Update and Pictures of Spring

Monday 5.0 miles/40:39/8:08 average pace

I ran after work on Monday and ended up running my fastest mile EVER in training. My splits were 8:46, 8:24, 8:52, 7:38, 6:58. !!! 6:58 !!! I have never ran a sub 7:00 mile besides in a 5k race. I was in the zone.

Tuesday after work I went swimming: 1000 m in about 22 minutes. I did 5 laps freestyle, 5 laps backstroke, 5 laps breaststroke, and more 5 laps freestyle. After Sunday's 1 mile swim and this workout, my upper body is a little sore today.

Wednesday 12.0 miles/1:47:06/8:56 average pace

It wasn't too bad. I got up at 5:00 am and ran before work. I was very excited to have Steve Runner's latest Phedippidations on my iPod! I've really missed his show the last couple weeks. I can understand his wanting to cut back a little, but he's not easily replaced (believe me, I've spent hours on iTunes looking. For running, nothing compares.) It was an extra long show which was great.

So check out the cool pictures I took over the last few days- this tree is right off our balcony and has bloomed and looks beautiful. I took these pictures on different days with very different-looking skies. Yay spring!

Also, I think I mentioned that I've picked up crochet as a new timer-killer/hobby since Zach's surgery. Check out the craftiness I finished last night:

Speaking of Zach's surgery: He continues to improve and has returned to work as of today. We went in for a follow-up with the surgeon this morning and she said everything looks normal and healthy. She told him to be his own judge regarding activity. He's been walking (2 miles yesterday!) and will probably stick with that for another week at least. He posted a full surgery report on his blog, if you are interested you should read. It's a lot of detail, but I know that's exactly what we were looking for when he first found out about his condition. Hopefully his summary will be helpful to people who search online for such a thing (he's posted it on Slowtwitch Forum as well and there's several people who have responded already). He will continue to update as his recovery progresses.

Peace out!

18 + 1

Saturday 18.0 miles/2:37:20/8:45 average pace

I ran on the Iron Horse Trail so that I wouldn't be away from home for too many hours, so I wasn't too excited about the route. It's nice enough but I'm getting a little sick of it. I drove up to Danville and started my run there, heading north for 9 miles to Walnut Creek and then returned. Surprisingly, I had a fantastic run!! I was feeling energetic and focused. I kept a very consistent, strong pace the entire run, and did not even listen to my iPod! It pretty much flew by and I never felt too tired until the last couple of miles. I picked up some bagels and returned home.

Zach is improving a lot and can get around the house by himself. Saturday evening my brother and sister in law came over- she had back surgery done a few weeks ago and can definitely relate to Zach. They brought up a ton of movies and some treats, then we made pizza and compared pain. Unfortunately, she wins hands-down, but we're hoping the doctors can get her back issues figured out soon.

Sunday I wasn't even sore from my long run! After breakfast I decided to get up to the pool to make my first attempt at swimming a mile. A MILE! Holy moly. Well, I DID IT! :)

I am 90% sure my pool is a 25 Yard size, so I looked up that a mile is about 1750 yards, or 35 laps. I wore my watch so I could count laps and off I went. Splish, splash, yadda, yadda, yadda, I swam a freaking mile!! It took me 37:41, not bad! I swam very consistent laps of 1:05 and only took two short breaks to adjust my goggles and swim cap. It was really fun- I can't wait to go even longer. I'm such an endurance junkie.

TOTAL miles for last week (week 5 of my 12 week program): 40 Miles
Plus: ONE mile swimming!

Here is my schedule for this week:

Monday: 5 miles Easy
Tuesday: xt
Wednesday: 12 miles Medium Long
Thursday: xt
Friday: 6 miles Easy + Strides
Saturday: 15 miles (12 @ Goal Pace)
Sunday: rest/xt

total scheduled 38

However, I think I will run another 18 or so on Saturday instead of a shorter Goal Pace run. I don't really have a hard goal for Boston anyway, so I'd rather just work on my endurance. I may run a hilly route and I might run a few miles faster than my usual long run pace, but we'll see. I am not married to the schedule this time around, so I'm just going to do what I want. *crosses arms defiantly* So there.