4.24.2011

Almost to the bell lap of NCAA racing...

Sunday, April 24th
20' easy on the grass track at DBU after another day of travel.

Monday, April 25th
15' shakeout in the morning.
45' easy run on DBU's gravel path.
8x8" hill sprints.... by far the best hill sprints I have done all year.
3x6 strength work + 25xAround the World Core


Tuesday, April 26th
2M wu + 3 x (3',2',1'-equal recovery) + 2M cd. Got the entire workout in on the streets in Mansfield for a total of 9M. I definitely had a difficult time with pacing and consistency today, but 18' worth of hard running got in, so I'm sure it was not a total failure. Average paces for the surges were 5:55, 5:57, 5:41 - 5:49, 5:39, 5:29 - 5:41, 5:41, 5:10.
20' shakeout with Matt on the grass track in the afternoon.

Wednesday, April 27th
60' easy on the grass in Mansfield. Felt pretty worn down today, but there is a VERY good chance that strong winds and an empty stomach helped in that... :)
3x6 strength + 2x30" H-core routine


Thursday, April 28th
15' shakeout in the morning.
35' w/ last 20' uptempo on the grass track. I'm pumped... this is the first week that I have had NO hip pain on my runs!!
8x120m strides. I felt pretty weak and unstable during these, which was a surprise after such a solid feeling tempo.

Friday, April 29th
15' shakeout EXTREMELY early in the morning... we're talking 5:10AM!!
35' easy on the grass track. I am feeling a bit tight and sore right now, but at least not heavy!
3x30" (v-sit russian twist, pedestal routine)


Saturday, April 30th
10' shakeout in the morning to loosen up for the day.
20' wu + drills + strides + 2M time trial + 5' easy. Ran 11:17. Disappointed in the time, but excited to have run aggressively and practice leading again. 800 splits were 2:46, 2:50, 2:51, 2:49... It would have been interesting to run with someone and to have seen how far I could've held it. Might've been a 5k pr!
strides + 400m relay leg + 5' easy. Not sure of the time, all I know is feel like the biggest goof and idiot when I try to run fast, hahah!

Total Mileage for the Week: about 51.

4.17.2011

Rice Twilight... Last "fresh" 5k race!!

I say fresh because my only 5k left after this week will be the day after my 10k at the NCCAA Championships! In saying that.... This week is probably my best bet at setting a PR and really getting a picture of my fitness and the progression that I've made this year. I've got nothing to lose at this meet (anything I could qualify for has already been done), so I'm planning to be aggressive and take some chances. I'd REALLY like to be able to log a sub-18 time on here when I get back.

Sunday, April 17th
Rest day!

Monday, April 18th
15' shakeout + leg swings in the morning
6M progressive + 10x8" hill sprints. Ran most of the first mile with the girls and had splits of 8:00, 7:29, 7:02, 6:29, 6:20, and 6:18... nice and controlled today.
3x6 strength + 25 x around the world core

Tuesday, April 19th
15' shakeout + leg swings. This has become a safe haven for me over the past week and a half, regardless of how tired I've been (especially today!). I am falling in love with the chance to run completely relaxed and enjoy the fresh air. It's been a great way to wake up and clear my mind for the day ahead.
15' wu (3x1' surge at the end) + 3 x (4x200) + 15' cd. Today's weather was pretty brutal so the workout got redesigned! We planned on doing the first and last set hard and the middle set cruise. Actual times: 35,35,35,35 - 34,37,35,35 - 33,33,33,32. Finally felt very strong and comfortable on a speed workout... something must be paying off!

Wednesday, April 20th
45' comfortable around Mansfield neighborhoods.
3x6 strength + 2x30" h-core routine

Thursday, April 21st
45' w/ last 15' tempo + 8x20" strides. Had the privilege of running this with my husband on the Town Lake trail in Austin. I felt pretty lethargic and weak on the majority of the run and strides, but the tempo segment felt much better.

Friday, April 22nd
15' shakeout in the morning.
30' easy with Jake in Mansfield. I'm definitely still feeling tired and weak, but I'm hoping several days of feeling like this means that my turn for a "good" day is around the corner... AKA tomorrow, hopefully. :)

Saturday, April 23rd
12' shakeout after the bus ride to Houston.. felt much stronger and lighter than I have been!
25' wu w/ 1',2',1' pick-ups at the end + drills + 4 x strides. Still felt good.. actually felt very springy and quick.
5k race in 18:26. Failure again. Jake says my problem is mental. So that's what I've got to work on, I guess.

Weekly Mileage: about 40M

4.10.2011

1st week of no racing in a long time!

Sunday, April 10th
Rest day!

Monday, April 11th
15' shakeout to start the day... beautiful weather!
6M naturally progressive + 8x8" hill sprints. 39:52 for the run with splits of 7:48, 7:04, 6:31, 6:16, 6:10, 6:00. So thankful to get all of this in today... the weather was nice (windy, but at least not hot!) and I finally had an opportunity to run without being stressed by other things. God is good.
3x6 weights + 25x "around the world" core

Tuesday, April 12th
15' shakeout to wake up the body and get loose... another very pretty morning in Mansfield!
3M wu w/ 4x30" surges at the end + 6x1k repeats (2:30 recovery) + 5' cd. Another run with great weather... definitely hot outside, but at least not windy! 1k reps came out to 3:36, 3:36, 3:32, 3:30, 3:26, 3:22. Very thankful for this workout.. God has been so good to me.

Wednesday, April 13th
8M easy on grass in Mansfield. Averaged 8:08 for the run with a natural progression of paces from 9:01, 8:16, 8:11, 8:02, 7:58, 7:53, 7:37. Definitely a very relaxed and comfortable run, but I imagine it was good for me anyways!
3x6 strength + 2x30" H-core

Thursday, April 14th
15' shakeout... definitely looking like it's going to be a rainy day! YES!!!
35' recovery run on the grass track.. got in 4.5M averaging 7:50 pace. Felt pretty good today aside from my hip. It never stopped hurting, but today it has been considerably worse. Chiropractor is next up!!
8x120m strides in spikes on the grass... timed the last one with my garmin. They were all about 470ft (however many meters that is?) and just faster than 4:00 pace.

Friday, April 15th
2M wu + 6k progressive tempo + 2.5M cd. AWFULLY windy today (from all directions?!), so I was thankful we were not on the track! Got in the tempo averaging 6:10 pace for the entire run. My first loop was at 6:11 pace and my second at 6:09. The online training pace calculator I used said I needed my tempo between 6:12 and 5:57 for a 36:30 10k, so that was my goal. I imagine, with the weather accounted for, I was right in the middle of that range.
3x6 weights + 50 v-sit russian twists + 90" plank + 2x60" pedestal routine.

Saturday, April 16th
82' on trails at River Legacy. I was very tired and unmotivated at the start, so I knew I was running slow and I was afraid the run would take forever.... so, I decided to throw in a small 1' pick-up on a 10' cycle. Sure enough after the first 2, I started to feel better and had to force myself to slow back down after the pick-ups! After my 1' at the 70' mark I went ahead and finished out the run at the faster pace, which felt great. I'm really happy with the way I did this run, because it left me feeling good and wanting more.

Weekly Mileage: 49

4.04.2011

It's a battle: the flu vs. Texas Relays

Sunday, April 3rd
off... sick. probably the flu.

Monday, April 4th
35' easy. no strides. still feeling icky, but at least stronger today.

Tuesday, April 5th
30' easy with 5x1' surges. The run ended up about 3.8 miles averaging 7:51 with surges at 6:22, 6:50, 6:45, 5:48, 5:50. Felt tired and weak still but by the end of the run I was loosening up and getting more comfortable.

Wednesday, April 6th
10' easy, warm up drills, 10' w/ 1'h, 1'e, 2'h, 2'e, 1'h, 1'e, drills, strides
5k race in 18:31. Not much to say. Excuses are never good to offer, and obviously I am more fit than 18:31, so I'll leave it to all of you to come up with your own reasoning for my poor race. I have mine, but I'll keep them to myself. Regardless... I have 3 more races of collegiate running. Something has to change.
20' cool down


Thursday, April 7th
35' easy + 8 x 100m build-ups. Felt like I was running in quick sand. Pure and simple.

Friday, April 8th
3' to Merrifield + 6M w/ 90" surge to start miles 2-6 + 3' to the gym. The 6 miles took 41:00 and the paces break down into 8:17 (1st mile), 6:20/ 7:30, 6:27/ 7:13, 6:12/ 6:33, 5:43/ 6:43, 5:39/ 6:24 (90" surge/ finishing out the mile). Not as bad of a run as they've been feeling but I was pretty well suffocating on the way back with the heat!!
3 x 6 weights, 25 x around the world core

Saturday, April 9th
78' nice and relaxed at WRL. Came through 10M about 75/76 minutes so we figure it was around 7:30 pace. One of the most pleasant runs I've had in a while. Still feel flat and heavy though...

Weekly Mileage: 36.