Nice Relaxing weekend :-)

The weather this weekend wasn't its usual awesomeness for Colorado - but it was sunny Saturday morning and on Sunday and about 60! For some reason my watch hasn't been around - Saturday morning it wasn't charged and I forgot to bring it to work today - but I got by!

Had a great long run on Saturday morning with AA! My watch was dead by the time I first looked at it, but I since I was running a familiar route I was able to do the math in my head - which is fun anyways :-) My plan was to do 6 miles again this week, 4 miles run - walk - 2 miles run. However, I wasn't quite sure where the four mile mark was and decided to keep going, so I actually ended up running 5 miles, walk .2, run 2 miles = 7 miles! I was super happy about it :-) I'm not exactly sure what my pace was since I had no watch but my rough calculations put it at 11:15 pace for the running. I'm OK with that!

Sunday I went on a leisurely hike with Kels and Kat to Mt Falcon - which is part of Jefferson County Open Space. It was less than 4 miles and only about 90 minutes - but it was a great day and the doggies loved to be outside :-)

Near Red Rocks! Address: 21004 Mount Falcon Road, Indian Hills CO 80454  

 

Great views of the Rockies! Ellie - what cha looking at?

Kat, Kels and Panda - Some old ruins of a mansion up there! Hi Henry!

Then today work got stressful. I brought my bike to work so I could go to a loop at Cherry Creek. However my to-do list already had 6 things by early morning and a meeting in the morning popped up and I had another right after lunch so there wasn't time to go in between! I know the later the day gets, the lower the motivation is. I was deciding between later afternoon versus after work when I realized I could just bike home instead! I mapped it out and it was 16.3 miles! You'll see from the profile below - it is all grading downhill, but I still got a great burn and there are definitely some climbs. I decided to take the Cherry Creek trail the whole way so I wouldn't have to deal with any traffic even though its a few miles out of the way. So the first 15 minutes of my ride were the same leaving from work as if I were going to the park! It ended up taking an hour and 2 minutes! It was gorgeous out too. I'll have to ride TO work soon, I imagine that will take much longer with the climbs and will be closer to 90 minutes! Below is the map and elevation (I forgot my watch so this is mapmyrun.com). Not too exciting.

Bike from Work to Home

The 5 mile race is Saturday morning so I plan to have Friday as a rest day. Tomorrow I am hoping for short 3 miler at work, a long ride on Wednesday, another short run on Thursday and hopefully at least one day of swimming!

Yesterday I went 'blog shopping' as Aaron called it. I am trying to find some other blogs to read of people with similar interests, and hopefully in Colorado (although I do not discriminate). I started following a few so I hope to catch up on some reading this week as well!

Plateaus...how to conquer?

If you were speaking in terms of a running, a plateau might seem like an easy feat...a flat terrain is cake! But - in terms of fitness, it is a big hurdle! For more than 18 months I was able to see progress on the scale, in fitness, and visually. But now - the scale is not my friend, my fitness regime is the same or better, and I am not seeing any visual results. I've read a lot of other people experiences, and I am now seeing first hand how difficult it is. I read a lot about 'shocking' the body and changing up the routine. With the addition of swimming and biking - it seems like I am doing just that! Today is Friday and I was not really feeling like going to the gym. I had great workouts Tues/Wed/Thursday but not as motivated today. Sometimes though, a little motivation comes when you least expect it!

I was filling up my water bottle and walking to the bathroom when a women from another department says, "I don't mean to be personal, I'm not that observant, but I can really tell you are looking good and working hard". She went on to ask what I had been doing, saying she had to get back to working out and we chatted a little. She was really encouraging without making me think I needed to change. One thing she said was, "sometimes people ask if you lost weight - and you just want to be like I didn't just do that, I worked my butt off for it too!"

So needless to say, I am going to go make my trip to the gym for the day! Probably just 30 minutes of cycling and some weights, but a nice little boost for a Friday! I realized a lot of my success has been my consistency with my workout routine.

I know I will have ups and downs - and maintenance is the hardest part, so sometimes it is nice to have a little reminder :-)

Workout update:
Wednesday I got my long bike ride in at Cherry Creek park - even with some dark storm clouds! I finished the 19 miles - 12 minutes faster than last week!
Thursday I did the Orchard Hills park and ran 1.5/1.5 with some light drops of rain the last 15 minutes.
Tomorrow or Sunday I will have my long run - 6 miles total again split 4 miles/walk/2 miles! No swimming this week...I need to improve next week!

I also signed up for the 5 mile race next weekend in the Garden of the Gods! I am really excited. It was great motivation to crank up the running and will be good practice for the Bolder Boulder in 5 weeks!

No internet

No internet at the apartment but Ill try to update!

Wed - 4/18
Great long ride in Cherry Creek park with Hartford Jen. 19 miles and about 90 min. Last 2 miles were brutal! Hoping to go again tom

Thurs - 4/19
Orchard hills run - 1.5/1.5 running

Friday 4/20
30 min on cycle bike at work
AND 30 lengths at pool after work :-)

Sat -4/21
Great 6 mile long run in Wash park! Ran there, 2 loops and back. Did 3 mile, walk,  2 mile, walk, 1 mile.
First time ran 6 miles since Golden Gallop AND 3 miles at once!

Sunday - 4/22
Nothing planned but my 12 year old cousin and his friend slept over. AA and I took them to Wash Park and played intense 2v2 soccer. I'm still sore!

Mon - 4/23
REST

Tuesday - 4/24
Did 4 mile loop but ran 1.5/1/1 this time! It is my fastest time on that course and I even walked .4! Since last spring!

Getting off light rail!

Inspiration...big or small!

A lot of workouts to catch up on, but I wanted to first touch on how inspirational every day life can be, and how inspiration can come from so many different things! Today I was really tired after work! As I ate my dinner (crockpot ham lentil soup - yum!), and watched Jeopardy, my mind weighed the pros and cons to go swimming. In the end I thought about how hard athletes train to do what they love (my friend Jen ran her first marathon yesterday (Boston Marathon) in 90 degree heat after months and months of grueling training). So as I drove over to Wash Park Rec Center - I was so happy to have gotten off my butt. Runner after runner after cycler after walker cruised around the loops in Wash Park. It is so great to see so many active people! My swim turned out great (below). Then, as I walked the pups after the swim I thought of other recent inspirations. My sister, Molly, called me yesterday to tell me she signed up for her first 5k!! I thought back to my first 5k when I was actually visiting her in NC. All it took was that first hurdle and each one after became easier and easier. These are just a few (athletic) inspirations and I know there are so many more! Aaron got a promotion and will now be supporting a few Sales Managers for the hotel! He faced a lot of closed doors before this one opened - but his perseverance and determination showed me not to give up! Over the weekend Aaron and I were able to see my godparents in New Mexico. My aunt was very diligent to provide us with healthy snacks and dinner while we were there! I feel like sometimes I am short changing myself while doing all this training! For the most part AA and I eat healthy, but with all the activity we probably take a few shortcuts knowing we worked out that day! So we decided to be even more conscious to eat healthier over the next few weeks as we prepare for the Bolder Boulder. OK on to the workouts!

Tuesday - 4/10
Becoming routine!

Day: 4 mile loop at work. 
walk .25, run 1
repeat 2x then walk .25 
=3 mile run, 1 mile walk

Evening: Lap Swim
10x25 meters
repeat 3x
=40 laps


Wednesday - 4/11
My friend Hartford Jen and I were supposed to ride in Cherry Creek after work (second attempt). When it was time to leave, there was a severe thunder storm warning, tornado warnings, hail, T-storms, rain. We decided to postpone and I just did 30 minutes on the cycle bike at work instead. Hopefully this week!

Thursday - 4/12
3.2 mile Orchard Hills course. I struggled. 
My stomach felt funny and I finished the run hunched over - no bueno!
Run 1 mile, walk .2, run 1 mile, walk .2, run .8 = run 2.8 miles and walk .4


Weekend intro: Aaron and I headed down to the Hyatt Tamaya Resort in Albuquerque, NM on Friday morning. It was a great weekend away - still filled with lots of activities!!!!


Friday - 4/13
6.5 mile bike around on the trails at Tamaya Resort in ABQ! We got a little lost and it ended up being longer....on cruisers! Fun times :-)

AA - Sandia's in background

Panda with Sandia's and Rio Grande

Tamaya Resort in Background!

Does a few rides down the water slide count as 'cross-training'? :-)

Water slide - AA is waving from the top left!

Saturday - 4/14
The weather was calling for 40 mile per hour winds in the afternoon so AA and I went out early for a run around the trails at Tamaya (where we had biked). 

2 mile run

walk .25

2 mile run

walk .25

1 mile run

It started out slow - but that is OK for long runs, right?? 10:50 pace for first 2 miles. The third was about the same, the 4th and 5th felt great actually! The last .5 miles was a 9:50 pace! Great run with AA in NM :-)

 Sunday - 4/15

AA and I met my godparents (Auntie Annie and Uncle Brian) for a hike in the Sandias at 8 AM!! It was overcast for the hike, encountered some chilly temps and wind at the top - but it was a beautiful hike and a great time! It was neat to see the different landscape that is in New Mexico. As we progressed up in elevation the landscape actually started to look more like CO and then back east which was very neat! Auntie Annie and Uncle Brian were marathon hikers! They did great! They were blazing the trail the whole time and I tried to keep up and hydrate! Face definitely got purple on the way up :-) They will be coming out to Colorado this summer for their first 14er, which they will have NO problem with! Aaron's blog has a great recap! http://coloradorambler.blogspot.com

Distance: 9.15 mile hike 

Elevation gain: 2,760 ft

Time: 3 hours, 32 minutes

Elevation

Mile times + Elevation

New Yorkers at the top!

AA, the pups and me!

Monday - 4/16

Nothing! Break!

Tuesday - 4/17

Day: Same as a week ago!

4 mile loop at work, alternating walking .25 and running 1 mile

=3 mile run

=1 mile walk

My time this week was faster than last week and I felt strong!

Evening: Lap Swim

I kicked up the laps by 10% so I did 44 laps!

I also increased the laps I did before taking a break

Instead of 10 (25m) laps - 4 times

I did 16 laps, then 16 laps, then 12! = 44

Breathing felt good! Plus it was not crowded!

So the past week has been busy but I am feeling healthy! My legs are a little tired, so early to bed tonight! I also have been trying to ice to ankle, and need to find the band to do my exercises!

Tomorrow cross your fingers the bike ride will happen at Cherry Creek!!

Great weekend!!

Since the last post - I had a really hard (and windy) bike ride on Friday, an amazing 4.5 hour, 7.5 mile, 3200 ft elevation gain hike on Saturday and a long run this morning! Happy Easter!

Friday (4/6)
I biked to PT (from light rail) again on Friday and then to work. I remembered gloves this time so the 6 mile RT wasn't as chilly as last time!

PT went well! It was (hopefully) my last day. I am going to continue to do the exercises and ice it on run days. He said it might get sore, but I won't get as bad as I was if I am careful with my runs. I am sticking to the 3 runs per week so I hope that will do the trick! I am super happy I decided to go. I was a little hesitant at the beginning, not knowing if it would help, and be worth the $! But I having been running for 5 weeks and am feeling great! 

It was a gorgeous day on Friday and I couldn't help the urge to just get outside during lunch! I had seen online it was going to be windy later in the day but I decided to give it a shot anyways. I headed to Cherry Creek park and planned to do an out and back ride. I was coasting the whole way there and through the park (mostly downhill). I hit about 4.25 miles and decided I should probably turn-around - it had been about 16 minutes and wanted to keep it close to 30 minutes. I turned around and was immediately faced with some strong wind and uphill. I quickly down shifted and the legs started to burn. I then recalled how I had thought another biker I had passed going the opposite direction had been moving slowly but thought maybe he wasn't a strong biker on the hills. I quickly realized the wind was so strong and that was the culprit. It took me another 16 minutes just to reach the midway point at the edge of the park (2ish miles). I ended the whole bike ride around 44 minutes and 8.7 miles. I wasn't planning on such a rough ride but was happy the sun was shining :-) I got to bed early that night as my legs were very tired and wanted to rest up for the hike!

Saturday (4/7)
Aaron and I were up early and to the trail head before 8:30! We drove to Boulder and had decided earlier in the week to do the South Boulder Peak hike. I had done this hike about a year and a half ago when I first moved to Denver with my friend Kelsey. I struggled with the hike and was anxious to see how I fared this time!

We got the last spot in the closer lot - and the back lot looked close to full as well. Scarlet made the trip with us, but I left Ellie behind not knowing what my own capabilities were. The first two miles are a nice gentle climb with about 1000 feet of elevation gain. Mile two is where it gets tough. The next 1.36 miles gains 2000 feet of elevation! You are basically climbing rock stairs the entire time. The first time I had to stop repeatedly and was not in a good mood. On Saturday, I felt strong (although out of breath and tired), I could tell that my endurance was much much better. Even though it was still hard to climb like that, I had better endurance and my lungs and legs were able to handle it better. It was a great feeling :-) Aaron was happy about my pleasant mood as well ;-) 

The view from the top of South Boulder Peak is absolutely amazing. Facing the west you get amazing unobstructed views of the Rockies. The 360 degree panoramic view is limitless! The best views I've had from the front range. The is a saddle back that leads to another peak, Bear Peak, so we hiked back down and back up to Bear Peak (only .7 miles from one peak to the next) and had amazing views of Boulder. Denver could even be seen on a clear day like Saturday. We found a cozy spot on the rocks amongst the other hikers and had a well deserved the lunch! The last picture is one exhausted Scarlet! It is safe to say all three of us were very very sore on Sunday, but well worth it!

 Here is the map of our hike as well as the elevation :-) If I showed you the speed it would just show very low paces!

 Sunday (4/8)
Happy Easter! AA and I were up early for Easter preparations - but I was able to get in a run around 11ish! I was schedule for my long run - 1.5 mile/1.5 mile/1 mile with .25 walk in between. The first few paces were stiff and very hard - I am still so sore from the hike! But as it progressed I loosened up. I finished the run and was happy about how I felt. I definitely went slow since I was sore/tired - but that is OK for long runs. The purpose is more to get the miles rather than run your fastest. A good way to finish the exercise week. I think tomorrow I will take the day off since it was quite the active weekend!! I hope to start the new schedule with more consistent swimming this week, wish me luck :-)

14 weeks! Planning Time!

Wow - the race is only about 14 weeks away!

I mapped out the bike course the other day - looks pretty steep with 1000 ft elevation gain. But I am not sure what this feels like on a bike, so just need to give it a try! (Should be 12.1 miles)

On Monday I am hoping to start my full training schedule! This just means devoting certain days to each event. Right now I am thinking:
Run - 3 days (1 long day, 2 days at 3 miles)
Swim - 2 days (might need more)
Bike - 3 days (need a more detailed schedule)

For my running - I am signed up for the 10K in Boulder over Memorial Day. I will decide this week if I will sign up for the 5 mile race down south. If so, I have already incorporated this in to my run schedule. This shows the total miles run, and the how it is split up. I plan to walk about .25 between each split. That means this weekend I will have 1.5 mile, walk, 1.5 mile, walk, 1 mile! So just 1 extra mile from what I did today. Just my first thoughts - but wanted to get it all down! Subject for change, but hoping to start Monday!

Workout catch up

I can't believe a week has already gone by! My last blog was a week ago yesterday, so since then I have done 3 runs and 2 bike rides. I think the weekend before really wore me out!! I felt it for well over a week. We had done a lot of bikes rides on top of the normal activities. Feeling good now though!

Thursday (3/29) - did 4 mile loop at work and ran 3 miles of it (running 1 mile splits)

Friday - biked to PT from light rail and then to work = 6 miles. The way to work is all uphill! 200 ft or so of elevation gain (didn't wear my watch)

Saturday - rest! (volunteered at 4Kay race downtown)

Sunday - ran to Wash Park and did loop. 3.5 miles of running, 4.5 total. (running 1 mile splits). ALSO we volunteered for NCAA final four stuff. Aaron and I were in the wiffle ball bating cages for 4 hours. Chasing balls, chasing kids and running around. I was sore for the next 2 days! My boss even asked why I was limping!

Monday - rest! (10 hours at work and no time for gym)

Tuesday - it snowed! So I ran on the treadmill at work. Ran 3 - 1 mile segments with .25 in between. Over the weekend it was 85 degrees - crazy Colorado weather :-)

Wednesday - tried the new cycling machine at work! It is super neat, although they didn't spring for the console so it doesn't tell you how far you are going or anything like that. But it feels like you are on a real bike and can adjust the resistance. I saw two guys with an iPad app that had a course and told them when there were hills, etc. Sort of like a spin class! Anyways - did 35 minutes on that!

Thursday (today - 4/5) - did 3.2 Orchard Hills loop at work. Today I bumped it up 1.5 mile splits and only walked .2 between. I'll include my splits for that below. The second mile is all uphill (and walked) 


Tomorrow I'll do the biking to PT again and maybe a route during the day if I get enough sleep :-)

On tap for this weekend...
South Boulder Peak hike! I really hope on Saturday! It's a beast...3,000 feet elevation gain! 6.5 miles :-) The views at the end are totally worth it.

Sunday - hopefully a run. But we are having people over for Easter and I might be pretty sore from Saturday, so if not I'll do my long run on Monday! (see next post)