Training Week #5

WEEK 5! I'm approximately 24% of the way complete with the 21 week training program. 16 weeks left!
When I say it this way it sounds like there is still so far to go....and there is, but at the same time I look at what I've completed and I think wow its already been 5 weeks?! It honestly doesn't feel that long yet. It does not feel like I have been training for over a month! Is it really possible? I guess so because thats what the calendar says. I think its a positive thing though that I can look forward at the next 16 weeks and still feel totally pumped about the race. That I can still look forward to my nightly training and that I'm actually excited to get into my upper mileage runs. A month or two ago and I would've looked at like you as if you'd been sniffing glue or doing SOME kind of drug. Running was NOT my thing....and it kinda feels like its starting to be.

Anyway - this week was the start of another bump up in the mileage. Weekly run nights are now at 3 miles and weekend long runs are at 4 miles. I also tried out a different hot yoga studio (not bikram). It was a 60 minute class....COMPLETELY different than bikram but was still 'oh so good' in oh so many ways. Challenged me to do yoga positions I never thought I'd be able to do (the crow....holy COW! or should I say crow??? Probably, but you get the gist of it). Its one of my three yoga groupons I've purchased to keep me on the yoga train throughout my program. Gotta say I'm still a yoga lover! Whod've thunk!?

We had our first 4 miler on Sunday August 14th and let me tell you I was WAY nervous. I do not believe that in my entire life I've run over 3 miles at any one point in time.....so adding a mile onto that was kinda freaky. Not to mention that throughout the whole week I still felt like I was recovering from the 3 day trek up the west coast and failing. AND...I had signed up to help my brother-in-law build a deck in his front yard.....yeah me...the NOT very handy girl :)

So Sunday night's run came after two days of labor, followed by a beer and some of Nick's famous hot wings....I was thinking my mind, body (especially tummy) would NOT be ready for the run. But I proceeded to Alki Beach to meet my running partner Jenny at 8pm. Not gonna lie...first 2 miles I was constantly thinking I was an idiot for the beer and the wings and for starting so late in the evening....I kept going "we haven't even made it HALF way! HOW am I going to pull this off?!" Not to mention Jenny was kicking my ass! She was way out in front and looked to be faring much better than I was.

And then we hit the half way mark...FINALLY! My mind started turning toward the positive...you're HALF way there. Keep it UP! My legs for the next half mile protested majorly and I continued to trail behind Jenny. But then the glimpse of Alki Beach shops came back into view and I KNEW we were getting closer. And then my stride kicked in. The legs no longer hurt, my iPod had some GREAT tunes keeping me going, and the lovely shoreline reeled me in. It made it even MORE abundantly clear to me that my real obstacle is my HEAD! Freaking mental blocks are the WORST in a run!

But we finished our first 4 miler with an average mile time of 10 minutes/mile. Pretty stellar! We've been able to keep it at the 10 or under pace since our first start week, and typically only bump up to the at 10 minutes/mile mark when we up our mileage.

That run marked the completion of week 4. Onto week 5 and still going strong!

WEEK 5 STATS
Total Miles Run - approximately 11
Total Miles Planned - 10

Total Miles Walked - approximately 6.5
Hot Yoga Classes - 1