Tuesday – Hill Sprints + Cross Train
Wednesday – Pilates, Speed Work (pyramids)
Thursday – Power
Friday –
Saturday – REST
Sunday – Long Run – 18 miles including 5K race, warm-up and cool down
Total Miles – 27.31M
Coach Nancy assigned a pyramid workout on Wednesday. We had to do 300-400-600-400-300 two times with equal recovery. My first set was (6:22/6:36/7:07/6:57/644) and second was (6:51/7:03/7:22/7:01/6:09). I was not listening carefully because at the end of the first set, I thought I was done. I started doing strides on my own, when in the corner of my eye, I saw my track mates, running again. Then it dawned on me. $hit! That's why Nancy said the total volume was 4000m! Duh! So I hustled back to get myself together and restarted my watch. It could have gone worse.
I was running a 5K team relay on Sunday so I did Yoga on Friday and rested Saturday to keep my legs fresh for the run. I scrubbed my 5 mile pace workout for Friday since I think I did too much power on Thursday. Legs were a little sore the day after. On top of that, I don't know what the course was going to be like. I only know that it going to be held in the vineyards, so I assumed dirt.
Sunday was a total fun day at the same time it was a pressure filled day. I was asked to join an all-girl 5K relay team with super fast ladies and I was sure I was not in their league. They've all been to Boston at one point or another. Me? That's still in the bucket list. I'm working up to it. It may take me five more years, but that's soon enough.
Our Team, The Hashemites ended up finishing in 2:01, first place. We beat another all-gal team by 2 hours. So it's not an exaggeration when I said my teammates were fast.
It turned out to be a very warm day. I was so glad that I was only doing a 5K. I felt compassion for some of the 1/2 marathoners who don't do so well in the heat. I was in awe of them for gutting it out to the finish. It was in the hundreds. The sun was beating down and this vineyard had no shades at all, just a bunch of rolling hills with soft dirt. It may be a while when I decide to do this again. Maybe if and when they move it back to November when it's cooler or they go back to the original venue, I may be tempted to run it. I said maybe, because I am not a fan of cross-county style courses. It is a challenge to get some kind of rhythm going.
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| We're coming down from the first hill. |
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| Still trying to get my bearings, while I pondered whether I would be able to take this kid (well, okay...yes I did). |
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| My thoughts: The lung-busting pain will soon be over in a couple of miles. |
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| Easing off the gas pedal after I finally passed Ms. Turquoise, who was ahead of me with 800m to go. |
After the 5K race, my original plan was to run the rest of my long run and use the 1/2 marathon course. But after feeling the temperature rise by the minute, it was not a good idea. I decided to do a few miles of cool-down with my teammates before going home to foggy Los Osos. I was hungry when I got home and was worried about the 2nd workout. I knew after I ate, I would be tired and tempted to nix the run. I had 12 miles left to finish and being cold and stiff, it was extremely hard to get started again. I rested a bit after lunch and took the opportunity re-charge my Garmin. Five hours after I ran the 5K, I got dressed, filled up my water vest and headed out to Turri Road.
I decided this would be a slow, easy run. No tempo or fast finishes because I was afraid that I could strain my already tired muscles. I just needed to complete the mileage. Turri Road was an added challenge because of the 1.25 mile of steady uphill. I took a 30-second walk break on the steepest part. The rest of the way was flat, however, on South Bay Blvd., there was another set of rolling hills. Once I was back on the main drag, I was glad it was over. Two more miles and I was done.
Marathon Simulator
I may be on to something here. I completed a total of 18 miles today. Granted it was broken up, but having that huge five-hour break in between the 5K race and the 12-miler, made it extremely hard. It felt like the last leg of a marathon. I'll keep this in my back pocket because it seems like it is a good marathon simulator (as far as late stage fatigue is concerned) if you don't have the luxury of running 20+ miles at once, you can break the workout into two. The trick is to get the muscles cold and stiff, then run the second workout. You still get the fatigue feeling in your legs. However, one must be careful about doing this, because you can get injured with cold muscles and pushing it. It's just good to know for the future.
Anyway, the week ended with 27 miles! I am happy with my longest run this training cycle. All is well, no injuries to report.
Week #7 in the books, happy running!
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