I have this badass ironwoman-type friend who bikes like 40 miles at high noon in 90-degree weather and then tosses off a casual 10-miler at 7-minute pace. She actually asked me, and I quote:
What the HELL are you doing on the elliptical? For shame.
Well. Indeed. It is embarrassing to be seen on that thing, let alone admit to it for the entire internet to read. I’m babying my sore right hip, which has been bugging me since the late months of pregnancy and currently demands coddling in the form of deathly boring non-impact activity followed by lots of foam rolling. I’ll elliptical for the first half of the workout, then switch to the treadmill.
Real running is happening too. I ran for 45 minutes in the woods yesterday – a route I hadn’t run since sometime in 2010. It was hot, dusty, and hilly. A lot hillier than I remember it being back when 45 minutes was not a capitalized once-weekly Long Run. But let’s not indulge any negative self-chatter, because it was great to be back.
I love the elliptical! Is it really that much wimpier than biking? The workout is what you make of it…. right?
That’s not to say I don’t feel like I wimp when I pick the elliptical over a run. But you can’t read trashy magazines while running
Oh, I agree – you can get a decent workout on the elliptical if you crank it up enough. I always have to remind myself to keep moving. My antipathy is based on the way too many hours (of my youth which I will never, ever get back) I logged on this thing in college and in my 20′s. Also, at my gym, people look at you funny if you’re actually sweating during your workout.
(What I mean is, the elliptical is inextricably linked, in my mind, to the period of my life which also featured Snackwells, nonfat frozen yogurt, Zima, and really really bad taste in men. No amount of trashy magazine reading will ever make up for that!)