Boston Training: Week 8 Summary

This week I focused on changing the way I approach my track workouts. In last week's summary, I wrote: "My track workouts were really challenging this week. I just feel like they are so much harder than they should be." Then, I proceeded to list my workouts which were all done quite a bit faster than my goals. Well, duh?! Wonder why they felt harder than they should, right?! I received a well-deserved slap on the nose and many like comments on my post - which woke me up. So, this week, I decided to take a step back and relax. I still made sure that these workouts were challenging, but I know they are meant to build strength, speed and stamina. I should be running them ACCORDING TO THE TIMES LISTED ON THE PACE CHART. There is a certain satisfaction in "beating" the pace chart but by doing that, I am risking a lot. I don't want to get injured. That scares me.

TOTAL: 57.25 miles

2/20 (Monday) - Pool Running 1.5 hours

I got home from my trip to Indiana around 9pm last night. It is President's Day today, so did not have to go into work. I was super excited to sleep the morning away. I was up by 6:45am. Ha. I was in the pool at 9am and was happy to see one of my teammates there at least to keep me company for the first 45 minutes. At the end of my workout, I decided to try to pool run without a belt. OMG. I seriously thought I was going to have a heart attack after ONE lap. Most of the people I pool run with do it without a belt and I have an entirely new level of respect for them. Seriously. In the afternoon, I went to watch a couple of my teammates run the GW Birthday Classic 1 mile. Those fast chicks (Heather, Karina and Dionis) took 1st, 2nd and 4th place! It looked like a really fun race. I miss racing but was glad I was able to go down and cheer.

2/21 (Tuesday) - Intervals AM
In the new spirit of actually following the pace chart...I ran 6 x 1200s in 5:15; 5:12; 5:14; 5:11; 5:18; 5:09. My goal was to run them in 5:12. Maybe a little too slow at times, but I felt good after the workout and left the track happy after waking up pretty cranky.
2/22 (Wednesday) - 8 miles EASY PM

I did a quick 3 miles before I met the CAR crew for the Fun Run. A gorgeous night. Shorts weather in February - yes! Although, I still wore tights. The humidity makes me chilly and I would rather do a short run and run hot than feel cold. 
2/23 (Thursday) - 5 miles EASY PM
I woke up tired this morning so instead of doing my Tempo run tonight, as I originally planned, I opt'd to do an easy 5 and then do some core work at the gym. It was in the high 60s tonight which brought all the hibernators out. It's good to see!
2/24 (Friday) - Tempo
I got a solid night of sleep and felt good as I rolled out of bed. I didn't want to pay too much attention to my watch for this run, so I just focused on making sure that I was running at a steady pace that was just outside of my comfort zone. I did the first 2 miles by myself, then a teammate jumped in with me who is just returning to the track after having a baby. It was a nice way to break up the run. She exuded tremendous positive energy and it was contagious. I love that. My goal for running the 4 mile tempo was 29:28. I did it in 29:17. My mile splits were: 7:20; 7:22; 7:21; 7:14. It was tough seeing the 7:2X but that is what I should be running. I felt good about the workout as I was leaving the track.
2/25 (Saturday) - 5 miles EASY AM

I can not say that this was actually a run I really enjoyed. I did it on the WO&D. It was very windy, very sunny, very snowy, very hilly...too many extremes. Ha. I am just glad it was a short one and that I wasn't running 20+ in those conditions.
2/26 (Sunday) - 20.75 LONG RUN AM
Physically, I was ready for this run today. My body felt good - I was well-rested and well-fueled. Mentally, I was anxious because I wasn't familiar with the route and I don't really like not knowing where I am going. Well, long story-short...we didn't get lost and I had a great run. Ha. Melody and I ran together for the first 10 miles and then Dan joined us. The three of us ran together until about the 16 mile point, where we really kicked it into Marathon Pace (MP) gear. Their MP is about 15 seconds faster than mine, so they took off, while I gradually increased my pace. My last 4.75 mile splits were: 8:00; 7:58; 7:54; 7:46; and then a 7:23 pace for the last .75 miles. It really felt good and invigorating to finish strong.