C Mile Plan: Week 7/6

Week-beginning Thoughts:

I'm repeating the last two weeks of the plan before another mile attempt. Struggling to keep focus (on lots of stuff)... 

Monday

Scheduled: 3-5mi easy or rest

Did: 4.07mi @ 9:09/mi avg

Rough night with baby (up almost every hour) = no morning run, much less time for showering/making lunch. Ended up working through lunch and having just enough time to run after work before kid pick-up... in 80 degrees and sun. Ooof.

Tuesday

Scheduled: 10KT, 6x15s striders

Did: 7.16mi @ 9:32/mi avg

Run felt good. Strides felt good. I could tell when I was pushing hard versus letting myself slack just a bit. Guess that's good to be aware? 

Wednesday

Scheduled: rest

Did: 3mi walk, Beachbody Autumn Exclusive HIIT

Rough night/morning with kid. Walked before work to try to set myself up for a good day... ended up having a pretty awful one between personal and professional stuff, and stress ate a lot... which ended up impacting me both mentally and physically. Ugh. 

Thursday

Scheduled: 2mi WU, 2x800/(800-400 recovery), 2x400/(200-400m), 2x200(100-200) (all at MP), 2mi CD

Did: as scheduled = 7.81mi @ 8:56/mi avg, 1mi stroller walk

This workout started out with two miles where I regaled my training partner with a variety of reasons why today's workout was not going to be a success. I ended up having a pretty decent workout, all things considered, and a bit of success, too.

800 #1: This was a disaster from the first 200m (0:19), didn't get much better by the 400m (0:41), and clocked in with a 1:30 first 400 and a 3:03 overall.

800 #2: I really tried to lock in on this one, but not hard enough.. another slightly too fast first 200, and a 3:04 overall

400 #1: I pressed the mental "reset" button for this one, and it worked. 44/45 = 89

400 #2: I was getting tired here and hit 46/45 = 91

Last time I did this workout, I was a bit slow on the 800s, on the 400s, and fast on the 200s. At the time, I remember thinking "this is great, I have extra strength/speed at the end". After some reflection, I now think it's an indication that I struggle to keep myself on pace on that first 200m. I go out too hot and, even if I hit the first lap in close to 90, it's a manufacturered 90. 

So, this time, I told myself I was going ot hit 45s. This workout is supposed to help me lock in on my pace, not show how fast I can go at the end. It says "@ Mile Pace" not "All You Got Left" on my plan, after all. 

It wasn't too hard to hit the 100 at 22.5, but I found myself mentally screaming "you're going too slow" the entire second hundred meters along the back straightaway, preparing myself to see a 48 or 50s split.

Nope.

45. Exactly. Each time.

Alright, so now I know how that feels... just gotta replicate. 

 

Friday

Scheduled: 3-5mi easy or rest

Did: MBF Upper Burn, 5.25mi @ 9:11/mi avg

Another struggle of a day. Got up at 4am to get stuff done... and didn't knock the first thing off my list until 3 1/2 hours later thanks to things outside my control. The WORST. The day was stressful due to work and other stuff. I took a reset break at lunch for a short "Muscle Burns Fat" workout (love those 30min workouts that are nonstop-- probably going to keep that up for the next 3-6 weeks). It helped... temporarily. 

Finished the day with an escape to the greenway for an early evening solo run, which was actually just what I needed. 

Saturday

Scheduled: 8mi long run

Did: 8.24mi @ 9:10/mi avg, 1-2mi stroller walk, 

Easy fun run that ended up so much faster than our easy 10KTuesday runs.... how does that happen each week? lol

Sunday

Scheduled: 15min WU, 8x 45s @ MP/75s recovery, 15min CD

Did: as scheduled = 5.32mi @ 8:58/mi avg

After Thursday, I knew I wanted to focus on my pace with this workout... which meant I was headed to the track. It sucked to skip the one morning I can sleep in during the week, but I'm hoping the dedication today will pay off on Thursday. When I woke up, I didn't want to go, but I also had just enough of a "I might join you" from my training partner to get myself out of bed and to the track. I was planning on a solo workout, but was super grateful when I saw her car pull in. 

Today's goal was to not go too fast. I wanted to hit 45 even on every split, but, if that couldn't happen, my top priority was not going faster. My first one felt SO slow... and it was dead-on. The next one felt dead-on, but it was slow. 

Eventually, though, I think I settled in:

Total Weekly Mileage: 37.9

Week-ending Thoughts:

I'm feeling good about Thursday. I've decided that I'm not going into it with the "this is a time trial" mindset, because that hasn't worked for me in the past. I'm not even going for a 6:00 mile. Instead, I'm treating it like an "execution" trial. I want to hit 90-91s for three consecutive laps, and then let it fly on lap 4. Mentally, it's SO hard for me to not want to "bank time" and know that I've gotta keep my foot on the gas the whole time, but I think that's what I need to do. 

I ran a 2:47 800m just a few weeks ago, but was well over double that for my mile. That tells me I have the strength and I have the speed, but I need to learn the right way to "pace myself". If nothing else, I want to try this "other way" on Thursday, just to see how it feels. What is it like to run a 3:00 800m, followed by a 90s 400m, and then what do I have left?

One of my biggest strengths has always been my kick, yet that's a hard strength for me to capitalize on in the mile... since I tend to use too much energy too early. This time through, I want to see how it feels to go "slow" for the first 1200m and be able to squeeze every little bit out at the end. 

Maybe I won't hit 6:00, and that's actually 100% OK with me. This time, it's about what this new approach feels like, and executing it right is the only way to know.