Checking In

It appears I haven’t been too consistent through the fall with my blogging. It’s unfortunate as definitely enjoy it. It’s just really nice to take a couple of minutes and share some thoughts on the day, the run and on life in general. My favourite blogs are the ones that add just a bit every day. That can be my New Year’s resolution.

This weekend was a tough weekend for workouts, Saturday in particular.

Saturday’s workout:
- Warmup – 20 minutes
- 3x6 minutes 7% incline and high zone 1 or zone 2 for the speed. 5 Minutes recovery between sets.
- New strength and conditioning workout designed to make me stronger (yes I am week). This new workout is very short but very intense. In total, I do only one set but each item is 5-8 repetitions max. If I can do more than 8-10 then I need more weight.
- Cool-down – 30 minutes zone 1

I felt better doing the 7% incline work this week. In the past weeks I was still trying to see if I could do the workout on 7.5% or 8% incline. It generally left me struggling and somewhat mentally deflated. So this week I left the incline at 7 and only worried about the speed.
This is still a tough workout but today it felt manageable.

The new strength and conditioning was tough, no other way to describe it. On the up side is it doesn’t take long. I could really feel the effects from this workout on Sunday. I’m going to need to add more stretching / yoga after these workouts. Otherwise it will have a definite effect on Sunday’s long run.

Sunday’s workout:
2 hour long run

I did two things different in this run. First, I really worked the hills in the 2nd half. And second, I went with the guys for the last three k which was done at quite a good strong clip. Part of the motivation was to see how I felt when I wasn’t 100% relaxed and fresh coming into the run. It was more about mental toughness then the actual effort.

The overall pace was still squarely in zone 1 where I wanted it to be. I have to admit that aerobically I felt pretty good in this zone yesterday. The legs and the rest of my muscles still had the residual effects of Saturday’s workout as mentioned but the heart was not working too hard.

Today I still have some of those residual effects from the weekend. In fact I moved my planned morning run to the afternoon to get some more fuel and give my body and bit more time to recover. Today will be done at very relaxed recovery pace for a total of 75 minutes.

This morning I also gave myself an extra hour to sleep-in to help with the recovery.

On another note I’m signed up for the Richmond road 10k and the Hypothermic ½ marathon in January. Both of these events should be a good test of where things are at. I’m planning to do these events and couple in March (10k and 30k) for preparation for the spring marathon. This a balance between trying to do some races to be ready to race physically and mentally in May and doing all the training that I need for the marathon in May. I’m trying to not do as many as I have in the past.

I'd rather be running ...

1st week of winter, 1st cold. This is definitely a week of firsts. Did I mention that I hate being sick. :)

Needless to say I’ve been off running the last two days. Trying to nip this in the bud quickly.
At the least the cold has killed my appetite. The weight is back down over the last couple of days. The inactivity is not great but what you can you do.

My rest has been good the last two days. I’m really focusing on that for this period. At least to be a lot more consistent.

Tonight I’ll run 60 minutes easy just to make sure things are okay.

Morning weight:- 185.6 lbs.
Sleep:- 7 hours but good quality.

Winter is here

1st winter run, 1st fall
2nd winter run, upright, warm[read many layers] and smiling.

Winter is in with a bang. It always seems to sneak up on me. Probably because we had such a nice fall albeit very wet. The truth of the matter is that I need to suck it up and just enjoy the winter. Easier said than done for the first few weeks.

Last year I found it a lot more tolerable to try and run in the morning a couple of days a week. Otherwise, you end up running in the dark all the time. This year I’ll also have the option of using the treadmill when the weather is too much.

Signed up for a ½ marathon here in Ottawa in January. The race has a great name, Hypothermic ½. This race has a limited enrolment hence had to get signed up. Jo-Anne and I were already too late to sign up for a New Year’s Eve run. This has to be the earliest it’s sold out yet. Good for the race organizers, bad for us. I’ve also liked doing the 5k on New Year’s Eve. It’s a fantastic way to kick off the New Year.

Tonight I ran with Jo-Anne on her birthday. If that’s not dedication I don’t know what is. This was her first winter run which is always tough. She’s not quite at the point in her running where she can just enjoy the run. That will come and maybe even in during a winter run.

Yesterday did the long run at the Running Room with the guys. The first part of the run through the experimental farm was treacherous. The freezing rain from Friday hadn’t been dealt with and had basically become just pure ice. Had a minor slip at the edge of the farm. Mostly just my ego bruised.

Tomorrow night I’m off to Peak for weights and a 60 minute run.

Weight is up from last week. Bad sleep for a couple of days combined with several meals out contributed to this no doubt. I’ve resolved to not have dessert in restaurants now until I get the remaining weight off (10 lbs.).

Morning weight 188.8. Last night’s sleep good but only 6.5 hrs total.