Week-beginning Thoughts:
Brr. Hello, winter!
Brr. Hello, winter!
Monday
Scheduled: rest
Did: rest
I was also CRAZY hungry today.
Did: rest
I was also CRAZY hungry today.
Tuesday
Scheduled: 6.22mi, with some tempo component
Did: 6.32mi @ 8:52/mi avg (3mi tempo @ 8:10ish), Big 5
After baby went down at 7pm, got up at 10:30pm, 1:30am, and 4am (that's every ~3 hours), I wasn't particularly feeling like rocking and rolling a tempo run in 22 degrees.
Fortunately, I was flexible with my plan enough to tell myself "just go out and see what happens... maybe run easy out and hard back?". The first bit was hard-- not in terms of pace,but just in terms of getting my legs to move. Hooray, teammates and conversation.
When we reached the turnaround, I wasn't totally feeling tempo, but decided I'd go for it anyways and just "do what I could".
"What I could" ended up being pretty solid:
8:19
8:13
8:05
It was a progression, but not too bad of one, especially considering the last mile had major elevation loss, which probably helped the pace. Most importantly, though, I kept the miles within ~15s of each other, AND the first one was solidly "low 8s", something I've struggled to do right off the bat on my other runs. Turns out I can actually run quite comfortably in the 8s these days... I just need to do more of it :P
Did: 6.32mi @ 8:52/mi avg (3mi tempo @ 8:10ish), Big 5
After baby went down at 7pm, got up at 10:30pm, 1:30am, and 4am (that's every ~3 hours), I wasn't particularly feeling like rocking and rolling a tempo run in 22 degrees.
Fortunately, I was flexible with my plan enough to tell myself "just go out and see what happens... maybe run easy out and hard back?". The first bit was hard-- not in terms of pace,but just in terms of getting my legs to move. Hooray, teammates and conversation.
When we reached the turnaround, I wasn't totally feeling tempo, but decided I'd go for it anyways and just "do what I could".
"What I could" ended up being pretty solid:
8:19
8:13
8:05
It was a progression, but not too bad of one, especially considering the last mile had major elevation loss, which probably helped the pace. Most importantly, though, I kept the miles within ~15s of each other, AND the first one was solidly "low 8s", something I've struggled to do right off the bat on my other runs. Turns out I can actually run quite comfortably in the 8s these days... I just need to do more of it :P
Wednesday
Scheduled: XT
Did: 2.11mi lunch walk
Had to do something to keep myself awake today after only getting about 3 hours of sleep...
Did: 2.11mi lunch walk
Had to do something to keep myself awake today after only getting about 3 hours of sleep...
Thursday
Scheduled: 1mi WU, 8x600 (2:30)/400, 1mi CD
Did: 1mi WU,4x600/400, 2x600/300, 2x600/200, 1mi CD = 6.65mi @ 8:33/mi avg
Did: 1mi WU,4x600/400, 2x600/300, 2x600/200, 1mi CD = 6.65mi @ 8:33/mi avg
This was the hardest workout I've had in... awhile. When I first looked at my goal pace, I thought it sounded reasonable. After all, I'd been running around that pace for 100m splits of my other intervals, and this was "only" a 600.
Nope. I don't know if it was the 10mph wind or something else, but I struggled to hit the 100m split every single time I checked my watch.
First Four 600m Splits:
2:28.6
2:29.4
2:28.4
2:29.7
I was constantly fighting to hit the 2:30 mark each and every time... and that was with a 400m recovery. Due to time constraints, I'd been hoping to cut that down to a 200m :/
I wanted to stop SO badly, and constantly thought of all the excuses I could use to cut the workout short:
"I didn't have time, so I only did 6."
"The wind was strong, so it's okay if I run these in 2:40... or whatever. I can totally validate that."
"Maybe I'll just do the rest as 400s. That's kind of like a 600, right?"
...but I didn't.
Instead, I got through the last four repeats, cutting my recovery distance to ensure I'd get home with enough time to help with the morning hubub. This would have been a great excuse to not hit my goal splits ("I didn't have enough time to fully recover, so I couldn't hit the prescribed time" whaa whaa whaa), and, while allowed myself to be okay if I didn't hit them, I didn't allow myself to give up during the interval.
My training partner told me a story a little while back about a friend who's inspired her during speedwork one day at the river several years ago that I drew from today. He'd told her that the last repeats were the ones that counted the most. "Don't cheat yourself by going soft on the last few repeats. You've put in the work to reap the reward. Get what you came for, or all the work you just put in was for nothing."
Sigh. Alright.
Second Four 600m Splits
2:30.3
2:29.8 (had 300m recovery before)
2:30.1 (had 300m recovery before)
2:30.8 (had 200m recovery before)
I have never been more grateful to be DONE with a workout. Super proud of hitting the times, exerting the effort, and making s--t happen when I it was hard.
Nope. I don't know if it was the 10mph wind or something else, but I struggled to hit the 100m split every single time I checked my watch.
First Four 600m Splits:
2:28.6
2:29.4
2:28.4
2:29.7
I was constantly fighting to hit the 2:30 mark each and every time... and that was with a 400m recovery. Due to time constraints, I'd been hoping to cut that down to a 200m :/
I wanted to stop SO badly, and constantly thought of all the excuses I could use to cut the workout short:
"I didn't have time, so I only did 6."
"The wind was strong, so it's okay if I run these in 2:40... or whatever. I can totally validate that."
"Maybe I'll just do the rest as 400s. That's kind of like a 600, right?"
...but I didn't.
Instead, I got through the last four repeats, cutting my recovery distance to ensure I'd get home with enough time to help with the morning hubub. This would have been a great excuse to not hit my goal splits ("I didn't have enough time to fully recover, so I couldn't hit the prescribed time" whaa whaa whaa), and, while allowed myself to be okay if I didn't hit them, I didn't allow myself to give up during the interval.
My training partner told me a story a little while back about a friend who's inspired her during speedwork one day at the river several years ago that I drew from today. He'd told her that the last repeats were the ones that counted the most. "Don't cheat yourself by going soft on the last few repeats. You've put in the work to reap the reward. Get what you came for, or all the work you just put in was for nothing."
Sigh. Alright.
Second Four 600m Splits
2:30.3
2:29.8 (had 300m recovery before)
2:30.1 (had 300m recovery before)
2:30.8 (had 200m recovery before)
I have never been more grateful to be DONE with a workout. Super proud of hitting the times, exerting the effort, and making s--t happen when I it was hard.
Friday
Scheduled: 3-4mi easy
Did: 3mi on treadmill @ 9:10ish/mi avg
Well, I'd hoped for 4mi, but was relegated to 3 due to parental duties. Ended up running faster (7.0mph) than I otherwise would have (6.0mph) to finish faster to get to baby, so it was a net positive. :)
Did: 3mi on treadmill @ 9:10ish/mi avg
Well, I'd hoped for 4mi, but was relegated to 3 due to parental duties. Ended up running faster (7.0mph) than I otherwise would have (6.0mph) to finish faster to get to baby, so it was a net positive. :)
Saturday
Scheduled: 2mi easy, 4mi tempo, 2mi easy
Did: as prescribed 8mi total @ 8:55/mi avg, Big 5
So proud of this one. Warmed-up/cool-down with my training partner, but got my husband to meet me for the tempo and pace me through it. My goal was an 8:00, and I (reasonably) hit that for the first three miles:
8:06
8:01
8:02
and I was even on track for the first half of the fourth mile
...but that last 800m killed me.
8:14
SUCH a struggle.
While I didn't hit my pace goal, I still consider this workout 100% successful. I did something I don't usually do on these tempo runs: hold a hard pace right from the get-go, stay even, and NOT have enough energy to surge at the end. I did what I was supposed to do: exhaust myself by running hard and try to push through. Win.
Did: as prescribed 8mi total @ 8:55/mi avg, Big 5
So proud of this one. Warmed-up/cool-down with my training partner, but got my husband to meet me for the tempo and pace me through it. My goal was an 8:00, and I (reasonably) hit that for the first three miles:
8:06
8:01
8:02
and I was even on track for the first half of the fourth mile
...but that last 800m killed me.
8:14
SUCH a struggle.
While I didn't hit my pace goal, I still consider this workout 100% successful. I did something I don't usually do on these tempo runs: hold a hard pace right from the get-go, stay even, and NOT have enough energy to surge at the end. I did what I was supposed to do: exhaust myself by running hard and try to push through. Win.
Sunday
Scheduled: 4-5mi easy with stroller
Did: 5.01mi @ 9:18/mi avg, Big 5
No stroller today. Just got up after a delightful 11 hours of sleep (thanks, grandparents) and hit the road solo. It was cool, crisp, and I was really looking forward to some peaceful miles of just me, myself, and I, going whatever pace was easy this morning.
I ended up running a new route that tied some common sections together via the greenway. Sooooo nice.
Also, my pace was much faster than I'd have thought it would be for a recovery run. Guess that's a testament to the power of a full night's sleep, right?
Did: 5.01mi @ 9:18/mi avg, Big 5
No stroller today. Just got up after a delightful 11 hours of sleep (thanks, grandparents) and hit the road solo. It was cool, crisp, and I was really looking forward to some peaceful miles of just me, myself, and I, going whatever pace was easy this morning.
I ended up running a new route that tied some common sections together via the greenway. Sooooo nice.
Also, my pace was much faster than I'd have thought it would be for a recovery run. Guess that's a testament to the power of a full night's sleep, right?
Total Weekly Mileage: 28.98
Week-ending Thoughts:
Low-ish mileage for being this far into my training cycle, but I think I'm really making the miles I do run COUNT.
Low-ish mileage for being this far into my training cycle, but I think I'm really making the miles I do run COUNT.
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