Saturday, October 21, 2017

Sweaty Saturday 5K, GRIT and a Walking Tour

Today I improved my 5k time.


Five thoughts during my run:

  • the weather was amazing - only 70 degrees and practically no humidity. The change in the weather makes a run feel soooo much easier, doesn't it?
  • it had been over a week since my last 5k run. I couldn't believe I had let that much time go by. My last 5k was the Thursday before last! I was sick on Monday and had to skip the night group run and I ran a one mile warm-up before strength class last Saturday. Wow!
  • I love my Mizunos (affiliate) - they feel so light on my feet and I think they just look good.
  • I only stopped for a break twice ---> once at the beach to stretch my legs and keep my knee happy and second on the final big hill at the end. mrC came along and pushed me to start running again. It was my best run in a LONG time. 
  • every muscle is still sore - the ones I could feel the most during the run were my glutes and trapezius (back of my neck/shoulder area). I could really feel the soreness of my glutes when I was heading up the final hill. I guess I know my glutes were activating ;)

I was sore from Thursday's GRIT workout. I took this class a couple of times in February, but I didn't remember much about it. This class was about 30 minutes HIIT strength and 20 minutes core. I actually liked this class better than Bodypump. I used lighter weights, but the repetitions were much faster.


There was a good mix of cardio strength, supersets, and a bunch of core. It was challenging, but that is exactly what my body needs. I didn't burn as many calories as I expected, but hopefully they were burning long after class was over.


I walked my way through Friday's active recovery day on a history of Hong Kong walking tour with mrC. Even though we have lived in Hong Kong for nearly a year now, it was fun to learn more about the history and politics from a local.


Our guide was very open about the way Hong Kongers see events from the past as well as things that are currently happening. It was very helpful to hear a local explain the effects of past wars and post-war agreements made with the British and China on everyday life in Hong Kong.


It was also interesting to learn new things about places that we have visited many times. For example, the HSBC Bank building has two lions made out of bronze flanking the front of the building symbolizing protection and security. What we didn't know is that the holes in the lions are from bullets and that the lions were actually stolen by the Japanese during the war.


We wrapped up our successful run today with some pool time. I will never get tired of this place. It is impossible to NOT relax here.


Then part of breakfast included a big Bob's Red Mill protein (affiliate) smoothie. I've been making more of these lately and getting better at using my Hong Kong blender (I really miss my Ninja (affiliate).


Any improvements or PRs you want to share?
Have you ever taken a tour of your own "home" town?
Do you love/hate your blender?



I'm a little late and off topic, but still linking up with Lacey and Meranda and Rachel for the Friday Five 2.0!




3 comments:

  1. Congrats on the 5k! I ran my first one last year and my thoughts during were "holy eff it's hot" lol ;)

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  2. I love my NInja too! I actually just got a new one--my old one started smoking, so I called the Ninja company (they refer to themselves as the Ninja community, which I found somewhat creepy) and they sent me a brand new one! How about that for customer service?

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  3. The walking tour sounds very interesting. It is always fun to learn new things, things that could be right under you. I agree that pool, oh my that pool could it not look any more inviting? Is this pool part of where you live? Can you visit it anytime you like?

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