10.27.2013

Here we go, here we go!!! [32.5M]

This should be my first FULL week of spring half marathon training! Still just "base" with bits of quality thrown in, but I'm excited anyways! :) And I'm so happy to have a training partner, Carolyn, again! We should be able to meet for our long run and at least one, if not two, of our quality runs each week! This weekend I'll probably jump in the DRC 5k at the last minute just to keep practicing the mental side of racing. I'm still so weak at pushing myself in the middle/ end of the race - It's crazy what practices you can pick up when you take a break from running for a while! Time to remember that there is no such thing as dropping out of a race!! And there is also no point in running hard if you're not going to compete! Got to get that racing mind back, and soon!

Sunday, October 27th
8M plus one additional mile with Carolyn! We only had 8 miles scheduled, but decided we'd rather run the loop for 8 miles, then walk back the last mile or so, but we got tired of walking and it was taking way too long! We kept things nice and easy today and it felt so great; this is by far the fastest any of my runs have gone by this year! 8:49, 7:57, 7:56, 7:42, 7:32, 7:32, 7:28, 7:16 [7:47 avg], then the last (extra) mile in 7:54! :) 

Monday, October 28th
Rest day!

Tuesday, October 29th
5M w/ 200 on, 200 off for the last 2M. I did this on the grass track, so my 200's were actually 0.15 of a mile instead of an actual 200 meters, but that's okay... means more rest time as well! The 3M warm up felt great and I ran those miles in 8:26, 7:54, 7:26. Then I changed shoes, did a quick, single set of drills, and took off. And by took off, I mean it. I am a TERRIBLE judge of pace right now. I knew the hard segments were really hard, but I expected them to be, so I assumed I was still running the right effort level. Little did I know I had turned this into a true speed workout! I had to practically walk the recovery 200's! :/ Paces for the hard segments were 4:48, ? (didn't get it), 5:04, 4:58, 5:11, 5:05, 5:04, 5:05; recoveries ranged from 7:50 to 9:20 pace. I'll know better next time! Since I accidentally stopped my watch instead of lapping it when I started my 2nd hard 200, I ended up running an extra 200m hard today, lol!

Wednesday, October 30th
5M on the treadmill, thanks to my wimpy self and a windy/misty day. :) It worked out quite well though. I started at 8:27 pace, then every 0.33 of a mile I knocked it down by 0.1mph. This put me finishing up the run at 7:03 pace which was just perfect. Total time was 38:40, so 7:44 pace. First two miles were over 8:00 pace though, so I'm pleased with that. Changing the pace so often made it go by quicker as well. Bone stim on both feet and shins today just to be safe!

Thursday, October 31st
5M, 6 strides. Knocked out all five miles on a soft surface today! Score! Switched back and forth between our grass track and the gravel trail and it worked like a charm. I'm really liking my new routine. I feel better going into the day when I have a relaxed, slow wake up in the morning. Plus, now that I'm running at lunch, it forces me to stop snacking at 9:00, which is another bonus. Since I'm already very awake and loose, it doesn't take more than a mile for me to get rolling and even the first mile doesn't feel stiff or achy like it does at 6AM! I'll just have to find a way to make the morning runs work when I can meet Carolyn for workouts or when I have longer runs. Today's splits were 8:31, 7:43, 7:24, 7:14, 7:00. Talk about a nice progression without even trying! Followed it with one set of drills and 6 short strides.

Friday, November 1st
5M cut-down. The plan was to do a short 800m easy warm-up and then run 7:35 cutting down 15 seconds each mile, finishing at 6:35. It was absolutely PERFECT weather though and I guess I let that get the best of me. First mile was 7:02 and felt like a jog! Next mile was 6:51, then I didn't catch the next three miles because my watch changed screens, but I know for sure I cut down. After I finished the last mile and saw my watch was on the wrong screen, I switched it to the correct one and stopped it there. Should be around 33:55 for the full time (6:47 pace). Felt very good leg wise, but the cool air did cause me to get the sticky nose and mouth after a little bit! Happy though! I wore my old NB shoes to see if they helped my feet and I had no issues!

Saturday, November 2nd
3M shakeout in the neighborhood before we headed out to watch the Region II UIL Cross Country Meet. It's always fun scoping out new recruits!


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