First of all, can I just say that I’m glad I don’t always have to wake up at 5 AM to do a long run on a Saturday morning? That was a bit rough. But it did mean that I was done with my running before 10 AM, so of course it’s not all bad.
I’m still trying to figure out the best way to do my training posts. There’s a fine line between too little information and too much, and I’ve been walking it like I’ve had a bit too much to drink, so… yeah.
As my chart shows, this week it was all about building mileage. Rather than a tempo run on Wednesday, the plan called for 7-miles easy. Compared to Tuesday, it was of course not that much. Following Tuesday, however, it felt like a never ending slog. I struggled through the last miles and was glad when I could rest on Thursday. This week, there were no urges on Thursday to go for a run. If anything, I was dreading having to go out for 19 on Saturday. But I did it! And maybe taking the band-aid off while still half asleep made it that much easier to put the long run I was dreading behind me. It was pretty difficult and I was ready to stop after mile 10. But I also guess that if I didn’t feel that way at the end of a 3 week build cycle, I wouldn’t be doing the training properly!
All told, I pulled off 46 miles this week without injury, even if I’ve got some niggles and may have overstretched my left hamstring a tiny bit. Hopefully today’s rest and stretching/foam-rolling routine will put that right.
And for some bonus details (not sure if these are interesting for you or not), here were my intervals on Monday:
| Distance | Duration | Pace | Notes | |
| 1 | 0.25 mi | 1:35 | 6:20 | |
| 2 | 0.25 mi | 1:30 | 6:00 | at 1 incline |
| 3 | 0.25 mi | 1:33 | 6:12 | at 1 incline |
| 4 | 0.25 mi | 1:32 | 6:08 | |
| 5 | 0.25 mi | 1:31 | 6:04 | at 1 incline |
| 6 | 0.25 mi | 1:31 | 6:04 | at 1 incline |
| 7 | 0.25 mi | 1:30 | 6:00 | |
| 8 | 0.25 mi | 1:32 | 6:08 | at 1 incline |
| 9 | 0.25 mi | 1:31 | 6:04 | at 1 incline |
| 10 | 0.25 mi | 1:28 | 5:52 | last “official” interval with the 1:30 jog recoveries |
| 11 | 0.25 mi | 1:22 | 5:28 | after a quarter- mile jog |
Granted, these were on the treadmill, but I’m happy with the way the interval session went. Part of the reason I went for one extra mile on Tuesday was riding off the success of the intervals. The other reasons I went the extra mile on Tuesday were that the plan had originally called for 10 (I had changed the plan to 9 in a moment of weakness), and I was boosted by my teammates in SquadRunner. It was probably good I stuck to the Runner’s World plan, because the idea is that I do challenge myself. I’m trying to listen to my body though, to make sure I’m challenging myself within reason. The last thing I want is to get injured again.
Looking ahead, I have a “fast” 15-miler to complete on the 24th, but this week is also a drop-down in distance, so I hope I’ll see some benefits of training so far! I also got new shoes (Brooks gel-Glycerin), so I’m looking forward to the “new shoe” feeling and reporting.
That’s it as far as I’m concerned. But I hope your winter (or summer, if you’re down under) running is also going well!
Cheers, Dorothea
wanderwolf Running 
19 miles for week 7 seems an awful long way to me, but I guess you weren’t starting from scratch. Anyway, well done – mainly for getting out of bed at that time in the morning!
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hmm. I think you’re right. It does seem like a lot for week 7, but considering that to being training I had to have been running 30 mile weeks and a long run of 1:30, I think it’s okay. At any rate, it doesn’t seem to be affecting me too much! And ha ha, yes! I have so much respect for people who do this EVERY DAY! Or even just multiple times a week!
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I think you can over-do it (and running 7 days a week is overdoing it for sure). But the fact that you feel ok is good, very good, which can only bode well for the race itself. I don’t know what you have planned for the next few weeks, but there are those who say you shouldn’t go further than 18 or 19. However, I’m not one of those, if you really want to do a fast time/PR/PB. Anyway, good luck with your training. The main thing is to avoid injury.
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agree! Trying very hard to avoid injury! And I definitely don’t intend to run 7 days a week, even if a few in my circle seem to have no problem with it. I also do plan to go 21 miles max, and 19-20 a few times, because I’m shooting for a PR and that’s probably going to help. But I’m also very careful. Given that I feel good today after the 19 miler, I also think things are good!
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That sounds very positive to me. :-) (Your circle of friends are mad btw).
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great week of training Dorothea – miles and pace is really building and while we keep up with you these days on the slack channel, it’s still fun to see your charts and graphs…happy running!
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Thanks, James! Yeah… you get the full spectrum now, short of all my private notes about niggles and energy and gastrointestinal stuff ;-)
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Nice mileage!! Our plans are clearly different as we were both in week 7 but my long run was only supposed to be 15. Which I am swapping with my down week this week. :)
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It is interesting to see how plans differ. They vary based on the runner’s starting fitness and their goal. It makes me nervous when I see a plan going for 20 miles (its was originally 20, I dropped down to 19 for the mental benefit of “it’s not 20 yet!) before the halfway point. But when I think I’ve been building for weeks before hand, I’m a little more confident about it all. The real test, of course, is making it safely through this week and whether I’m improving or the effort is getting harder. My RHR is higher, so it is something I want to keep an eye on.
Are you also doing a 16 week plan?
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17 weeks. I had a very indulgent December so I decided an extra week wouldn’t be a bad idea.😀
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Great week! I like doing some interval training on the treadmill. When I can’t get out, I actually think it is a great way to keep the pace right where you need it to be. You are doing a fantastic job!
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Thank you!! And I agree about holding the pace! I just feel sometimes that when I have a choice between outdoor and indoor and chose indoor, I usually regret it.
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