Spin Fail

Thursday night I tried to spin.  Look how excited I was.

 Take 1 and Take 2.  

Both are included because of Molly Waffles lurking in the background.

Check out that downward dog.

But I got to the gym with over 10 minutes to spare before the class started only to find it was full.  I thought I'd be ok because last week the same class was only 2/3 full.  I incorrectly assumed the beginning-of-semester hype had worn off. 

I was disheartened.

I wear different shoes for running than I do for spinning, so I did not want to stick around at the gym to play on the treadmill.  And it was nice out, so if I as going to run it would be outside, not at the gym.  I drove home and saved up all my leg energy for Friday morning when I planned to get in a run before work.

Then because I was dressed in workout clothes for nothing, I took the above two thumbs-up pictures after I got home.  Tricky, I know.


Friday morning I was proud of myself for waking up shortly after 6:30 am to slowly begin getting ready for an hour-ish long run.  I laid everything out the night before and yet somehow it took me 20 minutes to leave.  I think I did hit snooze once though.  And I may still have been half asleep while trying to put my contacts in.

I ran 5 miles at an average pace of 10:45.  It started off at a comfortable pace, and when I emerged from the park my pace quickened by about :40/mile.  It wasn't quite the 6 I had hoped to get in, but I'll take it.  It's the longest I have run since the trail half on the 25th.

After work, Dan and I pumped up our bike tires after neglecting them for the past month.  We went for a quick almost-4 mile bike ride to make sure our bike muscles still worked.  It's supposed to be beautiful this weekend so I'm hoping we can go for a longer bike ride.

Now for an important question.  I'm going to buy another pair of running shoes soon.

I really liked my Asics GT 2150s that I wore this spring and summer.  I put 400 miles on them.  They have held up really well!  Over the summer I bought the slightly less supportive and slightly lower heeled Asics 1160.  There's nothing wrong with them, they've been an ok pair of shoes, and I ran my Philly half in them.  I don't think I ever reviewed them though.  They have about 200ish miles on them right now, so I will still wear them, but I wanted to get a more cushioned pair for my upcoming longer runs.

I'm 99% decided on returning to the next version of the 2150: the 2160.  I know color is not the most important factor in a running shoe.  But since I know this style works for me, I'm going to worry about color.  My last few pairs have been white + blue or white + pink which is kind of boring.

Check these out!

Grey + yellow is one of my favorite color combinations.  Unfortunately that's only for the trail shoe.  And while I run in parks, it's not the bulk of my running and my November half will be on roads.  So I guess I just wanted to give Asics some credit for a nice grey + yellow shoe.

The two colors I liked better on the road version are above.  Neither really matches my existing running "wardrobe" so that's not a consideration.

Which color combo do you prefer:

Grey + Green/Yellow   --Or--   Grey + Light Blue + Orange?

What are your weekend plans?

Grumpy Speed Work

Hello again!  I really hope I can get myself back into posting more regularly soon.

Monday I had off from work; it was nice to have a day home after two days of driving.  I got in a 9 mile run, did laundry, went grocery shopping, emptied the dishwasher, and then because I'm crazy, I went to an hour of spinning with a friend that night too, then I made dinner.  I'd say it was a productive day!

I ran 9.02 miles without music.  I made myself a route that included some hills, just for fun.  There were so many pretty flowering trees to look at along the way. 

It was also 80ish and humid with clear skies.  I did not wear sun screen (hey, it's not as hot as Florida, and the sun isn't as direct!), and as a result my shoulders and upper chest were sunburned.  Guess it's time to start wearing sunscreen while I run again.  I got more color from that run than I did the whole time we were in Florida (I was good and used sunscreen in FL though).  I had a pineapple roctane gu around mile 4.3.  It was my first time trying the flavor, it was recommended to me by the bike shop guy where I buy gu.  He claimed it tastes like pineapple soda; I guess I'd agree- maybe I'd say it tastes like pineapple soda with a little salt in it.

Tuesday I took a day off since Monday was a tad cardio-intensive.  I did go for a 45-50 minute walk with the dog and the dude before watching the Buffalo Sabres hockey game.  Watching the game was a bad idea, they lost badly to Philly (2-5).  No Stanley Cup for Buffalo this year.

Wednesday I had a long day of work and was looking forward to spinning in the evening.  I got to the gym a little early, ready to pedal my little heart out only to find out my gym card was not in my wallet.  I realized I left it in my handheld water bottle pouch from Monday night.  The one other time I forgot my gym card last summer I was still allowed in with my license (also, they recognized me), and just signing my name on a sheet of paper.  Apparently the policy changed or the student worker at the desk was new...she wouldn't let me even with my license and/or my ID card from when I was a grad student there.  I hoped someone else might walk in to the office and veto her decision.  I asked, but she also wouldn't let me be a guest of my friend who was already in the spinning room (and I was bringing water for my friend because she forgot and I had no way to get in touch with her).

I was pissed and this put me in a foul mood.  I had planned to spin and do some speed work on the treadmill since it was over 80% humidity out and running in that just isn't pleasant.  Additionally there was a possible thunderstorm rolling in...

...and I didn't feel like running in a downpour.

There was not enough time to drive home and get it and get back for spinning... and I didn't want to see that girl again last night anyway.  Luckily the rain held off and those dark clouds passed (but the humidity stuck around). I went home and changed into my running shorts but was still stewing and sat on my butt for over an hour before getting out the door for a run.  I finally did though...

I ran 5x800m at 10k pace with 400m rest intervals.
My goal pace was in the 9:41-9:49 range based on a hopeful 2:14-2:16 half marathon.

I did a .65 mile warm up (random, yes), then banged out 9:35, 9:09, 9:26, 9:28, and 9:38 (second half of that last one was even up hill!) splits.  After the final 400m rest interval, I slowly ran for almost half a mile. 
Total: 4.87 miles in 51:33.

Despite my grumpiness earlier in the evening, I was very pleased with my speed work. ESPECIALLY considering the humidity.  I felt sweaty just stepping outside, let alone running in it.  And my Heart Rate was an average 163 to boot, which is pretty good for me during 1. speed work and 2. heat.  Even without the heat, I'd be happy with that HR.  My HR peaked at 183 while running that uphill portion at the end.

And just to end with another picture, here is a grainy cell phone picture of some pretty tulips I passed while driving to the gym:

How's your running/biking/yoga/whatever going this week?
Who's signed up for spring races?

Tweaking and Tempo Run

Bear with me while I tweak my blog based on my recent poll.

I'm trying out one sidebar with two columns. 11 voted for one side bar over 7 voting to leave it with two side bars.

About Me is now at the top of the side bar, with Blogs I Follow and the Archive right underneath.

More people said the font is easy to read (9) than not easy to read (4).

More people said ditch the dark brown w/light font (7) than keep it (5).

And people said leave it alone (7).

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Tonight I went to spinning.  It was another good class with the new guy instructor.  He may make us work harder than the Monday night instructor (according to my Heart Rate monitor).  Both instructors are good, just different!

Then after spinning I planned to get in my 35 minute tempo run.  And I did! But the gym is still crazy with all the undergrads back.

After spinning I stalked the treadmills for about 10 minutes while talking to a friend.  Even all the ellipticals were taken.  I gave up and got my stuff from my locker.  I figured I'd run outside under street lights (because of ice) even if it meant I'd have to loop around a short route to get the time in.  

Then!  On my way out of the locker room, a man stepped off his treadmill.  Yessssssss.

So I gave my tempo run a shot.

Here's what Hal Higdon says a tempo run should be: This is a continuous run with a buildup in the middle to near 10-K race pace.  A Tempo Run of 30 to 45 minutes would begin with 10-15 minutes easy running, build to 15-20 minutes near the middle, then 5-10 minutes easy toward the end.

I have a hard time thinking of my run in minutes instead of miles.  But I walked for a minute or two, then ran for another 10 minutes at 5.3 mph and a 1% incline.  

When I hit the 1-mile mark, I had been running easy for 12 minutes, and I switched to 6.0 mph (10:00 pace is in the middle of my 10k pace range of 9:49-10:07 and it was easy to remember).  I told myself I'd hold that pace for 15 minutes.  The first half crawled by while I watched some Real Housewives Reunion on closed captioning with Lady Gaga on my mp3 player, trying to distract myself as much as possible.  As I approached 15 minutes, I thought "I can do this another minute, no problem!" So I did it until 16 minutes.

Then I switched back down to 5.3 mph for the easy end of my run, for 5 minutes.  I slowed it to 5.1 for another 2 minutes, then I was done.  Yippee.  

Total of 3.24 miles in 35:01.  

Does anyone else do tempo runs?  How do you do them?
This is my first time doing them the Hal Higdon way, which I think is the real way.  I feel like Runner's World Smart Coach just gave me a pace to run for the entire tempo run.  Or maybe they didn't provide much direction.
Have any tips to provide?  

I think I like my hills and speed work runs better, because they require a little less thought!  The tempo run would have been a little harder for me to plan outside, (I plan in miles, not minutes) so I'm glad I did this one on the treadmill (glad + treadmill!? in the same sentence?  shocking, I know).


Sorry for the lack of pictures tonight, I'll try to find something fun to post a picture of tomorrow.

Jambalaya, Spinning, and Sleepy Dog Pictures

Here's the jambalaya that I mentioned my husband was going to make last night.  It's loosely based on a recipe from the slow cooker cook book, "Biggest Book of Slow Cooker Recipes" from Better Homes and Gardens.

It was dinner last night, and made for great lunch leftovers at work today.  There has to be at least 2 more meals for each of us left in the fridge.  Hubby made this all by himself, so I can't speak to how exactly he made it - I can just point to where the recipe is.  It did have a bit of a kick to it.  Good thing I had my big full water bottle with me at work.  By the way, does spicy food make anyone else's nose run, or is it just me?

I came home from work with just enough time to change and head back out the door for Spin class.  I came home to find our dog snuggled up on the love seat.

Her eyes look creepy here, but I'm posting it anyway.  She thinks she is much smaller than she is.  She does a great job of looking comfortable though!

Spinning was good; it was supposed to be an hour...some how ended up being only 45 minutes?  Still better than nothing... and my last Spin class until January. 

When I returned from spinning, she was snuggled up on her dog bed, where my husband had covered her with a blanket.  Now she'll never want to get up!

And lastly, I will leave you with a picture of Molly Waffles yawning.
I like taking pictures of her when she yawns:

Gym Membership & Acorn Squash

Monday night I decided I would re-join my gym.  We live pretty close to where I went to grad school, and as an alumnus I can use the gym there (for a fee, of course). It's by semester, and if you join mid-semester they pro-rate the cost.  So I paid $32 to use the gym, including classes, from Monday night through the end of December. 

I tried to hold off as long as possible, with just running outside, but it seems winter is getting close.  While we had crazy 60s temps yesterday, it quickly got cold last night, and now the forecast appears to be a high around 40 and lows at night in the mid 20s.  While I don't love running on the treadmill, I could use a little exercise-excitement in the way of group classes.

After renewing, I went to a one hour spinning class (maybe only about 50 minutes of actual spinning though).  It was my first time spinning since about mid-August, when my last round of gym membership expired.  I was able to keep up alright despite not riding a bike in the last 3 or so weeks either.  Luckily, my legs survived, and they weren't even a little bit sore the next day!


Monday night we finally used up the Acorn Squash that had been sitting on our counter for the last couple weeks.  When I bought it, it was mostly green with a little orange...now it was the other way around.

I preheated the oven to 350.  

Then I halved the squash with a giant knife.

And I scooped out the seeds.  

I put the squash face down on a baking sheet covered in foil (easy clean up).

I left the squash face down for about 30 min, then I carefully flipped them over to see how they were coming along.  The squash "meat" was still too hard when I poked it with a fork.  So it went back in for another 10-15 minutes face up.  I put a tiny bit of water in them so they didn't get too crispy.

When they were fork-tender, I took them out - put in a dollop of cottage cheese, and a handful of almonds (I couldn't decide between the slivered and the whole, so I used some of both).  Voila.

While the squash was in the oven for the half-hour period of time I tried some Yoga On-Demand.  I started off with some 21 Day Yoga Routine ("two dynamic yoga fitness workouts"), and tried to keep up, but stopped it half way through the 21 minute video.  The voice was describing the moves in a low and quiet voice, but speaking very quickly!  That's not good when you're re-introducing yourself to yoga and you can't SEE what's going on because you're looking at the ground.

It reminds me of how the Old Spice guy talks in commercials:

"Look down, back up, where are you? you're on a boat"  Yeah, that's how the first yoga video was, but a softer voice: "Now look down, put your hands on the mat, lift your left leg, look at the ground, bring your leg down, and bring your foot between your hands." Couldn't follow!

I instead found "Yoga for Beginners and Beyond, a 16-minute with a "basic flow sequence" and a "deeper lunar practice." The music was a little funky, but I was able to keep up much easier.

Then when the yoga was over, I tended to my squash, then ate it.

Exercise Month in Review: July

Can't believe July is over and August is here already! Summer is going by fast. Here's my exercise month-in-review for July...

July 2: 6.22 mi run outside
July 3: 30.3 mi bike ride

July 5: 2.47 mi run outside, 30-minute abs class
July 6: 7.25 mi treadmill run
July 7: 45-minute spinning class
July 9: 5.5 mi run outside
July 11: 6.45 mi bike ride

July 12: 7.82 mi run outside
July 14: 1 mi treadmill run, 1-hour spinning class
July 16: 6.38 mi run outside
July 18: 8.19 mi run outside

July 20: 4.67 mi treadmill run
July 21: 1-hour spinning class
July 23: 3.81 mi run outside
July 25: 4.01 mi run outside

July 26: 1-hour spinning class, 30-minute abs class
July 27: 2.04 mi run outside
July 29: 5.55 mi run outside
July 30: 2.19 mi run outside

Daily dog walks, long dog walks, and 1.5 mile round trip walks to our garden plot are also sprinkled throughout, but not included as I don't wear my GPS watch for them.

I'm relying on my Garmin Connect software for the following totals:

• 48.67 miles of outdoor running
• 18.42 miles of treadmill running
• (67.09 miles of total running)
• 36.73 miles of bicycling
• 4 spinning classes
• 2 abs classes
  

21 hours 34 minutes and 39 seconds of physical activity for the month!

That's a 50% increase over last month (14h 0m 53s). It was a lot easier to make time for exercise (especially the classes) in July as I was off from work, but my weekly mileage has also been increasing as part of my half marathon training. On to week 10 of my plan (7 weeks to go!)

Is anyone reading this also preparing for an event?
Whether it be a walk, run, ride, or triathlon?

What I Wore to Spinning

I recently received the I Just Wanna Run Tech SL from Lululemon in Wish Blue. I gave this top a shot after trying the Run: Energy SL (with pleating in the back) and not loving the fit. I wasn't sure how I'd feel about the pleats along the front, but I really like them! I think they do a good job of disguising your mid section when you are in an unflattering position (i.e. bent over while riding your bike or in spin class).

Lululemon I Just Wanna Run Tech SL in Wish Blue;
Lululemon Empower Crop in Black

The crops I'm wearing are the Empower Crop, if I remember correctly (not the version currently available on the website; the pair I have is older). They're made of luxtreme which is a great lightweight, smooth, moisture-wicking fabric. I'm able to pedal quickly with no chafing and no riding up. There's mesh behind the knees to keep you cool. Also a small zip-pocket at the center back for a card or key. I don't know that these are the most flattering from the back-view, but I find that these crops don't reveal sweat in the bum-region which is a big plus.

This top is supposed to have a loose fit, but even so, I found I had to size down two sizes. My normal size was way too big. One size down sort of fit, but was kind of long in overall length and a little droopy in the arm hole openings in the back. There's a cinchable drawcord at the bottom and a hidden pocket at the bottom of the center back for a card or your house key.


This top is lightweight and breathable and has anti-stink and anti-static properties. In my limited use of the tank so far (an 8 mile run in 80 degree weather, and an hour long spin class) I have found that it doesn't cling, and it didn't smell bad after either.

People sometimes question how much different colors or fabrics will show sweat. I'll show you what I looked like after I drove home from my hour-long spin class (ew, gross, sweat).


Uh, so, yes. You can see sweat on this top. But, this tank is made for sweating in. I really like the fit and the fabric of this, and I would consider picking up a second one in another color if I came across my size.