Weekly Recap: May 11 - 17

Happy Sunday! I'm repeating the last two weeks of my previous training plan--the taper weeks--to prepare for the Ghost Town Trail Half Marathon on Memorial Day. So this was a pretty easy week. With the exception of one blissfully cool day, the hot weather has continued here, with high humidity joining the party. The old me--the me of last summer--would have been pretty miserable, but the new me is viewing this weather as great training conditions. And I think it's working because the runs aren't sucking as much as I thought they would and my paces aren't slowing too much. Also, I forgot how fun it is to wear bright summer colors, tanks, and skirts!

Mentally, I'm back to being my old positive self. I'm so grateful to have you all and the rest of the running community to help pull me out of my slump last week! I'll talk more about this in a post tomorrow or Tuesday.

I'm also back to my usual eating routine* and feeling so much better. I'd been increasing my carbs and limiting high-fiber veggies before long weekend runs and during my peak weeks. Don't get me wrong, I love all the bread and whole grains. But I missed eating all my fruits and veggies and am so happy to return to them, especially with all the summer produce coming. Is there anything more exciting than seeing raspberries are buy-one-get-one-free at the store? We've also gotten our Weber charcoal grill out of hibernation and have been grilling a lot these past few weeks. Give me grilled veggies and tofu every day of the week and I'll be a very happy camper. I've also been doing really great at tracking what I eat. (*Actually, I've been considering making some changes to my diet that are pretty crazy for me, but that deserves a separate post!)

I'm behind in some posts I want to publish, but I will soon have some Lululemon and Skirts Sports  reviews.

Mileage for the week was 22. Here's how the week went. I should note that while I don't call it out, I do a lot of stretching--about 10 minutes after every run and sometimes more throughout the day.

Monday
I did 25 minutes of strength training in the morning and 50 minutes of yin yoga in the evening followed by foam rolling.

Tuesday
Easy run: 4 miles, 48:52, 12:14 pace
It was 66F with a really nice breeze. This run felt so good!
Athleta Dress Blue Relay Skirt
Lululemon Flash Light Cool Racerback & Bangbuster
& Clear Mint Energy Bra
Wednesday
Pace run: 5 miles, 56:55
This was our cool-down day, so it was just 50 and breezy. Heaven! I ran 3 miles at race pace (11:00) plus warm-up and cool-down. My splits show how much my body liked the cool temps: 10:50, 10:45, 10:42.
Athleta Light Violet Exhilaration Top, Asphalt Relay Capris
Lululemon Hyper Stripe Heathered Slate Ghost First Base Tank &
Pretty Purple Bangbuster
Thursday
It very cool in the morning (with a frost advisory!), and while I'd love to have gone then, I wanted to wait to run in the warmest part of the day for hot-weather training. So in the morning I did 25 minutes of strength training.

Easy run: 3 miles, 35:49, 11:56 pace
It was 70F when I went out after work. The temps weren't the problem. All the people on the trail made this run suck. I'm used to going early in the morning when few people are out and forget that the trail gets very crowded in the evenings and on weekends. I kept having to surge to get around and away from people, and so my heart rate was higher than it should have been.
Athleta Cobblestone Grey Chi Tank & Raspberry Relay Capri
Fabletics Headband

Friday
Rest day! My hip hurt a little, likely the result of all my surging past people the evening before. I did a 30-minute hip-release video from Yoga Journal and then more hip stretches in the evening, and on Saturday it was back to normal.

Saturday
Pace run: 4 miles, 46:01
Just 2 race pace (11:00) miles were on the schedule plus warm-up and cool-down. It was 70F but very humid when I went out. This was tough. I was breathing hard and my heart rate was really high. But I stayed in the mile I was in and got it done. Splits: 10:59 and 10:55.
Lululemon Heathered Black Cherry What the Sport Singlet,
White Hit Your Stride Skirt,
Grey Stripe (forget the name) & Clear Mint Run Hat
 After the run I did 15 minutes of strength training. 

Sunday
Long run: 6.01 miles, 1:13, 12:09 pace
Another humid morning, but it was raining, which made it better. Amanda met me near my house and we ran on the river trail. Because my next half marathon is on a rails-to-trail, I wanted to do my last long run on a trail. It was fun catching up, but I miss North Park's rolling hills. After this race, I can't wait to get back to North Park or hilly city routes for long runs.
Wet from the rain!
Lululemon Rad Plaid Run Hat,
Aquarmarine Runner Up Tank,
Electric Coral Pace Rival Skirt
This upcoming week will be a very light taper week before my race.

Happy running and working out this week!

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