Work Hard, Play Hard

Summertime and the living's easy. Right?

This year, not so much. Instead of feeling relaxed, I've been feeling a bit overwhelmed this summer as we try to pack in as much fun as we can in the limited free time on the calendar. Taking that leave of absence earlier this year left me with little vacation time. I've got a few long weekends and I plan to make the most of them.

The theme for this summer seems to be: work hard, play hard. 

This week, there were some challenging situations at work, coupled with an increase in RA symptoms and by Wednesday night, I was toast. I had planned a long weekend off with a drive up to Door County. I dove into my 4 day weekend with a vengeance, hoping to shed some of the negativity I was feeling from the first half of the week.

First up, a CrossFit workout with Becky. I was on fire! She had me push the sled and I ran it back and forth, even as she piled on more plates. She had me do some resistance band work as well has bench lunges with increasing weights. It was hot, it was humid, and I sweated out my stress.

After that, I did a 4 mile run, using the 4:1 run/walk intervals. The heat and humidity were brutal by that time. I came close to vomiting at the end of the run, but I finished. Who knew 4 miles could be so taxing? What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, right? Or at the very least, gives you very sore muscles!

Now that the work was done, it was time to play. My son, his girlfriend, and I hit the road and headed to northern Wisconsin. It rained pretty much the entire 5 hour drive. At one point it was pouring so hard, we couldn't see the road. Just like my workout, we pushed on. By the time we arrived at my parents' place, the rain had stopped. A glass of wine in my hand, fried chicken on my plate, and a trip to the ice cream parlor set things right. 

Friday morning, Cocoa woke me up extra early. I tried to get her to go back to sleep but she wasn't having it, so I took her outside to admire the sunrise. I marveled at how quiet it was. There were a few white pelicans on the bay and some birds were singing. The water was calm. The peace and solitude made me think about how life is always turned up to 11. Think about it. You can't even buy gas without a TV screen loudly showing commercials. It seems like it's never quiet. 

That morning meditation was perfect. Wouldn't it be nice if we could start every day like this?

Later in the morning, I paddled around the bay in the kayak. The wind was starting to pick up, which made paddling a bit of a challenge.

We all wanted to SUP. Because the water on the Green Bay side of Door County was so rough, we drove across the peninsula to "the quiet side", the Lake Michigan side. Surprisingly, the water was calm and I was really excited to SUP there. There's an estuary, the Mink River, and I hadn't been there for years. The area is a protected nature preserve and I hoped we'd see all kinds of sights.

My son and his girlfriend
They gave us one short paddle, which made things interesting.

We paddled across the bay and marveled at the beautiful conditions and the scenery. As we approached the mouth of the river, the wind picked up and paddling became difficult. We knew we'd have to head back or risk not getting back across the bay at all. We'll have to save the Mink River for another day. 

I had a 10 mile run to do this weekend and knowing that I had a 5 hour drive home on Sunday left me with only one choice. The run would have to take place on Saturday. As has been the case with all my long runs this summer, I did mental gymnastics trying to convince myself to run the entire distance. I made the decision to run by feel and if I felt up to the entire distance, I'd do it.

The sky was overcast and the temperature was 63 when I headed out the door. Say what? With the wind at my back, I chugged up the big hill to the road that would take me to the bluff park and beyond. In spite of my sore calves from Thursday's sled pushing extravaganza, my legs wanted to go. As much as I wanted to skip my walk intervals, I reminded myself that this was a training run. As I completed the first 4 miles of my run, I exited the park and turned right, continuing on towards my 10 mile planned distance. I breezed along the bluff coast road and took in the beautiful homes that lined the street. I'd driven this road many times but never appreciated the "rolling hills". Fortunately, Becky has me well prepared for this type of terrain.

Porcupine Road down to the beach
This was the bottom third of the hill. There's a sharp right turn at the top, then a sharp turn again to the top.
Holy hamstrings!

I don't know what I was thinking, but on the way back, I took a detour down to Porcupine Beach. Holly and I took a pre-race photo here in May, and I wanted to re-visit it, this time on foot. What I didn't expect was how steep the hill down to the beach actually was. I struggled to walk down these hills without sliding forward. As I walked down to the beach, I had the thought that I was going to have to walk back up! The ascent was as difficult as I imagined. When I got back to the top, an elderly man was walking down. We exchanged greetings and he told me he walks that hill every day. Food for thought for the rest of the run.

Overall, this was a great week for me, workout-wise. I had 2 CrossFit workouts, 2 yoga classes, and 3 runs. While I was not symptom free, RA did not stop me from getting my workouts done. My stress level increased a bit, but I'm hoping that my trip to the north woods helped me to reset and recharge. It was a weekend, packed full of activity and I'm pooped but content.

Do you work hard and play hard? How was your week?

I'm linking up with Holly, Tricia, and guest host Zenaida for the Weekly Wrap.