Monday, December 13, 2010

Motivation Monday

Good morning and happy Monday! I hope you all had a great weekend. I spent much of it snowed in. The snow they predicted arrived with a vengeance so driving was out of the question. We got around 17" of snow so it was quite the dumping! I was so bummed as I am not sure when I will meet my friends baby's and I won't be home for Christmas so it was my only opportunity to see my Grandma. But safety comes first!

Winter is definitely upon us. We have basically had snow or freezing rain every weekend for the last 5 weekends. We certainly did not ease into winter this year! Every year, I get sort of down this time of year. It's tough to get out and about and I am not a fan of running in these conditions.

This year, though, I really want to try to take advantage of the winter weather and find ways to be active. I am sort of a klutz by nature, so running on snow covered paths is a recipe for disaster, but there are other ways to get my sweat on! Here's what I plan on doing this winter:

  • Ice skating - When the Barrister and I ice skated a couple of weeks ago, I was surprised to find that I was sore the next day. I had so much fun doing it - and was so focused on staying up right - I didn't realize I was getting a work out. I felt it the next day in my glutes and ham strings so I know those muscles were engaged. Those are my weak areas, so I am hoping to skate more this winter - and the best part is that it's totally free!
  • Snow shoeing - I want to look into getting some used snow shoes so that I can go for walks on the trails in my neighborhood. I live close to a nature preserve with lots of trails. I think it would be fun to go snow shoeing on a winter day!
  • Cross country skiing - I plan on renting cross country skis and hitting some of the local trails with one of my best friends that lives here. She will have a baby any day and wants to find ways to be active in the winter so we are going to try this out in January. I haven't x-country skied since I was in Colorado so I am looking forward to doing it again!

I figure by focusing on the FUN activities I CAN do, instead of the activities I can't do, maybe I won't get as down/frustrated by the cold and snow.

Hi: Weighing myself and discovering that my weight has not changed, post-marathon. I was a bit shocked as I am not working out nearly as much... but I am also not eating nearly as much so I guess it is all balanced out!

Lo: I didn't get as many workouts in this week as I would have liked - and this coming week is going to be even worse since I have plans on Mon, Wed, Thur, and Fri nights...

19 comments:

Jess said...

I was reading about the weather in your part of the world yesterday! Sounds crazy! Though, if it's make you feel any better, I swear we've had weather just like that since the beginning of November. And, so, so cold!

Cross country skiing is a great workout in my opinion. So many people (I'm guilty of it too) use the cold weather as an excuse to not work out, so good for you for looking for ways to use the cold weather to your workout advantage!!

Emily Jane said...

Winter is definitely here too and it's made me really want to go into hibernation - this weekend it was -36!! I'm hoping for a few milder days over the next few months so I can go ice skating, or at least make a snowman :)

Jess said...

That right there is why I don't live further north. Because I cannot handle that much snow. *shudder* Give me a couple inches a few times a year and I'm good. Last year, the snow we had here in DC? SO NOT COOL.

Raquelita said...

We got 15" in my neck of the woods. Definitely won't be running outside for awhile, as some of the drifts are hip-high. Fortunately I have a treadmill and am just working on maintaining a good base and getting a little faster before the next training cycle truly begins.

That's great that your weight hasn't budged!

Becky said...

Holy crap! 17 inches?! Wow! I guess that makes for a lot of good reading time right?!

Mandy said...

Truth: I don't think I would survive a Minnesota winter. Snow shoeing sounds like it would be fun. I've never been. When it snows I go to work and thats about it. Even as a kid I never really loved playing in the snow.

The Many Thoughts of a Reader said...

I always loved ice skating as a kid but I hate going places besides my parents back yard to do it now because of the large crowds.. (helllloooo klutz here haha) I had an ice skating date in college once and almost took out a little kid.. whoops haha. i also like cross country skiing, if the sun is out and the weather is at least in the 30s hahaha. we got snow this weekend too, and i got a snow day so I am enjoying another day looking out at the beautiful snow. debating if i want to go out in the freezing temps

Leigh said...

I heard about your weather this morning on my drive to work. Craziness!

I haven't been ice skating in so long! We went cross country skiing last winter and it's quite the work out!

Marlys said...

Now let's just home the temperatures warm up some so you can do those outside activities!

Amber said...

There is a local group here that goes snow shoeing a couple times a week so I am hoping to join them soon!

Cross-country skiing is a GREAT workout!! I haven't done it for so long but it would be fun :)

Great idea to focus on activities you CAN do in this cold, winter weather!

J said...

I can't wait to go snowshoeing! We tried this weekend but the snow as melting :(

Sarah said...

I think that's a great idea: focusing on what you can do as opposed to all the things you can't.
My high: working out everyday starting on Tuesday. I'm sooo proud of myself, it's ridiculous! lol
My low: Permanent tiredness. I'm staying up way too late, and it's messing up my entire day. It's not good. :(

Kelly (She Wears a Red Sox Cap) said...

I am also trying to embrace the winter weather this year- though clearly by my messages to you on Sat I'm not doing that yet. I love ice skating and this year my goal is to try snow shoeing at least once!

crystal said...

Oooh, I really want to go snowshoeing!! Im going to go look for used ones right now :)

Nora said...

ooo, snow shoeing! that would be fun/interesting! If you do it, you should take some photos as I'm sure it's totally beautiful :)

Stephany said...

Wow, so much snow! I most definitely wouldn't want to run in that but snow shoeing sounds like a lot of fun! :)

Caroline said...

Wow 17" that's awesome! I've never snowshoed before but I think it would be really fun! In the wintertime, I like to ice skate and snowboard : )

Lauren @ Sassy Molassy said...

Dang girl, you are busy!! I guess most of my nights are jam packed too but usually its with a running thing. I find myself having serious trouble if I have to give up my workout for something social. Basically, it's an issue I need to work on. Be more flexible!!

Those all sound like fun workouts. I'd love to do more xcountry skiing but it takes an hour or so to get to the snow so it's a bit harder. Snowshoeing is one of the things I want to do next week when we're back in Michigan!

Stay warm and have fun!

Jolene - EverydayFoodie said...

Those are fun winter activities - except the cross country skiing, because I can never figure out how to get going!