Five Things I’m Focusing on in December

Happy Friday!

This week’s Fit Five Friday topic is 5 Favorite Fitness Stocking Stuffers! You are, of course, always welcome to link up and share other fitness-related posts. If you’re looking for some stuffer ideas, please check out my past posts here and here.

Today, instead, I’m sharing five things I’m focusing on to close out 2023 on a strong note!

Five Things I’m Focusing on in December

#3for31Challenge – This is one of my favorite challenges hosted by Peloton instructor Robin. The goal is to run or walk 3 miles or move 30 minutes daily in December. It’s just the little nudge I need to make sure that I don’t slack off due to holiday/end-of-year overwhelm!

Completing Physical Therapy – As I shared over coffee, I’m a little more than halfway through my PT sessions and will hopefully “graduate” by the first week in January. Can.not.wait.

Prioritizing Sleep – Yes sleep is often among my goals but coming off of a stressful November things had gotten especially wonky. Since December has begun I’ve made a point of not allowing myself to doze on the couch and instead am following an evening routine that includes heading to bed early.  I’ve been waking up feeling much better rested which sets the tone for a much better day.

Return to Early Morning Workouts – I’m much happier when I start my day with a workout, but thanks to poor sleep and a crazy schedule early morning workouts were not happening as often as I wanted. So this month I’m making the shift back – again a much better start to my day.

Embracing Rest – Rest is different from sleep and I would argue is just as important. Being on the go all the time is draining. This month I’m embracing downtime.

As 2023 winds down, what are you focusing on?

Welcome to Fit Five Friday!

Join My First 5K and MoreRunning With AttitudeRun Laugh Eat PieRuns with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday! Share your fitness-related link, link back to your hosts, and please share the link love by visiting and commenting on your hosts and at least two other Fit Five Friday bloggers!

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A Quick Check-in Between Trips

Wow has it really been 4 weeks since the last time I linked up with Deborah and Kim and all of you for the Weekly Run Down? Between college visits and a fantastic Alaskan vacation, my blogging has definitely taken a hit! After runfessing that I was thinking of leaving my run gear behind, I did end up packing it for my vacation…but I runfess the gear never saw the light of day. Instead, the vacation was filled with lots of walking, some hiking, and yoga and I was more than okay with that!

So this week was about re-entry – although brief because I’ll be hitting the road again soon for the Brooks Hype Fest in LA! Here’s how this past week played out…

A Quick Check-in Between Trips

Monday — Flight home from Vancouver
Tuesday — Holy jet-lag Batman! While I had every intention of getting in a workout I did not get an early start in the morning and then work was beyond cray-cray! So no workout happened.
Wednesday — 3 miles


Thursday — Upper Body Strength & 2-mile walk
Friday — 4 miles & Core
Saturday — Full Body Strength & 2-mile walk
Sunday — 5.5 miles & Hip mobility work

I really wish I could say that with the time off from running my right quad is feeling better but it continues to be a bit of a mixed bag – sometimes it feels fine and other times not so much with very little rhyme or reason as to when and why it flares up. I’m 7 weeks out from the TC 10M so I really do need it to start to cooperate! I’m going to see my massage therapist this week before heading to Hype Fest – the running there will be fun and easy peasy so hopefully by the time I return I’ll be ready to turn up the training dial a bit.

So tell me how was your week? Does it feel like August is just flying by?

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Fit Five Friday – Avoiding Fitness Burnout

While working out does a body good, can you push it too far? Fitness Burnout is a real thing. And, I’m not talking about wanting the occasional extra day off – I’m talking about feeling run down both physically and mentally to the point where you’d rather do almost anything else other than workout.

For this week’s Fit Five Friday, I’m sharing some tips to help avoid fitness burnout.

Fit Five Friday – Avoiding Fitness Burnout

Rest & Recovery: Overtraining will not help you to reach your goals faster and can, in fact, lead to diminished performance and potential injury. It’s important to give yourself time enough for adequate rest and recovery – this includes ensuring you’re getting enough sleep!

Dial-in on Nutrition: Right along with ensuring your getting enough rest and recovery time, make sure you’re fueling and hydrating your body properly before, during, and after a workout. Being deficient in any of your macronutrients or being dehydrated will impact your body’s ability to recover properly.

Attainable goals: While it’s always great to challenge yourself if the pressure to achieve your goal is too high, perhaps it’s time to reassess the goal. Setting realistic, attainable goals allows you to see progress and helps to keep you motivated and engaged.

Switch things up: Sometimes you need a break from your routine, so be willing to switch things up, whether that’s in the form of cross-training or a new running route.

Enlist a buddy: Everything’s better with friends, right? If you usually work out or run solo, make plans to meet up with a friend for a sweat sesh.

How do you stave off fitness burnout?

Welcome to Fit Five Friday!
Join My First 5K and MoreRunning With AttitudeRun Laugh Eat PieRuns with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday! Please be sure to show your hosts some love and visit some of the other bloggers in the link-up.

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Well Hello May

MAYhem is underway – this always feels like the month with “all the things”. Despite the busyness, May is one of my favorite months because it finally feels like Spring around here. Weather-wise the week started cold and dreary, but by Friday Ma Nature finally flipped the switch and the weekend has been gloriously sunny and warm…note to self, I need to acclimate!

I’m linking up with Deborah and Kim for the Weekly Run Down – here’s how the first week of May played out.

Well Hello May

Monday — 2-mile walk, Upper Body Strength & Core. Started Oliva’s Core Challenge – a 5-week challenge of a mix of 5 10 or 15 min classes


Tuesday — Peloton Bike & Core
Wednesday — 3-mile run & Core
Thursday — Lower Body Strength & Core – Lots of focus on glutes and glute activation.
Friday — 3-mile run. With the promise of finally seeing the sun in the afternoon, I held off on a morning run and was rewarded with a nice spring afternoon. The route I picked was especially hilly and I was happy with how my legs responded despite the previous day’s legwork.


Saturday — 1-mile walk & Upper Body Strength
Sunday — 7-mile run & Core. It was a beautiful morning and warmer than I was ready for. I’m not complaining just noting that I need to get acclimated!

All-in-all, not a bad week, and just two weeks to go until my first race of 2023! Hopefully, the weekend’s weather sticks around for a bit.

How was your first week of the month? Does it feel like Spring where you are?

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Five Things Over May Coffee

Hello Friday! It’s also time for another edition of Fit Five Friday and I’m starting off the weekend with a little catch-up over the Ultimate Coffee Date with Coco and Deborah. So grab a mug of your favorite beverage and let’s chat for a bit!

Five Things Over May Coffee

Over coffee, I would tell you how much fun I had over the Boston Marathon weekend. Bib distribution is always fun – I especially love it when runners are so excited they ask you to be in their “bib pick-up photos”. I ended up working alongside an older gentleman named Bill who was a trail race director and had run Boston among other marathons. It was a good time chatting with him about running and racing. I also had some fun meet-ups with the Brooks Run Happy Team -. the VIP Party on Saturday night, and then on Sunday a team meet-up.

Over coffee, I would tell you that I also attended Rewriting the Narrative Authors Panel at the Boston expo featuring Alison Mariella Desir, Kara Goucher, Lauren Fleshman, and Christine Yu. It was oh so good! I read Allison’s book, “Running While Black” earlier this year (if you haven’t read it you need to!) and I have Kara’s book sitting on my Kindle. I’ll definitely get to Lauren’s and Christine’s soon.

Over coffee, I would tell you that I’m looking forward to running my first race of 2023! The Mystic 10K is just a little over two weeks away. I love that my hubby will also be running it. It feels like forever since my last race in November.

Over coffee, I would tell you that my college boy just has exam week standing between him and coming home. I can’t wait to have everyone under one roof this summer!

Over coffee, as is typical for the month of May, I would tell you that I am on the hunt for our family’s summer vacation. Currently, we looking at cruises around Alaska.

Glacier gazing anyone?

OK your turn, what would you share over coffee? Have you ever been to Alaska?

Welcome to Fit Five Friday!

Join My First 5K and MoreRunning With AttitudeRun Laugh Eat PieRuns with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday! Please share the link-up love by visiting and commenting on your hosts and at least two other Fit Five Friday bloggers!


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April Coffee Chat

As we ease into a new month, this is the perfect time to settle in and catch up over coffee. For this week’s Fit Five Friday, I’m linking up with Coco and Deborah for the Ultimate Coffee Date, so grab a mug of your fave beverage, and let’s chat.

April Coffee Chat

Over coffee, I would share how excited I am to have my college boy home for an extended Easter weekend! He got home last night and with the way his class schedule lines up with the days off, he doesn’t need to be back on campus until Wednesday!

Over coffee, I would tell you that once again I’ll be volunteering for the Boston Marathon. I’ll be working bib pick-up on Friday afternoon so if you’re running come see me!

After sharing my contractor woes over the past couple of months it seems only fitting that over coffee I would tell you that we have finally received some bids and have settled on a contractor. Now we need to get past the town’s conservation commission – sigh. Please send me some patience…

Your turn…what would you tell me over coffee?

Welcome to Fit Five Friday!

Join My First 5K and MoreRunning With AttitudeRun Laugh Eat PieRuns with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday! Please share the link-up love by visiting and commenting on your hosts and at least two other Fit Five Friday bloggers!

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Welcoming April

After the cray cray that was March, I am giddy to be turning the page to a new month and setting some new goals! But first, here’s a quick look back at how this week’s workouts played out.

Welcoming April

Monday — Core and Hip Mobility work. I woke up feeling very creaky so I decided to focus on some hip mobility work
Tuesday — Peloton Bike and 1.7-mile walk. I was determined to not let an uber-early commute to the office and crappy weather get in the way of getting a workout in so I hit the bike at o’dark thirty. I slipped in a walk later in the day when the weather improved.


Wednesday — 3 miles. The weather was spring-like and my legs were feeling good – perfect timing since I had Team Wilpers 20-min distance test to kick off the Spring Run Challenge on tap. Wanting to get at least 3 miles, I ran this as a tempo run with the 20 min. block in the middle.
Thursday — Rest day.
Friday — 2.6 miles and Core. The Challenge called for a VO2 max run – it’s been more than a minute since I’ve attempted a programmed speed workout. It was fun to do something different.
Saturday — Upper Body Strength & 2-mile walk
Sunday — 5 miles. I woke up listening to the wind whipping around the house so there was no sense of urgency to head out – coffee first!

April Fitness Goals

If you’ve been around here for a while then you know I like to set monthly goals to help keep me accountable and on track. I missed setting any March goals, so here’s what I’m hoping to accomplish in April:

  • Opt outside every day – I’ve been missing my walks and with the increased daylight and hopefully Spring weather, it feels like a good time to get back to walking on my non-run days.
  • Daily stretching or mobility work
  • Increase long runs to 8 miles
  • Complete the Team Wilpers Spring Run Challenge workouts. The challenge is an 8-week challenge from March 27 – through the week of May 15. The Challenge will be a mix of easy running, incline training, and interval work which should align nicely with my May race.

Have you set any goals for April?

I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down.

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Merry Christmas!

It’s Christmas Eve and my final staycation of 2021 is officially underway!

Today will be filled with food prep, gift wrapping, and a lot of family time. It’s been an absolutely crazy week and I’m so ready for some time off.

No blog post from me for this week’s Fit Five Friday – instead I just want to say to all who celebrate, I wish you a very Merry Christmas!

Welcome to Fit Five Friday!

Join My First 5K and MoreRunning With AttitudeRun Laugh Eat PieRuns with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday! Share your fitness-related link, link back to your hosts, and please share the link love by visiting and commenting on your hosts and at least two other Fit Five Friday bloggers!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

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Let the base-building begin

So Summer-like weather made a return appearance this week with its sidekick Humidity in tow. As planned, the miles were low as and walking made a return to the schedule. Here’s a quick peek at my workouts this week.

Weekly Run Down – Week 41

Monday — 2.6-mile run & PT exercises. A return to the roads! How could I not run on Marathon Monday?! Oh so humid – what happened to fall?! But best of all my legs felt fresh after the week’s rest and no pain!

Tuesday — 2.5-mile walk, Core & Stretch.
Wednesday —1-mile walk, Strength for Runners, Core & Stretch. I paired a couple of the Peloton Strength for Runners classes which gave me a lot of single leg work, and left my legs feeling like jelly…but in a good way.
Thursday — 2.7-mile run & Core. I also added a foam rolling class for glutes and calves on the Peloton app – perhaps using the app will get me to break out the foam roller more often.

Friday — 3.25-mile walk & PT exercises.
Saturday — 3.1 mile-run, Core & Stretch.
Sunday — After a very fun Sat. night out with friends – great food and some adult beverages – I’m still lingering over my coffee. Fall weather seems to have finally made an appearance this morning so I plan to grab a walk and hit my yoga mat.

So nothing wildly exciting, but there was also no squawking from my hip – I call a pain-free week a win! In the forecast for the week ahead looks like fall weather will be making a welcome return so I’m looking forward to #optoutside with a slight bump up in my run miles and more walking.

How was your week? Does it feel like fall where you are?

In case you missed it:

Reasons to Try a Sugar Detox

As always, I’m linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down link-up. Join us!

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Five Reasons to Focus on Strengthening Your Core

For one of my goals this month, I’m working on completing Matty’s Summer Crunch core challenge on Peloton.  So far, it has been a great way for me to return to consistent core work. While many instantly think of 6-pack abs when they think about core exercises, a strong core is really about much more than the aesthetics of flat abs.

Your core is actually a whole series of muscles including pelvic floor muscles, diaphragm, internal and external obliques, transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, multifidus, erector spinae, and glutes. This complex set of muscles are your body’s powerhouse and key to all movement.

So for today’s Fit Five Friday, I’m sharing five reasons to focus on strengthening your core.

Five Reasons to Focus on Strengthening Your Core

Enhanced stability and balance — When you strengthen your core, you engage the pelvis, lower back, and hips to work in better coordination, providing both balance and stability, and minimizing the risk of falling.

Improved running efficiency — In addition to enhanced stability and balance, when these muscles are moving smoothly in sync, you expend less energy, which can help your running efficiency.

Improved posture — Strong core muscles stabilize the torso, and help you to remain upright. Maintaining good posture, in turn, reduces strain on both your muscles and joints and can be especially important for runners in the later stages of a race or long run, when fatigue sets in and running form may start to suffer.

Reduced risk of back injuries — Without a strong core, you are asking your back to work harder to support your body, which can lead to muscle strain and back pain.

Everyday movement — From carrying groceries to pulling weeds in the garden, having a strong core makes bending, lifting, twisting, and reaching overhead easier.

Are core workouts a part of your routine? 

Welcome to Fit Five Friday!

Join My First 5K and MoreRunning With AttitudeRun Laugh Eat PieRuns with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday! Who’s ready for some fun?

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Click here to enter


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