My First 20 Mile Week
I know that I recently posted about feeling beat-down, worn out, or whatever you want to call it. Today I feel good. Saturday I felt good. Yesterday I felt really good. So what happened? I don't know—perhaps it was just a matter of getting a day off to recover. Whatever it was, I am not going to complain. After all, I just completed a 10 mile weekend, and my first 20+ mile week. And I don't feel like I simply survived, I feel like a thrived.
One of the big things I've noticed through this past week's training, is improvement in my fitness level. The easy runs on Tuesday and Thursday were run at a quicker pace than I've previously run them, without a big increase in my perceived effort level. On Tuesday, I did a 3 mile run in 33:23, with an average heart rate of 151 bpm. Thursday's run was also 3 miles, this time in 32:01, and an average heart rate of 158. Now, you might argue that the increased pace came at the expense of an increased heart rate, and that it wasn't really an "easy" run, but remember that I said perceived effort—not heart rate—and this run felt pretty easy.
Sandwiched in between those two easy runs, was my speed workout—intervals. There's no getting around it—this workout was HARD. I really do need to work on slowing down during my intervals. The number of intervals increased from 5 to 6, and it really was this workout that had me feeling beat-down.
After a day of rest on Friday, Saturday brought another 4 miles of easy running. I had originally planned on going out early Saturday, before all of the rain moved in, and before we got busy with soccer and basketball games, but I was just too tired, and the rain moved in a little early. Instead, I went out in the afternoon—38.2°F, winds 10-14 mph, light rain and all. This run was also the first time that I simply headed out the door and just ran (using the Forerunner 305 for distance, of course), rather than plotting out my route beforehand. A little less than half of the 4 miles was spent on hike and bike trails, which was a nice change from the street running. Anyway, I finished the 4 miles in 47:11, with an average heart rate of 158 bpm. Considering the wind, the rain, the hills, I felt pretty good about this run--not to mention that it was one of those weird sort of perfect days to be outside running, while everyone else stayed huddled indoors.
Finally, there was my 6 mile long run yesterday, completed in 1:09:19, with an average heart rate of 152 bpm. That's an 11:33/mile easy pace, sustained over 6 miles, with a heart rate no higher than my 3 mile run on Tuesday. I feel really good about this run, and I feel like I am ready for my first race of the year—The Cowtown 5K, this coming Saturday.
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Bryan
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11:47 PM
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Health and Fitness
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