This week started a new four weeks at the Columbia Fitness Boot Camp. Somehow, with all that I do, I’m still able to find the balance. 🙂 Please know that it is a work in progress though.
Monday
Cardio
Met up with my BGR! sole sistahs for the weekly meet-up. I was able to get in five miles that morning; have I mentioned that I’m so so happy to be running again!!!
Strength Training
This month, Mike and Ken switched up the usual workout flow. We do legs on Mondays and upper body on Tuesdays. I’m guessing Thursdays are a come and see what we have planned kind of setup.
Tuesday
I had to hit up boot camp early this morning because my son had an afternoon appointment. Ken never disappoints. He had us working on upper body, and let me just say, my upper body was still feeling it the next day. NO PAIN NO GAIN!!!
Cardio
Okay, so after class my plan was to head to the gym on campus to take a shower, but it wasn’t opened yet 😦 . Needless to say, things don’t always go as planned. No problem, I figured I could get a run in while I waited for the gym to open (had 30 minutes). Sucks that I didn’t have on my running shoe or pants (boot camp gear is slightly different from my running attire). Oh well, I decided to find some hills and just run them instead. Not going to lie…I was really excited because I have had my eyes on one particular hill for quite some time (that’s the runner in me LoL).
Wednesday
Cardio
Woke up and headed down to Sweat for a spin class. My sole sistah Mona was there and we owned those bikes 😉 . Today I think I really got the most out of class. I used the tips that I researched in my last post (found here) and noticed a big difference. I ensured that my bike was setup correctly (seat and handlebars waist height and made sure the distance between my seat and handlebars were also correct) and really focused on my power input instead of just spinning the wheel :). It also helped that Go Ham (the instructor) used a group setting which allowed us to actually see how much work we were putting in. If it was in the RED we were GOOD!!! The whole class was in the red… AWESOME!!!
Today was National Running Day, so you know I had to get a run in before the day was over. I had planned on joining my BGR! sole sistahs at Fleet Feet Sports in Columbia, but the way my schedule was set up, I didn’t make it. I did however, get my run in later that evening. I headed out about 8:45 pm (which was really late for me but it was national running day). Back in May, I donated to the National Black Marathoners Association (NBMA) for their virtual 2015 “Run a Mile, Save a Mind” National Running Day medal. So it was a no brainer that I had to get in a 5K for the day.
Thursday
The weather wasn’t the greatest that morning so I canceled the group run. I think I needed the extra hour of sleep anyways. I knew I had a plan B for later that evening so I still had two more opportunities to get it in before the day was over.
Strength Training
Boot camp was awesome. Mike had us working on our endurance amongst other things. Pushups, shoulder presses, burpees, lateral raises (holding out, up and down),
Shoot I was still sore from the two sessions earlier in the week… Ouch!
After boot camp, I met a couple of my BGR! sole sistahs to run the steps at the State Capital. I guess wearing that ‘S’ on my forehead worked because I felt amazing.
We ran the steps for thirty minutes. Not a bad workout but that sun tho’.
Friday
Saturday
I met up with two sole sistahs from BGR! Columbia and we tackled Parklane. We made the mistake of starting at 0630 am and boy did we pay for it. The sun came beaming down on us with the hotness. My plan going in was to do 8 miles, but the way the sun was setup only allowed me to get in a 10K. Glad I had my other sistahs there with me, because I’m sure I wouldn’t have finished that run in all that heat. Note to self: I’m going to have to get up earlier on Saturdays to get my long runs in. Ohhh the joys of fall races (training in the summer); at least it keeps me consistent throughout the summertime.
Overall not a bad week for finding balance. As noted, it’s easier for me to plan my week out ahead of time, to ensure that I actually stick to it. Don’t get me wrong, I have my moments when I don’t plan accordingly, and I find that I tend to struggle the most during these times. Hey, it’s nothing to it but to do it. Give ‘it’ your ‘ALL’. Happy Training Family!!!
Do you run in the summertime? Any tips you can share on beating the heat?
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