A 3 Day Weekend and 3 Workouts to Fry Your Legs

Hey there! How are things going for you? Who doesn't love a three day weekend? 

Three days off and three serious workouts that fried my legs. 

Saturday:

 My half marathon training plan called for a 4 mile "pace" run. As much as I love to run outside, I had to get to be by the gym for clients starting at 8 AM, so I decided it'd be best to get there early and knock it out on the treadmill. 

I warmed up with the first mile in 9 minutes, then ran the next 4 miles at an 8:00 pace. This didn't feel too hard physically, but mentally, it sucked. I am one of those people who are constantly changing the pace or incline on the treadmill to keep myself entertained....... 5 miles with an average pace of 8:12. Done and done.

After my run, I worked on some balance/core/stabilization exercises and foam rolled for about 30 minutes before cleaning up for my 8 AM client. 

I refueled that night with some awesome, homemade chicken tortilla soup.

Some people may consider 1/2 an avocado too much, but I don't think they know what they're talking about.

Sunday: 

I woke up around 8 AM and quickly threw some food in my belly so I could get my long run in.

Oatmeal squares, sliced banana, Sun Butter and milk. 

Before I knew it I was cleaning the house and doing errands......and I decided that I'd rather do my long run on Monday since I was off of work and was craving a good trail run. 

Instead of totally bailing on my workout though, I popped in my headphones, cranked the "Rise Against" station on Pandora, and picked the "Magnum" workout on the Nike Training App. At first glance the workout didn't seem too bad, but after 3 sets of squats, side lunges with rotation, single-leg deadlifts, and around-the world lunges these old legs were definitely starting to feel it. (There were other moves as well, but these were the leg killers.)

Monday: 

I woke up determined to get this long run done. I lounged around for an hour eating breakfast and sucking down a couple cups of coffee....

Whole wheat english muffin w/grape jelly and two runny eggs (smothered in Siracha before consumption) and an apple sprinkled in cinnamon

before heading to the good old state of VA. 

I had to go to Woodbridge anyways, so I thought it best to take advantage of it and go to one of my favorite places to run, Burke Lake Park. 

It's a wonderfully maintained 4.7 mile loop around Burke Lake. 

Unfortunately, the 9 miles (which turned into 9.4) didn't fly by as quickly as I'd hoped they would. My hips were tight from the "Magnum" workout (Haha. Sounds so wrong....) and I just couldn't find my groove. It didn't help that my Nike App was lying to me and telling me I was going terribly slow (Apparently, GPS devices don't tend to work too well on winding trails in the woods. How relieved was I to find it it miscalculated by an entire mile?!). 9.4 miles with an average pace of 8:40.

Long run for the week, done.

Stiffness in my legs, increasing by the hour.

Have a good week!

Have you ever done a "pace" run? Do you do them outside or on a treadmill?

How do you keep yourself entertained on the treadmill?

What is your favorite pre or post run meal/snack?

How was your long run this week?

Good Food, My Run - Not So Much.

Sunday morning I had 12 miles to do. I really wanted to kill this run. The past week I have not had much success. Saturday, I didn't even attempt my 6 miles. I got up early and went to eat breakfast with Santa and my baby girl.

 

 

He was the shortest Santa ever and baby girl was just as nervous as she looks. A big thank you to Ft. Belvoir Hospital for putting this cute event on!

 

After breakfast, the boy and I hit the mall and got a good amount of Christmas shopping done. SCORE. By the time we got home, it was pitch black outside (and only 5:30 PM, I hate that) so I opted to stay home and make my man some dinner and have some quality time.

 

 Sunday's run had to go well.

 

My boyfriend and I took our time getting up in the morning. By the time we got up and got the coffee maker going, it was 9:30 AM, and it felt great.

 

Since breakfast is my favorite meal of the day and I love cooking (especially for that man) I took my time and fueled up with some runny eggs, sausage, home fries and toast. Plus a couple cups of black coffee of course. Addicted:-)

 

 

After I let that mountain of food settle and kissed the boy goodbye I hit the path. I didn't take my phone with me, so I don't have pictures of the trail but you can see it here.

 

The trail is mostly dirt, some gravel, and some blacktop. It is a 4.7 mile loop, so between the 2 loops  I ran some of the streets within the park, sometimes a change of scenery makes a run all that much better.

 

It didn't really work this time.

 

While I didn't feel terrible, I wasn't on my game. My pace was about 8:40, which is not good for me. I typically try to run about 8:15 for my long runs. I was coughing quite a lot and wasn't feeling it.  I managed 11.5 miles and headed home...with a nasty blood blister under one of my toe nails. Clipping and draining it was really fun. (I'm kind of sick haha) Good running socks are seriously important.

 

At least my recovery meal cheered me up.

 

Kashi Berry Crumble Cereal, Sliced bananas and Justin's Maple Almond Butter. Topped with ice cold milk after the picture was taken. It's odd because I don't really like milk too much (I usually eat cereal dry) but sometimes, when I'm in a cereal mood, it's money.

 

I also took a picture of dinner, which was this bad boy, because it was the best salad I've had in a long time.

 

Spinach, red, orange and yellow pepper, onions, tomatoes, pine nuts and tuna. The tuna MADE IT. I mixed it up with a dab of mayo, mustard, relish, seasoning salt and garlic salt.

 

Wish I had another one tonight.

 

Burke Lake Park = One Great Run

My favorite thing about marathon training is easily is the long runs. I love long runs. I love zoning out and just going. Physically seeing the distance that I have covered. Knowing that I'm strong enough, physically and mentally, to endure over an hour of constant running. It's exhilarating.

I always do my long runs on Sunday. Last Sunday, my daughter was off visiting her grandparents, so I had no time constraints. I decided to mix it up a bit and head out to Burke Lake. Burke Lake is a wonderful park located in Fairfax, VA. It offers a "fitness trail" which outlines the perimeter of the lake, clocking in at a little less than 5 miles.
 

 

I did 8 miles in the dirt path and felt amazing. What a difference soft ground makes on these rickety hips of mine:-)

 

I even got a good 20 minutes of stretching in while taking in the beautiful view. As difficult as it is to run here (40 minutes round trip, plus $8 for parking) it really is worth it because of the ease on my body and the mental health benefits I get from being able to take it all in and forget the hecticness that is my life. I love my crazy, busy life but recently I feel like it's been catching up with me.

 

I came home and had a great recovery meal. One whole egg and one egg white, scrambled and put on top of toast with avocado and cholula and an apple with almond butter. Gotta love all those healthy fats:-)