My husband went to Las Vegas and all he brought home for us was a cold virus. That’s right. My husband was on a business trip to the city of sin and returned with the worst cold ever and promptly shared it with every member of the family. I got hit hard and the entire week was a struggle. Having two kids and a puppy is not conducive to resting but somehow I made it though, after all, I did vow to stay in sickness and in health but I was honestly thinking more about the death parting us, for the majority of last week. Let’s discuss…

WEEK OF APRIL 17, 2017

RUNNING

I was so excited to get out and run in the spring temps but it was not to be. I could barely make it out of bed for a few days and so I just looked longingly out the window and let the wave of self pity wash over me. It was horrible. In total, I lost three full days of training and the fourth day was nothing stellar. This is why I’m grateful to be healthy every single day and try to never take it for granted.

I did get a lot of snuggles in with the pup which is always a great way to spend the day…

My shirt says “I literally cannot” and it has never been so accurate.

I managed only two runs off the bike for the week. Whomp whomp…

Friday – 20 minutes after 15Β mile ride | 2.8 miles

Saturday – 20 minutes after 40Β mile ride | 2.6 miles

Total = 5.4 sad miles

CYCLING

I managed to drag my butt to Peabody, MA to Fit Werx on Tuesday to have my power meter installed on my bike. My coach has been wanting me to get this new gadget for about 8 months and I was finally able to do it. I’ll get more into what it does in the “gear” section but I had better see some results from this thing!

After I drove almost two hours one way, had a horrible lunch while it was being installed, and drove home, I went straight up to bed and slept for one precious hour before my kids came home.

First day back in the saddle after three long sick days.

Thursday – 21.9 miles | 1 hour and 30 minutes on the trainer

Friday – 15.8 miles on the trainer | 1 hour 7 minutes endurance

Saturday – 36.8 miles outside | 2 hours 8 minutes

Total = 74.5 milesΒ 

SWIMMING

Sadly there was no swimming last week. I couldn’t barely breathe and, that’s kind of essential in the pool but kinda optional on the run and bike so…

GEAR

Back to the power meter for the bike…in case you have no clue what I’m talking about, a power meterΒ calculates the power output of the rider and mine is crank based, meaning the crank (what the pedals are attached to) is able to calculate my power output by usingΒ opposing forces (gravity, wind resistance, inertia, rolling resistance) and combining these with velocity. I have no clue how it happens but my watch tells me everything I need to know about my output, cadence and speed and my coach tells me what zones I should be in for each. It’s kind of like a heart rate monitor for your bike.

However, unlike a heart rate monitor power meters provide instant feedback about performance and measures actual output; heart rate monitors measure the physiological effect of effort and therefore ramp up more slowly. So, when I’m doingΒ “interval” training while using myΒ power meter, it instantly sees that I’mΒ producing 300 watts, for example, so I don’t have to wait forΒ myΒ heart rate to climb to a certain point.

Plus, power meters measure the force that movesΒ myΒ bike forward multiplied by the velocity, which is the desired goal. This has two significant advantages over my heart rate monitor: 1) TheΒ heart rate monitor mayΒ remain constant over the training period, yet myΒ power output is declining, which IΒ cannot detect with a heart rate monitor; 2) IfΒ I’m not rested or not feeling reallyΒ well I may stillΒ train at myΒ normal heart rate, but it’sΒ unlikelyΒ I will be able toΒ produce myΒ normal powerβ€”a heart rate monitor will not tell my coachΒ this, but a power meter will.

We shall see what kind of training affect it has…

FUEL

I lived mostly on Sudafed, Nyquill and water for the beginning of the week and then ate a huge breakfast after my bike/run on Saturday. Food tastes so much more incredible after a cold, doesn’t it?

THINGS I LOVE

I know a lot of people are so over all the subscription boxes but I happen to love them! I was given this latest one by someone I met though freelancing and it was the first one that had clothing in it – score!

It’s called BuffBoxx and is described as the “ultimate fitness subscription boxx” on the web site.

What I loved: a personal note from the founder of BuffBoxx, the Reebok tanks that fit me perfectly, new food products I have never tried (flapJacked Mighty Muffin in two flavors) run gum, resistance bands, and a very easy way to return the shirts if they didn’t fit or I didn’t like them.

Bonus: Customers can chose a charity to receive a portion of their proceeds!

What I didn’t love: several packets of Cellucor WHEY protein. I don’t use added protein too much and, when I do I only use VEGA or Cabot. It’s simply a preference thing but now I have about four packets of protein I won’t use and I’m not sure if that’s something any one I know wants! Of course there are going to be things in any subscription box that you don’t need or want so it just comes with the territory.

Overall I thought it was a great box and, if I were to subscribe to any of them it just may be this one since I love getting new fitness clothes to try. (Regular subscription is $49.99 month but you can also get the Lite Boxx for $29.99)

THINGS I DON’T LOVE AS MUCH

I thought there was nothing worse than bringing twin boys to the doctor…until I brought one puppy to the vet. Holy hell! I love my vet (so far) however there were two little “yippy” dogs (you know the ones!) in the waiting room going insane over Star but apparently, they are not friendly so I had to try and manage to keep her away from them until one of us was called. Guess who was also at the check out? OMG! It was nuts and the women checking us out could not have been slower unless they worked in a Cuban bank.

I have been to the dog park several times now and have had zero issue but have been to the vet only twice and have had this happen both times. Any ideas for possible solutions here? I’m sympathetic to people who have dogs that don’t get along with other dogs but why is this my problem?

READING

Of course I did a ton of reading since I was sick, and luckily I was reading a book I absolutely could not put down or stop thinking about until it was finished. It’s my new book club bookΒ All The Missing Girls by Megan Miranda. It’s a mystery told backwards (yes, backwards!) and keeps you guessing until the very end. I seriously wanted to start from the last paragraph and read to the beginning, once I was finished. It was that good.

Another great read took me by surprise. It was a Sports Illustrated article sent to me by a good friend after the news broke about Aaron Hernandez, one-time Patriots super star turned murderer, was found dead in his prison cell apparently from committing suicide by hanging. She texted me “because I know you’re a Pats fan and also that you appreciate good writing…” Well, one of those is true. I’m actually a Packer fan and have started to like the Pats less and less. Anyway, the article is absolutely captivating and told prior to the suicide by Aaron’s brother Jonathan.

Let’s just say, before reading the article I thought Aaron Hernandez was nothing but a thug who made horrible decisions, thew away his talent, and possibly got away with two additional murders. I didn’t think, even a little bit, about his family or what he might mean to someone as a son or a brother. If nothing else, it’s an incredibly well told story and, by the end, you may just change your mind about Aaron Hernandez andΒ other NFL players like him.

RANDOM RANTΒ OF THE WEEK

I’mΒ not sure if you’re aware but people have lots of opinions when it comes to kids. Gasp! As I was scrolling through FB on Easter morning (in lieu of church) I saw a few posts of people “outraged” that Easter has somehow morphed into Christmas and it’s ridiculous how much kids are getting for this holiday.

My question isΒ – why do you care? If you don’t want Easter to look like Christmas at your house then that’s fineΒ but don’t tell me what it should look like in mine.

Oh and this is what itΒ looked like BTW:

Don’t worry though, there was no consumption of the dreaded Starbucks Unicorn drink!

[Tweet “Join The Rundown in sickness and #health this week! #train4life”]

How was your week?

When was the last time you were sick?

Do you celebrate big on Easter?

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