Hey friends!
Here is what the fifth week of my “comeback” training looked like. Things really started clicking for me this week! For reference, I am between the ninth and tenth week postpartum at this point.
Monday –
Plan: 7.0 mile run w/ 6 X 30 second strides
Actual: 7.0 mile run (8:55 pace)
I wasn’t able to get out to run until around noon on Monday. As far as when I can fit a run in, my schedule is completely unpredictable at the moment. Of course this is to expected with a newborn. When do they stop being newborns? {Checks google}. Apparently, it’s somewhere between two to three months. Ward is two months old now (we got our two month shots Monday morning), so I guess the newborn stage is coming to a close for us. Wowza!
It was 80° when I ran. While not too crazy, I’d say this is a bit warm for April! I was definitely feeling the heat. I did two out and back stretches from the house, with one extra mile on the paved portion of the road for the pickups. I was able to get some much better turnover going on the strides this week! My paces were 5:45, 5:17, 5:18, 5:21, 5:19 and 5:12. Progress!
Tuesday –
Plan: 3.0 – 4.0 mile run
Actual: 4.0 mile run (9:05 pace)
Tuesday’s run was a short recovery run. My legs felt fine, but I didn’t really have any interest in running more than four miles, so that worked out well. Ward and I did go for a nice little walk later in the day. Stroller naps are pretty much his favorite thing right now and I’m happy to oblige.
Wednesday –
Plan: 7.0 mile run with the option to do 2 miles up-tempo
Actual: 7.0 miles (8:10 pace)
When I started running Wednesday morning I didn’t think that I would choose the option to do the two quicker miles, but after I got a couple miles into the run I was feeling really good and decided to go for it. I pushed miles 4 and 5 a bit with two miles at just under 7:10 pace. Nothing too crazy, but I was working a bit and it was “fun” to push it a bit. I’ve missed that feeling!
Thursday –
Plan: 50 – 60 minute elliptical or go for a walk
Actual: 25 minutes (2.5 miles) + 4 mile walk
I tried to squeeze in some time on the elliptical during one of Ward’s naps, but little man had other plans. I guess technically I did squeeze in some time, but it just wasn’t quite as much as I was planning. Some of his naps are over an hour and some of his naps are only 15 or so minutes. At this point I have no way to know which one we are going to get any given time! Either which way, twenty-five minutes on the elliptical was plenty and we opted for a nice walk with the stroller outside after he ate. It was really nice outside and I would much rather be outside walking than inside on the elliptical. My love for the elliptical quickly faded as soon as I was back to more regular running. I really did enjoy my time on the elliptical throughout my pregnancy and during the initial postpartum phase. It felt great to move my body and the elliptical even made me feel strong. I hope to not spend nearly as much time on the elliptical going forward, but I’m thankful for the time that we had.
Dear Elliptical,
It’s not you. It’s me.
Thanks for the good times. Let’s still be friends.
Warm Regards,
Sam
Friday –
Plan: 6.0 mile run
Actual: 6.0 miles (9:00 pace)
Friday was my fourth run in five days! This was a huge milestone. It was on this day that I started to realize that I am “back.” I finished the run feeling good. I didn’t feel sore, or run down or anything like that. This was a really good sign and was also right on schedule for when my coach said that he expected things to turn around (between 8 and 10 weeks postpartum).
Saturday –
Plan: 9.0 – 10.0 mile run
Actual: 10.0 miles (8:35 pace)
Saturday was my first double digit run in almost 200 days! Another BIG milestone. I waited a bit too late to get out the door Saturday (see above refenced mention of unpredictable schedule) and by the time I got going it was 78° and muggy. I ran a hilly (ish) route with 535 feet of elevation gain and let me tell you what, I was feeling all of it by the end of the run. I ran for just over an hour and twenty five minutes, which is almost exactly how long my “marathon” elliptical sessions were in the weeks leading up to this. It appears that those did help me maintain at least some of my endurance. Thankfully, I don’t need the long elliptical workouts anymore!
Sunday –
Plan: 50 – 60 minute elliptical
Actual: 60 minutes (10 miles)
I finished off the week with an hour on the elliptical. I guess since I hadn’t really spent much time on the elliptical this week, it wasn’t terrible! Good thing we were still planning to be friends.
Totals –
Running: 34.2 miles
Elliptical: 12.5 miles (85 minutes)
Walking: 15.4 miles