weekly workouts // september 2

Monday, September 3 – happy labor day! Nick and I spent our extra day off laboring over housework – floors, bathroom, laundry… squeaky clean… boom! – and biking around MSP. What a gorgeous day for a spin down the freshly resurfaced Greenway and around Isles.

Bike: 23.57 miles, 1:25:25.

Tuesday, September 4 – some evenings call for solo time in the saddle. So, while Nick got in a solid run with P2, I hopped on my bike for a solid Ford-Franklin-Cathedral loop spin. I’m amazed at how quickly daylight dwindles once September hits; there’s barely enough light for a two-hour ride after work!

Bike: 19.1 miles, 1:07:38.

Wednesday, September 5 – I slogged through today’s 6a swim. It was early, and I didn’t get enough sleep (still working on that!), but as sluggish as it felt, starting the day in the pool feels good. No drills today… just a quick 3 x 500s and home to head to work.

Swim: 1,500 yards, about 35 minutes.

My yoga mat was exactly where I needed to be this afternoon. So much loveliness in Amelia’s class tonight at the CorePower Yoga Grand Avenue studio. Savasana’s never felt so good, and the walk home, as the sun was setting over Summit, was just as peaceful… that magic, so-sun-kissed-it-makes-everything-glow-gold moment.

Yoga: C2 vinyasa, 60 minutes.

Thursday, September 6 – rest day relaxation!

Friday, September 7 – difficult as it was to get out of bed today, I’m starting to really enjoy morning swims. We got going a bit late, so swam just 3 x 500-yard intervals. After not sharing a lane for the first two sets – apparently we’re not the only two crazies who swim before sunrise – I finally caught Nick’s draft for the third set. Bubbles!

Swim: 1,500 yards, about 35 minutes.

Friday afternoon yoga bliss – and a back ache. While the vinyasa flow was a wonderfully sweaty combination of balancing and bending, it also did a number of my back. Something tweaked at the end of class and as the night progressed, it ached more and more. I did my best to help Nick install our new Thule roof rack, but bending and lifting didn’t feel too great. BTW… has anyone installed one of these before? The directions were worse than IKEA’s, but thanks to a YouTube video, we figured it out, and the rack looks pretty sharp on my car!

Yoga: C2 vinyasa, 60 minutes.

Rather than hit up live music in Mears Park like originally planned, I parked it on the sofa with some tea + tv to rest my back. My kind of Friday night!

Saturday, September 8 – I really wanted to run this morning, but my aching back probably wouldn’t have been too happy with any pavement pounding. Nick left early on a three-hour bike + hour run brick (his IMFL training just stepped up), so after lollygagging for about an hour, I went out for a late morning spin (oddly enough, biking didn’t bother my back). Other than the wicked headwind on the way out down the Greenway, the entire ride rocked. There were tons of people out biking and running around the lakes, which is awesome to see – and one of the reasons why MSP is so great. Even better: About two miles from home, I ran into Nick running down Summit, so I biked next to him back to the river.

Bike: 32.32 miles, 2:01:54.

Sunday, September 9 – what an inspiring day! My voice is crazy hoarse thanks to cheering for 14 hours at Ironman Wisconsin. BIG congrats to all the finishers! Blog post + photos this week.

Weekly stats

So, Women Run the Cities is on the calendar for September 23. Pretty sure that means I need to actually run in the two weeks prior! Also, I finally managed to swim twice this week, a streak that’s going to continue throughout the fall and winter.

Swim: 3,000 yards, 70:00
Bike: 74.99 miles, 4:34:57
Yoga: two classes, 2:00

This week: With zero running mileage last week, I’ll definitely be logging a few miles as well as biking as much as I can. Warm weather and evening sunshine are quickly dwindling!

Is anyone else running Women Run the Cities? Have you ever lost your voice cheering at a 140.6 or another race?