Quick note: After I posted about my treadmill run on Wednesday, I went back and reviewed my running schedule...doh! I was supposed to have run 6 miles on Wednesday after all! So I didn't really add any extra miles to the week, which is OK. I just decided to forgo the extra 3 miles and leave my total mileage at 33 for the week.
The past couple of days have not been great from a running perspective. I had a busy afternoon on Friday, so despite the nice(r) conditions outside, I wasn't able to get out before dark. So I had to suck it up and go to the gym for a treadmill run.
Sunday, January 31, 2016
Thursday, January 28, 2016
MAF Tests
I've mentioned a few times how I'm currently experimenting with heart rate training. More specifically, I'm trying to follow the MAF method and attempting to keep my heart rate under 145 for each run. I calculated this heart rate using the 180 formula, which is essentially just 180 minus my age.
It's started out pretty tough to try to keep my heart rate under 145. I had just finished training for my half-marathon and it was a little bit of a challenge to switch from a couple of days of speed work each week to slow and easy runs all the time. It was also a challenge to run at the pace required to keep my heart rate below 145. When I started running using this method, my pace was around 12-13 minute miles and I had to take several walking breaks to keep my heart rate down.
It's started out pretty tough to try to keep my heart rate under 145. I had just finished training for my half-marathon and it was a little bit of a challenge to switch from a couple of days of speed work each week to slow and easy runs all the time. It was also a challenge to run at the pace required to keep my heart rate below 145. When I started running using this method, my pace was around 12-13 minute miles and I had to take several walking breaks to keep my heart rate down.
Wednesday, January 27, 2016
Treadmill Run
Just a quick update while I'm waiting for dinner to finish cooking...
This afternoon I put on my running clothes, psyched myself up to run in the chilly air and went outside to find am ugly, wet mess. Our temperatures were above freezing today so all the lovely snow we had this past weekend started to melt. This is great news for driving, but not so great news for running as I would have had to run through spots where the water was inches deep. At this point, running the street (with the deep puddles) is my only outside option as the sidewalks and trails aren't clear. So I decided to forgo the fresh air and headed to the gym.
I was dreading the gym a bit as it's always crowded this time of year and therefore pretty warm. I guess people were still stuck at home today because it really wasn't too bad. Warm, but not stifling. I had a 5 mile run on the schedule for today, but since I only managed to squeeze in a 3 mile run yesterday, I decided to run 6 instead to make up some mileage.
Overall, the run went pretty well. I managed to get into a groove fairly early on and zoned out a bit while I listened to instrumental music and watched a close-captioned episode of Property Brothers. The best thing that came out this run today was actually my first third or so. Despite the warmth of the gym and despite the fact I was a little tired going into this run, I was running at around a 10:00 minute mile pace for the first two miles! At one point, I even ran for a bit UNDER 10 minute miles and was able to keep my heart rate in check.
The fact that I was able to run at this pace, even for only a mile or two, is super encouraging. Sometime, as I'm trudging through my miles, getting frustrated with having to slow down for each subsequent mile, I wonder whether or not the heart rate training is really paying off. Today gave me hope that it's actually making a difference! I'm really looking forward to my third test coming up this weekend. I am hopeful that the numbers will show another drop in time.
This afternoon I put on my running clothes, psyched myself up to run in the chilly air and went outside to find am ugly, wet mess. Our temperatures were above freezing today so all the lovely snow we had this past weekend started to melt. This is great news for driving, but not so great news for running as I would have had to run through spots where the water was inches deep. At this point, running the street (with the deep puddles) is my only outside option as the sidewalks and trails aren't clear. So I decided to forgo the fresh air and headed to the gym.
I was dreading the gym a bit as it's always crowded this time of year and therefore pretty warm. I guess people were still stuck at home today because it really wasn't too bad. Warm, but not stifling. I had a 5 mile run on the schedule for today, but since I only managed to squeeze in a 3 mile run yesterday, I decided to run 6 instead to make up some mileage.
Overall, the run went pretty well. I managed to get into a groove fairly early on and zoned out a bit while I listened to instrumental music and watched a close-captioned episode of Property Brothers. The best thing that came out this run today was actually my first third or so. Despite the warmth of the gym and despite the fact I was a little tired going into this run, I was running at around a 10:00 minute mile pace for the first two miles! At one point, I even ran for a bit UNDER 10 minute miles and was able to keep my heart rate in check.
The fact that I was able to run at this pace, even for only a mile or two, is super encouraging. Sometime, as I'm trudging through my miles, getting frustrated with having to slow down for each subsequent mile, I wonder whether or not the heart rate training is really paying off. Today gave me hope that it's actually making a difference! I'm really looking forward to my third test coming up this weekend. I am hopeful that the numbers will show another drop in time.
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