Is it really T-3 weeks until Boston?! Ok, I think the panic is just now starting to hit. I am so excited but so nervous all at the same time.

This week went well. It was a challenging week, but I think in a lot of ways I really needed it. I needed to regain some confidence in myself and my running, even if it’s obvious I’m not in the same place I was going into Chicago. In some ways I’m in a better place, both physically and mentally, but I obviously have lost a little speed. No worries, it’s something that can easily be changed and I know I have the right coach in my corner to get me there down the road.

I had two big runs this week that scared me a bit. My Wednesday workout and my Saturday long run. However, I tried to simply focus on one day at a time and deal with each run when it happened. Thinking too far ahead will only intimidate me.

 

Here is a look at my running this week:

Monday – 7 miles

I started the week off with a moderate workout. Enough to get my legs moving but nothing that is going to really beat down my body.

The workout: 2.5 mile warm up, 5 x (2 minutes FAST, 4 minutes easy), and a cool down.

I didn’t head out to the normal road I do my workouts on because I really need a change of scenery. I found a road that would work for 2 minute intervals and got it done. The temperature had dropped pretty dramatically from the week before and my body took some adjusting to run in 30’s again.

 

Tuesday – 4 miles

After every workout day, comes an easy day. Tuesday was an easy 4 miles. These are sometimes my hardest days because in the early morning hours my body does not even wake up until 4 miles in. By the time I feel like myself, I am turning back into my driveway.

I finished the run off with 5 x 100 meter strides just to get my legs moving before heading inside to do some strength work.

 

Wednesday – 8 miles

I had my bigger workout schedule for Wednesday this week. I don’t know why this workout intimidated me, but it did. I ended up on the treadmill due to weather and just not wanting to run the same area over and over.

The workout was: 2 mile warm up, 3 x 100 meter strides, 5 x (0.5 M @ 7:20 pace, 0.5 M @ 8:00 pace), and cool down until just over 8 miles.

I did the entire workout at a 1% incline, which is pretty normal when I am running on my home treadmill. There wasn’t a true recovery in this run, and then 0.5 miles in between each 7:20 was more of a moderate effort. The key for me was getting my breathing to calm down and relax during these intervals.

Overall, the workout actually went really well and wasn’t as bad as I was making it to be in my head. It goes to show you sometimes we make things harder in our head then they really need to be.

 

Thursday – 5 miles

Thursday was all about recovery again, but it sure didn’t feel like it. I couldn’t get my heart rate down for most of the run and I was struggling to relax. Like Monday, finally around mile 4 my body started to feel a little better and it at least made the last mile a little better.

I broke out my Hoka’s for this run to add a little extra padding. They are the perfect recovery day shoes for me.

 

Friday – Off

 

Saturday – 22 miles

I really tried to not focus on this run all week. I knew it was big and I knew that I needed to stay calm in order to go into with an open mind.

My husband opted to go to the gym since he had some tough pace work to do and the winds were pretty high in the beginning. I knew there was no way I was going to be able to complete my long run on the treadmill, so I headed there with him and then decided to do mine on the local river walk trail.

I started slow, picked it up as I felt like it, and tried to focus on the moment I was in the entire time. It wasn’t easy, my body didn’t feel 100%, but I was proud that I was much stronger mentally during this one.

It was also nice to see all of the beautiful Easter messages written throughout the trail.

 

Sunday – 4 miles

The goal is to head back out to the trails and run 4 easy and relaxing miles to cover from yesterday’s long run.

 

I ran a total of 50 miles for the week. While that would have been a down week during my last cycle, it is the first time I have hit 50 throughout the training. As expected, I am tired but really not too worried about it.

I have one more 20 miler next week and then we officially start the taper into Boston! It makes it feel so real to have it this close. The excitement is slowly starting to build!

 

How did your running go this week?

Do you enjoy the taper?