S2S - Week 6

I was tired of seeing snow in my usual training report photo, but I haven't had a chance to take a new photo. So please enjoy this photo from my 5k in Hawaii! I finished in 24:23 which was good enough for 2nd in my age group (yep, small race!). I'll just be sitting here day dreaming about my next trip to Hawaii...

Monday
Warm up: 1 mile walk with the middle half mile at an easy jog
Strength: Core strength, push ups and tricep dips, squats, lunges, step ups
Cool down: 15 minutes of stretching

Tuesday
5.11 miles at 9:45 average pace.

I still wasn't quite feeling 100%, so my plan was to take it nice and easy. I even took a couple walking breaks so I could evaluate how I was feeling. I also tested a new running route and spent half the time wondering if I had taken a wrong turn (amazingly I did not!). I now have two completely different 5 mile routes I can run right from my house. Win!

Wednesday
5.02 miles at 9:29 average pace

Still fighting some lingering congestion and coughing, but feeling pretty good. Once again I took a couple of short breaks to evaluate how I was feeling. I felt like I needed to keep reminding myself to take it easy so I could keep my legs fresh for Thursday's intervals.

Thursday
4 x 4:00 at 5k effort with 3:00 recovery
6.88 miles total

For this workout I planned to run 0.60 miles in 4:05-4:10 (pace range of 6:48-6:57). I ended up running 4:03, 4:11, 4:09, and 4:14. The two intervals that were slightly over my goal pace both included a slightly uphill section, so I am not too bothered. Average pace for my intervals was 6:55. I'm not going to lie, this workout was really freaking hard! Running at these faster paces once a week is so new to me and it absolutely kicks my butt every time.

I keep hoping that these workouts will start to feel easy, but I don't think that is going to happen. Maybe it isn't supposed to happen. Reminder to self: That is okay! My body is still learning! (thanks again, Hanna)

Friday
Rest day! Foam rolled my calves (so tight) and did a few pushups (so lacking in upper body strength).

Saturday
9.7 miles at 9:21 average pace.

I had 7-8 hilly miles on my schedule for Sunday, but decided to meet up with a couple friends from my running club for a long run on Saturday. I decided having company on my run was more important than sticking exactly to my training plan. I didn't choose the route, but, as luck would have it, we managed to find plenty of hills during this run.

My friend Mack also offered up the following hill advice: The sooner you get to the top of the hill the sooner you are done with the hill. Letting him take the lead on our run might not have been the best choice, but it definitely made for a great workout.

Sunday
4.7 miles at 9:25 average pace.

I started off pretty slow on this run since I could tell I was a bit sore from the hills on Saturday. I initially thought that I might take a few walking breaks like I did on Tuesday and Wednesday, but that ended up not being necessary.

Total miles: 31.41