Weekly Recap: Two for the Price of One

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I never got to post my recap last week. I was away for my family reunion and without internet or mobile phone service. I have to confess that it was nice to be almost completely unplugged for a couple of days. But, no access does kind of put a kink in the whole blogging thing…

I’ll get started on the recap below, but I also wanted to make sure to tell you about my 30 day challenge for July!  I’m going to be focusing on my whole body this month. I’ve seen a real difference in my body from the abs and push-ups I’ve been doing in June, so I’m excited to keep that momentum going but with a little more variety. Also the abs got to be a little too much for me after the first two weeks. I know it is supposed to be a challenge, but I don’t want to go into a workout thinking I’m not going to be able to finish it. Finally, a slightly more conservative approach will give me the freedom to add in some other workouts without feeling like I’m overextending myself or risking injury.

Now, back to my recap!

The weekend at the lake was a blast.  All day Saturday was about family. We met for a meal and gathering at lunch. There were so many folks there we actually had to bring out more tables and chairs for people to all have a place to sit. Then, everyone took a few hours to do their own thing. For most of us in the middle generation, that meant taking the kids swimming in the lake.  By dinnertime, we went back to the hall with leftovers, and ice cream churns for dinner, ice cream, a corn hole tournament, and kids’ crafts. Some folks brought other games as well, but by the time 9:00 rolled around, everyone was exhausted, so we headed back to our individual cabins.

Nathan had to leave town early Sunday morning, but I got him off to the airport and still made it back in time for blueberry pancakes and waffles at the breakfast my mom hosted for the families who were still around.  Most folks were leaving the facility that morning, so we ended up having a pretty quiet day with fishing and spending time together. However, my mom’s cousin invited my 6-year-old niece out on his boat. I went along and we ended up doing some tubing as well. It was good fun!

Finally, on Monday, we went and spent a few hours in the small town where my mom lived for a time as a child. My nieces thought it was super cool to see the school where their LaLa went and to play in the park where she used to play when she was little. Then, I headed back up the road to Greensboro.

Most of the week was pretty uneventful since I was solo,  but on Wednesday night, a few of my girlfriends went to Raleigh to see Toad the Wet Sprocket and Counting Crows. It was a super fun evening!

Fun times at the concert!

Then, came this past weekend.  It was pretty uneventful as well, but we managed to buy a gas grill. We’ve been talking about it for a while, so we spent a few hours driving around looking at some and finally settled on one. We spent most of the afternoon putting it together, but last night’s grilled dinner was super tasty and quick because we didn’t have to mess with the charcoal and everything. We have decided to hang on to our charcoal grill for now, but I don’t know how much we will really use it. We’ll see…

Grilled Chicken with Strawberry-Avocado Salsa and Rice with Black Beans

In terms of my fitness, here is how the last two weeks have played out:

Week 1

Monday: 1 mile run and 20 minutes of yoga in the park downtown before the rain forced us to quit
Tuesday: 5 mile trail run. I was supposed to do Day 17 of the Abs Challenge after I finished it, but this was my first trail run in quite a while, so I was too spent to do it.
Wednesday: 1 mile run. I was lucky I was able to get this one in at all. I spent my day of work out in the heat, unloading, unpacking, and repacking pallets of materials for summer school. Talk about cross-training!
Thursday: 3 mile run. I was going to go farther, but I was still pretty spent from the work I had done on Wednesday, and I didn’t want to overdo it before my long run.
Friday: 8 mile run. This was a pretty good one. I got through 5 miles before I started feeling kind of crappy.
Saturday: 1 mile run
Sunday: 1 mile run

Week 2

Monday: 1 mile run
Tuesday: 4 miles. Holy calf cramping! I hadn’t worn heels all day for a week, so it was either that or dehydration that got me.
Wednesday: 1 mile run. After I had such a hard time attempting to get back at the Abs Challenge, I decided to modify the rest of the month (50 sit-ups, 50 crunches, 50 leg raises, plank set, 25 push-ups).  I do all of my push-ups and half of the sit-ups, crunches, and leg raises before I run.  I do everything else when I get back. It has helped me recommit for the rest of the month.
Thursday: “5 miles” I did well through the first 2 miles, but then I started getting really winded. I took a long walk break, and tried through almost another mile to keep running, but then I started getting a little wheezy. Since I did not have my rescue inhaler on me (I haven’t had much trouble with my asthma lately), I decided it was better to be safe and walk it in.  When I got back to the parking lot, I was only at 4.6 miles, but I felt awful, so I didn’t finish out the last 0.4.
Friday: 1 mile run and my core workout.
Saturday: 8 mile run. This time I felt good through the first 6. Progress!
Sunday: 4 mile run, core workout, grill assembly. 🙂

It’s been a good couple of weeks even though I’ve had some frustrating miles.  I’m currently at day 35 of my running streak and looking forward to keeping it rolling even after the first 40 day challenge is over!