From running in the snow last Friday to running in shorts and a tank this week, I moved from the winter blahs to developing spring fever at lightning speed! This week was about as busy as any week I’ve seen in a while in both the work and working out departments!

As I mentioned on Tuesday, I’ve switched my training to following Runner’s World Run Less Run Faster training plan, and this week was my first week diving into their recommended workouts. I’m making tweaks here-and-there as necessary, but I’m trying to follow the plan as closely as I can with what feels right to my body.

 

  • Monday
  • Lift – 1 hour
  • Yoga – Yoga Basics (27 minutes) 
  • Walk – 2 miles at easy pace

After weeks of joking around with how my yoga workouts were not going, I pulled out my new Rodney Yee’s Complete Yoga For Beginners (affiliate link), and checked it out. It has four short (20 to 30 minute) workouts, and was a great introduction back into yoga. Years ago I practiced yoga regularly and got quite flexible and efficient in my poses. Fast forward at least twelve years, and not so much… Today, I would be the perfect candidate for what not to do, and if I took a class, I would be in the very back row, not the front. 

RodneyYeeYoga
 

  • Tuesday
  • Interval Run – 1 mile warm-up, 8 x 400 intervals at 8:06, 8:00, 7:53, 7:53, 7:53, 7:47, 7:47, 7:47, 1 mile cool-down
  • Yoga – Yoga For Flexibility (24 minutes)
  • Teeter Hang Ups – 15 minutes

Embracing the concept of quality runs, I did my first track intervals in ages; albeit on the treadmill. The weather was absolutely gorgeous outside, yet I wasn’t sure if the local high school tracks would be available mid-day for me to use, and with early morning clients, I had no choice but to do a mid-day workout. Something tells me my pace was much faster on the treadmill, anyway. 

GoProDebTreadmillRun
 

After the pounding of my run, I hung out on my Teeter Hang Ups (affiliate link) for 15 minutes to stretch and decompress my spine. It feels heavenly on my back, to say the least, but my right foot always complains a little after each session.

 

  • Wednesday
  • Lift – 1 hour
  • Bike – 15 miles
  • Yoga – Yoga For Energy (25 minutes)
  • Walk with client – 3 miles
  • Teeter Hang Ups – 15 minutes

Rather than following the tempo plan for my bike ride as outlined in the book, I chose to cycle on my spin bike (affiliate link) at a consistent pace. My fear is that too much speed work, too quickly, will lead to either burnout, injuries, or both. 

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  • Thursday
  • Tempo Run – 1 mile warm-up, 3 tempo miles at 8:59, 8:55, 8:43, 1 mile cool-down
  • Yoga – Yoga For Relaxation (23 minutes)
  • Gardening – 2 hours

With temperatures expected to get as high as 80° by afternoon, I decided to get my lazy buttocks out of bed at 4:30 AM to meet my friends on the trail at 5:30 (this week’s average sleep reflects that, too). We ran together for our first warm-up mile, and then I took off for three tempo miles. Once I completed my tempo portion of my workout, I slowed to a recovery pace until my friends caught me. At that point, they adjusted to my pace for the remainder of my cool-down.

As soon as my morning clients left, I headed outside to do a variety of spring cleanup chores in my yard. I also spread Holly Tone around all of my Azaleas, hollies, and foundation plants – until I ran out.

 

  • Friday
  • Lift – 1 hour
  • Teeter Hang Ups – 15 minutes

Friday afternoon I headed to Costco for my usual items, plus more gardening supplies. While on that side of town, I hit up the running store. After explaining that I’d been wearing Brooks Glycerine (affiliate link) for the past couple of years, I was shown another pair of those and the Asics Gel-Nimbus (affiliate link). The Asics felt so good that I switched back to Asics (this time a neutral shoe) after only two years in Brooks. Just on a side note, I wore Asics for 17 years prior to going to Brooks.

I fell in love with the first pair of trails shoes I tried on, the Saucony Peregrine (affiliate link). They are light and comfy, everything my previous trail shoes were not.

As soon as I got home, I switched my orthotics into my new Asics, and wore them for the remainder of the evening – almost. Eventually, I had to take them off because I was starting to experience pain in the joint behind my right large toe. Before I consider returning them, I plan to play around a little more with the lacing. Despite the wider toe-box, there’s tightness across the top right where I have a bump in my foot.

NewAsicsAndSaucony
 

  • Saturday
  • Long Run – 10 miles at 10:17 average pace
  • Gardening – 1 hour
  • Teeter Hang Ups – 15 minutes

Switching back to my old and worn Brooks, I met my MRTT friends for the first five of my ten fun-filled miles at 7 AM on Saturday. Beth, Janet, and I are members of both groups so we’ve been meeting our fellow mama runners for an hour before swinging back to the parking to pick up the Cruisers for the remainder of our miles at 8 AM.

GoProMRTTSaturdayLadies
 

After about a mile we saw Cruisers Vamshi and Amit and enjoyed running with them for a mile or so.

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Back at the parking lot, we picked up four more Cruisers; however, our paces were quite varied so we spread out quickly. Beth needed to run eighteen miles, and Janet and I hug with her for ten of those.

GoProBeth18Miles
 

Once home, I did a few strides in my new Asics. They felt fabulous when I first put them on, but once again, they started digging into my right large toe joint after a little while.

GoProBlueAsicsStriding
 

Saturday evening Bill and I met friends we haven’t seen in forever at a delicious little brick oven pizza place we used to take the boys to when they were little. The owner greeted us and immediately asked about both Joseph and Daniel.

EmiliosWine
 

  • Sunday
  • Yoga – 50 minutes

Feeling quite accomplished after four days of beginner’s mini yoga classes, I moved up to Rodney Yee’s Intermediate Yoga (affiliate link), minus the inversion section. It’s going to take me quite some time before I’m feeling very confident with my poses; however, I do have perfect form in both the basic mountain pose and relaxation pose! 😉

 

Weekly Overview: 

  • Weight Training: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday
  • Runs: Tuesday – 5 miles , Thursday – 5 miles, Saturday – 10 miles (Total: 20 miles)
  • Bike: Wednesday – 15 miles 
  • Walking: Monday – 2 miles and Wednesday – 3 miles (Total: 5 miles)
  • Yoga: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday
  • Stretching: Daily
  • Teeter Hangups: Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday
  • Average Steps Per Day: 15,707
  • Average Hours Sleep Per Night: 6:47

 

Questions:

  • What are your favorite running shoes? Trail shoes?
  • Do you feel that you stretch enough?
  • Did you race this weekend? 

 

Have a great week!

 

Disclaimer:  This post contains affiliate links which means if you click on the blue product link and then make a purchase, I will receive a commission for referring you. You will pay no more or less for the product; however, Amazon will show their gratitude for my referral by paying me.

 

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I’m linking up with Holly at HoHo Runs and Tricia from MissSippiPiddlin for their Weekly Wrap.  Be sure to check out not only the hosts, but the other great bloggers joining in on the fun!

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