Well here we are, just a little over a month out from our big race and Presley says “It’s go time!” (She’s so cute, I couldn’t resist posting her happy face!)
I kept telling myself to get through the holidays. I don’t know about you, but I feel like Christmas and New Years flew by! It’s now 2019 and this race will be here before we know it. Ah!
Coming out of our unintentional break from running, over Christmas, was difficult. It only took a week or so to become comfortable with sleeping in and lounging around all day. It has also rained for over a week straight which makes the desire to be lazy even greater.
Each workout took a substantial level of self motivation and force to complete, but we did it, to even my own surprise.
Sunday: Back to the Track
What better way to get back to training than to get our legs moving on the track?
It was a gloomy day out but the lack of running was kind of making both Justin and myself stir crazy. I also wanted an excuse to wear some of my new running gear!
This Christmas was all about running; gadgets, clothes, accessories. I made a comment that I probably needed some new work clothes and my mom said that she debated between getting me work clothes or running clothes. She got me running clothes. Let’s face it, I was much happier to receive this than the latter.
FINALLY finding some leggings that fit well (thanks to a co-worker!) and my new RuninRabbit top (thanks Justin!) I felt really cool.
This track run consisted of 4 x 1000 (400 RI).
My set goal was to run each 1000 meter stretch at a 5:14 pace. Because it had been a few weeks since our last track run, I decided to give myself a cushion of 5:30. Justin’s goal was to run each 1000 meter stretch at a 4:14 pace. Fighting a head cold, he decided to run two 1000 meter stretches, two 800 meter stretches, and one 400 meter stretch (equaling the extra 2000 meters).
Justin’s Times:
2 x 1000
– 4:19
– 4:14
2 x 800
– 3:17
– 3:20
1 x 400
– 1:30
Hannah’s Times:
4 x 1000
– 5:00
– 5:02
– 5:07
– 5:00
Guess I didn’t really need that cushion after all. We also saw a stray pup (looked to belong to someone) hanging around the track. I stopped mid run to try and see if the dog would come to me with no luck, he/she ran off. The track we run at is in a neighborhood so I prayed that the pup would find its way home and out of the gross weather.
Monday: Rest Day
Justin had to work the majority of the day on Monday and given his cold, we decided best to give a day off to allow his body to continue recovering. I spent most (the entirety) of the day at home and was able to go through and organize 3 closets worth of boxes! Although we are living in a space, it is not a long term stay so half of our things are still boxed up from our original move. These items have been boxed up for about a year and a half now, so it was nice to go through each one to repack, reorganize, and donate what is no longer needed.
Along with the mass amount of organizing (my heart’s true love), I also spent the day working through my new journal I wanted to share!
The Devotion Training Journal
One of the things that I asked for, for Christmas was the new Devotion Training Journal. This was something I stumbled upon and asked for at the last minute. This journal is a “faith-based training journal for athletes to crow closer to their creator.” The journal was created by Atlanta runner and mom, Meridith (runningwithcadence, on Instagram) and is pretty amazing. The journal balances goal setting and race training with reflections back to our creator, our Heavenly Father.
I love journaling. I love running. Now, I have both in one book!
I’ve only used this journal for a week and already really love the purpose. I like being able to track my progress and to have a space to reflect, write, and praise the entire reason I am able to do what I do. I’m excited to use this journal to train for our upcoming races, as an accountability for the weeks I feel like i’m falling behind or not progressing, and a source to get my heart in the right place.
Check out the link to the Devotion Training Journal here!
Tuesday: Rest Run
Rest run, kind of sounds like an oxymoron right?
Tuesday’s run was a massive struggle. I am used to the internal battle of having to force myself to go on a run but this run was just shy of impossible.
I’m not sure what the problem has been. I’ve very much enjoyed the lax nature that comes about with days not ruled by responsibility. Usually, I have a bunch of energy and motivation to get things done. But lately, nothing. I think some of it has to do with getting out of routine. Some of it probably has to do with the weather (So. Much. Rain). But, I think most of it is circumstantial. It’s been on my heart to dive a little deeper into this and share what’s been going on. I may do so on my personal blog. But, all that to be said leads up to my ultimate point: mental strength has just as much effect, if not more, than physical strength.
One day I was scrolling through my insta-stories and noticed a running coach hosting a 
Q&A. I browsed through some of the pages and stumbled across a question I had asked myself many times. The person asked, “If I stop running for a week or so, will I lose all that I had built up and worked toward?” Definitely a question I’ve had and feared to ask. The answer, from the running coach, somewhat surprised and comforted me. The coach replied, “You can’t lose any athleticism that quickly, however, mentally it may be tougher to get back to where you were.” Ah. That makes so much sense! There’s that mental game thing again. I struggled with it in golf and have had my fair share of issues in our current training.
The run for Tuesday was scheduled as a rest run. Rest runs are runs without any pace or distance goals. These runs are just good old runs, the best kind. However, before this run, I felt as if I had forgotten how to run. No joke. I had more motivation to jump back into bed than get dressed and go outside for a cardio heavy activity. Mentally, my mind was just heavy and the thought of motivating myself to push through a run was too much. Regardless, we went anyway. I was pleasantly surprised to find that even without my mental coaching, my body seemed to just fall into its usual rhythm. Justin ran with me (not the norm) for 3 miles, keeping about a 9:30 pace.
I felt better afterward. I always tend to feel really good after a run and used this as a small amount of motivation to get started. Justin and I walked about a mile back to our car to cool down, with a few moments of unexpected rain, and headed home.
Wednesday: Miles in the Rain
Yup! We were those two crazies running all around town in the cold rain on Wednesday afternoon.
Another day of gloom and rain but a better day of running than the previous.
Completely over the cozy weather, Justin and I decided to suck it up and just go for a run. We watched the radar and noticed a small patch of clearing that lasted about 45 minutes during the afternoon. We knew that this was our only chance to get something done!
So, we bundled up and set out. Justin ran 6 miles at an average 8:10 pace. I ran 5 miles at an average 9:40 pace.
The rain didn’t let up, at all. The radar lied! Both Justin and I got completely soaked the whole time. Aside from the rain, it was an over all pretty good run. We were happy to get home and into some dry clothes and made it a point to down some vitamin C.
Happy to report no colds were acquired after this run!
(Before and After)
Thursday: Yoga!
This was new for our training. I love yoga and wish I had the patience to be consistent with it. When we lived in Lexington, I discovered the YouTube page “Yoga with Adriene” and quickly fell in love with her videos. (Her page is link to her page title ^^)
Oakley the Yogi:
Thursday was my first day back to work (bleh) and I was exhausted by the time I came home. However, our gym was open and we decided we better go and get our row on, reluctantly. Before leaving our place, we could both tell that rowing was not what either of us wanted to do. I was tired and Justin is nursing a huge pulled muscle in his back,(it is getting better, slowly) and just getting over a head cold.
*Light Bulb*
What about some yoga?! This would allow us to get some good strength/core work in, stretch AND stay home.
Yes, please!
We got our make-shift mats out (towels), one of these days I will actually invest in a good mat, and found a good 30 minute workout video specifically for runners
It felt really good to change our pace a little bit. I do wish I had more time to do some yoga, especially in the mornings. I had forgotten how nice it was to hold poses and deeply stretch my muscles.
Note to self: yoga with cats is difficult.
Friday: A Day of Rest and Cuddles
We were supposed to row on this day too but surprise, surprise, it didn’t happen.
It was a long non-stop day for me at work and I was falling asleep on the couch by 7 pm. Justin and I started up one of our shows, Counterpart, and just cuddled with our fur babies.
No guilt for not working out. My body was SO tired from the day. Two days back to work and I had never been more thankful for a weekend.
Hoping that this next week is better.
Saturday: A Beautiful Day for a Long Run
Summing up this run in one sentence: My body hurts.
Both Justin and I felt some tired, well worked muscles after our 9 and 10 miles. I wasn’t in any pain during my run but the moment I stopped, it was as if my body suddenly realized what I had been doing and freaked out. My body reacted so much that I legitimately thought I was not going to make it the mile walk back to our car (we made it.)
The struggle was real.
Aside from that strange hiccup, it’s kind of crazy for me to believe that this is where we are running wise. I very much remember not being able to run 5… now I’m knocking out 9?! WHAT?!
I very much looked forward to this run all week. I’ve missed being able to get some good miles in. I missed the sunshine even more. After a week of dark clouds and rain rain rain, we FINALLY got some clear blue skies and SUNSHINE!!! Praise the Lord!
Justin and I planned an afternoon run (we needed to grocery shop in the AM). We mapped out our trail, packed all our running essentials, and headed out.
The air was cool but the sun felt so warm, like a glimpse of spring. I’m ready for spring!
We both just started using a new (new to us) running app, Strava, and we had some new gear to run with (always the best). Side note: I’ve noticed with running clothes, this is a sport that is bound and determined to wear as little of clothing as possible, all the while keeping essential parts covered when needed. Prime example, this run I wore a tank top, shorts, arm sleeves, and knee high compression socks. Haha, it probably would have been easier to just run in a long sleeve and tights.
Anyways, we were doing a few warm up jogs and stretches when I realized that I had left my water bottle at home. Y’all. I have yet to go on a long run without forgetting something. If it’s not my chapstick, its my Koala clip, or even my headphones. Today, I forgot my most essential necessity, my water. This realization actually did send me into a doubt-filled spiral that caused my run to probably end up being more difficult than it should have. I can run about 3 good miles without water but I always end up needing it about every 2 miles afterward.
Thankfully, there were 2 areas on our route that had water fountains. These literally saved my run. I stopped at mile 4.5 to get water and then again around mile 7. Lesson learned to NOT forget that again.
The route that Justin and I chose was the same one we typically run except backwards, with one exception. Normally, I don’t really go into the details of our routes but this made me laugh, so I have to share. Because we reversed our route, there is one hill (mountain) that we usually run down that we would have to run up. To avoid this beast of a hill, Justin advised me to turn down a different street that would essentially bypass it. Y’all, I missed the turn. I didn’t even realize I had missed the turn until I was practically at the bottom of the hill. I stopped because I started laughing. That would happen to me. Justin and I literally sat down and mapped out a route to AVOID this hill and here I was, about to run it.
Well, I didn’t die and actually forced myself up the hill and beyond, still laughing at myself. I even texted Justin to tell him about my ridiculous mistake. The hill also didn’t help the fact that I was water-less.
All in all, Justin and I ended up running pretty good times for these miles. For this run, Justin’s goal was to run 10 miles at a pace falling between 8:27-8:49/mile. Justin’s average pace was 8:36/mile. For this run, my goal was to run 9 miles at a pace falling between 9:39-10:12/mile. My average pace was 9:51/mile.
We both completed the run within our projected time frame which made for two very successful runs and happy runners, despite the whole water and hill ordeal.
Next week starts our 4 week count down until race day. I can hardly believe it!
Run Box Run 