Half-Marathon Training, Week 8

Tuesday: 2.06 miles at Orangetheory. I realized it’s going to be unlikely that I’ll make it to 26.2 miles this month at OT unless I go every single day I’m not at group half-marathon training or in Louisville. That just doesn’t seem realistic. It’s all for charity though, so it’s OK.

Floor workout was:

•  Lunges into high knees with hands pulling on the TRX straps (Reps: 6/8/6/8 on each side)
•  Burpees
• Triple squats to triple pushups
• Squat jacks
• And other stuff I can’t remember.

Wednesday: 2.5 miles at the April Adventure Run. I didn’t win any prizes but I had a good time.

Thursday: 2.41 miles at Orangetheory. I quickly realized I should have taken a rest day, so my push paces and all-out paces weren’t impressive to me. I ran about a 9:00 minute/mile all-out, which is slower than I usually go. We did four rows: 500 meters, 400 meters, 300 meters and one minute all-out row (300 meters).

Floor workout was:

• Low rows with the TRX straps (12 reps, three sets)
• Tricep pushups with hand release (12 reps, three sets)
• Calf raises (24 reps, two sets)
• Situps to stand on Bosu ball
• Dumbbell chest press on the Bosu ball
• Another exercise I don’t know what to call. It was like doing a side angle pose with weights. (12 reps on each side, three sets)

Friday: Rest day. 

Saturday: 10 miles on a gorgeous day in Chicago.

Sunday: 30 minutes of yoga at home.

Week’s mileage: 16.97
Yoga Minutes: 60
OTF Marathon: 7.52

Reflections

This week was a little different in that I took three rest days (I consider yoga at home to be a rest day as well). I usually go to Orangetheory on Sundays, but I wanted to take a day off after running my 10-miler. I was reminded how important rest days are after going to a class on a day I should have had off. My muscles felt exhausted and I needed to listen to my body. Speaking of my body, this week I finally saw a difference in areas I’ve been hoping to improve. That was thanks to eating much less unprocessed and unhealthy foods (with the exception of two doughnuts and some chips). While I did give in to temptation a couple times, I mostly stuck to the healthier options in our kitchen. Thanks to my farm-box subscription I had sweet potatoes; veggies to mix with black beans and egg whites and top with salsa; and plenty of salads. I also made a zucchini, corn and pepper soup.

Next week will be a test because I will be in Louisville for the weekend with a friend. I am going to try to fit a 6-miler in at some point Friday-Sunday and I plan to workout Monday-Thursday. Wish me luck!

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Previous recaps:

• Week 7
• Week 6
• Week 5
• Week 4
• Week 3
• Week 2
• Week 1
• What’s in my Stride Box?