Skip to main content

Happy Monday / St. Patty's Day!

\
Happy St. Patty's Day! Its a beautiful day to run stairs right? Riiiight? 
I mean, what else would you be doing? Apparently, you'd be flashed by a leprechaun, that's what, and probably much worse. Nobody has time to be flashed by a leprechaun. Here's a suggestion. Run stairs!

I woke up Monday with an urge to run--specifically, to do stair sprints. I wanted to run stairs to completely exhaust myself and empty the tank and finally fulfill this nagging feeling I have had. I felt like my little inner child was tugging at me saying, "can we run stairs today please? Its so nice out, and you had a rest day yesterday, can we please". No kid in their right mind would ask to run stairs, but today it seems like playing outside is more of a rare privilege than an expectation--so of course I gave in. Monday was an absolutely gorgeous day and perfect for an outdoor workout at Mt. Bonnell in Austin, TX (with a later workout at the Golds Gym downtown). If you don't want to run stairs (first of all why not?) you can just walk. Its just a short climb to the top and for those looking for a spot to chill out and watch the sunset, Mt. Bonnell is the best spot in Austin. 
Here's the starting line: 

After a quick stretch, I hit the stairs, sprinting full speed ahead, two at a time when I could. Careful though, its a bit rocky. Which I love! I absolutely love running full speed down a rocky trail...call me crazy. Ok, we're about half way there, just a few more stairs past the top curve and we're done with round 1.

We made it! Mt. Bonnell is definitely worth the climb. I burst up the stairs, already panting and breathing heavy to find couples and families soaking up the scenery and enjoying the view. I jogged around to check out the view and avoid breaking the relaxing atmosphere with my gasps for air. Here's a birds eye view of downtown Austin. 
 


One down, 7 more to go. After a few more rounds, I was more winded than I expected. Sprinting steep stairs is a killer workout. I took a few minutes to fully recover between runs, then hit the stairs again. Then finally, 1 more picture for the road. Look! I can see Russia from here! Oh, no wait that's just the 360 bridge. See it? Its the little arch just past the curve in the river.
I'll definitely be back for more stairs, but for now, some St. Patty's Day Grub and Green Beer with the girls. Looks like a heart rite? Ciao! Stay fit my friends!



Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

Monday's Workout

Hope Everyone had a lovely weekend and a good start to the week. After work, I squeezed in a much needed snack and a power nap before hitting the box.  Here it is Ladies Monday Nite's Crossfit WOD.  warm up/midline: 3x 2 laps 20 ab mat sit ups strength: back squats 1) 10-8-6-4-2 working up each set 2) 3 x 10reps kb dead lifts (70/53) jumping air squats plyo lunges high knee skips broad jumps metcon: 12-9-6 (10 min time cap) thrusters (95/65)rx (115/75)rx+ burpee box jump overs (24/20)rx (30/24)rx+ I'm usually dying after every workout, but this one had me stumped. Hitting the metcon after plyos is no joke so pace yourself ;) 
Read on for more goodness

Strawberry Fields Forever

Have you ever picked your own strawberries? As a kid growing up in Germany, we would take school trips to the strawberry fields and pick baskets of strawberries. There were rows and rows of big, red juicy strawberries ripe for the picking and eating. :) We'd fill up our little baskets till our fingers were stained pink. By the time we reached the end of the row, we'd have eaten almost as many berries as we picked and have to start again. Its been years since then and thankfully, my baby found a farm near the house where we could pick our own berries. How fun! I felt like a kid again, hunting for the juiciest berries and leaving the little ones to grow. Together we harvested a hardy basketful for dessert--perfect for a frozen yogurt topping. Do Tell...... Where do you pick your strawberries? What's your favorite way to eat strawberries?
Read on for more goodness

SXSW Fitness!

  SXSW Interactive starts this week to kick off the SXSW film and music festivals. If you plan on attending the slew of cocktail parties, surprise celebrity shows, and all the amazing Austin food and craft beer you can drink then cheers to you! For these next two weeks, enjoy all all out sensory feast and for those of you Fitness Evangelists out there, until #SXSW has more input from the fitness community then check out these fitness offering during your stay. Sunday  Group fitness by Equinox.  They will host classes  Saturday and Sunday at Fast Company Grill, aka The Cedar Door, at 201 Brazos Street. Sessions for Free!  Register in advance at  http://austin.equinox.com/  . Click on Classes.  Plus, omg, this is so dope, I can't even.... Free Spin Classes by CYC this Saturday the 8th  with breakfast & goody bags at multiple time slots! If you haven't tried spin..why the hell not? Just do it!! It is sooo fun, and yes it ...
Read on for more goodness