Sunday, February 5, 2017

Better

My do-over of Sweet Spot Base Week 3 went better than my first attempt - a lot better.  I did all my workouts!  Was I tired? Yep. Were there days when I didn't want to do anything?  Uh huh.  Was it all worth it?  Absolutely.  I may be sore, exhausted, and have a pile of laundry the size of Mt. Rainier, but the sense of accomplishment is definitely winning here.

I was on my bike by 5:30am on Monday morning, listening to podcasts (my new favorite form of solo trainer ride entertainment thanks to Mr. R&R), and working up a sweat. It was tough doing hard work first thing in the morning, but it was nice to have it out of the way.  I had an appointment with my trainer that night, so I didn't get home until a little after 7pm.  Fortunately, I'd done a little meal prep on Sunday night, so Mr. R&R and I didn't even have to think about what to make for dinner.  We just tossed a couple bowls into the microwave and dinner was on the table in 5 minutes.

If you haven't tried the One Pan Roasted Dinner yet, stop whatever you're doing right now and get thee to the grocery store and into the kitchen.  This dinner is a total lifesaver.


  • Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.
  • Line a large sheet pan with foil for easy clean up.
  • Chop up a bunch of veggies (or cheat like I do and buy them pre-chopped from Trader Joe's), slice a package of chicken sausages into rounds, and toss it all on the sheet pan.
  • Mist lightly with olive oil and season with salt and pepper
  • Cover everything with foil and roast for about 40 minutes
  • Remove the foil and roast for 10 more minutes
  • Voila...dinner for two...twice!

Chicken Sausage, butternut squash, brussels sprouts, broccoli, asparagus, and red bell pepper


Tuesday morning didn't go according to plan.  I overslept, woke up sore beyond words from my training appointment, and missed my chance to get a run in before work.  I ended up doing a 20 minute yoga practice that morning, and a 30 minute deep stretch yoga practice that night after work.  I think the after work one was my favorite since I did it in the living room and Spot kept coming over to "help" when I was draped over a bolster stretching out my hips!

Wednesday morning brought the opportunity to make up for Tuesday's missed run.  I hitched a ride to the gym with Mr. R&R at 5:30AM and put in a really uncomfortable 3 miles.  I was hoping to run farther in that 30 minutes, but my evil psoas kept flaring up and necessitating walking/stretching breaks, so I guess it was more like an interval workout.  That night we headed for the pool.  I wasn't sure how my planned 1200 yards would go since I couldn't stand up from a chair without my abs complaining, but I was pleasantly surprised.  The swim went reasonably well and I was able to complete it without any real pain issues (other than the pain in my eyes resulting from the creepy old guy in an itty bitty speedo).

We were the last people in the pool before closing time
Thursday morning's bike ride did. not. happen.  I got to bed late and couldn't manage to peel myself out of bed at a reasonable hour, so that meant an after work ride.  I dreaded it all day long, but once I got down to The Cave, the hour passed quickly thanks to another batch of podcasts (NPR's TED Radio Hour if you're curious).

Friday was interesting.  I had originally planned for it to be my rest day with a long ride on Saturday and a long run on Sunday, but when Mr. R&R said he was going to the pool on Friday night, I decided to tag along and get my long run out of the way in favor of complete and total rest on Sunday.  I'm really happy that I did that.  First, we checked out the newest location of our gym that opened 3 months ago since they're open later on Fridays than the rest.  It was stunning.  I've never seen such a nice gym!  I parked myself on a treadmill, fired up a Spotify playlist, and ran negative splits for the next 45 minutes.  I haven't run a step over 3 miles in months, so that was a pleasant surprise! Mr. R&R reported that pool was also amazing - not crowded and really, really clean.

Saturday started off with sleeping in (for almost 10 hours!), a few leisurely cups of coffee, and a visit to the Great Lakes Pet Expo. I really enjoyed saying 'hi' to the ladies that brought Walter & Spot into our lives and seeing all the other animals.  

Flemish Giants with the Wisconsin House Rabbit Society

I even found a herd of turtles (yes, I know that a group of turtles is actually called a bale) - which would normally freak me out, but I'm trying really hard to be less afraid of things that live in the water.


After our Pet Expo adventure, we did our grocery shopping for the week and promptly came home to nap.  Obviously, Mr. R&R and I are becoming old people!  Post-nap, we both went down to The Cave for our weekly long ride.  It was a tough ride, but watching Spectre made it slightly more bearable - although I think I'm going to bite the bullet and try a new brand of tri shorts because chamois seams get really uncomfortable - if you know what I mean!

Today, Sunday, was finally my day to do nothing in the swim/bike/run department.  It's been busy (laundry, making snacks for the Super Bowl party we're going to, getting ready for next week), but kind of wonderful since I'm not beating the crap out of myself on top of all that!

I finished Sweet Spot Base Week 3 with:

Swim:    1200 yards (0.68 miles)
Bike:      42.02 miles 
Run:       8.70 miles
Yoga:      2 practices (50 minutes total)
Strength: 1 session

Total Time:      7 hours
Total Distance: 51.40 miles

January Totals: 
Swim:     2.34 miles
Bike:       105.91 miles
Run:        14.86 miles
Yoga:       20 practices
Strength:  6 sessions

Total Time:        23 hours, 15 minutes
Total Distance:  123.12 miles


Cumulative Distance:  161.87 miles (If I got in the car and started driving from Milwaukee, that would put me just outside Lansing, Michigan!)




No comments: