XT - Swimming for 20 minutes
I can't tell you distance. Out and about on Lake Allatuna, and I swam to the "other shore" and back, and then to "that boat" and back. Counting it as XT, but as far as "TRI" training .. maybe not so much. Lanier TRI is for sure going to end up being a "fun run."
I can feel my quads a tiny bit today, and when I got up in the AM, I for sure wanted to do a little stretching, just to make sure planter doesn't become a thing. But both things are so minimal, I'd barely count them as on the radar. Great feeling at 18 miles! (knock on wood!)
The other dull ache is the one in my back. Thinking on it, there isn't a time of day where my back isn't sore. While sleeping, sitting, driving .. always just this dull ache in my lower back. I would seriously benefit from some massage or yoga to stretch things out .. but who's got time for that! :/
Monday
Distance - 6.2
Pace - 9:56
Running on Mondays has become very efficient. Get there, stretch, run, get home, go to work. I can hardly say I said more than 3 things to Kyle the entire hour. But done.
I thought this run would be tough on tired legs. It started out that way, but on the return alone, I started pushing myself anyways, and I'm excited that this is what a shake out run legitimately looks like.
Tuesday
Distance - Nada
Another week. Same problems. Opted out of 5am for no good reason, since I was up. But being awake because you're too restless too sleep since 2am doesn't necessarily equate to wanting to go out and run. In this case, it equated to continuing to try to sleep poorly anyways. Then work stress obliterated any resolve I might have had to hit the treadmill in the evening.
I'm trying not to be too hard on myself about this. This week, I do not have a super long run on the schedule. (Saturday is 5K race + 13 PRO after.). I may get tempted to do more after the race or on Sunday, (I think the ATC plan has 18, but I switched it with next week, since this Saturday is the Tailgate, and I am running that at 5K race pace, which is much closer to the PRO day than to EASY long day, plus by the time I do 18, it might be 100 degrees out after a race day .. so I will pick this run up tomorrow, and deal with the consequences of too many days in a row toward the end of the week.
Right now, outside of running, I am *really* stressed, a bit sad, and just wayyy too overloaded. The reality of managing back-to-school, my daughter's Senior year, my other daughter's returning cheer schedule, and "that other thing" I am working on fixing that's like a second full-time job .. dang, I am feeling seriously meh! I knew that I would not be able to turn life off for this, but I didn't realize just HOW MUCH of a balancing act this would be. Boy, to have the luxury of just training, like the pros do .. *jealous*
Wednesday
Distance - 5 (treadmill)
Pace - Garmin cheated me in treadmill setting. So somewhere between what Garmin called 10:10, and what the treadmill called 9:40.
The not so fun thing about treadmills is 1. that you get bored. There was nothing ... not music, not the news on t.v., not people watching ... that could convince me that I didn't want to stop. And that was before mile 2! My legs took that long to get warmed up to the 10min pace. And try as I might, I couldn't "forget" that I was running. This goes on until the "safe" point: half way. After that, I feel pretty sure I can play games with the speed.
The fun things about being a distance runner on a treadmill: 1. playing with the speed. you always know you're going to finish a workout negative (or at least I do), because at 2.5, I'll let myself hit the arrow once or twice at every half mile mark, and then every .25. Finally, in the last mile, I hit it every .1. By the end of it I am zooming, which brings me to .. 2. how much other people scope you out. They're running 10-20 minutes tops. They're wondering when the heck you're going to stop. They're looking at you like you grew a third head when instead of folding like a deck of cards, you bump the speed. That's fun. :)
Thursday
Distance: 1 WC, 4 x 1200, 1 CD
Goal: high ... using Braves 5K ... 6:14 (8:22 avg pace)
Goal: low ... using 4:30 marathon goal ... 6:42 (8:59 avg pace)
1 - 5:42
2 - 6:11
3 - 6:18
4 - 6:25
It hurts to run hard. And I didn't want it to hurt today. The end. I had run 5 miles at a decent clip not 12 hours earlier, and I don't want to completely tank Jog Days. So I cut one interval (work out called for 5). This worked with the rest of the fast crew, except can't blame that .. I'm sure they would have hung around for 7 minutes.
Anyhoo, as usual, took the first one out at an unsustainable speed. It hurt. So I babied myself from there. Much better than last week, though. The headlamp helped TONS, as did the Garmin. I could actually SEE what I was doing. I did still miss my pod buds. Its really helpful to have a smidge of healthy pacing competition out on the track. They're going to head back to OCEE, I think. That park is better than Riverside, but I have gotten really attached to an ACTUAL track, like at Suwanee. But it works .. each Thursday I should have TWO viable options for running with people. Until the temperatures lean back in the favor of runs while the sun is out, I'm going to *really* try to be a 5AM crazy, but guest visit at OCEE when I fall short.
These sessions are mega humbling. The last cycle, with trainees, and Michele or Kyle, I could hold my own among the top of the speedwork pack. (not THE top, but among). On the track these past couple of weeks with my "speed inspirations," I am for sure the baby duckling. *^_^* Very okay with that; running with fast people eventually helps you get faster. But in the process, I huff, I puff, and wonder if I've ever done speed work before in my life. Every. Time. Lol.
Friday
Distance - Nada
Very important conversation PR, though! Woo. Fingers crossed. :)
Upcoming
Jog Days. The trend of not important important races continues. Damn you, Grand Prix. Damn you! I'm not getting back in Top 3, but I could try to stay in Top 5. (I am 4th right now in my AG).
First decision: I'll race if I am feeling up to it. No tempo run to save my self for Chicago long miles. Burn out, and then slog whatever else is needed .. that's more my style. .. most days.
Second decision: what to put in the watch as a pace goal? Hmmm. 25:59 has to be there. I will most likely not hit it. But I might as well get cozy with the idea of trying to hit it. That's 8:22 pace (and to be safe, more like 8:18 ish). Hilly course, but see below on last year Braves to Jog Days info. So 10%, done. Whether I want to chase this hard or not this go around will just depend on the day.
Other goals that come to mind seem as much 10% goals as this first one. Re-hitting 26:25 (Braves) registers as no different in my brain on the 'really really hard' scale. So I will settle for that too, and call it 10% part 2. No 50%/90% goal this time around. I just don't care about anything else for this course. Last year, Braves was 31:30, Jog Days 29:33. -2 minutes. (and Finest 27:47, just about -2 more) So minus 30s from Braves this year to Jog Days this year doesn't seem to be too much to ask, especially with how well training is going. Again, though, just depends on the day I am having. I have done all of my mileage this week so far, so the legs may just say "No." And that's understandable.
One thing I'd LOVE to do is to run at least ONE split in the 7s. Hopefully not the first one. ;) I will even take seeing a 7 digit in the .1. (most likely).
So that's the "if its a good day, and everything falls in to place" possibilities. Writing this after speed work, though, it is much more likely that this will end up being a moderate effort, and I will save the "serious" effort for Finest.
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