Wisconsin Notes: We’re going to rotate Wednesday locations quarterly. As of September we’ll be on the 606. For those of you who want to know the reasoning behind the switch, read on.
Two of the topics we discussed in depth at the Meeting of the Minds was inclusivity and diversity. Each city needs to take those lessons back home, and we as co-leaders need to determine which ways we can (and should) encourage and foster inclusivity and diversity in our own communities. We believe that exploring neighborhoods for a longer period of time is one way to promote these ideas. The 606 unites Wicker Park, Bucktown, and Humboldt Park. By working out on the 606 we hope to connect with the populations of these neighborhoods. And by working out in the same location for three months, we hope to recruit more members. One week someone from Humboldt Park sees us on her morning commute–running ramp repeats, alligator walking, high fiving each other–having fun at 6:30am…the next week maybe she stops and asks what we’re doing, who we are…and the third week she joins us. Wouldn’t it be terrible if the week after you join us we moved away!? Exactly. So we’re going to stay and cultivate some new relationships in new neighborhoods. Let’s recruit everybody who wants to be a part of this community.read more
This Morning Was Amazing. We worked hard, did all of the stairs and almost too many burpees to think straight…. so for those of you who didn’t write down all of today’s announcements (and for those of you who hit snooze one too many times) we want to make sure you don’t miss ANYTHING NPSD this week…read more
As we start a new month and welcome a busy October, I want to take a minute to appreciate some of the amazing things I’ve watched you all do for each other in just the last couple of months.
When someone in the tribe posted about feeling down and unmotivated about running, several of you responded to the post or picked up the phone and called, and then put together an entire motivational chat group to help pick that person up. When a member of another tribe expressed some concern about coming to Summit, several of you reached out, showed how much you care despite never having met the person, and motivated them not only to come to Summit but to join our cheer station for the Marathon. When folks expressed fear about running alone given the horrible stories of attacks on runners lately, loads of you stepped up to form run groups or to offer to run or bike alongside runners so they don’t have to be alone. It’s almost every single day that I see you reaching out to make sure everyone is ok, and when they’re not, telling them it’s ok to not be ok, and that they always have someone to listen. It’s inspirational and nothing short of extraordinary.read more
First of all, Chris and I want to extend a HUGE thank you to Sam and Caitlin for babysitting this Wednesday. We greatly appreciate the thoughtfulness, love and time they put into making sure you all had an amazing final Wednesday at Fullerton Beach.
If you missed the announcement, next month we will be meeting at the Illinois Centennial Memorial Column in Logan Square every Wednesday at 6:18 am. That’s right, we’re meeting ten minutes earlier than usual on Wednesdays in October. Stay tuned for more details on the reason for the temporary time change in a blog post on Monday.read more
Welcome back to your Weekly Wednesday Workout recap – see below:
ONE MORE LAP. ONE MORE LAP.
5:30AM CREW: We had 5 humans #WakeUpTheSun by the names of Jess, Reva, Jeremy, Dan, and Remi. These lucky five got to join me (you’re welcome) with testing out a NEW PR WORKOUT which will debut in AUGUST. You can ask them and they have been sworn to secrecy… besides what we shared on the inter webs through our Strava’s…
NEWBIES: THREE (two for Sarah, one for Tara) by the names of Dante, Matthew, and James.
BOUNCE: We warmed up our legs and our vocal chords with counting squats from 1 – 10 (proud of everyone)
#PRDAY WORKOUT: Our 3.2(ISH)K / 8 lap, loop-de-loop course has been holding it down since our pledge days. Our newbie Dante broke it in with a close to record time of 20:35 and our fastest lady of the day, Diane, finished with a 23:40 for the morning. Crushin’ it.
We’re an activity partner so we’ll be out hosting fun pop-up workouts all evening long! Check out the Interactive Map (may be live Thursday 6/7) to find out where we are! Somewhere by Centennial Park.
Wednesday June 13 and Friday June 15
To celebrate Pride Month here in ATL we’re tagging with limited edition rainbow #grassrootsgear! Bring a WHITE shirt – two days only!
Nearly one year ago She Moves Mountains held their first clinic at Smith Rock State Park. Over the last year, we have had over 300 women come to learn from us – empowering themselves by becoming self-sufficient rock climbers. Join us at The North Face store in Buckhead to meet the ladies and hear more about what they’re up to.
DIFFERENT WORKOUT LOCATION! We’re running Hillpine, a steep hill in Morningside neighborhood of ATL. We’ll meet near Orpheus brewing at our regular time. Here’s the meeting spot.
Thursday June 21
Sock Puppet Making Party (For Yearbook Photos) | 7 PM | Coco and Stein’s Apartment
Yearbook photos are a November Project tradition – basically a headshot of all our kickass tribe members. Yearbook photos will be taken on PR Day, June 27th. Our theme is Sock Puppets. It can look like you, a pet, be a monster – whatever you want! Bring craft supplies & your favorite sock!
Bike 20 miles to Stone Mountain. Trail run 5 miles around the mountain. Hike 1 mile up and down the mountain. SUP on the lake. You pick – do it all or just do one activity! We’re partnering with Big Peach Running and Mountain High Outfitters for a fun day in the sun! If you’re biking, they will be leaving from Old Fourth Ward around 8:30 AM. Runners can meet at Stone Mountain starting at 10:30 AM. RSVP via the Facebook link AND Big Peach’s website here. Totally free, but please register for a SUP time slot on the event page.
We’re the type of people that like to do a lot of activities on a weekend. Here’s an example. Directly from Stone Mountain, a group of us are carpooling up to Chattanooga to catch the tail end of Base Camp. Sunsets, music and outdoor vibes with NP Founder Brogan Graham.
Sunday June 24
Global #SportsBraSquad Day | 9 AM | Big Peach Running Store Midtown
Join us at 9am on Sunday, June 24th at Big Peach Midtown for a 3 mile fun run and/or walk to celebrate Global #SportsBraSquad day! The #SportsBraSquad started as a way for women to ditch their shirts along with their insecurities, and show the world what strength looks like. In 2015, the National Eating Disorders Association found that 70% of women don’t like their bodies. 70%! That’s a disappointing and frustrating statistic and the only way we can combat the self-loathing and hatred women feel towards their bodies is to change the way we see strength.
But ditching your shirt for the first time can be terrifying! That’s why on June 24th, Sports Bra Squads all over the world will be coming together to show the world that our bodies are strong as hell!Do you need to run in a sports bra? NO WAY! Only if you’d like to!
Tuesday June 26
Queen of Cream Ice Cream Run with Highland Runnersread more
There has been lots of discussion about the stadium. Four weeks into our new home and we’re starting to get to know this beast. It’s the best but it’s the worst. It feels so awful, yet so satisfying. It gives you that feeling later in the afternoon when you stand up after a long time sitting and you quickly recall how many stairs you ran this morning, how many floors you ran UP. If you have not yet felt these things, you can probably push yourself a little harder next time. But it’s finding the sweet spot. What about the people whose calves were tight for 6 days post stairs? Or who felt fatigued from the Wednesday before? You don’t know while you’re doing it how much you will hurt. You were tired and your lungs hurt and you used your hand to push yourself off your leg like it’s the only way to take the next step. That first time at the stairs is a killer, and same with the next one. And to be honest, they all hurt. It’s so hard, no matter what your athlete background, your 5km time, your Boston Marathon time, your age, your gender. It’s always hard. The toughest part is finding that sweet spot where you feel you are pushing as hard as you can, but you can keep one step in front of the other. But know that it’s hard for everyone, but that’s why having someone next to you huffing and puffing keeps you moving.
One thing I’ve heard about the stairs is like starting to run. A tough run might mean you start with 500m, then walk, then another 500m, or maybe 1 km, or 2km and slowly build up. You quickly notice how much better those distances feel, how your body adjusts to the breathing, to the movements, to finding a rhythm. But you’ve started with something where you’ve had success, something you know you can do again. You didn’t start with 20km, and then not walk for a week. You’ve started running to be sustainable. The compound effect would suggest that someone is better off beginning small and remaining consistent, that someone who runs 20 km on their first day and then has to take the next two weeks off to recover. You don’t always know what this is like on the stairs, so Wednesdays are to figure that out.
Notice that there is no pace or number of stairs that you need to run. There is just time. How fast you go is up to you. The stairs is a big challenge to take on- it’s hard no matter what you do. How can you find the groove where you just keep on moving? How can you find that pace where you can do the things you want to do the next two days or 5 days and not say no because you can’t can on and off the toilet without assistance.
You may have perhaps already nailed this stadium thing and you know all of this. Or maybe you’re considering not coming back because it’s just to hard. Trust us, you will get better, you will get stronger, you will get smarter at the stairs. They are not as simple as people might think if they have never been.
And with that, knowing that everyone is pushing themselves as hard as they can go, encourage everyone you pass by, or when anyone passes you. Keep right so others can pass you and know everyone is working their tail off. They also woke up this morning, knowing how stupidly hard these things are. And when you’re done, be proud, no matter how far you got or how fast you were going. You kept moving.
Thank you for sharing your morning, your time and your energy with us. We are glad you came.
Here’s to bringing “soles” together
Lauren and Liz
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Monday, May 21st 6:29am Parliament Hill we are hosting a Holiday POP UP workout. #backattheoldstompingground
2. CHEER STATION, your reading it here! Ottawa Race Weekend if your not racing come join the party. Cheer party that is. Saturday, May 26 | 5K & 10K we will be posted at Pretoria Bridge from 4pm onwards. Sunday, May 27 | half & full we will be posted up around the 18K/39K mark along Colonel By. Right around where Concord and Echo meet from 8:30am onwards.read more
Good morning, Brooklyn 😬
I love you. You love me. We’re an NP Family. With a big group hug. And a hi-five from me to you, Won’t you say you love me, too?! X2
Today’s workout went a little something like this…
=&0=&: Alex, Eden (met the NP_NYC tribe snowtubing on Saturday), and Eliza from last week who missed the newb intro.
=&1=&: (please grab your nearest stuffed animal and read the picture caption above to the tune of “I Love You,” from the TV show with everyone’s favorite purple dinosaur—Barney.
Roll the dice.
=&2=&: (30 mins on the clock)
TWO FOLD!
Part one: we split the tribe in two to take on a classic card workout. 4 suits (hearts, clubs, diamonds, AND spades) = 4 moves (crunches, push-ups, jumping jacks, etc): the number of the card decides your fate on the number of reps. Once you finish the reps for the card, you then ran to the ‘lonely island’ platform at the bottom of the stairs…
Part two: once you arrive at the platform, Sierra ‘Snake Eyes’ Missed would roll Jeanie’s large, foam dice: =&3=& = run the stairs / =&4=& = the # of burpees to perform. Once you completed stairs / burpees, you would head over to the other card location to pick a new card.
Burnout: =&5=&
Announcements:
• =&6=& – NONE (the worst)
• =&7=& – NONE (no one loves us)
• =&8=& – Rob still reigns.
• =&9=& – tossed off to Shravas aka #SilentButFriendly today: he may be quiet, but he has been helping us build community since our pledge days—and was part of NP_Amsterdam while they were pledging! Work will take him out to West LA later this year for a couple of months…we know he spreads the love and luck to bring pledges good fortune!
We decided to be like old ladies who work out in their houses, or moms who read Good Housekeeping and use canned goods as weights for this morning’s workout. Our tribe members came laden with Campbell’s soup cans, Green Giant vegetables, Bush’s baked beans… (we’re giving these brands some serious PR!) We told them it was for a donation drive, and then told them we were using them to work out first. And really, we delivered a can of Whoop Ass! (well, lots of cans!)
We visited our favorite spot and home of PR Day, Old Fourth Ward Historic Park for a circuit. Tribe members took two cans (or some like Stein were lifting heavy with four cans) and held them high above their heads for most of the workout until our delts and our traps were burning. 20 squats, 10 X sit ups, 20 kettlebell (can) swings, run up the stairs (cans above your head), about 40 walking lunges, back down the stairs and then a glorious lap around the park’s pond with, yep, you guessed it,=&0=&. Those that did keep holding the cans up will definitely feel it later today when they try to raise their hand or lift their arm more than shoulder height.
It’s amazing how little 2-4 pound canned foods feel after 30 minutes of this circuit. We ended with a little competitive team relay, Russian twist style, moving all the cans from one end of the team to the other. Consider it our morning Abvember…
The 100 or so cans will all get donated to Atlanta Community Food Bank, a local non-profit that distributes more than 60 million pounds of food and groceries a year to 600 nonprofit agencies in 29 counties over metro Atlanta & north Georgia.
We were excited to have some guest from the Austin and San Francisco Tribe this morning! Shout out to Edwin Pacheco and Patrick Canfield for their #travelverbal and for kicking ass at the workout, you represented your tribes well! We love hosting members from other tribes and grabbing coffee with them after the workout. It’s great to share stories, ideas, and getting advice being the new kid on the block. Sometimes we get too caught up trying to come up with new locations and creative workouts. Talking to other tribe leaders helps us realize that we just got our “learners permit” and we should keep things simple and not complicated. After all NP in the early days was all about serving people just a simple can of whoop ass.
=&1=&
Left: Izzy, Right: Peach
Hi I’m Izzy, i was a newbie to the workout today and was told about some other pup named Peach would be there. I guess it was too cold for her and was more hype than badass! I missed you this morning and look forward to you sniffing my butt as I dust you at PR day 😜
ou ran UP. If you have not yet felt these things, you can probably push yourself a little harder next time. But it’s finding the sweet spot. What about the people whose calves were tight for 6 days post stairs? Or who felt fatigued from the Wednesday before? You don’t know while you’re doing it how much you will hurt. You were tired and your lungs hurt and you used your hand to push yourself off your leg like it’s the only way to take the next step. That first time at the stairs is a killer, and same with the next one. And to be honest, they all hurt. It’s so hard, no matter what your athlete background, your 5km time, your Boston Marathon time, your age, your gender. It’s always hard. The toughest part is finding that sweet spot where you feel you are pushing as hard as you can, but you can keep one step in front of the other. But know that it’s hard for everyone, but that’s why having someone next to you huffing and puffing keeps you moving.
