Training August 25-31

Part of me worried I’d go into this week dragging my feet and dreading every last step to my 100 mile month. I made the decision to try and get in some longer runs early in the week so I could chill out and take it easy Friday/Saturday so I could rest up and mentally prepare myself for the start of another 100 miles month come Monday. As much as I anticipated the draggy-ness it actually didnt drag at all and I finished the week feeling actually pretty awesome (and accomplished) so that was a huge weight off my shoulders and made the decision to repeat the 100 miles in September a very very easy one. 

Monday August 25:

• 6 miles in the AM. Pretty draggy. I spent all of the previous day in cheap flip flops on concrete floors. not my smartest idea, but totally worth it for a trip to an indoor amusement park with the fam. I was very slow getting out the door, but still felt pretty good once I got moving. The only downside was a run in with a flock of deer in the dark fogginess. My worst nightmare.
• Back workout PM. Not bad. Not exciting. Just getting it done.

Tuesday August 26:

• 5 miles of negative splits. Even mile 2. Okay, mile 5 was only 2 seconds/mile faster than mile 4… but it was still faster. I felt pretty good here and was happy with it.
• Arms AND legs PM. Supersets and drops sets. Some leg press and extensions/hamstring curls. This was the beginning of me training legs for real again. I started out a bit light because I know how I tend to go a little overboard and if I can’t stand up how can I run?

Wednesday August 27:

• 6 morning miles. As per my DailyMile… Tired legs. Much slow 

Thursday August 28:

• 35 minutes of cross training in the morning. Bike/Stair sprints.  Still no desire to run on a treadmill. That’s totally okay.
• PM: Avoided running a mile for a Track Club event by writing down the finishers names. That was a close call.  

Friday August 29:

• 3 miles pre-work. It’s weird that 3 miles used to be my go to length and now it felt so short. It was absolutely FREEZING though (windchill was 6 degrees!!!) so my thought was quick 3-4 miles and get it over with. I took my old school winter short loop (aka a very public road that is plowed) and just ran. When I finished my arms and legs were beet red from the cold. Not impressed, nor ready for this!

mile 1: 9:30 pace

mile 2-3: 9:02 pace

• Post work shoulders. Very solid. All of this focus on my upper body while I’ve been chilling out on training legs so much seems to be paying off. In my eyes anyway and that’s kind of all that really matters right?

Saturday August 30:

• 4 miles. Sometimes the bare minimum is totally okay. I needed four miles to hit 100. So I did 4 miles. It was hot and I was way overdressed. I thought I was plodding along but actually ran miles 1 & 3 at my eventual half marathon goal pace. It’s funny how I had been feeling like i was getting slower and slower…. but then finished this month feeling so strong and like it’s finally starting to show that I’ve been running my life away.

Sunday August 31:

• Full rest day… I thought about the gym, hell, I even packed a bag when I headed out to do my running around errands and such… but alas, I chose full rest day. Unless you count the scrubbing of my floors on my hands and knees. Conclusion? There is no way to make 3000 year old hardwood floors look better.

Total weekly miles: 24

Total August miles: 100/100

I can’t believe I’m finally saying this, but I got my 100 mile month. It was a weird one.. .starting out so positive… then totally crashing and having a garbage week… then finishing so strong. Sure the fact I was rounding out my 100 miles probably helped this week. I feel like there is a whole blog post that needs to be written summing out this month and I’m sure it’s coming, but like I said to Jason at one point this week: maybe I’m finally starting to get this “running thing”.

Food wise, 100 % night and day from the beginning of the month. I feel awesome and so much better about myself without being a restrictive nut bag. It’s like I’m picking my battles, good on plan healthy meal… have some sorbet after dinner once a week… or like wednesday night, go out and have the fantastic delicious burger, but skip the icecream. Moderation. crazyyyyyyy idea.

So that’s that. The end of the week and the end of August. I don’t know about anyone else, but I’m ready for some slightly less humid (but not cold!!!) mornings and another solid month of running.