Dec. 27 - Jan. 2

Sun - 0 miles, wasn't feeling well
Mon - 6 miles, slept 12 hours straight
Tue - 0 miles
Wed - 6 miles
Thur - 6 miles
Fri - 8 miles, river loop then waffles
Sat - 0 miles
Total: 26

3 x 1600

Objective: 3 x 1600
Recovery: 1:00
Result: 6:50 / 6:39 / 6:24

Recap: I messed something up with my watch on the first repeat, so I'm not actually sure what my time was. 6:50 is my best guess. My legs were tired, and have been for the past week and a half or so, so these felt harder than usual. I was exhausted and sore by the time I finished the last repeat, and was definitely a bit disappointed with my time, but I hope it's just all these workouts catching up with me and that, once I get over the hump, I'll be stronger and faster than ever.

Dec. 20 - 26

Sun - 8 miles river loop and yoga
Mon - 0 miles, knitting
Tue - 6 miles with speed workout
Wed - 0 miles
Thur - 0 miles, yoga
Fri - 6 miles
Sat - 0 miles, wasn't feeling well
Total: 20

As you can see, I wasn't feeling well at the end of this week. I had a headache and just felt tired. Spending time with my family over Christmas made me rethink the marathon, because no one in my family thinks doing a marathon in February is a good idea. I have until Thursday to sign up to get the discounted rate, so I need to make a decision...

Dec. 13 - 19

Sun - 13.5, river loop
Mon - 0 miles, did some yoga at home
Tue - 6 miles with 6xBunker Hill workout
Wed - 0 miles, so tired
Thur - 6 miles a.m.
Fri - 0
Sat - 6 miles
Total: 31.5

3 x 1600

Objective: 3 x 1600
Recovery: 1:00
Results: 6:50 / 6:29 / 6:16

Overview: My legs were sore and tired, and it was quite windy. I could kind of tell I was going too slow on the first repeat, but I was still surprised to see my time. I realized last week what a difference it makes to run these workouts with someone else, so I might look into joining a track club of some sort.

Dec. 6 - 12

Sun - 8 miles, I think. Hanover loop with a big hill. It was cold out, but it felt so good to run. I love running.
Mon - 6 miles, loop
Tue - 6 miles with track workout
Wed - 0 miles, and didn't go to yoga, was feeling light-headed
Thur - 6 mile tempo. I get this feeling during my evening runs along the Boston harbor that I want to open my arms up to the sky and just bask in the beauty and feel of running. I don't do it, because I'm afraid of what people will think (I shouldn't be, right?), but the urge is so strong.
Fri - 5 miles with rats
Sat - 0, yoga
Total: 31

3 x 1600

Objective: 3 x 1600 with my brother
Recovery: 1:00
Results: 6:24 / 6:26 / 6:14

Overview: Great workout, and it was fun doing it with my brother. We took turns taking the lead, and purposely picked up the pace for the final repeat. It didn't feel that fast, and I felt great at the end of the workout. I think I'm getting faster!!

Nov. 29 - Dec. 5

Sun - 11 miles, beautiful morning, with Alex for the first 8
Mon - 6 miles, Charlestown loop
Tue - 5 with track workout with Shane
Wed - 0 miles, brother in town
Thur - 6 miles, Charlestown loop
Fri - 0 miles, took a nap
Sat - 0 miles, did body combat
Total: 28

Overview: I was hoping this would be a high-mileage week, but I wasn't feeling great on Friday (I had a headache) so I didn't go for a run, and on Saturday I went with my mom to the gym and tried body combat, which didn't feel like a good workout at the time, but my arms were really sore the next couple of days. We also went swimming and used the sauna, which made us near comatose for the rest of the day.

These Moments

I was just reading old blog posts, and I like when I share running-related feelings, so I thought I'd share this: I've been really focused on my running goals lately: running Hyannis to get a Boston Qualifier, running my fastest marathon yet, getting the most out of my legs before I get too old, etc., but I'm also trying to remind myself not to get too caught up in it all. As I was running my Charlestown loop through the navy yard last week, I was in heaven. It was dark and I could see the lit-up Boston skyline in the distance, the calm black waters of the harbor rolled beside me, the wooden boardwalk gave slightly beneath my feet, I could smell those little bushes that make me feel like I'm on Martha's Vineyard, and I thought: Just do it for this. Don't do it for anything else but this.

Nov. 22 - 28

Sun - 8 miles
Mon - 0 miles, it was so cold out
Tue - 6 miles, perfect amount of cold
Wed - 5 miles, shorter version of Charlestown loop
Thur - 5 miles total with 4-mile Gobble Gobble Gobble race in 26:30
Fri - 0 miles, yoga
Sat - 0 miles, yoga
Total: 24

Not a lot of miles, but I was happy with my time in the Gobble Gobble Gobble. My fastest GGG yet. I took Friday and Saturday off because I just wasn't feeling it. But Saturday morning yoga is one of the best parts of my week.

5 x Hill

Objective: 5 x Bunker Hill
Recovery: Jog down hill
Results: 2:00/1:58/2:00/1:59/2:00

Overview: I wanted to take a break from the track as my shins have started bothering me a bit. The hills felt good; my legs were tired by the end. Ready for a day off.

Night Running

This is an old post I didn't publish for some reason a few years ago. I like it because this still happens to me sometimes: I realize I've forgotten how much I love to run, and when I remember, it's like realizing I have a powerful tool that I didn't know I had, and it makes me happy. It's actually what this Hyannis Marathon training is all about. Using this running-obsessed part of me to improve my day-to-day.

I haven't been writing on my blog lately, but I have felt guilty every time I think about its long-outdated posts. Last night I got home from a tiring day planning to go for a short run. I struggled to put on my long pants and warm top, pulled on my fleece headband, and went out onto the slushy sidewalks of Charlestown. I had to be careful at times to avoid the slush and ice (I fell during a long run a few weeks ago and my wounds are only just healing) but I felt great. Great is an understatement, I felt indescribably good. Lately when I start running I suddenly feel weightless. It's almost an out-of-body experience. I ran the loop I was planning to run, then did an extra hill, then started running the same loop backwards hoping to run into Alex on his way home, then finally turned around for home. I felt like a kid who doesn't want to come in from playing in the snow. Why is this so shocking to me? It's not shocking at all, I know this about myself. Maybe what seems surprising is the degree to which I love to run.

Nov. 15 - 21

Sun - 10 miles
Mon - 6 miles, Charlestown loop
Tue - 5 miles or so with hill workout
Wed - 0 miles, Grandparent dinner party
Thur - 6 miles, Charlestown loop
Fri - 5 miles, river loop with rats
Sat - 0 miles, yoga
Total: 32

3 x 1600

Objective: 3 x 1600
Recovery: 1:00
Results: 6:41/6:28/6:28

Overview: My legs felt tired from doing more miles than usual last week, but I was happy with my times. It's great that both this week and last my first repeat was my slowest. I felt like I was really dragging on the last repeat, and I was getting a cramp in my side, so I was surprised at my time. Really excited about these track workouts! It feels great to run.

Nov. 8 - 15

Sun - 8 miles river loop to BU bridge
Mon - 0 miles, brother in town and tired legs
Tue - 6 miles with track
Wed - 0 miles, yoga
Thur - 6 miles, Charlestown loop
Fri - 6 miles, Charlestown loop
Sat - 0 miles, yoga
Total: 26

Overview:
I was supposed to do 6 miles on Saturday, but my back was hurting a bit so I decided against it.

Nov. 1 - 7

Sun - 8 miles on the river
Mon - 0 miles, work event
Tue - 6 miles with speed workout
Wed - yoga
Thur - 6 miles, Charlestown loop
Fri - 5 miles river loop with rats
Sat - 6 miles, Charlestown loop
Total: 31

This was a slight increase in mileage for me based on what I had been running, but overall it felt good to do some speed work. It felt great to get out with the rats on the river, too.

3 x 1600

Objective: 3 x 1600
Recovery: 1.00
Results: 7.02 / 6.37 / 6.42

Overview: Running fast felt...weird. But I decided today that I want to run the Hyannis Marathon and qualify for Boston 2017. I needed to get my act together, so I jogged down to the Charlestown track to see what I have in me. I purposely took the first mile slowly. I might be getting a little bit old and creaky, so I didn't want to hurt myself (I'm only half-kidding). I tried to speed up for the second two, and was happy with the results. I'm hoping to see these numbers go down as my training progresses. Track Tuesdays are back, baby!!