Life After Marathons: A Running/barre3/Coffee/Life Journal

[SarahDisney]

(1) I love the disney bounding!
(2) I found managing my water intake to be more challenging than food intake. I used to put a piece of masking tape on my water bottle and make a hash mark everytime I got up to fill it. Having the visual reminder in my face was more effective than other things I tried. A side-effect is that you will be forced to pause from work and go to the restroom more often, which I found to be better for my body but not productivity. Good luck!

Oh yeah, I definitely noticed the bathroom thing today.
I have a 32oz water bottle so I don't have to fill it super often, but maybe having a piece of tape there mocking me for only filling it up that first time would also be helpful. Since I sometimes just let it sit there half empty and just don't drink anything, maybe having a visual reminder that I'm still on my first bottle of the day will motivate me to finish and refill. Thanks for the idea!

 

[SarahDisney]

2021 Activity Tracker Week 9 - March 1st, 2021 - March 7th, 2021

Monday:

• 5.00 mile run, 1:08:32 hours, 13:43 min/mi avg pace. This was scheduled as a 4-miler but I felt good so I kept going.
• Positive Thing: Was able to keep myself calm during a potentially difficult trip to Whole Foods (I apparently cannot do my grocery shopping after work).
• Hydration: 9 cups

Tuesday:

• barre3 with Katie Livestream - 60-minute class
• Positive Thing: Acknowledged early in the day that I wasn’t going to be at my best because of a bad nights sleep and accepted it
• Hydration: 8 cups

Wednesday:

• 4.31 mile run, 54:38 minutes, 12:41 min/mi avg pace - this was my second run in the new 1080s. It was mostly good, but noticed that I was walking out of them a bit at the end (during walk breaks). Which is weird, because last time I wore them they felt small. Also felt a bit of pressure at the top of my right foot coming out of one walk break, so I may try parallel lacing (which has helped me in the past). I dunno. These shoes confuse me (although come to think of it, I put in my insoles for this run, so that could be the difference). But I do like them.
• Positive Thing: Despite being tired and wanting to go to bed early, I took a few minutes at the end of the day to “clean up” from my day (put away clothing, organize some stuff, write a positive thing, etc).
• Hydration: 9 cups

Thursday:

• 2.56 mile run, 32:45 minutes, 12:48 min/mi avg pace - did this today because of forecasted cold for Friday morning
• barre3 with Holly Livestream - 45-minute class - I registered for barre3 after my run because I felt like it. Was not super feeling up to it at the end of the day, but it ended up being exactly what I needed and I felt really successful throughout class (although my balance in warrior III was as bad as always)
• Positive Thing: Was willing to leave some problems unsolved because I knew I didn’t have the mental bandwidth to deal with them. (Editor's Note: Those problems then solved themselves on Friday and let me tell ya that was weird)
• Hydration: 10 cups

Friday:

• barre3 Online - 30-minute class
• Positive Thing: Acknowledged when I needed help and reached out to my teammate. I have plans to reach out to her again on Monday if I run into more trouble.
• Hydration: 9 cups

Saturday:

• Rest Day!
• Positive Thing: Stuck it out and stayed until the end of services at synagogue even though I wasn’t feeling 100% (tired and a little anxious) because I knew I wanted to be there for the whole thing.
• Hydration: 8 cups

Sunday:

• barre3 with Vicky Livestream - 60-minute class - had my camera on for the first time in a while and it was actually okay?
• Positive Thing: This is a tough one because today was a bad day. But ... I'm ready to put the day behind me. I'm ready for tomorrow to hopefully be a good day. And the fact that I'm trying not to dwell on the day and to just move forward is a good thing.
• Hydration: 10 cups

Total Running:
3 runs, 11.87 miles, 2:35:55 hours

Total barre3:
3 Livestream classes
1 online classes
Total time: ~ 3:15 hours

Walks:
0 walks

Active Minutes: 69 + 60 + 54 + 78 + 30 + 0 + 60= 351 minutes
Total 2021 Active Minutes: 2885/7800 (37.0%)

My goal for this week was 3 runs and at least 3 hours of barre3 and I hit that goal. I would have liked to have gotten in a walk or two but it just didn't work out. Maybe next week? Weather will be good for a lunchtime walk, I just have to find the time (I might take a walk on Tuesday and end at the eye doctor because I have to pick up my contact lenses).
Also, I'm doing pretty well on the hydration, although there were some close calls (I may have been chugging water on Saturday night). Hopefully I can keep this up.

 

[hotblooded]

That DisneyBound is fantastic and so creative!

 

[FFigawi]

Great work on noting something positive each day!

 

[evre13]

I love the Disney bound! And i bought some silicone straws for my giant cup, and they really help with water consumption.

 

[SarahDisney]

I love the Disney bound! And i bought some silicone straws for my giant cup, and they really help with water consumption.

Thanks! And good call on the straw. I mostly drink out of my water bottle (which has a straw), but for days when I'm drinking out of a cup, I should probably make an effort to grab a straw, since I know that helps me drink more.

 

[SarahDisney]

2021 Activity Tracker Week 10 - March 8th, 2021 - March 14th, 2021

Monday:

• barre3 with Kelly Livestream - 45-minute class - Woke up with a headache (I was having some sleeping issues early in the week) and didn’t think running was the right move. First time having my camera on in a Kelly class in a while and it felt right. I think whatever struggles I was having with connecting to barre3 classes are on the decline.
• Positive Thing: So, background on this, I’m doing the DisneyBound March Challenge. My plan was to post my outfits on Facebook every day, but after a few days I kinda felt like my outfits weren’t good enough, so I didn’t. Yesterday I created a new instagram account for DisneyBounding (yes, that is instagram account #3) and today I posted an outfit and I felt much better about it. So the positive thing is that I decided to take a new approach instead of giving up on sharing my disneybounds.
• Hydration: 8 cups

Tuesday:

• 4.42 mile run, 57:46 minutes, 13:04 min/mi avg pace - this run was torture. And I slept decently the night before. Sigh.
• 30 minute walk, 1.69 miles
• Positive Thing: Ate breakfast with The Muppet Show. I usually scarf down breakfast while starting my work day, but after a stressful start to the week (sleep issues Sunday night + rough day at work on Monday) I gave myself permission to check in to work late and ate breakfast in front of the TV instead of rushing straight into my work day, which I felt really made a difference in the pacing of my day.
• Hydration: 9 cups

Wednesday:

• 6.39 mile run, 1:27:21 hours, 13:40 min/mi avg pace
• Positive Thing: Made it through a presentation at work despite being super nervous (I was actually shaking at the start of the presentation).
• Hydration: 10 cups

Thursday:

• barre3 with Jenna Livestream - 60-minute class
• 34 minute walk, 1.85 miles
• Positive Thing: Forgot to write something down, but I did think of something (which I have since forgotten), which is really the point
• Hydration: 9 cups

Friday:

• 3.24 mile run, 38:03 minutes, 11:45 min/mi avg pace - did about 2.5 miles of this run without walk breaks, which was my longest continuous run in a couple of months. Yay! Gonna try to start incorporating more continuous runs into my schedule going forward. This was also my first 3+ mile Friday in a while and it felt great.
• Positive Thing: See Thursday
• Hydration: 8 cups
• Today's Disneybound Challenge theme was Disney Parks Magic and I went back and forth on outfits a bit, but landed on Mad Tea Party and pulled out my 5K medal for the picture (also this dress is way shorter than I thought it was when I first tried it on and I really need to wear it with tights or leggings because it feels very awkward when I sit):

Saturday:

• Rest Day!
• Positive Thing: I did a social! It was lightly uncomfortable and I felt like garbage afterwards but I’m glad I did it.
• Hydration: 8 cups

Sunday:

• barre3 with Vicky Livestream - 60-minute class
• Positive Thing: Was super productive after barre3 class and knocked out most of my to-do list before lunch.
• Hydration: 8+ cups (I'm at 8 so far but the night is still young)

Total Running:
3 runs, 14.05 miles, 3:03:10 hours

Total barre3:
3 Livestream classes
0 online classes
Total time: ~ 2:45 hours

Walks:
2 walks, 1:04 hours

Active Minutes: 45 + 87 + 87 + 93 + 38 + 0 + 60= 410 minutes
Total 2021 Active Minutes: 3295/7800 (42.2%)

This week was pretty good (I kinda wanted to get in a barre3 online class to take me over 3 hours for the week, but I'm fine with not), and I'm happy I got out for some walks. I'm hoping I can keep that up this week when the weather goes back to being crappy.

One comment on the positive things. You may have noticed that there were two days this week when I didn't write down a positive thing, but I still spent some time reflecting on the day and finding a positive thing. My intention in writing this down was to force myself to think of a positive thing at the end of the day - but the thinking was always the point, not the writing. Now that I feel like I'm in a good place with finding a positive thing at the end of the day, I think for the next week I'm going to take time at the end of the day to think about it but not write anything down to see if I can maintain the habit without forcing myself to write it down. So we'll see how that goes.

 

[Sleepless Knight]

Positive Thing: Ate breakfast with The Muppet Show. I usually scarf down breakfast while starting my work day, but after a stressful start to the week (sleep issues Sunday night + rough day at work on Monday) I gave myself permission to check in to work late and ate breakfast in front of the TV instead of rushing straight into my work day, which I felt really made a difference in the pacing of my day.

Sometimes the Muppets make things fall into place in a good way. In 2 days we can all enjoy their epic rendition of Danny Boy as only they can perform it.

Now that I feel like I'm in a good place with finding a positive thing at the end of the day, I think for the next week I'm going to take time at the end of the day to think about it but not write anything down to see if I can maintain the habit without forcing myself to write it down.

I like this idea. While writing things down can be very beneficial, I think being able to integrate something into your day naturally because you want to do it and not have it become some sort of checklist (not that checklists are bad) that means you have to do it is a good thing.

 

[SarahDisney]

Sometimes the Muppets make things fall into place in a good way. In 2 days we can all enjoy their epic rendition of Danny Boy as only they can perform it.

Funny enough, one of my friends posted that Danny Boy clip on Facebook today. A day early, but it's the muppets, so early is okay.

 

[SarahDisney]

2021 Activity Tracker Week 11 - March 15th, 2021 - March 21st, 2021

Monday:

• barre3 with Lauren Livestream - 45-minute class.
• 2.99 mile run, 38:41 minutes, 12:56 min/mi avg pace - It was too cold to run in the morning (felt like 10°, a big change from my last run, which was in the 50s), so I signed up for 7:45am barre3 class. But then a few hours after class I kinda felt like running so I checked the weather for after work and decided to attempt to run then. So I guess it kinda worked?
• Hydration: 8 cups

Tuesday:

• 43 minute walk, 2.28 miles - had to run an errand so I walked back and forth
• Tried to do a barre3 online video in the morning but I wasn’t in the mood, so I signed up for after work class, but then canceled it because I wasn’t feeling up to it.
• Hydration: 6 cups

Wednesday:

• 5.06 mile run, 1:05:12 hours, 12:53 min/mi avg pace - Ran through Times Square for a mental comparison to last year … yeah.
• barre3 online - 30-minute class - Kinda felt like doing a barre3 class at some point during the day, and when I found myself with a little bit of extra time and energy, I did a 30-minute video before bed
• Hydration: 9 cups

Thursday:

• barre3 with Jess Livestream - 60-minute class
• Hydration: 10 cups

Friday:

• Rest Day - had to finish packing early so morning exercise wasn't gonna happen and I didn't want to force myself to do something later in the day
• Hydration: 7 cups

Saturday:

• Rest Day - probably should have done something since I took a rest day Friday, but I wasn't feeling well most of the day so I gave myself the extra day
• Hydration: 8 cups

Sunday:

• 4.50 mile run, 59:35 minutes, 13:15 min/mi avg pace
• Hydration: 8 cups

Total Running:
3 runs, 12.55 miles, 2:43:38 hours

Total barre3:
2 Livestream classes
1 online classes
Total time: ~ 2:15 hours

Walks:
1 walk, 43 minutes

Active Minutes: 84 + 43+ 95 + 60 + 0 + 0 + 60= 342 minutes
Total 2021 Active Minutes: 3637/7800 (46.6%)

Two days of not great hydration. One was just a lot of bad timing and me not remembering to drink. The other one was the day I came home and that always throws my schedule off (hence my taking it as a rest day).

An update on positive things. Mostly I took the time at the end of the day to think of a positive thing, which was good. There were (I think) 2 days when I didn't, but I realized that the next day and took the time to acknowledge it, so that's a good thing. Still work to do, but I'm getting there.

 

[SarahDisney]

2021 Activity Tracker Week 12 - March 22nd, 2021 - March 28th, 2021

Monday:

• 3.35 mile run, 43:05 minutes, 12:50 min/mi avg pace
• Hydration: 9 cups

Tuesday:

• barre3 with Jenna Livestream - 60-minute class
• Hydration: 9 cups

Wednesday:

• 3.30 mile run, 44:00 minutes, 13:20 min/mi avg pace
• Hydration: 8 cups

Thursday:

• Rest Day - unplanned but actually much needed
• Hydration: 5 cups

Friday:

• barre3 with Katie Livestream - 60-minute class
• Hydration: ??? cups

Saturday:

• Rest Day
• Hydration: ??? cups

Sunday:

• Rest Day
• Hydration: ??? cups

Total Running:
2 runs, 6.65 miles, 1:27:05 hours

Total barre3:
2 Livestream classes
0 online classes
Total time: ~ 2:00 hours

Walks:
0 walks

Active Minutes: 43+ 60+ 44 + 0 + 60 + 0 + 0= 207 minutes
Total 2021 Active Minutes: 3844/7800 (49.3%)

This week was off for a lot of reasons, but that's okay. Not every week will be perfect. This week I had other priorities, so fitness went by the wayside. I just finished reading Alexi Pappas's book Bravey and while I didn't particularly relate to it, one of the things she talks about is health vs fitness, and I very much appreciated the distinction that your fitness at a given point is not necessarily reflective of your overall health. Last week felt like that.

Also, tomorrow's barre3 reservation has already been cancelled since I assume I'll still be frantically searching for my Fauci Ouchie. But I'm just really relieved that I'm finally eligible so I'll be okay with all the chaos that happens until I get the shot.

 

[SarahDisney]

New life lesson: "She who hesitates is unvaccinated"
Seriously, y'all, I lost two perfectly good appointments by hesitating (plus one by checking the wrong box and stupid CVS doesn't let me go back and uncheck that box).

I do have an appointment (yay!!), but it's a ways away so I'm trying to get an earlier one.
But mostly I'm just grateful that there is a vaccine, I'm eligible to get it, and I was able to get an appointment (even if its not the appointment I wanted)

 

[garneska]

I scheduled my appointment far out, it was convenient though. Wish I had not done that and taken a first available (would have first shot by now) but am glad I have an appointment next week.

 

[SarahDisney]

I scheduled my appointment far out, it was convenient though. Wish I had not done that and taken a first available (would have first shot by now) but am glad I have an appointment next week.

I ended up getting an appointment for sooner (but at a less convenient location), which is good. But I was really okay with my far away appointment - any appointment is better than nothing.

 

[garneska]

I ended up getting an appointment for sooner (but at a less convenient location), which is good. But I was really okay with my far away appointment - any appointment is better than nothing.

Agreed!

 

[SarahDisney]

2021 Activity Tracker Week 12 - March 29th, 2021 - April 4th, 2021

I'm a little tired (and not even nearly done unpacking) and this was a low activity week, so this is gonna be a pretty minimal update.
Will post about the April goal later, but the tl;dr is that it's all about not sitting on my butt in my house/apartment all month like I did in February and May.

Monday:

• Rest Day
• Hydration: 6 cups

Tuesday:

• barre3 online - 15-minute class - This was a restorative class and really didn’t feel like what I needed in the moment, but I also don’t know that I could have tolerated anything else (I started not feeling great in the middle) so ultimately I’m just glad I did something, even if I didn’t really connect with it. I kinda wish I had done something when I had more energy, but the vaccine scheduling process was super stressful and I kinda needed the break
• Hydration: 8 cups

Wednesday:

• 2..26 mile run, 30:01 minutes, 13:17 min/mi avg pace - this was a Nike guided run – really liked this one. The coach asked a question every two minutes about how you’re doing/your day/setting you up for success, which was nice.
• Hydration: 7 cups

Thursday:

• barre 3 with Kelly Livestream - 60-minute class
• Hydration: 9 cups (the vaccine person said drink lots of water so I drank water)
• Outside Time: Ish? Out of the house but not really outdoors.

Friday:

• Rest day - it was too cold to run. Not doing anything else was more delaying and laziness than anything else.
• Hydration: ??? cups
• Outside Time: Yes!

Saturday:

• Rest Day
• Hydration: ??? cups
• Outside Time: Yes!

Sunday:

• Rest Day
• Hydration: ??? cups
• Outside Time: Yes!

Total Running:
1 runs, 2.26 miles, 0:30:01 hours

Total barre3:
1 Livestream classes
1 online classes
Total time: ~ 1:15 hours

Walks:
0 walks

Active Minutes: 0+ 15+ 30 + 60 + 0 + 0 + 0= 105 minutes
Total 2021 Active Minutes: 3949/7800 (50.6%)

"Outside time" is my April goal, trying to get myself to do things that are not just sitting around doing nothing. I'm trying to decide if it needs to be actually outdoors or just not in the house/apartment. It doesn’t have to be a special trip (for example, a lot of this week was going to/from synagogue for services), just something that I’m doing that’s not just sitting around the house/apartment.

Also ... my barre studio is reopening on Saturday! It's exciting, but I'm gonna wait until I'm fully vaccinated to go back (also I may need a new INKnBURN mask), which is still a ways away. But they're changing up the livestream schedule to accommodate the in-studio schedule so my carefully planned weekly exercise schedule that I have never actually stuck to is gonna have to change to deal with that, since I don't want to get up for 7am livestream every day.

 

[garneska]

i feel you on the going back to in studio. My yoga studio opened but I won't go inside till i am fully vaccinated. My yoga instructor has been doing yoga in the park and i do that because, outside and socially distant. I did get my fist shot of Pfizer today so I might get back on track with yoga next month.

 

[SarahDisney]

i feel you on the going back to in studio. My yoga studio opened but I won't go inside till i am fully vaccinated. My yoga instructor has been doing yoga in the park and i do that because, outside and socially distant. I did get my fist shot of Pfizer today so I might get back on track with yoga next month.

Yay vaccine! I hope you're feeling good and haven't had any major side effects.
And same with the outdoors - I did outdoor classes with my barre studio in the fall (and if they did outside again I'd probably join), but I'm not ready for inside yet.

 

[SarahDisney]

2021 Activity Tracker Week 13 - April 5th, 2021 - April 11th, 2021

Monday:

• barre3 with Kelly Livestream - 45-minute class
• Outside Time:

Tuesday:

• 2.07 miles, 26:50 minutes, 12:58 min/mi avg pace - This was somewhat a naked run, since my GPS was being misbehavey. I mapped out the distance later.
• 23 minute walk, 1.17 miles
• Outside Time: Yes! Twice! It was too nice outside to not go for a walk.

Wednesday:

• 3.55 mile run, 46:41 minutes, 13:08 min/mi avg pace
• barre3 Online Class - 15-minute class - did a restorative class instead of stretching post-run
• Outside Time: Yep

Thursday:

• barre 3 with Kelly Livestream - 60-minute class
• 27 minute walk, 1.44 miles
• Outside Time: Yes! Went to Krispy Kreme to get my first vaccine donut.

Friday:

• I was originally planning to run, but I woke up super groggy and not feeling great, so I decided to stay in bed for a bit.
• 14 minute walk, 0.75 miles
• Outside Time: Yes!

Saturday:

• Rest Day
• 2 walks - total time 1:12 hours, 3.66 miles
• Outside Time: Yes!

Sunday:

• barre3 with Vicky Livestream - 60-minute class - class time was moved up half an hour to accommodate the in-studio classes so I'm still figuring out my morning schedule
• Outside Time: Nope

Total Running:
2 runs, 5.62 miles, 1:13:31 hours

Total barre3:
3 Livestream classes
1 online classes
Total time: ~ 3:00 hours

Walks:
5 walks, 2:16 hours

Active Minutes: 45+ 50+ 61 + 87 + 14 + 72 + 60= 389 minutes
Total 2021 Active Minutes: 4338/7800 (55.6%)

I've been better about going for walks but bad about getting out of the house on bad weather day. So there's that. But overall, this was a very active week. Too active? Gotta rethink all my scheduling, especially with barre3 schedule moving around a bit. I may start doing morning walks and afternoon class. We'll see what works out.

 

[SarahDisney]

Quick Thought on My April Goal​

So, just to wrap up March: My goal for March was 8 cups of water per day. I did okay most days. I found that I do better with a larger water bottle (I have a 32oz but was using a 16oz for a few weeks), so that was an interesting insight. And I do feel better when I drink water (case in point: today I'm a little low on the water and I feel crappy), so I want to keep this up. I'm still trying to track it in Garmin.

So, on to April. I noticed that between winter and WFH and my travelling and then quarantine, I really wasn't getting out of my apartment much. The quarantine really made it worse because I went from quarantine straight to my parents' house (where I tend to leave the house less often because I'm running errands less often). I knew I needed to focus on outsiding a bit more, but wasn't really sure how to do it.

I decided to make it my April goal, but that alone didn't feel like enough. What constitutes outside time? How much do I need? I had originally thought 15 minutes outdoors, but then realized that some days that's just not gonna happen. So the goal is now at least 10 minutes out of my apartment building/house every day. Some days that will be a 30 minute walk. Other days its a trip to the UPS store. Both are good. As long as I'm not just sitting around at home, I'm reaching the goal.

Speaking of leaving the house ... is it weird that I'm not sure how I feel about things going "back to normal" (whatever that means)? I don't know if it's some sort of lingering trauma or just the fact that the good ole days weren't always good, but I'm a little afraid of normal. But also I want to go back to barre class and back to the office and back to baseball games.
I dunno, I think I'm just being weird. Also, I have a lot of post-vaccine regrets (not about getting it, about my specific vaccine experience) and anxiety and I'm just kinda stressed about a lot of things.