Another new PDR notification from RunKeeper, this time for nine miles!
Coming off of the high of my week 10 training, week 11 proved to be extremely trying. I credit this struggle entirely to running the Veteran’s Day 5K (recap still to come) the day after pushing myself to a new PDR (personal distance record). My first run after my back to back running days was on Tuesday, and I had to walk a significant amount more than I usually do during my weekday runs. On Thursday, I opted to reduce the distance of my run, partly in order to give myself a bit more rest before my long run over the weekend.
Boy am I glad I decided to do that. After reviewing my training plan and looking ahead at my calendar, I realized that I needed to forge forward with my mileage in order to accommodate our very full calendar for the rest of 2013. Its often difficult to balance a running calendar with a “real life” calendar, and although my body is still sore from setting two PDRs in back-to-back weekends, I know that my sanity will thank me for it during the busy holiday season.
On Saturday, I set another new PDR – this time nine miles! Despite the temperature being on our side this weekend (in the 50s over the weekend and a high of 69 today, in mid-November I’ll take it!), the clouds looked as though it could have stormed at any moment on Saturday. So Preston and I erred on the side of caution and completed our long run at the gym. Definitely not ideal, but it allowed us to run side by side, as Preston ran 15 miles for his Dopey Challenge training. Although the treadmill is never ideal for long runs, I don’t know that I could have finished my nine miles without his constant support during Saturday’s run. A couple of miles into my run, my left hamstring flared up, but it was his constant reminders to focus on the goal and him telling me how proud he was of me that gave me the extra push I needed to complete my run.
Because of my hamstring pain, I will definitely be focusing more on listening to my body in the coming week. Now that I’m 53 days out from the big race, I cannot afford to injure myself. A pulled hamstring is the last thing I need right now! And because of that, I will definitely be backing off of the running and focusing more on rest, stretching, and foam rolling in the coming week.
Mon 11/11- Rest day
Tues 11/12 – 3.41 mile treadmill run, back, arms
Wed 11/13 – Rest day
Thurs 11/14 – 2.70 mile treadmill run, kettlebell squat swings, abs
Fri 11/15 – Rest day
Sat 11/16 – 9.00 mile treadmill run, 2.25 mile cool down walk, foam rolling
Sun 11/17 – Rest day
Total Weekly Mileage – 17.36 miles (1.06 miles more than week 10)
Total Half Marathon Training Mileage – 162.07 miles
QOTD: How do you adjust your training in order to balance your “real life” and your “training life”?
Balancing training and having a life can definitely be tricky. I’ve been trying to get up a little earlier on the weekends to get my runs done so I won’t be tempted to skip out later on. This time around I also tried to schedule around some of the weeks I already knew I had stuff going on so I wouldn’t get so stressed out. It’s all worth it in the end, right?! Good luck with your race!! 🙂
I also tried to schedule long training runs around other things on the calendar, but of course, things always come up. It seems like more comes up at this time of year as compared to the rest of the year!
Great job — I can never run more than 4 or 5 on a treadmill, so I’m very impressed 🙂
Thanks Courtney! I’ll be honest, it wasn’t easy to stay focused, and if the weather continues to force me onto the treadmill for my long runs I’ll probably have to start loading TV shows or movies onto the iPad.
Pingback: Walt Disney World Half Marathon Training Log – Week 12 | From Dancing to Running
Pingback: Walt Disney World Half Marathon Training Log – Week 13 | From Dancing to Running