Charlotte Marathon Training - Week 11 of 18

Wow.... closing in!

Week beginning thoughts: If all runs get completed as planned, this week will be the highest mileage of my training plan (50 miles!!). I'll hit this mileage 3 times, every other week over the next 5 weeks. Breathe in, breathe out. Ready, set, GO!

Monday
Planned: strength
Did: strength

Good lift, nothing special. Legs (quads) are a little sore from yesterday's long run so squats were fun.

Tuesday
Planned: #10kTuesday goes Imperial! (10 m)
Did: 10.13 mi in 2 parts

Part 1 = 7.05 mi @ 8:13/mi
The stars just so happened to align for this run, and I'm SO SO SO glad I did it! A friend added me to a local runners' group on Facebook a few days ago, and they run every day of the week from downtown. One person will post the start time & approximate distance and then people respond saying whether they'll be there. I saw a post yesterday that the plan for Tuesday (today) was 6-7 miles, avg. 7:30-8:30 pace, starting at 5:30am. I wasn't sure if I could keep up, but I figured it would be a good way to push myself. Plus, my parents are in town while Scott is traveling, so they could take over morning care of D. I wasn't sure I wanted to drag myself out of bed after a late chorus rehearsal Monday night, plus I was feeling mopey about not doing bedtime with D and missing seeing him off to "school" in the morning... but I chatted with a mama runner friend and she talked me into it (so thankful for reasonable friends). 💗
I woke up with my 4:30 a.m. alarm and actually felt pretty good. I was excited about a new routine, new place to run, new faces, new challenge. Got myself out the door on time and arrived plenty early to meet up with the group. A few people were cutting out at 5 miles, and I considered doing so also... but ended up sticking with the 7-milers through the dark streets of downtown Greenville. It's amazing how many runners are out that early! Love this community. I got caught up in conversation with the others in the group and didn't even realize when we stopped that we'd hit the 7 mile mark. So awesome! I chatted a bit as people finished up, and then hopped in the car to head to work and finish out the run.

Part 2 = 3.08 mi @ 8:37/mi
Was definitely tired and kind of hungry when I started this part, but I kept telling myself it was *only* 3 miles. Just did a quick out-and-back along the frontage road and finished up in time for a shower before heading off to my morning meetings.

Morning runs = totally worth it.

So happy to have knocked this out early. And looking forward to an EARLY BEDTIME!

Took this on the way home from work.

Further confirmation that I'm SO GLAD I ran in the morning!! 🎉

Wednesday
Planned: 5 m run
Did: 5.27 mi @ 9:05/mi
Goals for this run: easy 5. I think I did that, although looking at my mile splits, I may have done a bit of an unintentional progression run. Oh well. I get excited about finishing a run. 😂

It was already warm when I headed out around 9:30 a.m. and of course I chose the route with the least shade and the most hills. Still, felt pretty good although my legs were definitely feeling the effects of yesterday's 10-miler!

Thursday
Planned: 5 m run
Did: 5 m @ 7:51/mi avg - #SpeedworkThursday ladder
Treadmill today just for simplicity.

1M WU @ 9:30
1600 / 1200 / 800 / 400 @ 6:15/mi
400 rest between @ 9:30

1200 CD @ 9:30

I wasn't sure about a mile at 6:15, but I powered through it. WOOF. I started feeling the burn about 400m into each interval... wanted to knock it down to 6:30 or 6:45 but I convinced myself that it really wouldn't make that much difference, and if I stuck with it I'd be done that much sooner. It worked! Garmin says I only burned 250 calories with this workout... something tells me that's inaccurate, but oh well. >_> Pretty stoked about the speeds here, and now I'm wondering about trying for a 5k or 8k PR sometime soon... we shall see what comes about.

Friday
Planned: rest
Did: yoga
#YogaFriday ☮✌

Saturday
Planned: 20 m 
Did: 20.7 mi (?)
Yeah, question mark there. I had some user error while operating my Garmin this morning (apparently starting it and stopping it in the right places is hard?) so I actually missed tracking a big chunk of my run. Thankfully I ran an out-and-back route, so I just measured the "out" distance and assumed it was about the same coming back. This is OK to do after the fact, but in-run was little challenging. My mental calculations were a bit off and I think I ran too far, but I'm really not sure. Oh well. So yeah this run felt a little wacky just not knowing how far I had to go or where I'd been.

I ran from the house to meet Robin at Furman, then we joined up for a 14-mile out-and-back towards downtown on the Swamp Rabbit. It felt nice to start off with, but by the time we turned around it had warmed significantly and we were both feeling the effects of the heat. Only now (2 hours later) I finally feel cooled down and fully normal. Plus coming home and immediately dealing with CRANKY toddler who was very much in need of his nap was a little challenging. But he's down now, and I'm mentally processing the run.

So yeah... I ran well over 20 miles today yet somehow it doesn't seem like it because my watch didn't show me the big 2-0 on the screen. How weird is that? I mean, physically I'm pretty darn sure I ran 20 miles today... I dunno, it's strange.

Foggy morning to start out

Sunrise over Paris Mountain from Furman

Good morning, Mr. Heron 

Oh, and by the end of the day, I'd earned this:

Sunday
Planned: 10 m
Did: 10.02 mi @ 9:32/mi avg
Nothing terribly impressive or notable about this run except for the fact that I did it.

Arguing with myself. GO RUN!

It took a lot of convincing to get myself up off the couch (after I'd gotten up, dressed, and gone downstairs). I had almost rationalized not going to run at all today, but my stubborn nature finally won out and I went for it. I'm glad I did, because it turned out to be a great run! It felt pretty nice outside and it was just a calm, quiet morning.

Shadows in the morning sun

I ran the Green Valley route backwards so of course saved the nice big hills for the end. My legs cooperated much better than I thought they would given how I felt at the end of the day yesterday. Hooray, done!

Miles this week: 51.12

Week ending thoughts: First week of 50+ mileage and OH BOY does it feel like it! I'm still feeling good and strong, but definitely looking forward to a bit less mileage next week. Happy with how everything went this week, though I think I need to do a better job of refueling after long runs. I get busy doing other things (shower, take care of toddler... well, that's about it) and then realize I should have eaten 2 meals! Have to remind myself that I can't actually make up for all the calories I burned with Ben & Jerry's ice cream (although I'd sure like to try!). :) Busy, busy week ahead, biggest challenge will be getting proper rest. Ready for it!

Charlotte Marathon Training - Week 10 of 18

Week 10 - double digits!

Week Beginning Thoughts: Really the only thing on my mind right now is "how the heck am I going to do 9 miles on Tuesday with a hurricane rolling through?" This will be interesting.

Monday
Planned: strength
Did: strength
Working from home due to #Irmageddon so improvised a quick strength routine. Did two rounds of my favorite, the Jenna Wolfe Hotel Pyramid Workout split by a round of P90X Ab Ripper X.

My calves are going to be sore tomorrow, like they always are, from the Pyramid workout. Lots of jumping. Oof.

Tuesday
Planned: 9 m
Did: 9.34 mi in 2 parts
Part 1: 5.66mi @ 9:00/mi avg
Headed out of work after my last meeting of the day to knock out as much of this run as I could get done before we had to leave to pick up D. Managed to squeeze in a bit over 5 and a half before we headed home.
Part 2: 3.68 mi @ 9:26/mi avg
Started off from daycare when we picked up D, Scott drove them home and I ran home. I knew it was approximately 3-3.5 miles to the house, so my run went a little long overall. Still, not bad. I was tired by the time this part started. Heck, the whole run felt like I was slogging through peanut butter. My legs just did NOT want to move. And it wasn't even hot or humid or anything! Nice and overcast. My calf muscles ARE sore, just like I predicted. Combination of that and the fact that it's late afternoon, my energy is hitting its low point for the day.
In summary, this is one of those "just get it done" runs. And it is done.

Wednesday
Planned: XT + 4m run
Did: 4.09 mi @ 8:48/mi avg
A little bit better today on pace, but man my calves are still sore. Plus, running late in the day yesterday + early today means legs are already tired. Weather was nice at least. Glad to get it done early today, even with the tired legs!

Thursday
Planned: 4 m run
Did: rest
I brought my bags to do speedwork on the treadmill today, but realized I've got the BMW 2-Miler tomorrow afternoon which should serve as sufficient speedwork. I'll add warm-up and cool-down to it to get to the 4 mile total I need. So today's a rest day.

Friday
Planned: rest
Did: 2 mi warm-up + BMW 2-Miler Race
BMW 2-Miler race report here.

Saturday
Planned: 9 m pace
Did: 9.01 mi @ 8:27/mi avg + 0.88 mi CD
I didn't mean to do an extra mile today, but a dog situation caused me to take a detour that took me farther (further?) from home than I intended to be.
I set out with zero route plans. I wasn't sure how today would go given it was just ~13 hours from previous race effort. I initially thought of just heading over to the Swamp Rabbit Trail and doing a simple out-and-back. I figured doing the bulk of the run on flat would make it easier. Then I realized, what was the point of making training easy on myself? The point is to do things that are difficult so that race day seems easier. So with that thought I took a left out of the neighborhood instead of a right and headed towards the hilly Green Valley route.

Morning fog over the pond entering GV

I felt good going through the neighborhood there, didn't look at my watch, but felt like I had a steady pace. Legs felt fine. At one point I realized that I'd forgotten my pepper spray and of course I started playing out scenarios in my head of what I would do if I encountered a bear. 🐻

I popped out the other side of GV, and headed back down Old White Horse Rd. The sun was getting warmer at this point and I reached my next turn-off at just past the half way point of my run. Time for a snack.

Ran out of Stinger waffles, but thankfully had a leftover from my last flight on United.
Best in-flight snacks EVER.

Continued on and planned to do a ~1-mile out-and-back then return to the neighborhood to finish out the miles. As I was trucking along, I heard rustling and barking from the woods behind me. Hello, dogs! I stopped and talked nicely to them, and they quickly lost interest... but I didn't feel like I wanted to take the chance of going back that direction again, so I continued forward. There were LOTS OF HILLS ahead of me.

Red arrow = heartrate spike at dog sighting. Then the hills started.

I stopped at the top of one pretty significant climb to check Google Maps - I basically knew where I was, but I was curious how much farther this route was going to take me. I calculated about an extra mile, and I was right. Not as bad as I thought, but this route was much hillier than I'd intended when I set out this morning. Great for a race pace tempo, right??

At least there were a few pretty sights on this route.

I plodded onward, stopping to walk a couple of times when I felt adrenaline getting the better of me. Eventually made it back to the main road and decided when I hit 9 miles I would stop and walk a bit, then jog the rest of the way home.

Apparently I was eager to finish, as my last mile was my fastest by a large margin! As I stopped my watch I caught a glimpse of my last split and said "oops". 😵

Walked a bit, then jogged home. Felt good but definitely glad to be done. Looking forward to some long slow miles tomorrow!

Sunday
Planned: 19 m
Did: 18.25 mi @ 12:00/mi avg with 6x30s strides
Robin and I headed up to a new route today for our long run... we've had several other runner friends mention Lake Summit before, but hadn't been there ourselves. It's a hard-packed gravel road that circles a lake just over the NC/SC border. Mostly flat with just two climbs at one end, total of a little over 9 miles per loop. We decided this would be a great weekend to try it out! We headed out before dawn to drive up and get started running right as the sun was up. The little park (Tuxedo Park) has a freshly-paved lot, bathroom facilities (🎉) and a playground. Perfect!

Fog over the lake

We set out on our first loop and felt good. It was really foggy, but a beautifully chilly morning. Nice and quiet. Pretty uneventful for the first half of the loop, then we came to The Hills. First was a climb up a gravel road that put us out onto the highway. Had to then run the shoulder of the highway up another decent climb before we got back onto the quiet road by the lake. They were challenging, but was kind of a nice change from the otherwise pancake-flat road.

One lap around the lake, 2 hills.

  

Climb up the highway and into the fog. 

We made it back to the park and took a pit stop for toilet facilities and food. Re-starting for Lap #2 was hard, both of us emitting an audible "ooooof" as we began running. We decided to avoid the hills on the second lap (and not run the risk of over-shooting distance) and we did an out-and-back of the first part of the loop. This was a good decision.

No more fog, but still pretty!

 We reached the start of the hill climbs and turned around for the final stretch. I decided to try out incorporating some strides into the final miles of my run after reading a Runner's World article a few days ago. The basic idea is you "surge" for a short time (I did 30 seconds) and recover in between. This forces your already-tired legs to do just a little more. I think the article I read said to shoot for ~10k pace (so not a sprint, but fairly fast). I set out thinking I'd do 4, but ended up doing 6. I think I did them too fast, because by the last one I was definitely dead! Still, pretty happy with how these felt and will be incorporating them into more of my long runs.

It's also a nice distraction in the final miles of the long run. The legs go "oh boy, something new and different!" Not really, but it's a good mental break, too.

We finished up and were both DONE. So done that we didn't even get a post-run selfie. Drove home, parted ways, and immediately indulged in shower + lukewarm coffee (a post-run favorite).

Ahhh, much better.

Miles run this week: 45.65 mi 😵

Week-ending thoughts: After a rough few runs to start the week, I'm really pleased with how the week ended! I know my toughest weeks are ahead, so I'm trying to mentally prepare myself for that. Physically I feel really good, and I think I'm right where I should be for this training cycle.

Race Report: BMW 2-Miler Performance Classic

This is the penultimate race of the Corporate Shield race series, and is always a family favorite. It's a rare Friday evening race, and being a good German company, they serve soft pretzels and German beer afterwards. The race is held on the performance test track at the Greer BMW Performance Center. It's unique and kind of a cool thing to get to do, plus afterwards you can sign up to do "Hot Laps" where the performance drivers take you squealing around the track in one of the souped-up sports cars. Pretty neat to watch.

This year was a little bit different feel because unfortunately just as the last walkers were finishing the race, one of the young elite athletes collapsed near the finish line (he'd finished well before it happened). Everyone watched as ambulances and fire trucks came, paramedics took turns doing chest compressions. Eventually he was loaded into an ambulance, and we're still not sure of the outcome. So they cancelled doing award announcements or Hot Laps, and just told everyone to wrap up and go home. A bit of a somber ending to the night.

But back to the actual race itself!

I was flying solo for this race (Scott & D had a boys' night out) so I left work and went straight to the event site. Got there plenty early, picked up my bib, and hung around chatting with other Milliken team members. With about 35 minutes to go before the start time, I headed out on the track for a warm-up. I planned (and did) 2 miles for warm up with a couple of half-hearted strides thrown in at the end.

Who says test tracks are flat?!

I felt alright, but still very unsure of my plans/goals. I quickly made some.

Expectation goal: 14:xx
I felt pretty sure I could hit something under 15:00 (a 7:30/mi pace). Having run a 7:46/mi average pace for my half marathon PR, it seemed reasonable to expect to run 15s faster per mile for just TWO.

Stretch goal (PR): 13:xx
Having not really focused on short-distance speedwork (because duh, marathon training) I really wasn't sure if a sub-7 pace was in the cards for me. My PR for this race was set the first time I did it back in 2013, with a 14:40. Could I PR today? by how much? I had no idea.

So, with those sketchy and hastily-made goals in mind, I headed to the start.

The start gun went off and there we went... I started pretty close to the front, so I had a mix of people rushing past me plus sprinting away in front of me, and eventually moving around past some people. It was a good idea though, because I avoided any frustrating traffic jams. Halleluia. It's not a huge race (~800) but that's a decent number to squish onto a test track.

The course

The first half mile or so goes on a down slope (#1 above), then turns and climbs back up the biggest "hill" (marked #2) of the race. I say hill because it's really not big or steep, but trying to go as fast as one goes on a 2-mile race, it feels significant. I was running near a guy who had is phone or watch loudly announcing the time and pace at every quarter mile, which I typically find annoying but thinking back it actually helped me know that I was on a good pace and didn't NEED to push any harder at the start. That may have helped me maintain pace through the back half of the race.

Mile 1: 6:29

I'd lost the pace-announcing-phone guy right around Mile 1, so I didn't know my first mile split. I knew it was sub-7 or close to it, so I told myself to hold a steady pace and I'd get a PR for sure. Hooray for not needing a negative split!

The middle part of the race went pretty steadily. I felt strong through the "tease finish" where they take you almost up behind the finish line, then turn you back around for another out-and-back before you actually get to round the final curve to the finish. Thankfully I knew it was coming and I knew where the finish line was, so I could time my "kick" right. I felt myself starting to fade with about a half or quarter mile to go (I didn't look at my watch, just guessing). I let myself just run steady for the final straightaway before the finish curve, just to save a little bit for the finish. As I rounded the curve, I saw the HUGE finish clock that read 13:2x... I knew that a PR and a sub-14 was in my grasp, but I'd have to fight to the very end for it. That final curve is longer than it feels like it should be.

Sprint, sprint, sprint, almost there... FINISH.

YESSSS!!!!!

Happy on the track!

I was shocked... did not think I had a sub-14 in my tank, but there you have it. I love this "compare" feature on Garmin...

4 years of races

• First race and PR was from 2013, when I was just 2 weeks away from doing a half Ironman tri (aka the best shape of my life...until now?)
• 2015 was at 4 months post-partum
• 2016 I was back to "normal"

... and then there was today. 🙌😀💪💪

Part of the Milliken Team 

Gorgeous sunset over the track

Charlotte Marathon Training - Week 9 of 18

Whoa, halfway mark!

Week Beginning thoughts: I got SO MUCH REST this weekend, it was fabulous and 100000% needed. I feel so much better mentally and physically.

Monday
Planned: strength
Did: zilch
Labor Day holiday and I had to drive back home from the lake, so I did no exercise. Will plan to lift on Friday instead since I have only ONE long run this weekend (whaaaaat) though it will not be a half marathon race. Just a 13-ish mile run.

Tuesday
Planned: 9 m run
Did: 4.5 mi + 3.1 mi w/ Pint & Pie Pub Run group = 7.6 @ 8:44/mi avg
I'd hoped to get all 9 miles done tonight, but a few factors made that a less than appealing option. For starters, it's an evening pre-dinner run which means my energy is at its LOWEST. Still, I had snacks in the car and decided to press onward. It wasn't feasible to do 9 miles during work (uh, hello 2 hour lunch break?), and pre-dawn run wasn't an option since Scott is traveling for work (can't leave little dude home alone!). So after work was it. Thankfully, there's always the Pint & Pie pub run group that runs 3 miles from Sidewall Pizza in TR at 6pm. I planned to run beforehand, run the 3 miles, then have pizza afterwards with the group. I left work at a decent time, but daycare pick-up was slow (kids were on the playground, then D needed to drink water before we left) so we didn't get started running until about 5:15. I would have set some speed records to get 6 miles done in less than 45 minutes, plus I needed to pee before the pub run started. We ended up getting 4.5 miles done (8:28/mi avg) in about 40 minutes, which allowed me time to take a pit-stop before the group set off.
I started off at a speedy clip with the group, but slowed drastically as the run went on. Ended up averaging 9:08/mi for the 3 mile run. I was HUNGRY. Also, it started to rain. Thankfully we got done with the run just as the bottom really let out, and it thunderstormed the rest of the evening. We did enjoy pizza, though - D ate nearly 2 whole slices!

Pizza & Beer = Recovery Food

I plan to make up the miles that I missed with the other runs this week, so instead of 4-milers they'll both be 5-milers.


Wednesday
Planned: XT + 4 m run
Did: 5 m treadmill PRO @ 8:54/mi avg
Rainy morning = treadmillin' it. Decided on a casual speedwork progression run.
1 WU
800m segmented progression (paces at 9:00/8:40/8:20/8:00/7:40)
400m @ peak (7:15/mi)
1200 CD
Felt good, not too hard. A little challenging running ~12 hours after the last run! I guess that's good training for the upcoming Bourbon Chase Relay. 😁

Thursday
Planned: 4 m run #speedworkThursday (Tempo maybe?)
Did: 5.03 mi @ 7:54/mi
Since I did speedwork on the treadmill yesterday I opted to "just run" and enjoy the GORGEOUS 55-degree weather this morning. SO EXCITED FOR FALL RUNNING. I felt like I was working hard and was worried I was struggling to keep a good pace... turns out I was just running fast. ;) Whee!

Could almost see my breath!

Friday
Planned: rest
Did: strength
Got a new Pandora station cranking today to fit the mood... mix of Three Days Grace, Disturbed, Breaking Benjamin, Linkin Park, and other such bands. Good stuff. Glad I decided to lift instead of yoga since tomorrow is a rest day.

Went up in weights/reps on a few!

So far it looks like Irma won't hit us until Monday or Tuesday, and we're still not sure what kind of impact she'll have. But of course everyone is freaking out and the stores are sold out of bottled water. And I'm just over here like "Well at least the weekend looks gorgeous!" 😂

Beeline straight for us!

Saturday
Planned: rest
Did: rest
Well, I guess I had 2 hours of choreography rehearsal with the Vocal Matrix front row... but that's not really a workout. It felt WEIRD to take a total weekend rest day. I didn't know what to do with myself.

Sunday
Planned: Half Marathon 13 m hard run
Did: 13.67 mi with 1,600 ft elevation gain
Robin and I tackled the Paris Mountain Road Race route today. Per the race website, "With over 2500 vertical feet of elevation gain, 89 curves, and some hills at 15% grade, the Paris Mountain Road Race 20k lives up to its billing as the TOUGHEST RACE IN THE SOUTH." Oh yes. The mountain did not disappoint today, and we had the pleasure of some gorgeously chilly temps!

Sunrise through the trees on the climb

We made it! Ok, now just 11 miles to go...

Pretty flowers on the roadside

We were up there!

Nice.

It was a tough run, especially since you get through the initial climb and you're really not even a quarter of the way done with the run! Even the back side of the mountain coming downhill isn't all downhill. Then you get into the roller coaster of the remaining half of the run, which is challenging enough on its own, but with tired legs is even more so. Still, we pressed through it and got it done in under 3 hours - and I'll brag on Robin who ran the whole way up the mountain without stopping!! #beastmode

Total Miles this week: 31.31
Week-ending thoughts: Officially halfway through my training. After 40-mile weeks, this one seemed like a breeze! I guess it's supposed to... Still, I think I'm excited to get back to the higher mileage this coming week? Maybe it's the cooler temperatures, but it seems my energy and excitement has been renewed. Yippee!

Charlotte Marathon Training - Week 8 of 18

Almost the same as last week.

Week Beginning Thoughts: I finally did it! Guess I'm really doing this thing.

I realized last week that I have a trip for work scheduled Nov. 8-10. I'm planning to fly in and out of Charlotte, but hoping that I don't get back super late on Friday night. Eeeks!


Monday
Planned: strength
Did: strength
Good lifting today. Felt strong, nothing really hurts or feels bad from the long hard efforts this weekend. Is that weird?

Tuesday
Planned: 8 m run
Did: 8.02mi @ 9:19/mi avg - Paris Mountain run
Had an afternoon dentist appointment and the weather was decently cool (YAY), so I took the opportunity to run up Altamont / Paris Mountain. So you could call this a singular hill repeat? Started from Furman bookstore lot, around the back of campus, and up Altamont.

To the top of that! 

Immediately when I started, my legs were sore from lifting on Monday... I wasn't sure how well I would do with the climb since I've not run a lot of hills this training cycle. I made the decision that, whatever the pace, I was not going to walk at all. From the turn onto Altamont to the "You Made It" line is 2.15 mi and an elevation gain of 738 feet (based on Garmin's data this time around). It climbs 80 feet in the last ~0.15 mi alone, which is a nice kick in the butt when you're already d.o.n.e.

Ascent - 24:00
Descent - 18:18

Done!

Big Hill.

I felt really good that I did this! Will need to plan to work it into more of my training runs.

Wednesday
Planned: 4 m run
Did: 4.07 mi @ 8:41/mi avg
Just a regular ol' run today. Felt nice outside at lunch - overcast and not too warm. Hoorah! It appears my "whatever" pace is getting faster... loving this sub-9 default pace. :)

Also exciting...

Do you see those yellow leaves?!

Thursday
Planned: 4 m run #SpeedworkThursday
Did: 1 WU, 1200/800/800/400 @ 6:30/mi, 400 rest between each, 400 CD = 4.0 @ 8:00/mi avg
Rainy morning didn't matter much since I'd planned treadmill speedwork. Hopped on and warmed up for a mile, then got into the ladder workout. Decided to go hard and target 6:30 pace for all speed segments... achieved with no trouble! Felt good and strong in each speed segment, only started to feel a little fatigue towards the end of the second 800. The final 400 flew by. Maybe need to go even faster next time?? Whee!

Friday
Planned: rest
Did: yoga
#yogaFriday

Saturday
Planned: 8 or 17 m run
Did: 17.02 mi @ 9:44/mi avg
Whoa this was a tough one. We're at my parents' lake house at Lake Wateree for the Labor Day weekend, and I knew this run was going to be hard because I was going to be solo on the rolling hilly roads near the lake house. I was 100% accurate in my estimation, though pleasantly surprised at my overall pace! Did not think I'd hit sub-10 on these roads and it definitely didn't feel like sub-10 most of the time.

The elevation was wonky because it was an out-and-back course...
but you can still tell the rolling nature of the road!

I woke up without an alarm (🙌) a bit before 7, took my time having a small breakfast and getting myself out the door. I was running by a little before 8. I told myself to keep it slow and steady and not try to hit any kind of speed records. The temps were nice when I started out, though the patches in the sun were already a little warm.

 

I ran Lake Road (the road that basically circles the entire lake) with my target turn-around point at the Wateree Damn. I had to make a few extra loops because the Dam was only a bit over 7 miles from the house, so I took a side-trip down to the boat launch nearby. Had a nice view of the top side of the dam... the bottom, which I'd hoped to see, ended up being down a sketchy looking gravel/dirt road that I didn't feel like tackling solo.

Wateree Dam

Black Vulture Effigy

The vulture effigy was an odd thing to see. The vultures like to hang out near the dam because of the fish that get chopped up in the turbines. Apparently there's a problem with vultures attacking peoples' cars, so they installed a few effigies at strategic locations to ward them off. There was only a vulture leg hanging at this one, but usually there's an entire dead vulture. Lovely.

 

Country roads and tiny lizards.

I must have been eager to make it home ASAP because I had a STRONG negative split between the first 8 miles (10:01/mi avg) and the last 9 miles (9:39/mi avg) of this run. I was definitely glad when it was done, and very happy I only ("only") have 8 miles to do tomorrow. 

Sunday
Planned: 8 or 17 m run
Did: 8.06 mi @ 9:21/mi avg

Heart rate graph is a better representation of the elevation changes.

Another hilly run today, thankfully much shorter than yesterday. The legs were definitely tired, though as a whole I was much more rested because of a 2 hour nap yesterday plus 9 hours of sleep last night. Halleluia, that #lakelife. Nothing significant about today, just a nice easy 8.

More pretty lake views

Total Weekly Mileage: 41.17 mi

Week ending thoughts: Oh yes, still feeling that increased training volume with another 40+ week. It's not as bad as I thought it would be, considering my normal/baseline training rarely touches 30 mpw. This week's solo long runs reminded me how hard solo running is! I haven't done this kind of distance on my own at all so far this training cycle. I got some nice long hours inside my own head, but I definitely miss the company of my normal training buddies. I've also learned that I need more sleep. Physically I'm fine with whatever, but mentally I'm much more on my game and positive in general if I've gotten the right amount of Zzzs. Definitely a challenge, but something I need to focus on. Also, I'm glad I *only* have one 13-mile run next weekend. 😊