Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links…
So Great to Have Options
One of the things I’ve loved watching during the pandemic with everyone being stuck at home is how clever people are becoming with creating new workout spaces. Early on it was nearly impossible to find dumbbells, exercise tubes, etc. as gyms were forced to close and workout options became at-home only. As exercise equipment is becoming available again, my clients and friends are purchasing items for their homes and using a variety of spaces to create their own little at-home gyms. I’m fortunate that I already had a space set up because I’m in the fitness business, but moving forward many others will have the option for working out at home.
It will be interesting to see if the pandemic has a long-term impact on public gyms. There’s a huge convenience to working out at home, but I must admit that I miss the energy of a busy gym.
Overview of the Week
Before discussing each day’s workouts, here’s an overview of my workouts from this past week. Scroll down for daily details…
Sunday
Once again, rather than just sitting, I hopped on my treadmill (affiliate link) and walked 2 miles at a relaxing 19:46 pace while gabbing with my mom. I’m usually doing something while we chat, cooking, flat ironing my hair, etc. Mom says that I’m the queen of multitasking.
Monday
I lifted weights at 7 AM during an open hole in my schedule and at 4:45 PM got on my spin bike (affiliate link) for a 14-mile ride averaging 17.1 MPH. So far I’ve not done a spin class while riding – I just ride at a steady pace and finish up tired, but not overly exhausted. My husband does intervals by increasing the resistance while standing to pedal, eases back to a sitting recovery pace, and repeats over and over. He finishes his workout totally spent and sweating profusely. I think I need to up my spin game at least once a week!
Tuesday
I wanted to go for a walk outside, but an overnight storm left everything ice covered. At 10 AM it was still hovering at 32-33° with a cold mist falling so I kept my cardio workout inside. Channeling my inner Kim, I did what I called the icy outside indoor cardio medley which consisted of:
- • Treadmill – 2 miles at a 15:00 pace
- • Elliptical (affiliate link) – 1 mile at an 11:29 pace
- • Stairs/House Laps – 1 mile at a 17:22 pace
I finished with 4 miles total and felt like I’d gotten a great cardio workout. My stairs repeats weren’t quite as intense as Kim’s because I added in laps around each of the three levels, but it worked. I’ll definitely do it or a variation of it again!
Wednesday
I spent about an hour getting my strength training on between morning clients. As much as I like to just plow through and finish up all of my clients one right after the next, I do enjoy having holes in my schedule when it’s enough time to fit in a workout.
Around 2 PM I headed out for a 5K walk around our community in what had turned out to be a delightful winter day. With the sun shining, the temperature at 42° and no breeze, it was a far cry from the previous day’s weather. Once home I remembered to stretch for the first time all week.
Thursday
My morning started on the right note with a 6 AM workout with Kim (5 AM her time) when I hoped on my spin bike (affiliate link) for a chatty 22.5 miles at a 16.9 MPH average speed. After our workout I stretched for 10 minutes.
Friday
Up early, I lifted weights for an hour prior to logging on to train my morning clients. Later, I tried to get Pablo to go out for a nice long walk in the 20° (feels like 12°), but he had other ideas. Bundled up, I was toasty warm, but even in his flannel-lined nylon vest, Pablo turned to go home as soon as he did his business. I doubt that we even made it a half-mile roundtrip. 😂
As with most Fridays, I got in 15 minutes of total body stretching during the Balance and Stretching class I taught.
Saturday
From Iowa to Virginia to the Netherlands we pedaled and chatted via Zoom. The miles just flew by with Kim and Renée, and I hit 15 miles before I knew it (16.9 MPH average pace). I’m so thankful for this option when it’s too cold outside to ride, but I am looking forward to getting back out on the trail.
Here’s What You Might Have Missed
In case you skipped checking in on my blog this past week, here’s what you missed…
- • Sunday – Weekly RunDown: January 17 – 23 / Easy Does It
- • Thursday – Runfessions of a Careless Walker and a Forgetful Stretcher
Questions:
- • How has the weather been where you live? Normal or unseasonably cold?
- • What cool and unique workouts do you do inside when the weather outside less than desirable?
- • Did you run in a race this weekend? If so, was it live or virtual?
And that’s my rundown… Have a great week!
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I’m linking up with Deborah at Confessions of a Mother Runner and Kim from Running on the Fly for their Weekly Run Down. Be sure to check out not only the hosts’ posts, but those of the other great bloggers joining in on the fun!
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links which means if you click on the blue product link and then make a purchase, I will receive a small commission for referring you. You will pay no more or less for the product; however, Amazon will show their gratitude for my referral by paying me.
It is nice to have options and seems like people have adapted to some new normals with their schedules. That wind was something else this week! Enjoy your snow day! Have a good one and thanks for linking up
Deborah Brooks recently posted…Weekly Run Down Finishing January On A High Note
Our snow day didn’t pan out to give us as much snow as we’d hoped for, how about you?
I’ve been so glad to have a good home gym set-up this year. I’ve gotten a few more things but its been really tough to find equipment at a reasonable prices. At this point I really don’t see myself going back to a regular gym because I find it so convenient to work out at home!
Lisa @ Mile by Mile recently posted…Running Through The Peak Of Winter
I had been working out solely at my home gym for about five years prior to the pandemic hitting so I was lucky to already be set up. Even so, I do miss the personal interactions of the gym.
Oh Pablo! Ruth and Matilda don’t like the cold either 🙂
Sounds like a fun week, despite the cold and snow! It’s so wonderful how zoom can connect people from all around the world for a bike ride!
It snowed most of today and Pablo was in heaven playing in the snow. Do Ruth and Matilda like snow?
I have a few friends that have said they will continue working out from home even after the pandemic os over. I really enjoy my at home workouts with Peloton but I do like the vibe of my OTF classes with the coaches.
Love that photo of Pablo – he looks like he is so deep in thought!
Like your friends, several of my clients who have transitioned to virtual workouts say that they will never workout in a gym again.
Pablo was thinking, “I’ve got to figure out a way to drag her back into the house.” LOL
You had a busy week! Great chatting & pedaling with you (multiple times) this week 🙂 I curse technology, but it does have some nice perks. Stay warm!
Yes, it was fun! Let’s do it again soon!
I’ve enjoyed amping up my home workouts–it took a while to find a few things I needed, but now I have enough stuff to make for a good home circuit. I do miss the CrossFit classes, tho–there’s something about being with other people that makes it more fun.
Looks like another great week for you!
Thanks, Wendy! Yes, it seemed like pretty much all exercise equipment was very hard to come by during the winter and summer. I was trying to help a client who was moving set up her home gym in her new town (thank goodness for Amazon), but it took a while for things to get delivered even in the fall.
Ha! Pablo like his warm weather I think! Smart boy!
The last two winters here have been unseasonably mild. Just in the past two weeks winter really arrived with two winter storms this week. We got 7″ of snow from this first one and this one is dumping at least a foot and counting. I runfess I enjoy a good winter storm.
Yes, same here, we were unseasonably mild and hardly had any snow the past two winters. We were hopeful for a decent amount of snow today, but got less than half of what was predicted.
Oh gosh, I’m certain that gyms will have a huge resurgence after the pandemic. People are going to want to go places! My parents are super careful with the social distancing but even they went back to their gym as soon as it reopened (with all of the safety precautions of course).
Beckett @ Birchwood Pie recently posted…Weekly Sweats: A cutback and new shoes
That’s awesome that your parents are back into the swing of things at the gym. Some of my virtual clients have told me that they have no plans to go back to the gym as long as I’m good staying virtual with them.
I think the weather was actually fairly normal, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it!
I do like the convenience of working out at home. I’ve belonged to gyms a few times, too, and liked that too. It’s cheaper at home, though. 🙂
We left the house at 11F this afternoon with Bandit, not sure if he’d walk or not. Not much wind though. I think Mr. Judy complained a lot more than Bandit. 🙂 Probably because it had been way too cold (windy and single digits) the last couple of days to walk him.
Oh, 11° is nippy and I don’t blame Mr. Judy one bit for complaining. Are you getting dumped on in the next few days from the two storms that we’re seeing today and tomorrow? Our six inches of snow forecast for today turned into only about three and tomorrow’s storm may miss us altogether…
Pablo in his vest! I love him!
It’s been unseasonably cold here. Honestly, it’s the longest winter I can remember having here.
People have really been making the most of these tough situations, and I’m here for it. Adapting is really what it’s all about. No races this weekend. I have one on the 13th, and I’m looking forward to that.
Oh yay, an in person race! I can’t wait to hear all about it and live vicariously through your race recap! 😀
Interesting question- people have so many options for working out at home now. Even after Covid (if that’s actually a thing) people might not want to go back to the gym. I think it will take a while.
As always in your infographic I’m impressed with your sleep totals. Still working on that!
Our weather in Florida has been beautiful, but we’ll pay for it in the summer. Have a great week!
Jenny recently posted…Weekly Rundown- Mixing it Up
I used to get just over five hours sleep per night and that’s why I bought a Fitbit to track my sleep. I like to get up super early, but I’m also a night owl. I’ve learned to get to bed much earlier and that’s really helped.
Sorry I missed the ride this weekend. I was anxious to get to the grocery store with our “big snow storm” coming. With my work, unless I workout in the morning, it’s not happening. Earlier in the shutdown I could sneak off-line for a live OTF class, but these days my afternoons are packed with conference calls and Zoom meetings. 😛
We missed you on our ride on Saturday!
Stairs+ house laps sound fun. When things are “normal”, is there a Runyon race near you? They’re usually in stadiums and while I love running Yankee Stadium, I hate the stairs even though the views are worth it.
I’m with Pablo on sometimes it’s better to get out and get right back. That was last Sunday where it was bare minimum errands
Cari recently posted…2021 is 1/12th Done
When Bill and I lived in Utah we lived right next to the USU football stadium and would walk over there and run the stadium steps. It was a great workout!
was definitely a great session on Saturday!
poor Pablo, he’s not meant for that cold weather!!
it’s been so mild here, only the last few days have been colder, I think yesterday it was zero, so that’s what 30F? I mean, I actually missed my warm hat yesterday on my walk. Didn’t think about it but was already out for a bit so too late to turn back.
Yes, it was lots of fun catching up with you and Kim, and I look forward to doing it again (hopefully, this Saturday).
We had a mild first three weeks of January, but the weather has now changed drastically. Last week it was very cold and over the weekend we got snow. Pablo doesn’t mind the cold when he has snow to play in. LOL, he’s just like a kid!
I do remember reading that it was hard to get some equipments. I would like to get a complete set of dumbbells. Which ones do you recommend?
We’ve had two snow storms in one week. It will be interesting to recover. 🙂
Zenaida Arroyo recently posted…Weekly Run Down: Goodbye January and finally on the list!
Which dumbbells you get depends on how and who is going to use them. You can find used ones at pretty good prices at Play it Again Sports if you have one near you. If not, the basic steel or neoprene covered ones are probably the most economical. The down side of the neoprene dumbbells is that they can become damaged and the covering can tear off if they’re tossed around (in a gym where people can be careless). Also, the higher weights have very large bars that you hold on to which can be difficult as we age, especially if we get arthritic hands. Please feel free to reach out if you have more questions!
You had a lot more snow in Chicago than we did, ours just sort of petered out…