This Made My Sprints Better and Red Rocks Hike

mrC and I have been filling time between visits with middleC (he's taking finals before graduating on Thursday) by getting out and exploring more of Boulder.

For my sprints workout on Tuesday, I convinced mrC to go with me to Wonderland Lake Trail.

Based on the description on the AllTrails website, the 1.7 mile trail in North Boulder that looped around a lake sounded like a great place to run. The possibility of spotting hang gliders coming off the mountains behind the lake also sounded fun.

The plan was to run an easy 5 minute warm-up, do 10 sprints @ 20:40 seconds work:rest and run an easy cool down to finish the loop. Our goal was to also slow run the rest portions of our sprint intervals.

What really happened ---> we didn't park in the right spot, so we cut off a portion of the trail. That turned out ok (because we were too spent to run the cool down anyway), but getting started on the trail was a bit confusing. We ran a 5 minute warm-up, did our ten sprints and then walked to cool-down. And we briefly spotted one glider!

Our non-adjusted lungs are still struggling with the Colorado elevation, so we both needed to walk a couple of the rest periods. Despite feeling the effects of high altitude running on our performance (and mrC had already had breakfast with middleC), this sprint workout was waaayyy better than last week's for many reasons:

1. it was warmer - I don't mind running in cold weather. I just didn't pack that gear so running in shorts and tank was preferable.
2. soft trail vs. sidewalk - my legs (esp. knees) were so happy about this
3. lake view - being near water always makes my run feel fresher and more enjoyable
4. mountain view - my favorite combination especially with big blue sky to top it off
5. mrC - every run with mrC is better than any run without him. He's my favorite person ;)

After our run, we went over to Pearl Street to get a post-run treat. I have a list of smoothie/juiceries going for Boulder and we made our first stop into Wonder Press. mrC got a yummy strawberry banana smoothie and I got the Take Root juice bottle ---> cucumber, carrot, beet, apple, ginger, and lemon. It was pretty good, but that cucumber is hard for me. (I had the option to return the glass for $1 refund or keep it. I'm keeping it!)

When middleC finished his final for the day, we helped him take a mental break before going into study mode for his last final tomorrow. The three of us headed over to Red Rocks Trail to see the red sandstone formations that jut out of the ground. It was supposed to be an easy and short hike.

We should have realized right away that we were in for a workout when the trail started off with a pretty intense climb.

The view of the rocks from the west side was not as impressive as we were expecting. The outer loop is said to be about 1.3 miles, but we could see shorter trails leading up to the rocks creating what looked like a maze.

So, while intending to stick to the outer loop trail, we couldn't resist climbing up one of the shorter trails to get a better view of things. The short trail was not at all easy, but we really thought we'd miss out if we didn't do it. We felt like mountain goats, but it was worth it.

After our little detour, we continued making our way around the perimeter and found ourselves unexpectedly faced with more serious rock climbing (we would see later that we could have gone around and taken an easier path). At this point it felt like we were doing a HIIT workout.

Like all things, once you get through the hard part, the view from the other side can be amazing. That was the case of the Red Rocks.

As we continued up, the trail got closer to the towering sandstone fins and the views of Boulder opened up on east. We took advantage of the perfectly placed bench to have a water break and let the afternoon breeze cool us off a bit.

From this side and the top, so to speak, we had amazing views all around us: Boulder, the Rocks, and larger mountains in the distance.

This hike only took us about an hour, but it was a good one!


Does a change of scenery affect your workout?
Which do you prefer smoothie or juice? I actually like smoothies more, but drink juice on low carb days.

Today I’m linking up with Susie and Rachel and Debbie and Lora for the Running Coaches' Corner and I'm linking up with Annmarie, Nicole and Jen for Wild Workout Wednesday!!

May Miles and More Strength Training

It's funny how fast time can fly sometimes. The week, the month, the year! It's hard to believe it's already time to add up the miles for the month of May.

I'm still amazed at the number of miles I have been putting on my Mizunos considering I was almost certain my running days were over when my old, cranky knee got even crankier last year. The month of May was good to me: 7 runs (I usually go twice a week) and 23.16 miles. This is a little less than April, but at least I can blame the weather and not an injury. My runs got shorter as the days got warmer.

Heading into June, I'm not sure what my goal is for running while I'm carb cycling. There will be some sprints and hopefully I'll figure out where to work in at least one moderate run each week.

Regular Calorie Day 2 - the workout

We joined the fitness center last November when we moved to Discovery Bay, but have really only used the treadmill and elliptical. It's been one part fun and one part frustration trying to find the machines we need to use for strength workouts. Plus it gets crowded after school drop off time and I prefer working out before the rush (hint, hint ;) mrC). 

Warm up - walked to the fitness center

Strength -  Today was all about the upper body and mostly arms. My shoulder still bothers me a little on some of the exercises (reverse fly) and I discovered that I'm between 5 and 10 or 10 and 15 pounds on many of the exercises ---> what's wrong with having an 8 or 12 pound dumbbell lying around? My solution was to go heavier on the first set and lighter on the second and hope I could finish. It wasn't always pretty, but I did it. Except the pulls-up. I didn't even try those. I need the assisted pull-up machine for that and we don't have one.

Cool down - walked back to the apartment

Regular Calorie Day 2 - the meals

Broke fast at 11:30 - Bob's Red Mill pancakes and scrambled eggs with ham

Lunch - 4 turkey rollups and red grapes

Dinner - quinoa and tuna

Snack - gluten free brownie

My goal for the week has been to hit my macros and I was so excited by how well I did today keeping my fats down. I still have some work to do, but using My Fitness Pal to track what I eat makes it so easy.

How many miles did you run in May?
Do you prefer having the gym to yourself or working out with a crowd?
Do you track your macros/calories/food at all?

It's Shoesday! Mizuno Wave Horizon

I admit that I've been Mizuno fan for a few years now and I've worn several different styles: (not in order - Wave Paradox, Wave Sayonara, Wave Creation 14, Wave Inspire 8, Wave Rider 16, Wave Rider 17, Wave Rider 18, and Wave Rider 19).

My current obsession is my new pair of Mizuno Wave Horizons.

I'm confident that I needed to get back into a stability shoe and I'm happy that Mizuno asked me to expand my horizons. This shoe provides the support and cushion that I wanted without weighing me down and feeling stiff.

It feels most similar to me to the Wave Inspire, as both are support shoes, but the Horizon have more cushion. This makes it about .5 oz heavier, but I think that's pretty insignificant. They are also more snug fitting than the Inspires I wore, but I like that feeling right now.

The Wave Horizon is offered in a nice mix of bold and neutral color options and are loaded with all the standard Mizuno bells and whistles and more: full length and articulated U4icX midsole, new Mizuno cloudwave technology, new U4ic midsole compound, DynamotionFit and new triple zone engineered mesh (get more details on Mizuno's website).

Besides the mix of gray and turquoise coloring with the pop of pink, I'm loving the design on the back of the shoes. I think it looks like the pattern on a soccer ball.

I've already put more than a few good miles on my Wave Horizons and I'm very happy with their performance. My muscle imbalances cause knee pain but the stability in this shoe seems to be helping (along with these 5 essential stretches for happy legs).

What are you wearing these days?