Monthly Archives: April 2012

12.5, Proof.

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This would be the smiling faces of two very-pleased-with-themselves rundaters:

(pardon the giant forehead shot, haha)

Saturday marked that 12.5 prove-you-can-do-this-half-marathon run I talked about earlier in the week. I needed this long run to be a good, solid, rockstar run. To prove to myself, to that brain of mine, that I can — and will – rock 13.1 on May 6.

And wouldn’t you know — that’s exactly what Saturday’s run proved to me. It was the #PROOF I needed that my body — and my mind — are more than ready to nail the Providence Cox Rhode Race half in just a few weeks. *Such* the confidence boost I needed.

A quick recap of how the run went down:

Set out around 7:45 after a *really* good night’s sleep on Friday. Sushi the night prior apparently makes for really good pre-long-run fuel. Highly recommended.

Didn’t eat much before I left. This was by design — I just can’t run with much in my stomach…unless I have hours to digest it. I didn’t have that luxury on Saturday. So a handful of fiber one cereal (random, I know) and a bit of water and off we went, handheld water bottle in hand (er, in Scott’s hand) and Honey Stingers stuffed in my pocket.

Utterly gorgeous Saturday morning — bright, bright sunshine, gleaming blue skies, birds chirping. Slight chill in the air. The first leg of our run was fairly uneventful, ‘cept for a really good push up this long, rolling, hill that totally sneaks up on us no matter how many times we run this route. That hill’s got nothin’ on us, for the record. ;-)

The second leg of our run was admittedly tougher. Mostly physically tougher vs. mentally. I tried to push the thought out of my head that we had a good 6 miles left to go, but my body was the constant reminder that the miles were starting to add up. My knees were a little achy (mainly the ache from piling on the miles, not an achy/pain/something-is-wrong ache) and my upper back was starting to get tight. (I think I’m focusing a little *too* much on keeping proper upper body form when I run now…I totally blame that on my barre n9ne practice which is *all* about form. I need to relax that ‘shoulders down and back’ b9 form thing a bit when I run I do believe…note to self.)

It was the final mile of our run when the whole #PROOF thing really settled in. I thought to myself that we literally just ran almost 12 miles and I still felt pretty darn good, all things considered. And if I was feeling that decent on a training run, I sure as hell ought to feel pretty decent running all 13.1 on race day. I got this, why yes, yes I do.

And guess what? By the end of the run, I was tired, sore and ready for the oatmeal I’d been dreaming about for the past 12.5 miles (hehe), but I didn’t feel half bad otherwise. No pukey feeling (as has been known to happen to me in the past on long runs and post-race…I think this fueling thing is finally working for me), no I-want-to-die feeling.

Just spent, worked — and proven.

It’s all I needed. Well that – and a good long stretch, too.
With picture #PROOF of course (see? I really DO stretch now, look at me!)


PS – remember that time I mentioned I was itching for change? Well – I went for it on Saturday. In a big way. This is by far the sassiest haircut I’ve EVER had. Not gonna lie — I kinda love it ;-)

This is how our minds work: ‘The Rules’ edition

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As you now know, not only do I suffer from OATT every five seconds on occassion, but my sister Jo has a similar case of OATT (though I daresay mine is worse than hers, most of the time, anyway).

Here we are – y’know, in case you forgot what we looked like or something ;-)

On one of our rundates recently, we started mulling over “The Rules” — our quirky little “mandates” we try to live by, and make sure that eachother upholds too (even if it includes a little arm-twisting, now and then).

So without further ado — on what normally would be Foodie Friday, I bring you:

“This is how our minds work: ‘The Rules’ Edition”

A ‘triple’ is only allowed on the first Monday of every month (just kidding…kinda)…and only if the other one is also doing a triple. Otherwise, it is completely fair to bitch the other one out for doing a triple. (caveat – if we ever DO complete a triple workout, we promise, we’re fully fueled before/after, the workouts are spaced out, and we don’t make a habit of it, we promise. We’re not here to advocate over-exercising!)

Rest days must be ‘complete’ rest days and must be taken in the same week. None of this ‘I’ll use Sunday as my rest day’ when the other knows that her last rest day was the PREVIOUS Tuesday (in other words, more than a full week between rest days? No bueno.)

There is no such thing as ‘only‘ running XX number of miles for an allotted run. A run is a run, plain and simple. Could be 3 miles, could be 12. It all ‘counts.’ It all matters. It all rocks.

It’s completely normal to discuss the week ahead’s workouts and how you can strategically plan run, barre, sister dinner dates into the mix.  <—OATT alert!! At least one of the three must happen each week. (and every other ‘date’ should include sushi. Or oatmeal. It’s a rule).

Throwback ‘rule’ – you can only trade three skittles (at minimum and none of this only yellow and green, there must be at least one ‘money color’, i.e. pink, purple, or one red. MUST.) for one starburst (again, said starburst must be a ‘money color’ or else the 3 skittle-minimum no longer applies. You can give her none in return as far as I’m concerned. In fairness, of course, to the flavor law.)

(does anyone else now suddenly have a random craving to go buy a pack of starburst now? yeah…er…me neither.)

There is absolutely no truth to the phrase: I’m not in the mood for wine tonight (if sister says this, there is something seriously wrong….or she’s pregnant. Justkidding.Justkidding.Justkidding.)

A couple of chocolate chips is totally an acceptable yogurt topping. ‘nuf said.

There is always a way to fit in ‘Jess and Scott’ pizza and two glasses of wine and still be within ‘your number’ (i.e. food log ‘number’) and not starve yourself all day. It’s been done. And it was worth every last cheesy filled calorie.  TRUTH.

If you’re gonna eat a cookie, eat the damn cookie. A real one. Homebaked. With real sugar. Real butter. Real chocolate chips. No going halfway and stopping. Commit to the cookie. And enjoy it, dammit.

You can work peanut butter into any recipe. Savory. Sweet. Doesn’t matter. It ALWAYS WORKS.

And finally, you are fully within your rights to block your sister’s Facebook and Twitter updates while traveling to avoid oatmeal envy. It’s sheer torture otherwise. Trust me (us) on this one.

;-)

Because you love it.

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As I was reading through and responding to comments on my post on Tuesday (which were awesome, thank you guys!!), one of the comments stood out to me, in particular the very last sentence in that comment:

Tracey Leffler

I think that is a good plan. You can do this and you will do this. You just need to trust yourself and remember whatever the outcome you are doing this because you LOVE it.

We do, we chase, we follow, we thrive…because we LOVE it.

…or at least that’s what should be driving us in every single aspect of our lives.

But does that often get lost in the shuffle in the chaos of the moments, the days, the weeks, the years that make up our lives?
You betcha.

So while at first Tracey’s comment got me thinking and re-thinking how I approach running (something I love, obvs), it also got me thinking big picture too.

Everything we do in life ought to driven by love. Not necessarily love in the traditional sense, but love in the broader context.
…of living life to the fullest everyday.
…of remembering that we only have this one life, this one body, this one chance.
…to live our best lives now. Not “someday.”
But now. In whatever shape or form that takes.

With that context in mind, I got to revisiting how my life is shaping up right about now. Is it everything I hoped and dreamed it would be? Am I blooming right where I’m planted?

Am I doing…because I love it?

And you know what? My answer today is a resounding YES to all of the above.

Had I asked myself that series of questions a year ago? I can guarantee my answer would be very, very different. But today? I’m doing…because I love it. And it’s been by design, truly.

I’ve streamlined all areas of my life to make sure that everything from the friends I choose to interact with, to my approach to my (relatively) new job, to my approach to my new (beloved) role as barre n9ne instructor, to how I look at running/racing/marathoning, and even to how I approach blogging.

I do all of this (no matter how hectic it gets!)…because I love it.

Bottom line. Life is too short to be doing anything in life if you don’t love it.

Sure there are obligations in life that nobody loves, I’m not trying to be all puppies and rainbows here — nobody can solely live life only doing the things that they love (though, that would be pretty great,  huh?). But by and large — we should all be striving to be doing what we love, loving what we do, loving this life we’ve all be blessed with. <–I’m a firm believer in everyday being a gift

So I guess my point is this — next time you’re struggling to wrap your head around a training run, or to motivate yourself to step outside of your comfort zone and go after that new role at work, or to simply understand how important (or not) certain relationships are in your life, ask yourself one question.

Are you doing ____ because you love it?

Fill in that blank, answer that question, and I’m pretty sure you’ll wind up much happier in the long run.
…just a hunch. ;-)

And this is how my brain works: revisited.

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Welcome back to another rousing edition of “And this is  how my brain works: revisited.”

Today we bring you Jessica.

She has a serious case of OATT syndrome – or for the laymen out there, “Overthinking-All-The-Time” syndrome.

Her symptoms? Simple, really:

She thinks. A lot.
She over-thinks. A lot.
She’s plans, plans, plans. And then plans some more.
She then re-plans the plans she so carefully constructed in her mind.
And then she shares those plans with her sister and fab friend who have a slightly less serious (but very contagious) cases of OATT.
And then the re-planning, over-thinking cycle restarts from the beginning.

Key indicators that an OATT flare-up is pending?
…let’s evaluate in case study format:

Jessica finds herself with a couple of free hours. Unplanned free hours.
Previously reserved for a rundate with her husband. That rundate went to the wayside when she happened to mention a slight ache in her knee. To exacerbate things, the hubs had last-minute after-work plans that fouled up said rundate anyway.

Achy (but nothing serious, I swear) knee + husband unavailable for rundate = an entire evening unplanned.

…an OATT flare-up is about to ensue.

Jessica sends an email to her sis and friend (noted above) to discuss these free hours, free unplanned hours. What to DO with those hours? Free time is usually spent working out. But the run is off the table. And barre n9ne class has already been attended (earlier that morning). Free hours and that time isn’t being spent working out?? Hmm, now what. Jessica is at a loss.
She can’t possibly plop down on the couch and do nothing with this “found” time, now can she?

No way. Must think. Plan. Scheme. Devise.

Ultimately, her night ended up filled with two errands, some writing (ahem, this post, er case study), some prep for barre n9ne classes to be taught on Thursday and Friday, some online shopping, er browsing, in preparation for an epic wine country trip in June, and some stretching, ah yes, stretching! – that’s exercise, whee! <–whoops, sorry, went off-character there for a second.

Back to the case study.
Ah yes, poor, poor Jessica.
Serious, VERY serious case of OATT, indeed.

Official Prognosis:
This patient clearly does not know how to turn that brain off, stop thinking and just veg. Clearly this is an ingrained quality in her. Sadly, there is no cure at this point in time. Jessica will simply need to re-train herself — her brain, rather — to relax. Through breathing techniques, meditation and perhaps a good dose of “downtime” — even if that dose is administered against her will.

<< Editor’s Note: This very tongue-in-cheek post brought to you courtesy of a very antsy blogger over here. Not only have I not run since Saturday (oh the HORROR! haha) to preserve that achy-but-nothing-serious-knee, but to have free unplanned time around these parts – unheard of! At least now you know how this brain works — even more so than you did before — and can see why I get all up in my head now and then. Must kick the OATT syndrome for good. Now, who wants to volunteer to adminster that dose of “downtime” to me?? ;-P >>

Tweaks in training, and mind/body connections

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This half marathon training cycle continues to feel very different to me. I’ve been thinking long and hard about why that is and I think it comes down to this – I’m a more seasoned runner this time around vs. previous half marathon training cycles.

A seasoned runner.
…me.

Yet, why do I have such a hard time wrapping my head around that concept?

It struck me this weekend that my brain hasn’t quite caught up with my body. And not just running-wise. But let’s tackle the running piece first, shall we?

This training cycle has been much shorter than previous half marathon training cycles. Previously, I would choose a half marathon in the late-summer/early-fall to train for and basically spend all summer loosely ”training” for it. So I had loads of time to get my head in the game on those longer and longer runs, so by the time race day rolled around, it would feel like “just” another long training run for me, mentally. And that worked really well for me, overall.

This time around? I have just 8 weeks to condition the body to run longer and longer distances. Which, quite honestly, hasn’t been all that taxing (‘cept for that snotty run on Friday, but I blame the cold on the ‘taxing’ part) – or at least far less taxing than I remember it being in the past. Which leads me to the whole ‘seasoned runner’ thing. I am proud of the fact that I was able to keep my base at around 7ish miles throughout the winter. Something I’ve never been very good at before…my base mileage in the winter would *really* dwindle and I’d find myself basically starting over in the spring, slowly building back up my run-durance.

So you’re probably wondering what exactly the problem is here then, huh? It’s simple, really. My brain is telling me “you’re not ready” to run 13.1.” Because well, my brain “knows” I’ve only just now hit the double-digits this past weekend. Which means I’m just three long runs away from the race. And my brain is telling me that that is just simply not enough.

But really? My brain is wrong in this case. My body is strong and conditioned and can handle the miles. My brain hasn’t quite caught up to that fact.

…which leads me to the whole “tweaks” piece I mentioned in the title of this post.

To get my brain to catch up a little bit, my next two long runs will be 12.5 miles (basically combining two of our favorite running routes into one long running route). Call me crazy, but I think this might do the trick. (I know, it’s a big jump in miles from my last long run). Instead of 11 miles this week, 12.5 miles next week and then dropping down to 10 miles as my last long run, I’ll do 12.5 this week and again next week and then close out with a 10-miler before a “mini-taper” to race day.

I think this little tweak to the schedule is what my brain needs to catch up to what my body is capable of. This goes back to the whole mind/body connection thing I’ve been all about this past year. Barre n9ne is all about the mind/body connection. My food log-filled journey this past (almost) year on my quest towards intuitive eating is all about the mind/body connection too. So it only makes sense that I continue to make those connections through running. Connecting my mind, to what my body is capable of doing, and trusting it to do just that.

(much more on the whole mind/body thing in a future post or two, especially as my sis and I inch closer and closer to our one year barre-versary, the date when our lives changed forever, thanks to the 60-day challenge and all that has fallen out of that, from re-learning how to eat mindfully, to working our butts off to re-shape our bodies, to paying all of that learning forward by teaching at the studio. Clearly, based on this little preamble alone, I have a LOT to say on the topic. So stay tuned, please. ;-) )

A very stuffy 10-miler

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Friday morning was a rare treat – Scott had the day off from work due to Good Friday. Of course, I wanted to take full advantage of his time (hehe, I’m sure he had other ideas for how he wanted to spend his morning off!) so we decided that Friday would be our long run day ‘o the week.

…despite the fact that we were both in the “snotty nosed” camp, so to speak. Both coming back from annoying-as-hell colds, but both really committed to getting through our first double-digit run together (since this summer!), regardless.

If I could sum up our run in pictures? This is what it would look like:

Let’s just say Scott called me out around mile 8 for being a “stubborn ass” (his words!) when he suggested we cut it to 9.5 miles vs. the full 10 (meaning skipping the final loop before turning down our street).

My response? “I said I’m doing 10, so I’m doing 10. You can go home if you want, but I’m finishing this thing!”

He shook his head (and probably had a nice little running tirade going on up in his head), but agreed to continue on. And I’m pretty sure we were both really glad we stuck it out — it was that final loop (the one Scott suggested we skip) where we both got a burst of energy and found some energy to kick it up the last hill before turning towards home.

And in the end, we did just what we said we were going to do.
…We ran 10 miles. We didn’t stop because we were tired. We stopped when we were done.

It wasn’t our fastest or our “best” by any stretch, but it was a proud 10-miles. It was an ego-tempering 10-miles, too. A really, really good reminder that no matter what – those “tough” runs are always lurking just around the corner, ready to teach you a thing or two.

A couple of lessons learned on this one?

  • Three tissues is *not* enough. Seriously, what was I thinking? I used all three up right away. Duh. The rest of the run was spent snuffling along, annoyed as hell that I couldn’t breathe at.all. out of my nose. Hot.
  • Side cramps are plentiful when mouth-breathing is all ya got. Given the tissue problem noted above, mouth breathing was my only option. Which left me fighting side cramps galore on this run. Excellent.
  • Fuel and water is hard to manage when unable to breathe *and* when fighting side cramps. Have you ever tried to chew something with your mouth open to allow for breathing to occur while running? It’s a comedy show. I was trying to breathe, trying to chew, trying not to choke, and trying to keep my legs going without tripping. I am so cool.

Lesson learned – running while stuffy isn’t pretty, but it *can* be done.  Trust me on this.
<sniffle>

 

Foodie Friday – the “I’m a genius” edition

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Ok, so maybe I’m not a real genius, but after coming up with the tastiest lunchtime concoction ever the other day, I kinda felt like one. Even if just for a split second. I even instagrammed and tweeted out my geniusness to that effect. ;-)

This baby is my version of a grilled cheese — it’s genius, I swear. I took a flatout wrap (best invention ever), smeared it with an herb/garlic laughing cow wedge, added a slice of lite provolone cheese (Trader Joe’s makes a really good one), some sliced tomato and fresh mixed greens — and then I folded it over and into the pan it went. I pressed it down (panini-like) until it was toasty on both sides. On the side was an orange and some fresh strawberries – this girl needed the vitamin C boost in a big way this week (notsicknotsicknotsick and all).

Another “genius” item for this week — this one goes to my sis who came up with a yummy alternative to my usual go-to PM snack (usually Chobani…unless I’m running shortly thereafter. Running + dairy + me = no bueno as we all learned last week!).

Into the bowl went cottage cheese and a perfectly ripe banana sliced nice and thin. You might spy some crumbles on top too — that’s from a failed attempt at Nicole’s no-bake chocolate chip “cookies.” (don’t worry Nicole, I’ll try again – for now, they are great as a topper to cottage cheese or yogurt!).  This was so yummy — definitely rotationg this sucker into my PM snack mix asap!

And finally – a new take on plain ‘ol water. Something I drink a ton of already, but drank even more of this week while warding off the sickies. I’m a big fan of selzer water (after I drink my allotted “regular” water for the day, at least 64 oz) – and like to spruce it up with fresh fruit whenever possible.

Well – I recently got a box of Vita Coco water to try out and figured I’d throw that into my selzer one day (I’m a fan of the pineapple infused vita coco but find the mango/peach flavor hard to drink on it’s own for some reason).

The result? A really refreshing and tasty, kicked-up selzer water. This one had fresh blackberries and pineapple, a splash of the Vita Coco mango/peach water and lots of ice. Super-duper refreshing…and for a split second, if I closed my eyes really tight, it felt like I was sitting on a beach somewhere drinking a tropical-infused drink. ;-)

So there you have it – a couple of new (and genius!) foodie finds for me this week. All very tasty, all very nutritious and healthy, and all very easy and fun to make (and eat!). God, I love food. ;-)

On gettin’ ‘er done

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So I bet most of you think I’m one of those rare breeds that never dreads a workout, right?

<waits while you nod your head in agreement.>

Wellllll, guess what? I don’t always jump for joy when it’s time to workout.
…99% of the time, yes. But there is that sneaky little 1% that comes out at the most inopportune times ever.

Like last night. After I spent all day trying to rest up, shake off this sniffly thing I got going on (#notsicknotsicknotsick), before gearing up for a rundate with the hubs after work. The clock ticked closer and closer to rundate time and as we got nearer and nearer to that time, my motivation mojo was slinking in the shadows.

This after spending a good 15 minutes bargaining with the hubs who wanted me to skip the run entirely to begin with. We ended up compromising — originally we planned to run outside, but after our little “debate”, I agreed to revert to the treadmill just in case I wound up feeling icky partway through the run and needed to cut the run short. (plus it would give Scott time to fit in a strength workout since he missed one yesterday). Seemed like a win-win (even for this treadmill-hater).

While I battled around in my head, desperately searching for my motivation mojo, I suddenly remembered a blog post I’d read earlier in the day from Lisa (an awesome blogger if you haven’t checked her out yet). She touched on how exercise is her “drug of choice” — that it’s something she not only craves, but it’s something that makes her feel good both while doing it and afterwards. She doesn’t like how her body feels on days she’s less active than normal.

And you know what?
…I have to agree. 100%.

I spent most of yesterday barely active at all — spending a ton of time on the computer and on the phone for work, and little to no time for me. Being my normal active energetic self. Figuring the least amount of exertion pre-run was probably a good thing. But instead — it totally worked against me. I felt lethargic and blah. Not from the sniffly thing I’m battling, but from the sheer lack of activity. I love my body on “active.” I feel my best then. No wonder my motivation mojo was in hiding. Sheesh. I hadn’t given it any real reason to come out to begin with!

So that brings me to last night’s run.
…on the treadmill.

It wasn’t so bad afterall. <phew> Granted, I was stopping for water pretty often thanks to good ‘ol dry mouth from having a stuffed up nose, but, it wasn’t terrible either. I went slow and steady for just over 5 miles and called it quits at that. Was tempted to push for 6 but the smarter side of me (i.e. my husband over my shoulder!) told me to stop while I was ahead.

So 5 miles all done — good by me, snuffly and all!

#PROOF!

So I guess the moral of this little story is twofold.
…Even I have moments where motivation is hard to come by, and that’s when I dig really deep, focusing on just gettin’ ‘er done (doesn’t have to be pretty)
…Activity is an excellent “drug of choice” (to borrow Lisa’s term for it!), when done in good balance, as usual.

Now — go on. Your turn.
Get ‘er done!

“Seeing” 26.2

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Remember that “all up in my head” run the other day? Where I found myself rushing ahead to the 26.2 I’ll face on October 7? I think I figured out why the marathon looming has been freaking me out.

I can’t “see” myself running 26.2.
…yet.

Part of the reason I can’t “see” myself running 26.2 yet is because I have never faced down a full marathon before.
Duh.

But another reason?
…I’ve never even seen a real, live marathon before. Ever.

I live in the Boston area and have never seen a marathon before. Um hi, the greatest marathon in the world takes place here every single year and I have YET to get myself to the sidelines to cheer all the Boston Marathoners on.

Blasphemy, right??

Well, that’s all about to change. I finally planned ahead and asked for Marathon Monday off from work. It works out extremely well that that week is also school vacation week which means Scott can join me on the sidelines — only fitting since he has yet to stare down 26.2 either. We’re in this together — so we may as well experience our first marathon as spectators together too, right? Plus he’s too cute to leave at home. ;-)

Even better? I get to spend some quality time with this girl on Marathon Monday *and* the day prior (slumber party, anyone??), too! She is lucky enough to be volunteering on race day and since I live closer to the city than she does, we’ll be spending Marathon “Sunday” together leading into the big race on Monday. I sure hope Scott is ready to hang with two very chatty girls all evening on Sunday. <–this is your word of warning, babe ;-)

And the icing on the cake? We’re hosting a blogger brunch the day prior as well — to get to know our fellow Boston area bloggers (and a few FitFluentials!) a little bit better. May as well take full advantage of the fab slew of bloggers heading into the city for the race, right? So if you’re either a Boston blogger too and want to join us OR are a blogger visiting Boston for the marathon as a spectator or a racer, let me know if you wanna join the fun and I’ll send you all the details on this fun little bloggy brunch. I promise it’ll be a blast. :)

But anyway, back to the real point of this post — the whole marathon thing and my mind games issue. I think seeing a real marathon, and the Boston Marathon at that, will really help me to visualize myself toeing the starting line on October 7. Right now, it seems so surreal, so impossible, so crazy scary that I can’t even fathom it, let alone visualize it. I’m fully expecting to be bowled over by emotion while watching the Boston Marathon — ya’ll are a crazy inspiration group of people, this much I know already.

Now the big question — where’s the best spot to spectate on race day?? You’d think I’d know this being a Boston girl born and raised. But nope – fairly clueless on this one. If you’ve spectated before, can you clue me in over here please??

Intervals. FTW!

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Monday morning, this happened:

That would be me, covered in sweat, totally worn out but with such a look of glee in my eye, I just couldn’t help but post this pic to twitter right after I finished my interval rounds. <–what? I was proud of myself, ok? ;-)

Plus, it goes along nicely with what you might already be seeing a lot of on twitter and in bloggy land — for us FitFluential Ambassadors (a group I love more and more by the day!), we’ve gotten into the habit of not just talking about our workouts, but PROVING them out by tweeting and blogging about that hard work with picture proof. So if you see me talking up the whole #PROOF thing a lot more up in here, you know why. I love seeing everyone’s sweaty, post-workout glow, it’s so cool!!

But anyway, back to those intervals I mentioned. The reason I was so proud? Not only was I able to push faster during my favorite go-to mile-repeat style intervals, but I felt REALLY strong and happy throughout. <— Happy during intervals? Is she crazy?? (yes, yes I am)

The intervals in question – looked like this (you’ve seen these before):

Mile 0-.5: warm-up @6.8-7.0 mph
Mile .5-1.5: speed round@ 7.6 7.7 mph <–improvement!
Mile 1.5 – 1.6: recovery round @4mph
Mile 1.6 – 2.6: speed round @ 7.6 7.7 mph
Mile 2.6 -2.7: recovery round @4mph
Mile 2.7-3.7: speed round @7.6 7.7 mph
Mile 3.7-3.8: recovery round @4mph
Mile 3.8-4.8: speed round @7.6 7.7 mph
4.8-5.5: Recover!

Thank you happy and really well-rested legs for pushing me through some speedtastically fun intervals to kick off Monday morning in style. I guess the whole 9-miler that didn’t happen this weekend was what did it for me. Maybe that’s my body’s way of telling me that a little speed work in lieu of endurance work isn’t such a bad thing now and then, hmm?

Either way, I was really happy with this, especially the progress I’m seeing with my speed and my ability to push through the pain. I’m hoping this translates well on race day – which is almost a month away. Eeks. How did that happen??