Monday Easy Ride
I cycled in my basement to loosen up my legs post 25K. They still felt great! A little soreness in the ankles from working my stabilizer muscles on the trails, but I’m glad I got the blood flowing in the morning.
I have lots of miles coming up this week, and TWO 5K’s over the weekend! Including my running club’s annual 5K 🙂 The forecast for this week looks absolutely awful so this may not be my only indoor workout. I’m hoping some of the rain clears out by the weekend…
Tuesday Easy Run + Strength Circuit
- Easy Run – 148 HR AVG
- 4 Miles
- 10:02 Average Mile Pace
- Splits: 10:28 (WU), 9:54, 9:36, 10:11
Avoided the rain on my run today, yay! But the humidity is creeping up. My legs felt heavy [finally] from the weekend and those stabilizer muscles were still feelin’ it. But the was easy overall.
I’ve been trying to focus more in cross-training and strength lately, knowing that that’s what will keep me durable. So my run was a little shorter today than usual to make sure I made time for some strength work. I did a lot of one-legged moves to make it more difficult, test my balance, and make sure both sides of me are as even as possible and strong.
Wednesday Tempo
- Tempo – 165 HR AVG
- 6 Miles
- 9:13 Average Mile Pace
- Splits: 10:54, 10:04 (WU), 8:12, 8:05, 8:02, 10:00
Comparisons suck.
I felt great about this run at first. I’m finally getting my speed work back after being injured and I was proud to see my pace get faster as I went (even as the hills increased!).
Those low 8’s were hard though. I could hit them, but they were harder than I wanted them to be.
And then I checked Timehop and saw my fastest mile ever pace was achieved one year ago today. And I realized that I haven’t beaten that number in the past year. I’ve hardly hit any paces close to that number for a year. A couple times, sure..but it’s just hard not to see a lot of progress.
I had to put it in to perspective, though. I stopped training for about 8 months last year. After my May 2017 marathon, I took [serious] time off until February 2018. I ran 2-3 times a week at most and did all my runs for fun. During the first half of my running hiatus, I focused on HIIT and strength training. The second half I let my body rest almost completely. I was looking to gain some health back (yes, by NOT exercising) and restoring my adrenals and endocrine system (to make my hormones happy). So I did some strength work, and very little cardio.
So by the time I decided to start training again, it felt like I was starting from scratch. Because of that, I don’t want to be too hard on myself.I’m trying to put it in perspective and say that the time off made me stronger in other ways, but as my goals get bigger (BQ and ultras) I can’t help but think about all the running time I “lost”.
Thursday AM Bodypump
Oh I’m really starting to love this class. The dedicated time to strength and increasing weights has been so rewarding. My body is starting to feel “back to normal”.
Until now, I feel like I’ve been easing back in to my training really slowly (after the hiatus I mentioned yesterday). I didn’t want to rush in to things. I want to make sure my body’s durable and ready for all the goals that I have for it, so a base is absolutely necessary. Plus, working back slowly is so important!
But today I increased my weights. I looked in the mirror and saw muscles again. I felt like I could push a little harder than before. It was SO rewarding.
So I put this workout and yesterday’s workout in perspective again. I’m feeling strong and just coming out of my base period. I will only get stronger and faster from here. Every single day is a new chance to get closer to my goals. To make my goals bigger and better.
Thursday PM Burlington Running Club
- Easy Run – 139 AVG
- 5.2 Miles
- 10:06 Average Mile Pace
- Splits: 10:10, 10:10, 10:00, 10:04, 10:08, 9:48
My legs felt heavy and so did the air! The humidity was insane. Thank goodness tomorrow is rest day
Namaste Real - Wellness & Running - Train With Ally 