So Far So Good
I can’t believe this is already my fourth week back! It is also my last do-whatever-I-want-when-I-want-because-I-said-so and it was MUCH harder to push myself out the door than I expected. I am kind of surprised by this considering I was counting the months/weeks/days/hours/minutes until I would be at it again but then again I have had 5 months off from running!
For me it’s torturous coming back and starting all over from the beginning – and from the beginning I mean everything from getting more rest at night, re-adjusting my diet, low mileage, slow pace and getting used to my training program (Hal Higdon, my hero). The last three weeks I have managed to run around 15 miles a week without a problem. This week will be more like 20.
I am trying to mix it up this season so I can be more of a balanced runner by consistently incorporating pilates/yoga (yoga is tough for me since I can barely touch my toes without pulling something), light strength training, track and REST (somehow I will squeeze that one in)!
Next week will be Week 1 of Hal Higdon’s Advanced II training schedule – I used it for CIM and it was perfect. I don’t follow it religiously, especially since I have certain types of workouts on certain days (track is on Tuesday and pilates is on Thursday for example) and I’ll adjust it and modify it while following the basics.
Below is a snippet of the program. If you want more info, just click on the hyperlink above and you can actually get a detailed description of each workout by clicking on the week number.
http://www.halhigdon.com (Advanced II)
Thanks to everyone for all the positive words of encouragement – below is the proof! XOXO
Trace B. 
I used the Hal Higdon Intermediate II earlier this year and it worked beautifully – I wanted a 3:40 and finished the Sugarloaf Marathon in 3:39:19. Ran a negative split the last 13 miles. But what was even more rewarding was x’ing off each run and to see a page of 18 weeks worth of x’s come raceday was a terrific feeling. Like Dean Karnazes says, preparation and not taking short cuts in your training is such a huge mental advantage. On mile 23 I visualized that Higdon printout with the x’s on it and it helped enormously because I knew I did the work. Monday crosstraining is key, too. It kept me loose – I did (still do) 75 minutes of Taekwondo on Mondays & Weds and it has really improved my flexibility and mental resilience, something to fall back on during those last few miles when you’re on empty. Anyway, stay healthy and best of success in achieving your goals!
October 27, 2010 at 6:01 am