boston training: week 6

i have to start off by saying the 2 days of rest i took at the end of last weeks training and the beginning of this weeks was absolutely needed and was likely the best thing i have done for myself and for my training in a long, long time. when youre training for anything, in my case marathons, i find that it all becomes such a mental thing. missing runs, cutting runs short, having to sacrifice sleep and family time for runs (but not wanting to)... these things get into your head and make training that much more difficult. ive learned to let that shit go and just do what i can.

no one is perfect. i dont think ive ever executed a training plan exactly as written. and guess what? ive gotten to the finish line of all but two races. TWO. out of 124 races! so anyway... the rest days. i needed it, i embraced it, and i came back stronger that next day and kicked the shit out of my speedwork run, and likely had one of the best training weeks ive ever had. funny how that happens.

week 6 of training was not easy by any means, but i felt good. i felt strong. things just seemed to click, and those weeks make training fun again despite all the other feelings of self doubt.

still so much running

after taking tuesday and wednesday off completely, i was ready to fly on thursday. 6x800m at 5k pace and ill be damned if i finally felt good hitting close to what id like my 5k pace to be back to. there were moments when i was like ok this is dumb just stop the treadmill you suck. but ive started shoving all of that self doubt negative crap in the trash and thinking ya know what? bostons gonna have moments that arent all unicorns and rainbows and sunshine and youre not gonna quit then so dont fuckin quit now you asshole. whoa. yeah. that. and thus my speedwork was awesome.

i worked friday overnight from 1am to 7am saturday, came home and slept a few hours and got up ready to rock my marathon pace run while watching the olympic trials race. it pumped me up so much... i felt like i could have run forever (i actually had to make myself get off the treadmill knowing more miles wasnt going to benefit me for the rest of the week).

the sheer determination and heart of all of these runners was amazing. i cried and cried for kara, but still think shes amazing. and i have faced what amy and shalane dealt with out there back in 2012 with my running partner, my best friend. having someone like that in your life is something i never take for granted. the strength and support of teammates is a bond that can never be broken and it was truly shown out on those hot streets on saturday.

amy, shalane, meb... true class acts. cant wait for rio!!

i started trying some new things this week... increasing my paces slightly, adding in more core work, and getting out some weights... eeeeeek!

after 7 easy on sunday morning i was greeted with chocolate and a pink package... my little guy knew just what i wanted for valentines day... and even was a thrifty shopper using a coupon! ive taught him well hehe

8 miles before work monday... definitely didnt want to get out of bed, but once i got rolling i had a great run. wasnt sure how todays long run was going to go and my calves and hamstrings were a bit sore when i woke up (but on the plus side, hens not coughing at night any more and we all got 10 hours of sleep last night. so that helps!). i delayed and delayed my long run as long as i could, but finally knew i had to just get it done. and again, once i got going things went really, really well.

i ran the first 15 miles of maine coast marathon course, small rolling hills, good views. and also watched the 2012 olympic trials marathon and the last few miles of the womens olympic marathon from that year. how inspiring (and of course i cried for amy at those trials).

i think about a lot of random things when i run. and send all of them to bff.

her life would suck without me

week 6

sadly when temps are negative a billion all week, you dont get to run outside. at all.

6x800- (goal pace 3:30)- 3:34, 3:31, 3:30, 3:28, 3:27, 3:25 (comparing to week 1 of training with this same speed workout- 3:39, 3:35, 3:31, 3:33, 3:29, 3:26)
8 @MP- (goal pace 7:45-8:01)- 7:57, 7:52, 7:52, 7:47, 7:48, 7:51, 7:46, 7:45. this was a really solid run. it helped i was able to watch the olympic trials marathon while doing this run- totally pumped me up. i felt like i could have run forever!
long run- (goal pace 8:20-8:42)- average pace 8:38. a very strong feeling run. i used the new hoka odyssey 2s for the first 5 miles... they dont feel great. ugh. why why why do they have to change a good thing?! and make them pink?!! ill try again next week maybe, but ill likely order the old odysseys that are going out. maybe 2 pairs. give me all ya got left hoka! and send me a hat too, k thanks.


current hits:

not pictured: macklemore "downtown". blast that shit.

i also stepped quite a bit outside of my comfort zone this week and ordered the shorts that i kept eyeing online (rewarding myself for the awesome speed workout i had last week... speaking of which, im behind in my ordering! what should be next?!) the oiselle portman shorts. swoon.

now... i am not tall (5'4"ish). i have a long torso and my legs are short. these shorts have a 3in inseam, and i have some thighs and a butt. so i wasnt sure how this was gonna go, but i wanted to give them a try. after taking the pictures my husband said "youre gonna post those online?" well... i figure if the million people watching the boston marathon might see me running in them, then 10 people who read my blog can see them... he thought they were kinda like under shorts or something. men dont understand ;) 

regardless, here they are.

they are compression material and fit snug (im a size 4 in oiselle tights so i got 4 in these. i wear a size 6 in their roga shorts and a size 4 in their distance shorts). they have 2 zipper pockets (for snacks, duh). my concern was what was going to happen when i ran. so i knew what i had to do.

trial 1

7 miles

trial 2

8 miles

aaaaaand, they are amazing. do they ride up? yes. they definitely didnt stay in place, but i wasnt expecting them to (i think the flyte shorts have a different type of band at the bottom of the shorts that these dont have which might help with that? was just informed that no, they dont have a band. so nevermind. just looks different). my ass didnt fall out of them but they basically ended up like boy cut underwear at the end of the run (if you dont adjust them, which i really only did a few times). 

the one problem....

hawt.

post 8 miles in a cold basement

so... if i am going to run boston, or any race i suppose, in these... i might need the black pair. butt sweat isnt all too appealing to look at im sure. so obviously youre welcome for the picture.

and to help with toning up the thighs so these shorts will be even better, i started this 30 day thigh slimming challenge (last month i did the 30 day arm challenge. these are fun! but they get tough for sure)

i might order the oiselle meter shorts and see how they fit (a bit longer with a 3.75in inseam). i usually race in roga, mac roga (1.75in inseam!?!), or distance shorts so it will be a huge step for me to race in something like this, but it almost felt as if i wasnt wearing anything at all. ill definitely need to remember body glide too, just in case.

week 6 in the books... 62 days!