W5D2: Yes! It's Speedy Tuesday!!

Keeping with how I trained for half marathons last year, Tuesday is interval day or speedy day. I like how it's on a Tuesday and you have Wednesday off to recover.

Today's workout was fun. I remembered to bring everything with me to the gym. It wasn't until I got to the gym and looked at my Garmin to see it was still showing the sync screen. I was pushing buttons trying to get it back to normal. After a few minutes of frustration I looked up how to reset it online - which did work. I was thinking I was set and ready to use it for my run. Nope! I guess after it resets it needs to sync with satellites first. I was already on the treadmill and didn't want to go to the gym door and wait for it to sync. I ran without it being synced. Which is ok. I still got my run in!

I started the workout with a 1 mile warm-up at 6.0 mph on the treadmill. Felt really good and was ready to get the fun started. Ran 10 x 0.25 mile intervals with a minute recovery in between. Mentally I broke the intervals up into sets of 2. First set was at 7.2 mph, second at 7.5 mph, third at 7.8, forth at 8.1 mph and last at 8.3 mph. Finished up the workout with a 1 mile cool-down.

After the run, I did some core work and strength training. I broke out the BOSU ball to get some squats in. Did 3 sets of 15 without weights. My balance is getting much better too. I wasn't as shaky on the BOSU as I was when I first started. I finished up with some HIT work with weights and some core work.

W5D1: Let The Games Begin!

Missed out on yesterday's update. I did get 4 miles in. The day got really busy when I got home from the run - hence no update.

Today is a different story though. Today is the first day of focused, serious training again. There are 8 weeks until the first race of the season. I'm planning on running the Bill Roney 5K in Utica, MI on March 25. I'm using this race as a speed test. I want to see where I'm at physically. I'll use the results from the race to help guide my training to the Kona Cheesecake 5K I'm running in Novi, MI in April. That's the run where I feel I can run really well. The course is flat and there aren't that many runners to have to weave through during the race. Will see how this approach goes. This is my first attempt at all this.

This morning I was able to get 4 miles in at the gym. I ran the first 3 at a conservative pace (6.0 mph), not super easy, but at the high end for easy pace. The last mile I picked up the pace to 7.2 mph to finish the run strong. I felt really good after the run. I probably could have done a couple more miles if I needed to. I wanted to keep things easy today so my body would be ready for Speedy Tuesday tomorrow.

After the run, I got in my stretches and made good use of the foam roller. I know the benefits of a foam roller, but haven't regularly used it. I used it this morning for my quads and IT band. Anything I can do to be smart and help the body stay away from injury, the happier I'll be.

I switched up the strength training today. I did some squats on the BOSU ball and some other HIT exercises. I need to keep the workouts fresh so my body doesn't get bored. I do know the HIT exercises did a good job of kicking my butt. I'll keep at it and see what results I get from doing them.

W4D5: Keeping Momentum Going

Made it to the weekend! Feeling good about making it this far with coming back from injury. Still taking things easy and low miles though. If things go well today and tomorrow I'll get back to more serious training again.

Got to the gym around 6am this morning. Since it was the weekend, I took my time getting out the door. I would have thought with extra time I would have remembered everything for my run. Nope! I forgot my Garmin at home. Hate when that happens. It's not the end of the world though. I'm still able to get on the treadmill and get some miles in.

Since yesterday was a 5 mile run, I made today a 4 mile run. I wanted to get a good run in without pushing it too much after a long run yesterday. I ran the first 0.25 mile at my usual 5.7 mph pace to help wake up the body. The rest of the run was at 7.2 mph. It felt good to get the legs moving. I still didn't feel like I was pushing the pace. I know if things started to feel off, I would just slow it down some to see if that helped.

After the run, I did my stretching and did some strength training. Today was different though. I was watching some of the workouts Stephen Amell was doing and wanted to see if I could do them. The ones I did today had me using weights with the BOSU ball and yoga ball. Not your traditional standing still and lifting weights. I do feel like those workouts kicked my butt though. Might have to try them again sometime.

W4D4: Bump Pace Up A Little

The body was feeling good but I knew I still wanted to be smart about my run this morning. I really had to focus on not doing too many miles even though I felt good.

I ran 4 miles at the gym this morning. The first 0.25 mile was at 5.7 mph to help get the body warmed up. Things were feeling good, so I kicked up the speed to 7.0 mph for the next 2.25 miles. I was still feeling good, but didn't want to over do it. I upped the speed to 7.2 for the rest of the run. I did feel comfortable and in control the entire run, and probably could have ran a few more miles - but again, I'm trying to be smart!

I made sure to stretch really good after those glorious miles. Really starting to enjoy being able to not only touch my toes, but able to touch the ground with some stretches. Goes to show what is possible when you keep at it day after day.

To finish the workout, I hit the weights again. Today's focus was on dumbells. I was able to do more weight for the dumbell press! That definitely makes me feel good. Love seeing results like that. Before I was done, I got in some crunches to help get the core stronger. Stronger core will definitely help me with running.

W4D3: Bump The Run Up By A Mile

Got to the gym a bit later than usual, but I still made it. I try to make it to the gym before 5:30 to make sure I have enough time to get a run in and hit the weights.

Since the runs this week were only 4 miles each, I wanted to switch it up and shoot for 5 miles. I started the run at 6.0 mph for the first 0.25 mile. Things were feeling good so I upped the speed to 7.0 mph. I think my legs were happy when I increased the speed. I was able to get into a groove and watch the miles fly by.

I didn't have much time after my run for doing much with weights. I still did a few exercises to help feed the arms and shoulder muscles. I'm definitely not looking to gain bulk though. I'm just looking to help tone up and loose some weight.

Overall, I'm feeling good about how the training has been going this week. I don't plan on doing any speed work or any crazy amount of miles for the test of the week. I keep reminding myself to enjoy the 4-5 mile runs and then move on to next week.

How I Keep Track Of My Runs

There is a lot of good information that can be looked at when you keep a training log. You can see trends on how you've been improving, possible cause for injury (running too fast or running too many miles too soon), or even look at it for helping set new goals.

I like keeping a training log. When I first started running, my coach had us all fill out a weekly training log and have to turn it in to him so he could analyze what we did, and make any adjustments for our training the following week (I still have those training logs too!) It slowly became habit to log something for each run.

Lately when I get done with my run, I make sure to get it logged in my paper training log. That's right. Old school technology at it's best. I keep track of the distance, pace, and how I felt during the run. If I remember to, I include the weather and my weight before the run. I get most of those stats from my Garmin 220 watch which makes it easy to keep track of.

After getting the run logged on paper, I make my way to the online world. I plug my Garmin into my computer so it can upload the run to Garmin Connect, Final Surge, and Strava. Most people only use one of those tools. I like using all three. Strava is the one I use the most though. I like how there are a lot of people in running groups and there are running challenges you can do too.

I'm not done logging my run though. Even though I have a paper training log, I still enter the information into a spreadsheet. The spreadsheet allows me to get a lot of metrics for my runs over time. I like seeing the trend of: most miles per day, most miles per week, most miles per month. It helps me see trends easier than any of the online tools.

Keeping a training log doesn't have to be tough or time consuming. Even if you don't have a GPS watch, you can still use a regular stopwatch and map out your run online to get the distance. To keep it simple, use a pen and paper to write down these stats in a notebook. Easy, right!

W4D2: Back To Back Run Days!

Back to back run days! Feels so good to get that accomplished. I didn't think I'd be able to get a run in this morning since I got out of bed later than usual too.

Was originally going to run only 3 miles. I was looking at the time and knew I could squeeze in 4 if I picked up the pace a little bit. I ran the first mile at 6.0 mph and the last 3 miles at 7.0 mph. I didn't want to push the pace too much. I know 7.0 mph is where I was prior to injury for my easy runs. It didn't feel too difficult this morning. Will see how the body reacts to it tomorrow.

After my run, I got some good stretching in. It's now routine for me to spend 5-10 minutes stretching after each run. I switch up the stretches and don't always do the same ones. I usually target the areas that have given me problems in the past or that might be a bit tender after the run.

Hoping my body reacts well to these two days of running. Tomorrow is an off day (no gym). I know that will help give the body some rest so I can get back at it again on Thursday morning. One day at a time and I'll get back to where I want to be.

W4D1: Got Running Miles In!

Finally! I was able to get some running miles in this morning. It felt weird to get on the treadmill instead of getting on the bike. Definitely not complaining though. I love having the option of riding the bike when I'm not able to run. Those miles just don't compare to running miles though.

Since it was my first run in over a week, I made sure to take things slow and easy. I ran 4 miles at 6.0 mph on the treadmill. First mile was a bit shaky. I was trying to get my running legs back. My legs remembered how to run the last 3 miles.

After the run, I made sure to get a good stretch in. I wanted to help keep things loose and get them ready for tomorrow's run. Continuing with that trend, I hit the weights again to help strengthen my upper body.

For something new, I did 3 sets of 12 squats on the BOSU ball. I had to do those when I was recovering from injury a few years ago. Definitely not an easy thing to do! It requires a lot of balance. I was a bit shaky on both the up and down. I'm thinking of incorporating these into a few workouts to help strengthen the legs.

W3D4: Almost Time For Running Miles Again

Starting to feel normal again. I'm able to walk without pain. Been really itching to let my legs try running again. But...I still hit the bike this morning. I want to have a couple days of no pain, walking normal before doing that. Always better to play it safe and take a few more days off, than to rush it and be forced to take another week off.

Switched things up this morning. I rode the bike for 10 miles. The focus was trying to get my overall time per mile down below 3 minutes. I think it averages out to 120 RPM on the bikes at the gym. It can be tough to keep that pace going for a long time. I was able to do it though!

After the bike, I made sure to stretch and even used the foam roller! I know the foam roller works and have used it before in the past. I wanted to use it on my quads and IT band area to help keep my legs loose and get them ready for the return to running.

Overall, I'm feeling good about how I handled this little setback. You can never prepare for when an injury happens. Not all injuries will be related to running either. You can sit around and feel sorry for yourself, or get off your butt and start injury recovery to get your feet back on the road again.

W3D3: On The Bike Again

Playing it safe this morning and kept my butt on the bike. I've been able to walk normally without pain for a couple days now. Because it's early in the year and the race season hasn't started yet, I want to give my leg another couple days of rest before dipping my toe back into the running world.

At the gym, I got in 15 miles on the bike. It's starting to become boring riding the bike, but I know it's better than sitting at home feeling sorry for myself. At least when I'm done on the bike I've worked up a good sweat.

After I was done on the bike, I made sure to take my time with stretching out my body. I've definitely noticed a difference in my flexibility since I've been stretching on a regular basis. I can finally touch my toes!

Completed the workout by hitting the weights. Today I kept the focus on the pulley machines for my upper body. It keeps things interesting when I switch up the routine like this. The rotation I use is: free weights, pulley machines, machines. Seems to be working well for me so far.

W3D2: Fast Miles On The Bike

Another morning at the gym where I hit the bike. Not what I wanted to do, but what I needed to do. I'm still patiently waiting for my leg to get better so I can start logging running miles again. One step at a time though.

To help keep things interesting, I rode 12 miles at a fast pace on the bike. My goal was to get as many sub 3 minute miles in as I could. I think most of them hit that goal.

I took the extra time I had at the gym and got some good stretching in and hit the weights. I know some people say stretching can be bad and that's why runners get injured. I stick to what my experience with physical therapists have done with me when I've gone to them when injured. If it works, gotta stick with it.

I am able to walk normally again. I'm thinking the time away from running, getting bike miles in, and stretching really good have helped. If things go well, I'm hoping to get back to running this weekend. Still no rush though. If things don't feel right I'll take another couple days off.

W3D1: Back On The Bike

After taking a few days off from any physical activities, I was back at it again this morning. I wanted to give my body some rest to help recover from the battle I had with ice last week. My leg is feeling better. I'm doing a better job of walking normal again.

Since I'm still unable to run, I hit the bike for a 15 mile ride. It felt really good to get the legs moving and get a good sweat going. I kept reminding myself the miles I put in on the bike will help when I am able to get back to running. Bike miles don't equal running miles, but it sure beats sitting around feeling sorry for yourself when you're injured.

I am starting to feel better though. I really want to get back to running again. The only way to make it through race season is to be patient though. I'll be taking the rest of the week off and getting miles in on the bike. I rather go slow with the return to running now than have to take time off during race season.

W2D3: No Tempo Run Thursday

I hate winter. Not a big fan of the time of year when there is slush or ice and your foot can slip when walking. Had that happen yesterday. Was walking to my truck and my foot slipped a little bit. It caused my right leg to turn outwards a little bit and tweak my groin muscle. Fun times! I'm ok though. I'm a bit stiff when I walk, but still able to walk. I plan on taking the rest of the week off to hit the bike and stretch to help it heal.

I did make it to the gym this morning. It was tough getting motivation to go since I knew this was the first day in awhile where I was planning to run, but couldn't. I rode the bike for 15 miles at a fast pace. It did feel really good to get the legs moving and get a good sweat going. Still doesn't compare to running though. I'll take what I can get at this point. It sure beats sitting at home feeling sorry for myself.

It's still really early in the year and race season isn't here yet. I would rather take the time now to get my body right, instead of pushing through and having bad races. It's never easy to not run, when that's what you crave to get you through the week. Hopefully I only have a few days of being 'smart' and taking some time off from running, so I can get my body 100% and get back at it with training again.

W2D2: Speedy Tuesday

Fun drive to the gym this morning. Roads weren't plowed and had a nice build up of snow. Glad I had the truck to drive. I put it in 4x4 and slowly made my way in. I didn't go faster than 20mph. Nobody was on the road, so I didn't mind.

Today is Speedy Tuesday! I was feeling a bit tired and sluggish, but knew I had to get some intervals in. Since last week's were 0.25, I decided to switch things up and make today's 0.50. With the intervals being longer, it made it easier to keep track of which one I was running too.

Before the intervals started I ran a 1.5 mile warmup to help get the body ready for the interval work. I did keep the pace real easy since I wanted to unleash my legs during the intervals.

The intervals went well. I did the first set of 2 at 7.7mph, second set at 8.0mph and last set at 8.3mph. I was really starting to feel it during the last set. I still had things in control, but could tell I was going at a fast pace.

Overall, I feel really good about today's workout. I didn't think I was going to make it through all the intervals when I started. I'm glad I pushed through and survived. It helped knowing tomorrow is an off day. I'm able to give my body some rest before getting back at it again on Thursday morning.

W2D1: Easy Run Day

Rough start to the day. My snooze button on my alarm clock didn't work (yeah I still have an actual alarm clock and not just use my phone). I had turned the alarm clock off accidentally and slept in a bit longer than I had hoped. Thought I had everything together for the day when I headed out the door. Didn't get too far before I had to turn around and head back to the house to get my Garmin. Still made it to the gym though - no excuses!

Since yesterday was my first long run in a few weeks and tomorrow is interval day, I kept things on the easy side this morning. I ran 4 miles at an easy pace. On easy run days, it's not always about the pace, it's about getting the miles in. It felt great to get those miles in and start getting things swinging back on the positive side this morning.

After the run, I took extra time with stretching. I could feel my legs were a little stiff from the past two days of running. I wanted to do what I could to give them the attention they deserved. They did help carry me through 11 miles of running the past two days!

Before calling it a day, I hit the weights for my upper body and got some core work in. I don't over-do it with the weights. I do a few sets of different exercises with light weights to help get things toned up some. I know doing this will help me with each run, and especially on race day.

W1D6: Long Run Day

Wasn't sure I would be able to get a run in today. My daughter was having a rough night and I was trying to help get her back to sleep. Usually if I don't get my run in before she wakes up, I'm not able to get my run in.

This was the first Sunday I was able to get a run in, in a few weeks. The gym was closed on the past two Sundays because of the holidays. I used those days as rest days. This early on in the year, I'll gladly take them if I have to.

I ran 7 easy paced miles. Because I knew the treadmill would try to kick me off after 60 minutes, I split the run up into 2 sets. First set was 5 miles. I stopped the treadmill and started it back up again to get the last 2 miles. I know I could have ran 6 miles before stopping it, but stopping it with 2 miles left helped me mentally to get the run done. It's much easier to finish a run when you have something that changes to help break it up.

The 7 miles today got me to 33 miles for the week. Last time I had weekly mileage in the 30s was back in September 2016. I'm hoping to keep this trend going and stay in the 30s or more this year. Guess it all comes down to training smart and listening to my body. That's easy, right?

Temperature Running Challenge

Getting out the door for a run can be tough any day of the year. It can get especially tough in the winter - if you run outside or inside on a treadmill. The days when the temperature is so cold you would like to stay inside, under the covers and not come out because it's so cold. Days like this don't have to be that bad. You can make your run a bit more fun on those days. I like to call it the Temperature Running Challenge.

Temperature Running Challenge is fun and easy. Here are the 'rules':

• You look at what the temperature is outside before you start your run. Your challenge is to run that or better in miles (or kms). Example. It's 5F outside. The challenge would be to run 5 or more miles.
• If the temperature is -0 or colder and you are brave enough to run outside, run the route you were going to run, backwards (start from where you would normally finish). If you run indoors, run hard (in minutes) for what the temperature is. Example: It's -5F outside. The challenge would be to run hard for 5 minutes. Hard can be whatever pace you want it to be. It just needs to be faster pace than what you were running.
• If the temperature is too high (like in the summer time), you can still play the game. All you have to do is move the decimal over one digit to the left. Example. It's 30F outside. The challenge would be to run 3.0 or more miles.

W1D5: Easy Run Day

*Didn't have time to post about yesterday's run. Busy day. It happens*

It's the weekend. Most people sleep in, at least a couple hours. I don't. I still woke up at the same time I do during the work week and made my way to the gym. I don't mind it much any  more. I'm able to get my run in without being rushed to run faster or to cut it short.

I ran 4 easy paced miles and kept things under control the entire run. It gets very tempting to increase the pace when you know you can run faster than the pace you are. I keep reminding myself that it's good to run easy and still have that hunger to run faster. That will help me come race day.

Today's run was the first run in my new kicks. My current shoes had over 300 miles on them. I know I might have been able to get more miles out of them. I don't like to chance it. I want to make sure I have enough cushion, padding, and support needed during my run so I don't risk injury.

W1D3: Tempo Run Thursday!

This morning was tempo run day. Just like Tuesday's being interval day, I learned about Thursday's being tempo run day when I was following the Hansons Half Marathon Method. I like how you get Wednesday off between the two hard workout days. Helps the legs rest a bit before the tempo run on Thursday.

I ran a mile warmup thinking I had turned my Garmin on. Only to find out I forgot to turn it on. Oops! That was the first time that has happened in a long time. I made sure it was turned on and ran another mile warmup.

The tempo run was 2 miles at my 5K goal pace. This was 7,5 speed on the treadmill. I was able to keep my form and breathing under control during the entire run. I'm planning on running a 5K in March and another 5K in April. Since these are the first two races of the year, I want to focus my training on that race distance.

The cooldown was 2 miles to give me 5 total miles for the day. Usually would do a 1.5 mile cooldown, but wanted to get that extra 0.50 that I lost from the warmup to give me a nice round number for the total miles for the day.

W1D2: Speedy Tuesday

Today was interval day. I first learned about Tuesday's being interval day when I was following the Hansons Half Marathon Method last year. Even though I'm not following the training plan, I still like having interval days on Tuesday. It feels great to get the legs moving fast!

I ran a 1.5 mile warmup to help wake the body up. I made sure to keep it at an easy pace. That was one of the big lessons learned in 2016 - keep easy paces, EASY!

After the warmup, it was time to get down to business. I planned on running 10x0.25 intervals, with 1:30 minute between each interval as recovery time. To help keep count, I ran them in sets of 2 at the same speed on the treadmill. After finishing 2, I increased the speed by 0.2 and ran another 2. The last set I did was a bit of a challenge. I was really looking forward to the recovery time after them.

I finished up the workout with a 1.5 mile cooldown. Again, I made sure to keep it at an easy pace. I was able to get my breathing back under control and focused on my form. I want to keep working on my form when I'm tired to make sure it doesn't change much from when I first run.

W1D1: First Run Of 2017

This morning was my first run of 2017. I ran 5 easy paced miles at 1% incline on the treadmill. Still working on keeping easy run days at an easy pace. It gets difficult when the time I have to run needs to fit in a tight schedule. Last year, I would increase the pace to make sure I got the miles in within the time I had available to run. This year, I'm working on giving myself some extra time (might mean waking up a little earlier) to make sure I can get the miles in and keep it at an easy pace.

2017 should be a different year for me. I'm coming off a strong 2016, where I ran the entire year (minus time off from injuries). I ended the year with a 5K personal best. That helped give me some encouragement and motivation to attack 2017 with a vengeance. I know I'm capable of running faster than last year. I just need to be smart about my training and make it happen.