I was very clear on trying to listen to my body and slowly ease back into activity after three weeks of pretty much just Yoga and walking. I know I lost cardiovascular fitness in that time — thanks to my Garmin automatically recording my V02 MAX — but still never really felt much DOMs as I transitioned into working out more again. Thank you Yoga!
It’s very refreshing to go away and take a break, to clear your head, and just get into something else.
— Francois Nars
I know for some people an extended break from fitness would have them climbing the walls. Breaks can be a great way to get back to what you love. To become really clear on what’s important to you. You may realize that yes, you absolutely loved what your were doing and are willing to do whatever it takes to get back to it. You may have a new found appreciation for things that you took for granted. You may realize that some of the things you thought were so important maybe aren’t quite that important.
Of course you should ease back in gently, which you can read more about at this blog post here.
Getting in scheduled runs
Still no scheduled runs. I runfess I kind of like the lack of pressure to train. That might change as the weather sloooooowly gets more conducive to running.
Grade Earned: A
Recording my runs
I’m doing fairly well with this, although sometimes it may take a few days, by which time of course I’ve forgotten most of what I felt on the run.
Grade Earned: A
Dynamic Warmup
In January I slacked on this because really — it was only a mile! Of course my shoulder injuries (thankfully short lived) showed it sometimes doesn’t take much to hurt yourself. The runs are getting a little longer, so I’ve buckled down and done it. It’s easier when running from home in the Winter, I find, rather than driving somewhere to run (somehow I feel as though I need to make up for the time lost driving and just get going which is silly).
Grade Earned: A
Foam Rolling
Still rolling pretty much every morning. As always, before runs, too.
Grade Earned: A+
Nutrition
Nutrition was pretty good, but of course a bit of birthday indulgence and with more activity, more hunger.
Grade Earned: A
Cross Training
Yoga, running, strength training, walking, a little bit of indoor cycling. I think I’m good!
Grade Earned: A+
February 2021 gets . . .
. . . an A. I didn’t know how I would feel in February (other than tired, cold — that’s just a given!) and coming back from three weeks off running so I made my goals really conservative. I know that it’s better to ease back into things rather than dive right in — less likelihood of injury or a rebound illness.
January Goals:
- Continue to run 3 x week. Y. It’s slow, it’s not very far, but it is running!
- Listen to what my body is telling me. Y. Y. For the most part. As I felt better, it’s too easy to get back into doing too much. So far so good.
- Ease back into strength training. Y. I tied this to my morning Yoga. I foam roll, I do Yoga, and then I do a very short ST session. Getting it done first thing in the morning is a great way to make sure it actually gets done.
- Continue to try to eat intuitively — unless the weight starts to creep up.. Y. I knew I planned to indulge on my birthday, so I tried to eat pretty clean before that. It was actually easier when I wasn’t feeling well and most of the time just not super hungry. Better to feel good, obviously.
Which leads me to March Goals:
- Continue to lengthen out my long run. I might end February with 4 miles — hey, it is what it is — and quite frankly with the weather, that doesn’t really bother me anyway. I still don’t see much in the way of racing in my future, so it’s all about rebuilding my base.
- Do some longer ST. I will continue to the short practices in the morning, as it’s really working for me right now. Time to do a longer one at least a one day a week — on the days I don’t run.
- Balance + Core Challenge. I did a morning routine challenge in the Facebook group in February; I *think* March will be a balance + core challenge. Join us here.
- Continue to try to eat intuitively — unless the weight starts to creep up. Always a goal. Over the years I’ve gotten much better at it, but it’s always a work in progress.
Linking up with Zenaida Arroyo and Kim @ Kookyrunner
This week I am also joining up with the new Runners’ Roundup linkup.
