After the cross country 5k my legs felt sore for a few days and I eased my way back into tempo runs and speed work.. The day following the race I took a rest day.
My Latest Workouts
I am loosely following the Hal Higdon Advanced Half Marathon Training Program. I had to switch weeks 4-5 around to accommodate the 5k race last weekend. Here's what my schedule was supposed to look like
Here are the actual workouts.
Monday 8/4- I ran 6 miles at recovery pace. I didn't wear my watch or Garmin. The route I ran was somewhere between 5.5 and 6 miles.
Tuesday 8/5- I did a Tempo run, but with the heat and recovering from the 5k, I didn't really go super hard. Here are the splits:
Mile 1- 8:36
Mile 2- 8:33
Mile 3- 8:27
Mile 4- 8:38
I also did some strength training; push ups, dumbbell bench press, Roman chair leg lifts, and stretched.
Wednesday 8/6- Rest
Thursday 8/7 Two a days before work I ran 3 miles as a Tempo progression run, where each mile gets faster.
Mile 1- 8:23
Mile 2- 7:44
Mile 3- 7:17
On my lunch break I drove over to Cornerstone park and I ran 5 more miles. I averaged 8:41 per mile for 5 miles. I just wanted to keep the splits below 9 minute miles and it was doable.
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| This park opened earlier this year near my work and it is my little slice of heaven right now. |
Friday 8/8 - 4 miles before work. I ran these at a comfortable pace. I averaged 8:54 per mile.
Saturday 8/9 - Rest
Sunday- 8/10 12 miles!!! This was my first long run in awhile. I woke up early and I had to wait until 5:30am before I could leave the house. It was a muggy morning and I could see a little lightning in the distance. It was dark and I didn't run with any music for the first 5 miles. I kind of want to get used to running without music, I also wanted to be hyper aware of cars, pedestrians, or anything out of the ordinary (stranger danger) I wanted to run the first half easy and then turn up the pace towards the end. I ran 12 miles in 1:47:16, The actual time was 1:49:30. I stopped for two minutes to fumble around with my phone/radio when I decided to turn it on 45 minutes into the run. I only drank water from my handheld bottle (stupid). I should have brought at least a gel with me.
Here's the Garmin data
It's kind of easy to negative split a run, when you run the first half up the hill and the second half down the hill.
This week I am doing week 5 of the Hal Higdon program. I'm going to skip week six altogether because I am not going to race a 10k anytime soon. Next week I will be on week 7 of the training program... Here's the plan for this week.
Monday 8/11- I went to the gym and ran three miles on the treadmill and did some strength training.
Tuesday 8/12 Hill Workout. I drove to Cornerstone Park and jogged for 10 minutes to warm up, I then stretched and began my hill workout. I found a hill that was about 150 meters long. I wish I knew the grade % or the number of feet I climbed but, I left my Garmin at home.... I did take pictures of the hill... I ran from this trash can
Up this hill
To this trash can
Here's a view from the top of the hill
As dumb as it sounds, the trash cans were really good markers for me to focus on during the hill repeats. It took me approx. 50 seconds to run up the hill and I jogged slowly back down the hill for recovery. This workout kicked my butt!! After the workout I jogged another mile to cool down.
Wednesday-Two a days, I really like having two complete rest days a week. I think this keeps me from feeling burnt out and rest is a good thing. I decided to combine today and tomorrows workout.
This morning I ran 4 miles Tempo Progression, I slept really good last night and it made a difference.
Mile 1-8:17
Mile 2-8:11
Mile 3-8:01
Mile 4-7:07
At lunchtime I ran 3 miles on the treadmill, and I did some strength training. Push ups on a bosu trainer, cable flys, cable bicep curls, reverse ab crunches, wall sits (these hurt!!), planks, and some close grip lat pull downs.
Tomorrow is going to be a much needed rest day.
* Disclaimer- I am very conditioned to running in the desert. I hope I don't seem too flippant about the dangers of running outside during really hot temperatures. I always bring water with me, I dress in light colors, and I try to err on the side of caution. Be safe in the heat!!
Hill repeats in the desert? Tough stuff. I'm interested in how the 2-a-days work out to get you two rest days - if that works well, of you end up exhausted on your double days. I could never do 2-a-days!
ReplyDeleteWell, I try to keep both runs short and usually at an easy pace. I love quick short 3-4 mile runs in the morning before work. It's just far enough to get the endorphins going and to break a sweat. I also bring a few extra sets of workout clothes to keep at work (shirts, shorts, an extra bra, and socks). I bough a ton of cheap technical shirts from the clearance rack at Target and the thrift store, but having a lot of running clothes to tear through before laundry day makes it easier for me :). I also finally bought a second pair of running shoes so I can rotate between 2-3 pairs of shoes. I also only try to aim for 1 to 2 two a days a week.
ReplyDeleteI'm usually really pressed for time in the AM so I have all of my stuff set out the night before, or packed in the gym bag.
I think you could totally do it!! Just try not to get that second run to late in the evening. That gets me wired and is harder to fall asleep.