Week 6- 28.5M running, 250' x-training

Back to running this week! I'm excited to see how everything feels! I'm really hopeful that the TFL and shin issues will be in the past and I can get back in the swing of things with a clean slate!

Sunday, July 13th
Rest day! No cross training or running!

Monday, July 14th
15' w/u, 8 x 1' moderate to hard/ 1' easy, 15' c/d. I felt great energy-wise, but my shin started hurting about 0.6 miles in and my TFL/ knee/ IT band (whichever it is) started hurting after the first stride. I do feel like I kept my effort level in the right range for the entire run though, so I am pleased with that. Warm up averaged 8:36 pace and cool down averaged 8:12 pace. The fast 1 minute segments were between 6:00 and 6:20 pace, and I averaged 7:29 pace for the full fartlek time. I ran much slower than I should have on the easy minutes, so that will be the first area I want to improve on next time.
60' bike. 30' x-training. I biked for 15 minutes but it was hurting my TFL so badly that I switched to the elliptical. The elliptical hurt my left quad which has been sore for the past week or two. I decided I was better off skipping the full x-training session and not furthering any inflammation or damage that was already there. I will stick to the pool until I get these things cleared up.

Tuesday, July 15th
30' recovery run. I felt great when I started this run - I actually felt like I was moving quick and sort of felt like myself as a college runner. I am not looking at my Garmin at all on runs right now, only after the mile beeps. When the first mile beeped, I looked down and it was 9:09 pace!!! :( Yikes!!! The next miles were a little better, but according to my Garmin I never went below 7:42 pace on the entire run! The rest of the miles were 8:22, 8:06, and 7:56 (for the last five minutes). Got in 3.55 miles for the day. I skipped the strides because my TFL/ knee was the worst it has been so far. It really feels like I could step on it at any moment and it break in two at my knee.
60' aqua jog/ lap swimming. I alternated 15' pool running with 15' freestyle swimming again. I have no pool running belt, so it's a little more strain on my hip flexors than it was when I did long pool running sessions; hence the lap swimming breaks. The swimming is probably very good for my lungs and hear though... It is not easy on me by any means.

Wednesday, July 16th
15' w/u, 10' @ sub 7:00 pace, 15' c/d. Not a bad day... a big thanks to God for the nice weather this morning! Warm up averaged 8:22 pace and even though I felt my shin and knee, neither were as bad as yesterday. Did one set up high knees and butt kicks and two short strides, then got started (stayed in my trainers). I came through the five minute mark averaging 6:41 pace and finished it off averaging 6:33 pace, so I definitely cut down on the last five minutes. My garmin says 6:37 thru the mile, 6:24 pace for the remaining minutes. Cool down was the 2:30 easy, 30" quick again... Since it was 15 minutes I did five sets. The surges ranged from 5:30 pace to 5:46 pace and I averaged 7:34 pace for the entire cool down.
60' aqua jog/ lap swimming. I actually only got in 56 minutes today. Apparently they have an aerobics class at 9:00 three days a week, and since I couldn't get in right at 8:00, I lost a few minutes. Not a big deal at all, but I can be kind of anal about time... I don't like to finish on random numbers. ;) Still a good workout regardless. 

Thursday, July 17th
60' x-training. I am trying to extend the length of time that I actually aqua jog, so today I did 20 minutes aqua jog, 20 minutes lap swimming, 20 minutes aqua jog. Ideally I'll start doing fartlek intervals next week. It's just so much extra strain without the flotation belt that I don't want to start adding extra forces until my hip flexors and everything have adjusted to the easy pool running.

Friday, July 18th
15' w/u, 6x90" uphill, 15' c/d. God is being extra kind to us this week! Upper 60's this morning - In July - In Texas!! Warm up felt nice (8:27 average pace), hills were killer hard, but very good for me (ranged between 6:33 and 6:39 for all but the 5th one, which was 6:46 pace). I tried to keep a higher effort on the recovery portions today compared to on Monday's fartlek, but next time I will just relax on the recovery. These will definitely be very good for me though. 15' cool down was nice and uneventful (8:09 average pace). Got in about 6.5 miles today. I used the cream again and once again had minimal pain on the side/back of my knee. Makes me really excited! Now just to figure out a way to cover the shin pain. :)
60' aqua jog/ lap swimming. No swim. Somehow I managed to get swimmer's ear in the last week and a half. I bought drops this morning to get rid of it, as well as ear plugs to use in the pool from now on. :)

Saturday, July 19th
60' long run. Good run, bad knee. :) Covered 7.6 miles in 7:53 pace; the last four miles were between 7:25 and 7:34, so I am happy. This was my first continuous run over 6 miles... every other time I have stopped mid-way for a workout or a pit stop. Making progress!
60' 40' aqua jog/ lap swimming. Still no lap swimming yet, but I did go pool running until my knee told me it was time to stop for the day (40'). For the time I was in the pool though, it was good. I hate going and I hate doing it and it's one of the most boring things ever, but I do think it has made a huge difference in the short two weeks I've been doing it. I just feel smoother and more fluid. Not more fit, but more natural in my form/ stride.