Week in Review (March 10 - March 16)

Tuesday (17,839 steps) - Olive walk before going to work in the office. Busy morning and I went to the gym earlier than usual in hopes that it would not be crowded since I had 45 minutes to do on the StairMaster and I don't like jeopardizing the only one if there are lots of other people. It was not great but also not the worst. 

Did an add on Peloton hike before going back to work. Took Olive for a long walk to the lake when I got home from work (yay for later sunsets!), then sauna. Animals were upset at a "late" dinner.

Dinner and Good Wife.

Wednesday (23,132 steps) - Took Olive for a walk before going to work. Went for a walk at lunch (the normal loop I do with Olive on Fridays). After work it was up to Boulder for an after-work trail run! There was not a single other car in the lot when I parked and even though it was a nice afternoon the trails were pretty deserted. 

As it got later I did get a little cold, so I'm glad that I had brought a jacket. First real run with the new Mount to Coast T1s and they were pretty good. Having a bit of a hard time getting the lacing quite right, so I had to stop once to loosen them. Overall, not bad. Ben had a delicious dinner waiting when I got home:

Good Wife.

Thursday (12,978 steps) - Did my Peloton ride before logging in to work for the day. This was a HARD workout for me. Took Olive for a long walk at lunch.

Sprinkled in strength training and sauna throughout the afternoon. After work it was off to meet Ben at Torchy's for dinner. Took Olive for a walk after we got home, then Good Wife.

Friday (13,026 steps) - Olive walk before going to work. Busy day with Sophie having a deposition. Fun surprise that the court reporter brought Olive a collapsible bowl!

Went for a walk at lunch. After work we headed up to 4 Noses and since it was relatively warm we could sit on the patio. We did not stay that long since Ben had been there for a bit with his truck getting worked on next door. I headed home first and bagged up the leaves that the lawn guys left in the front yard and then took Olive for a walk. I think we had Cupbop for dinner? Good Wife. 

Saturday (31,800 steps) - We did have to get up a bit earlier than normal on a Saturday. I took Olive for a walk and then we had to get our stuff ready to be at Larry's house for our trek up to Bobcat Ridge. I am glad that I had brought my big pack and extra layers since it was really windy and I kept my jacket on for probably the first two miles. 

We hiked all the climbs and jogging the downhills. Larry managed to catch a toe and had a pretty hard fall at the same spot that Terri fell last year. Maybe we just need to remember where this is and we all just walk through this section next time. 

We ran most of the last mile and a half to the car. Even though we have been to this trail multiple times, I have never noticed this cute stone near the trail head. 

Berthoud Brewery for snacks and beer (still NA for me). 

Took Olive for a walk when we got home and then sauna. From then it was already getting late so it was just couch time. Good Wife. 

Sunday (14,623 steps) - Woke up to it being incredibly windy and cold. With the wind gusts, real feel temperatures were near zero. Finally, we headed up to South Mesa for our activity. It actually didn't seem as windy in Boulder, so we did the full "big" loop. Olive was very happy to finally have some snow!

The lower part of the trail was SO MUDDY. Glad we remembered towels to try and clean Olive off. Went to Rails End and there was a random guy making custom charcuterie. This whole pizza box was only $25! A totally random assortment that was SO GOOD. 

Got home and then had to shower and give Olive a bath. She doesn't LOVE getting bathed, but tolerates it pretty well. Rest of the evening on the couch, Good Wife. 

Monday (22,651 steps) - Work from home! So the race directors for Wales 200 had announced a while back that they were going to be putting on a 300. I know I said I never needed to do that distance again, but here we are. 

I have until July 2027 to contemplate all my poor life decisions. Took Olive for a walk around the neighborhood - good thing I took her early since almost all the snow was already melted. Went for a "longish" run during lunch. With the snow we got over the weekend I knew the trails would be total garbage, so I did a paved run. There was still some drifting on some of the sidewalks but overall, not bad. Even with the sun shining there was a breeze that made it cool enough that I was glad to have worn tights and a long sleeve top. Fun new sign on my route:

Sauna time and then after work I did some driving and actually made a decent amount of money. Guess I need to do some more deliveries to pay for my unexpected race registration. Took Olive for another walk while I was waiting for Ben to get home. Pizza for dinner and Good Wife.

Stats:

• 136,049 steps
• 31.39 miles run
• 15.49 miles walked
• 91 minutes of cardio
• 40 minutes of strength
• 105 minutes of sauna

Week in Review (March 3 - March 9)

Tuesday (14,237 steps) - New training block and for the first time in ages, I didn't have to do a workout in the morning. Took Olive for a walk before going to work. Went to the gym at lunch and did the StairMaster, a stretching video and a quick walk on the treadmill. Another co-worker put in their notice, and this one directly affects my desk so it will be interesting/horrible to see how it all works out. Took Olive for a walk when I got home, sauna, dinner and more Good Wife.

Wednesday (21,386 steps) - Olive walk before going to work. Went to the gym at lunch and did an easy walk on the treadmill. I didn't have actual gym clothes and didn't feel like changing into what I had brought to run in later. After work I went to Dinosaur Ridge so I could do my workout of hill repeats. Like always, it was hard, but I managed to get all my repeats done, so yay!

Definitely overdressed

Ben made dinner and then Good Wife.

Thursday (12,507 steps) - My weekly workouts have shifted around so I did my Peloton ride before I clocked in for the day at home. Took Olive for a random neighborhood walk to get some new streets done. Then I met Ariel at Costco so we could get her a new toothbrush (actually ended up being two since they only come in a multipack) and had pizza for lunch. Did some cross training and took Olive for a longer walk. Met Ben at Torchy's for our weekly cheese habit. Sauna when we got home and Good Wife. I was texting with Lisa about how she gets her heart rate to show up on Strava and I figured out a way to get that to broadcast from my watch to the bike. 

Exciting times. 

Friday (11,388 steps) - First snow in well over a month, so skipped the group walk. Took Olive around the neighborhood before going to work. 

Went on a longer walk at lunch. It was cold, but I think the biggest issue was my feet got wet from all the puddles. 

Dropped Olive off at home and did a few deliveries before meeting Ben at 4 Noses for happy hour. Ordered Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner, which was new and fun and delicious. 

Good Wife.

Saturday (34,571 steps) - Took Olive for a walk around the neighborhood. She was so excited for the snow, and unfortunately pulled me down while she was running. But I let her play in it since it's been so warm I knew it would melt pretty quick. For my run I had decided that I would run to Louisville and meet up with everyone after getting in my long run since the trails would be muddy. Ben did the first 3 miles with me and I did the rest solo. The route wasn't bad at all, and it was a relatively enjoyable run until the last mile or so when it got really windy. 

Coach has instructed that all long runs need to be with full pack until next race

Two coyotes!

This was where the wind got really crazy

We met up with Larry and Terri at Crystal Springs so we could hear all about Larry's recent (SOLO!!) 100 miler. We got a late lunch the brewery and before we knew it, it was getting late so we headed home. 

I used the sauna and then took Olive for another walk. 

HAPPY OLIVE!

Also, Peloton activities finally are able to get pushed through to Garmin, so I spent some time working on getting that set up.

Sunday (15,338 steps) - Lazed around a bit in the morning before we headed up to Boulder for our normal hike with Olive. It was a little muddier than I would have liked, but everything in the sun was in pretty good shape. 

Stopped at Rails End on the way home and had a snack. Home for another dog walk before we started in on our tv watching. Ben ordered in Thai food from a restaurant we haven't been to and it was SO GOOD. 

Monday (26,456 steps) - Work from home. Had slept terrible the night before so I was really tired and happy to be at home and not at the office. Took Olive for a long walk and then went for my run. Took it very easy and it was quite enjoyable. 

Did a delivery after work - decent pay AND the guy gave me a $20 cash trip - biggest cash tip by far. Met Ben at Costco so we could do our grocery shopping. Pizza for dinner, took Olive for a walk and more Good Wife. 

Stats:

• 135,883 steps
• 31.47 miles run
• 14.25 miles walked
• 60 minutes of cardio
• 40 minutes of strength
• 85 minutes of sauna

Week in Review (February 24 - March 2)

Tuesday (11,518 steps) - Peloton (actually did another live class) and Olive walk before going to work. Went to the gym at lunch and did the StairMaster and strength training. 

Actually did my first official "walk" video with Peloton since it was a 12% vert "hike." It was fine, although I will probably just continue to do my own thing, although I did like that I could just add whatever the distance was from the treadmill. If I do a manual activity I have to round to the nearest tenth to add to Strava. Got home from work and took Olive for a walk, sauna, dinner and then watched The Good Wife.

Wednesday (17,097 steps) - Olive walk before going to work. Another windy day and I had to do a speed workout. This one was a bit different than the workouts I have had recently, with longer sustained fast paces. I managed to pick the perfect route for it and the wind thankfully was not as bad as I thought it would be. 

Hard to believe I ever ran long distances faster than those paces! After work I took Olive for a walk and then Ben and I had to go to Costco to pick up more groceries. At least we picked up a new food item and I made Pad Thai for dinner. Good Wife.

Thursday (17,511 steps) - Did a quick row session before logging in for work. Heated up breakfast to eat in  my office and Olive was very interested in the smell AND stole my chair. 

Took Olive for a long walk and then went for my easy run. Another windy day, but at least it's warm, I guess.

Did some upper body and pilates. After work I met Ben at Torchy's for dinner. When we got home we took Olive for a walk, sauna, dinner and Good Wife.

Friday (14,044 steps) - Wash Park with the gang! Relatively warm, although STILL WINDY.

Busy work day, but still took Olive for a longer walk at lunch. After work I dropped her off at home and discovered that our neighbor's house is for sale! It's had various renters as long as we have lived there, and the most recent guy, Cameron (that we really liked) moved out in December. I guess the actual owner is sick of renting, sign in the year. Then headed to 4 Noses to meet up with Ben. Dinner and Good Wife.

Saturday (39,438 steps) - Took Olive for a walk and then got ready for my long run. I had hoped to get out the door by 9, but it was closer to 10 before I left. Like last time, it was windy and I stupidly picked the same route from the house that is mostly a gradual uphill and running into a headwind. Overall, it seemed very similar to the last time I ran, but not quite as cold.

Instead of stopping at the Rocky Flats trailhead, I had mapped my route to the trailhead off McCaslin. Ben was supposed to meet me at the new parking area on the north side of the road, but since I was slower than planned he got to run some of the new trail section.

Also - new fun signage. FYI, i have yet to see any signs like this IN the Rocky Flats area.

I had been hoping that the last few miles that were running east would have a tailwind, but sigh, the winds apparently shifted. There seem to have been some upgrades to the trail since I was out there last, as there seemed to be some new gravel, less rocks and overall just a flatter service. As soon as we got done we stopped at Ziggi's so I could get a protein smoothie and then went to 4 Noses.

We were pretty hungry, so we also ordered lunch. 

Took Olive for another walk when we got home, sauna and Good Wife.

Sunday (21,504 steps) - Another vert day! We stopped at Dutch Bros. for coffee before doing our regular route in Boulder. 

I had a bit more vert to do than normal, so Olive and I headed up towards Bear Peak to get a few hundred more feet of vert. Olive did pretty good with the steeper and more technical rock climbing. 

By the time we got back to the saddle to pick up Ben the wind had picked up and it seemed like it was going to rain. We were somewhat in a hurry to get down the hill and of course forgot to do our group selfie until we were nearly at the junction for Mesa trail. 

We saw another Rafter of turkeys! In all my years of running in Boulder I had only seen turkeys once before this year, and this is already the second time! They were running around making fun turkey noises. 

Onto Rails End. We have now been there enough times that the bartenders know our order. New food truck this time and we got a snack. Sauna, took Olive for a walk, dinner, Good Wife. How is the weekend over?

Monday (21,950 steps) - Work from home. Took Olive for a long walk. My training plan had not been updated, so I went on a random run that ended up being longer than what I normally do. Still nearly 70 degrees and short sleeves this time of year is crazy. And for once, the wind was not awful.

Ben got home from work early since we had our lawn guy coming over to give us recommendations on the lawn/trees. Ariel showed up for a surprise visit, which was nice! Dinner and then more Good Wife. 

Stats:

• 143,062 steps
• 37.83 miles run
• 14.18 miles walked
• 60 minutes of cardio
• 55 minutes of strength
• 110 minutes of sauna