September Recap

Hey friends! Can you believe that another month has come and gone? I feel like September absolutely flew by.

It’s time to recap another month of running!

Month Recap: September 2018

Training for CIM is trucking right on along. We are actually only two months out from the race right now, which really seems a bit scary. Part of me still really doesn’t feel like I am doing enough as far as marathon training goes. I haven’t really done many long runs yet, which is different from the training that I am used to. I am also not doing any doubles, which is different as well. However, I completely trust my coach and I know that I will be ready. I feel really good and I don’t feel worn down at all, which is excellent (and quite a refreshing change from past training cycles).

I can actually see tangible improvements in my fitness as well, which is amazing. I was essentially stuck on a fitness plateau for about three years and I think I am finally coming out on the other side of it. I am hitting paces in workouts that I have never hit before and feeling comfortable hitting them. It’s crazy!

Workouts: I had five solid workouts this month, as well as a few longer runs. The workouts have been challenging, but doable.

2 mi. WU,  5 X 1000 w/ 1:00 recoveries (4:01, 3:59, 3:58, 3:57, 3:53), 5 X 200 w/ 200 recoveries (37, 40, 38, 38, 39), 2 mi. CD

2 mi. WU, 8 miles @ marathon pace (6:57, 6:54, 6:42, 6:47, 6:55, 6:39, 6:47, 6:48), 1 mi. CD

1 mi. WU, 8 X 800 @ threshold (3:20, 3:18, 3:18, 3:14, 3:14, 3:10, 3:11, 3:08) w/ 800 recoveries, 1 mi. CD

2 mi. WU, 4 X 200 (41, 44, 42, 42), 4 miles @ threshold (6:33, 6:31, 6:39, 6:23), 4 X 200 (42, 42, 44, 43), 2 mi. CD 

4 mi. WU, 7 X 800 (2:56, 2:50, 2:51, 2:49, 2:53, 2:56, 2:53) w/ 1:30 walk recoveries, 4 mi. CD 

Favorite workout: My favorite workout was probably the 8 X 800 w/ 800 recoveries. We did this workout on the track and while it seems like might get a little bit boring, it was actually fun! Fun might not be the right word, but it was enjoyable. I liked alternating the paces throughout the run and the nice thing about this workout was that it was done at threshold pace and not at an all out effort. the 7 X 800 workout was done at 5K pace and that was TOUGH!

Races: I only ran one race this month, but it was quite memorable! I ran the Hurricane Run 5K on September 8th and got a long-awaited, much-anticipated 5K PR. It only took 3+ years and 20+ 5K races, but I finally got the elusive 5K PR I have been wanting.

Favorite race: Not that it would’ve been any sort of contest anyway (due to the above-referenced PR), but the one race that I ran was definitely the best race of the month.

Paces: My paces ranged from 5:47 (second mile of Hurricane) to 10:30 (on the beach).

Miles: 257 miles this month.

Longest run: My longest run was 15.5 miles!

Shortest run: My shortest run was 5 miles.

Rest days: I took one rest day.

Strength training: I got over 3 hours of Pilates in this month! I’m happy with how adding some strength stuff into the regular routine is making me feel. My instructor told me that I was getting stronger too, so that’s nice! I’ve changed a lot of variables up this training cycle, so it’s hard to know exactly what has been the catalyst of the improvements that I’ve seen. I have a feeling that Pilates is one of the major factors!