Motivation is a Funny Thing…it is Always Changing

• Upcoming race = motivation but too much training = burnout 
• Huge race PR = motivation but thinking you can eat whatever you want and not workout for a week = total FAIL 
• Fellow bloggers with great training weeks = motivation but wondering how they do it can make it seem unattainable 
• Morning runners at Wash Park = motivation but getting out of bed when it is dark is hard!

These are just a few things that I have struggled with over the past week. After the half marathon, I came off a huge high and was so excited to get back out there! I knew tri training was starting and I was so excited to get back at it!

With that great accomplishment, I thought I deserved a good meal that day and the next day off! Well one meal turned in to one week and the next day turned in to the next week! Before I knew it I suddenly was feeling horrible, lazy and unmotivated!

How does one combat this?

Well I knew I needed to get back up so –

Step 1 – Make a PLAN!

• During the foot of snow we received on Saturday – I decided to craft! I made a colorful calendar that plans out activities and workouts. I have this in Excel obviously, but I wanted something hanging in the kitchen that reminded me every day what I had coming up the next week/month and how I can fit in workouts! Just like food, it is always more satisfying when you make it yourself!

 

Step 2 – Get an ‘AH-HA’ moment! 

• Maybe you already had this – but when I stepped on the scale not even 10 days after the race I knew I could not keep on the same track! Sure lots of it was water weight from not eating great, etc – but there was NO excuse to undo everything I had just worked on for months!

Step 3 – get INSPIRED

• Looks to friends, look to family, look to strangers for encouragement, for motivation, for the strength to get started or keep going

• I had 100s of blogs to catch up, I spent a few days catching up on everyone’s accomplishments. Seeing what others can do in a day, what others are enjoying, what others are achieving really got me revved up to go J

Step 4 – Take ONE day at time

• Take one day at a time, focus on small accomplishments and how you can achieve them.

• Tuesday – ran 3 miles during lunch. Felt HARD. Felt SLUGGISH. But I ran! I took the first step! I felt good about my self

• Wednesday – AM: knew work was going to be busy so I went in early to spin for 35 minutes, yay me! I felt good.
• In the PM – I planned my evening and went to Yoga! Yoga was hard, I felt weak – but I felt great about going.

Walking to yoga!

• Thursday – AM swim! First time in the pool in months, felt amazing! I only did a slow 750m but it started the day off on the right foot. Getting out of bed in the dark isn’t fun – nothing before 6 AM is fun (yet), but driving to the pool at Wash Park – seeing lots of runners with headlights and reflective gear – got me excited that I share interests with these people – being healthy and taking charge of your life and doing something about it

 

I always get rings under my eyes!!

• PM: Wash Park run with AA and the pups! AA got the green light from the doc for activities! Planning activities with friends/family is a great way to keep in touch and lighten you spirits (and body!) Though this run did not go well! I ran with Scarlet who did well, but my lungs really hurt!! I think it may also be because I gave blood last week! I love giving blood but it sure wipes it out of me!

• The eating side has been going well too – planning meals, eating at home, and consciously thinking about what you are putting in to your body helps so much.  Someone recently told me – don’t tell yourself that you CAN’T eat something because of a diet, say you don’t WANT to. Don’t control your eating but decide it!

Step 5 – Reward yourself!

• It is far too early to reward myself after 3 days of working out! But along those lines – treat yourself once and a while!

• AA and I received a package from my mom with some sweet new workout gear! This always helps!

• REI dividends came out this week and I have my eyes on a bike computer trainer! I can’t wait to hop on the bike after the winter

• My birthday is coming up! I already picked out some clipless pedals and new shoes!

Step 6 – Be excited for YOU

• I’m not the fastest, I won’t train the most, I won’t make every workout but I am excited I am trying!!! I deserve that :-)

While this post may seems like I hit rock bottom and needed divine intervention to get me going, it wasn’t quite that bad. But I did throw my working out and good eating habits out the window for too long. I know here and there it’s great to splurge (and I do) and there will be slip ups (and I do) – but this feels like I was starting fresh and am really excited about it! Since moving to Colorado that is the longest ‘non working out’ break I had and I didn’t like one minute of it!

How do you deal with post race blues and ruts?

Does Racing Improve Speed?

This weeks workouts have felt good so far! It's a bit of a long post! I think the length and amount of pictures relate to how great I felt after the GoG race :-)

Monday
Kept things simple and did 30 minutes of cycling at the gym and some free weights


Tuesday

AM: 4 mile course - 1.5/1/1 with .2 walk between

Improvement of 1 min and 45 over previous best

I decided to 'spice' up this workout and took pictures as I ran!
I think the race on Saturday helped me realize I can actually run a little faster than I do...I beat my previous best for the course by a minute and 45 seconds! That is a lot for only 4 miles, over 26 seconds per mile!
It wasn't a perfect blue sky day, but it was pretty nice!

Leaving work - about .2 miles to intersection

Running by start of Orchard Hills Park route - which is the 3.2 loop

Pretty flowers above me

On a clear day - this is all the Rocky Mountains - my favorite part of run and ultimate vitamin D kick!

Almost home - Jen's neighborhood!

Middle Earth

Okay so maybe that was not super exciting, but it made the run a little fun! Since I didn't stop they are not the best quality, but after the race on Saturday - this run felt great! I also tried to get some action shots running, but I could never hit the button!

PM: swimming 46 lengths - 15/15/16

I almost forgot to write about the swim! I hadn't been in a few weeks and as always it felt great to get back in the pool! Happy with my progress. I did 3 sets of 15 lengths (added one on last leg to get back to the right side). I am going to try and continue to do more lengths - maybe up to 60? Twice the distance of the open swim. I am still learning what good swim works are!

Wednesday
Rode my bike to work!!
Course was 16.4 miles and gained about 550 ft of elevation. 
As I mentioned after my previous ride home from work, it would take a bit longer since it was all uphill. I was very pleased with my 1 hour and 17 minutes! I was super energized at work too. My goal is to try and do this once a week. I rode the light rail home :-)

Right before entering in Cherry Creek Park

Thursday

AM - 3.2 mile course (intervals) .5/.5/.5, walk .2, .5/.5/.5

improvement of 45 seconds over previous best

Interval training! I decided to do the 3.2 Orchard Hills loop doing intervals - this is one of the things I have been missing in my training.
After reading lots and lots of blogs - I realized that if you hit the 'lap' button on the watch it restarts the auto-lap. I reset mine to .5 miles today so that would be my interval length. Since I walk .2 in the middle - I can just restart the lap and know exactly what I get for my running part after I walk. It is so simple, but I was SO excited that it worked! Can you tell I have never run a lot?

Below are my laps - my plan was to run normal for the first .5 miles, run fast for the 2nd and then recovery for 3rd. Then walk .2 miles and repeat.
The first set of that went great, I had 10 min pace then 9 mile pace then 11 min pace! For the second set, my first and second were almost the same pace (9:45ish) and then cool down of just over 11 min pace. If you take out the running, it works out to a 10:15 min/mile pace. I also beat my previous record for this course by 45 seconds!

.5 mile laps (with .2 walk in the middle)

Wheel of fortune is almost over and I need to stop blogging so I can go swim!

PM: 30 lengths - continuous! 20 minutes

Tonight was a shorter swim, but the longest I have ever done without stopping! I was telling my sister on the way home when I first started I would do 4 lengths and stop for a few breathers. Tonight I did 30 lengths! It is great to see my progress of the past few months!

Rec Center where I swim!

Volleyball craziness at Wash Park - every night of the week!

View from light rail bridge - why I don't drive :-)

Sorry for the length and excess amount of pictures! Lots to update I guess!

Tomorrow I am hoping to do arms/abs/push-ups at the gym. Maybe a little cycling if I am not too tired. Saturday we want to go for a long hike, but the forecast does not look promising!

From all my new blogs - I like how people end with a question. I talked with my sister Molly today who has been doing great on her quest to run her first 5k! We talked about motivation and how this is the first time she has ever looked forward to running! 

What keeps you motivated? What activities are you looking forward to this summer?