The winner of the EnduroPacks Giveaway will be announced at the end of this post!
How was that for a bit of a heavy post this morning? I like to look at it more as honest and real as opposed to heavy so we will stick with that.
I’m focused on changing for the better, improving little by little, and furthering myself each and every day. Some days it may be something VERY simple and other days I may take a larger leap but either way progress is progress.
Sunday I decided to go to the gym for an easy cardio session to shake out my legs. Evidently they weren’t agreeing with me after my lunges and squats on Saturday.
I ended up doing 60 minutes on the arc trainer pretty easy. I worked up a good sweat though so it made me feel good, and then I decided to go get some coffee and get a few things done.
I’m really focusing hard on finding a 2nd part time job, keep your fingers crossed for me!
In yesterday’s training recap post I noted that I had not yet decided what my training would look like for week 5 back into running. I have pretty much stuck with the same mileage for the last 4 weeks and while that has been smart I am starting to get the itch to change things up.
My body is responding well, but I don’t want to do too much too soon. I have worked too hard to get to where I am to get crazy. I’ve decided I will increase my running VERY slightly if at all. It took some “tough love” for myself to remind myself to slow down, but that’s okay. In replace I’ve decided to refocus on my strength training.
I recently received a new book and I look forward to using it as I work to improve my strength. Quick Strength For Runners by Jeff Horowitz.
Once I get through the whole book I will get you a review, but I am planning to follow the book pretty much as instructed.
The book comes with a complete strength training routine for 8 weeks and it’s goal is to help strengthen your body (of course) and to help you become faster and injury free. Sign me up!
The only small change that I will be making is that the book itself is divided up into 2 workouts per week; however, I will be splitting each workout in half so I will actually be strength training 4 days during the week (that is about 5 exercises per day).
I love finding new books simply because it’s always a chance to learn more and increase my knowledge on being a stronger and better runner!
Also, the winner of the EnduroPacks giveaway is Melisse!
Congrats! I will be emailing your shortly to get your information so we can get your your month pack on it’s way!
If you didn’t win don’t worry, I have something else pretty special coming up this week!
Do you strength train regularly?
Do you like to go into the gym with a plan each day?
Yes! Strength training is so important not only for athletes trying to avoid injury or get strong but just for living a long healthy life! I definitely always have a plan, if I don’t I would find myself wandering the gym! (I also have a coach that tells me what I should do so that helps!)
It really is SO SO important! It is so easy to overlook and skip but it is something that should be at the forefront of your workouts! I would LOVE a coach! Enjoy!!
I love having a plan and structure, if I didn’t I’d end up skipping it since I’m not the biggest fan of strength training. Knowing exactly what to do and when keeps me on track so I do actually keep it up and stay injury free!
I am the same way! My husband makes fun of me because I always have a plan but I do it so I make sure I get all necessary parts of my workouts in. Strength training and stretching are the two easiest things for me to skip.
I do very little other than running … which is something I DO NNOT advise to anyone! Full body workouts are really the best – seek balance and so on. I try to do some bodyweight stuff but it ends up being about once a week honestly 🙂
Glad you are keeping yourself in control, the desire to push must be hard to resist!
As for yesterday, definitely a ‘keeping it real’ post – not anything most of your readers didn’t know based on other things you’ve been saying, but I think sometimes really saying “this is me” is important.
I know that feeling – I used to only run. Now some days I have to force myself to do it but I can already see great improvements!
Sometimes I just write those posts simply to get it out and it’s very therapeutic for me!
I think writing ‘real’ stuff is very important … in my post about the retouching video and ‘unreality’ impacting body image, one comment I got was about the unreality of many blogs – only good workouts, only great meals, and so on. Which actually worked with a post about running I’d done and a ‘reality check’ on I am working on – because it is NOT all wonderful, we are real people with real lives that sometimes suck and real relationships with other real people who we love but who sometimes tick us off … that is just life! 🙂
Completely agree. I had to have a reality check with myself because in some ways I was coming along as this super happy, making it work kinda person but in “Real life” I was really struggling. I really enjoy when people write about the reality of some things because it makes you feel like you are not alone and that your thoughts and struggles are OK, which they are.
I never judge anyone even in the blogging world because none of us are perfect and you only see PART of their life. I try to be as open as I can, but there are some things in my life I’ll never share and that’s how it should be. I think we all just need to be more supportive of each other in general 🙂 In blogging and real world.