Last week I was back in Chicago again, this time for two small conferences hosted by my firm. I was there for four nights, and got out for two runs along the Lakefront Trail.
From Friday’s Run
Back Running In Chicago Again
When I checked the Weather Channel App to figure out what to pack, I was surprised to see overnight lows in the 30s! I packed a few long-sleeved running tops and my lightweight gloves, but also tossed in a tank top and my bike shoes for the hotel gym. I was able to cram all that plus my “real” clothes into my carry-on, but it was a tight fit!
Wednesday was my first morning in Chicago. I had an unexpected emergency work project with a Wednesday deadline, so when I woke up at 4:45 am I decided to get started on that before heading out for a run. I intended to head out @ 6:30 for the sunrise, but by the time I did my Coretober workout and a short warm-up, it was 7 am—but still in the 30s!
It was full daylight when I got started for about 45 min of running
Garmin is so inaccurate tracking me along the Riverwalk, I don’t pay attention to the distance or pace.Except for crossing once at the end, I was on the same side of the river for this whole stretch.
Guess what’s at the red finish flag?
Hint: it’s not my hotel
I opted for the hotel gym onThursday and then enjoyed a lovely breakfast with Erica! She had led an early running tour downtown, so it worked out well for both of us. She let me vent about some work stress—I had to answer a client text message 😡— but we mostly chatted about fun stuff like her recent marathons!
Friday morning I got out earlier—starting @ 6:15—and watched the sunrise as I ran. I figure I covered about 5 miles in my 50 minute run with a few photo stops.
The view on my way “out”
Same view on my way “back”
Weekly Run Down
I’ve really been slacking on strength, but keeping up with Coretober. Early in the week I did toss in a few PT-like barre classes for good measure.
Sunday: Core + Barre + 33 mile Ride
I doubled up my core workouts knowing I wouldn’t have time for the 20 min class on the calendar for Tuesday.
Later in the morning we rode our bikes over to my Mom’s house—it was an amazing day with temps near 80 but coolness in the air..
Monday: Core + Barre + 3.9 Scooby Miles
I miscalculated my extra little out-and-back to round up to 4 miles and ended up 0.1 miles short. 🤷♀️
Tuesday: 1.1 mile walk with Scooby
Just like last week, I took Scooby out for his walk before my husband dropped me off at the airport, and that was my exercise for the day.
Wednesday: 10 min Core + 45 min Run
After spending more time than I intended on my work project, I did my Coretober class in my hotel room, and then stacked two 20 min Peloton Runs for an out and back along the lakefront.
Thursday: 15 min Core + 30 min Peloton Rides
I knew my hotel had a nice gym with several Peloton bikes, so I had packed my cycling shoes. After doing the two Tunde core classes on the Coretober calendar, I hopped on a bike for Hannah F’s recent UK Black History Month Ride. I tried to take a Lanebreak class as a cool down ride, but after taking forever to load it got stuck and I had to reboot the bike. I think Lanebreak needs more wi-fi bandwidth than public gyms have to offer because I’ve had the same issue at my office gym recently.
Friday: 10 min Core + 50 min Run
I spent one hour triaging work emails to time my run with sunrise. After taking Emma’s core class I did a 5 min Jess King pre-run class with a few glute bridges and bridging clamshells to make sure my glutes were awake. I chose Marianna’s recent 45 min “rock” run for my playlist and headed out for a slightly longer out-and-back than I did on Wednesday.
My iPhone can’t capture the super moon, but it was pretty!
Saturday: 1.1 mile walk with Scooby
I had an early flight home, but took Scooby out for a walk to stretch my legs before unpacking.
Should have unpacked my sunglasses!
Then I spent the rest of the day relaxing, watching football, and devouring All The Colors Of The Dark by Chris Whitaker.
I’m looking forward to being home for the rest of the month—my next trip is to Orlando on Halloween!
A huge thank you to Deborah and Kim for hosting the Weekly Run Down link up.
![The Ultimate Coffee Date](http://got2run4me.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Ultimate-Coffee-Date.png" "The Ultimate Coffee Date")
You did have a busy week! It’s always fun to run in Chicago. I always think it is hard to judge the temperature there as the wind makes such a difference there vs here. Enjoy our beautiful weather this week
Sounds like a great week- you’re a pro at fitting in all your workouts with the travel. Oh and you’ll be in Orlando at the end of the month- so close to me, and yet so far!
I like how you packed all your workout clothes and then crammed all your “real” clothes in. Priorities!
Well done once again, Coco! I love how you fit in all your workouts. How come you had to stay until Saturday morning in Chicago? Did you have to work late on Friday? It must be annoying when work cuts into your weekend like that.
Our event went until 6 pm, and I didn’t want to be stressed about getting to the airport for the last flight back to DC. 😉
As you know, I plan to run during my work trips… if I can.
We’ve had weather in the 30s in the am… they predict a warm up this week.
Very cool to connect with Erica. We are both running nYC in 2 weeks but it’s such a crazy weekend.
You had a busy week! What a treat to have a good hotel gym. Like the others have said, I’m impressed by how you managed to fit all your fitness work in when you’re away!
Such a beautiful sunrise!
Ooh I recently finished All the Colors of the Dark!! What are you thinking of it?
Nice job this week even with everything going on.
I started reading it Monday and finished it yesterday, which is really fast for me — aided by my two flights. It really enjoyed it!
I’m so happy that you’re enjoying your visits to Chicago. Yep, that GPS debacle downtown is SO annoying.
I just finished all the Colors of the Dark and I can’t wait to hear your thoughts. I couldn’t put it down.
Same! It was great for the plane and then gave me an excuse to just rest and read yesterday.
Busy week!! You certainly spend a lot if time traveling for work, but you’re great with staying consistent with your workouts. I can relate to your comment about sunglasses…I totally spaced on bringing my sunglasses with me to my race this morning. I didn’t realize I’d forgotten them until we were lining up((oops!)).
I’m glad I stumbled upon your site! I’m off to Chicago for a conference this week and it motivated me to pack an extra running outfit!
That’s pretty funny how inaccurate the Garmin tracking in is Chicago, although my marathon tracking wasn’t that bad which is surprising. But we did have some whacky non-race runs last time we were there. Good job keeping up with your Coretober!