Weekly Rundown- Good News and Bad News
Well, there was good news and bad news this week. Or actually, there was great news and terrible news. The great news is that after taking a week off, I was able to run again, and my shin felt good. The TERRIBLE news, as I shared on Friday, is that our AC died. But it’s fixed now, we all survived, and there were plenty of workouts as usual! Thanks as always to Kim and Deborah for hosting the Weekly Rundown. Here’s how it all went down… Sunday First run back after the shin incident! 4 pain-free miles, followed by Caroline Girvan’s deadbug workout. This was the day the AC conked out. Sadness! Misery! Of course it happened on a Sunday and our AC people couldn’t come until Monday. OF COURSE. Monday This was a great morning for the gym! The cool, air conditioned gym. Followed by breakfast at Starbucks, where they crank the AC so high I have to wear two sweatshirts, and then on to work which is, once again, air conditioned. It was leg day, so I did my usual routine of warming up on the stair climber, then squats, deadlifts, Runner’s Touch exercise., calf raises, and abs. Meanwhile my husband was waiting at home for the AC guy. He diagnosed several major and expensive problems, and promised to return the next day to fix it. THE NEXT DAY. Sigh. On an “unrelated” note, one of my coworkers told me they keep prisons very cold, because if the prisoners get too hot they get angry and aggressive. Oh really? Hmm. Tuesday After a hot and sweaty night, I was a little worried about a run today. I wondered if my core temperature was already so elevated, that running outside would be too much. But it was fine! Another 4 mile run that felt good. And, by nighttime the AC was fixed and the house was cool again. PHEW. Wednesday I really wanted to run today. Normally Wednesday is my treadmill speedwork day, but I think that’s what hurt my shin, so I decided to err on the side of caution, and instead went back to the gym for upper body. Rows, lat pulldowns, bench press, overhead press, calf raises and abs. Calves and abs are happening every time I go to the gym! Thursday Oddly, after a night in the nice, cool AC, it was on this run where the heat got to me. Was it hotter or more humid? Whatever it was, I was roasting. Maybe this was the problem: Yep, “feels like” 90 at 7 am is not okay! But I did it. Friday Leg day at the gym again! This time I tried something my son does: he sets his timer to make sure he rests long enough between sets. He said for large muscle groups, like squats and deadlifts, you should be resting three minutes. It’s amazing how long three minutes actually is! I would say in the past I was resting around 60-90 seconds, and resting longer really enabled me to work harder. I was able to do an extra set of squats, and add weight to my deadlifts. On the downside, this takes a LONG TIME. Coming to strength training from a runner’s perspective, it seems odd to be standing around doing nothing in the middle of a workout. Saturday I did my Daily Shakedown, which is a 15 minute full-body mobility routine, and Caroline Girvan’s deadbug workout. Other than that, it was a day off. Sunday On tap for today- a longer run. Possibly on the trail, and definitely with an icy cold bottle of water in my hydration vest. How was your week? Are you enjoying some hot summer days?