Monthly Archives: February 2010

The Four Mile Focus

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This winter my running mileage tapered off and as I got back into building my base I landed on and stuck with four mile routes and routines for a couple weeks. Three just wasn’t enough and for some reason I didn’t have the time or the motivation to get much beyond four. I know that doing the same thing over and over can sometimes minimize results and effectiveness but I used my four mile runs as a way to experiment and achieve more out of each run. By using four miles as my distance I had a good measurement of what I could achieve in those four miles; I either improved or I didn’t. I wasn’t trying to add miles, I was trying to make those four miles as good as they could possibly be. Continue reading →

Pulling Up, Spin Class Tactics

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With all the snow on the ground and the need to log time on the bike, spin class is an ideal solution for getting in a good ride. In fact, I probably push harder in spin class than I do when I’m out riding on my own. There is a trained instructor who guides an intense work-out and the combination of hills, surges, speedwork, lifts, and steady climbs makes for an incredible 60 minutes on the stationary bike; plus there is the added bonus of what are usually great playlists made by the instructors!

Though I’ve been attending spin classes for a few years now, I do not consider myself an ‘advanced level’ spinner. I only go 1-2 times each week and I have very specific goals each time I go. 1.) Build better endurance to use the higher gears longer and 2.) Improve my form. I am sure there are plenty of articles and blogs out there with great advice on how to achieve these things and I will definitely be seeking them out. In the meantime, I thought I’d share the few things I’ve figured out that seem to be effective spin class tactics. Continue reading →

Big Vanilla Blunders: One Gym Member’s Comments

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I joined the Big Vanilla gym in Arnold in January 2006 during a typical New Year’s resolution high and at the time happily signed a two-year family contract for my husband and myself that seemed to be the best deal they had to offer. The Big Vanilla is extremely convenient to where I live–I can get there in about 5 minutes–and my membership is inclusive of the lap pool, spin classes, pilates classes, racquetball courts, and an enormous spread of treadmills, stationary bikes, elliptical machines, weight machines, and free weights. All of these perks are bundled into my family monthly membership of $79. Since joining in 2006 I’ve really not had much I could complain about. Sure, I could nitpick, no gym is perfect, but there hasn’t been anything that really pushed my buttons…until now. Continue reading →

Winter Work-out Rollercoaster

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It’s been a couple months since I last wrote and despite my neglect of my blog, I haven’t entirely neglected my winter work-out plan…although it hasn’t exactly gone according to schedule. In November I ran the Richmond Marathon with a PR and had high hopes of maintaining my running base while re-building my swim and bike base and blending in reasonable sets of weight work-outs. My running plan was to run three times a week, with an easy 3-5 mile run, a speed work-out, and a hill work-out. The reason for this is because my goal this year for the Cooper River Bridge Run is to complete the 10K with an 8-minute pace (and beat my husband).

When I look back at my RunningAhead log, I did pretty well with my goals immediately after the race. I took a well deserved break the week immediately following the marathon with just one pilates class that week. I then did a good job maintaining five days of work-outs weekly alternating runs with swims and added sessions of pilates–something I missed terribly during the height of marathon training. And then December came and from the looks of the log, holiday season hit in full swing. Continue reading →