Miler Method #4: Week 5/6

Week-beginning Thoughts:

Blergh. Sick kids = sick mom. This is gonna be a rough week.

Monday

Scheduled: 15-20min WU, 3x3x30s hills (easy, med, hard) , 10-15min CD

Did: nope

I slept about 15 hours between noon yesterday and 6am today. Might try to push this workout to later in the week, might just skip it completely. 

I felt a little blergh in the morning, but back to 100% by bedtime. 

Tuesday

Scheduled: 5-7mi easy + 2-3xCore

Did: 10KTuesday @ 10:12/mi avg

Wasn't sure I was going to run today, so I told my training partners not to count on me and do their own thing. I decided to not set an alarm and just let my body wake me up when it had had enough sleep. If that was early enough to run, and I felt good, I'd run. If not, well, I'd be "listening to my body".

I woke up on my own at 4:21, felt pretty good, and decided to head out for an easy run. Before my watch hit 1.0, I was already doubting if this was a good decision. I was going much slower than usual (close to an 11min pace), but felt alright. I decided to let myself go a mile out, and then, if I was still feeling icky, to turn around. 

At the 1mi mark, I felt better, so I decided to go another half mile, and then repeated this pattern a few times, giving myself ample chances to turn around, cut the run short, etc. I ended up doing the full 10K, but, even now, I'm not sure if that was the right call. Guess we'll see how I feel this afternoon... 

Also, didn't do more core workout today. Oops.

Wednesday

Scheduled: rest

Did: 35min weight lifting + 3.23mi @ 10:25/mi avg
I'd really planned on resting today, but some life stress sent me into full-on workout mode. I did the strength/lifting-only components of two of my favorite Beachbody LIIFT4 workouts back-to-back (chest/back/triceps/biceps) and then went out for an easy run in the afternoon with my kiddos. It was really nice to be able to push the little one in the double, while the older one rode a bike. While my pace varied widely with the older one's biking, it was really empowering to be able to take both kids to the greenway solo and get a good workout in with them.

 

Thursday

Scheduled: 10-20min WU, 10min tempo, 5-10min rest, 4x300@MP (45s recovery), 4min rest, 4x200m @ 43-44s with 90s recovery, 15min CD, 1 set strength

Did: as scheduled...well, minus the strength set :P

OMG, this workout felt SOOOOOOO good. 

WU: 1.53mi @ 9:49ish/mi

Tempo: 1.43mi (per Garmin) @ 7:00/mi

This felt really good this morning. 

300s: 63.3, 65, 65.7, 67.3 (Goal: 67.5)

I felt really good and strong on each of these. The last one is a few seconds slow because I didn't quite make it back to the start line before my watch beeped (stopped to re-ponytail my hair), so there's a little extra distance. Considering the 67.5 goal is for a 6:00 flat pace, I feel like I'm in really good shape for a fast mile. 

The past few times I've done Miler Method, my Week 5 speedworkout has been 4x400m @ MP, and I've done those all with a 6:00 goal pace... and varying levels of success.

200s: 40.3, 41.5 (Goal: 42-43s)

These felt GREAT. 

CD: 1.35 @ 10:00ish/mi avg

So.... yeah. I feel pretty awesome this morning.

Friday

Scheduled: 5-7mi easy

Did: 4.01mi @ 9:40/mi avg 

I kind of felt like running an extra mile here to hit the minimum scheduled mileage... but didn't let myself fall into the trap of "making up miles". Besides, I'm already planning on going longer than I "should" for my long run this weekend. :P  

Saturday

Scheduled: 5-7mi easy

Did: 10.22mi @ 9:30/mi avg, plus a few walks with the kiddos

Training plan had 5-7mi "in preparation for this weekend's harder workouts". Considering I already did the harder workouts (I've swapped days around from the prescribed order to fit my schedule better), and my training partner and I were both kinda wanting double digits, we opted for 10. It was really nice to run in the rain, and even better to get it all done before 6:30am :D  

Sunday

Scheduled: 15-20min WU, 15min tempo, 10min CD, 1 set core

Did: 1.25mi walk, run as scheduled (5.14mi @ 8:59/mi avg), 0.5mi walk, 1 set core

With my husband sidelined from running for a bit, I opted for a later run to still spend the morning together with our munchkins. We did a nice walk around the city center to see the scarecrow displays in the drizzle, without anyone else around. It felt absolutely magical to get out and about with my family, somewhere that wasn't the greenway or riverside path. 

After we got home, I headed out for my run. The weather was perfect: low 60s, slight drizzle, and full overcast. Beautiful. Tempo was a bit slower than I wanted, but I was also going uphill for the first bit.

First bit of tempo (uphill): 8:01/mi avg :P

Second bit of tempo (flat/downhill): 7:01/mi avg

Total distance = 1.96-- not quite the 2.0mi I'm normally gunning for on these, but I'll let it slide since I had so much elevation. 

Even managed to do my core workout after a shower and some homemade Larabars. ;) (diet has been much better this week, and I feel the effects of fueling better, too) 

Total Weekly Mileage: 35.4

Week-ending Thoughts:

• I feel so much better when I put better food into my body. 
• Homemade Larabars are like crack to me. I need to instantly put them in the freezer and bury them below lots of stuff.... otherwise, I eat them... like, ALL. 
• It's crazy how easily I get derailed from my strength training/core training. 
• I've got what could be a personally/professionally stressful week coming up. That could be a good thing to have accompanying taper week... or I might go crazier without running/working out. 
• Also, just realized my Thursday workout was actually 4x200m after the 300s, not 2. Crap. I guess I had 2 in my head since they were 200s... I feel pretty bad about screwing up a workout and slacking. Ugh. Oh well. 
• Mile trial is next week, and I'm feeling pretty good about it. :D If 6:00 doesn't happen this time, I have zero doubts I'm capable of it, right now. Just gotta make it happen. What an amazing feeling to have. 
• Also, bought a fun glittery workout outfit with some birthday money... It makes me feel happy :)

Miler Method #4: Week 3/6

Week-beginning Thoughts:

• I need to plan better this week. I'm going to identify all my target paces the night before my runs and determine when/how/where I'll get my core/strength circuits in. 

Monday

Scheduled:  5mi easy

Did: 5.04mi @ 9:30/mi avg
Oooh, I got over seven hours of sleep and woke up to beautifully crisp, fall air. It felt a little strange to put on a shirt to run (not even a singlet, like, a real short-sleeved tech shirt), but the wind was howling. Felt good, and was even showered before the rest of the family got up. Win.

..of course, I also started feeling sick again halfway through my work day. Blergh. 

Tuesday

Scheduled: 2 sets of Core pre-run, 5-7mi easy, 6x100m strides,

Did: 5.59mi @ 9:31/mi avg, , 6x100m-ish strides, 2x Core
Had a 2am-3am wakeup with baby, but was able to get back to sleep afterwards (hooray, that's a rarity)... though my 4:10am alarm wasn't welcome. I'm used to sleeping in my running clothes, because it's one less barricade to getting out the door in the morning, but didn't do that last night since it was chilly. 

That was the wrong call. I struggled for another ten minutes to get out of my nice, warm bed, and probably would have delayed too long had I not been meeting my 10KTuesday crew at 4:50am. Lesson learned: always wear your running clothes to bed, and just throw sweats over them if it's too cold to sleep in shorts and a singlet. 

Pacing was consistent for most of the early miles. I planned on doing 5mi easy and then using the rest of the 10KTuesday route for strides, but we got to talking and I ended up delaying my start a bit. Still got in the strides, of varying lengths and paces, since I didn't have a track, but they felt good. Oddly enough, my recoveries were about as long as the strides, and not very slow (relatively). 

I wasn't really feeling like doing my core workout when I got back in, but, with my family still asleep, it was hard to justify NOT doing it... so I did. 

Wednesday

Scheduled: rest

Did: 3.12mi easy @ 9:36/mi avg

Couldn't pass up 62 degrees and no wind... While I didn't have time for a full 5mi (my shortest prescribed "optional/easy run"), I figured something was better than nothing. 

Thursday

Scheduled: 15-20min WU, 10min tempo, 5min rest, 800m (2:56 = 1:28/lap = 44s/200m), 2x300m @ 67.5s, then 600m all-out.... then 10-15min CD, 

Did: as scheduled = 5.83mi @ 8:52/mi avg, 2x strength circuit

Today was a good day. I knew today was going to be a really hard workout, especially when I did the math on Sunday (weee, planning ahead) for what my splits needed to be. It was also going to be a really awesome day, though, because days are always great when you do something hard first thing in the morning. 

I cut the warm-up a little bit shorter than prescribed (because it lined up well with where I happened to be on the track/where I wanted to start intervals), and was about to set out for my 800 when my training partner said, "Don't you have tempo today?"

Oooh, yeah, I do.... Whoops. 

Tempo felt sluggish today. Normally, I feel pretty free on these, but today, I just didn't. Still, Garmin had me at 1.38mi (Garmin overestimates distance, but, for consistency, I'm comparing this value week-to-week), and I was only about 20-30m short of my usual distance. I chalked it up to poor eating and a stressful yesterday (two deadlines and a webinar presentation for 130 people during my 10+ hours at work), and mentally moved on. 

Previously, I've been taking the 5min "rest" as actual rest, jogging over to the start/finish line and just hanging out until my workout began. After reading a FB Q&A post with our coaches, though, I opted to turn it into an easy jog today. 

Soon, it was time for the 800. I knew my goal splits, and was ready to go. I was a little nervous about today. I mean, I haven't run a fast 800 since my last miler camp, and that was for a Time Trial. Today, I was supposed to run an 800m four seconds faster than what my mile pace would be... and it wasn't even Time Trial week (that's next week, btw). 

I took off, repeating the splits I had to hit in my head (44, 1:28, 2:12, 2:56) like a mantra. Oddly enough, I never actually checked these splits during the entire 800m. I felt like I was definitely working. My breathing changed to my race breath about 400m in, and I felt it. God, I have a "whole 'nother lap" to go... 

Having a goal time in my head, though, helped motivate me to push on. I did a 3:00 in my last time trial. Today, I was going for faster than that. 

800m:  2:53.9

HELL. YES. I didn't know it at the time, but, after looking over old race records, I'm pretty sure that's an 800m PR. Weeeeeee. Now I've gotta break that next week. 

I forgot to ask Nick and Sierra what my rest between intervals was supposed to be (it wasn't specified), so I opted to take between 90 and 120s, in line with other workouts. 

I was not feeling pumped for the 300s. These were at mile pace, which was fast... and I'd just run a really fast 800m. Oh well, gotta get 'em done... 

I didn't know what my splits were until I reviewed my watch output a few hours later, but was thrilled to see:

300m #1:  65

300 #2:  64.7

After the second 300, I was beyond glad to not have a "goal time" for my 600. It was just an "All You Got". I wasn't sure what I had to give after the first leg(s) of the workout, but I'd give what I had.

600m: 2:20.7 

This was so hard. I could tell my training partner knew I was struggling by the words she chose to cheer me on with. I felt slow. I felt tired, but I had a small kick on the last 100m... and was SO glad to be done. I'll be honest, though, this was not all I had physically. I could have gone faster, but I let the mental fatigue win by using the "eh, there's no time goal, it's just whatever you have... and maybe this is all you have, and that's okay". 

I could've gone faster. 

While my teammate finished up her workout, I did my strength circuits (check it out-- that makes two days this week where I've done the non-run components of my plan!). 

What a great start to the day. :D

Friday

Scheduled: 5-7mi optional

Did: some light lifting and yoga, but nothing significant

I didn't plan on running this morning. Instead, I used my morning time to tackle a deadline at work. Hopefully the 3mi I did on Wednesday makes up for not running today. It does in my mind, at least :) 

Saturday

Scheduled: 8-12mi long, Core x 2

Did: 12mi @ 9:23/mi avg

I had so many various feelings and thoughts during this run. At 0.6mi in, I remember thinking, "How can we not even be at ONE mile yet?". As we approached the halfway point for our normal ten miler, my husband told the kids, "Mommy's got 12 on the schedule, so we're going past the tunnel today."

Oh, I guess we are doing 12 then....

Around 8mi, I started feeling pretty good. That was about the time my husband slowed down due to some heel pain, leaving me solo for the last four. I remembered my training plan had said something about picking up the pace if we felt good... so I did.

...and then walked another 1.5mi with the fam :) 

Sunday

Scheduled: 15-20min WU, 15min tempo, 10min CD

Did: Core x2, 15min WU, 15min tempo, 15min CD... and then more CD = 6.58mi total @ 9:09:/mi avg

Well, core didn't happen yesterday, but I did a couple rounds today before hitting the pavement for tempo. 

WU: 1.47mi @ 10ish/mi avg

Tempo: 2.04mi @ 7:21/mi avg

CD: whatever's left over... I keep trying to write this blog, but get through, like, half a sentence before the baby starts crying "mamá, mamá"... 

I ended up running a bit further on the cooldown than I'd planned. I wanted to close out with a mile walk post-run, but it started raining, so we had to get the kiddos back to the car. 

Total Weekly Mileage: 39.1

Week-ending Thoughts:

• I ate better this week, and felt better
• Sleep was also a bit better (yay, lower stress and more baby sleeping through the night)
• Still feeling like a near-40mpw is NBD
• I can't believe we're already halfway through this training cycle! I'm loving the workouts and feeling both intimidated and excited by the upcoming time trial. According to my plan, I'm supposed to go thirteen seconds FASTER than this week's 800m PR... Eek. 

Miler Method: Week 3/6

Week-beginning Thoughts:
After doing 30+ mile weeks AND 4-6 days of strength training over the past few months, "just" doing mile training seems like such a low-level commitment... lol 

Monday

Did: 3.12mi @ 9:13/mi avg
Got up at 3am to work (well, got up for baby, stayed up to work), and felt really productive for getting so much done before the kids woke up around 6am. 

Still stressing about a whole bunch of things, some deep-seeded issues that kind of keep coming up, some more recent family stress, job stress, pandemic stress, etc. Grateful to be able to try to clear all of that out with a good solo run on the greenway between school drop-off and Round 2 of work. 

Tuesday

Did: WU, 8x45s hill repeats, CD = 6.22mi @ 9:59/mi avg
Baby was up at 1:30am... and I did NOT execute our agreed-upon plan of "no bottles unless he's slept at least eight hours". Oops. :/

Even though I got the baby back down quickly, I couldn't go back to sleep myself for another hour or so... and then my 4:30am alarm came too quickly. I laid in bed until almost 5am, mentally bargaining with myself, checking weather to see whether a mid-day 10KTuesday was even an option, and then, finally, deciding I would get up and "at least" do the minimum workout (10min WU, 8x45s hills, 10min CD), because a 35min run was far more palatable than a full 10KTuesday. 

Super grateful that I'd worn my running clothes to bed and already pre-filled my water bottle. Having fewer obstacles between me and the front door was essential this morning. 

Once I was running, I felt tired and, well, tired. Yesterday's 3am wake-up + 10.5hrs of work caught up to me... Oh, well. Keep running.

While I could have just run straight to the hill (~1.5mi) and done the repeats, I opted to get a little more distance in on flat ground as a bonus warm-up. That was a good call. I felt just human enough to begin the hill repeats when I arrived there. 

Oddly enough, the first two repeats felt... easy? Maybe that was because I'd gotten in a proper (slow) warm-up. They never really felt super hard, which probably means I only got to the 70-80% effort level by #8 instead of the 100% effort level where I should have been. 

Distances Covered:

45s: 0.1mi, 0.1mi, 0.1mi, 0.1mi, 0.09mi, 0.11mi, 0.10mi, 0.11mi

Slogged home, and finished out the 10K.

Wednesday

Did: 2.25mi double stroller run @ 9:46/mi 

Nothing good happens when you sleep in. Nothing good happens when you sleep in. Nothing good happens when you sleep in.

Didn't have time for anything this morning before school/work, and had a deadline I focused on the whole day.... Ate like crap, felt like crap, and then slogged through a double stroller run after pick-up. 

Bright side: we saw a butterfly on the run who played with us a bit, flying up ahead, "leading the way", and then falling back... and repeating that pattern for about half a mile. 

Thursday

Did: 19min WU, 10min tempo (1.3ishmi @  7:52ish/mi) , 5min rest, 8x300m/90s rest, 15min CD = 7.2mi @ 9:49/mi avg
I love track days... when there's a track to go to. When we arrived at our usual high school track this morning, though, we were greeted with locked gates, video cameras, and very conspicuous "NO TRESPASSING" signs. 

Boooooooooo, Seriously, what's wrong with a couple runners using a public high school track for running at 4:30am?

...so we were relegated to the parking lot for our speedwork. We got it done, but it was not fun, and really put a damper on the whole workout. 

Splits (though the only thing I'm certain about is that this was NOT an accurate 300m distance): 1:14, 1:13, 1:20, 1:20, 1:18, 1;20, 1:16, 1:15

Booooooooooo.

Friday

Did: 10.01mi @ 9:41/mi avg

Opted to get my long run done today so I could enjoy a virtual Peachtree on the 4th of July. Met a teammate early and got a hillacious route done before the sun. :) 

Saturday

Did: Virtual Peachtree 6.23mi @ 9:10/mi avg with the double stroller, plus some walk/run while my oldest ran 

No real pace goals for today's run. Today was just fulfilling the 5-7mi easy on my training plan, especially since I did it with a double stroller. We had a nice easy jog to start off, joined my husband for the last 0.25mi of his virtual race, and then finished up with a lazy few miles along the riverwalk. It wasn't Peachtree by any means, but it was pretty awesome to see so many other runners out there getting in their own virtual 10Ks. 

Sunday

Did: 10min WU, 15min tempo (1.91mi @  7:51mi), 10min CD = 4.92mi @ 9:44/mi avg, 1.4mi hike

Today's run started off slow and sluggish. I had the single stroller for today's run, but couldn't believe that "only pushing ~60lbs" would affect my pace so much. In reality, it didn't; I had a 10:00/mi pace for the warm-up. It just felt so much slower/harder because of the stroller. 

I mentally broke the tempo into 5min, 2.5min, turnaround, 2.5min, and then another 5min segment. Something I love about Miler Method is that I don't have a specified goal pace for my tempo runs. I can just run what feels like a push pace, and consider the workout well-executed. Especially on days like today, that helped. And, hey, I actually did a pretty decent pace for having the stroller. 

The cool-down was a bit half-baked. My little one wanted to run, so I did five minutes of jogging with the stroller post-tempo, and then the rest was a run/walk, following his pace. 

...and then we treated ourselves to a 1.4mi hike through a nearby recreational center. :D 

Total Weekly Mileage: 40mi

Week-ending Thoughts:

• Oh, hey there, 40mi week :D I feel so relaxed that it's hard to believe I'm actually running a weekly mileage that used to exhaust me 
• I love having a training partner doing the same training plan as me--- so motivating!
• I kind of miss weight lifting, but just don't feel like I have the bandwidth to put that in right now... Maybe once my youngest starts sleeping through the night. Surely that'll happen soon, right? 
• Pink Elephants on Parade is still trekking across the country. We're currently ~70mi from the Colorado border 

Track us here: http://trackleaders.com/greatamerican20i.php?name=Pink_Elephants_on_Parade

Follow us on Ista: https://www.instagram.com/pinkelephantsonparade_relay/

Miler Method: Week 2/6

Week-beginning Thoughts:
Uggghhh. After a week of fast running and lots of treadmill walking, I've got a small sore spot in my left calf, a sore right foot, and an upset right hip muscle/tendon. Perhaps I should start taking that rest day in my weekly schedule... 

Monday

Did: 3.2mi @ 9:23/mi avg, 20min yoga, 20min weight lifting
About that rest day... I just couldn't do it today. Too much life stress. Really tried to keep the run slow today, but emotions pulled me faster. At least I didn't have any issues in my foot, calf, or hip during the run? 

Did a bit of yoga/stretching and some chest/shoulders/back/triceps lifting in the afternoon.

Tuesday

Did: WU, 4x30s + 4x45s hill repeats, CD
Well, my hip is doing better but the issue has gone down into my IT band near my knee. At least I know that it's progressing down my leg, and have a yoga/stretching game plan to address it.

And, most importantly, I can still run through this. No discomfort at all during my run-- just some soreness in the side of my knee afterwards. 

I did the hill near the park today, which seems to be a good incline, and, most importantly, it's long enough to run all 45s (plus more) on. 

Distances Covered:

30s: 0.06mi, 0.06mi, 0.07mi, 0.06mi

45s: 0.1mi, 0.09mi, 0.1mi, 0.1mi

Definitely a hard workout, but a good one.

Wednesday

Did: 1hr dance w/abs, 3mi treadmill walk

Woohoo! I did it! I took a rest day... from running, I mean.

My hip/calf/foot issues are cleared up, and I didn't want to aggravate them before a track day, so I took the day to get my cardio in via a dance workout (thanks, Beachbody-on-Demand) in the morning, and then walked on the 'mill during some afternoon conference calls/webinars. 

Thursday

Did: 15min WU, 10min tempo (1.3ishmi @  7:42ish/mi) , 5min rest, 4x200m/2min, 4x300/2min, 10min CD = 7.66mi @ 9:06/mi avg, 20min weight lifting
I love track days. We started this workout at 4:30am in light rain, and it was just awesome. 

Tempo: 1.3ish @ 7:42/mi 

200s: 44, 48, 46, 47 (slower than last week)

300s: 70, 73, 70, 66

I struggled for the first few 200s, but was pretty pleased to see my paces were all still hovering near the 6:14/mi mark. Maybe I've got a shot at PRing this mile in a few weeks? 

Sometimes, I really want to. I want to just push as hard as I possibly can, put it all out there, puking at the end of the race, or at least having some other physical reaction that says, "yep, I gave it everything I had". 

Other times, I'm like "nah, I'm good". 

Friday

Did: 4.02mi stroller run @ 9:19/mi avg

Nice chill morning on the greenway with my little one. 

Saturday

Did: 10.00mi family run @ 9:22/mi avg

After a fun night celebrating our anniversary, at home, with our kids (lol), my husband and I enjoyed another of our standard Saturday long runs with the kids. Today was a little frustrating because my watch crapped out (for, like, the fourth time this pandemic) mid-way through, leaving me grateful that my husband's watch still working so that we could have accurate distance. It's funny how much I rely on knowing where I'm at in the long run and counting down the miles to keep me going... 

super fun to pull my dress out and wear it again :) 

Sunday

Did: 10min WU, 15min tempo (2.01mi @  7:28mi), 10min CD = 4.22mi @ 8:43/mi avg

I wasn't very excited about this run, but ended up LOVING it. While tempo runs can be intimidating, I love how this training plan doesn't mandate a pace for them. It was pretty cool to realize that I was doing more than a 3K indicator for the tempo, and even better when I figured out that I could probably hit 2mi within the 15min time period. Weeeeeeeee. Going fast is fun. 

Total Weekly Mileage: 35.3mi

Week-ending Thoughts:

• Well, I'm not doing ANY of the strength training associated with the miler method plan, but I'm still doing about 20min of chest/arm/back lifting each week. 
• Injuries have all dissipated, thanks to stretching, anti-inflammatories, and, most importantly, identifying the fact that I was doing something weird when treadmill walking while working with one hand on the mouse... and stopping that
• Our Great American 5000 relay team made it through another state this week. While the leaders in the race are about to finish, we're finally into Utah. lol

Track us here: http://trackleaders.com/greatamerican20i.php?name=Pink_Elephants_on_Parade

Follow us on Ista: https://www.instagram.com/pinkelephantsonparade_relay/

5K Training: Week 8/12

Week-beginning Thoughts:
Life feels busy. Time to find a way to slow down and smell the roses.

Monday

Scheduled: rest
Did: rest
There's nothing quite like going through your day still smelling the poop from when you changed your baby at 5:30am, despite washing your hands and arms six times. 

Tuesday

Scheduled: 6.3mi with hills
Did: 3.27mi WU @ 9:30/mi, 6x200m hills (<8:00/mi)/200m recovery, 2x200m hill (easier)/200m recovery, 1mi CD = 6.24mi @ 9:28/mi avg, Big 5
Pretty solid workout here. 

Wednesday

Scheduled: XT
Did: 20min strength training, 15min yoga
Baby slept until 4am, then got up for a quick change/feed before allowing me to get up and get a half-baked workout in before getting ready for work. :) Woo, look, ma, I cross-trained! 

with my cat

...and then, after work, I helped my older one practice on a pedal bike, which wrecked my back from all the hunching over to support him, but was super fun. :)

Thursday

Scheduled: 2mi WU, 8x300(@ mile pace)/100m, 2mi CD
Did: 1mi WU, 8x300(@ mile pace)/100m, 1mi CD = 4.4mi @ 8: 49/mi avg, Big 5
Oh, man, am I feeling my arms/shoulders/back today! Ooooof.
Thought I only had a 1mi WU/CD when I got to the track-- oops.
Wasn't sure what I needed to hit for my 300m, but I'd had 67.5 in my head. 

#1- 68.5s
Whelp, there goes that... I think I might've let myself give up a little after this one. I didn't want to be push that hard, and it was easy to make excuses. 
         My back is sore. 

That has nothing to do with your legs, and, if you're not twisting, 

you shouldn't even feel your back too much.

       I have a time trial Saturday; I should take it easy. 

This workout was specifically given to me by an Olympian coach for

two days before my GOAL race one season. NO modifying necessary.

       I'm on my period. 

So what?

I didn't give up completely, but didn't push myself to where I needed in order to get the most out of this workout. I showed up, and that was about it.

#2- 70.5
#3- 70.3
#4- 72.6
#5- 73.8
#6- 75.2
#7- 75.1
#8- 72.6

Friday

Scheduled: 3-4mi easy
Did: 3.0mi on treadmill @ 9:49/mi avg, Big 5
It throws my whole day when I don't just run first thing after waking up. I "only" waited until 6am, but it was still so hard to stop what I was doing and run after I'd gotten started with my day.

Saturday

Scheduled: 2mi WU, 5K Time Trial, 2mi CD
Did: 7.11mi total @ 8:53/mi avg, Big 5
Race Report

Sunday

Scheduled: 4-5mi easy with stroller
Did: 5.0mi with double stroller @ 9:50/mi avg, Big 2
Definitely felt a lot better than the day after a PR should have :) In fact, this felt just like every other Sunday Runday ever. 

Total Weekly Mileage: 25.75

Week-ending Thoughts:

• Loving what the tempo workouts have done for me :D 
• Looking forward to pushing hard over the next four weeks to see just what I can do at my goal race