I seriously don’t know why, but every week my mileage picks ups I have great running weeks. You would think the lower mileage and easier weeks would be better, but for some reason my body doesn’t seem to think so.

 

Before I get into it here is a break down of my runs for the week:

Monday (9/22)

8 miles easy

8 Miles

 

Tuesday (9/23)

1.5 mile warm up
3 x 2 mile repeats with 800 recovery
1 mile cool down

10.5 miles total

Workout

 

Wednesday (9/24)

7 miles easy

7 Miles

 

Thursday (9/25)

1 mile warm up
9 mile tempo run
1.5 mile cool down

 

Friday (9/26)

Off

 

Saturday (9/27)

16 miles moderate effort

 

Sunday (9/28)

8 miles easy

 

In total I hit 62 miles for the week. I am 1 mile away from my peak week during marathon training, and I honestly felt really strong this week.

I’ve also found a solution to the dark areas early in the morning. I thought about buying a headlamp, but didn’t think it would be worth it so instead I got out my FlipBelt and stored my phone in it.

Flip Belt

Not only does the phone work as the perfect flash light during those super dark areas, but it is also gives me a little piece of mind to have it out there with me.

 

Let’s look at a few of my runs in particular from the week:

Tempo Run

I am so excited to say that I hit my 9 mile tempo this week. After last week, I was a little down even though I knew that sometimes we just have tough runs.

This week I switched up some of my eating the night before and tried a few new carb sources in hopes that it would help to fuel me a little bit better.

9 Miles
Sure enough, after a 1 mile warm up I completed 9 miles at a 7:55 average and then finished it with a 1.5 mile cool down. There is nothing better than the feeling once this workout is completed each week. I am able to relax a little bit more and get ready for the weekend!

I do have a question for the lady runners out there – how do you get your hair to stay up during your run?

Hair Issue

I have to wear a hat because my hair tie NEVER stays in my hair and this becomes extremely frustrating when I am doing harder runs. Help!

 

Long Run

During my training plan I have a total of 3-4 16 miles runs and that is the furthest I go. Each time one of these 16 mile runs comes up on the schedule I always get nervous.

Wes and I slept in on Saturday since we both were running low on sleep from the week. After 9 hours of sleep, I felt like a new woman!

There was a course I have been wanting to run since I started training. I had to wait for a run that was long enough for it, and today I finally had my chance! Once I had mapped it out to make sure I hit 16 I got ready to go. Wes did warn me that this course had 2 very large hills, and I had to make sure I took these easy.

My game plan for my long run was:

1. Take the hills easy
2. Run at moderate effort but stop looking at my watch so much
3. Stay relaxed
4. Take the course one segment at a time.
5. Start out REALLY easy

I am supposed to run my long runs at a 8:42 pace, but sometimes thinking about that stresses me. Instead of worrying too much about it, I wanted to make sure that I was just running at a moderate effort and that I wasn’t blowing up 10-11 miles in like I have in the past.

One key to most of my runs is that the first mile I take VERY slow. This is a great way to get your legs into the run. I believe for the first mile I average around an 9:55. Then I started to pick up. I looked at my watch around mile 5, 9, and 12. Each time I realized I was actually running a bit quicker than expected.

16 Miles

I ended up averaging a 8:44 pace. I was really happy with this because I took the first mile slow, took the hills slow, and felt strong the whole time. No matter how slow I had to go up those hills, I didn’t care as long as I didn’t exert too much energy. I knew if I did them too hard I wouldn’t finish as strong.

This was hands down the best long run I have had to date. The low 70 degree weather also helped! It was one of those runs where I felt on top of the world when I finished!

 

Overall, a great week of runs and I am really excited for how my training is going. Never in a million years would I have thought I would see the improvement I am seeing. Looking forward to more to come!

 

How did your training go this week?

What was your best run of the week?

Pin It on Pinterest