Back in the Groove with Outdoor Miles
What a wonderfully active and productive week it turned out to be! Between slowly getting back into the swing of client sessions (several were still on vacation), navigating a few tech and equipment hiccups, and celebrating National Dog Day with our special furry guest, it was a fantastic mix of hard work, outdoor movement, and quality time with family.
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
Gardening: 2 hours
Walking: 3.05 miles
• Average pace: 15:21 minute/mile
• Surface: paved
• Elevation gain: 72 feet
• Start time: 11:05 AM
• Location: neighborhood trails
• Weather: 75° and partly cloudy, climbing to 78°
• What I wore: shorts, s/s shirt, and visor
Stretching: Peloton 10-Minute Spinal Mobility with Andy Speer
Once I got home from church, I finished up the gardening project I had started the day before, then headed out for a walk and a good stretch. Afterward, I tackled a few quick household chores and got everything ready for our very special guests—Pablo and his humans arrived for the week! We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening enjoying a fun family event together.
Monday
Strength training: 1 hour of total body
Core: Peloton 10-Minute Core Strength with Emma Lovewell
Walking: 3.21 miles
• Average pace: 15:07 minute/mile
• Surface: paved
• Elevation gain: 144 feet
• Start time: 9:08 AM
• Location: neighborhood circle
• Weather: 75° and partly cloudy, climbing to 78°
• What I wore: shorts, s/s shirt, and visor
Core: Peloton 10-Minute Spring Cross-Training Core with Emma Lovewell
For the second day in a row, we were blessed with absolutely gorgeous weather—reasonable temperatures, low humidity, and a bright blue sky! With client sessions spread out throughout the day, I made sure to take full advantage of the beautiful day during a morning break and got out for a walk between clients.
Tuesday
Core: Peloton 5-Minute Core Strength with Emma Lovewell
Walking: 3.06 miles
• Average pace: 15:10 minute/mile
• Surface: paved
• Elevation gain: 146 feet
• Start time: 8:56 AM
• Location: neighborhood circle
• Weather: 68° and sunny, climbing to 72°
• What I wore: shorts, s/s shirt, and visor
Cycling: 34.27 miles
• Bike: Salsa Warbird
• Average speed: 12.4 MPH
• Surface: paved (with a small amount of gravel)
• Elevation gain: 1,414 feet
• Start time: 12:33 PM
• Location: W&OD Trail Ashburn/Hamilton loop
• Weather: 79° and mostly sunny, climbing to 83° and cloudy
• What I wore: bike shorts, s/s jersey, and fingerless gloves
Stretching: Peloton 5-Minute Post-Ride Stretch with Cody Rigsby
I usually prefer riding earlier in the day, but a morning appointment with a contractor kept me anchored at home—though I did squeeze in my walk before he arrived! Fortunately, the gorgeous weather was all the incentive I needed to head out for a solo ride in the afternoon. My ride got off to a bumpy start when I realized the Di2 electronic shifters on my road bike were completely dead, forcing me to turn around and switch to my gravel bike. Once back on track, it turned out to be a fantastic ride—even though my rear radar battery died midway through! Talk about feeling vulnerable without that heads-up, especially when I turned out onto the open road.
When tree work on the paved trail detoured traffic onto the gravel bridle path, I snapped a quick selfie. Even though I don’t know the cyclist behind me personally, we pass each other all the time—and if you zoom in, you can see he was all smiles for the camera!
Wednesday
Strength training: 1 hour of total body
Walking: 3.1 miles
• Average pace: 14:56 minute/mile
• Surface: paved
• Elevation gain: 126 feet
• Start time: 7:25 AM
• Location: neighborhood circle
• Weather: 61° and mostly sunny
• What I wore: shorts, s/s shirt, and visor
Strength: Peloton 10-Minute Core Strength with Emma Lovewell
After wrapping up my strength training session, I headed outside for a walk. The weather was still delightful for getting outdoors, even though the humidity had started creeping back in. But far more important than any workout: it was National Dog Day, and we had our absolute favorite pupster with us to celebrate his very special day!
Thursday
Walking: 5.11 miles
• Average pace: 15:27 minute/mile
• Surface: paved
• Elevation gain: 205 feet
• Start time: 6:05 AM
• Location: neighborhood trails
• Weather: 69°, cloudy, and very humid, climbing to 71°
• What I wore: shorts, s/s shirt, and hipster hat (changed to visor for picture)
Core: Peloton 5-Minute Core Strength with Emma Lovewell
Cycling: 28.21 miles
• Bike: Specialized Roubaix Comp
• Average speed: 14.5 MPH
• Surface: paved
• Elevation gain: 758 feet
• Start time: 9:59 AM
• Location: W&OD Trail Sterling/Leesburg loop
• Weather: 78° and cloudy, climbing to 83°
• What I wore: bike shorts, s/s jersey and fingerless gloves
Stretching: Peloton 5-Minute Post-Ride Stretch with Tunde Oyeneyin
I met up with Kim for our weekly virtual cardio chat, and we got so wrapped up in our conversation that I was well into my fifth mile before I even looked at my watch—I had only planned on walking four! After finishing my walk and adding a quick core session, I knocked out a bunch of household chores before heading outside for a bike ride. The wildflowers along the trail were in such full, gorgeous bloom that I couldn’t resist stopping a couple of times to walk along the path and take pictures. I ended the afternoon with a quick stretch to round out a great day of movement.
Friday
Strength training: 1 hour of total body
Walking: 1.04 miles (Peloton 15-Minute Pop Walk with Olivia Amato)
• Average pace: 14:25 minute/mile
• Surface: N/A
• Elevation gain: N/A
• Start time: 8:30 AM
• Location: basement
• Weather: 68° in the basement, 71° and mostly sunny outside
• What I wore: shorts and sports bra
Balance and stretching: 45 minutes
After wrapping up my weightlifting session, I decided to try a quick Peloton walking class. I quickly discovered it was designed for an outdoor walk—and thanks to a spotty GPS signal in the basement, my phone got stuck on the loading screen! Luckily, the audio worked fine, so I was still able to follow along with the instructor’s cues and complete the class. Later in the morning, I led my weekly balance and stretching class to round out the workout routine.
Saturday
Walking: 3.05 miles
• Average pace: 17:15 minute/mile
• Surface: paved
• Elevation gain: 124 feet
• Start time: 8:48 AM
• Location: neighborhood trails
• Weather: 68° and sunny, climbing to 73°
• What I wore: shorts, s/s shirt, and visor
Stretching: Peloton 10-Minute Full Body Stretch with Selena Samuela
With an intentionally lighter day on tap, I slowed my pace and enjoyed a peaceful walk along our neighborhood trails—making a quick stop at the grocery store along the way for a little multitasking at its finest! The rest of the day was spent enjoying chill family time, soaking up every minute of the last full day Pablo and his humans would be visiting.
Garmin Badges Earned
Four 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…
Questions:
- • What is your favorite way to spend time outdoors when the weather turns surprisingly pleasant? ~ walking, cycling, gardening, or hanging out with my family
- • Have you ever had your workout plans derailed by dead batteries or tech glitches? ~ Yes, many times.
- • How was your week in fitness? ~ Excellent!
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!
So many outdoor miles! I love how the beautiful weather kept pulling you outside.
That Tuesday ride sounds like a full-on technology obstacle course! Dead Di2 shifters AND a dead radar battery?! At least the gravel bike came through and you still managed a fantastic ride. With an unexpected photo opportunity!
Sounds like a pretty perfect week of movement and family!
Today I’m missing that beautiful weather – it’s very muggy and currently we have a light shower that wasn’t in the forecast.
The dead batteries in the electronic shifters didn’t surprise me as much as the Varia (rear radar). I’d charged the Varia after my last ride in Park City and it usually holds its charge really, really well. It might have gotten turned on in my bag at some point during our travels and drained the batter. I think my road bike was down to about 40% when I last rode it; maybe lower? For some reason it loses power quicker than my gravel bike’s shifters (both have the Di2s). I should have charged it the night before I rode, but didn’t even think about it.
This sounds like such a good and pleasant week, except all the failed tech. Cycling these days seems to be so extremely techy! I love some tech in the right context but I’d enjoy just taking the bike out and get going. But having said that, a bike radar is a fantastic invention.
That trail looks like a bliss to ride!
When the weather turns unexpectedly nice, walking is always my go-to. That’s something you can just do without prep.
My husband and I make cycling more techy than it needs to be, but we like all that kind of stuff. Even when I take my beach cruiser out for a ride I’ll use my Garmin watch in bike mode just to see how far I rode. I need to get it out again! Speaking of which, we’re going to the beach house this coming week, but my husband wants to bring our road bikes rather than our beach cruisers.
Nice work on all your fitness this week! I finally got out for some biking miles later this morning (and afternoon). I posted pics of Max ON National Dog Day, but totally spaced-off sharing them the blog. OOPS!
Yay for getting out on your bike! And I’m sure Max will forgive you! 😉
It sure does feel great to get back onto your fitness routine! Looks like I missed some fab weather. I know you enjoyed having Pablo around this week and I’m sure his parents too
The heat is supposed to be back by mid-week, but hopefully you’ll be away on your trip by then. And yes, we loved every minute of our time with Pablo, our son, and daughter-in-law!
How did we ever ride without radars before?? I agree, I feel so unprotected when mine isn’t working. It is amazing technology. I haven’t had both shifters dead at the same time. What bad timing! Glad your ride turned out well with your other bike.
Sounds like a great week with the family and doggie!
Right? I just can’t imagine riding without a rear radar now that I’ve gotten used to riding with one. I don’t do a lot of road riding, but I am on it for a couple of miles going to and from the W&ID Trail. All of my gravel rides are on public roads, though.
Yay for getting outside and so many miles!! It’s funny that we used to run without a smart phone or watch- it has been a while but I remember my first running watch and how cool I felt! The other day i forgot I stopped my Garmin and had to manually clock my run, so it was just a guestimate…which is what we always used to do!
Yes, I remember those days well! I would also set different routes using my car’s odometer and then run a combination of those routes for my long runs. I had a basic Timex stopwatch and would calculate my pace after the run. I wonder back to how accurate that was. Good memories!