I got a solid week of training in during the last full week of July! I am really pleased with how the two quality runs went and am also pleased that I was able to get in two hours of strength training (over three smaller sessions). I wasn’t able to get to Pilates this week, which was a bummer, but my strength training game was still on point. I really hoping that a stronger runner = a faster runner once the temperatures drop this fall!
- Mileage: 66 miles
- Strength: 120 minutes
- Cross Training: 11 miles of stroller walking (with some running sprinkled in)
- Quality Runs: 2
- 3 mile warm up, 6 miles at half marathon effort (6:16, 6:14, 6:15, 6:13, 6:12, 6:08), 3 mile cool down
- 3 mile warm up, 4 X 800 (2:50, 2:50, 2:49, 2:48) + 4 X 400 (80, 79, 80, 81), 3 mile cool down
- Average Temperature: 79°F
- Average Dew Point: 76°F
I’ve been enjoying taking Ward to school in the stroller a couple days per week. I count this as cross training because it is more of a walk than a run. Our driveway is mostly sand and rock and is quite hilly. When you add an almost 30 pound toddler into the mix, it makes for a challenging “stroll.”
One of my quality runs was done on the treadmill (the half marathon effort) and the other was done at the track. Getting back on an actual track has been such a treat! They have been in the process of resurfacing the local high school track for what seems like months now, so I have been traveling a bit further to get to a proper track. It is amazing what a world of difference that extra “squish” can do for your speed!
We are officially to the point of summer where the temperature + dew point most days is in the 155-160 range, which theoretically lends itself to a 5-7% pace adjustment. I really couldn’t care less what my pace is on any run other than my quality days, so the pace adjustment isn’t something that I typically think about. I am documenting it here for the sake of acknowledging that summer training can quite literally be a slog and reminding myself that it will get better. Granted, it will get worse before it gets better, but it will get better nonetheless. Taking one quality session indoors seems to be a good adjustment, as I don’t feel quite as run down at this point of the summer as I have in the past.
That’s all for now friends! Stay hydrated out there!