On Gyms, August and September

By | August 28, 2017

Exhale, I found a gym.

Yesterday’s plan was a follow up on Friday, however only the New York Sports Club at 49th & Broadway was open. It’s nice, and huge. But it’s way too much money. I just don’t want to spend $90/month on a gym no matter how close it is. Speaking of close, I went down to the Bryant Park Blink only to find it’s closed on Sundays.  Not all was lost, however, as I realized how easy it was from work, but also how close it was to the front end of the Times Square station so it’s even easier from home than the Sheraton. I went back at lunch today planning to join if I liked it, since it was looking like the best option.

I didn’t like it… I loved it. It’s larger than E. 54th, has rowing machines and generally seems better laid out. It also has towel service for an extra fee if I decide I really need/want it. Because it’s the end of the month, and/or a day that ends in Y, there was a good sale: $1 for August, September free and no joining fee. So I joined. Means I won’t pay double for the last month of Sheraton’s existence. I’m looking forward to starting there. Not today though, it was a mind blowingly beautiful 72 degrees at 6:30 so I went for a run in the park.

Never in my life did I envision calling two miles, even accidentally chunked, a mini run. Who am I? Had a realization over the last few weeks, quitting on the 30 minute goal is much like when I “quit” on Couch to 5K. While a program is good, I have to do things my way for them to work for me. I’ve had some of the best workouts these last few weeks and it’s liberating to just run vs. obsessing over the watch.  What’s that? It sounds like something I’ve been trying to learn through #GoTheDist? Guilty. Almost four miles with run group yesterday felt like barely half that and id I’d had time today I could have gone longer. August is obviously not final yet but with today’s run included I’m at the following:

  • 38.68 miles (278.82 on the year)
  • 27:13 average run time
  • 11:54 average pace

Thrilled with all of those. I’m making good progress.

Speaking of progress, August was to be my sixth month in a row at 400K and I was a little nervous at the end of July. When am I not nervous? Well month not final and all that jazz, but I’m going to have my best month ever. There’s a slim but technically possible chance I’ll hit 500K steps and might not miss goal for a single day. That’s all TBD when I get back from some time away as I’ve never learned to edit spreadsheets from my phone.

Since I’m already worried about September-setting those goals now.

  • 400,000 steps
  • 166 miles walked
  • 50 miles run / 30 m exercise time / 12:00 pace

[September 2016: 352, 423 steps / 144.75 miles walked.]

Some explanation – travel going to hit September hard so while I will push for more than 400K, I’ll be happy if I get there. Ditto miles walked, will keep me on pace for #RunTheYear although I’m currently OK at 1417.7. If run goals make no sense based on current pace, it’s this: I have a 10K that I’m training better for, but still don’t have a feel for long run pace, so that may bring it down. It may also help with the 30m average. Either way, I’d like to work toward that but not be beholden to it.

More to come on Q3 goals depending on where August totals net out. Oh, and it’s time to set a new fitbit goal. I think I want to see what a normal month looks like first before setting an exact figure because August was (wonderfully) ridiculous with the unseasonably mild weather. Leaning 12K, but may even go 13K since I averaged higher in spring. We’ll see

 

One thought on “On Gyms, August and September

  1. Pingback: TOTR: How Running Changed Me – travellingcari.com

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *