Step out of the comfort zone

I am sure most of you have heard a person use the saying “I am in my comfort zone.” What exactly is this so called “comfort zone?” The comfort zone is a logical area that makes a person feel safe. Going out of the comfort zone is uncomfortable for many people and dreadful for others. Many people fear change, and just the thought of change sends them into a panic. People who fear change prefer to stay in their comfort zone because of not being able to withstand the uncertainty of doing something that they are not used to. Change does not always have to be scary and it most certainly does not have to be a bad thing.

 Recently I have started to notice that I am hitting a plateau in my training. It seems like no matter what I do or how hard I train I am not making any gains. I started to feel frustrated and I kept searching for an answer as to why this was happening, then I ran the BattleFrog obstacle race and something happened. First I noticed that during the race when most people had to walk I was able to run still. Even with the monster hills and the rough terrain I was able to control my breathing and run a nice pace. I give all the credit to marathon training, the long runs, the hill workouts, and the speed workouts all contributed to me having fresh legs and being able to control my breathing. I also noticed that I need to take strength training more serious. Let’s be honest here, I don’t have the body of some of these athletes with the 6 pack and the ripped muscles. I have your average build with a 6 pack of beer in the stomach. If I want to really do well in the little obstacle races I do, I need to build my arms and back more and drop a few lbs. Road running is my main priority and will continue to be, and less weight to carry and having a stronger frame will also help on the road. Finally what I really noticed and made me really realize that I need to change up my training came on Monday. I headed out for a short 4 mile run since my body was still bruised and sore from the weekend. As I started to run I noticed that my legs were feeling great. It was like the lower part of my body had a mind of its own and wanted to keep going, while the upper part was sore and beat down. I started to think about the BattleFrog and I had an epiphany.

 The hard and demanding course may have beat the shit out of me, but it made my legs so strong. I don’t run trails often but now I am thinking I need to dedicate one day of trail running into my cycle. If I can run some trails that are very hilly and make me work the way I had too over the weekend, I feel that my legs will get a lot stronger and be able to hold up in the later parts of the half marathon in October.

As much as I wanted to choose a plan and stick with it like I did for my spring half, I think by changing up this cycle it will benefit me, and it will break the training plateau that I have hit. So here is what the new plan looks like.


MONDAY’S: 4-5 mile recovery run. Run it at medium pace where I am not pushing myself but don’t go as slow as I would for a long run.
TUESDAY’S:SPEED WORKOUT: hit the track and do my normal speed work out I would do on the track.
WEDNESDAY: 3 Mile run on treadmill at gym, followed by lifting
THURSDAY: Trail day- 4-5 miles of trail running
FRIDAY: Cross train and lift at gym
SATURDAY: rest
SUNDAY: LONG RUN

This is the plan I will be using from here on out until Race day Oct. 17th. I will be updating my progress every Sunday so you will be able to see if it is working for me or if I should go back to using the Hal Higdon method.

"We all need change"-2Pac

It's about that time.....

I hope you all had a great 4th of July weekend, I know I did. What a weekend it was between the cookouts and the woman's world cup.  How about those USA ladies? Talk about a good old fashion ass kicking.

 



Instead of me telling you about my workouts or lack of for last week, I have decided this week I am going to tell you about my plan for my up coming training session. Today marked day 1 of fall marathon training. I am still undecided between 2 half marathons but I figured I might as well get ready. I still plan on going for a PR and I plan on using what I learned in the Pittsburgh Half Marathon to help me. One thing a lot of us, myself included took for granted was the weather. We trained in the cold and never really had a humid day, then on race day we got hit with a hot, humid day. This training cycle I still plan on using a modified version of the Hal Higdon method but I am going to change up the mileage and make the speed days more intense. Since the race will be in the fall I plan on training in both hot and cold temperatures. I will run on a treadmill in the AC on blast to simulate the cold and I will run outside in the normal heat. 

Today I ran a 5K just to see what a good training time to go off would be. I ran a comfortable pace of 8:25 and that is the time I plan on using for my easy pace. Long runs will be done at no more than a 9 minute pace and speed workouts will be in the low 7's.  What is the old saying? It's not how many times you get knocked down, it's how many times you can keep getting back up.  Well I have been down and at times I thought I was out, but I always found a way to get up and move forward. This is my time now. I finally am back to full health. I finally am moved into my house, and I finally have my confidence back. Now it is time to put everything I have learned over the years and really give it my all. 

 

 

How was your 4th of July Weekend? Did you run a race?

When do you start training for a fall race?



 

5 Week Countdown Begins

We can now count the weeks until the PGH Marathon with one hand. Time has just flown by, and if you aren't ready by now, you may want to get your ass in gear. Most people only have a few weeks left until taper time. My taper won't be a major one, but it will give my body enough time to recover for race day. We can talk about that later though. This week I had a race on the schedule so it wasn't about the miles this week and more about preparing.

MONDAY: In the last few weeks I have been breaking my schedule and doing 4 miles instead of the 3. This week I decided to go back and try the 3 again, but do the run a little different. I started out by running an easy pace to get warmed up. My second mile was all up hill and I pulled back a lot and took it very slow. The final mile was a speed mile and I really kicked it into high gear. It was nice to be able to hit hills and speed in a workout.

TUESDAY: Rest Day

WEDNESDAY: Speed Day- Now that I have a clear track to run on these days have become my favorite. I know most people don't like speed workouts, but not me I feel at home on the track. It makes me think of where I got started. The workout called for 3X1600 at race pace.
My splits were 7:03 first one is always the slowest because It takes me at least one to get going.
Mile 2: 6:49
Mile 3: 6:33 I felt really good, but I kept noticing my form was off, I will be getting this in order over the next few weeks.

THURSDAY: cross train:  mostly stretched and foam rolled, I did throw in some ab workouts and even did a few push ups.

FRIDAY: rest day before race day

SATURDAY: RACE DAY- Friday night I had a gout attack. If you don't know what this is all I can say is pain. I woke up Saturday with a swollen ankle, and I wasn't sure if I would even be able to run. I was scheduled to run the 8.1 mile race at "Just a Short Race" (Review to come Thursday) I tried a warm up run and knew it wasn't going to happen. I decided to drop down and do the 5K. I figured since I paid I would just jog it out.  I ended up running 8:30 splits and still managed to place second in my age group. I am happy because I didn't even break a sweat. I can really tell I am ahead of where I was a year ago.

SUNDAY:  I headed out to North Park to run with Amanda. She was planning on doing 20 miles and I figured I could tag along for a few. I ended up running 12 miles with her.  We ran a nice easy pace and for me it was about getting the miles in rather than the time. It was a really good run and the weather started freezing but quickly warmed up.

How did your week go?
Do you like Speed Workouts?

Until next time stay safe on the roads

6 weeks till PGH Marathon

"I run because long after my footprints fade away, maybe I will have inspired a few to reject the easy path, hit the trails, put one foot in front of the other, and come to the same conclusion I did: I run because it always takes me to where I want to go"      Dean Karnazes

I have to say for once I can say I had a really good week. I mixed up my training a bit, got to run with some new people, and was able to do a really good long run.

MONDAY: I met a few of the SCRR Members in Frick Park and did some trail running. I haven't been able to do much trail running this season, so it was a nice change of pace. My plan only called for a 3 mile run, but we ended up doing 4. It felt really good on the legs and I plan on doing a few more trail runs before race day. After the run we met a few more people at D's six pack for some food and beers.

TUESDAY: I used this day as my rest day and just did some light stretching. I have been using a new stretcher from Medi-Dyne (review to come Thursday) and I used this to stretch out my lower legs.

WEDNESDAY: Speed Work: My plan called for 4 X 800's. I decided to do 3. My splits were
3:23
3:19
3:12 I then did 3 400's
1:20
1:24
1:26 followed by a mile run that I call the gauntlet. It is a course I designed that is mostly hill, some road some trails. I designed it to beat the shit out of me. I didn't time it, but I felt really good running it.

THURSDAY: 4 miles at 9:05 pace.

FRIDAY: 6 miles at 7:00 pace. I wanted to see where I stand on a 10K. I am pleased with my performance, but I know there is much work that needs done in the weeks to come to be able to hold it for 13.1 miles.

SATURDAY: I had to be at SCRR run on the Montour Trail. Once again Sara and I were playing the nasty shoe police. 2 more people were able to get $150 giftcards to buy new shoes. Since I was there I decided to run 4 miles with my friend Abby on the trail at a 9:30 pace.

SUNDAY: Long Slow Run: Instead of heading to North Park I decided to run by myself and do a course from Sq. Hill through Oakland, Shadyside and Frick Park. I did 90 minutes and finished with just under 11 miles. My legs were sore at points in the run, but for the most part I felt good. Good thing was my BlisterShield continues to work and my pace was pretty good for a slow run.  I am going to be taking my dog for a 2 mile walk also later. I need to start breaking in my shoes for the marathon so this should be a good start.

How was your week?
Have you ever made a course just to beat yourself down?

Until next time be safe on the roads.

Less than 50 days to PGH Marathon

Happy St. Patrick's Day Week!!!!!  I am sure a lot you celebrated on Saturday like myself, but not before getting my run in. So this week I was back to my normal schedule at work. I decided this week was going to be the first week I change up my training plan and fit it a little better to myself.

MONDAY: The normal training plan called for a 3 mile at an easy pace. I decided I would do 4 miles instead.  Even though doing the 3 miles is helping me get faster, I feel like doing 4 will not only get me faster but it will add a bit more stamina. I ended the run with a 8:54 pace and felt really good. At point I honestly felt like I was going so slow and looked down to see my mile split was a 9:05.

TUESDAY: I had to take this day as my rest day since I had some running around that needed to get done.

WEDNESDAY: Since I missed Tuesday I decided to move everything back one day. So today was my speed workout day. I was so happy when I arrived at my local track and saw that the track had no snow on it. I did 8 400 meter repeats with a 200 meter walk after each one. 
splits:  1:32
            1:28
            1:25
            1:27
            1:30
            1:27
            1:29
            1:05  as you can see on my last one I try and see what I have left in the tank and basically sprint.     I was surprised to see how good I felt for the most part. My legs really didn't feel fatigued and I was able to control my breathing for the whole run.

THURSDAY:  Once again I chose to do 4 miles instead of 3. I ended the run with a pace of 9:04. This course was a bit hard and had a lot of hills so I am really pleased to see how I did for an easy run.

FRIDAY: Instead of doing a tempo run I decided to use this day as a whole day to strength train. I did a whole body workout. I know the normal schedule calls for strength on Monday and Wednesday, but I sometimes forget to do after the run or I just do the bare minimum. Adding in one whole day is great for the core.

SATURDAY: I had to be down at the SCRR training run for DICK'S Sporting Goods. It was a benefit to 2 runners who had shoes that weren't up to par.  Our rolls for this weekend were the "Nasty Shoe Police" we gave one lady and one gentleman a gift card for $150 to buy a new pair of shoes. We may be around again for one of their runs again soon. Since I was there and I am a member of the SCRR I decided to go for a short 4 mile run. I ran with the 9:30 pace group since it was raining, and I just wanted to do an easy run.  After getting my run in, I did take in some St. Patty's Day shenanigans. A few friends and I ended up going to a few bars and throwing back a few green beers.

SUNDAY: Today I headed out to North Park with my friend Kari. Kari was having some knee issues and wasn't sure if she would be able to even run at all today. I told her I would run right next to her and let her set the pace and see how it feels. We ended up doing the "Horseshoe" and it was just over 7 miles. Our pace was nothing to brag about but, Kari was able to run the whole way and after the run decided to sign up for the Half Marathon. My training run called for a 90 minute run. We ended up finishing just a few minutes short of that. Next time we venture to the park together we will run at our speed. Today I was more concerned about a friend being safe and not hurting herself any worst.

 

 

How did your week go?  Did you do anything over the weekend for St. Patty's Day or will you do anything on the official day, Tuesday?

 

 

Until next time be safe and have good runs!!!!

8 Weeks Until PGH Marathon

Another week in the books and another week closer to race day. This week we were hit with a major storm and finished the week off with sunny skies. Mother nature is confused to say the least. Overall I didn't have a bad week even though I had to miss more days than I would of liked. I however made up for it in other ways.

MONDAY: This week I was filling in for my manager at work and needed to stay a few hours longer than I normally would.  By the time I got home from work and ate dinner it was time for me to go and take my taxes to get done.  I still managed to get in a short ab workout, but it wasn't anything to write home about.

TUESDAY:  It was raining pretty good when I left work. I kept debating with myself on whether I should go to the gym and use the treadmill for my hill workout or should I just face the cold rainy weather. I decided to brave the elements and run outside. The beauty about where I live is there is a huge hill no farther than 50 feet from my front door. The hill is a little longer than 200 meters and is way steeper than what my training plan called for. I figured what the hell, no pain no gain.  I ended up doing 8 hill workouts. It beat me down, but I was so happy that I chose to run outside.

WEDNESDAY:  Just when I thought the snow was done for the year we were about to get blasted with one of the worst yet. The news wasn't sure what we were supposed to get. Some stations were calling for 1-3 inches while some were saying 3-6. It was already starting to get bad when I left work so I decided to take a rest day. I wasn't happy about this but I made the smart move.

THURSDAY: When the snow finally stopped I would say we were left with around 4-5 inches. I knew running on the roads were out since some roads weren't even touched from the salt trucks.  I headed to the gym to do my tempo run. I started with a 8:57 pace for the first mile then dropped down to 8:00 for the next 2. I finished with a 8:57 for the last mile. My legs were sore when I was done, but I made it through the whole workout without any shin problems. That is huge for me since the treadmill usually gives me problems.

FRIDAY:  REST DAY... The schedule called for a rest day, and I was thinking I might run still since I missed Monday. I however felt a little stomach bug coming on so I decided to just listen to the plan and take it easy.

SATURDAY:  My friend Abby and I headed out to North Park for a run. My plan only called for a 3 mile run, but Abby has only ran 1 day this season and is running the 6 mile part of the Marathon Relay. I decided to let her pace me and we ended up running 5 miles. I was really impressed that we were still able to run a 10:17 pace. Not to shabby for someone who has done little training this season. If you run at North Park you may know that Ingomar Rd. is shut down. I have heard that they are very unhappy with runners going through the construction zone, and are planning to ticket runners. Just a heads up for all you runners.

SUNDAY: When I woke and looked out the window, I had to take a double take to actually make sure I was looking at the sun. It was a great sigh
t to see. I waited until later in the day to go running. I wanted it to be at it's warmest part of the day. I headed out for my 90 minute run and right away I noticed my lungs were going to need some time to adjust to warm weather now. I have no problem letting them adjust to warm weather. I would rather do that than adjust to the cold. My splits were all over the board. Some would go down into the 8 minutes and some were as high as the 10's. I still had a good run, but I am going to have to use this week to let the lungs get back to warm weather running.  The forecast is looking amazing and it looks like (fingers crossed) winter may be behind us.

After the run today I looked at training plan and I have decided this week I am going to alter it a bit. I feel that only doing 3 miles 3 days a week isn't giving my legs the strength they are going to need if I want to PR the half. So this week I plan on doing at least 4 miles on days that call for 3.  Don't get me wrong I can see that doing the 3 miles definitely helped with dropping my casual pace time, but I need to make sure I can hold my fast pace for the longer distance.

How did your week go?
Have you ever deviated from your training plan? If so how did it go?

Training: Higdon week 3

      This week my training was all over the place. I did miss a few workouts, and I have already altered my plan for the up and coming week in order to take that into effect. I also was sure not to overload myself just to make up for one week.  That is one huge mistake people make and I have made that same mistake. You start to get down on yourself for missing some workouts and then you crunch everything into a small period of time, and the damage is way worst than the benefit. So this upcoming week will be just a bit more intense.
      What can I say about winter at this point except I am over it. I am done logging onto Facebook and seeing people update the weather like the rest of us don't know what is going on. I am tired of seeing pictures of peoples car temperatures. I am flat out just tired of winter.  You will never hear me complain about the heat, but these cold temps. are killing my runs. This week was all treadmill workouts, and I can not stand the treadmill. 

So this is how this week went down for me: 

MONDAY: 3 miles 26:34 and a shoulder workout.  One thing I have noticed is even though Monday, Wednesday, and Friday's are usually only 3 miles, my casual pace had dropped in this short amount of time on this plan.  I am now going sub 9 minute miles and I am hardly breaking a sweat.  I feel really good on these runs and I am now starting to believe that if you work on the short runs the long runs will really benefit.

TUESDAY: My workout called for a hill workout, but I had free passes to go see McFarland.  You can read my review that is a  few post's back.  I highly recommend you go see this movie. I am already putting this in my top 10 list.

 

WEDNESDAY: 3 miles in 26:38. I also did a arm and ab workout. 

 

THURSDAY: 30 minute tempo run.  I broke the run up into 10 minute sections. I ran the first 10 minutes at a 9:13 pace then I dropped down to a 7:10 pace for the next ten minutes and finished back at a 9:13 pace.   Shins were on fire for this run, and I am really dreading doing speed workouts on the treadmill. 

 

FRIDAY:  REST DAY

 

SATURDAY:I had all plans of waking up and doing a 5K at race pace.  Unfortunately on Friday when I was driving home from work my car basically kicked the bucket. Saturday morning was spent sitting at the car dealership buying a new car.  By the time I left the dealership in my new ride, the roads were a mess and cars were sliding everywhere. I couldn't even make it up my hill to get home. I had to park down the road and walk. Not the day I had in mind.

 

SUNDAY (Today): Even though my plan calls for a rest day, I am going to do some cross training. Nothing major just  some small workouts I can do around the house.

 

 

Hopefully next week I don't run into any issues like this week, and I can get in my entire workout. 

How did your week go?

What is your all time favorite sport movie?  mine is McFarland and Without Limits... 2 great running movies.

 
 
 

Hal Higdon Week 2

For once I excited to actually start another week of my training cycle. The first week was harder than I expected, but I could tell the if I kept up the hard work the reward at the end would be worth all the pain and exhaustion. This week was no different than last week except for some minor changes in distance and 1 workout.  I did have to alter a bit of the training this week. I am okay with this because I have an extra week to toy with and I have decided that week will almost be like a catch up week. Just for one week I will make up my own schedule and hit on any points that I feel I need help with. With that being said lets take a look at how this week went.

MONDAY: Mondays are quickly becoming one of my favorite days. It's always just 3 miles with some strength training thrown in.  It was a bit cold out so I headed to the gym and hit the treadmill for my 3 miles. I ran a 8:53 pace and felt really good except for some sore shins.  I realized that the treadmill is what is causing the shin splints not the shoes. DAMN I hate that treadmill. After my workout I did a chest workout.  I am focusing on my reps rather than weight with the strength.  I also completed my squats for the day.

TUESDAY: This was my first speed workout for the training cycle. The cycle called for 7 X 400's, Due to the weather I was forced to use the treadmill. I know how fast I can do a 400 in at full sprint so I was able to set the speed a bit slower and do them. After each .25 miles I would drop the speed and jog another .25.  It was hard at first but I noticed as the run went on it became a lot easier and I felt really good.  I can't wait until the weather breaks and I can actually use the track.  I can honestly say that is where I feel the most at home when it comes to running.

WEDNESDAY: Just like Monday, Wednesday called for 3 miles with strength training. It was cold but I was able to run outside. I ran a nice comfortable pace and even though it is week 2 my confidence is really starting to build up.

THURSDAY: The training cycle called for a 45 minute tempo run. I however was not able to run this day. I worked late and had some running around that needed to get done. Normally I would of been worried and pissed that I missed a run, but with my extra week I am okay with this.  

FRIDAY: REST DAY:  I was thinking I would do my tempo run this day, but once again I had so much running around that I was forced to just use the rest day for what it was.

SATURDAY:  The plan called for a 3 mile pace run. I had to work for the Marathon and was with the Steel City Road Runners Club for their training run.  Sara my co-worker and I decided we would do 4 miles with the group at a 10 minute pace.  We ended up going at a 9:30 pace and ran a bit further than the 4 miles.  It was cold but once we started moving it wasn't that bad.  I really enjoyed running with the group and I am thinking since we will be doing a few runs with them, I might as well become a member. The people I have met are really nice and they all seem to want to help each other.

SUNDAY:Today called for a 90 minute run. It was bitter cold and even the SCRR canceled their group run. I headed to the gym and figured some run is better than no run. I ran 6.5 miles in 60 minutes. Today was more about a mental struggle rather than the run. I hate the treadmill and knew I would want to quit halfway through. I fought through the urges to quit and ran a nice and easy pace. I felt really good actually and even with the treadmill I was pain free. I can't say I was happy with the weather though. This cold front has started to get the best of me and I expressed myself on twitter. 

As you can see I was not happy!!!

Next week the schedule calls for a 5K race and more of an easy schedule. Since there is no race I will just have to go do a race course I know and see what I can do. I am pretty excited about this. I want to be able to see how I progressed from last year to this year.  

How is your training going?  

If you had to run in the cold how are you doing with dealing with it?

Until next time stay safe!!!!

Phase 2; Week 1 of Training

      This week was the start of Phase 2 of training for me. Phase 1 was me building a good foundation of distance and speed. Phase 2 was the start of a 12 week training schedule (Hal Higdon Advanced). On top of the running schedule I am currently in the first week of a 30 day squat challenge.
      Before I go into what I did this week let me first say I really underestimated this schedule. Previously I have been use to running maybe 4 days a week with 2 days of straight cross training and 1 day of total resting. I am now running 6 days a week with cross training thrown in on lighter run days and 1 day of rest.  Needless to say this week beat the shit out of me, but I am up for a good challenge and I am not about to shy away from a little pain and hurting. With that being said let me show you exactly how this week went down.

MONDAY: Called for a 3 mile run in which you could hold a conversation if you were running and strength training.  I ran 3 miles in 28:45, that is a 9:37 pace. I really had problems because I wanted to speed up, but I had to tell myself it was okay that I was running a comfortable pace. For the strength training part of the workout I did my 55 squats, did some burpees, and some push ups.

TUESDAY: This day called for 6 X hill workout. The hill is supposed to be a gradual hill that is 200 to 400 meters long. It was bitter cold this day and the roads were icy so I ended up going to the gym and was forced to do the workout on the treadmill. I started with a 1 mile warm up run then would increase the incline to 12 percent and hold it for 400 meters. My legs were beat down, but I still finished the whole workout. Even though this day didn't call for strength training I still did my 60 squats and threw in a short AB workout.

WEDNESDAY: Another 3 mile run with strength was on the agenda. Once again I was forced to hit the treadmill and felt really good holding a 9:13 pace. For the strength part I did a back and arms workout. At the end of my workout I kind of felt like maybe my shins were a little sore.

THURSDAY: Called for a 40 minute tempo run. I ran my first 15 minutes at a 9:13 pace then gradually increased the speed until I was at a 7:30 pace. I finished with my last 10 minutes being a 9:13 pace again. I had some real problems with this. My shins were on fire and the pain was almost unbearable. I kept saying in my head "please don't be shin splints". I thought maybe it was because I was on the treadmill. I also took note of the shoes I was wearing, my Brooks Pure Flows. Still did my 70 squat though.

FRIDAY: Rest day from running, so i just did 75 burpees.

SATURDAY: With nice running weather I was super pumped to hit the roads again, even if it was only for a 3 mile run. Once again I was wearing my Pure Flows and the shin pain came back in full force. I was forced to do a very slow 3.14 miles. I ran a 33:04 with a pace of 10:32. When I returned home I did my 80 burpees and threw on my compression sleeves to help with my shins.

SUNDAY: Today the weather was nicer than yesterday and I headed to North Park for a 90 minute run. I decided to switch up my shoes and go with my Asics GT 2000-3's.  There was no shin pain what so ever and I felt really good for the run. The run called for a 3/1 which means I was to progressively pick up the pace every half hour. Unfortunately my Garmin battery died 5 miles in and I had to basically guess on the rest. I know I still ran 90 minutes but the distance is a guess. If I had to guess I would say 9 was the least I did and 10.5 was the max.  Either way when I finished I was not out of breathe and I have decided the Asics are going to be the go to shoes from here on out. I plan on going to buy another pair this week to rotate in. I will still use the Pure Flows but strictly on speed days at the track.

I ended this week with around 25 miles. This is one thing I like about this program. It's not so much the miles you are worried about, it's the time you are running.

Next week looks almost identical to this week except for a speed workout rather than a hill workout, and a bit longer tempo run.

How did your week go?

Until next time stay safe on the roads, and don't forget to join #Runchat tonight at 8:00 pm

PHASE 2 OF TRAINING

13 weeks may seem like a lot of time, but i can guarantee that time is going to fly by before the Pittsburgh Marathon.  I changed my training up a bit this week and decided to break the training up into two phases. Phase one was only a 4 weeks. I called it the base phase. all my runs were basically just getting my body ready for phase 2. Phase 2 is a 12 week training program using the Hal Higdon advanced schedule for the Half Marathon.   This past week was the last week for phase 1. I did more cross training and resting than running this week in hopes that my body will be nice and rested for the hard phase 2.
I am a person who likes to run alone. Let me rephrase that I am a person that doesn't like to be coached. I have always felt I know enough that I can make up my own training schedule. Well I was wrong. Can I coach someone? No problem, but when it comes to myself I have noticed that I am winging way to many runs and the runs have become way to jumbled up. Choosing a set method is a great way to have the plan laid out in front of you and you can see what is on the horizon. I looked at a few and got input from a few coaches that pointed me to this method. I even have a few elite runners that I will be staying in contact with to help me with some changes later in the training.

So this week my training looked something like this:
MONDAY:  Cross Train - 80 burpees with an arm workout thrown in.
TUESDAY: 4 miles on the treadmill at a 9:30/pace
WEDNESDAY: REST DAY
THURSDAY: 3.5 Mile run at 8:30 pace followed by a chest workout
FRIDAY: REST
SATURDAY: 6 Miles at a slow pace. I did not time this run because in the Hal Higdon method I will be using, on long runs you don't go for mileage you go by time.
SUNDAY: TODAY- REST DAY from running, but since I am in a 30 days of hell group where we do a different challenge every month, today was day 1 for squats. I did 50 squats.

What I took out of Phase 1 - I am definitely faster this year than I was last year at this time. I did a few runs where I dropped the pace to the low 7 minute per mile and I felt really good and know I can go harder.

I know the Hal Higdon method is a 12 week program and there is 13 weeks left, but I figure I will just double up week 6 or 7. From everything I studied about this method and crossed it with what my goals are I am very confident this will give me exactly what I need to hit my goal time for the Half Marathon.

What this week has in store for me:

MONDAY: 3 mile run with strength training

TUESDAY: 6 x Hill

WEDNESDAY: 3 mile run with strength training

THURSDAY: 40 minute tempo run

FRIDAY: REST

SATURDAY: 3 mile run

SUNDAY: 90 minute run.  (3/1)      the 3/1 means progressive, each half hour I am to increase speed

JANUARY TOTAL MILES= 59.23 This is right where I wanted to be for a solid base. I am going into phase 2 with just about 60 miles of all different types of workouts and I feel really good and most of my runs were successful.

How is your training going? Are you using any training method?