Showing posts with label NH. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NH. Show all posts

Sunday, April 22, 2018

Fitting in Fitness | Weekly Wrap

I barely unpacked the suitcase from my awesome Hawaii trip before it was time to pack again. Every spring and fall mrC has work in the US. I tag along and then we add some vacay days to see family.

In the spring, we always go to New England. We fly to Hartford (and stay there when we have extra time, like this trip) and visit with mrC's family in Springfield. Then we head to Delaware for his work.

This time, mrC had a trip that put him in the US way ahead of schedule. So instead of flying back to Hong Kong only to turn around and fly back to the US with me, he stayed and I flew to the US on my own (yes, solo and my first time doing it alone). It was worth it, because we gained an extra week of family time including a weekend with the girls in New Hampshire and it doesn't count toward his vacation days!

Somehow, between all the family time and traveling, I managed to fit in fitness.


Monday - Yoga - I stayed up sooo late (in Hong Kong) watching the Boston Marathon (how about that finish???) I only slept about 5 hours, but had to pack and get organized for my trip. I did some yoga inspired by the outdoor yoga session I went to on Saturday. My goal is to run through the poses to loosen up my tight hips and legs at least three times a week.

Tuesday - Yoga - found a travel yoga video and used it as a pre-flight relaxation session. This helped me tons on my first 15 hour flight, but my body was toast after a delay on my connecting flight caused me to get to Hartford after midnight (22 hours after leaving Hong Kong).

Early morning yoga with Adriene while mrC sleeps using my AirPods 

Wednesday - Hotel room yoga to work out the kinks from a looonngg day of travel and worked through those hip opener poses. Felt pretty good, so I thought I'd do some cardio. The hotel pool is closed for "maintenance" and 2/2 treadmills are broken ---> like missing the buttons to change the speed broken (which made me realize that "maintenance" at this hotel was a euphemism for neglect. I ended up doing an elliptical workout: 10 minute WU, 10 20:40 interval sprints, and 10 minute CD. Plus 2 minutes planking and lots of stretching.

Thursday - Prepared to stride out on the elliptical again, I was totally surprised to find one of the treadmills actually working. This unexpected run put a pretty big smile on my face! Intervals have been working for me

Friday - Rest day. Spent the day traveling to NH, renewing my expired driver's license and meeting up with the girls for some quality catch-up time.

Saturday - Bootcamp. I love working out with the girls and was thrilled that Dev was able to join me as a drop-in at Granite State Fitness ---> a new studio that my SurfSet friends merged with last year. We basically got our butts kicked, but we love that ;)


This 50 minute bootcamp was a lot different from other classes I've taken.

First we warmed up with a fun game of "catch the PVC pipe." We all stood in a circle with one hand behind our backs and the other holding the pipe. When directed we let go of the pipe and moved right or left to catch the pipe of the person next to us. After some practice rounds, it became a friendly competition. If you dropped the pipe, you went to the "loser's" corner to do three burpees and then continue playing the game as others joined you. Dev was in the final three and they all dropped the pipes at the same time! I say she was a winner.

Next we worked on mobility with lacrosse/softballs. Our instructor showed us how to roll our glutes, TFLs and lats. I was impressed by this part of the class, but also wondering when does the workout actually start?

I got my answer in the final portion of the class. It was circuit time and here's how it went down. Partners work together to bike 180 calories or 21 minutes (whichever comes first). While one rides the upright bike with arms, the other sprints to stations to complete 4 kettlebell swings, 4 wall tosses with medicine ball and 4 sumo squats with kettlebell. Then you switch.

We just made it over 100 calories when the timer ended.

That 21 minute circuit is where we almost died, haha ---> and our workout had been modified because we were drop-ins. The others were doing clean & presses, using heavier wall balls and front squats. I was super impressed that we were not asked to use barbells because the instructor wasn't sure we knew the proper technique. I suppose we could have made a case that we know from Bodypump, but I still think it was a smart move on the part of the gym.

The only thing that surprised me was that we did not cool-down/stretch as a group. Considering how much was put into the beginning of the class I thought for sure we would do this. Plus, every class I've ever taken has included at least 5 minutes of cool-down/stretching.

Sunday - Rest day. Another day of travel back to MA. I guess I could claim a workout from moving a bunch of stuff around in our storage unit, but mrC did most of that. (#ootd details below)



What's the worst hotel fitness room you've ever seen?
Does your fitness class include mobility and/or cool-down stretching?

I’m linking up with Holly and Wendy for the Weekly Wrap!


Thursday, September 15, 2016

Shred Day 29 & 30: Better Late Than Never!

Once again, the last couple of days have been a whirlwind and my blogging fell behind. The 30 Day Shred Program has ended and I will share my results in a future post, but today I'm just going to recap the last couple of days.


Day 29: low carb

I was all set to do my low carb day sprints on the elliptical (since I hd run the day before), but I woke up feeling not-so-great. After having a little breakfast with mrC, I ended up dozing off and on most of the day and staying close to the bathroom. I must have had some sort of stomach bug, but by late afternoon, I started to feel better.

WIA:


Day 30: low carb day

My stomach was feeling better, but my knee was feeling funny ---> this is not a pain, just a feeling of pressure that freaks me out because it feels like it might give out. I stretched out really good and decided to try to run the sprint workout with mrC. I was able to do about 10 of the 25 sprints (which was about a mile) before I called it quits. My knee was just feeling too weird.


Wrapping up in Montreal by the numbers: 30 day stay in Montreal, 5.5 hours in the car driving to Portsmouth, NH, 2 stops, 1 roadside yoga session to help sway some car sickness.


Best cure for car sickness? Seeing the girls! Both have new living spaces and we got the tour, dinner on the water and then youngestC had a soccer game on campus.


WIA:


Yesterday:

After a late night watching soccer and visiting youngestC's new dorm apartment, all I wanted to do was sleep in. I did visit the fitness center before we left and was thrilled to find a foam roller which I promptly used (and got a little back crack).


We did some errands in New Hampshire while making our way back to Springfield where we will be staying while mrC does some more work. I popped into Payless while he did some paperwork and found a HUGE sale. These cute sandals were only $8. Of course I had to wear them in the car for the remainder of our drive.


WIA:


We finally made it to Springfield around 8PM. After a quick visit with mrC's parents, we unloaded at his sister's house, our temporary home for the next few weeks.


How do you know when to bail on a run/workout?
Do you get carsick? Best non-medicine remedy?







Monday, April 25, 2016

Sweet Sunday

We walked to morning Mass. I love when we are able to attend when we are traveling. This church was absolutely stunning inside. If I lived in Portsmouth, I would really enjoy services here.


We were given a walking tour from missD. We saw her office, Prescott Park, and most of downtown. 11,000 steps. 5+ miles. 


She took us to Popovers for lunch (great gluten free options there) and then showed me her favorite place to get essential oils.


I picked up some sport spray for my fitness equipment and peppermint oil. I read a comment from an ultra runner that peppermint oil helps with tendinitis. 


We ordered dinners from the Juicery. The girls and I all got acai bowls. It was my first one. Why haven't I tried these before???


We finished the evening with a trip to UNH to see missG's dorm room (I can't believe she is almost finished with the first year of college!!) and watch her soccer game.


Today we are saying goodbye to girls and then we are visiting some friends before heading back to Springfield. I'm looking forward to seeing this guy the most.


Have a great day!







Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Hanging Out in NH: GMMRTT, SurfSet, & Trails

Wow! Time flies when you're having fun! 

After landing in New Jersey last Wednesday, mrC and I spent a day and a half letting our bodies get used to being back in the USA.  On Friday I hopped on another plane for a short flight to New Hampshire for a long weekend visit.

I started the weekend with a Girl's Night Out with MRTT. We pretty much took over an entire room at the Bedford Village Inn tavern. I haven't seen these women in person since we were home in August, but because we interact so much in the Facebook group it felt like I'd never been gone. 


After dinner, some of us braved the chilly NH night to hang out by the fire pit. It was a great night!


On Saturday I headed to TI Fitness for some Boot Camp and SurfSet. Although I keep busy in China with running, biking, hiking, yoga, and Zumba, nothing compares to a good full body cardio workout. 


Boot Camp was broken into two parts: first we were on the floor obstacle course style and then on the ledge (which you can't really see in the picture). On the floor we ran, shuffled, zig-zagged, and jumped while mixing in some strength exercises that we pulled from a box. For example after going through the floor course we did 20 reverse flies. On the ledge we focused on step-ups, jumps, triceps dips. Stuff like that. It was awesome! 


The 30 minute SurfSet class was fast paced and challenged my body in every way. I miss these classes so much because it's such a fun way to get sweaty and it's the only way I ever did strength. I'm struggling with that in China.


On Sunday morning I hit the trail for a MRTT group run. I ran a lot of miles on the rail trails in New Boston, Goffstown, and Manchester before moving. I've been watching the progress of improvements via Facebook, so I was super excited to see first hand the newly finished bridge connecting Manchester to Goffstown. 


The weather almost didn't cooperate, but the skies dried up just in time for the group to hit the trail. 




After fitness class on Saturday I raided Runner's Alley for some new running shoes. The Mizuno Wave Rider 19s are so much lighter and softer than my old shoes (which were overdue for replacement) and I love how Feetures socks just mold to me feet. 

Between the cooler temps, the trail, and my new gear, running the 5.3 miles felt amazing. 



Do you do non-running things with your running group?

What was the last pair of running shoes you bought? I'm loving my new Mizuno Wave Rider 19




Friday, June 20, 2014

Kickoff to Summer 5K 2014

Last Saturday, I did something pretty cool.

I ran the Kickoff to Summer 5K for the 5th time and for the 3rd time with littleC. I have run this race nearly every year since moving to New Hampshire (missed 2010). In fact it was my very first NH race. We really like this local race because it has a friendly course and is a fundraiser for the elementary school PTA.


Just like last year, I used the 5K as part of my long run. So instead of driving to the race with littleC, I ran the 3.1 miles and met her there. It was a cool morning and aided by my pre-run fuel from Vega Sport, I ran some pretty good splits getting to the race (8:50, 8:39, and 8:15)! To be honest though, the last half mile is all downhill.


After a quick wardrobe change, we picked up our bibs and the (always cute) race shirts, stored them in the car and then headed to the starting line.


This is a no frills race. The start is an orange line spray painted on the blacktop and the start is an enthusiastic gentleman with a megaphone. LittleC and I ran together for the first two miles, but then I got ahead of her through a water stop. Once we were back out on the main road, I just wanted to get to the finish, so I pushed on.


My goal for this race was to have fun and keep a pace that felt good. I'm happy to say that I achieved all three and beat my time from last year (28:56) with a solid 28:21.


Do you like running the same race every year?




*