January 2015 - Page 3 of 6 - My Healthy, Happier Life

There is something wonderful and exciting about a training plan. I’m excited to lace up these week, hoping I’ll feel a bit stronger than the week prior.

Each Sunday brings a new email from Jess with a list of workouts to accomplish for the week. Having someone who I can confide in daily, via email, makes training a lot easier. Sometimes training for a race, regardless the length, can make you a bit crazy. Was I this sore the last time I trained? What do I do if my legs are tired? How many rounds do I do of this workout. Suddenly there is this voice of reason who speaks to you on a weekly and daily basis. Yes, I know I can get training plans for free in many different places or just motivate myself to run but man oh man is it great having her support these days.

This training plan is 11 weeks in length, last week being the first week of full training. I thought it would be tough to jump back into a more strict workout routine, ensuring that some of the fun, “extracurricular” workouts are replaced with challenging runs, but I am actually thriving.

Maybe it’s because amidst lots of upcoming travel and work demands having this training plan makes just one thing in life simpler and clearer. Regardless the reason, I couldn’t be happier with training and am happier now that it’s back in my life. I’m sure I may have a different response ten weeks from now when the race is quickly approaching, but for now, I’m so excited for the half marathon and to see friends and family.

Even though we traveled to St. Petersburg, Russia Thursday through Sunday I was able to easily keep up with training and in fact, it helped motivate Bo and I to workout for an hour each day, helping balance out all the indulgent food and vodka.

Weekly Workout Recap – Savannah Half Marathon Training Week 11

Monday: Easy run + strides + yoga My lunch time run was easier than normal thanks to the final Serial episode and some new music. I kept a 9:34 pace which was probably faster than my easy run should be moving forward but it felt good. I ended the run with 5 20 second strides. Monday evening I met my friend for InnerCity Yoga’s relax yoga class. By the end of class I was pretty much melted onto the mat. It is one of the first yoga classes that leaves me feeling blissed out and relaxed versus sweating from pushing myself.

Tuesday: Spin After work we met a few of our friends for a hill filled 80’s night themed spin class at Spin Geneve. It’s been three weeks and I can already feel my legs getting stronger and my body becoming accustomed to the bike. It’s so nice to finally have a spin studio in Geneva!

Wednesday: Pick-ups This workout was a new one but a perfect way to beat treadmill boredom as the sleet and rain forced my early morning workout inside. The workout was 15 minutes of warm-up followed by 8 x 1 minute 80% effort intervals with a 1 minute 40% recovery in between. My 80% effort ended up being 8:12 pace with 9:30 for the recovery intervals. I finished with a 10 minute cool down and some much needed time on the foam roller.

Thursday: Long run As soon as we arrived at our hotel on Thursday Bo and I headed to the gym, intent to squeeze in at least a quick workout before dinner. I hopped on the treadmill for a 6 mile run. Having Bo’s company made the run fly by as we talked about St Petersburg and what we’d seen so far while I ran and he biked. My 9:41 pace didn’t feel easy but I was happy to have it done.

Friday: Strength Workout Jess put together two different body-weight strength workouts I will do each week during training. They look innocent on paper but by the end of the workout I was drenched in sweat. They high knees, lateral jumps and jump squats killed me! It helped me realize just how under-trained some aspects of my body are right now. I’m excited to see the improvements during the next ten weeks.

Saturday: Rest This was an active rest day as we walked more than five miles but it felt good to take a break from formal workouts. Our hotel’s spa special was too good to pass so I also enjoyed a 90 minute deep tissue massage, perfect for my sore legs.

Sunday: Strength Workout Bo and I did strength workout #2 together in the hotel gym after a warm-up on the elliptical and bike. Wall sits are my strength while jump lunges are my nemesis. Just like Friday’s experience with these body-weight plyometric workouts, my body was begging for mercy by the end.

So that’s a wrap. Week one or eleven, depending how you count, is finished and in the books!

How is your training going? What is a podcast or book that you enjoy for long runs or workouts?

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Greetings from St. Petersburg!

We are in love with St. Petersburg thus far and have enjoyed a packed afternoon and evening complete with a guided city tour with Best Guides St. Petersburg.

Due to how spread out St. Petersburg is and the unpredictable weather, our tour was primarily a driving tour though we stopped to walk around and tour four sites. The weather today was overcast and 29 degrees. Not nearly as cold as we expected when we booked this trip but definitely colder than Geneva.

Our tour guide and driver met us at the airport before we quickly headed off towards our first stop, Naval Cathedral of St. Nicholas.Built in 1743 it is known as the Sailors’ Cathedral due to it’s origin as a church for the naval regiment living in the area. As it is still an active church, there are no pictures allowed inside but the Russian Orthodox cathedral is decorated in the ornate, Baroque style inside. I found the below image online which gives you an idea of how the whole church looks. Interiors of St. Nicholas Cathedral in St Petersburg, Russia

Our next stop was Saint Isaac’s Cathedral, the largest Russian Orthodox Cathedral in the city and the fourth largest orthodox cathedral in the world! Completed in 1858, this Neoclassical church looked very different than St. Nicholas due the vibrant colors and architectural style. Since St. Petersburg is situated on a river delta, the foundation for the church was created by driving pylons into the ground!

Though the dove in the dome’s center looks small, it is actually over five feet wide! During the Siege of Leningrad during World War II the Russians painted the dome gray to camouflage it against the sky.

From here we headed towards the river bank to see the city from a different vantage point. All St. Petersburg’s rivers and canals, fully navigable in the Summer, freeze during the Winter, which is an incredible site.

Our final stop was Church of the Saviour on Spilled Blood, a church very different than any others in St. Petersburg. The church gets it’s unusual name from the fact that it was built over the same spot where Alexander II was assassinated in 1881. Unfortunately, these pictures don’t begin to do justice to the church’s beauty. The church was just reopened in 1997 after more than 30 years of restoration.

There are over 7,500 square meters of glass tile mosaics decorating the inside and outside of the church – more than any other church in the world. The bright, vibrant, colorful beauty of the church explains why the project ran horribly over budget. The interior especially, left us each in awe. There are multiple mosaics of Jesus surrounding you, from every angle, portraying him at different periods of his life.