Before I get into my recap for the week, the winner of the Puritan’s Pride giveaway is Joanna Wang! Congrats! Email me with your information to saralovingontherun{at}gmail{dot}com and we will get your prices on their way to you!

Make sure to check back over the next couple months for more giveaways coming!

 

Some days seem long, but there is no doubt that this training plan is going by VERY quickly!

My mental toughness came back some this week. After my long run last Sunday, I felt like I got some of my spunk back. I really was surprised at how well I felt throughout the entire run. I even ran 14 of the miles on trails.

My legs felt fresh and I was able to really relax and enjoy each of the miles. It was the perfect pick-me-up after a somewhat frustrating week.

 

Before I get too much into, here is a run down of what my training looked like this week:

Monday (10/27)

6 miles easy

I was quite the colorful one on Monday morning. Maybe I needed a little pick-me-up to get the week started?

 

Tuesday (10/28)

Warm up
4 miles at half marathon pace (7:40)
4 minutes recovery
12  200 at 6:53 pace with 60 second recovery
Cool down

10 miles total

 

Wednesday (10/29)

6 miles easy

 

Thursday (10/30)

1 mile warm up
10 mile tempo
1 mile cool down

12 miles total

 

Friday (10/31) 

Off

Hope you all had a great Halloween! It was pretty uneventful around here, but I think next year I am going to have dress Zoe up like the sweet babies above!

 

Saturday (11/1)

10 miles easy

I had to get up and out a little earlier than I usually do on Saturday to avoid being suck on a treadmill all day.

 

Sunday (11/2)

10 miles easy

 

First off, can anyone else hardly believe that it is November!? I think each month goes by quicker than the last. The holiday season is so quickly approaching!

This week, and since my long run last Sunday, I felt a bit more refreshed. The most surreal moment was on Thursday. When I first looked at Hanson’s Training Plan back as I was beginning my training I remember seeing the 10 mile tempo runs. I can remember laughing thinking there was no way that I would EVER be able to do that.

Thursday morning, at 4:00 AM, it happened. Even up until Thursday morning a 10 mile tempo scared me. It isn’t the run itself that scares me, I started realizing it is the fear of not completing it. Even though I’ve had tempos I’ve had to cut short in the past, the 10 miles really seemed crazy to me.

However, when the run was over I felt ecstatic. It wasn’t easy, it was tough, but I dug deep and pulled it out. It really made me feel like all the blood, sweat and tears that I have put into this place over the last 15 weeks is paying off.

 

The only change that I made to this week was my workout on Tuesday morning. As you know, I have extended my training a bit to aim for a marathon in December, so I am having to add some weeks.

My husband helped me come up with a different work to switch things up.

It was a mix of a quick tempo plus some speed work thrown in. All together it was right at 10 miles. It was nice to do something different for a workout this week!

 

We have up weeks, we have down weeks, but at the end of the day to see how far I have come has really motivated me this week. I may be a little bit away from race day, but my confidence has gone up in knowing that regardless of the outcome on that day that I will give it my all.

Every day, every early morning, every long run, every workout – it has all been earned not given! That is something I know regardless of race results.

 

I thought I’d end with this quote that I saw Wednesday night before my tempo run Thursday. It popped up on my feed at the perfect time.

 

What was your best workout this week?

When is your next race scheduled?