A Newish Car and Fitness Goals That are not Running Related

The way I felt two weeks ago, was bad.... I felt really sorry for myself... So to cheer myself up I bought a new car! (It's slightly used, and we had been saving for a second car anyway)

Fiat 500L. 

So whenever I feel bummed out and want to go for a run.  I will hop in the car and go for a short drive.  And I have started lifting weights again (more on that later)

In my last post, I said that I would take two whole weeks off from running..... Yeah, I made it one whole week, and then last Friday (Dec 9th), when my foot was feeling okay. I went for a short 2.5 mile run, and then I did some lower body work in the gym.  My run felt okay. To be honest, my foot hurt a little during the first mile, but once I warmed up it felt okay. I even did a little tempo pace towards the end. Well, that night my foot hurt so bad I thought I had a stress fracture......  The rest of the weekend went by quickly (bought the car, decorated the Christmas tree, and did my best not to wallow in self-pity) My plan moving forward is to not run for the rest of the month, probably the first week of January will be off limits as well.

I met with a PT (I work in higher ed, and we have several PT faculty on campus, so I got a free exam, but no ultrasound or x-rays were involved.  When she examined my foot on Tuesday (Dec 12th) I was asymptomatic (no symptoms).  Which is great.   There doesn't appear to be a fracture.  I'm going to be on an ibuprofen regimen for the next month, and I guess we will take it from there.

Fitness Goals

I have a new attitude this week,  and although I can't run I can still lift weights.   When I was younger I used to lift weights 4-5 times a week, and I had a very strong upper body. I used to admire fitness Olympia competitors and bodybuilders.

Oxygen magazine used to be my jam.

I do realize that lean look comes with strict dieting. Which is something I could never do.  But, I did enjoy feeling strong.

Over the years running has taken a priority, over lifting and it's no surprise that getting older has its side effects as well.  My weight doesn't swing back and forth too much, but it seems like I will be gaining and losing the same 10lbs for the rest of my life.... Being a little bit heavier I think may have contributed to my arch collapsing/ tendon strain.... The lighter I am the less stress I put on my feet.  I blame this year's diet complacency on being in school and being more stressed.

For the next few weeks, I plan to spend my time in the gym, just working on strength and flexibility.  Last week I managed to work out five times.  I'm hoping to hit as many days this week.  Here's a sample workout of what I do in the gym.

Flat bench dumb bell presses
One armed rows
V-ups
Weighted glute bridges
Dumb bell overhead shoulder presses
Crunches on an exercise ball
Lateral double shoulder raises
Concentration curls
Calf raises (body weight only)
Plank walkouts
Alternating one legged planks
Donkey kicks
Dorsal back machine
Vertical Press
Quad extension machine
Side Planks 

Wheel pose

I'm a competitive person so, I do better when I have a benchmark to achieve or a goal to attain.
So here are a few concrete goals and one or two lofty ones....

Bench Press 95lbs  (Earlier this week I did 85lbs for reps)

Hanging Chin ups.  (I used to be able to do 3-4, but now even one is a struggle)

Increase groin and hip flexibility.

Increase calf strength.

Lose 7-8 lbs.  (Too much eating and drinking over the summer months ) My goal weight is 122lbs
This will make the chin up goal easier to attain.


Clean up my diet.  Instead of trying to lose weight fast, I'm going to shoot for 1/2 a pound to a pound a week. I still have to get through the holiday's and since I'm not running on the weekend mornings, I have had more time to bake.

Bolios with milk chocolate inside

Gingerbread cookies with the kids

Obviously after the holiday's it will be easier to resist temptation...


I'm looking forward to getting back on the roads.  But, I'm starting to appreciate the strength work in the gym.  I worked my butt off after I had my daughter (2013) and I was really able to change the way my body looked just from lifting more., and it led to faster times on the road.  I'm ready to put in the work to become a more well-rounded stronger runner.


Thank you for reading!