A balance

For the first time since I started my triathlon quest 2 years ago, I am taking the running part seriously - committing to running 3-4 times a week, increasing mileage, adding drills, working on speed, with a long-term goal (Phila Half-marathon November 2008. No time goal yet - in a perfect world, sticking to 12 minutes/mile for the whole way would be a great accomplishment but it's too soon to know if that's within reach.)

One thing I observe about myself is that I tend to sag and trudge - I feel better and get a better workout if I try to feel a string holding me up by the head, off my feet (it's a familiar sensation from my years of dancing.) But I can't push it too hard or I get too tired too fast. When I ran wiht my colleague on Thursday, we did 2:45 run, 1min walk, in cycles til about 26 minutes and then walked the rest of the way back to cool down. Today on my own, I did 4/1 (new, gently rolling course up Rte 41 out of Salisbury) and kept going an extra 1:30 on the last cycle, ending at about 31:30 and walking another 5 or so. (This is still way less than my peak last fall but I'm building steadily.) The challenge is keeping a pace that is hard but not too hard - I could trudge forever, but I want to be really running. So when I get to the 4 minute mark, I NEED that break. I suppose that's similar to using my heart rate as a guide, but my HRM is so unreliable I feel that relying on this perceived effort is, in the long run, going to be better training. (This is all unscientific - just my gut feeling.) I did this run without my mp3 player, just focusing on my surroundings, my breath, my form. I feel good!

So: stats for this past week, Monday - Sunday: 45 minutes spin, 1:35 run total (3 sessions); 1 brief weight workout (home); 2 brief abs / core workouts; 1 yoga class. No swimming because of the snow day Friday, and no elliptical because I was in a hurry yesterday. Pretty good, but I want to get both the missed workouts in next week.

Schedule for the coming week: Monday home weights/core; Tuesday spin and run. Wednesday home weights/core. Thursday run, Friday swim, Saturday Pilates/elliptical, Sunday long run. i.e. something real EVERY day. Eat with awareness, choosing my food, not letting it choose me. Get plenty of sleep (don't stay up late to watch the end of the Oscars - I'll pay for it all week if I do!)

I feel a shift - I feel like I'm in training again after several months of wandering in the mental wilderness. It feels good!