We sat at breakfast one Wednesday morning, and I was recapping the previous night’s Team in Training run with my then 3-year-old son. He listened carefully as I talked about our tempo run, and seemed deep in thought as he ate his oatmeal. “Is running your job?” he asked between bites. “No,” I explained. “I’m…
Category Archives: fitness
Racing Against Yourself
Every magazine, every blogger, every coach says the same thing about running: “You are your only competition.” It doesn’t matter if you’re an Olympic athlete or the person who limps their way across the finish line as the course is closing. Are you stronger, faster or better than you were yesterday? Being Type A, I…
The New Project
I’ve made some references to a new project on the horizon, and it’s finally here. Ladies and gentlemen, I’d like to introduce my new blog: What Would Betty Do? As you’ve probably noticed, a significant number of my blog posts were about food, fitness and my Team in Training progress. The new blog will allow…
Training: Major Improvement, Week 9
I went into my training program assuming that I’d never progress past the runwalking that I’d always done. Eight weeks ago, we did a one mile benchmark run to test our speed, and I struggled to run for the full mile. On Tuesday, we repeated the timed mile and… well, you’ll have to scroll down…
Training: Uphill Week 8
The cold or allergy attack or whatever it was that thwarted last weekend’s run was still rearing its ugly head as I kicked off week 8. I took it slow on Monday, but then decided to show the cold no mercy and fight back with hill sprints on Tuesday night. The Plan Monday, 7/12: 30…
Training: Unlucky Week 7
Anyone who says that you can still work out with a cold has evidently not done battle with the one that’s rattling around in my ears, nose and throat. Four days into it and I’m neither worse, nor better, aside from being vastly more frustrated and restless. The Plan Monday, 7/5: 30 minute easy run…
Another Week in the Books
I’ve logged another training week, including an all-exciting 4th of July 5-K race, my first ever, so a personal record by default! First, the recap: The Plan: Monday, 6/28: Scheduled rest Tuesday, 6/29: Kickboxing Wednesday, 6/30: Running and strength circuits Thursday, 7/1: Kickboxing Friday, 7/2: Scheduled rest Saturday, 7/3: 30 minutes of non-running activity Sunday,…
A Week of Training
I realize that not everyone wants to see the details of my workouts on a daily basis, so now that you’re all fairly certain that I’m following the plan, I’ll give a week-in-review recap on Mondays. The Plan Monday 6/21: 30 minute run Tuesday 6/22: Kickboxing Wednesday 6/23: Running hills Thursday 6/24: Kickboxing Friday 6/25:…
Food as Fuel
Food is fuel. Intellectually, I know this. And of course, logically, the healthier I eat the more efficiently my body will operate. Sometimes I forget this. Thursday was one of those days. Because the boy wanted pasta for dinner, I made a batch and reheated a couple of frozen meatballs for him. I went meatless…
I Don’t Wanna
For the first time in weeks, I had an “I don’t wanna” morning. There I was, dressed in my running gear, and absolutely, utterly unmotivated to do anything. But because there is a plan on paper, and I’m a type-A, need-to-meet-my-goals kind of girl, I had to do something. That something was hill training. I…