2 weeks! 2 weeks! I am almost in shock that we are SO close. I even received my packet in the mail this week and I think that made it even more real for me.

This week was my last push before my taper begins. I have always done a 2 week taper and it will be no different this time around.  If anything I will be even more careful during this taper because I am so close to Boston I can taste it and I don’t want anything to keep me from running it!

This week was a tough one though because I think we are going through the 4 month sleep regression in our house. Lots of sleepless nights (well 3-4 hours of sleep) which made for a tired body which had trouble recovering.

 

Here’s a look at my week of running:

Monday – 7 Interval Miles

I wanted to mix things up a bit on Monday so I played around with some different interval workouts in my head. My plan I had originally was a bit more than I could muster, so I ended up editing it a bit during the workout itself. Sometimes you just have to learn to bend a little.

My workout ended up being a 12 minute warm up followed by 8, 6, 4, 2, 4, 2 minute intervals with half recovery and then a cool down. This workout was originally supposed to be 8 miles but E decided at 7 he was done so I didn’t push it. My role as a Mom comes first – always.

 

Tuesday – 5 easy miles

Tuesday I decide to head over to my parents house so they could spend some time with E. My Dad hadn’t seen him in a while and had offered to watch him if I needed to get some errands run.

It was a nice to go out and enjoy 5 non-stroller miles in the middle of the week. It also allowed me to really focus on slowing down. I won’t say these felt all that easy because my body was not recovering well but I did the best I could and since someone was there to watch E I got in a good stretching session afterwards.

 

Wednesday – 7 Moderate Miles

Wednesday was another workout day (since I moved my long run to Saturday this week) but I ended up getting 3.5 hours of sleep Tuesday night and knew a hard workout wasn’t going to happen. I could have done it and pushed through but I knew how taxing it would be on my body and I didn’t want to risk an injury.

I really didn’t have a plan when I started but once I got going I decided to simply run them at a “moderate” pace meaning it wasn’t an easy pace but it also wasn’t overly taxing.

I ended up running 7 miles at an 8:35 average. I was happy with the effort especially since I did it with the stroller!

 

Thursday – 4 easy miles with 10 x 10 second hill sprints

Another easy day on Thursday for me and finished it out with 10 hill sprints. My legs finally started to feel a little better on Thursday but I wanted to take it super slow because I had my last longish run on Saturday and I really wanted my legs to feel better for it.

I’m learning so much about my body during this cycle and not being afraid to go as slow as I need to recover has been the biggest mind change I’ve made.

 

Friday – Rest Day

We are traveling to stay with my in-laws for the weekend for my husband to take his final step of his medical boards. Wish him luck!!

I took Friday as my rest day as usual and focused on really letting my body recover and get ready for my Saturday long run.

 

Saturday – 14 miles

Saturday was the last double digit run of this training cycle. I’m taking it slower this time around just to make sure I stay healthy for the last 2 weeks of taper. We ended up going to stay with my husband’s parents for the weekend while he took his final medical board exam so I got a change of scenery and someone to watch E for me.

I felt really good during this run and was surprised just how much all that stroller running is paying off. 14 miles in an 8:35 average. I didn’t fuel during the run but I did eat oatmeal with peanut butter and blueberries prior to going out. It was an absolutely beautiful morning and I couldn’t have asked for a better final long run of the cycle!

 

Sunday – 5 easy miles

The final run of the week is 5 easy miles.

 

The final real week of training before my taper consisted of 42 miles. It was a challenging week as a new Mom and runner but I’m proud of myself for pushing through and still getting some quality runs in!

2 weeks until Boston and I cannot wait!

 

What was your best run this week?