This week, I ran 44 miles.

5 runs (only ONE outside!)

ART x 1.

1 hour spin.

1.5 hr yoga.

(and somehow…no core?! Bad memory…)

Monday:

Active recovery: 1 hour solo spin, 1.5 hour vinyasa yoga class

I opted for spin recovery today and some yoga because the top of my right foot was tender after Sunday’s sloshy run in the snow. I was fighting for my footing for at least 9 miles of that 15.5 and my foot seemed angry at me. The last thing I wanted to do was get on the treadmill and a solo spin always feels good. I’m apparently REALLY good at misreading class schedules lately because I thought yoga was an hour long until I realized we were 75 minutes in and not stopping. 🙂 It seems I’m really good at spending almost 3 hours at the gym these days.

Tuesday:

{3 x 1 mi repeats} 7 miles, 7:54 average. Splits: 6:27, 6:31, 6:31.

Yet another treadmill run. If it wasn’t for Sunday’s long run, I think I’d have forgotten what running outside is like (ahem…glorious!). This workout went well, although the legs were heavy because of yesterday’s heavy cross-training (noted). Ran 2 up, 3 x 1 mile with 400 m RI (1 min walk, the rest recovery jog), and 1.25 down. Splits: 6:27, 6:31, 6:31. I need to look back in my training log and see what kind of recovery interval I normally do for mile repeats. (Right foot soreness 90% gone, will continue to monitor!)

 

Lots of this lately, too.

Wednesday:

ART appointment + 7 recovery miles, 8:10 average.

Normally run 5-6 mi on recovery days but I felt good today so I went with it. I had another ART session this morning, which seemed to open some things up. Watched Ellen while on the treadmill and giggled a bit.

Thursday:

{2 x 2.5 tempo at 6:58} 9 miles, 7:36 average.

Friday:

5 recovery miles, 8:11 average.

Nothing much to say about this one. Nice and easy after a full day of calls and meetings. Felt good to sweat and flush the legs a bit.

Cozied up to this bottle that night. Yummy!

Saturday:

Complete rest day.

I had plans to head to Morton Arboretum with Chanthana, Tim, Pedro, and Kevin but I knew that snow was going to fall overnight and the footing might be tough. While I’ve been able to put in some good miles and workouts this week, the last thing I wanted to do was tweak my foot while running through the snow again. This whole resting thing takes a lot of self control — but I’m sure I’ll be happy I did it. Plenty of stretching and foam rolling to prepare the legs for the long run the next day.

Sunday:

16.0 miles, 7:28 average long run.

There was sun! In the sky! And it was glorious!

Today was a bit ‘backwards’. Slept in late and went to brunch with The Man before my run, which meant that the run was either going to be amazing or horrendous. It ended up being amazing (thank goodness). I was strongly considering running on the treadmill today just so I wouldn’t be miles away from home with a sore foot but Chanthana and Declan pushed me out the door–thanks guys! I started around 2 pm while the SUN was still shining. Saw a lot of people sledding at Montrose, a few families cross-county skiing along the path, and 2 strangers asked me if I’m running Boston this year and wished me good luck. Gosh darn it, I love the running community! My foot didn’t bother me at all on the run but it’s still a bit tender after. Another rest day tomorrow and I should be good to go! Took at Salted Carmel Gu at miles 6 and 12. Didn’t really feel hungry but need to get back in the habit of regularly fueling, I think.

Thoughts:

This little foot thing was worrying me all week. I almost feel like I have injury PTSD because I can easily focus on every little ache and pain. But this week, I think I was realistic in recovering and I didn’t feel like I needed to skip workouts because it never really hurt on the run. I iced it literally every day (some days, at least twice) and elevated it just to be safe. If I learned anything this past fall, it’s that I should always listen to my body. That’s what this week was all about. If it continues to hurt through this week, I’ll know that I need to see someone about it. I think my legs are starting to get used to full turnover again–the speed workouts and tempos on the treadmill are tough. I can’t help but think about how enjoyable these will be once I’m running outside 100% again.

What I’ve Learned:

• Read the darn class schedule!
• Runners are never strangers to one another.
• Running on days when you REALLY don’t want to will always make you stronger.

11 Weeks to Gooooooo!

– J