64 miles & Feelin’ Good

I have been feeling very good on my runs lately. I don’t know what it is, but each morning I go out for my run, my legs feel fresh and rejuvenated. I’m sure properly fueling (and cutting out the empty calories from sugar), sleeping at least 8 hours each night, and sitting all day at work (which I’m still not a fan of) help me recover in between each run.

I am surprised I have been feeling so good since I have not taken a cut-back week since Boston, which was 8 weeks ago, so I figure it is time to give my body a little bit of a break and cut back on the mileage this next week. Part of me wants to keep pushing myself, but I know I should give myself a break to be proactive about preventing injuries. Plus, I’m running a half-marathon this next Saturday, so it will be a little taper for that race in hopes of running a PR.

Despite not being a big fan of these Mizuno Maverick Split Shorts the last time I wore them, I couldn’t let a nice pair of shorts just sit around, so I put them on this week and gave them another chance. This time I rolled the waistband down one time and that really seemed to help. I like them much better when I did that because the extra material did not ride up in between my legs. When I rolled them down though, they become pretty short, so if you don’t like short shorts, I wouldn’t recommend them.

Here’s what this past week of training looked like for me ~ June 10-16:

Monday

8 mile run/1:08

I did 6 miles with two other people, which helped the time to fly by. This was a little bit slower of a run, but I was fine with that because I don’t need to run fast every day.

Tuesday

10 miles/1:16

For this run I did an out-and-back run and ran out “easy” (at my normal training pace) and then came back “hard” (at more of a tempo pace). I really enjoy this type of run. Plus I ran around Lake Hood which is always so calming in the mornings.

Wednesday

8 miles/1:03

Another great run. The weather has been perfect all week running in the mornings. Nothing to complain about.

I did have another appointment with the physical therapist on Wednesday. I haven’t hard hardly any pain in my hamstring while running during the last few weeks; it has maybe twinged two or three times and only for a few seconds. But I wanted to get that last little bit taken care of as well.

I had the physical therapist do some dry needing on the spot that has been bothering me. She said it was actually my adductor muscle that was tight (not my hamstring). The muscle fibers did twitch a lot when she did the dry needling which is a sign everything was really bound up. The sad thing, though, is that since the appointment, I have felt more twinges while running and sitting. I’m not sure if it is one of those things it has to get worse before it gets better, but I’m not really sure that is the case. I will continue to be diligent about icing and stretching the area in hopes of it getting better. I am leery about going back in for another appointment because that just might make it worse again??

Thursday

AM – 1 mile warm-up, 4 x 1 mile repeats, 1 mile cool-down

I was very happy with how this run went. My average pace was faster than the 800s I ran last week! I can really feel my body getting faster and strong each week. I’m excited to see what I am capable of in the races I have coming up. (mile splits: 6:32, 6:37, 6:29, 6:23)

PM – 3.4 miles with Craig/32:25

One of my favorite runs all summer! Even though I was running at a slower pace with Craig, I did not care. I had so much fun talking and hanging out with him during these 30 minutes.

Friday

5.8 miles/47:37

I didn’t feel quite as faster during this run. At first I couldn’t figure it out, but I think it was due to the fact that it was only 50*F this morning when it had usually been around 60*F. Proof I am a warm-weather runner—my muscles perform much better when it is warmer out!

Saturday

17 miles/2:15

It is amazing how quickly the body adapts to high mileage. Usually I feel the affects my long run the rest of the day, but this run did not feel me sore or achy, which is a good sign since I am training my body to run 26.2 miles in a couple of months.

Saturday afternoon I celebrated a friend’s baby shower. Dynasti is by far the cutest pregnant girl I have ever seen. She definitely makes looking pregnant easy!

Good food, fun activities, and a chance to catch up with friends.

Sunday

5 miles/37:50

I waited until the afternoon to run in the warmth of the sunshine and temps in the upper 60s. It was pure bliss.

Weekly Total: 64 miles

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As I mentioned at the beginning, I am cutting back on mileage this week and shooting to run around 50 miles. Then it is back to the 70s and 80s the next couple of weeks—I’m excited!