Zenaida Arroyo

20
Jun
2017

Scenes from my gym

categories: Running, Tuesdays on the Run

Last month I joined a new gym – Fitness Formula Club. Not only do I like it but I LOVE it! I’ve been going a few times already and pretty much have figured it out.

The two locations I go to are South Loop and West Loop. South Loop is closer to my house, has one floor, does not get crowded, and is located closer to the parking lot. West Loop has an indoor and outdoor pool and has two floors. Both locations offer free 2 hour parking.

As a new member, I received 4 “free” personal training sessions. I did have to pay a “more than I wanted to pay” enrollment fee. But if I go at least 36 times within 90 days of signing up, I get back my enrollment fee in FF Bucks which I can use for spa services (massage, manicure, pedicure, facial) or more personal training sessions. Love it!

Now let’s look inside the gym and the locker room.

Lots of counter space and plenty of mirrors.

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Rows and rows of lockers.

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Love that my big water bottle fits here and I can fill it up to the top.

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Each locker has its own lock that you can set with your combination number.

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There is body lotion, cotton balls, and arm deodorizer. The showers also have shampoo, conditioner, and body gel.

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A hair dryer AND a flat iron.

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Lots of towels to use for your workout and to shower.

You can order a smoothie and/or lunch to eat onsite or take it with you. They always have smoothie samples and they’re delicious.

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- Plenty of treadmills, bikes, ellipticals.

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- - Free computers and a TV.

- A variety of group fitness classes to choose from throughout the day. Depending on the location, the earliest will be 5:15 am and the latest will be at 7:30 pm.

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- - The outside pool. I know you cannot really see it but it is there.

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A bathing suit spinner/wringer and bags to take said bathing suit home.

So, can you tell I am excited about it? This summer they have a great referral program. If a friend joins by June 30th, you get a free month of membership.

Do you have a gym membership? How often do you go? Do you like it?

I am linking up with Marcia, Erika, and Patti for today’s Tuesdays on the Run.

TuesdaysOnTheRun

18
Jun
2017

Road to BQ Week #12

categories: Boston Marathon, Brooks Running, Hansons Training, Running, Weekly Recap

As mentioned in this post, I’m attempting to get my own BQ. I am excited to be training using again the Hansons Method. In a nutshell, this training is based on the concept of cumulative fatigue. You train your body to run often so that you are frequently running on tired legs. The idea is to run this way so that during the last miles of a race you are prepared to push through the final miles. I purchased a new Hansons Method Marathon Plan and now will be running 5 days (instead of 6) a week.

Week #12, June 12-18

M Ran 5.02 Miles
T Ran 5.79 Miles
W OFF
TH Ran 5.02 Miles
F OFF
S Ran 5.02 Miles
S Did not run

Another great week of running! The weather here was HOT in Chicago so I did my runs at the gym. I love my gym! It is never crowded, smells nice, and is clean. As part of my new enrollment, I received 4 free personal training sessions. I met with my trainer last week and we talked about my goals (work on upper body and core). She also took my measurements. I met with her again Tuesday and Wednesday and we went over some exercises and machines to help me work on my core and upper body. I was able to use one of my sessions for a one-on-one swimming lesson which I did on Thursday. My coach was helpful and patient – just what I need. I am going to sign up for more sessions but those I have to pay on my own.

I will confess that I just recently “discovered” Quest bars. I mean I’ve heard of them but never had one till Monday. Wow, they’re delicious but not cheap.

I received my prize from one of Erica’s giveaways. <<She honestly has the best ones.

I love my new swim cap. The flip flops are great too. I wrote about them HERE.

By Friday the weather has cooled enough for me to run outside. Again, struggled with running at my “easy” pace between 12:22-13:22.

Total mileage for the week: 20.85 miles
Total mileage for this training cycle: 259.82 miles
Total mileage for the year: 308.01 miles

I’m linking up with Holly and Tricia for their Weekly Wrap and Courtney for her Training Recap Link Up!

Hoping everyone had a good week!

16
Jun
2017

After the Utah Valley Half Marathon

categories: Adventure, Fun, Running, Travel

You can read my race recap HERE.

After the race, we went back to the hotel, showered, got ready, and went to Red Robin for lunch. I was craving a burger and a beer. I was too hungry to take pictures but it was delicious!!

Then we went to Bridal Veil Falls. It was gorgeous!! I was not brave enough to climb the rocks to get closer to the falls.

Then we had some time to rest before our next adventure – ziplining! It was so much fun!! But I will admit that I was nervous. I’ve been ziplining once about 6 years ago.

I was scared! I kept thinking of all things that could go wrong. I know, crazy! I knew that the only way to get over that fear was to volunteer to be one of the first ones to go. I was also worried about the hand brake (afraid I would not brake in time) but the first time is the “hardest” one and then the rest was easy. I became a pro and would have zip lined the rest of the day!!

Afterwards we were hungry again and decided to eat Mexican food. Well, that turned out to be an adventure. Mexican food and margaritas go together, right? Someone suggested “Los Hermanos” in Provo. Well, it turned out they only had non alcoholic beverages. I searched Yelp and called two more places but neither had alcoholic beverages. Finally, we went to Joe Vera’s. Yes, margaritas with tequila! The food was OK. I ordered a dish with one taco and two tostadas. However, the tostadas had so much stuff on top of it (chicken, beans, guacamole, sour cream) that it was soggy and I couldn’t eat it the way a tostada should be eaten.

The next day was my flight back home. Marcia, Mary Beth, and I went downstairs for breakfast. Then it was time for the whirlpool to relax before my ride to the airport.

The weekend went by fast but it was still a wonderful trip!

Ever been to Utah? Ziplining? Where?

14
Jun
2017

Utah Valley Half Marathon

categories: Race all 50 states, Race Recap, Running, Travel

State #37 is in the books! And here’s how it went.

Pre-Race
I was looking forward to this race because I was meeting up with some blogger friends. My flight left Chicago at 6am and then I had a short layover in Denver. Then my flight left again at 9:25 am and I landed in Salt Lake City at 11am. There I met up with Mary Beth and then waited for Marcia to arrive before we picked up our rental car and made our way over to Provo.

Once in Provo we had lunch and then checked into our hotel. Then we went to the expo to meet up with the rest of the bloggers. Afterwards we went to California Pizza Kitchen for dinner and then back to the hotel to get ready for the race. Plus it had been a long traveling day and I was tired.

L to R: Judy, Marcia, Mary Beth, Holly, me, Teresa Photo credit: Holly Wilson

About the Race
The race starts at Provo Canyon and it was mostly downhill. I was excited about it but knew that it would mean trouble because the quads would not be happy about it. It is also a point to point course and there were buses taking us to the start line as well as from the finish line back to the parking lot where we left the car.

Pre-Race
The race began at 6am. That meant a 3am wake up call to get ready, drive to the mall parking lot, and get on a bus to take us to the start line. It was in the high 50s which was nice but it was cold in the canyon. We still had to wait about an hour for the race to start. Those two things are my only complaints: 1) early wake up call and 2) long wait time for the race to start.

I drank 16 ounces (two servings) of Pomegranate Blueberry Generation UCAN at 6:30 am and filled up my two small water bottles with Berry UCAN Hydrate.

Gear
Oiselle Long Roga Shorts, Oiselle Flyout Tank, Pro Compression Socks, Headsweats Race Hat, Brooks Launch 4

The Race
It was still chilly once the race began and I started running with a jacket. The plan was to toss it once I was hot but I ended up wrapping it around my waist. I just couldn’t bear leaving it on the course. I never got too hot because the course through the canyon was shaded and the sun was behind us.

The course was mostly downhill with some inclines and flat areas. But the flat areas didn’t really matter because the downhills really take a toll on your legs.

I was doing really good for 9 miles and then my quads couldn’t take it anymore. The last 4 miles were my slowest (13:17, 13:38, 13:04, and 12:12).

The view was AMAZING! I took some walking breaks and soaked it all in. I’ve run in over 30 different states and this by far has the best views.

Post Race
I’m pleased with how this race went. My “A” goal was to finish under 2:30 and “B” goal under 2:45. My finish time is 2:34:59. I did not train properly for this race. My longest run was 10 miles so I knew I was not going to PR.

I did feel very sore for the rest of the day but that didn’t stop me from doing other fun activities (going to Bridal Veil Falls and Ziplining).

L to R: Mary Beth, Marcia, Holly, Teresa, me Photo credit: Teresa Bird

Final Thoughts
I am glad I ran this race. I don’t mind traveling and running a race alone but it is so much better and fun with more people. The race was well organized, with plenty of water stations and the volunteers were wonderful. There weren’t too many spectators (once we left the canyon) along University Avenue leading to the finish line.

The weather was perfect too! We definitely did not get the heat wave that hit Chicago and other parts of the country during that time.

I love races that give out free photos! There is a video that goes with the photo of me crossing the finish line. I couldn’t upload it here but it was cool to see it.

11
Jun
2017

Road to BQ Week #11

categories: Boston Marathon, Brooks Running, Hansons Training, Race all 50 states, Running, Weekly Recap

As mentioned in this post, I’m attempting to get my own BQ. I am excited to be training using again the Hansons Method. In a nutshell, this training is based on the concept of cumulative fatigue. You train your body to run often so that you are frequently running on tired legs. The idea is to run this way so that during the last miles of a race you are prepared to push through the final miles. I purchased a new Hansons Method Marathon Plan and now will be running 5 days (instead of 6) a week.

Week #11, June 5-11

M Ran 5.02 Miles
T Did not run
W Ran 5.12 Miles
TH Ran 5.02 Miles
F Did not run
S Ran 13.10 at the Utah Valley Half Marathon
S Did not run

I decided to do the Lake Michigan Marathon on September 3rd. I have not registered for it (cannot imagine it selling out) and am excited to train for it.

Monday’s run went great! Faster than I was supposed to but it must have been the weather or knowing that Tuesday was the last day of school.

Finally on Summer Break!!! My last day was Tuesday but I feel like I’ve been off for weeks (I am currently in Utah in vacation mode). I was done by 4pm and waited for two of my coworkers to finish up before heading out to eat and drink. A different room will be waiting for me in August.

I did not run on Tuesday but instead did my workout on Wednesday. I did not want to get up because I wanted to cuddle with Lola. My workout was 2M Warm Up, 10×1 min @95% effort w/90 sec jog rest, and 2M Cool Down (done at the gym). It went better than expected! I love that I am able to set up my workouts on Garmin Connect and then have it sync to my phone.

On Thursday I went back to the gym for a tempo run. In total I ran 5.02 miles (1M Warm Up, 3 Mile Tempo, and 1M Cool Down).

Friday was a travel day to Utah where I met a few bloggers and then Saturday I ran the Utah Valley Half Marathon. I am planning to have a recap soon. It was a fun but challenging race. The course was beautiful but it was mostly downhill and my legs were sore and tired by mile 9. I got a beautiful jacket instead of a shirt. I love the colors!

Total mileage for the week: 28.26 miles
Total mileage for this training cycle: 238.97 miles
Total mileage for the year: 287.16 miles

I’m linking up with Holly and Tricia for their Weekly Wrap and Courtney for her Training Recap Link Up!

Hoping everyone had a good week!