Marathon Training: Week Six

The weeks keep getting better slowly but surely. The joy of running and feeling capable and uninjured is returning. Huzzah!

Mon 2.75mi run + 2.5min cross- Today I biked for 2.5min, did  lunges and stretches, then ellipticaled for 27.5min. My legs feel as they should with more elliptical running motion.

Tue 30 min bike + strength- Warmed up with lunges and stretches and then biked. I also added just a few light weights.

Wed 2mi run + 10min cross- Today felt really good! It did take the first 5-10 min for my body to get comfy but, this is the first happy/joyful run I've had in a very long time. I switched my breathing pattern from 3/3 to 2/2 throughout the run, and ran the second mile with my right shoe untied. Running on grass was comfy with no ankle pain on the uneven surface. 8:50am wasn't as hot as I though it might feel. I had dew soaked shoes from the grass by the end of the run. I'd intended to elliptical instead of bike but I had no time for a warm up lunge/stretch so, I opted to go slow and ease into training on the bike so that I could better manage my time since I had to be at work at 9:30am- no shower + stinky re-worn shirt, Yay!  I was the first one through the door of the gym at 8:30am. My GPS watch took longer to connect to satellite than I'd hoped it would.

Fri 55min cross- I biked for 5min easy warm up and then did lunges and stretches. Then I ellipticaled for 50 min. My right hip had a tight tendon kink that developed during ellipticaling. It finally relaxed and popped back into place when getting back into the car to go home. My left toes are not going as numb as in the past, perhaps because my foot strikes are evening out a bit. I took a mis-step and paused for a moment to reset my feet but the elliptical machine erased my total time so I had to guess I was supposed to do 7 more min.

Sat 2.75mi run+ 32.5mincross- I walked 16.25min, ran 2.75mi, walked 16.25min. Felt great running on grass. Nice comfy pace during which I switched from 3/3-2/2 breathing

Sun ice and roll- I still didn't manage to get this done on my rest day. I did foam roll on another day. I really do need to do a real ice bath. The house we're buying has a fridge with a working ice machine so that will help a lot.

5k: Week Six

Trying to manage the length of my runs in quarter mile increments is not easy. If I where running whole miles I wouldn't feel bad about doing an extra half mile. But, for now, in order to stick to increasing my weakly mileage by no more than 10% so I can stay healthy for the duration of my training  I have to remind my self to be careful and as close to precise distance as possible.

Mon 2.75mi- A fun run in the freezing rain/sleet/tiny hail- whatever you call it. My hamstrings are still tight. Need to keep working on that hip workout and improving my back, core, and quad strength. Running downhill on the sidewalk was interesting with a layer of slick little ice balls under foot.

Tue 22min cross+strength- I kept a slower pedaling speed but higher resistance for the whole bike ride. It was a nice change enabling my quads did most of the work. Again, I did two sets with higher reps of the small weight circuit. I need to jump on doing more core conditioning.

Wed 2mi- Passed a guy wearing galaxy pants (like these) on the run today! I am a big fan of bright pants. I did have to push the pace a little bit to hold good form but it is improving and the miles felt easy. Did a small amount of core conditioning. Maybe I should do a small amount each day just to ease into eventually having a specific core conditioning day as part of my weekly routine.

Fri 2.75mi- We drove up to Virginia for Oma's funeral/memorial service where there were several inches of beautiful ice and snow. Having grown up in Florida and then spending most of my life on the coast of North Carolina where you don't see much wintery precipitation makes snow and Ice of any amount rather magical in my mind. I am having to learn how to dress for the cold but having a daily outdoor job allows for plenty of trial and error. We got to go sledding in a relative's neighborhood and I ran on my first hilly slushy salty and icey roads. It is funny to get strange looks from people when running in "miserable" weather. Ran for 22min because I couldn't map out a running distance.

Sat 55min- Got a little ahead of myself and ran for 60min but I felt really good. My form is pulling together. I could feel my gluts and quads engaging. Imbalances between my left and right legs seemed to be working themselves out too. Ran the USNWC parkway and some gravel back roads. Again it's nice to see things that are different from usual.

Need new shoes!