Sunday, May 31

Fit(ter) in 15: Week 21

May's challenge is: MILES.

The goal: at least 100 miles total (walk or run), 40 miles run

Caveat: Walk and run miles only count if outdoors or on a treadmill (i.e. walking around inside an airport or pacing back and forth in my living room does not count)





So, how'd I do this week?

Blergh.
Humidity.

But... GOAL ACHIEVED!!!

Monday: 2 mile walk + dancing at the Alexandria jazz festival
Tuesday: 2.5 miles walked
Wednesday: 3.75 miles walked + 2 miles run
Thursday: 2.5 miles walked
Friday: 3.5 miles walked
Saturday: 3.75 miles run
Sunday: 3.5 mile run

Running total: 9.25 miles this week for 46.75 for the month
Mileage total: 111 miles in May!
For more posts in this series see Fitter in 15.

Sunday, May 24

Fit(ter) in 15: week 20 - mileage challenge cont'd

May's challenge is: MILES.

The goal: at least 100 miles total (walk or run), 40 miles run

Caveat: Walk and run miles only count if outdoors or on a treadmill (i.e. walking around inside an airport or pacing back and forth in my living room does not count)





So, how'd I do this week?

Hello cooler weather!!!
Hello strength training workouts!!!
I almost feel qualified to call myself "fit" again.

Monday: 5 miles walked + a great "quiet" bodyweight workout from fitnessblender
Tuesday: 3.5 miles walked + office yoga
Wednesday: 2 miles run + 2.75 miles walked
Thursday: 2.25 miles walked + office yoga
Friday: 4.25 miles run + 2.5 miles walked
Saturday: A real, live, in-person yoga class!!! (And lots of walking: walk to yoga class,  walk to the market, walk to the library, and walk to the playground, but I didn't keep track of the miles)
Sunday: 6.5 miles run

Week (left to reach May goal)
Running total: 12.75 miles (37.5 miles down, 2.5 to go to reach goal for the month)
Mileage total: 28.25
For more posts in this series see Fitter in 15.

Sunday, May 17

Fit(ter) in 15: Week 19 mileage

May's challenge is: MILES.

The goal: at least 100 miles total (walk or run), 40 miles run

Caveat: Walk and run miles only count if outdoors or on a treadmill (i.e. walking around inside an airport or pacing back and forth in my living room does not count)



Even with a conference taking up half of my week, I managed to walk at least a few commute miles each day, and my weekly total mileage isn't too shabby!
Though I wish I could've found more time to run!

So, how'd I do this week?

Monday: 4.5 miles walked
Tuesday: 3 miles walked
Wednesday: 2.25 miles walked
Thursday: 3.25 miles walked
Friday: 3.75 mile run, 3.75 miles walked
Saturday: 3 miles walked
Sunday: 5.5 miles

Week (left to reach goal)
Running total: 9.25 miles (24.75 miles down, 15.25 to go to reach goal for the month)
Mileage total: 29 miles (59.25 miles down, 40.75 to go to reach goal for the month)

For more posts in this series see Fitter in 15.

Friday, May 15

What I wish I knew when I started running as a new mom

Last week a new mom posted a question on the message board of my running group...
As background, the question-asker is a new mom to a baby who was born premature, she's already back at work full-time, she's up for feedings every 2 hours all night long, and her question:
How do I fit running back into my life? Or is that even possible?


Oh... the things I know now that I wish I knew then!

My advice:

Go easy on yourself.

Getting back into running probably is important to you at this new juncture in your life, because it gives you a sense of control, it helps reduce your stress levels, and it gives you a few precious moments of quiet.

But it's also REALLY FREAKIN HARD to get yourself out of bed at 4am when your night of "sleep" was more like a few cat-naps.

So, yes, go easy on yourself.

Take walk breaks when you need to. Accept that a "training schedule" might not be in the cards for you right now. You will eventually feel like a runner again. I promise. But it might take a little longer than you had hoped.

Yes, some mamas are back to marathon-running within months of popping out a child. My advice?

Cheer for those other running mamas!

The success of a marathon-running mama does not diminish your exhaustion, and their distance should not be a yardstick against which you measure your own running performance. Running can be a competitive sport, but running can also be for recreation, catharsis, and fellowship.

Speaking of which...

Find a good running group.

Find a running group filled with other running mamas who understand that running schedules need to fit around nap schedules, school schedules, and swim class schedules. They have also had to deal with diaper blowouts in the running stroller, caring for a sick child the week before their 10k, and staying hydrated while running as a nursing mama.

They will be your support group, and you will forever be thankful for their wisdom and empathy.

Enlist others.

Tell your partner that fitness is important for your health. Feel no guilt about leaving your baby with family, friend, or sitter for an hour. Seriously. Your health is important to your child's health.

Invest in a good running stroller.

There will be times when you need to get outdoors, but no one else is around to watch your baby. There will be times when the weather is so gorgeous you can't imagine keeping your baby indoors, even if you have a partner or sitter available. There will be times when the whole family just wants to get outside for some fresh air.

Buy the good running stroller - you won't regret it.

When your baby is little, sing songs as you huff and puff slowly along. When your baby gets bigger, play I Spy games or have your kiddo bring a book along for the ride.

Cheer yourself on because no matter how quickly or slowly you're chugging along, YOU are running while pushing 100 pounds of baby + equipment. How many people can claim that victory?

Find all of your local playgrounds and map the running routes from home to those playgrounds. Your little one might not want to sit still "for a run" -- but sitting still "to go to the playground" is a different animal entirely.

And last, but not least...

Go easy on yourself.

Seriously. Running is supposed to be fun. Let it be fun.

If you are too hard on yourself, and running becomes a chore, you might give up entirely. Don't do that. Your child will grow out of the up-all-night phase. You'll get your groove back. In the meantime, let running be fun.

You have enough things to worry about as a new parent. Don't add running to the worry list!

Sunday, May 10

Fit(ter) in 15: Week 18 MILEAGE


May's challenge is: MILES.

The goal: at least 100 miles total (walk or run), 40 miles run

Caveat: Walk and run miles only count if outdoors or on a treadmill (i.e. walking around inside an airport or pacing back and forth in my living room does not count)



I already like this challenge because it's making me think about taking the long way home, about running my errands, and about (finally) ramping up my weekly mileage post-baby. (I've been more or less consistent about working out, but my average weekly run mileage is still an anemic 10 miles a week.)

So, how'd I do this week?

Monday: 4 mile walk
Tuesday: 1.25 mile run, 1 mile walk
Wednesday: 4 mile walk
Thursday: 1.25 mile run, 1 mile walk
Friday: 2.75 mile run, 3.75 mile walk
Saturday: 2 mile walk
Sunday: 5.75 mile run

Week (month)
Running total: 11 miles (24.5 to go to reach goal)
Mileage total: 26.75 miles (67.75 to go to reach goal)

For more posts in this series see Fitter in 15.

Monday, May 4

Fit(ter) in 15: May MILES

April's (failed) challenge was plank-a-day.
May's challenge is one I can get behind: MILES.

The goal: 100 miles total (walk or run), 40 miles run
Caveat: Walk and run miles only count if outdoors or on a treadmill (i.e. walking around inside an airport or pacing back and forth in my living room does not count)

Friday, May 1:
Conference walking does not count (thought it should... I, quite literally, wore the heels off of my shoes last week!)

Saturday, May 2:
Flew 2,000+ miles back home to Virginia, but I only walked 1 mile (loops around DFW, again, do not count).

Sunday, May 3:
4.5 mile run!

Running total: 4.5 miles (35.5 to go to reach goal)
Mileage total: 5.5 miles (94.5 to go to reach goal)

For more posts in this series see Fitter in 15.

Fit(ter) in 15: April recap

Sigh. Not much to recap here, I'm afraid.

April was a solid F-minus for the plank-a-day challenge. I can blame a sick kid, a sick me, seasonal allergies, and a week of conference travel, but I also really wasn't digging planks as a challenge. I just didn't put the effort into the fit(ter) in 15 challenge this month. (Have I mentioned that planks are boring?)

That said, by month-end my running was more or less back on track, including a decent run in America's Finest City, followed by a relaxing afternoon at the beach.