Ready for another week! (45 minutes)

Last week I was able to get in two measured runs, both of which were sub 8:00 pace! I'm happy to know I'm not crawling out there! I still have 3 months left to build up the durability of my body and get ready to tackle a normal training season, so I'm only adding 5 minutes and some strides this week. Slow and steady progress! :)

Monday, September 29th
60' bodypump class.
20' run. Nothing crazy here. No major pains, just the same sore arches and achy left groin. Definitely nothing to be concerned about!

Tuesday, September 30th
90' at home workout from Fitness Blender.
*Chiropractor appointment. Lots of deep, deep, deep massage on my butt and hip flexor - My glutes are not activating right now due to tension in places it shouldn't be, so I have some homework to do!

Wednesday, October 1st
45' spin class.
25' run + 2 strides. Same as Monday in terms of aches, but this run was definitely faster. I ran on my 0.27M loop for six laps and then made a bigger loop; but I hit that sixth lap at 11:59, which means I was plenty under 8:00 pace for the first half of the run. Followed it with some drills and two quick strides, which I felt nice and strong on.

Thursday, October 2nd
30' spin class + 30' core class.
*Corrective Exercise appointment.

Friday, October 3rd
Rest day.

Saturday, October 4th
Unplanned rest day. Tried running but had bad ankle pains and had to walk home after about half a mile.

Feeling great!! (85 minutes)

My feet, ankles, shins, knees, etc feel the BEST they have felt in ages! I feel like a kid when I run because it is totally pain free! I love it! Since I have so much time until we plan to start training again, I am going to INCH my way forward! I got in 75 minutes of running last week - This week I'm planning on 85! :)

Monday, September 22nd
20' run + strength circuit. Nice comfortable run on the grass track, followed 2 sets by a new strength circuit. Entire workout was at noon so I felt a bit sluggish and my stomach was uncomfortable. Other than that it was a good workout.

Tuesday, September 23rd
60' cycle class. This is my favorite cycle class every week. Definitely the most challenging cycle instructor I go to.

Wednesday, September 24th
45' cycle class + 20' run + strength circuit. Running after cycle class has actually been great for me. By the time I start my run, my HR is already elevated and I'm plenty loose. I knocked this run out on a loop in the 24 hour fitness parking lot and I timed each loop. I started out running around 2:10 for the loops and the last 4 were closer to 1:50, so I assumed it was pretty close to a quarter mile. Checked MapMyRun and it showed 0.27M! Obviously that's not 100% accurate, but that means I ran somewhere between 7:40 and 8:00 pace. For me, the longer the run is, the easier it is to average a solid pace; so to average sub 8 for such a short run was very exciting! Still not in any pain, though I did feel a little uneven today. Felt like my left leg was moving differently than my right leg.

Thursday, September 25th
30' cycle class + 30' core class + 20' run. No issues with my workout this morning. My throat is hurting pretty bad right now though, so hopefully that passes today!

Friday, September 26th
Rest day. Was in Columbus with my parents, so I went to the pool with my mom and got in some light aqua jogging and pool strength!

Saturday, September 26th
25' run. This ended up being a great run! I can only run on the track when I'm by myself in Columbus (I'm a scaredy cat when it comes to dogs in the country!), so I decided to do 3 miles on the track, assuming that would be about 25 minutes. I ended up coming through 3 miles in 23:38, so I just ran easy to finish out the last minute or so. Super happy with this week of running! 20 to 25 minutes is not much, but if I gradually inch up my minutes and I continue running 8:00 pace or less, I will eventually work my way back to decent mileage at a decent pace!

Sunday, September 27th
Rest day. Travel back to Dallas from spending the weekend in Columbus!

Building fitness (75 minutes)

I am hardly running anything at all (just over 12 miles last week), but I honestly feel so much more fluid than I've felt in a long time. My stride feels clean and natural, and for the past several months it felt choppy and uncoordinated. I think 90% of the changes in my stride are from Dr. Rhonda Grubb's corrective exercise work. I'm really encouraged by the pain-free starts to my runs and hope to keep making very very small progress each week.

Again, I don't plan on running any further once I start to feel aches or pains. It's taking a lot of self-control, but I don't want to cheat myself and not be ready to train with a fresh body in January.

Monday, September 15th
60' bodypump class + 30' elliptical + injury prevention

Tuesday, September 16th
60' cycle class + 25' run

Wednesday, September 17th
40' cycle class + core + 40' brisk walk

Thursday, September 18th
30' cycle + 30' strength + 25' run

Friday, September 19th
rest day

Saturday, September 20th
25' run + core

Sunday, September 21st
Quick round of core work - fighting a sinus infection

Not much running yet (106 minutes)

I'm still not going to do much running this week. I felt fantastic on my first run last week (after a week and a half off), but each subsequent run something new begin to ache again. My foot came back first, then my shin, then my left thigh, then my hip flexors. That being said, nothing was bad and I'm not running hard, often, or long, so I don't believe I can make anything worse. I'm going to stick to 3 runs per week this week and keep them broken up and short.

Monday, September 8th
40' of 5' running, 2' walking + 2 x 2k rowing + 3 x 12 lower body weights

Tuesday, September 9th
60' Cycle class + 3 x 12 upper body weights

Wednesday, September 10th
40' of 7' running, 3' walking + 2k rowing + core

Thursday, September 11th
Rest Day

Friday, September 12th
Rest Day

Saturday, September 13th
28' of 3' running, 1' walking + 22' elliptical + core

Sunday, September 14th
25' running + core

Back to reality (68 minutes)

I'm back in the swing of things and my feet are fully recovered from San Diego! :) I have made it a goal to get back in the habit of at least 60 minutes of cardio five days a week. I've also decided to only run when I feel no pain (soreness and new aches are okay; just no "pain" or recurring aches). The goal is to be ready to train with a clean bill of health in 2015!

Sunday, August 31st
Rest day (SUPER sore from the Nike Training Club class!!)

Monday, September 1st
Core circuit + 20' rowing + 20' running (treadmill) + 20' spinning
*No foot, shin, knee, or hip pain while running*

Tuesday, September 2nd
60' Spin class

Wednesday, September 3rd
30' of 4' running, 1' walking (outside) + 60' Nike Training Club class
*Slight foot pain (L), hip flexor pain (L,R), knee pain (R) towards end of run*

Thursday, September 4th
20' core circuit + 60' Spin class

Friday, September 5th
60' Total Body Conditioning class

Saturday, September 6th
30' of 8' running, 3' walking (outside)