6/23 - 6/29

Mon: 6-miles
Tues: 1-mile (5:55)
Wed: 4-miles, spin class
Thurs: Tempo Umstead Hills
Fri: 5.5-miles
Sat: 10-miles; swim: 5 sets 100yd swim / 100yd pull
Sun: brick- 22.5-mile (bike), 5-mile (run)
Total: 43.5 miles

So, I went with the Glide Boost's as my training shoe for the next go around after consulting with my friends at Raleigh Running Outfitters. I wore them on Monday's run. They felt awesome and made me run super fast. Or maybe it was the fact that it was like 10 degrees cooler and less humid than last week. But, lets say it was the shoes.

Tuesday's timed mile at the track went pretty well. If I'm remembering correctly, my splits were 1:25, 2:52, 4:22, and I finished up in 5:55. Now, I obviously can't focus enough to read the tenths-of-a-second, but it's good enough to show me that I need to work on at least the last 600m. My ultimate goal is a 5:40. I start every timed mile with the intention of doing that, and then see how long I can hold on for. Whether or not that is the best strategy, I know that I am not going to make up time on the second half of a mile. So, I might as well go out running what I want to. Anyways, Deb and Allison passed me around 1000m, so I'm guessing that's where I started to slow up because they were running pretty consistently. The last 400m was definitely a struggle, which is fairly obvious from the splits. Anyways, I was happy to see that I was sub-6 this time at least! My breathing wasn't too bad either, but my hamstrings are definitely tight.  

I "decided" not to wear my watch on Wednesday morning. I had been toying with the idea because I sometimes get overly frustrated with my pace on recovery runs even though it shouldn't matter. Anyways, I had limited time to run because I was going into the Durham office for work and couldn't put my hands on my watch right away. Or my MP3 player. So, I went "old school". It wasn't too bad. I missed my MP3 player more than my watch, although I kept looking at my wrist at every "mile mark". Spin class that night was fun.

Brian, Matt, and I ran "tempo hills" on Thursday. Basically, we took it easy on the downhills and worked the uphills, which included Corkscrew, whatever the hill out of Umstead is called, and Ranger Hill. Sean had put 40min tempo on the schedule. In the summer, I struggle with doing tempo runs in blocks like that and really fade after 2 miles. I know I need to, but breaking it into smaller chunks of "effort" keeps me better focused in the heat and humidity. Anyways, the horsefiles were also pretty annoying, and we narrowly missed a copperhead. The workout went ok. I never feel like I'm pushing it hard enough unless I'm at the track, but I definitely was working all the same. About halfway up Ranger Hill, my hamstrings were really beginning to tighten up (the loose gravel was making footing difficult), so I stopped and stretched. I figured keeping it at a good effort was better than slowing down to a shuffle, even if it meant stopping.

I ran with Ali Friday morning. That was good. I need to get in the habit of morning runs again.

Saturday's run was also good. I wore my Glide Boosts again... they feel bouncy. I swam in the afternoon since I only ran 10-miles. The swim went well. I can't flip-turn in the Fitness Connection pool though because its super shallow on one end. I guess I could flip-turn at the other, but I don't.

I've done a brick workout two weekends in a row now. I might seriously consider an Olympic distance tri in the fall. Anyways, the bike went ok. Sean made me take my hands off the handlebar and touch my helmet. Next step, water bottle. Next next step, actually drink water from it. Anyways, the run was pretty miserable. I was probably a bit dehydrated and my hamstring was bugging me on the uphills. The last mile or so wasn't bad.

So, in conclusion, this whole non-marathon training isn't so bad. I'm actually starting to see some of my runs get faster. That's encouraging.