W11D1: Survived The Weekend!

I survived the weekend! Really surprised myself with the number of miles I ran. I ran 10 miles on Saturday with the Mid-Michigan Runners group. It was my first time running with them. Sunday, I ran 7 miles with the Run Mason group. There were a few runners I haven't ran with before that were there. Both runs were a lot of fun, and hope to meet up with those runners again for a run.

Based on how things went this past weekend, I kept the pace slow this morning. I did bump up the Monday miles to 5 though. I need to start changing things up and increasing the daily mileage. It's the only way I'm really going to meet/exceed the goals I have for myself this year.

I started out with 6.0 mph on the treadmill. Things were going well. The body wasn't complaining too much from the previous few days of work. I didn't want to push things too much. Today was more about recovery and getting miles in. The only time I did push was the last mile. I increased the pace to 7.0 mph. This is something I still want to work on for every run - being able to finish strong, regardless of how many miles I'm running. This is to help me both physically and mentally.

After the run, I didn't do too much extra credit work. I did my 10 minutes of stretching to help keep things loose and be proactive with preventing injuries. There were only a few different weights I did before calling it a day. One of those was doing a couple sets of squats with a barbell. I did 2x12. I know this is something I need to keep doing too. The stronger my quads are, the better I can tackle hills this race season.

Progress is being made - one workout at a time.

W10D3: I'm Back For More!!

I think taking things easy last week has helped both my mind and body get back on track. Taking time off from running or cutting back on miles to let the body heal can play games with the mind; not feeling like progress is being made or feeling like fitness is being lost.

This morning I still kept things on the easy side. I started the run with 0.25 at 6.0 mph to help gauge where my body was at. Things were going good, so I increased the pace to 6.7 mph and kept that pace going until I hit the 4th mile. I was still feeling good, so I increased the pace to 7.5 mph for the last 2 miles.

Because I had a late start to the day, after my run I only had enough time to get a good stretching session in. Felt good take the time and reward the body for making it through another run. I didn't use the BOSU ball or foam roller. I'll save that for next week (maybe earlier?). I want to focus on getting miles in again before throwing too much more at my body.

Progress is being made - one workout at a time.

W10D1: Couple Days Off & Back At It Again

Took a couple days off to let the body heal. The right quad was still barking at me. I thought taking some time off would help. Better to rest now and be able to run again soon, rather than push it and stay injured for longer time.

Keeping things easy this morning, I ran 3 miles at 5.7 mph on the treadmill. Legs were feeling ok. I probably could have went for another mile, but pumped the brakes on that idea. I want to make sure I have my legs back to full health with race season almost here.

After my run, I spent a good 10 minutes stretching all things lower body. I didn't rush each stretch. It felt really good to get each stretch in. I'm glad I'm still seeing progress with my flexibility. I could tell a difference when I was done stretching. My legs were feeling much better!

Before calling it a day, I hit the weights for some strength training. I focused on upper body, hitting the biceps, triceps, shoulders, chest, and back. I did get in some leg extensions with really light weight. I wanted to get some strength training done with my legs to help with recovery. All in all, it was a successful workout.

Progress is being made - one workout at a time.