Zenaida Arroyo

12
Mar
2021

Fit Five Friday: 5 pictures from this week

Happy Friday! Friday is my favorite day of the week. Every other Friday it is payday for me. Currently, our students are in school till 11:30 am and the rest of the day they have asynchronous work. That will change on 3/22 with the new hybrid schedule. Monday will be how our current Friday is now. We’ll see how that goes.

Anyway, I love taking pictures. Right now I have almost 6,000 pictures stored in my phone. Many are duplicates since I need to get the right one. 🙂 I take pictures of things I see on my runs, my students, my cats, and my mom.

Let me share with you 5 of those pictures from this week.

📷 I took this Peloton running class on Tuesday and just thinking about it makes me smile. Since there are so many classes I have not taken, my plan is not to take any class twice. I may make an exception here. I had so much fun with Chase and the playlist was amazing. In 45 minutes I listened to 10 songs (1 from each year) while learning something interesting about each song. I highly recommend it!

📷 I ran in shorts! It made me so happy. I wore one of my newest Oiselle shorts. It was warm but very windy. I also felt very tired (have not been sleeping well) and ran for 20 minutes.

📷 I’ve mentioned that Lola and Mateo do not get along. It is very rare to see them together. I was in bed reading and Lola joined me. Then Mateo came along. Lola did not move and Mateo got comfortable. I’d say too comfortable. I don’t know how long they stayed like that because in the morning they were both gone.

📷 This reminds me of the hours and days spent last year on the balcony with my mother. Did we enjoy being stuck inside the house? No, but we made the best of it. We ate, drank coffee, talked, people watched, and listened to music. You bet I am looking forward to it again this year!

📷 Yesterday right before lunch my students asked me if we could have lunch together. It made me feel really good and made me smile. I thought that for sure they would be tired of being with me. I guess not.

Thanks for linking up with us again this week! We’ve got FIVE incredible co-hosts, and we are ready to link up every Friday to share YOUR weekly fitness favorites! Join hosts My First 5K and More, Running With Attitude, Run Laugh Eat Pie, Runs with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday! Please add your link below.

09
Mar
2021

Tuesday Topics: Yes or no to makeup while running?

categories: Tuesday Topics

This week’s Tuesday Topic is: Yes or no to makeup while running? You can write about this topic or feel free to post any running related blog post. Remember to link up with Kim and Zenaida! Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier! Remember to come back for later linkers!

I don’t wear a lot of makeup. All I wear is translucent loose powder. Sometimes I use mascara. Sometimes I wear lipstick. The lipstick makes me feel good. My favorite is the MAC PatentPolish in Ruby. Unfortunately, it’s discontinued but you bet I stocked up. I had to get most of them from a store in San Francisco.

However, while running I don’t wear any makeup at all. Well, if you count chapstick then, yes, I do. Will I judge anyone that does wear makeup? Nope. NOT AT ALL.

I may not wear makeup while running. It isn’t for me. But you bet I like to splurge on running clothes. Thanks to Oiselle I have quite a collection to use throughout the various seasons in Chicago. Yep, if feels like we do have more than 4 seasons. Last week I received 6 new pairs of shorts. Do I need more? Definitely not but I want them. Let’s not forget my shoes. I have various new pairs waiting in boxes to be used.

Wearing makeup while running is a personal choice. If someone wants to wear makeup then who am I to say anything about it?

One thing I know I need to get better at is wearing sunscreen. I know, I know. I wear it mostly during the Summer but I do know I need to use it year round. I usually use the spray on version for my legs and arms but like the stick for my face. My favorite one is Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Non-Greasy Sunscreen Stick for Face & Body, Broad Spectrum SPF 70. It may not feel like Summer yet but it is sunny already.

Any other suggestions for a face sunscreen? Thoughts on wearing makeup while running?

Tuesday Topics

07
Mar
2021

Weekly Run Down: Working with my coach again and my 2nd vaccine!

categories: Running, Weekly Recap, Weekly Run Down

Hello there! Happy Sunday! With it being a short work week for me, this week went by fast. No complaints at all. The sooner the days go by, the sooner we are much closer to Summer Break. Three more months to go!

Clientmoji

This week went really well. I began working with my coach again and enjoyed my runs. Much of the snow has melted and it is slightly warmer. There were some days where even if it was 20-30 degrees, there was no wind or little wind. I ran everyday (no surprise there) and also took a short bike class (too much?).

I finally used the stack feature for the bike classes and like it. However, I wished you could do that on the app. To stack running classes you can only do that on the website, but it will be so much easier to do it on the app too.

Some of the fun classes I took are below. I am not a huge fan of Shakira but there were some good songs and, of course, Matty is always great.

I took this one on Saturday and did not like it at all. The music and her constant talking really annoyed me. I could have sworn I took a similar one by Robin but now cannot find it. I actually enjoyed that class.

I also took a Feel Good Ride with Ally and nope did not feel good. 🙂 The music is a HUGE factor for me as well as the instructor. I think that is why I love Cody. He always makes me laugh and smile.

On Monday I took my mom to get her second vaccine. Last time I mentioned about the long walk to the actual vaccination room. Someone was nice enough to take her in a wheelchair but she had to walk back. This time someone took her in a wheelchair, waited for her, and then brought her back to the lobby of the hospital. She didn’t have to walk too much. Oh, but then we got off on the wrong floor of the parking lot and we ended up walking one level up. Yes, we could have waited again for the elevator but only one was working. She was not happy about it. 🙂 Throughout the week I checked in on her. She said she was fine. No effects.

On Tuesday I went to get my second vaccine. They were running behind a bit so I was there longer than when I went for my first one. I felt fine afterwards. The next day is when I felt awful. After my workouts, I got home and felt so tired. Not the usual tired from working out but a different kind of tired. Throughout the day it got worse. My students knew about the vaccine and I told them how I was feeling. I also told them that in case I had to log off, they had work to do that was posted on Google Classroom. I managed to hang on with them, but once class was over, I logged off and went to bed. I knew I had to sleep and took a melatonin. I also did a Calming Meditation class. I had chills, my body ached, and I had a slight headache, but no fever. I felt better about 24 hours later. It is interesting how the vaccine affected people in different ways.

On Friday I mentioned how in a few weeks I will have a new work schedule. With this new schedule (hybrid) I will still be teaching online but there will be students in my classroom. I know I will have 2 students two days a week and beginning on April 7th I will have 3 more students. There are two groups, Group A and Group B. Monday will be a remote day for everyone. Group A will go to school on Tuesday and Wednesday and Group B will then go on Thursday and Friday. Even though I will have students in my room, they will still be learning virtually. I will still be teaching everyone online just like I am doing now. Everyone will be wearing a mask. If students that are in the room have questions, they will need to ask me on the computer just like they do now. While I am happy that I will have a new schedule, I really do not like this arrangement. I’d rather teach everyone in the room or everyone online, but not do both. Is this ideal? Probably not but I do know that no matter what schedule or plan is put together by the District, not everyone will be happy about it. 3 more months! 3 more months! Oh, and two weeks till Spring Break.

Whew, those are long paragraphs. Yikes. 🙃

Linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down.

05
Mar
2021

Fit Five Friday and March Ultimate Coffee Date

categories: Fit Five Friday, Ultimate Coffee Date

Welcome to March and to the Ultimate Coffee Date linkup. I am liking it and wondering why I didn’t participate before? Who knows but better late than never.

So grab your favorite drink and let’s chat.

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that I received an email from the Department of State regarding the status of my passport. I was told they’re processing it and it would take 10-12 weeks. Now that means for sure I cannot go to Mexico during Spring Break. I am not disappointed at all. I guess deep down I really didn’t want to go now. However, a few days later I got another email letting me know that my passport had been approved and that I should receive it next week. Hmm, decisions, decisions.

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that this week I was interested in two houses but both had offers before I had a chance to see them. Is it a sign? I truly believe things happen for a reason. I know the house market is HOT right now but it is getting ridiculous! Now I need to think about how much more I am willing to spend to buy a house.

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell that I am very excited about the new hybrid schedule at school. It will start on the 22nd of this month. With this new schedule the students will be online with me from 8:30am-12pm (instead of 8:30am-3:00pm). Then in the afternoon they have asynchronous work. It is the best schedule? No, but clearly I am not upset about it at all. Does that make me a bad teacher? Well, it isn’t like the rest of the day will be free for me because it will be spent either in meetings, grading, lesson planning, etc.

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that I ordered a few new bras from Brooks. If you recall, about 2 years ago I was no longer allowed to order any more shoes from the site. Well, so far my order has not been cancelled so hopefully I will get them. I still have not found ones that I like. I bought so many from other companies (lots from Athleta) and I am sure one of these days they will also ban me from ordering anything else from their site. Why is it so hard to find good running bras?

If we were having coffee…
I’d tell you that March 16th will be my 200th day of my run streak. I never thought I would make it this far. I started it because “why not”? I was already running 5-6 days a week. The other days are easy runs and maybe a mile or so. I think I will continue and will stop if I get injured or if I start training for a marathon. Right now I am getting back to running consistently again after not running much in February.

Thanks for linking up with us again this week! We’ve got FIVE incredible co-hosts, and we are ready to link up every Friday to share YOUR weekly fitness favorites! Join hosts My First 5K and More, Running With Attitude, Run Laugh Eat Pie, Runs with Pugs, and Zenaida every Friday for Fit Five Friday! Please add your link below. I am also linking up with Running with Perseverance and Confessions of a Mother Runner for the Ultimate Coffee Date.

02
Mar
2021

Tuesday Topics: Thoughts from my last run

categories: Tuesday Topics

Hello March!!! Thanks to Casimir Pulaski I had the day off yesterday. It was nice to be off but still not caught up on the things I had to do.

This week’s Tuesday Topic is: What did you think about on your last run? You can write about this topic or feel free to post any running related blog post. Remember to link up with Kim and Zenaida! Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier! Remember to come back for later linkers!

I will write about my thoughts from yesterday’s run. It was my first workout working again with my coach. Even though I was off, I had to be back in time to shower, eat breakfast, and head out by 9am to take my mother to get her vaccine.

I started my run at 7:17 and ran 2.5 miles. It took me 30:29 with an average pace of 12:12. It was definitely faster than I was planning but overall no complaints. I had forgotten to download a 30 minute Peloton workout and didn’t have time to do so and instead listened to music from one of my playlists.

Here is what I thought about on my run:

➡️ This article. I read it on Sunday but obviously I was still upset about it. The Superintendent said “It is not an ideal model, but I think it’s better than doing nothing with our kids.” It is a slap in the face because he has NO idea how hard teachers have been working during the pandemic.

➡️ The snow is melting which is great but now there is so much garbage. Some people are just gross. I saw lots of empty bottles (some with yellow liquid??), plastic bags, masks, etc.

➡️ It’s been over a month since I’ve run on side streets and could not remember if they were this bad. There were so many holes and cracks. I thought for sure I was going to trip and fall again.

➡️ It was colder than I thought. I felt underdressed and wished I would have worn a long sleeve top instead of a short sleeve under my jacket.

➡️ I love songs by The Temptations.

➡️ Are any parents going to contact me asking why I was not logged in today? On Friday the District sent a reminder and I did too but there is always one parent.

➡️ The snow is melting. Why do people still have their stuff for dibs out on the street and sidewalk? The city is supposed to go through the streets picking up leftover items.

➡️ I am hungry. What am I going to eat for breakfast?

➡️ Will I make it back in time for a class with Cody?

So many thoughts in 30 minutes. It isn’t like that for every run. Sometimes I just zone out and listen to music while also paying attention to my breathing and my pace.

Tuesday Topics