Mile Markers: Hard-Easy Balance

The balance of hard days and easy days is essential for improving as a runner – running hard every day will lead to plateauing, burnout, overtraining, and injury, while running at the same easy pace on every run will slow progress. This week was my peak sharpening week for the Snohomish Women’s Run 10K, which is this coming Sunday.

I really want to break 45 minutes in the 10K, so this week’s workouts focused in on running my goal 10K pace or slightly faster. My hard workout days were really hard – in some senses, far harder than the 20 mile long runs of marathon training or the long tempos of half marathon training – so I balanced out the week by keeping my easy days truly easy. 

Monday: 6 x 800 meter repeats (8 miles total) & 30 minutes strength training

800-meter repeats are a staple workout for most runners, but it’s been almost two years, back when I did Hansons Marathon Method, since I’ve run 800s – and back then, I did them on the treadmill because I was nervous about pacing. 

I warmed up with 2 miles of easy run and some dynamic stretches before running the 800-meter repeats. I’m a firm believer in running no faster than needed to for a particular workout, so I had a firm pace range in mind based on Daniel’s VDOT Calculator – 6:40-6:45/mile, or roughly my VO2max pace. 

I have a mild aversion to the track (and I also don’t know where the nearest accessible one is), so I ran these on a flat paved trail. I race on the road after all, so I don’t mind dealing with mild changes in terrain. I ran back and forth over the same 1/2 mile stretch. I started out a tad to fast at a 6:38/mile for the first two repeats, but then I settled into 6:40-6:42/mile. 

Those paces still surprise me a little. Just a few years ago, I considered paces in the 6:xx range well beyond my abilities. 

For strength training, I opted for some basic runner-specific exercises: single leg deadlifts, reverse lunges with core rotation, hamstring ball curls, planks on the stability ball, and some upper body work. 

Tuesday: 5 mile easy run

Ollie and I switched up our run and tried a different route. I had almost forgotten about a segment of paved trail near us, so we ran there and explored a bit more. I am always hesitant to explore new routes on my own, but with a fiercely loyal and muscular black dog, I feel a bit more comfortable. 

Ollie struggles with pacing – he wants to start out at a sprint – but he is improving a bit. I managed to slow him down enough to maintain the 9:00/mile pace that I needed on that day and we had an enjoyable run together. I love running with my Labraheeler!

Wednesday: 35 minutes Pilates

Nothing remarkable about this workout – I completed one of my favorite magic circle workouts and spend a good amount of time stretching out my hip flexors at the end. I needed both the core work and the stretching! 

Thursday: 9 mile specific endurance run

The workout:
1 mile warm up
5 x 2K (1.24 miles) at goal 10K pace (2 minute recovery jog in between)
1 mile cool down

I had done this workout before, but never at this fast of a pace. My goal was to simulate the race with this workout: start out within a few seconds of goal pace and finish strong. My 2K splits were 8:53, 8:51, 8:50, 8:47, and 8:41. My post-run brain estimated a 7:02-7:10/mile pace, but later I sat down to do the actual math and realized these splits equate to a 7:08 cutting down to 6:59 minute mile (!). After this run, I felt ready for the 10K. Tired and hungry, but physically and mentally prepared. 

I decided at the last minute to skip my strength training session that evening and move it to Friday – the idea of doing any more exercise sounded exhausting. The last week of the month is always a busy week for me work-wise and I just felt drained. 

Friday: 4 mile easy run & 30 minutes strength training

April 28th is the anniversary of Charlie’s adoption, so in honor of 4 years of Charlie being part of the family, I took him on a 4 mile run. We kept the effort light and easy on this – I was genuinely surprised when our average pace was an 8:58/mile, which just goes to show the positive impact of having a running buddy, even of the four-legged variety. 

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Since I skipped strength training the previous day, I headed to the gym after work. I wanted something different, so I spontaneously developed this workout. I really enjoyed the new-to-me exercises that I tried with the ball, although I will stay that stability ball pikes are hard!

2 x 20 banded squats
2 x 20 lateral band walks
2 x 10 stability ball pikes 
2 x 15 cable rows
2 x 10 hamstring ball curls
2 x 10 toe touches
2 x 10 stability ball deadbugs
2 x 30 second side plank with leg lifts

Thanks to the warm and rain-free weather, we spent the rest of the evening outside. Post-workout beers are good for recovery, right? (Outside certainly thinks so!).

Saturday: 6 mile run 

Just this week, Ryan discovered a connector to a nearby paved trail that started near our apartment complex. This is a big deal to us, because our apartment complex is off of a busy road that doesn’t have sidewalks in some stretches. Our only option for running from our complex was a short hilly and honestly monotonous loop in a nearby neighborhood – but now, this small connector links up with 4 miles of paved trail. 

This run was so fun – the trail was quiet and lined with trees. The three of us – Ollie, Ryan, and I – really enjoyed this route, although Ollie may have enjoyed it most for all of the ducks we saw. 

Sunday: 4.8 mile hike

Even though most of the mountains still have snow at the top (and I am not in the mood right now to hike through slushy snow), we decided to get in a full-length hike. We left the dogs at home since training Ollie to behave on hikes slows us down significantly. 

We hiked at Little Si, which we had never hiked before because we thought it’s short distance and proximity to Seattle meant mediocre views. The scenery proved us wrong: the entire trail was lined with soaring moss-covered trees and mossy boulders. The hike was short, but with such a long hiatus from hiking, this was good – we got to enjoy time outdoors without accumulating fatigue. Despite the fact that it rained the whole time, we had so much fun just spending time out in the mountains. 

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How was your week in running?
How have you surprised yourself in a workout recently?