miles and caring about my speed. That run never hurt me. That run was only a positive force in my life. I run to be mentally healthy, to be physically strong, and ok, sometimes so I can continue to drink beer and still fit in my jeans. I'll be keeping that run around. But, until my body stops rebelling, distance running and specific training plans will be taking a backseat. I'll be mixing in more … [Read more...]
Brewing with Mad Fox
When Beer Geek and I first started dating, he was a home brewer. He made some really good brews back in the day. As life got busier, home brewing fell by the wayside and eventually we sold all of his equipment to make room for all the kid related stuff that came into our lives. Lately, though, *I've* been thinking that I want to start brewing. And I figured where better to learn than from one of the best? So, I called up Bill Madden and Charlie Buettner at Mad Fox Brewing Company and asked if I could help them brew a batch. Not only did they say yes, Charlie let me know when they were brewing their next batch of Wee Heavy (my favorite beer). I had to miss the very beginning of the brew process because I had to get my kids to … [Read more...]
