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5 Minutes a Day

Posted on August 5, 2013 by A Mother's Pace

Recently I read on Twitter or maybe a blog post about a runner who set a goal to do 5 minutes of core work every day. I wish I could remember who said it to give them credit.

Immediately when I read it I thought I could do that. 5 minutes isn’t that long.

Typically when I do strength or core work I set out to do it for at least 15 minutes. I always thought that any less than that wouldn’t really do much for me.

Then I thought about what 5 minutes really is.

5 minutes a day is 35 minutes a week.
5 minutes a day is 140 minutes a month.
5 minutes a day is 1,680 minutes a year.

When you think about it that way, 5 minutes a day is doing quite a lot.

I set a goal (on July 9th) to complete 5 minutes of core work each day. How have I done? Not so hot. Until August started I’d only done core work 11 out of the 23 days in July.

Vacation was bad for my core. I didn’t stick with it as much as I wanted but the idea was there.

But then August rolled around and I discovered Kat’s challenge.

Kat over at Sneakers and Fingerpaints started a new challenge that is exactly what I needed to stay focused. I signed up for the August Core Focus Challenge (#AugustCoreFocus) as soon as I heard about it. Perfect! Find out more about the challenge by visiting her page (link above) or visiting challengeloop.com. (Thanks for the awesome challenge, Kat!)

Because of the challenge I’ve managed to do at least 5 minutes of core work every day. Exactly what I wanted.

I have a feeling she’s starting easy on us but so far we’ve done bridges, floor marching and a few planks. Yesterday she challenged just a little more by adding an elbow to knee plank. I’m excited to see what she adds throughout the month!

Hopefully doing core work every day will become a habit that sticks around for awhile.

Do you have 5 minutes a day for core work?

Updated to add Friday Link Ups from Jill Conyer and Running Bloggers.

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20 comments Posted in #AugustCoreFocus, Core Workouts

Current Strength and Core Workouts

Posted on June 11, 2013 by A Mother's Pace

I have officially added strength workouts back into my routine. I’ve tried it a few times postpartum but nothing has stuck. I have a plan now, it’s written down and I’m hoping that will help.

Current Strength and Core Workouts | A Mother's Pace

6 Strength Moves from Laura’s Mommy Run Fast blog. It’s helpful that there are six moves. I don’t have to look anything up to remember what to do. I’ve been doing all of these after my 1 mile days for the run streak.
Core Workouts for Stronger Running from Runner’s World. Again, there are only 5 moves here so I can remember them easily. These are a little harder for me but I’m trying to do them every other day.
Lastly, I read in the current issue of Runner’s World that the Running Arms move with weights is a good one to help improve running form. 3 sets of 10-12 reps 2 x/week.

By far my favorite thing about doing the strength and core work is that my children always want to exercise with me. It makes me happy they are taking an interest in it and joining in on the fun. At their own 2 and 3 year old level, of course.

Running This Week

My running from last week went well. I talked a bit about running faster yesterday and that has been a big factor in feeling better about running lately.

My hardest day of running was Saturday. It was a busy day and I had planned to wake up at 5:30 a.m. to get my 1 mile in for the #RWRunStreak. When my alarm went off I was too tired. Way too tired. Before I knew it the day was almost over, the kids were in bed, we had thunderstorms outside and I needed to run. So I did it on the treadmill at 9:10 p.m. But I did it, I’m still streaking!

Not only did I run but I ran my fastest postpartum mile yet. Wahoo!

My favorite run of the week was on Sunday. My ‘long’ run (it feels weird calling 5 miles long!) so I took it out of our neighborhood and down a shady street that I haven’t ran on since before I was pregnant. That would have been about a year ago. I’ve missed that route because of the shade but also because of the other runners. I always say “Good Morning” as I come across people but today another man told me “Good morning, good job!” That just made my run.

Weekly Workouts

Monday: 3 mile run (10:53 pace)

Tuesday: 1 mile run (9:31 pace), Strength Training

Wednesday: 4 mile run (10:51 pace)

Thursday: 1 mile run (9:11 pace), Strength Training

Friday: 3 mile run (10:21 pace)

Saturday: 1 mile run (9:01 pace)

Sunday: 5 mile run (10:47 pace), Strength Training and Core Work

Total Running Miles: 18
Weekly Average Pace: 10:28