August in review: 13 is my lucky number, again

Almost half of all my August training hours were spent in the saddle.

For two months in a row now, I’ve logged 13 bike rides and 13 runs. The rest of my training isn’t where I’d like it to be, but I’ll take this as an omen that this consistency with the bike and run will pay off eventually. Nothing like turning an unlucky number into something good, right?

Overall, August was a good month both for training and other. We kicked off the month celebrating a family wedding and spending time with other family in town for the party. I took a PTO day and rode my bike in a park I hadn’t been to in years. I had a running evaluation. I lounged by the pool (and enjoyed no small amount of sparkling rosé) with family and friends on many separate occasions. I ate a lot of brunches out (truly the best meal of the day). I went kayaking with my in-laws, ran a 5K, and enjoyed fresh veggies from our garden. I finally went to a Detroit Tigers baseball game. I slowly added run distance and even something resembling speed work occasionally.

Public school kids all went back today so there is definitely an “end of summer” feeling in the air. Summer took so long to get here with our super wet spring, I am already bummed that evening sunlight and warm temperatures will be over with before we know it. But, of course there are a lot of good things about fall to look forward to: apple cider, cool morning runs, etc. The years I was doing triathlons and a fall marathon, I would always move my long runs to Saturdays after the last tri of the year, which coincided perfectly with me becoming a football widow. I am hoping to get in at least one more Saturday outdoor ride this year!

August, you were good to me. As far as training numbers, it was:

Total bike time over the past 11 months.

Bike: 13 sessions, 3 road rides for a total of 88 real miles and 10 trainer session for 173.5 additional fake miles, for 17:55 total. That’s almost 18 hours in the saddle this month! It’s my best month as far as time in years. I had one more road ride this month compared to last month, which accounts for the additional time and real mileage. Not too shabby at all!

Total run time over the past 11 months.

Run: 13 sessions, all on the road, for 50.58 miles in about 9:18. This included a fun 5K, which also accounts for the uneven total mileage. The Type A personality in me always goes back and forth on ending the month on an even number or ending the last run of the month on an even number, and this month getting to 50 and then some won out. Since the race went well without having to take regular run intervals, I ran most of the rest of runs this month without them, only walking when I felt I needed to or when I needed a drink.

Weights: 5 sessions of 3 videos, 1 barre class, and 1 heavy/body session for about 5:25 total. Ideally I should be lifting twice a week but since this was consistent across the month, I can’t be too mad.

PT: 7 sessions of my new homework from my running evaluation for about 3:55 total. Most of these included 5 or so minutes rolling out my quads and calves afterward after I was advised they were all tight. I don’t know yet if it’s helping but it sure hurts when I’m doing it, which makes me think it is indeed necessary.

Yoga: Only one 15-minute session. Meh, I’m not happy about this. I’ve gotten out of my routine.

Total: 39 sessions in about 36:48 – the best month I’ve had so far this year, with the same number of sessions and three more minutes than June. Hooray!

Not everything is going awesomely, but I am feeling pretty good that I’m keeping up a good cycling routine, slowly rebuilding my run, lifting weights consistently, and settling into a PT habit. It’s given me a good base and helped me to have a good month training-wise. I’m hopeful I can build on that as we move into fall.