Week 4 - February 10-16, 2020

This was a good week. I started off back in FL, and finished with a really strong feeling treadmill run for my long run! Late to publish this post, was just slammed with work this week.

Overview:

Monday - Day off

Tuesday - 6 miles easy

Wednesday - 35 min Bike w/ 20 min Tempo
                     Lower Body Strength Routine

Thursday - 30 min Easy Bike Ride

Friday - 6 miles w/ 4 miles Tempo

Saturday - 30 min w/ 5 min/1 min INtensity intervals

Sunday - 12 miles Long (on the treadmill)

Run Details:

Easy run - this was a good recovery run from Sunday's 5K race. Felt smooth and strong. Nice to be back on the Pinellas Trail!

Light Tempo - Decided to do 4 miles of Tempo rather than 3, since I cut back my tempo run last week. Felt fairly strong. I didn't properly calibrate my Garmin to the Treadmill, so the paces are off. My actual pace was 7:20/mile for the Tempo portion.

Long Run - This was the fastest long run I've done in quite a long time. It was nice to feel my stride so consistent and solid for that length of run. Took 3 water breaks of no more than 30 seconds each. I'm really happy with how this has been feeling!

This week, I crafted my own strength routines. I took the exercises I've most benefited from over the years and aligned them with specific muscle groups and focus areas, like lower back and hamstrings in particular. We shall see how they go.

Week 3 - February 3-9, 2020

This was a different week, both because of my travel plans and because of my 5K race on Sunday. All in all, things went quite well...

Photo by my dear friend Laura, who was also kind enough to be my gear sherpa for this race!

Overview:

Monday - Day off

Tuesday - 30 min bike w/ 10 min hard tempo
                 Poseidon Total Body Workout

Wednesday - Tempo: 7 miles w/ 3 mile Tempo pace
                      Atlas Basic Core Workout

Thursday - 45 min easy bike

Friday - Off, travel

Saturday - 4-mile easy run.

Sunday - 5K Race!

Run Details:

Tempo Day - I decided to keep the tempo run and cut the repeats, in lieu of the race. Felt really easy, since it was a shorter tempo than I had been doing. Nice to feel that it was easy!

Easy Run - this was a fun, light run in my old tromping grounds with a good friend. It was refreshing to have good weather and be able to wear shorts!

5K Race (St Pete Distance Classic) - this actually went pretty well. I had a solid 6:20s pace for mile one, and then slowed a bit. I was frustrated with my mentality for most of the run; I don't seem to push myself the way that I used to, and then I finish the race with gas still in the tank and no soreness. So I am obviously physiologically capable, but I need to work on my mental game for short-distance races. But this was a good baseline indicator of where I am, and where I can go in my marathon training. Best 5K time in 3 years!
Finish time: 20:55

Overall, I'm pleased with how my body is responding to the training and with how the race went. Now I want to focus on really dialing in those training paces, based on my current time, and keep pushing forward into longer long runs. Desired long run pace: 7:44/mile.

One thing I need to change: my strength program. I appreciate how Runner's Connect approaches their strength philosophy, but I don't feel the workouts are specific enough for my training. I am going to design my own strength routines moving foward, ones that combine the best of RC and the Bodybuilding programs.

Week 2 - January 27 - February 2, 2020

This was a pretty solid week! I'm proud of how the speed work went, especially since I didn't get great sleep in the days leading up to it.

An overview:

Monday - Day off. I really needed it

Tuesday - 20 min bike warm-up. Speedwork: 1-mile warm-up, 4x1200m reps @ 6:15/mi pace w/ 400m recovery, 1-mile cool-down

Wednesday - 30 min bike w/ random interval
                      Poseidon total body workout

Thursday - Took another day off. Horrible sleep last night.

Friday - Tempo: 7 miles w/ 5 miles @ tempo pace, 7:14/mile.
               Atlas basic core routine

Saturday - 45 min bike at a moderate pace
                 Bia hip routine

Sunday - 12 mile Long Run, 8:00/mile pace

Run details:

Speed Work Day - This went well! I really HATE 1200m reps so success with these is a big deal for me. I was definitely dragging towards the end but kept my pace on the last one.

Tempo Day - not too bad. I did take a brief water stop three times, but for no longer than 30 seconds. I used a VR program on the treadmill that was really kinda fun but disorienting! Felt strong.

Long Run Day - even better than last week, with two miles longer. This was my first run in new trainers, Mizuno Wave Shadow 2. They were much more responsive and firm than the Saucony Ride Iso pair I had been training in, but they were an adjustment and my lower leg tendons are a little sore from it. The elevation profile is, believe it or not, as flat as it gets here!

Nutrition & Hydration:

Fairly good week, but can always be better. Made a greater effort to consume water throughout the days. I also tried a new post-workout protein but wasn't a big fan. I am generally happy with my energy levels during workouts.

Rest & Recovery: 

Got some good sleep early in the week, but then terrible sleep on Wednesday night and that had me exhausted on Thursday. Much better sleep over the weekend.

Next week, I do one complete workout and then prepare for a 5K on Sunday in St Pete! Haven't raced in months, very excited to see what these legs can shake out.