Marathon Training Week 2

Monday: Planned: Rest - Actual: Rest
I wasn't sure how my body would react to the slower than normal pace during Sunday's 10 miler, but I felt great when I woke up and decided to take Jack and the dogs for a walk. Later in the day I did an upper body (30 dumbbell curls, 30 overhead presses and 30 standing rowers), core (30 press ups, 50 sit ups and 30 squats) and lower body (30 forward lunges, 30 backwards lunges, 30 one-legged squats and 30 toe raises) workout.

Tuesday: Planned: 3 miles - Actual: 5 miles (Baby Jogger)
It was hot on Tuesday morning and I decided to see how running without a top on would feel. I love my technical shirts that "wick moisture" away from my skin but even they don't work very well when the heat (80F) and humidity (85%) are as high as the were for this run - I end up wearing a top that is full of sweat for the majority of the run and still being covered in moisture once the shirt reaches its saturation point. I felt a little cooler without a shirt but I really enjoyed not having to wear a saturated shirt of 40 minutes! The run itself was uneventful apart from the fact that I passed the 700 mile mark for 2011!
Stats: 5 miles, 41:13, 8:14/mile average pace

Wednesday: Planned: 5 miles - Actual: 5 miles (Baby Jogger)
With the temperature being about the same as yesterday (78F) and the humidity a touch higher (88%) I ran topless again and enjoyed it. I wore my Nike Free 3.0's again to give my feet a little break from my New Balance Minimus Road's and ran at about the same pace as yesterday.
Stats: 5 miles, 40:52, 8:10/mile average pace

Thursday: Planned: 3 miles - Actual: 5 miles
I had planned to run at the NCRC Social Run this evening but after a minor car accident occurred on our driveway (no injuries, but the Subaru is now in the shop), I didn't really have time to get to Crabtree Valley Mall for the run. I took out my frustration in the best way possible - with a hard run. The sun was out at 6:30pm with a temperature of 86F but lower than normal humidity at 38%. I left Jack at home with Granny, took my hand held water bottle with me to make sure I stayed hydrated and went out on Durant Road and ran to Capital Hills and back. I took half a mile to warm up and then put in miles of 6:58, 7:03, 7:23 and 7:18. I certainly felt better after my run.
Stats: 5 miles, 36:32, 7:18/mile average pace

Friday: Planned: Rest - Actual: Rest
I did an upper body (30 dumbbell curls, 30 overhead presses and 30 standing rowers), core (30 press ups, 50 sit ups and 30 squats) and lower body (1 minute eyes close single leg balances, 30 one-legged squats and 30 toe raises) workout.

Saturday: Planned: 5 miles - Actual: 5 miles @ Marathon Pace
I took the opportunity to run without Jack on a cooler than normal morning (67F, 78% humidity) and went for a Marathon Pace Run along the new Upper Neuse Greenway. I had run on this Greenway (which is still under construction) a couple of months ago, so I wanted to see what progress had been made. I set out with 8:30/mile in mind but passed the first mile point at 8:16. I had been running very conservatively and even checking my watch frequently, but I still couldn't seem to settle in to an 8:30/mile rhythm. I completed the next two miles both in 8:16 and laughed to myself that at least I was consistent. The Greenway had only been extended by about half a mile in the two months so I still had to backtrack twice (who knows when they'll actually finish it and I hope it was a fixed price contract!). I finished out with miles of 8:25 and 8:11 and hardly even broke a sweat! It really was a nice change to have such a cool morning.
Stats: 5 miles, 41:28, 8:17/mile average pace

Sunday: Planned: 11 miles - Actual: 11 miles
I ran my long run with Steph and Christopher again this week at Shelley Lake. The cooler weather was still around (72-75F, 65% humidity) and we enjoyed the chance to get 11 miles in. We ran a slightly different route this week and used the Alleghany Trail which has a small area that is unpaved and a large set of stairs that you have to use to get from the Trail along Crabtree Creek up to the road. It also has more hills than the route that takes us along behind Crabtree Valley Mall (which we ran last week).
Stats: 11 miles, 1:54:05, 10:22/mile average pace

Total for Week 2: 31 miles