Getting Back on a Bike

I had an extremely healthy and active weekend and the biggest thing that stands out is that I rode a bike again for the first time in 3 years and 10 months. For many of you reading this, it's a "so what?" moment. For me, it was taking back some of the fearlessness I lost after I got hit by a car while riding a bike on a road known for deadly accidents on Long Island. 

After a health scare, being ghosted (guys, you seriously need to start growing a pair) and work-related things, April wasn't shaping up to be a pretty month. 4 years ago, I loved riding my bike and for some reason this just seemed like the perfect time to get back on the saddle. I already had a day trip out to Montauk planned for some alone time and since it's the off-season and there are not many cars I thought why the hell not?

After I got off the Jitney I stopped by my favorite breakfast spot, Bliss Kitchen, for an egg sammy and coffee before heading over to the Montauk Bike Shop to rent a bike. The guy took one look at how tall I was and pretty much practically suggested I get a child sized bike. After that, I was on my way to the lighthouse!

Not so fast actually. I did get nervous crossing in front of cars so I made a detour to the beach so I could make a right back on Montauk Highway without traffic. And for the first 3 miles I was very jumpy when I heard the cars behind me. But then I relaxed and enjoyed the ride. I went up to the lighthouse and hung out for a bit.

Then I biked down to the Coast Guard station and sat on the dock to stretch my legs because OWW!  I realized I needed some water so I headed over to Liars Saloon and got a beer and water. They play country music there and I didn't want to leave. But I did because I just wanted to ride that bike around all day. I stopped at Gosman's for a snack of grilled salmon, fries and a salad. It was the first day the clam bar was open so that was a nice treat. 

Next I headed down to the beach to read a magazine before returning the bike, heading to Salivars for dinner and getting back on the Jitney. It was a solid day and I couldn't have been more proud of myself for finally getting back on the bike after a really scary experience. 

Yesterday, to continue my healthy and active weekend, I went up to Bear Mountain with Megan. We took the train up to Peekskill then a cab to the mountain. The weather was perfect! We brought sandwiches, snacks and drinks for ride. The entire hike was about 5.7 miles and we did an extra mile loop around the lake. When we were done we headed back to the city for some much needed (and deserved!) rest. 

For the next 3 weeks, it's training for Brooklyn (my knee hurt today coming down the mountain so this will be a challenge), birthday celebrations and getting ready to go to Florida.

What healthy choices did you make this weekend?

Xo,
Lynette

More/Fitness/Shape Half Marathon Weekend Recap

After a hellish 2.5 weeks, it was nice to be able to do things I loved this weekend- run and yoga. 

On Saturday morning I headed to Bloomingdale's for some pre-race yoga. A Jivamukti Yoga instructor led the half hour class. We received yoga mats and a little goodie bag and of course, Fitness, Shape and More magazines! Unrelated to the event, I was testing out a pair of Liquido Active leggings. Holy comfortableness! While the size I received was a small (I think the person who sent got my top and bottom size confused), they still fit pretty well, just a little tight on my chunky belly. They were SO easy to move around in and I never felt like I had to adjust them like with some other pants I own. They also offer 50+ UV protection. Can this brand get any better? 

After yoga I headed uptown to get my bib which turned into a little bit of a nightmare. I'm not sure why there wasn't an expo this year but they definitely need to bring that back. That's all I want to say about that. 

Now, onto the race! If you didn't know, I've been out for the past 3 weeks with a knee injury. I've been seeing a PT and was hoping it would be better. After the weeks I had been having, I thought 13 miles would be the perfect cure. I was half right (haha- sorry I couldn't help myself). I woke up not really wanting to run but obviously did it anyway. Albeit I was under-trained and not prepared- I didn't realize I didn't have fuel to grabbed some trail mix on my way to the race. 

Miles 1-3: Much better than last year! Last year I decided at mile 1 I I did not want to do this race anymore and didn't feel strong at all. This year, I felt OK and just ran with the people in front of me. Again, I didn't wear a watch for this race and thank god I didn't. There weren't that many spectators yet but it was early and everyone was cruising and in a good mood (including myself!). I climbed cat hill and embraced the downhills. 

Miles 4-7: I haven't run Harlem hill and a long time and I definitely need to incorporate that into Brooklyn and Staten Island training. Woof that was a rough one. I drank at every aid station and ate and miles 3 and 6. Just before the 10K mark my wonderful knee starting hurting. I had to make the painful decision to screw my already not-so-hot time and save my knee so I stopped, walked and stretched a little before continuing to run. In the middle of mile 7 Deena Kastor decided to show us all up and lap us to win the race. Definitely one of the coolest things ever!

Miles 8-11: Ooof. Hi knee. I walked up cat hill and took a few more walk breaks. Not only was my inner knee bothering me but so was the front. #winning. I also walked up Harlem Hill because #savetheknee. From then on, everytime my knee bothered me I stopped. It sucked. That's not the race I envisioned but if I want to run NYC in 2016, I need to make positive choices.There were also NO medical tents on the course. I wanted to stop and get ice so badly but I couldn't. 

Miles 12-13.1: IS IT OVER YET?!?! Thankfully the last mile flew by and I headed straight to the med tent. My time was nothing to be proud of. It was actually a little embarrassing given my current PR. But unlike at Michelob, my knee pain didn't linger so I made the right decision. 

A big big big thank you to the Fitness PR team for again providing me with the opportunity to run this race. It's always a challenge- physically and mentally- and that's what I love about it. Can't wait for next year!

Xo,
Lynette 

Happy Tuesday & Training Update

What a week! After spending the week dog sitting I had a fabulous weekend that consisted of some outdoor time. Since I'm still not allowed to run, I went to my first Exceed class on Saturday morning. Even with tons of modifications so I wasn't jumping and what not that class kicked my ass! It's circuit based and we did a little bit of everything. We did kettle bells, TRX, push-ups, ab work, medicine balls, etc. 

On Sunday I walked around Central Park then hung out on the balcony with the dog because I was exhausted. 

Yesterday, I finally got the OK to run 6 miles on Saturday. Yay! And by I got the OK I mean I sort of told them I was doing it and no they weren't thrilled. But, the MORE/Fitness/Shape Half Marathon is in 2 weeks and a girls gotta run!

I've also made the decision to drop all time goals for 2015. Yup, ms. competitive is running for fun. Reason being? I need to be able to actually finish all of my races in order to run the marathon and in order to do so I can't push, push, push. 

However, I've got a bunch of fun reviews coming up including ones from Fitness Glo and Liquido!

I'm excited to see what spring has in store for me. So far, it's been pretty good!

Xo,

Lynette