Another Productive Week
Between dropping off donations and continuing my home organization, it’s been a productive week. In addition to all that organization, I worked (part-time), made time for my workouts, hosted a friend for dinner on Tuesday, met another for lunch on Friday, and wrapped up the week with some quality family time. Making time for friends was a key goal on my 26 in 2026 list, and I’m thrilled to be off to such a strong start.
Overview of the Week
Before getting into each day’s workouts, here’s an overview of my workouts from this past week. Scroll beyond the infographic for daily details…
Sunday
Cycling: 18 miles
• Bike: Life Fitness Lifecycle GX Spin
• Average speed: 16.4 MPH
• Surface: N/A
• Elevation gain: N/A
• Start time: 8:57 AM
• Location: basement
• Weather: 65° in the basement, 40° and sunny outside
• What I wore: bike shorts and sports bra
Walking: 4.07 miles
• Average pace: 15:21 minute/mile
• Elevation gain: 177 feet
• Start time: 12:15 PM
• Location: neighborhood trails
• Weather: 44° (feels like 29°) and partly cloudy
• What I wore: capris, hoodie, puffer jacket, knit hat, and gloves
Strength: Peloton Emma Lovewell 15-Minutes Core Strength
After a steady multitasking spin, I eventually got outside for my walk. I took my backpack with me so I could stop at the grocery store to pick up a few items on the way home. I do love multitasking and was able to do just that during both cardio workouts.
Monday
Strength training: 1 hour of total body
Walking: 3 miles
• Average pace: 15:31 minute/mile
• Elevation gain: 75 feet
• Start time: 3:55 PM
• Location: neighborhood trails
• Weather: 47° and partly cloudy, dropping to 44°
• What I wore: capris, s/s shirt, puffer jacket, visor, and gloves
Stretching: Peloton Adrian Williams 15-Minutes Stretching for Longevity
Up early, I was lifting shortly after 5:30 AM before training six clients. After seeing my last client I walked and even took a stretching class.
Tuesday
Walking: 3.11 miles
• Average pace: 15:31 minute/mile
• Elevation gain: 100 feet
• Start time: 10:32 AM
• Location: neighborhood trails
• Weather: 41° and cloudy, climbing to 44°
• What I wore: tights, s/s shirt, down coat, knit hat, and mittens over gloves with hand warmers between (took coat and gloves off for last ¼-mile)
Cycling: 20.74 miles
• Bike: Specialized Roubaix Comp
• Average speed: 13.4 MPH
• Surface: paved
• Elevation gain: 735 feet
• Start time: 12:08 PM
• Location: W&OD Trail Ashburn/Leesburg loop
• Weather: 47° and partly cloudy, climbing to 51°
• What I wore: fleece lined bike pants, s/s jersey, winter jacket, ear-flap bike hat, and mittens over gloves with hand warmers between the layers
When my only client of the day rescheduled to later in the morning, I still got up at 5 AM to get a bunch of stuff done – I am sooo productive in the early morning hours. Later, I got out for a walk and then a ride with my husband. I was overdressed for both events – it’s so hard to know how to dress for outdoor cardio in the winter.
Later in the evening we had our running-turned-cycling friend Chuck over for dinner. Like my husband and me, he’s also on a quest to visit as many national parks as he can. This summer he has a trip planned to Alaska and will hit all eight parks. That’s on our agenda for 2027 (maybe not hitting all eight parks, though) and I tried to convince him to delay his trip for a year.
Wednesday
Strength training: 1 hour of total body
Stretching: Peloton Hannah Corbin 10-Minute Stretch
Thursday
Walking: 4.11 miles
• Average pace: 15:34 minute/mile
• Elevation gain: 140 feet
• Start time: 6:32 AM
• Location: neighborhood circle
• Weather: 28° (feels like 13°) and clear
• What I wore: tights, l/s shirt, down coat, knit hat, and heated gloves
Stretching: Peloton Hannah Corbin 10-Minute Stretch, 2 classes
Even though I was ready to go at 6 AM when Kim and I usually start our virtual cardio workout, I discovered my AirPods were dead so I put my phone on speaker and folded a load of laundry while we chatted and they charged. Within no time the AirPods were at 46% so I finally ventured outside. Even though it had rained overnight, the wind had dried the sidewalks and streets before the temperature plummeted and I was able to walk outside without worrying about icy patches.
Friday
Strength training: 1 hour of total body
Balance and stretching: 45 minutes
Stretching: Peloton Hannah Corbin 10-Minute Stretch
Saturday
Cycling: 8.9 miles (Peloton Denis Morton 30-Minute Reset)
• Bike: Life Fitness Lifecycle GX Spin
• Average speed: 17.3 MPH
• Surface: N/A
• Elevation gain: N/A
• Start time: 8:40 AM
• Location: basement
• Weather: 64° in the basement, 34° (feels like 26°) and snowing outside
• What I wore: bike shorts and sports bra
Cycling: 5.7 miles (Peloton Cody Rigsby 20-Minute 2000’s Ride)
• Bike: Life Fitness Lifecycle GX Spin
• Average speed: 16.7 MPH
• Surface: N/A
• Elevation gain: N/A
• Start time: 9:22 AM
• Location: basement
• Weather: 63° in the basement, 35° (feels like 26°) and snowing outside
• What I wore: bike shorts and sports bra
Stretching: Peloton Hannah Corbin 10-Minute Stretch
I woke up early to catch the snow, but it paused just as it got light out—only to start back up the moment I hopped on my indoor bike. After a morning of blogging, I headed to the basement to train, but my Peloton bike wouldn’t power on. I tried every trick I could find online, from checking the power cord to a 15-second hard reset, but ended up having to use my spin bike for my classes instead. As it turns out, there was a simple fix: my husband later discovered a cable had been knocked loose, likely by the cleaning crew on Friday.
I wrapped up the day with 5:30 mass followed by a relaxing evening at home watching the NFL playoff games.
Winter Warrior Challenge Outdoor Workouts
The third week of the Winter Warrior Challenge is complete and once again I was able to meet the challenge. The rest of Dawn Patrol seem to be motivated by the challenge as well! Here’s how my week worked out…
Number of outdoor rides (goal is 1) : 1 on Tuesday
Number of outdoor walks (goal is 2): 4 on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday
Number of strength training sessions (goal is 2): 3 on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday
Garmin Badges Earned
Five Garmin badges made their way to me this week.
Last Week’s Blog Posts
In case you skipped checking in on my blog this past week, here’s what you missed…
- • Sunday – Weekly RunDown: January 4 – 10 / Work, Workouts, and Purging
- • Monday – A Drizzly Hike Along Hawks Nest Fisherman’s Trail in Wild, Wonderful West Virginia
- • Tuesday – Training Tip Tuesday: Building a Balanced Exercise Plan
- • Thursday – Grandview Main Overlook: The East Coast’s Horseshoe Bend
Questions:
- • Have you had any equipment failures that turned out to be an easy fix? ~ Luckily, an easy fix was the case with my Peloton bike yesterday.
- • Do you regularly set dates with friends or do you wing it? ~ I tend to wing it which leads to saying, “Let’s meet up,” but then not following through.
- • Which workout did you enjoy most this past week? ~ I loved getting outside for my walks and bike ride so I guess all of my outdoor events competed for my favorite.
And that’s my rundown… Have a great week!
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I’m linking up with Deborah at Confessions of a Mother Runner and Kim from Running on the Fly for their Weekly Run Down. Be sure to check out not only the hosts’ posts, but those of the other great bloggers joining in on the fun!
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links which means if you click on the blue product link and then make a purchase, I will receive a small commission for referring you. You will pay no more or less for the product; however, Amazon will show their gratitude for my referral by paying me.
And did you manage to convince Chuck to delay his Alaska trip? That sounds like an epic plan for 2027!
Well done for another great week, Debbie. Making time for friends is such a good reminder. It’s so easy to get swallowed by routines and training that we forget how important those social connections really are.
No, unfortunately Chuck has already started making reservations and didn’t want to delay his trip by a year. At least we’ll be able to pick his brain after the trip to help us better plan ours.
I am so impressed with your ability to this winter! Way to keep it up. I should your dates with friends, but you know … life!
I have a few friends I see regularly but not on a set schedule.
This weeks’ weather was all over the place. I think Wednesday was even warmer than Tuesday but then it got really cold again ….
That Alaska trip sounds amazing!
So glad the Peloton issue was a quick fix!
Weather wise, it was a pretty crazy week and I had trouble deciding what to wear for my outdoor cardio sessions. And yes, I’m pretty pumped for Alaska!
I was so relieved when my husband found the loose cable and we didn’t have to call Peloton.
I am so impressed with your ability to stay outside consistently this winter! Way to keep it up. I should your dates with friends, but you know … life!
Thanks, Melissa! I am certainly motivated to get outside by our Winter Warrior Challenge.
Solid week, Deb!! Intend to wing-it with my get-togethers with friends as well. I was able to plan ahead & meet a couple of friends for lunch, though, on Friday. You also are quite an accomplished multi-tasker 🙂
When it comes to my friends I tend to wing it other than “meeting” you on Thursdays! 😀
Nice work this week! I have a scheduled run on Sunday with my Trail sisters, but winter has had other ideas. We’ve had rain, snow, bitter cold, and wind, and have had to cancel quite a bit this winter. I will be so glad when we move into spring!
We’re having a workout clothing exchange at the gym in February–I need to do a purge!
Those workout clothing exchanges are great – our MRTT used to do that.
Glad you figured out what was going on with your Peloton. Sounds like you are enjoying discovering new classes. Adrian’s stretches are great and easy on the eyes lol. I really need to get to organizing my closet!
Thanks for turning me on to the 14-day core challenge right after I got my Peloton. That’s what has led to me discovering other week-long classes. I’m loving it!
Friend time is so important and I’ve also been trying to calendar it, otherwise it never happens. We’re all just so busy
Jealous of your friend’s Alaska trip. I absolutely loved mine and happy to share with you on that, but I couldn’t do all the parks and it was so annoying to be so close yet so far.
And yes on winter cardio – we need dressers like when we were kids
We’re looking forward to hearing all about Chuck’s trip to Alaska and it should make planning ours easier.
LOL on having someone dress me for outdoor cardio. I’d rather have someone next to me at the ready to take my shedded jackets or to hand me one if needed. 😉
Well done with that winter challenge! I see there’s strength training on it – does that mean you’re to lift weights outdoors?? Or is it just part of the challenge generally?
Our new bike is as loyal as it gets but I have some troubles with the heart rate monitor, when I first put it on after getting back on the bike it didn’t connect so I thought it just needed a new battery, and then it did connect but then disconnected in the middle of the ride. It’s a few years old and a cheap variant so it’s probably a good idea to get a brand new one.
Thanks, Susanne! Strength training is done inside – I added that to get my friends to lift in the riding off-season. I hope you can figure out your heart rate monitor problem and don’t have to buy a new one. I hate having to replace stuff like that.
This was a very friend-heavy week for me, because I was in Tampa and saw several people I know there. Usually I don’t make the time to socialize like that.
I’m curious to know what’s on tap for you for the summer of 2026!!! So Alaska is planned for 2027?
Nice week of cardio, strength and stretching as usual!
Yay for seeing lots of friends last week!
We’ll be visiting the Pacific Northwest in July, most likely after spending some more time in Utah.
How long will your friend be going to Alaska to hit all 8 NPs? Do you have your Alaska trip planned out yet? Will you be cruising? That’s a destination that has moved up on my planning calendar. I don’t know much about it, but my friends went on a cruise and it looked great. That’s as far as I got 🙂
I’m glad you figured out the mystery of the knocked out cable. I would have been a little stressed about that!
I think our friend Chuck plans to be in Alaska for at least a month, maybe five weeks? We really don’t have our Alaska trip planned other than some ideas floating around in our heads. Talking to Chuck after his trip will help us plan our trip. I doubt we’ll do the cruise.
Three weeks down! Way to go!
Technical failures like my washer just taking a day off and then working just fine lol? Yes. That happens!
I’m trying to be way more intentional with getting together with friends. I just had my annual vision board party, and that was lovely. I want to do something once a month, but it gets hard.
Favorite workout was my 5K on Saturday
I’m glad you and your friends had fun at your vision board get-together. What a fun idea for a social event!
Oh wow, that’s great that your washing machine started working again. And yay for running a 5K!
Great job on the badges nd the challenge. Getting outside when it’s cold is a challenge.
My tennis friends schedule a dinner once a month and that’s great… otherwise it’s hit and miss.
Last week was a blur… I’m still trying to get back to feeling normal…
The Winter Warrior Challenge is certainly making a difference in getting me outside, especially on my bike.
Hope you’re feeling completely back to normal by now!