You guys know I’m quite a fan of interval workouts at the gym. The mixing of fast and slower recovery paces helps me fight boredom and totally kicks my booty at the same time.
But what if you want to do running intervals and you hate the treadmill? What if you don’t have a gym membership or are traveling and don’t have access to cardio equipment?
That’s when it’s time to hit the pavement for outdoor intervals!
Today the thought of completing a cardio workout inside sounded completely dull. I wanted to take Sadie running outside, but also had the desire to change things up a bit.
Thought we completed our usual five mile loop, we spent the last two miles doing interval work.
To do this, we ran at our normal pace and then when the chorus of a song began blasting on my iPod, we’d run at a much faster pace before returning to our normal pace once the chorus was over. It was tough!
This interval work could easily be altered into a less-intense workout by walking the verses of a song and then jogging or speed walking the chorus of the song if you’re just breaking into interval or running workouts. Or you could walk the verses and then sprint the choruses! There are clearly lots of different ways to do outdoor intervals.
Breakfast
When I arrived home from my run, I was hungry but didn’t want to make breakfast until Ryan got home from the gym.
About two weeks ago, I received a package in the mail from Gatorade with samples from their G Series FIT line of lower-calorie products developed specifically for fitness-minded people to help them fuel before, during and after workouts.
Even though I just finished a run, I wanted to try the 01 Prime Energy Bites, intended to be taken before a workout. I figured a quality combination of protein and carbs is always good, even after a workout, so I popped in a cranberry pistachio-flavored bite!
Though it was a little dry, the flavor was good. I think these bites would be a great option for people who want to eat something before a workout, but don’t want to take a lot of time to prep or plan a meal.
The pop ‘n’ go style of the bites is very convenient! At only 50 calories a bite, I like how you can eat one or four, controlling your portion size. I tend to cramp up before a workout if I eat a ton, so limiting myself to one or two of these seems like a great way to get some energy without overloading my stomach.
Once Ryan came home, we took Sadie on a one-mile walk around our neighborhood before making his and hers strawberry banana smoothies.
Special thanks to Alyssa for this adorable glass!
In the mix (for one smoothie):
- 1 c. milk
- 1 1/2 frozen banana
- 1 c. strawberry banana Chobani Greek yogurt
Oh gosh, this was so creamy!
Now that I have some food in my belly, Ryan and I are off to run some errands and sort through some stuff in preparation for our big move in a month an a half. We’re trying to get an early start on boxing up our belongings and cleaning so we’re not in a mad dash to do everything at the last minute. Hopefully being proactive will pay off!
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