The first part of the week, the weather was nice. At the end of the week, the heat and humidity came back with a vengeance.
Weight Check: 171.0 pounds, down 1.5 from last week. OK, that’s not too bad, especially since I had a decent amount of stress last week with work. We’ll see if I can keep it up, because I’d really, really like to get back down below 170.
| Day | Scheduled | Total Miles |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | 6 miles easy plus strides | 6.78 |
| Tuesday | 3 miles easy | 3.11 |
| Wednesday | 20 minute warm up, 3×30 seconds uphill, 3×45 seconds uphill, 3×60 seconds uphill (jog/walk downhill after each), 20 minute cool down (or until 5 miles) | 5.01 |
| Friday | 10 miles easy | 10.01 |
| Saturday | 4 miles easy | 4.01 |
Total: 28.92 miles
I’m getting close to 30 miles.
Monday, I noticed the lower humidity, and between that and an occasional breeze, it felt nicer than 68 degrees. My legs felt OK, I guess. I noticed fatigue here and there, especially if I was going uphill, but it wasn’t terrible. I got through all 6 strides without any walking, just slow jogging in between, and I was able to push it on the last stride, making it my fastest one.
On Tuesday, it was 62(!) degrees, and it felt great. For once, I was disappointed that I only had 3 miles on the schedule. My legs felt mostly OK, although I noticed a tiny amount of fatigue on some of the uphills. My effort actually felt easy this time, although I did pick it up near the end.
Wednesday, the weather was still not too terrible, 63 degrees. My legs felt OK until the last couple of hill intervals.
After the first interval, I kept pretty consistent paces, then really pushed it on the last interval, and it was my fastest interval. I did have to walk a little bit after that, but I was able to jog the rest of the cool down. I ended up with a 20 minute and about 40 second cool down since I wanted to get to 5 miles. It was a tough workout, but I got through it.
Oh, and Wednesday was also Global Running Day. I probably would not have chosen a hill workout to celebrate, but hey, it’s how I get better. I did take a picture after my run to mark the occasion.
Friday, I had to squeeze in my long run, since I was on call for the weekend. And, well, I guess I was overdue for a clunker.
The weather was back to normal (68 and humid, ugh), and I was in my neighborhood, which meant more hills and fewer water fountains (zero). I left a bottle of water outside my house, but was only able to stop there just after mile 5 (when I also had Gu), and just after mile 7.
I think I was too fast on miles 3 through 5, and I paid for it later. I also should have tried to get back to my house for some water at some point in the first 5 miles. I ended up taking several walk breaks late, and walked a good chunk of the last mile, although I did manage to jog slowly for the last quarter mile or so.
My legs were really tired late, but there was no pain, so there’s that.
If there was a benefit to this week’s schedule, I only had to wait one day to try to redeem myself after my not-so-great long run. So on Saturday, I was back out there, but for just 4 miles.
It was better.
The weather was slightly warmer than Friday. My legs were tired at first (which was understandable), but they got better as I ran. I was maybe a little faster than I should have been on mile 2, but on a 4 miler I can get away with that. Also, my run did not get interrupted by work, which is always a good thing.
This week, it’s back to normal, except I’ll have to deal with uncomfortable heat and humidity all week with no break. With Father’s Day next Sunday, my next post might be late, but considering I still haven’t posted my March Wrap-Up, it’s not the end of the world. (Also, I make no promises about the current backlog of monthly recaps and the Teal Diva 5K recap.)