This is a month of transitions, so of course we'll spend it growing and changing.

As we push ourselves to stay active, despite the darker, shorter days and the chill that enters the air, we should give thanks, all month long -- not just on a single day in the U.S. -- for the miracle of our living, breathing bodies.

We are maintainers moving through November

Friday, November 1st:

30 minutes StairMaster, sheer punishment -- I grabbed the rails during the last 10 minutes. The run yesterday must have used up my legs. Or maybe because the door was open because of the unseasonable warmth and the humidity was high. I don't do so well in high humidity.
60 minutes back & biceps routine

Great title, saef. Thank you.

I'm still on my hols in France. I am thankful I know how to stretch in the morning after a night in a strange bed, and how to stretch when my calves get tight and consequently my feet get cramp when I'm walking around. Also that the DB and the SO tell me to stand up straight when I'm tired. Good posture helps good breathing which supports optimism, I find more and more.

saef - Weather was miserable yesterday, so I didn't do my outside run. Instead I went to our back stairs and ran up and down for an hour (115 stairs). About 1/2 way through I was thinking about all the stairmaster hours you put in. I am SOOOO SORE today! How do you do it??

Friday November 1: 7 miles running (55:15)
60 minute yoga DVD
10 30 second squat stretches
30 minutes foam rolling

Saturday, Nov. 2nd:

Ran 4.27 miles, and it took me at least a mile to figure out how to run. It's not skipping, it's not galloping, it's more like bounding upward & forward. Why is this so difficult? It ought to come naturally. It didn't, not till I thought about leaping, and started using the music to help create a repetitive rhythm. All my time on gym machines has definitely affected my gait.
60 minute Pilates mat class

About the StairMaster, well, Jen, it's the toughest cardio machine at the gym, at least for me, personally. Burns the heck out of my quads but also my butt and hamstrings. The amazing thing is how very difficult it becomes progressively even though you aren't moving very fast. I don't remember how many floors I do, since I do a set time rather than a distance (this would be easy to note and write down, and I'll have to do that next time), but I do a random resistance program, set at level nine, for a half-hour, and the height of the climb gets upped considerably in the last eight minutes. I do it with my hands free. That's harder and a better workout. On those bad days we all have at the gym occasionally, when it wipes me out before my time is up, I hold the rails, which makes it easier, since my entire body weight isn't in my legs.

For some reason, high humidity or heat just knocks me out when I'm on this machine. I have seen my endurance affected by just those factors when I couldn't figure out what else was wrong that day.

November 1: 100 minutes bikram yoga

November 2: back to back bikram classes today 210 minutes total!

Totals:
3 workouts
310 minutes

November 2: 50 minutes weight lifting
30 minutes foam rolling
I was SOOO freaking lazy today and didn't do a 2nd workout so now I feel guilty, of course!


Saef, I can see where that is the hardest machine at the gym. As a runner, I thought that it wouldn't effect me too much. But 2 days later and it's actually my calves that are still aching!!

Sunday, Nov. 3rd:

The girl who opens up the gym on Sunday morning must have overslept, or not set her clock for daylight savings. She didn't show up when she was supposed to. There were fuming people checking their phones outside the doors of the gym, till we all left. But I went back later.

15 minutes StairMaster, resistance at nine, turns out that's enough time for me to climb 65 floors (I believe a floor is 10 steps, at least in the real world). It's my warmup for weights
60 minutes biceps, triceps and shoulders routine
45 minute spin class

November 3: 17.28 miles running (2:28:06) - wussed out - wanted to do 18!!
45 minutes foam rolling
10 30 second squat stretches

Friday, November 1: 1 mile treadmill warmup, pullups, chinups, DB bench press, Roman chair leg raises, seated leg press, DB shoulder press

Saturday, November 2: Free 45 minute Zumba class, free 45 minute beginner yoga class

Sunday, November 3: Went to 90 minute aromatherapy vinyasa flow/meditation yoga class w/same teacher as Saturday

Monday, November 4: 6 min warmup on stair stepper. DB shoulder press, tried barbell deadlifts @ 65# but it hurt rather badly, DB bent over rows, calf raises, Roman chair leg raises.

Monday, November 4th:

45 minute spin class with weight intervals. I do like these 6 AM classes better than the 7:30 PM classes. There's something about checking something off the to-do list immediately in the morning that helps me with getting on with the rest of the day.

November 3: still fighting a cold so I went to one bikram class instead of the two I debated. The one class was as good as the two I did together on saturday! Good and sweaty!

100 minutes

Totals:
4 workouts
410 minutes

November 4: p90X Kempo DVD
30 minutes foam rolling
squat stretches

Tuesday, November 5th:

30 minutes on StairMaster, the usual, which is resistance at nine, random intervals, hands-free. For the first time, I looked at the distance. That's 131 floors.
60 minutes shoulders, chest and triceps routine

I had a sore left trapezius today. I've no idea why. Working out actually made it less stiff.

11/5: 2 miles of walking/running with 60 modified pushups mixed in (used top rail of trail fences for hands/body at a slant, with feet slightly apart).

Found out this morning a member of my church was hit by a car and killed last night while out running It was at around 6pm and with the time change it was really dark already. Such sad thing and a reminder for us runners/walkers/bikers to always be alert, especially when we're on the roads/crossing streets.