Nik’s Chicks is a FREE ladies only running/triathlon group. It is only a time and place to meet & a program to follow.  I cannot join you on every run/workout.  If you are new to exercising, it is advisable to have a doctor’s OK prior to beginning.  Any information or products represented on this site are for educational purposes only and are not a substitute for any advice given to you by a medical, nutritional or fitness professional. Please sign my waiver (in “About”) and fill out my contact info sheet when you arrive for your first run.  Please park on West Oak Trails Blvd, Nightingale or at Bloomfield Park to avoid congestion, locking beeps and car doors closing around my neighbours’ houses – especially on Saturday mornings! We run Monday and Thursday evenings 8pm and Saturday mornings 8am from the corner of Redwing and Blackbird Courts.  Check out Weekly Workout section for specific times.

Quotes of the Week:   

“We all lose sometimes. We fail to get what we want. Friends and loved ones leave. We make a decision we regret. We try our hardest and come up short. It’s not the losing that defines us. It’s how we lose. It’s what we do afterward…

Life is not a race. There is no finish line. We strive toward a goal, and whether we achieve it or not is important, but it’s not what’s most important. What matters is HOW we move toward that goal. What’s crucial is the step we’re taking now, the step YOU’RE taking now.”

-Scott Jurek, Eat and Run: My Unlikely Journey to Ultramarathon Greatness

“Having goals in front of us is a powerful motivator to push us to continue reaching for the stars. Unless you seek bigger and more audacious goals for the future, how else will you ever know how far you can go?

So, just how does one go about setting lofty goals? If you can dream it, you can do it, I like to say. What dreams and aspirations do you have? I call these, ‘stretch goals.’ What future ambitions push you further than you’ve ever gone before? Stepping into uncharted territory can be terrifying, but don’t allow that hold you back. Fear of failure has dashed away many dreams; don’t let it stop you from realizing yours. Dare boldly. Take risks. Fail often. But learn from these failures and grow stronger because of them.”

-Dean Karnazes, Ultramarathon Runner

Hello ladies, here is the latest news from the “nest”!  My husband and I had our annual executive physicals at Cleveland Clinic last week.  Happy to report we both scored well on the testing – I have bragging rights for lower blood pressure 🙂 and we tied at 48 bpm for heart rate.  We are lucky to be able to have our fitness levels evaluated.  It reinforces that we are both doing a good job of staying fit and healthy.  I wish everyone had a similar opportunity.  There’s something about seeing the actual numbers and rankings that motivates us to keep working!  Low scores would be a huge red warning flag.

 I have posted some info about a few simple take-at home tests to help you identify where you are in your fitness.  There are handy, dandy calculators at Health Calc.  Consider doing some of your own tests to see how you score.  Use the results as a catalyst to get more active!

What is your resting heart rate?  A healthy resting heart rate for adults is between 60 and 100.  Athletes will have lower heart rates because their hearts are more efficient. The upper end of this range may mean there is a greater chance of serious health problems. It’s hard to define a cutoff, but anything over 90bpm is considered abnormal and should be checked by a physician. Here’s how to check yours: To find your resting heart rate, press the index and middle fingers over the underside of the opposite wrist, just below the thumb. Press down gently until you feel your pulse. Count the beats for one minute, or count for 30 seconds and multiply by two. To ensure an accurate reading, sit quietly for at least 10 minutes before taking your pulse.

Waist to Hip Ratio: These measurements are simple to do and can give you a little information about your body composition, body proportions and abdominal obesity. Measure your natural waist (where you side bend) by laying a measuring tape gently on your skin.  Don’t pull it so snug to indent the flesh.  Measure your hips (feet together) at the biggest part of your butt! (I know this isn’t very flattering!) Divide the waist measurement by the hip measurement. A WHR >8.5 for women (>.90 for men) puts you in a health risk zone.

Waist Measurement: The measurement of your waist on its own can be indicative of heart disease and diabetes risk if it is over 35in for women (and 40 inches for men).

Waist to Height Ratio:  This calculation is a measure of body fat distribution.  It is a valid test for short and tall people. For people under 40, a WHtR of under 0.5 is critical; for people in the age group between 40 and 50 the critical value is between 0.5 and 0.6, and for people over 50 the critical values start at 0.6

BMI: The Body Mass Index measurement has never been my personal favorite! It takes weight and height into consideration.  As a short person who carries some muscle, my results never indicated that I was healthy!!  The test “assumes” my weight comes from excess body fat.  For average height folks it can add to the fitness picture. The formula is 

…or just use an online calculator.  The results chart can be found here

Bruce Treadmill Test: This is a test to evaluate your cardiovascular fitness.  The protocol can be found at Health Calc Bruce Treadmill Test

Keeping it Real:  I received a link from Runner’s World this week where Pro runner Lauren Fleshman challenged runners to post unflattering photos of themselves in an effort to “keep it real” and redefine the meaning of beauty.  It helped me put things in perspective with respect to me “larger than I would like” thighs and the “three kids later” jiggly belly!  Maybe you will gain perspective…and smile too!  Keeping it Real

Here’s my pic that isn’t my most flattering, but this is my half ironman body!!

Feel free to send me your “Keeping it Real” pics, or give me permission to post one of you that I have!!  We don’t have to have “perfect” bodies!

Have you ever thought about doing a Half Marathon?:  There are many Chicks who will do a November 1/2 marathon race so give it some thought….  Here is the program you will be using: Half Marathon Training Program 2014  The Thursday night sprints will be track sessions until we lose our daylight.  We will continue w hill training as well.  Angus Glen and Hamilton are on November 2nd.

Due to the craziness of life, I will have missed two weekends of long runs, argh!  I plan on re-tweaking the program so I can get back on track.  I am also considering the Toronto Scotiabank 1/2 on October 9th.  Will need to look at the timing and get back to you!

New Programs Beginning September 8:  The new Learn to Run 5km and 10km programs will begin Monday, September 8 in preparation for November races!  Please spread the news to girlfriends so we get a great turnout.  Remind them the programs are FREE and they are not required to make every session – they can do missed ones on their own.  The programs we will be using are here Learn to Run 5km Training Program (M,Th,S)  and       10 Km program from 5km base (M,Th,S)  Please feel free to post this flyer where you think some ladies might see it! Learn to Run Poster September 2014

The word on the street is I have a bunch of veterans coming back out after a summer hiatus!  Can’t wait to see everyone again!!

Running Hats: The grey Nike DryFit Nik’s Chicks hats are in!! I will have them available at each running workout – only 25.00! Cash only please. There are only 28 of them left so act quickly!  

Quotes from 2014 Runner’s World Daily Calendar:  1) Run by your effort rather than your pace.  Because your body has to work twice as hard in the heat and humidity to keep itself cool, you’ll get in a higher quality long run if you go by how you feel or your heart rate rather than pace.  2) Consider tacking on extra time to a business trip if it means you can do your long weekend run without work or family interruptions.  Convention Thursday and Friday?  Fly home Saturday afternoon after an 18-miler. 3)  Rather than running the same pace, add bursts of faster running that last for 60-90 seconds.  The added intensity will increase your caloric after-burn during the 24 hours after your workout as your body recovers from the added physical stress and restores muscle glycogen and protein.  4)  To keep feet healthy (and odor free) dry them, taking care to get between the toes.  This removes the moist environment where smell-producing bacteria thrive.  5) Schedule your blood donation in conjunction with your training.  Oxygen carrying red blood cells can take six weeks to reach full count.  after donating, wait at least three days before doing speed work or a long run, and seven weeks before racing.

This week’s workouts – (Meet at 1438 Redwing Court):

Monday – Aug 25  8:00pm

Holding on 5km – 5km

Holding on 10km – 5km

Olympic Tri girls – 25km ride/5km run – Begin at 6:30pm (If doing half marathon run 8km)

Half Marathon – 8km

Tuesday – August 26

Olympic Tri Girls – Optional Weight Training

Thursday – August 28 8:00pm (I am away)

Holding on 5km -5km with 400 m repeats x 5

Holding on10km -5km with 400 m repeats x 5

Open Water Swimmers: Leave for Kelso 6:15pm from my place.  1500m swim. Returning for 8pm run. 

Tri girls – (Meet to head to Kelso at 6:15pm) First – Swim open water 1500m Second – 6km with  400 m repeats x 8 (Because it’s dark, consider the hill x 2 to bridge and then run the 5km loop)

Half Marathon – 6km with hill x 2 (to bridge twice and finish loop) (Consider taking headlamps!!)

Friday – August 22 (I am away)

Olympic Tri Girls – Optional 45km ride

Saturday – August 23 8:00am (I am away)

Olympic Tri girls – Meet 7:00am for a 8km run (will meet up with group at 8am), Leaving for Kelso at 8:15 for 1200m swim. TAPER WEEK!

Holding on 5km – 5km

Holding on 10km – 10km

Half Marathon – 12km (Some ladies meeting at 6:45am to get the run in earlier)

Sunday – August 24 8:00am (I am away)

Tri Girls  – 30km bike ride

Monday – August 25  8:00pm (Holiday – but I am back!)

Holding on 5km – 5km

Holding on 10km – 5km

Tri girls – 15km ride/5km run – Begin at 7:10pm (TAPER)

Half Marathon – 10km

Tuesday – August 26

Olympic Tri Girls – Optional Weight Training

Have a wonderful week! Niki