2016 favorite activewear/ Lululemon

These were my favorite pieces of the year—the things that I wore over and over and brought me JOY to wear. And I want more of that—clothes that I'm happy to put on in the morning, that are comfortable and make me feel like a million bucks. (And less cheap pieces that make me feel lumpy.) *Most of these aren't available anymore, so I'll link if it still is.

Fitting room. Insta love.

Business class on a plane. 

At the office trying to stay warm

1. Lululemon Down for a Run Vest
My absolute favorite piece of activewear for 2016 was my Down for a Run Vest. Because the Lulu educator old me to, I tried the inkwell vest on and LOVED it. I had no intention of buying it. But it was warm, functional and really well cut. It made me look skinny. But I did not want to pay $138 for it. So I left the store without it, only to go back a few days later and buy it. I had to have it. And I don't regret the purchase at all. I've lived in the vest since I bought it. I wear it every weekend. To work when I can get away with it. It's a great piece of clothing. It's not bulky like other vests. And it has all sorts of pockets, to stash my keys so I don't need to carry a purse. It's GREAT for traveling because it has so many pockets. This was a lifesaver for me. I bought another vest in purple, and I'd buy more if I could find more

Work clothes
This year I tried to wear Lululemon to work as much as I could and I got some great pieces

2. &Go Where-To Dress
I have this dress in black and blue. It is SO COMFORTABLE. I always get compliments when I wear the black one. It's a T-shirt dress I wear to work. When it's cooler I wear it with black tights and a black sweater. I have a boyish figure—no curves, so this style works for me. It's probably not for everyone. The blue one isn't as dressy, so I wear it on weekends.

3. &GO Til Dawn dress
Again I have this in black and a blue print. It's a fit and flare dress which looks AMAZING ON ME. I always gets compliments when I wear it. It's looks so chic. Super dressy for work. I wear the black one with a black blazer. I wear the printed one with a navy blazer and look like a boss. These dresses are well made, they have pockets, and are super comfy. In the summer, I wear these dresses once a week, since I love them so much.

4. City Trek Trouser Ponte
These are trouser pants made of a stretchy material. They're soft and comfortable and completely great for work. My one gripe is they run a little big. The 6 I have stretched out. So I got a pair of 4's in the blue. I wear these to work all the time.

After a race. Too tired to straighten my leg.

5. Lululemon Pace Rival Crop in Hounds Camo Emperor Blue Black
These have been my go-to Saturday running crop. I like the way they feel. They have plenty of pockets. They don't REALLY show sweat. They're just comfortable and I like the colors. I wear black, navy or purple tanks with this. They're also longer than my other crops, which is nice for when it's colder since I don't like to wear tights. Always crops.

I should say the first time I tried the Pace Rival crop on, I tried it on in black and found them sheer. I'd really like another pair of dark Pace Rivals.

6. Sweaty Betty Navasana Reversible 3/4 Yoga Leggings in SunsetInRio Print
I bought these reversible crops for my birthday. I love the colors. I wear these to yoga all the time.

Warehouse sale favorites
I LOVED the Lululemon warehouse sale in Atlanta. It was cool to see so much lulu in one place. The stores are so small. And I spent way too much but got some of my favorite pieces of the year there.

7. Lululemon Race to Place Hat
I picked this blue hat up because it was $4. (I bought a bunch for gifts.) I ended up wearing this hat at least once a week. (I have SO many selfies in this hat!) I hadn't been a hat person until this hat, but I wanted a hat for trail runs (so I don't have to worry about ticks or spiders falling into my hair.) I ended up wearing it on almost all my runs because it keeps sweat from getting in my eyes. It's great for the pool too.  Or just hiding a bad or dirty hair day on a grocery store run. I've since purchased more colors and become a hat person (also great because no one recognizes me when I'm shopping. An introvert's dream! Not having to talk to people I don't want to!)

8. Lululemon Mantra tote bag.
This has become my every day bag.

9. Lululemon Palm Stripe Roll Down Wunder Under Crops
$29. And I wear these once a week to yoga. They're cottony soft and I just like the way they feel.

I took this picture because I had a NEW car
and dirty trail shoes. Haha.

10. Balega run socks.
My favorite socks this year were a pair of Balega Hidden Contour run socks. Can I have five more pair? These are comfortable and have just the right amount of padding and support. They held up well in the wash and I always reached for these when they were clean.

Honorable mention: Athleta longsleeve
Super soft and warm, and I'd buy more if I could find more.


It's probably too early to tell, but I'm loving some recent purchases too

• Lululemon Fast Track Pant
It's sweatpants  that don't look frumpy. They're super comfortable and I've been living in them. GREAT for running errands. I think they are going to be my new weekend pants.

• Sit in Lotus Sweater
Super soft and something that works for work and weekends.

Family road trip. 

• Restless 1/4 zip pullover.
I got this in a  fair isle print in get and have been wear it every weekend.

2017 fitness goals

Time to set fitness goals for 2017.

#1 Stay Healthy. Do what I love while avoiding injury as best I can.

Classes to try
1.  Try an Orange Theory class
2. Try a Fuel yoga class.
3. Try more classes at Ramsey
4. Maybe try swimming (not necessarily a class
5. Take a yoga workshop on something, like hand balancing or inversions.

Running goals.
1. Run a 10k or half the Chick Fil-A half marathon.
2. Still would like to run a 5k under 23 minutes.
3. Look into group work or morning speed work.
More 5ks? Can I run on the road?

Tumbling goals.
7. Connect fly springs. Getting there. Better than last year, but not quite.
8. Walk overs. Not there yet. Oh well.
9. Touch my feet to my head. Stopped working on this.
10. 10 second handstand. Maybe? Definitely can do 7 seconds.
11. Practice handstands at home. (Daily?) Haha. Didn't do this.

General goals
12. Conquer the Ninja course at Rush. I got to the third ring or so. And then they got a whole new ninja course.
13. Try another flying trapeze place. Bonus: Get my cutaway! Tried trapeze at two new rigs!
14. Get a body composition test done. 
15. Stay on budget with fitness clothes. (Spend less money at Lululemon).

2016 fitness goal REVIEWED

How did I do with my fitness goals. I couldn't remember what they were. So that's not a good start.

Looks like I accomplished 5 of my goals. I made progress. And my goals changed over the year.


Classes to try. (3/4 accomplished)
1. Try a class at Blast.  (Interval training with treadmills) I lost interest in this A LONG TIME AGO.
2. Take a yoga class. DONE. Took tons of yoga classes. Hooray.
3. Try a barre class at Ramsey. DONE. Took a few of these. Didn't like the teacher. Found classes I liked better.
4. Try a SUP yoga class.  DONE

Running goals. (1/2 accomplished)
5. Run a 5k. DONE. Ran a trail 5K in August.
6. 7 minute mile. I stopped doing speed work in the fall. Didn't get any faster this year :(

Tumbling goals. (Progress made.)
7. Connect fly springs. Getting there. Better than last year, but not quite.
8. Walk overs. Not there yet. Oh well.
9. Touch my feet to my head. Stopped working on this.
10. 10 second handstand. Maybe? Definitely can do 7 seconds.
11. Practice handstands at home. (Daily?) Haha. Didn't do this.

General goals
12. Conquer the Ninja course at Rush. I got to the third ring or so. And then they got a whole new ninja course.
13. Try another flying trapeze place. Bonus: Get my cutaway! Tried trapeze at two new rigs!
14. Get a body composition test done. Never had time.
15. Stay on budget with fitness clothes. (Spend less money at Lululemon). Haha. Not spending money on barre really helped me not spend as much money in general. So if I take cheaper classes I can buy more lulu.
16. Active wear brands to try: Goldsheep, Alala, Sweaty Betty, Heroine Sport, Michi, Koral Activewear, Albion Fit. Tried Sweaty Betty to mixed results.

Workouts this week: Nov. 27

What I did this week.

Nov. 27: 5 mile trail run. It was 59 degrees and a little colder than I'd like. I wore my favorite purple came Lulu crops and a grey long sleeve. My plan was to run 4 miles, but I was feeling okay and the name of my Lulu shirt was the 5-mile long sleeve so I took that as a sign to run 5 miles. So I did. I got warm enough around mile 3 to shed the long sleeve and run in a tank. I saw a coworker taking pictures out on the trail during my third mile. Sadly, no action shots from him.

Nov. 28: BodyPump strength workout

Nov. 29: Yoga

Nov. 30: Gymnastics

Dec. 1: Off. (I skipped a run this week. I just wasn't feeling it)

Dec. 2: Yoga class

Dec. 3: Fried food plus running do not mix.

I went to lunch with my family and I was so excited about fish tacos and french fries.

I went to run this off a few hours later and it was an absolutely awful run. I had two things going against me.

First: the cold.
I have asthma. And cold weather triggers it (constricts the vessels in my lungs so I get less air in.) I take my inhaler before I run, but I never run well in the cold. (I'm also super cold natured and just plain hate the cold. (Anything lower than 70 is cold, lower than 60 is freezing, lower than 50 is arctic). Running in the 70s (or 80s without humidity) is fine for me. 60s is okay. Anything lower than 60 and I struggle. For this run, it was supposed to be about 58. It was 55. I wore crops and a long sleeve running shirt and a hat. I never warmed up enough to shed the long sleeve shirt like a did last week. And my breathing was more labored than usual. I hate running in the cold.

I was absolutely freezing when I finished the run. I just wanted soup and a hot bath. Matt on the other hand thrives on running in cold weather and was burning up hot after the run. He runs better in the cold. And he was faster than me. Which is fine.

Two: fried food
I seldom eat fried food. I probably have french fries once a month (or less). I had two fried fish tacos for lunch and french fries. It was awesome. Unfortunately, the tacos stayed near my collar bone for the entire run. I didn't know if it was heart burn or I was going to barf, but I was miserable. I was making the worst faces during the run. Fried food (especially when you seldom eat it) does not mix with running.

I ran. And that's what matters. Matt came along and was faster than me on this run. He can have the edge because he loves cold weather running and he didn't have fried food for lunch. He was a few seconds faster than me. Maybe he had a minute or me towards the end. I let him lead since I usually rabbit the first mile and he's usually pretty consistent. He ran a 7:37 first mile (or that's what I ran. He ran a 7:26) and then probably low 8's. I ran my usual times (despite wanting to barf the entire time) and always slower on the miles climbing hills. I ran almost 5 miles. My watch said I ran 4.65, but I did the exact same route last week and it said 4.75.

Workouts this week: Thanksgiving edition

Nov. 20
Off. Was tired

Nov. 21
Ran at the indoor track. I've been putting off speed work, because I hate it. And the indoor track is 8 laps to a mile, which is so boring
Mile 1: 7:40
Mile 2: 15:29
Mile 3: 23:05
I think I did 3.5 miles in 27:22, and then I ran a few 100m and 200m sprints for a cool down. Until I had nothing left.


Note: this is on a flat climate controlled track, so my times are different than on trails.

Also my apple watch is too stupid to know this. It's usually about 200 meters behind. So my Apple Watch likes to buzz me that I'm finished another mile, when I've finished lap nine and am on the back stretch of lap 10. It's kind of annoying. It makes me wonder if I'm THAT much faster on trails too.

Nov. 22
There are no classes at the student gym because the students are off, so I tried a free faculty and staff pilates class. I've been meaning to try this class for more than a month but could never make it. It's been so busy I often can't take lunch. I've brought clothes and meant to go many times, but just haven't. I made it a priority to go this day.

The class was maybe nine women. A few my age and a few older. It was a lot of ab work. No arms or legs. Just core work. Which everyone needs. It wasn't sweaty. I'd go again. I wanted to go the next day, but got busy with something at work.

Nov. 23
5.5 mile run. The weather was perfect and gorgeous. I felt strong and ran 5.5 miles and took this awesome picture.
THIS is why I run trails. It's just so pretty.

Nov. 24: THANKSGIVING
That morning I did 45 minutes on the exercise bike, with some arms thrown in while I ran. I made it a circuit and would do some abs every 8 or so minutes.

Lunch with my family.
Then I ran around the trails with my nieces. I hadn't planned on that, hence why I was in jeans and soft leather moccasins (which aren't that bad to run in.) I was giving my niece a piggyback ride and kept worry about my jeans slipping down. I wasn't wearing a belt. And I kept racing with my 6-year-old niece. This wore me out.

Nov. 25 Black Friday.
I hadn't planned on taking the day off, but I did. I went shopping in the morning and was lazy for the rest of the day.

Nov. 26
I should have run today, but can't run at my favorite place—because it's off limits due to football parking. I didn't want to run at botanical garden, so I did a mix of circuit training and exercise bike. I have this system where I ride the stationary bike (on fat burner mode) and do arm weights. Every mile I pause the bike and do 60 seconds of abs/arms. 10 pushups. And then so crunches, reverse crunches, toe touches and 10 V ups. When my arms are done, my 60 seconds was kettle bell swings, lunges and pull-ups. (5 with a band)

For bike arms, I do curls, triceps extensions,and a lot of the arms I've learned from barre and TRX—whatever I can remember.

It's a workout of my own invention. I like it.

SUP yoga

The class

My new adventure of the month was SUP Yoga

I've wanted to try it for almost a year now and finally got around to it.

I did the trip through the university—a student and a yoga instructor led the trip. We met at the university and rode in a van to the lake. There we took the paddle boards off and attached the fins. We put them out of the lake and were off.

paddling out

The only instruction was how to turn (right and paddle backwards.)

I was a little nervous about this. I've paddle boarded once in my life before for a few minutes. I've kayaked once (and hated it). I am horrible about steering. I get dyslexic and turn the wrong way or do the wrong thing

The instructor said the paddle boards were like floating sidewalks and were really hard to flip. She was right. They were really heavy and floated well.

We paddled out on the lake. The instructors were in the very back of the group so we waiting for them to catch up. Then went to the back of the lake for some yoga. I honestly spent half of the class righting  my board to be near the group without drifting too far or not going into the woody bank. I got into the woody bank once and a spider fell on my board and then ran into the handhold. OMG. I freaked out and disrupted the class's zen. Oh well.

Warrior #2 on the lake

Then we went to the other side of the back of the lake for more yoga. And I didn't do half the poses because I was maneuvering the kayak. I don't know how some of the girls stayed still. At some point I figured when the water was shallow enough, I could anchor the paddle in the mud and keep it in my hand to minimize drift. And that seemed to work better than drifting into the bank.

Bridge pose. I'm in the middle.

Bridge pose or wheel pose in yoga.
I've worked so hard on getting my shoulders open. Wearing Workshop Orchid. 

We did more advanced yoga here. Headstands. Which I really wasn't feeling that brave. I finally did one after about 10 minutes of watching others try, but I was feeling more timid than I usually am. We did backbends and wheel pose.  After a savassanah, we headed back. My arms started to feel like they were burning and I wished I'd had a long sleeve shirt.

I am SOOOO pale. 

We ate lunch on the dock. We watched a group of people stack their kayaks on top of each other. We even saw some inflatable paddle boards. (That seems unsafe!)

Then it was either go back out or go home. I was firmly in the go home camp. I was about to burn. I needed to get home. So we loaded up the paddle boards (And that took forever) and were back at the university at 4 p.m., the time we were supposed to be.

All in all, it was a fun trip. Paddle boarding isn't hard. And it was really peaceful out on the water. We saw a heron, turtles, a baby frog.

After:

The day after the paddle board trip I woke up with a rash on my back. It looked like scratches or lines. It didn't itch. It's probably a heat rash

I know it's because I didn't shower after the trip. (I didn't get in the water.) I did get some splash water on my back and that's all. I was dry when I got home and did a few things before I took a shower. I did wipe off my face and side of my shoulder blades (since I have sensitive skin) so there's not a rash there. Always shower after you get out of the lake! Especially if you have sensitive skin and are allergic to everything.

Overall, it was a fun trip. I'm glad I tried it. I might rent a board again. We'll see.

(What I wore: Werkshop Orchid crop. Made of triathlon fabric. The website said they're their perfect for SUP yoga. I was skeptical but they were perfect! When they got wet, they weren't heavy and didn't chafe. They dried quickly. They were bone dry on the van ride home from the lake. I'd totally do a triathlon in these. Totally made in the right choice in wearing these.)

First 5k: Primal Rush Trail 5K at Crow's Lake

Start line. I'm in the tank next to the guy in neon. 

I'd like to call this my first 5k.

I haven't run since 2001 when I did a 5k my senior year of high school after cross country season before track season. That is the last 5k I ran. So I have run 5ks, but not as adult.

So today was my first-ish 5k.

I picked it because it was a trail 5k (I don't run on roads) and it's about time I run a 5k. I run. Everyone asks if I run races. But I don't. So I decided to run one. (I guess I just don't see the point of paying to run when you can run for free.) It was near our town. And it was a fundraiser for the organization my husband did his eagle scout project. Also only $20 with T-shirt, so cheap for a 5k.  My husband and I both signed up.

I googled what to do before a race probably 20 times this week. I ate really clean all week. I had my clothes laid out by Wednesday. On Thursday I ran a mile at race pace but generally took the day off (I was tired). On Friday I didn't eat the donuts in the break room, went to yoga after work and packed my bag for the race.

I've been able to run 3.1 miles since February of 2015, so it was probably time to do the race.

I got up good and early the morning of.
• I was ready to go at 7:15 a.m. and Matt was still in the bed.
• We left at 7:33. Matt grumbled that the garage door took 6x to try and close.
• He didn't like the Starbucks drink I got him so we had to stop at a gas station.
• Matt thinks the race starts at 9:30 a.m. It starts at 9 a.m. and we're supposed to be there at 8 a.m. Matt rants about the traffic backup there will likely be.
• At 7:50 a.m. Matt realizes he forgot his watch at home.
• At 8:15 we get there. No traffic backup, traffic is fine. They have our registrations. We walk around stretch. (My size small shirt is way too big!)
• At 8:45 a.m. we line up at the starting line. My heart is racing I try to calm down. (There's a cross country coach who tells her competing team that it's really 3.3 miles. This is an excellent bit of information.)
• 9 a.m. race starts.

I start at the front of the pack. I know there are a ton of slow runners and I'd rather not work my way up through. I start out at 7:30 mile pace. I'm the only woman out front. There's a hill. It slows me down. It's huge and muddy. And there aren't downhills to match the uphills. It's uphills both ways. It's .5 miles in and THIS IS A TOUGH COURSE. It's not flat in the least.

Also, the course is marked—but nowhere does it say .5 miles, 1 mile, 1.5 mile etc. That would have been helpful.

My first mile is 7:56—and perfect considering I was shooting for 8 minute miles. It felt much slower with all of the hills (including a big steep one).

Mile 2. Already I'm dying. I'm slightly dizzy and wondering about not finishing the race. I want to puke. A few high school girls have passed me. No one my age though.

Mile 3. More uphills. I roll my ankle in the trail. I halfway roll it anyway. My ankle goes one way, my body goes 45 degrees to the right. It's a very Gumby like move. My ankles are super strong though, so I'm fine. (I'm wondering if I really roll it, if I can stop running!) I actually start to walk at this point. I see Matt behind me and I really want him to catch me so we can run together. I need the support. He doesn't. I walk again. It's so hot and humid. 83 degrees, humidity probably 93%. This is the worst run I've had in months. (Part of it is mental. I am tougher than this.) I put my watch on distance mode to see how much I have left. It cycles and cycles and can never figure it out so I'm running clueless. There's no one in front of me. I think I took a wrong turn and am running some different part of the course. I see a water stand and figure I'm in the right place.

Finally, my watch chimes that I've travelled 3 miles (which means I've traveled more than 3. It underestimates me by about  10% consistently). The end is no where is sight. I see a building, but it's a false hope. It's still not the end. I run. My legs are lead. When can I walk? I finally see the end. The clock is almost at 30:00.

This is officially the slowest 5k I've run in my life. I try desperately to beat 30, but don't have enough left in my legs. (I shouldn't have walked or waited for Matt). I finish in 30.06.

I shut off my watch without looking at it. I don't want to know.

Then, immediately go to the bathroom. I have to pee.

Matt finishes a minute after me. I grab water and a banana. And generally walk around like I'm lost. I fill in my race card.

They start handing out award for earlier races a 20k and a 10k. I go to congratulate a friend of Matt's family who I work with. She did the 10k.  (The 10k started at 8 a.m. and that would have been a better time to run.)

I start to think that I won my age group (despite running the worst race ever). Only the high school girls passed me and that's something! Matt tells me they placed my race card with the men (because I'm a beast. I definitely put it in the women's bin). And for a while I think that I won my age group only because there was no one else. There was—40 places behind me.

We wait around in our sweaty clothes. We watch the leader board carefully.

So I win my age group. And that was my goal for the day.

I get my medal. Matt also wins his age group and gets a medal.

I finished 20th overall. I'm 5th for the women. 4 cross country team members in front of me. In fact, if that cross country team hadn't have run I would have finished 8th overall with only men in front of me. (The cross country runners should have their own division! I did finish in front of more than half of their girls).

We take pictures with our medals. And go to Matt's parents for brunch. I AM STARVING.

And it's Matt's first running medal :) Which is cute. So he's happy we picked a relatively uncompetitive 5k. (The Chilly Dawg that he ran last January had like 500 runners with plenty of women running 18-20 minute 5ks. He said that course was FLAT compared to this beast.)

And when I finally get brave enough to check my splits—And notice that my watch says 3.53 miles for my run.

Splits:
Mile 1: 7:56
Mile: 2: 8:23 (Which is actually decent pace)
Mile 3: Too slow. But under 10.
Mile 4: Not accurate since I stood around at the finish line deliriously

I know the coach had said the race was 3.3 but they apparently added some switch backs to the course this time (Matt noticed a sign changed) and added some length. Everyone Matt talked to said their GPS read 3.5. Even our friend that ran the 10k said the course was not 6.2.

I actually ran my 3 miles in 25:56 according to my apple watch (Which underestimates my speed. It says I run slower than I actually do. I can't get it to calibrate correctly.)  So maybe 30 minutes isn't bad for a hilly 3.5? I guess it's not bad for a first race.

And I'm okay with my time.

Until....

Then that evening I get the race email. And it tells me my SLOW AS HECK RACE PACE and links to the timing and race results. Which I'm honestly embarrassed by. But it wasn't a 5k. It was 3.5 miles or 5.5k. So I din't actually run that slow. I wish I could correct it. I delete the email so no one thinks I'm slow.

Review of Crow's Lake 5K course
If anyone is thinking of running the 5k course at Crow's lake—it is difficult. There's a big hill in the first mile. And lot of little hills in it. Expect to run a good minute slower per mile than your road pace. This course is about 3x harder than the Intramural fields at UGA and almost on par with the White Trail at the State Botanical Garden. The course is hard for a cross country course and has lots of places to roll your ankle. NOT a fast course. You will not PR on this course. Part of it is in shade, but not enough to be a cooling factor like some trails.

I'm not sure I'd run this one again. We'll see. I'd say it was well organized. And I would have liked more cheering!

5k Bound

Next Saturday I run my first 5k. SINCE 2001.

That's 15.5 years since I've run a race.

But it's time. I can run 3.1 miles no problem.

I can't run it as fast as I want. I ran this morning. And it was an awful run. I kept having to walk. I know I'm stronger than that but I was dying.

I've been really tired this week. I skipped Thursday at the gym completely and went home and slept for two hours. It was what I needed. (I should have run.)

Today's run was bad because the humidity was 96%. It was awful. I wore black crops and looked like I peed myself at the end of the run, but I was just so sweaty.

I did not wet myself. Dreaded crotch sweat.
Thanks Lululemon crops :( 

Also my Lululemon top was worthless. I bought this Cool Racerback Lace. The back was lace (it was a perforated pattern, not actually lace)  and I thought it would be extra well ventilated, but it held sweat like a cotton T. It was so wet and heavy at the end of the run. Worst tank I've gotten from Lulu. Considering taking it back as defective it was that bad. Or throwing it out. Never wear that tank again!

I think that humidity was just my upper limit. I can do 93%, but today I couldn't.

Which would be 27-ish for a 5k. I'd really like to go 25 minutes or under. I can run 8 minute mile pace. On a flat surface in lower humidity.  (And my Apple Watch is really off. Especially when I run on the track. It's lags behind me A LOT so I like to hope my splits are actually a lot better.)
We'll see what happens next Saturday.

In the meantime—I made a running playlist.

I like to listen to music with a good beat when I workout. It's different than what I usually prefer. So this is my playlist. (In case there's no wifi next Saturday, I'll just download the music to my phone.)

1.Usher, Yeah!
2. Kanye West, Stronger
3. Foster and the People, Pumped Up Kicks
4. More Usher, OMG
5. P!NK, So What
6. J. Dash, Wop. (This is my newest addition. Not sure why I like it, but I do.)
7. MIA, Bad Girls
8. Nelly Furtado, Maneater

And that's the playlist. It's 31 minutes and I better be good and finished by then. Hopefully, I'll finish in a time I don't hate too much.

Wish me luck!

Ramsey Free Week Recap

It's free week at my university's student gym. That means any gym member can take any class they want for free. The only caveat is you have to get a space in the class—meaning there has to be enough space or equipment for you. Some of the classes have lines to get in. So it's always good to get there early to ensure you have spot. These classes are way busier than later on in the semester. Most of the classes are PACKED. They try not to turn people away. They try to squeeze as many people in as possible. So that might mean the late comers have to share equipment. Or for some classes they'll cut the line off. Usually if you're there 10 minutes earlier you'll be fine. It's also a tryout phase—meaning there will be lots of newbies in the class so you don't have to worry about not knowing the workout. Probably half the class won't know the workout so you won't stick out.

Day 1: TRX Yoga
I miss TRX and I liked yoga so I decided to try this class. I got there good and early and got equipment. This class had spots for 23. A few girls came in about 10 minutes late and there wasn't equipment for them.

The first half of the class was yoga. We started out with breathing and mindfulness and moved on to downward dog and other poses. So an average yoga class.

The second half of the class was TRX. It was yoga on TRX so you got a better stretch. We did Y holds and T holds. We did floor work with hamstrings, glute bridges, planks and pikes (so hard! I used to be better at these!). By the end only a few people were left. I was trying to #beastmode through it, but I couldn't do as many pikes as I used to.

Overall, I LOVED the class. It was such an amazing stretch for my shoulders. Because of the TRX you can really stretch deeper than you would when pushing against the floor. (I'm pretty flexible so this was exactly what I needed.)I felt really good leaving the class. Like I'd just had a massage or a chiropractic adjustment. I went in with an achey back and left feeling awesome.

Overseen in this class: International student working out in jean shorts.

Day 2: Yoga
I did Friday yoga and this class was packed. They probably packed 40 people into the tiny studio. I don't think they had to turn anyone away.

This was your average yoga class, not my beloved power yoga.I think the instructor was taking it easy for all the newbies. I like my yoga on caffeine, so I'd really like a more difficult class. The instructor said we'd do headstands and crane later in the semester. So there is hope for it.

We did the usual poses. We did some variations of tree pose—harder versions, arms out, arms swaying etc.  She said to try it with your eyes closed. WHY IS IT SO MUCH HARDER WITH YOUR EYES CLOSED!?! This blew my mind and I must get better at this immediately.

I like the time this class is offered. If I do take it again, I'll count it as an off day.

Overseen in class: Girl in front of me working on in a cotton onesie sleeper that was so short I could see her 80s satin underwear. I didn't even think they made underwear like that anymore.

Day 3: Bodypump

I've always been intimidated by this class. It's always packed to the gills full of girls and giant barbells. 60 minutes of weights!? Sounds awful.
But I do need to add strength training to my regimen and it's free week so I should try classes and see what I like.

I'm not sure if I've picked a barbell since freshman year of college, so I didn't know what to expect.

Equipment for this class: a mat, a platform, a barbell and plates.

I got a barbell (which was surprisingly light. NOT 40 pounds) and a set of small (2.2), medium (5.5) and large (11 pound) plates.

I put the small and medium on each side for the warm-up (deadlifts and upright rows). I survived! I thought I maybe could have added weight.

There were squats and overhead lifts. It was kind of what I was expecting. I didn't die really until the third or so exercise about 10 minutes in when my arms started to shake. I persevered.

The second half of the class was leg day. It was squats. I DIED on the lunges, which was weird because I run and can do lunges. I was just so tired at that point. We did some work lying back on the bench (like a weight bench)

We changed weights throughout the class. I did most of the class with the small and medium or just the medium on the bar. I watched what the one instructor was doing and that was a good weight for me. We also used the plates as free weights—for tricep extensions and then the small plates for some exercise that killed my shoulders (out of the side and back like you're pulling a bow and arrow.) We also did pushups after my arms were tired.

The next day my quads were sore as well as my shoulders. Good sore. I knew I'd be sore.

I'm thinking about adding the class to my routine. I just don't know what fits yet.

I'd wanted to take the 7 p.m. yoga too, but the gym early for a training so it wasn't offered anyway.

Day 4: Power Yoga
I went to the usual room for yoga. But the yoga class was actually upstairs. So at 12 minutes till I went upstairs and was about #20 in line. Then the fire alarm went off for the gym and the entire gym had to evacuate. There were about 2,000 people shuttled out of the building: lots of people working out, waiting to take classes and about 500 people in a lecture (maybe a mandatory club sports meeting). So we all waited outside in the grass. About 20 minutes in—they decided to cancel the classes and I went home and walked my dog.

I ran this morning so it was okay. Maybe I needed the rest? Apparently the fire alarm had been going off all week.

Fire alarm crowd. About 30 minutes in. A ton had left. 

Day 5: More TRX Yoga
Maybe I should have tried a different class, but I wanted to do this class again. This class had a lot of people come in late (after it was full) and there wasn't equipment for them. And I found that extremely distracting. The teacher was having to teach two groups. I'll look forward to smaller classes later in the semester.

On Tuesdays, there are barre classes that I might do later. There's an Insanity class, which I might be too chicken to try. I die just doing 10 minutes of Insanity abs. 60 minutes!? I'm scared. Today I was too tired to do the class. Maybe on a week I've been a slug and really need to torch some calories.

I didn't do the last day of free week. I have a standing Wednesday class that I try my hardest not to miss.

So that's it I'll buy an all access pass soon.

Closing thoughts:
1. Don't be afraid to go to the student gym. Yes, it's super busy. But if you show up early and pay attention you will be fine.(Also classes tend to be more popular during the school day and slightly less packed the closer you get to 8 p.m.)
2. Maybe I should have tried more classes. I still haven't tried Total Body Tone or spinning with the instructor I liked this summer. But I guess I have all semester.
3. Glad I survived free week: early closings, fire alarms and all.

Running in the morning

The nerdy girl's unofficial guide to running before work

Scene at 6:45 a.m. during a trail run. 

I live in Georgia and summer runs when it's 100 degrees and 93% humidity are miserable. They're probably pretty unsafe too. (My asthma definitely flares up when it's too hot and humid to run.) So what do you do?

• You can run indoors on treadmills
• You can run on an indoor track
• You can run mornings or evenings outside

Those are your options. I'm not a fan of treadmills (I actually run slower on them). My indoor track is 1/8 of a mile and it gets boring. I don't like to run on it more than once a week. I've tried evening running outside and at 8 p.m. it's still 83 degrees and awful. I started running on Saturday mornings. It's actually cooler in the morning—75 degrees. And it worked. I began adding to this. One day I didn't have to be at work until 8:30 a.m. so I decided to run with my extra minutes. I also ran on a Thursday morning on a day I took off for appointments. And it worked. The weather was nicer. I liked having my workout out of the way—and I wasn't a slug the rest of the day (I worried about being tired afterwards, but was totally fine.)

When I ran cross country in high school, I'd occasionally get up and run two miles before school. I rarely did this. It was just to increase my mileage with the hopes of getting stronger.

So why run in the morning?
• In the summer it's cooler.

• You get to see the sunrise. The sky is really pretty on my runs.
• You can get your workout over with before most people are even awake. As a person who loves a To Do list, I love having  my workout done for the day.

In all honesty, I use to scoff at morning workout people. I thought those 5 a.m. gym ladies were crazy. But maybe they're just crazy productive? It's one way to pack more in your day. And all it took was some horrendous heat to get me to do this.

The key to running in the morning is to do as much preparation as possible.

Running clothes for Monday morning:
 shoes, chafe guard, clothes, hat.

I lay out my running clothes in my bathroom
• hat, tank, sports bra, crops, underwear, socks and my anti chafe stick.
Headphones for my runs stay in my car.

Pandor plays "Wake Me Up"
during my 6:30 a.m. run. Haha

I make a bag with my work clothes and stick that in my car the night before.
And my gym bag and shower bag usually stay in my car.

Also: pop a bottle of water in the fridge and any food for after your run should be easy to grab.

I also keep a towel in my car—to sit on after my runs so I don't get gross sweat all over my new car.

The perils of morning runs
• It's dark
• safety
• dew and your shoes (and grass clippings)
And haha—last week I tried to jump over a mud puddle and ending up hitting my head on a low hanging branch. Oops.

One morning I told my husband bye, I was going running. I was standing over him, wearing neon, it wasn't quite 6 a.m. and I think I scared the bejeezus out of him.