(Finally) September in review: Some running, a bit of biking, barre

First off, good luck to everyone running Chicago tomorrow! I have randomly been in Chicago twice over marathon weekend but have never run it. I will one of these days. Detroit is always a week or two afterward and I prefer to sleep in my own bed when possible. =)

OK, back to business. I was looking forward to life calming down a bit this past week so I could catch up on things like blogging and housework, but, alas, those areas are still neglected. So, of course, I'm wrapping up September rather than vacuum.

I really neglected PT in September and didn't make to the pool (again) at all, but other than that, it was a decent month training-wise considering how busy I was at work for the last few weeks. Outside of training and the office, I did manage a few fun things: My first duathlon over Labor Day weekend, hanging out and barbecuing with friends, going to a college football game, spending time with my sister-in-law when she was in town, and doing a lot of food prep. I did cook some fun things, like peach crisp and tomato sauce.

Even with all that excitement, it wasn't an easy month. I'm trying to make some big changes in my life and man, I know why people get complacent. Change is hard and it can suck. I am hoping to come out better and stronger, and hopefully with a schedule that allows for more regular training. I was too emotionally exhausted to work out or cook dinner on more than one occasion. But I've decided I can't accept things to continue the way they are, so there's nothing left to do but put my head down and keep trying. I'm being vague on purpose, but stay tuned.

Anyway. By the numbers, September included:

Run: 12 times, all on the road and 2 of those races (both runs of the duathlon), for 50 miles in about 9:12. I REALLY wanted another 50-mile month so I may have run/walked a little longer than I should have last Sunday, but my knee felt fine so I think it was OK.

August and September were both 50-mile months, but I did it more efficiently in September.

One thing I noticed: I ran 50-mile months the last two months, but I did it in a LOT less time in September — more than an hour less! This tells me that I am slowly improving as my knee gets better, successfully adding more running time and decreasing walking time. Slowly, slowly, slowly.

Bike: 9 times, 2 on the road (one race, the duathlon) and 7 trainer rides, for 35.88 road miles and 70 trainer miles in about 8:22. As the month went on I did fewer and fewer rides, and it was a significant decrease last month, so I'm chalking this up to a busy month.

PT/Rehab: Sigh. I only did PT 6 times in September for about 3:45 — terrible. This should be at least double. The more I do, the healthier my knee will be. But making the time is so, so hard.

Weights: 3 barre classes of about an hour each and ... that's it. That was what I could make work this month so that's what I did. At least I was somewhat consistent.

Yoga: I actually did some yoga! Just 2 sessions for 35 minutes total, but it was something.

Total: I did 32 sessions over the month for just less than 25 hours. It was still more than one per day, so I guess I can't be too mad.

Pretty much a third run/walk, a third bike, and a third other.

Looking back at the casual goals I made for myself at the beginning of the year, I can actually cross one off: Work through my health issues and re-start a training schedule that gets me back to racing. Working through my health issues will likely be a lifelong effort, but I did race in September. It was a tiny race but I still felt every bit of the exhilaration, fear, excitement, elation, and all the other emotions that make an appearance during a race. It was wonderful to be reminded why I love it so much.

October is already off to a great start. I'm looking forward to coming back in a month and sharing another successful monthly wrap-up.