Week 3 - Training Recap

I realized this week that I'm not entirely comfortable with training. I haven't been at it for very long (I wouldn't consider what I did previous years to be true training), which adds to my uncomfortableness. In my mind, I feel a little more in shape than I was two years ago when I ran the Holy Half Marathon, so that leads me to believe a sub-1:50 half is possible. Unfortunately, I'm beginning to doubt that. Just six weeks remain in my training plan, which isn't enough time to make significant gains in training for what I'd like to accomplish (two of those weeks are cut back).

Remember the Holy Half Marathon? On a whim, I signed up for the 10k this Saturday. Racing the 10k supposedly will help determine what time to shoot for at the half. Unfortunately, I'm dreading the 10k. I haven't mentally been in a great place lately, and much of racing is keeping things together mentally. I'll see how it goes. I can't seem to get excited about any of these races lately.

Monday -
6.4 miles - My easy pace has seemed to improve a little lately, so I ran this one at an 8:55 average pace. I just felt like it, really.

Wednesday -
5.05 miles - This was the most encouraging tempo of the cycle. I managed to keep a 7:40 average pace for the three tempo miles, though that's all I think I can do at that pace for now.

Thursday -
7.05 miles - If you live in the Midwest, you are more than aware of the recent heat streak we're having. While I normally run later in the afternoon, I've been running earlier in the morning to avoid the heat. Most people don't have problems running in the heat - I'm not trying to be special, but I can't seem to manage it. My heart rate goes up, my breathing gets shallow, and I really just can't keep running. Add in a blazing sun and all my energy gets zapped. I was keeping a 9:10 pace for the first four miles, then I had to start adding run-walk intervals to finish. The good that came from this is that the running intervals were still at a 9-ish pace, but at that point it felt more like a sprint than a slow pace.

I suck.

Saturday -
11.11 miles - Saturday long run time. My schedule needed adjustment due to the race next week, so I ran 11 miles this week. It was better than I expected. Although I didn't eat as much prior to the run as I'd like, I got out early to avoid the heat and had a solid run. My brother biked alongside me to hand me water, and I took a GU at mile 7. I started fading during the last two miles, but kept the sub-9 pace I had been running since mile 7. The fatigue was due to not fueling enough prior to the run, so I'm not concerned about that at all. I felt fine the rest of the day and have no soreness today.

Total - 29

I seem to be running more than I had planned. Most of my weeks were supposed to be in the mid-twenties, but they're creeping up to the thirties. It's probably for the best that I get a little more mileage in.

Even if I can't run a sub 1:50, I can at least try to quit doubting myself in general. I always assume something is going to go wrong (not just running related), or that I'm misjudging my ability to succeed, both of which adds to doubting myself. Even with the few good long runs I've completed, I still go out every weekend waiting to blow up during the run. It's just not a healthy way to think. Hopefully I can work on it a little this week, but I'm not entirely sure how to go about it.

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