Sunshine and Workouts
We’re half way into February and the month is flying by. The weather has been nothing short of fabulous most days here in southern Florida. We spend the greater part of most days outdoors and once we made it to Naples last weekend, we were able to pack our winter clothes away. My vacation workouts have continued to be strong and plentiful which is easy when the weather is cooperative!
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
Road trip day 5: Naples, Florida
Hiking: 2 miles
• Average pace: 26:40 minute/mile
• Elevation gain: 3 feet
• Start time: 11:21 AM
• Location: Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary
• Weather: 70° and sunny, climbing to 74°
• What I wore: shorts and s/s shirt
Pilates: Peloton Emma Lovewell 10-Minute Core Strength
After a chill morning, we went to Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary for a hike on the elevated boardwalk, followed by a food truck lunch before perusing a nearby art show.
Monday
Road trip day 6: Naples, Florida
Strength training: 1 hour of total body
Pilates: Peloton Emma Lovewell 10-Minute Core Strength
Walking: 4.09 miles
• Average pace: 15:54 minute/mile
• Elevation gain: 3 feet
• Start time: 11:17 AM
• Location: Bonita Springs neighborhood
• Weather: 71° and sunny
• What I wore: shorts, s/s shirt, and visor
After a morning of weight training using my friend’s weights and my travel bands – her highest dumbbells were 15 pounds so I did more reps much more slowly until I reached failure. Later we went on a walk, stopped by a bike shop, and ended the day with a sunset cruise.
Tuesday
Road trip day 7: Drive from Naples to Tamarac, Florida
Pilates: Peloton Emma Lovewell 5-Minute Core Strength
Stretching: Peloton Adrian Williams 15-Stretch for Longevity
Cycling: 26.14 miles
• Bike: Salsa Warbird
• Average speed: 11.3 MPH
• Surface: paved, gravel, and sand
• Elevation gain: 141 feet
• Start time: 1:01 PM
• Location: Tamarac, Florida
• Weather: 76° and partly cloudy
• What I wore: bike shorts, s/s jersey, and fingerless gloves
I did a pilates class and stretched before we left our friends’ condo and headed east to see two of our Dawn Patrol friends who both moved to Florida a few years ago. Before even checking into our hotel, we met Chuck for a ride along the Cypress Creek Greenway and the Francis S. Taylor Wildlife Management Area in the Everglades.
Wednesday
Road trip day 8: Tamarac, Florida
Cycling: 26.04 miles
• Bike: Salsa Warbird
• Average speed: 13.4 MPH
• Surface: paved
• Elevation gain: 177 feet
• Start time: 9:09 AM
• Location: Hugh Taylor Birch State Park, Florida
• Weather: 65° and partly cloudy, climbing to 76°
• What I wore: bike shorts, s/s jersey, and fingerless gloves
Walking: 2.01 miles
• Average pace: 16:59 minute/mile
• Elevation gain: 13 feet
• Start time: 12:07 PM
• Location: Hugh Taylor Birch State Park, Florida
• Weather: 76° and partly cloudy
• What I wore: shorts and s/s shirt
Stretching: Peloton Bradley Rose 5-Minute Lady Gaga Post-Ride Stretch
We had another ride planned and this time our friend Terry was able to join us. I was suffering some saddle pains from the previous day’s ride and was nervous about how I’d feel and wanted to be able to bail early if necessary. When I learned that there was a one-way loop around the park that was a little less than 2 miles, I begged out of our planned road ride up A1A.
Fourteen laps later I’d completed 26 miles, about ten miles short of the group’s planned ride. I ended up having time to change clothes and go on a 2-mile walk, finishing it up just as they completed their ride.
The below two collages sum up the scenery during a lap…
Thursday
Road trip day 9: Drive from Tamarac to Westlake, Florida
Strength training: 1 hour of total body
Pilates: Peloton Emma Lovewell 10-minute core strength
Stretching: Peloton Logan Aldridge 15-Minute Full Body Stretch
Hiking: 1.07 miles
• Average pace: 45:48 minute/mile
• Elevation gain: 3 feet
• Start time: 3:17 PM
• Location: Wakodahatchee Wetlands
• Weather: 78° and mostly sunny
• What I wore: shorts and s/s shirt
A very lowkey day, I made my way to the well-appointed hotel gym around 7 AM to lift and do a couple of Peloton classes.
On our way to Westlake, we stopped at Wakodahatchee Wetlands where I was able to meet up with both Darlene and Jenny for a scenic bird watching walk! I’d had the pleasure of meeting Darlene once before for about five minutes when we both happened to be in Portland, Maine, but this was my first time meeting Jenny. The birds were plentiful and I’m not sure who had the most fun: the three of us chatting while watching the birds or my husband who was getting to try out a new lens (all of the pictures in the collage were taken with my iPhone.
Friday
Road trip day 10: Westlake, Florida
Walking: 4.25 miles
• Average pace: 17:37 minute/mile
• Elevation gain: 0 feet
• Start time: 11:35 AM
• Location: friend’s neighborhood
• Weather: 75° and sunny, climbing to 79° and partly cloudy
• What I wore: shorts and s/s shirt
Stretching: Peloton Andy Speer 5-Minute Full Body Stretch
In addition to my designated walk, I also joined my friend to on a slow saunter around her neighborhood with her two pupsters. During that walk we saw an alligator swimming in a pond, but it was too far out to get a good picture so I didn’t even try.
Saturday
Road trip day 11: Westlake, Florida
Cycling: 36.05 miles
• Bike: Salsa Warbird
• Average speed: 12.5 MPH
• Surface: gravel
• Elevation gain: 131 feet
• Start time: 7:11 AM
• Location: Apoxee Wilderness Preserve, Florida
• Weather: 61° and mostly sunny, climbing to 76° and mostly cloudy
• What I wore: bike shorts, s/s jersey, and fingerless gloves
Stretching: Peloton Hannah Corbin 5-Minute Post-Ride Stretch
We joined the Western Athletic Group for a gravel ride in the Apoxee Wilderness Preserve just as we did last January (recap here). They’re a fast group and I’m always bringing up the rear, but boy do I get a good workout! Once again we had a blast and had plenty of alligator sightings. My husband and I would love it if we could join this group regularly.
Winter Warrior Challenge Outdoor Workouts
The seventh week of the Winter Warrior Challenge is complete and here’s how my week worked out…
Number of outdoor rides (goal is 1) : 3 (Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday)
Number of outdoor walks (goal is 2): 5 (Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday)
Number of strength training sessions (goal is 2): 2 (Monday and Thursday)
Garmin Badges Earned
Six Garmin badges made there way to me this week, one just for working out on Valentine’s Day.
Last Week’s Blog Posts
In case you skipped checking in on my blog this past week, here’s what you missed…
Questions:
- • I saw a lot of birds last week, what’s your favorite bird? ~ probably hummingbirds because my mom loved them so much
- • Bloggers, have you had any meet-ups recently? ~ Prior to this week’s meet-up, seeing Kim in Iowa this past summer was my most recent.
- • Which workout did you enjoy most this past week? ~ Saturday’s WAG’s gravel ride was a blast!
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!
You picked a good time to escape NoVa. The weather has been better, but the snowcrete persists!
I was having issues getting my Garmin to sync yesterday so I didn’t see my V-Day badge until today. It’s a cute one!
It’s always a crap shoot when picking vacation days so far in advance, but this year we nailed it!
How fun to see both Jenny and Darlene together. Funny how I also got to see both you and Darlene while traveling in Maine a few years ago. Looks like you are enjoying warm temps and great weather on your adventure!
Yes, it was great seeing Darlene again and meeting Jenny for the first time. Wish we’d had more time up in Maine!
Sunshine, shorts, outdoor miles every day. Pure freedom!!
Trading snow boots for bike shorts and boardwalk walks is such a win. Those gravel rides and park laps sound tough in the best way, proper holiday training mode!
So nice that you met Darlene and Jenny!! Birding plus friends plus workouts is the dream combo.
I’m curious: how do you in the US decide between a walk and a hike? I see you have 4 mile walks but a 1 mile hike (I should add that in Europe, a “hike” usually means several hours on trails with backpacks and proper hiking boots, often with overnight stays in the huts.)
Yes, the comfort of being outside without bundling up has been so refreshing! I’ve loved being able to just go outside and ride without analyzing what I should wear to stay warm.
Spending time with Darlene and Jenny was very enjoyable! I love getting to know my blogging friends better by meeting them in person.
Our hikes here in the USA are the same as you describe them as being in Europe. For my blog, I tend to describe a walk as something I set out to do for cardiovascular exercise, and a hike for when I’m exploring and taking lots of pictures. I know, I’m taking great liberties, but it sort of makes sense to me. 😉
That makes a lot of sense!
Yay for blogger meetups! That was fun, and it got me out to Wakodahatchee (where I haven’t been in years). Also- some of those places you’re riding are unfamiliar to me! Crazy that I live here and I don’t know those areas.
I’m SO glad the weather was nice for your visit!
Jenny, it was so nice to finally get to meet you in person! Bill and I had a great time, and obviously he loved the photography opportunities.
How fun to have blogger meet ups! What a fun idea and too funny to meet Darlene and Jenny. I saw Jenny’s blog post and was like – hey they look familiar. Nice to enjoy some good weather!
I knew Jenny lived in the area from last year’s visit to West Palm, but we weren’t able to meet. When Darlene said she’d be down there, too, we made sure to get a date we could all meet up! 🙂
It looks like the weather has really agreed with your vacation! This break in the weather makes me look forward to cycling season again (which doesn’t start until May for me haha!) You saw a great variety of birds this week. I keep thinking I should bust out my DSLR again, but my new iPhone camera is so amazingly good, not sure it’s needed for most shots!
What a fun meetup with Darlene and Jenny. Enjoy the rest of your trip!
We got lucky in that we had scheduled our trip for the week after Florida’s unusual cold snap. Of course, when making plans you don’t have the luxury of knowing what the weather is going to be like – just dumb luck on our part.
Yes, it was so fun to get together with Darlene and Jenny! Agreed, my iPhone takes such good pictures that there’s rarely a need for a better camera. However, my husband got some amazing close-ups with his long lens of the parents feeding their baby birds that I just couldn’t capture.
Oh, how nice to get that weather after the big freeze! And how fun to meet both Jenny and Darlene. A bird watching walk sounds like such a fun activity – I’m not particularly into birds but if there are a good variety of them in a small area and I have the right lens with me, I imagine I’d enjoy it a lot.
It was super fun getting to see Darlene again and meeting Jenny! My husband just got into shooting birds after getting a new long lens. He captured some fantastic pictures of the parent birds feeding their babies.
Hooray I made your blog.
So fun to meet up and see all those birds.
I saw more the next day at Green Cay.
You definitely had a full week.
My favorite workout was the 5k I ran yesterday.
We are both lucky to have such great weather in Florida.
It was a fun afternoon, Darlene, and I’m so glad it worked out!
Glad you had fun at your 5K!
Can I just say I’m SO jealous of your trip? Florida. All the outdoor biking. Meeting-up with Darlene and Jenny. At least I’m enjoying similar weather at the moment, LOL. Great job keeping active, both in the gym(s) and otherwise!
Wish you could have joined us, Kim! I’m going to be sad when I get back to Virginia and have to bundle up again!
How fun that you had a meet up with Jenny and Darlene! Plus all those birds! Looks like a perfect day.
I would love seeing all the birds that you and your hubs are seeing. I don’t think I have a favorite bird– but I can tell you my least favorite bird is the blue jay. They are loud, and they are mean, lol.
Enjoy that warm weather!
It was super fun meeting up with Darlene and Jenny! And I agree, blue jays are my least favorite bird, they’re so mean to the other birds at the feeder.
Very fun! I wish you were just a little closer! It’s annoying how big this state is!
I”ve had some meetups, but I don’t live in a popular place, so not too many people come this way.
We were in St. Augustine a few years ago and it wasn’t until later that I realized you live close to there (probably after you commented on a recap).