Sunday, July 6, 2014

Sweating in the Summer

Wow, it's hot out there!

Summer in Florida is the toughest time to work out. It can be done, but really needs to be done early and I've found myself in the habit of sleeping in already! I did go out for my regular "long" run on Saturday morning. We decided to maintain with about 20 miles each week, doing 6-7 miles each time we go out. Yesterday we ran 5 miles, then did the boardwalk stairs that stretched out to a mile, and then ran the last mile on very tired legs.

Garmin Forerunner 220
I was able to try out my new toy for the first time. I have had a Garmin Forerunner 301 for years. I've noticed that the GPS seemed to be not picking up as well, plus, it was having a more difficult time charging. I'd have to really wiggle the cord and find just the right spot in order for it to charge. Over the course of the last year and a half I've tried out several other Garmin models, but hadn't found one I really liked. On some models, I didn't like the touch screen or the sensitivity. On a couple of the models I couldn't hear the beeps. Some models didn't have the features I wanted. You get the idea.

In the end, I spent a little more than I intended and went with the purple and white Garmin Forerunner 220. I opted to go with the heart rate monitor, but since I'm not used to wearing one I forgot to put it on yesterday. I loved the fact that it beeps and vibrates - perfect for races! I was a bit disappointed that it didn't come with a printed out manual, and will have to look up some of the features, like how to program workouts, connect it to My Fitness Pal, etc. I was happy with the ease of use on my first run. I will try it later this week with some intervals and the heart monitor.

Garmin Connect
One of the things I really liked was the Garmin Connect. It has enough data to geek even the least techie person out! I liked that it documents the exact weather during your run - yes it was 100% humidity on Saturday morning. Another thing that I was very interested in was the cadence. Apparently I need to speed up my footwork, something to work on. One of my goals this summer was to work my way back to running and improving my time on the 5K distance. I will certainly be using the splits to watch my pace.

Kettleworx
I did finish the Kettleworx Cardio on Wednesday. I did the second set and the cool down with the kettle bell. I definitely felt it for a few days. I think this is one of those workout programs I will have to build up to. I plan on trying a couple of the 10 minute workout sessions next week.

Since the weather, and my sleeping habit, were not conducive to running this week, I completed another 30 minute session on the elliptical.
Overall, it worked for me this first vacation/holiday week. Time to step it up for next week!!

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