I have a “training plan” again. It’s this cute little Word document full of tables and formatting and numbers. The goal of this little technical writing exercise is to help me preserve fitness throughout the summer months, with a 15k or possibly a half marathon to come with cooler temperatures in the fall.
It’s my same basic training schedule — 5 days of running per week, 1 day that I allot to yoga (but actually do nothing), and 1 day of complete rest. I’ve learned that trying for anything more only leads to injuries and burnout. In a spirit of optimism, I’ve also included a “speed work day,” but much like my fictional cross training day, this tends to get ignored more often than not. Ah, well. Such are the luxuries of being an old lady, middle-of-the-pack runner.
So…traditional goals, traditional plan, and a traditional complete divergence from said plan in the VERY FIRST WEEK OF TRAINING. Oh, Megan. So predictable.
Training
April 30 – May 6
Monday – 0 …This was an intentional rest day. This was also the day where I helped my friend D with her “30 things to do before she turns 30″ list by going with her to a new restaurant. I only say that to explain the next couple of days…
Tuesday – 0 …LilRunr woke up screaming at 11:00pm on Monday. After settling him down and getting him back to “night night,” I realized that my stomach, which had felt slightly over-full and uneasy when I’d gone to bed, was preparing to stage a revolt 2 hours later. Oh. My. Goodness. Gracious. Perhaps this little food borne illness is owing to the fact that I ordered chicken at a sushi restaurant, but as I told D…I REGRET NOTHING. An evening out? Uninterrupted conversation? Catching up with a friend? Yes, please! Next time, I’ll just try to skip spending the rest of the night alternately crouched in front of the toilet or whining on Twitter.
Wednesday – 0 …Half of me wanted to run, and the other half figured that dropping 3 pounds in a day warranted at least two days of recovery. There’s a very complicated formula involved when it comes to being lazy.
Thursday – 0 …Now I’m just stuck in lazy mode. Poop.
Friday – 2 miles (8:45/mile) …Scott and I took the day off (we call them “day dates.” We’ll go out to lunch, shopping, perhaps a movie…all part of maintaining sanity and having some “together time” without having to pay for a babysitter. It may seem like a silly way to spend a vacation day, but it works for us. They are extremely rare, are these “day dates.”) and started our day with a two-mile run together. It felt terrible, but the streak of 0′s is finally broken.
Saturday – 2 miles (8:38/mile) …I’ve got about half a lung at this point, courtesy of a terrible hacking cough that is PROBABLY caused by allergies (but I keep imagining consumption, because I’ve been reading too much 19th century literature lately) and the ultra high humidity. It was NOT a fun run, but I did it, dang it. I did it.
Sunday – 4 miles (8:37/mile) …Don’t listen to Runmeter. I forgot to hit “stop” for a couple of minutes after I was actually done running, and that cranked the average up to 9:15 or so. It lies! Running over 2 miles felt like a breakthrough day. I think next week will be better.
TOTAL: 8 miles
