GBN: Week 8

Posted: September 13, 2012 | Author: Noelle's Notebook | Filed under: Gross But Necessary, Health and Wellness, Ridiculousness | Tags: Adirondacks, exercise, Farmer Ben, GBN, Gross But Necessary, health, health and wellness, healthy-living, hill workouts, long runs, Ragnar Relay, running, training, workouts |Leave a comment

First of all-Shout-out to Jenny J for joining MFP! Hooray!

This week was a big step up from last.

1. Friday Night-3 miles. I was disgusted with myself after over-sleeping on Friday morning, so I packed a bag with my running gear and made up my mind that I would run after work at the restaurant. I was tired but I headed to my usual spot for night runs. I kicked out three miles in just under 27 minutes. This surprised me because I felt slow.

2. Sunday-5.1 miles. The hubs and I headed out on this beautiful afternoon and did a loop near our house. I had done the same run in reverse and thought it would be cake. Little did I know that this direction was a bit more difficult-it is slightly uphill for pretty much the first two miles. No big deal.

My body was protesting for the first half of the run but then I found my stride and I took off. I definitely could have run another few miles but we were short on time so five miles it was.  We did it in 49 minutes and change. Not too shabby!

After the run, I did some planks. It was hard and my body was pretty mad at me the next day. But I think this will become a habit.

3. Monday-8.2 miles with HILLS!  Over the weekend, the hubby and I drove down to where the last legs of our relay will be run. Ben’s happens to be a HUGE hill, so we decided we needed a practice run. After work, we headed south and parked the car at the exchange point. We ran 4.1 miles to where Ben will hand off the slap bracelet.

Let me tell you, it was STEEP. When we got to the top of the first hill, I started thinking, “okay, we’re getting close!” Then Ben informed me that we had only gone 1.5 miles. In spite of this, we kept a good pace and even picked it up a little toward the end.

Once we reached the exchange point, we paused for a moment to relish the fact that we had completed the run, then turned around and headed back. For the return trip, we walked some of the way in order to enjoy the amazing Adirondack scenery. We even saw a few deer!

When we got back to the car, we were exhausted, sore and absolutely starving. But it was totally worth it.

Tuesday-Rest Day. I didn’t want it to be, but my entire body ached. I did manage to do a few sets of planks, though!

Wednesday-8.0 miles. This was hard. My mind was not in it–and when it was, I was over thinking! I found my groove after mile 2 and was feeling pretty good, but with three miles left, my body started protesting. My calves and lower legs were so tight, I could barely move. I stopped and walked for a little bit, hoping that would help. It didn’t. I managed to finish the run, but it was rough.

Upon reaching my driveway, I did a bit more walking to try to loosen up. It didn’t work.

Total Mileage: 24.3 Miles

Overall: I’d say this week was excellent. I managed to get in some solid mileage and did some pretty challenging runs.

 I’m still trying to figure out my lower leg pain and I am wondering if it’s something to do with my shoes. Any thoughts and advice are definitely appreciated.

It felt good to get some distance in and I definitely feel myself getting faster.

Goals for Next Week: Complete an 8 mile (or longer) run-no stops. I won’t be satisfied til I do this. Figure out–and hopefully cure–this leg pain.

How were your workouts this week? Did you have any challenges that you pushed through?

Happy Running!

---