California International Training Week 7

Hi there! How was your weekend? 

I experienced a dull ache on the inside of my right heel this earlier this week. I don’t have any of the telltale symptoms of plantar fasciitis – sharp pain first in the morning, pain radiating along the bottom of my foot – and it doesn’t ache when I run. I have a feeling it has to do with tight calves and maybe some residual issues from my foot sprain back in late April. It doesn’t even hurt, but it’s just annoying because I don’t like those little niggles.

By the end of the week, my foot felt fine! Apparently all I needed was extra foam rolling in my calves. 

Monday: 8 mile hilly run

Since I had a hard long run scheduled for this week, I swapped one of my usual quality runs out for an easy run. I ran back and forth across some hills to prepare my legs for Leaf Peeper and CIM. 

Tuesday: AM: 7 mile easy run; PM: 30 minute Pilates

I love that time in marathon training where hour-long runs feel short and easy. Marathon training does skew perception of distance, but the endurance boost is always something I love. 

For Pilates, I did a 30 minute Advanced Mat Mix workout from Pilatesology. The moves almost reminded me of what I used when I taught Pilates back at Valpo’s fitness center: brutal but fun combinations. Push ups to side bends were probably my favorite combination in this whole video. 

Wednesday: 10 mile run with 6 miles progressing from MP to HMP

My first mid-week double digit run of this training cycle! This run was challenging but in a good, enjoyable, rewarding way. After a two mile warm-up with some strides over the last 1/2 mile, my plan was to run 3 miles at marathon pace or slightly faster and then 3 miles at half marathon pace.

 

I didn’t quite hit marathon pace – I was a few seconds too fast, but for the purpose of this workout that is acceptable. The half marathon pace miles were a bit challenging since training fatigue is starting to accumulate (oh, and I hadn’t rested in over a week) but I still hit my paces well. My splits were 7:46, 7:56, 7:55, 7:34, 7:28, 7:26. 

I skipped strength training that evening. Ryan and I had plans to go to the gym together, but by the time he got home late thanks to traffic, neither of us felt motivated. 

Thursday: 30 minutes strength training and Pilates

I opted to take a rest day. Originally, my plan was to run through the entire week since we were going to backpack and camp at Pratt Lake over the weekend, which is an 11 mile round trip. Even more than my body needing a rest day, my mind reminded me to not push, push, push without rest. So I moved my run to Saturday, even if I had to do it before our hike. 

Instead, I did a quick circuit of strength training with my kettlebell. I didn’t feel like lifting heavier weights so the little 15 pound kettlebell did the trick. I concluded my workout with 10 minute Pilatesology magic circle workout. 

Friday: 14 mile long run with fartlek + fast finish

I’m coaching Hanna in 10K training right now and in a recent blog post she referred to progression long runs as “those damn fast finishes.” I couldn’t agree more. By the end of this run, my legs and lungs were burning. The thick fog didn’t make it easier!

I had done similar fartlek plus fast finish long runs in my training for the Lake Sammamish Half Marathon. They are brutal but so effective for training you to push through fatigue and finish strong on race day. The fartlek helps as well for teaching you how to pass people during a race or surge ahead when you need to break away from a group. Oh, and this workout kicked my butt, but in a good way. 

Here’s how the exact workout went. It’s a workout I got directly out of Brad Hudson’s Run Faster from the 5K to Marathon:
6 miles easy
5 miles repeating 1 minute at 10K effort, 1 minute easy
1 mile easy 
2 miles hard

When I rest the day before a long run, my legs feel sluggish for the first few miles. (Not that I regret taking a rest day – I needed one). Once I started the fartlek segment, I was able to hit my pace range but it certainly required mental focus and physical effort. I gave myself mini-goals for the 2 “hard” miles: marathon pace if I felt too fatigued or half marathon to tempo pace if I could push through the fatigue. I ran those last 2 miles in 7:29 and 7:28 at a hard but controlled effort. 

Saturday: 4 mile easy run

Ryan, Charlie, and I all went out on a rainy and easy run together. The fall colors are coming in so vibrantly on the trees! The rain kept us from backpacking, so instead we enjoyed a relaxing Saturday at home. 

Sunday: 25 minutes Pilates

We decided not to go hiking because of an opportunity to meet an Australian Cattle Dog mix at a rescue who we had our eye on for a couple weeks. I’ve been mentioning a second dog for a while now – we had started looking for a second dog before we moved out to Seattle, but we paused our search during the move and adjusting to life here. But now…well, nothing is 100% as I write this (Sunday evening), but we may just have another runner in the family soon! It’s a big decision to bring another dog into the family, so we’re taking this decision very seriously. 

I’m ready and excited to embrace and enjoy the harder weeks of training. I’m feeling strong and healthy, enjoying training, and hitting some good (for me) paces in my runs. I’m starting to wonder if a 3:35 marathon might be within the realm of possibility if all other circumstances go well at CIM. 

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Linking up with Weekly Wrap! 

How was your week in running?
What workout kicked your butt this week?