Run Less Run Faster: Weeks Fourteen & Fifteen

So I dropped off the blog world for awhile. Oops.

I just had some Real Life stuff to deal with, so I took advantage of taper to get things done. In the end, I neglected a few workouts, but I felt much less stressed and overwhelmed. There's no way I could've done that before my injury, so I'm glad to see the lessons I learned during my off time actually stuck for once.

I have a few posts I want to get written before I leave for Myrtle Beach (three days!!), so hopefully I will have more to say this week. Before, you know, spending no time on my computer to maximize my time in the sun. I'm so sick of the cold and all this snow, it is unreal.

I'm a little bummed Sunday is only supposed to be 39, but that's 30 degrees warmer than the real feel temp yesterday.... (But it is hilarious to watch the Southern runners freaking out about what to wear on race day with a high of 50. Apparently that is freezing.)

Anyway, let's look back on the last two weeks of taper. They haven't been nearly as horrendous as I thought.

Monday, January 26
1350 yd swim

This was a repeat of a ladder swim I did a few weeks ago. It was still hard, but I felt much stronger and more confident than before. I'm surprised how much my swimming has improved on just two days a week.

Tuesday, January 27
lunch - lift
PM - 7 mi easy

There was a guy wandering around the weight area without shoes on. (He did have socks on, thank God.) Apparently he does this because he has a bad back. To each their own, but he then started doing what I can describe as proselytizing, trying to convince other dudes to take their shoes off. How about we remember we're all adults and should therefore wear shoes in public.

Even these are better than nothing!

Wednesday, January 28
1350 yd swim

Thursday, January 29
lunch - lift
PM - 3 mi easy

I was supposed to do a seven mile tempo run, but the winds were totally ferocious, so I called it a day at three miles. When I retraced my route home, my footprints about a mile back had already been obliterated by the drifts. It sucked.

Friday, January 30
rest

Saturday, January 31
13 mi long (10:55 min/mile)

I did this run at MP+2, and I felt great at the end. I was a little bored (there is only one path in the whole town plowed, so I've just been running laps on it), but I felt strong. I know the second 13 miles of a marathon feel much longer than the first, but the fact I was able to have a quick snack and carry on with my day is a good sign.

Try to run the whole thing with your ego and see how long it takes to bonk!

Sunday, February 1
rest

Run Miles: 23.2
Swim Miles: 1.5
Lifting Time: 41 mins
Total Time: 6:08

Monday, February 2
750 yd swim

Tuesday, February 3
6.5 mi easy

I almost skipped this run because it was snowing, but it was relatively warm, and the falling snow was incredibly quiet and peaceful. The accumulation got a little much to run through by the end, but the first miles made up for it. Still done with snow though.

Wednesday, February 4
750 yd swim

It felt weird hopping the pool for the last time for a couple weeks. Weird, but nice.

Thursday, February 5
rest

It was bitterly bitterly cold, and I was feeling overwhelmed by life stuff, so I skipped my run to do other productive things. I set an alarm for the time my run would take, and I got a lot accomplished in that window. Plus I could feel my face the whole time. Bonus.

Friday, February 6
rest

Saturday, February 7
rest

I went to East Lansing for the MSU/Illinois game with my parents and had a blast. (Even though we lost.)

Sunday, February 8
rest

I was supposed to do one final long run, but as I was getting my running clothes on, it started snowing. We ended up getting four or five inches (not in the forecast at all), so I wimped out. Lazy, maybe, but I'm just so burnt out on this weather. I'm sure I'll come back refocused after some warm South Carolina days.

Run Miles: 6.5
Swim Miles: .9
Total Time: 2:03

I know I've mentioned it in other posts, but I've never had a true taper before. I've always been sick and/or injured in the two weeks leading up to a race, so I've always just been off running entirely. I expected taper to be harder than it is. It's certainly not the most fun thing ever, but I have other things I need and want to do outside running (gasp of horror), and combined with this horrible weather, it's been good to step back a bit. Plus, knowing I could run more if I chose makes it all the more bearable.

And the best part is I don't even feel guilty or mad at myself about it! I'm finally make the best choices for me, rather than just slavishly following a training plan. I am a tiny bit concerned that I'm sliding down a slippery slope of skipping workouts, but I'm sure a break from the winter blahs will be a good cure-all. 

And only 38 days until glorious, glorious spring arrives!

Run Less Run Faster: Week Thirteen

Let's start up front right away again. This week didn't quite go as planned, but I dealt with some obstacles that came my way and actually listened to my body on my long run, so I'm going to count it as a win.

I will admit that not being able to go the full 20 miles on Saturday has really screwed with my confidence. My legs felt tired from the get go, and my breathing was labored. But I made myself take a step back and honestly evaluate it. My run on Thursday involved 10 miles in sugar snow and really took a toll, the snow on Saturday had turned even more powdery, and I think my iron is low since it's that time of the month.

All of those things are either fixable (I've started taking my iron supplement again) or just won't be a factor at Myrtle Beach. (If I have to run through snow in South Carolina, I will probably just go drown myself in the ocean instead.)

I'm going to wait to see how this week goes before making the final call on my time goal for race, since my marathon pace tempo run Thursday honestly went great. There is one section of the trail kept completely clear, and, as much as I don't want to run laps on it, I've committed to doing so Saturday if that's what I need to to properly evaluate my fitness.

Monday, January 19
1000 yd swim


This workout brought me back to 20 minutes of continuous swimming. It was honestly harder than last time because I knew I could do it, so I got restless and bored.

Tuesday, January 20
7 mi easy + lift


My start group celebrated our one year anniversary at work (woohoo!) with Chinese for lunch. Totally worth doubling up my workouts in the evening. I thought seven miles on the track would be bad, but I broke it up as 50-25-25 in my mind, and it surprisingly went pretty quickly.

It's honestly nice to understand how to do my job now.

Wednesday, January 21
Love Yourself


I wasn't able to swim at lunch, so I did a new-to-me yoga video in the evening. It was incredibly gentle and almost felt like a waste of time, but then I slept amazingly well that night, so apparently it was exactly what my mind needed.

Thursday, January 22
lunch - lift
PM - 1 mi WU, 8 mi @ 10:53, 1 mi CD

I was amazed how quickly this run went by, and I only had some minor fatigue at the end. To me that's a very good indicator of my fitness being in the right place a few weeks out from my goal race. And let me just say, it's so weird to think about how hard running 4 miles was for me a couple years ago, to now being able to say 10 miles is "easy."

Friday, January 23
rest


I felt totally wiped from running the day before, so I tucked myself in early and slept for 11 hours. Magical.

Saturday, January 24
14.5 mi long @ 11:24


I won't rehash too much what I said above, but this run was rough. My quads got very tight, and my low back started absolutely aching, so I think cutting the run short was the right thing to do.

Sunday, January 25
Slow Flow Yoga


I didn't do a very good job of quieting my mind in class, but I felt much more relaxed and calm afterwards. I feel like I've finally gotten the hang of the flow we move through. (Only took nine classes! I must be some kind of prodigy.)

Run Miles: 31.5  
Swim Miles: .6
Lifting Time: 46 mins
Yoga Time: 1 hr, 33 mins
Total Time: 8:43

This coming week officially marks the start of taper. Even with the three week layoff for my injury, this training cycle has flown by! I remember when my countdown at work for Myrtle Beach was over 100 days. Today it's down to 18. I will have some final thoughts to share on RLRF when it's all said and done, but at the very least I don't feel burned out. (Very important with all the marathons I have planned!)


I'm looking forward to only having seven miles to run Thursday, and only 13 miles for my long run Saturday! (Ok, I didn't run that much further this past Saturday, but I procrastinate more the longer the run will be.) We're supposed to get some snow Thursday, but nothing like the East Coast, so hopefully conditions will stay pleasant.

Time to soak up every minute of training before the taper crazies really hit!

Have you ever had to cut a long run short?
Any tips for measuring fitness when running in snow? 

Run Less Run Faster: Week Twelve

I'll cut right to the chase - this week I returned to running, and it was glorious.

I won't pretend like there weren't challenges, but I hit all of my planned miles. It was difficult jumping back into longer runs right away, but any time I began to waver mentally, I reminded myself that I was out running, and I was able to keep going.

I'm still a little unsure about my goal for Myrtle Beach. I did my runs based on a 4:45 finish time, and they were very doable. I'm just a little nervous that I'll blow up trying to hold that pace at a much longer distance, though. But I think my fears are mostly unfounded. I have a few more weeks to whip my butt back into shape. I'm sure after more training and a solid taper, plus race day adrenaline, (hopefully) ideal weather, and a pace group, I will be ready to rock a 4:45.

But most importantly of all, I'm really excited for training, in a way I'm normally not this deep into a training cycle. I'm pumped to go out for each run and work toward my goal. Maybe this layoff was a blessing in disguise because it renewed my motivation. The year is young, and I still have a lot of race miles to run, so this boost might be exactly what I needed.

As for how my injury is doing, the original pain is all healed. Even when my chiropractor went pretty deep on Wednesday, there was no pain. I am having a bit of knee pain and some ankle pain, but I'm attributing this to less than ideal running conditions (indoor track and snow outside), plus my change in shoes. None of it feels like it will blow up into something major (knock on wood), just some minor aches while I re-acclimate to running. We had quite a good thaw this weekend, so hopefully I will have lots of clear outdoor running this week.

Monday, January 12
Hip Flexor Heaven
Flow for the Shoulders

A new team member started work, so we went out for a long lunch with him. Evening swim doesn't start until 7:30 PM, and I didn't feel like heading out again in the cold, so I did my two new favorite yoga videos instead. They left me sore but relaxed.

Tuesday, January 13
6 mi easy (11:07 min/mile) & lift

We had a farewell lunch for a former team member (accountants love to eat, let me tell you), so I hit the gym after work to both run and lift. I really wanted my first run back to be outside, but there was a windchill warning, and it was so cold it hurt. The run probably started feeling tough at about mile four, but overall I was happy with pace and how I felt.

Wednesday, January 14
1000 yd swim


This swim started off with 500 yards of kicking (with rest), followed by 500 yards of continuous swimming. Before I would've been nervous about swimming that far, but after doing 800 and 850 yards without stopping last week, I felt confident and strong.

Thursday, January 15
lunch - lift
PM - 1 mi WU, 8 mi tempo (10:53 min/mile), 1 mi CD

There was still plenty of snow on the ground, but it was comfortable out, so I threw on my Yax Trax and hit the road. No one else was out, and it was so peaceful listening to the crunching snow and my breathing. I kept waiting to hit the wall or explode or to want to lay in the snow until I died of hypothermia, but I felt surprisingly good the whole run. I had to dig a little deeper the last three or so miles, but it still wasn't horrific.

Friday, January 16
rest


Good Lord, I forgot how hungry and sleepy running makes me. I basically ate food like it was my job, and then slept for 10 hours. It was wonderful.

Apparently someone wrote books about my life without telling me.

Saturday, January 17
15 mi long (11:06 min/mile)


My goal pace was 11:08 (MP+15), and it felt easy. I really had to hold back and kept dipping down to MP, which I'll take as a good sign. My legs were pretty beat at the end, but it feels like my cardio capacity is still almost intact, which is the harder thing for me to build. Hopefully with a couple more long runs before race day, my pep will come back.

Sunday, January 18
Slow Flow Yoga


I did a great job following my breath in class and felt much calmer and centered when I was done. I'm getting close to having to make some big decisions (sorry, I promise to stop vague blogging ASAP), and this really helped put me in a good frame of mind.

Run Miles: 31 (hell yeah!)
Swim Miles: .6
Lifting Time: 48 mins
Yoga Time: 2 hrs, 14 mins
Total Time: 9:19 (<<that's more like it!)

I don't have any crazy lunches scheduled this week, so I should be back on my normal routine this week. This will also be the last intense week of training before taper begins. (Though the first week of taper is still pretty hard, especially after my layoff.) I expect it will be challenging, but knowing my fun race is so close is really helping me push through this discomfort. Train hard, race easy, right?

I can't wait to earn that sweet medal!

How are running conditions in your neck of the woods?
How do you re-motivate yourself?

Run Less Run Faster: Week Eleven

So I may have lied when I said last week was my final week of rest. After continuing to feel my tendonitis, I decided to extend my running hiatus a little longer. While I've certainly run through tendonitis worse than this, I'm still not 100% what straw broke the camel's back this training cycle, so I wanted to be conservative.

I was also challenged this week when I realized spinning was inflaming my tendons further and slowing my recovery. Michael had suggested this might be the case, which I quickly dismissed because there was no pain while spinning, but after a particularly painful flare-up following Tuesday's spin, I realized he was right. (These are my symptoms when I run, so I don't know why I was so stubborn.)

I did my best to modify the schedule again, but other life events took precedence for once. It was my busiest week of work of the year, which left me pretty burned out by Thursday night, and I took some mental health time instead. I also went to visit Hannah over the weekend. Considering she won't be back from Georgia until July, I wanted to maximize time with her, rather than worrying about workouts. I think both of these were good choices.

Monday, January 5
1000 yd swim

I was really nervous about this swim, since it called for me to swim 20 minutes continuously. I think the longest I've swum before was about 12 minutes. I decided to just take it very slow, and I was super excited that I got in 800 yards. Once again, I showed myself I'm stronger in the pool than I think.

Tuesday, January 6
lunch - lift
PM - 7.5 mi spin

I did some quick intervals on the bike, and I felt like I had really worked hard when I was done. But like I said, my leg hurt a lot, so it did more harm than good. (Why, body, why?!)

Never not use.

Wednesday, January 7
lunch - 1000 yd swim
PM - Ashtanga Yoga for Beginners

Maybe I was giddy that books were closed at work, but for some reason I threw in a yoga video this night. I really wanted to try Ashtanga, so I did Do Yoga With Me's super beginner version. It was quite challenging, and I was even sore the day after! However, I still was able to follow along pretty well, since it turns out my Slow Flow class is just an easier version of Ashtanga.

Thursday, January 8
lift

I had plans to do yoga that night, but I played video games instead. I felt much better afterwards.

Friday, January 9
rest

Saturday, January 10
rest

Hannah and I did do some walking around downtown, but we spent most of our time staying warm inside and talking.

Sunday, January 11
rest

The two of us did a bit more walking around a local park, but otherwise we were inside, plus I had the long-ish drive back. I gave myself just enough time to do my Sunday chores, so a workout didn't happen.

Bike Miles: 7.5
Swim Miles: 1.2  
Lifting Time: 42 mins
Yoga Time: 1 hr, 12 mins
Total Time: 3:29

I will be truthful and admit I almost had a heart attack when I added up my total time for the week and saw how low it was. Then I stopped for a second and took a step back. I wasn't just laying around on the couch because I had caught a case of the lazies - I was working lots of overtime, resting an injury, and seeing a good friend. There's nothing wrong with actually acknowledging life happens outside of running for once!

 

And in any case, today will officially be my first real day back to running, with an easy six miles on the schedule! This time I'm equipped with new shoes (more cushioning, heyoo!) and a new attitude (willing to adapt). I'm trying to apply what I've learned from the injury and modify the plan to prevent a relapse. (I know, who am I?)

Instead of a track workout, a tempo run, and a long run, I'm going to do an easy run, a shorter tempo run, and a progressive long run. Hopefully this will keep me healthy. I only have 32 days left to prepare!

What are you favorite ways to cross-train?
How do you find a training-life balance?

Run Less Run Faster: Week Ten

Finally - the last week of rest for my injury is done! The last few days I've been going a little stir crazy and had a growing irrational hatred of people I've seen out running. I can't wait to dive back in Tuesday!

Though, of course, we got about six inches of snow this weekend and temperatures are going to drop into the negatives. Thanks for sidelining me when it was 40 degrees, body. Oh well, I guess this just makes Myrtle Beach seem even more appealing!

Monday, December 29
700 yd swim


This swim consisted of 100 repeats and then some 50 repeats. It really made the time fly by.

Tuesday, December 30
11.1 mi spin
lift

I used the spin workouts in the RLRF book for the first time, grabbing the ones assigned to week 10. (The book provides swim, spin, and rowing workouts, so that you can choose whatever cross-training activity you want.) Man, I like to think my quads are pretty powerful from running, but spinning kicked my ass! And I wonder why the bike is my weakest sport. I am happy to report the bike is much less mind-numbing than the treadmill.

Wednesday, December 31
700 yd swim

It was fun to get in one last workout for 2014 before heading to Michael's parents' to celebrate the new year.

Thursday, January 1
rest


I switched up my rest day since I knew I wouldn't have access to a pool or bike on New Year's. But I did get my heart rate up cheering for MSU! I still can't believe we pulled that win out. I also spent a few minutes hating everyone able to do a resolution run to ring in 2015.

Friday, January 2
8.7 mi spin
lift

I took a long lunch in the middle of the day (almost no one was at the office) and just stayed later, so that I didn't have to worry about all the bikes being taken at the gym. (We have a perfect storm right now of students home from college, everyone from the closed gym under renovation, and the resolutioners.) This spin consisted of intervals, and I got a little vommy towards the end, but it felt awesome.

Saturday, January 3
700 yd swim
10.8 mi spin

I wasn't quite sure how to replace my long run, since all the cardio machines at my gym have a 45 minute time limit (!!!). I decided to combine a swim and spin and call it good. The time obviously wasn't equal to what my run would've been, but I still felt like I had worked hard when I was done.

Sunday, January 4
1 mi easy @ 12:24
Slow Flow Yoga

I felt like I was going insane with so many days off running, so I broke down and ran a quick mile in my neighborhood. There were some minor aches, but I think they were just my body re-adjusting to running, rather than the injury persisting. (Plus I had to run on snow and ice, so my gait was certainly altered a bit.)

I had gotten it into my head that I had a stress fracture (when I know quite well that it's just some minor inflammation from subconsciously flexing my feet while spinning), but doing a short run without my shin imploding made me feel much better.

Run Miles: 1 (awwwww yeah)
Bike Miles: 30.6
Swim Miles: 1.2  
Lifting Time: 44 mins
Yoga Time: 60 mins
Total Time: 5:05

I thought I had my plan figured out for this coming week, but I had to make some minor tweaks at the last minute, because my best friend came back from Georgia and I'm going to visit her next weekend! I'm super excited, considering I haven't seen her since August.

Blogger wouldn't let this photo be any smaller than X-Large, so it's even excited.

This is also going to be my busiest week of work of the year, so it will be nice to have something really fun to look forward to when I'm chained to my desk for a stupid amount of time. (Though, knock on wood, I had an incredibly productive day on Friday, and I might be in better shape than I think!)

But in any case, my plan is to run easy on Tuesday (instead of the presribed intervals), do the planned tempo run at MP Thursday, and modify the long run on Sunday to only 12 miles. I have these last three weeks to build before taper starts (where did the time go?!), and I'll still be able to fit in a 15 miler and a 20 miler.

My chiro was telling me a recent study showed that the net result of an injury is nothing. This means, assuming this study can be generalized to me, that in two weeks I'll be back to where I was fitness-wise, and then have an additional week to get a bit faster.

I'm hoping that my cross-training preserved more fitness than I think, and that I will come out ahead. But if I don't, I already felt pretty fit, so I'll just have to play it by ear. I believe Myrtle Beach has pace groups for 4:30 and 4:45, so I can still shoot for my original goal, but easily drop back if need be. While a 26 minute PR would be amazing, I won't say no to 11 minutes either!