Saturday, January 18, 2025

Cold Air, Don't Care

It's been really cold this winter! But you probably already know that, right? Fortunately, we've seen more sunshine this week, which did a lot to lift my mood. I'm feeling better this week after some beautiful snowy runs and two more great strength classes at the gym. We also had a brief break in the cold on Friday, but the cold air blew back in on Saturday—literally. 

The hubs and I had plans to go to the lake this weekend. I wanted to get some trail running in while we were up there. But with the predicted cold weather and wind, I didn't relish the thought of being up on top of Gibraltar Rock with sub-zero wind chills. I decided to stay home and hopefully get out on my local trails, which are a little more protected from the wind. It will be a last minute, game day decision! You can check out my IG to see if I did!

Weekly Rundown
Sunday: trail run with Trail Sisters 9 miles
Monday: CrossFit
Tuesday: Fluid Running
Wednesday: trail run 5.75 miles
Thursday: CrossFit, lunch with Marcia
Friday: run 6 miles
Saturday: Yoga with Adriene

It was snowing Sunday morning when I met my Trail Sisters at my local preserve for our weekly run. Not too much snow, just enough to make it pretty. There wasn't much wind either. We started out on the yellow trail, which is a 5.5 loop that covers the circumference of the west portion of the preserve. The single tracks I run branch off from that trail. We took it easy, talking as we ran. We had a lot of fun on this run--I really love this group!



After we ran the loop, the group left and I stayed to get a few more miles on the single track. It was really peaceful and I had those trails to myself. 



I accidentally signed up for CrossFit on Monday and not the new auxiliary strength class. No biggie, right? When I got to the gym that morning, SJ greeted me and told me they put me in the strength class! I was ok with doing CF, but hey, it all worked out! And it was another great class:

Set 1: 4 rounds :40 KB (30#) kickstand squat, :10 transition, :40 single leg hip thrusts on a bench :30 rest
Set 2: 4 rounds :40KB lateral step up (15#), :10 transition, :40 KB kickstand RDL (30#), :30 rest
Set 3: 4 rounds: :40 box jumps, :10 transition, :40 tall kneeling Pallof Press, :30 rest
Set 4: 4 rounds: :40 A-Jumps with squat, :10 transition, :40 band pull-over with single leg raise, :30 rest
Two minutes between sets

I struggled a bit while holding the KB on my shoulder--it was a little painful. But otherwise, I felt my booty and my abs working during this one. And thank goodness I had pool running on the schedule the day after. Being in the water never felt so good!

My legs didn't feel as fatigued as they did last week when I headed to the preserve for my Wednesday trail run. It was COLD--6F--when I started out, but the sun was out and that was everything. Within the first few minutes of my run, a deer crossed the trail in front of me. I took that as a sign that this was going to be a good morning and it was. I had the trails to myself--I saw very few other people. The deer were all over the preserve. The water coming over the dam had frozen into interesting forms. I even ventured onto the frozen lake to check out a little snowman someone had built out there. Thanks to my trusty North Face thermoball, I never was cold!




On Thursday, my day off, I had 2 work meetings scheduled. One conflicted with CrossFit. What to do? I think you know what I did. I have my priorities. Plus, it's my day off! It's all about setting boundaries.

It was upper body day and the auxiliary strength workout brought the pain:

Set 1 4 rounds: :40 KB Gorilla rows using (30#)/:10 transition/:40 DB bridged chest press (15# alternating arms) :30 rest
Set 2 4 rounds :40 seated single arm landmine press (35#BB)/:10 transition/:40 single arm landmine row (45# BB) :30 rest
Set 3 4 rounds :40 dips (36" boxes)/:10 transition/ :40 KB suitcase carry (40#), :30 rest
Set 4 4 rounds :40 banded chin-ups/:10 transition/ :40 medball plank tucks, :30 rest

This was a shoulder heavy workout and I did my best to be consistent with each set. The chin-ups surprised me--I was able to do 10 each round using the band!

When 24F feels like a heat wave, you know it's been cold! On Friday, I headed out into the dark, optimistically wearing my Brooks Hyperion Max 2s, hoping the bike path was clear. For the most part, it was and I took full advantage of wearing those magical shoes and laying down some speedy splits. My last mile was my fastest! The sporadic snowpack slowed me down, but for the most part, I enjoyed the feeling of flying while watching the sunrise. It's happening earlier, you know!



I woke up Saturday morning feeling really stiff and achy. I've been making my way through Yoga with Adriene's new series, Prana, and decided to roll out my mat for another installment. I was not disappointed and when I finished, I felt a whole lot better. Adriene never lets me down. She is such a gift!

Off the Road

On Thursday, I met Marcia for lunch at First Watch! I can't even remember the last time we got together, but it felt like we just saw each other yesterday. We talked each other's ears off and caught up on all the family, work, and blogging news. It was so great to see her and I hope we can do this more often now that work isn't so crazy for her. We forgot to get a photo so did it even happen? 

It warmed up to almost 50F on Friday! Too bad I was stuck in the office all day to enjoy it before Old Man Winter blew back in. Here's to hoping we get a break from the cold and wind that lasts more than one day!

How was your week? Are you experiencing colder than normal temperatures this winter? What keeps you inside? How are your workouts going this new year? How do you like to recover?

I'm linking up with Deborah and Kim for the Weekly Rundown. 


 





25 comments :

  1. I know can you believe we didn't take a pic?? Haha! It never even occurred to me! It was SO nice to see you and yes, we'll do it more often. I'm going to be intentional with my priorities going forward. Very nice week of workouts for you and beautiful pics as always!

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  2. I’m in Minneapolis and we’ve had some really very cold weather. Today and tomorrow are going to be the worst so I’m taking my boys to an indoor playground this afternoon so they can run off some of their energy. I went for a longer walk yesterday, which was my first solid period of time outside the house since my surgery on Monday. I ran into a neighbor on our block and joined her and her girlfriend on their walk so also got some social time in which was really nice. Subzero temperatures definitely keep me inside the house though. I’m just not that hearty! I have tried to run and subzero temps before but then you get all those icicles on your eyelashes and such and it’s just so uncomfortable that’s not worth it for me! But there were people in my run club that would run no matter what the weather. They had these Darth Vader like face masks they would wear on really cold days like today though.

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    1. That would be me! I was hoping for eyelashcicles but no luck today, lol

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  3. 50 degrees!! Wow!! We have been in the 20s and snow/ice nearly every day. It warmed up to 35 yesterday and rained but then it all turned back to ice at night! Living vicariously through your outdoor photos bc it's just so so slippery here!

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  4. Well, I do care about cold air! I won’t take Scooby it if it’s not at least 22F. ;-) You got some lovely photos though.
    How fun to see Marcia! We’ll have to take your word for it.

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    1. Cocoa doesn't seem to mind the cold very much! It's all that fur.

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  5. Well, you made up for not taking pictures at lunch with Marcia by posting gorgeous photos from your runs. You almost make winter look pretty... ALMOST. Or, let's just say I'm happy to admire it from a safe distance. Glad you got some sunshine this week and are feeling better!

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    1. I always say that getting outside is my therapy and the sun made it even better. It's amazing how much it helps!

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  6. So fun that you got to see Marcia. Hope I can see you both on one of my next visits to Chicago-I’m sure I will be up a lot this year. We have been in a really cold pattern as well that we are not used to. It’s putting a damper on my outside activities

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  7. From -6 to 50F! What swings.

    Gorgeous pics especially the sunrise. Good for you for settling boundaries about work meetings on your day off!

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    1. I still felt so guilty but I really want to commit to this new strength cycle!

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  8. Yay for meeting Marcia! I hope you can meet more often going forward - but don't forget the pic next time! 😅
    Well done on your strength classes! We have bar at home and I practice the pull-ups every day, but they turn out to be more like jumpy chin-ups.
    Good for you for setting priorities and boundaries at work. You are absolutely right, looking after your body is important. Were there any repercussions?

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    1. No repercussions--it is my day off after all. I had 2 meetings on Monday, my other day off and I did attend those. I needed that strength class on Thursday!

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  9. These arctic temps are insane! This morning’s trail run (preview of the 10K course for a race on Feb. 2) was canceled due to the sub-ZERO temps and nasty wind. I stayed indoors on the bike, but am hoping to sneak in a short walk later this afternoon in the sunshine…

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  10. Love that sunrise pic... It is snowing now and the temps will be dropping. I plan to run outside but no promises.

    Hopefully it will be les windy for my next long run...

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  11. What a great week of workouts, Wendy! Oh wow, -6° is really cold for running, but the right gear makes all the difference.

    How fun to meet up with Marcia for lunch. Forgetting a picture just means you were having too much fun!

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    1. It's been a long time since we've seen each other! It was great.

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  12. Awww, the ducks are so cute. And such troopers! Wow, 50 degrees? Crazy temp swing. Having a group of friends makes the trail running even better. They sound like a great group for you!

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  13. I'm counting the days until spring. Not a fan of winter, or snow, or cold or really anything about it. Places that are typically warm got snow...it's crazy. A friend sent a picture of several inches of snow in Panama City, Florida. We're in South Carolina, to get away from the winter at home in Ohio. This am it's 24 here in SC (and we got snow last night), and it's -8 at home. Yikes! The sun has just come out, so hopefully that will melt the snow. It looks strange to see heat coming off the heated pool and hot tub with snow on the ground. Be safe!

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    1. Stay warm! I can't imagine it being that cold there, but compared to what we have, it sounds like a heat wave. Ok, maybe not...

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