Fuel SMART,Train HARD, Run FAST.

Today I did mile repeats on the treadmill. 4x1 miles. After a 1.5 warmup my splits were 6:22, 6:18, 6:11, 6:05. with a 800 jog in between at 7:30 pace. I originally planned to run these at marathon pace but I wasn't sure it would feel like a good workout and I wanted to get my legs moving for Saturday's race. Felt good today and was tired after the last interval.

Today I did some strides up my road to get my legs ready for tomorrows race.

Today I ran the Nestle Art Days 5k with 2095 total participants. I had no idea what to expect today. The last time I ran a 5k was 3 years ago. I did little speed work leading up today, but knew I had a good base in from long runs. My only expectation  was to feel comfortable running faster than 8 min pace, something I really haven't done lately since coming back from my pregnancy and knee injury. I was surprised. I felt really good, My lungs were great and I felt like I was literally sprinting the entire time (but obviously I wasn't:) since my legs were not use to moving that fast. The race had one big hill in the first mile then flat and gradual downhill for the last 2 miles. I forgot to bring my Garmin with me, so that was interesting running without knowing my pace or what mile I was one since nothing was marked. So running blind was nice. It makes me wonder if I would have run faster with my watch or slower due to thinking I couldn't keep up the pace. Hummm. Very happy with today.

Out of 2095 I finished 46th overall, 13th in woman and 4th in my age- enough to earn a plaque. The first place girl ran it in 18:56. Well, that was nice, but now time to get competitive!

Today was a cross training day. I did 1 mile on the treadmill to loosen my legs from Saturday's race, then did 25 minutes on the elliptical and 10 on the bike. Additionally, I did 60 minutes of lifting -a plan my trainer I meet with 2xmonth made for me. Good day.

Today I hauled the kids with me to the track. I haven't done a track workout in so long! My friend reminded me how much easier it was to do speedwork on the track rather than the treadmill. How could I have forgotten? 10mph on the treadmill feels like a sprint but the track made it feel smooth and easy. I started with plyometrics and remembered how much I love doing this.

I had originally planned to run 5X800 at 7:00 pace, but I really had no idea how to run these since I don't know my 10k-marathon pace. I did the first one effortlessly in 3:13 then decided to work down from there. My spits were 3:13, 3:13, 3:09, 3:05 and 2:59. I think I could have done 4 more at this pace and that surprised me. Kids were screaming to go home so I did .5 warmdown and went home satisfied:)

This morning I woke up at 5:30 to run Davis, a pretty hilly run climbing up to 300 feet. The last few times I have run this, I have averaged around 8:40 pace and felt pretty good with that effort since some of my miles were like 13 min/mi. Today I averaged 8:00 for 8 miles with a mile warm up/down. My half split was 8:16 pace and last split at 7:44. I couldn't decide if going there was easier or back from the hills. I think it evens out  and I did give more effort on the way back. Felt good today and finding some strength and stamina. Hills are getting more manageable for me and my legs are getting and looking stronger! Good run.

 Later today I did 1 hour of weights and a 5 mile bike ride at a steady pace.

Took a walk by the Temple today with my family.

Davis Run- rolling hills and steep hills throughout (early morning)

8 miles at 7:47 pace (1:01.33)

1 mile warmup and .5 cool down=9.5 miles

I pushed a little more than usual but felt cool and comfortable throughout-like I could have gone another 5 at that pace. Left knee a little sore on the last mile. Iced each for 20 minutes.

Getting faster and closer to my goal of 7:00min/mi pace for the marathon. I hope to be able to run Davis at that pace to give me confidence that I can run on flat courses even faster!!

2 mile warm up and 1 mile warm down

Timed 5k at 6:38 pace on treadmill, good for an overall time of 20:37. I wasn't planning on running more than a mile, but kept going and it felt good till the last 400 I really tried to push the pace. That time beats my race time 1.5 weeks ago, so I am making small improvements:)

 Afterwards I did 10 minutes on the elliptical and 10 minutes on the bike for a cool down.

I ran in my new shoes today and felt some arch and shin splints, but I guess I expected that. Hopefully it eases up. Glad I did this run today, because it turns out I might fill in for the Wasatch Ragnar Relay this weekend running the third leg. It should be fun!

Last second I joined the Ragnar relay and had the time of my life! Since I had to work Friday morning, I joined in for my second leg running rolling hills. I ran 5 miles climbing 300 feet in 36:15.

My Second run I did 7.7 miles up a literal mountain in 1:02:36. I felt

really good, especially passing 44 runners and falling down hard once

and about broke my wrist from wearing my old Garmin 301. For those who

know what those look like, you know what I mean. So fun!!!

Today I went on a 3 mile hilly walk with my family.

Today I warmed up on the elliptical since my knee has been kind of sore since the race. I warmed up 2 miles then ran 3.5 at 7:00 pace then cooled down for another .5 mile. Afterwards I did 30 minutes of lifting.

1 mile warmup, 8mi at 7:50 pace (1:02:20), 1 mile warm down. 

This morning I did Davis run again. I could tell a big difference running the Ragnar hills from training on my Davis run, so I think I'll keep it up. Hills are starting to feel easier and I'm getting more efficent. I feel a little more beat up from this mornings run and my time wasn't any faster. It could be that I ran the entire time without my ipod so my perceived exersion is increased or I am still recovering from last weekends race. Despite, I still felt strong for the most part.

 Additionally, I walked 4.5 miles with my family in the evening. Since I'm not injured, I'm not counting those miles:)

Today I went to a Yoga class. It's been so long since I've done yoga, it was a little embarrassing. Afterwards I did 25 mins on a bike and 15 mins of weights.

4 mile easy walk with family.

4 mile tempo at 27:30 (6:51 pace) with 1.5 warm up and .5 mi cool down

 Wow, today was an off day. I set the alarm for my usual morning workout and just could not get out of bed! I suspect it was because I have been averaging 5 hours a night for the past week and it is starting to wear on me. I think my calorie count has also been less than usual since it has been hotter outside and I have been working...I guess. Yesterday I was feeling off and today it manifested itself during my workout.

I decided to run on the treadmill for my planned tempo run. Although I ran it for the most part as planned, I felt horrible during the whole thing and wanted to quit every mile. Additionally, my heart rate half way through was at 93% of my max- telling me my body was not in the mood. Afterwards I felt exhausted and had some cold chills. I must be getting sick. I think I am going to start tracking my heart rate more in the morning and during workouts. On a positive note, today was the first day I wore my compression sleeves. I think I'm going to like them!

I have two races in the next week, so I might take it easy the rest of the week besides some intervals on Wednesday to set the pace. I am running a 5k on Saturday morning and a 10K on Monday morning.

 5 miles easy with 1x1 mi at 6:50 and 1.5 mi at 7:15, half mile jog inbetween. 9 miles total on hilly course. For the most part I played around with my new Garmin 405. I had to take off my compression socks half way because they were bothering me. I think I will just wear them after runs, I've decided I can't stand wearing them during runs. Okay day, pretty tired. Need to rest up for race on Monday, I bagged the Satuday one...I think.