Great North Run: Training Week 7

MONDAY: today I felt I really needed a run to give myself a bit of head space after a lot of important decision making over the weekend (I hate making decisions at the best of times!)  An 8k loop followed by Body Pump was just what I needed to finalise and confirm things in my mind.

TUESDAY: Body Attack class. With a new release of tracks impending the instructor mixed things up this week with a selection of older and newer workouts. The class was absolutely full of lunges, including these jumping air lunge type exercises (!), as well as featuring a really tough 'floor' track targeting the core, triceps and chest - an enjoyable challenge!

WEDNESDAY: the DOMS from Body Attack hit instantly today, just sitting up in bed I could feel my glutes were sore, my chest was sore and my core was very, very sore - it just shows what mixing up from your usual routine does to your body! By the time it came to my scheduled 12k run later in the day I was still tender, so I took it fairly steady, aiming to stick to 5 minute/kilometre pace. This I achieved fine, but in my Body Pump class afterwards I began to feel tired and the DOMS were making their presence known - I felt almost a fraud standing next to my friend who is in the midst of a full on marathon training programme!

THURSDAY: an 8k outdoor intervals session - week two of sticking to my no treadmill running rule! My plan suggested 6 x sprints should be incorporated into the run, however once I started I really enjoyed the fast paced sections, so ended up doing 30 seconds of sprints at every half a kilometre.

FRIDAY: Rest Day

SATURDAY: my friends and I ventured to Lincoln Park Run today, a run in which I came frustratingly close to my current 5k PB, recording at 22.39 finish time - just two seconds away! Any disappointment was soon lost however amongst the - clearly deserved - post Park Run cake my friends and I enjoyed!

SUNDAY: today's run can only be described as hideous. I ran with my friend and as soon as we started we knew it was going to be a tough run. The wind was strong and we had also misjudged just how hot it was due to be, heading out close to 10am was not a good idea. Despite this, the first 8km of the planned 16k run was ok (see happy photo next to my surname road sign!), we were on pace, with the wind even offering a bit of relief from the sun. But, as I reached the half way point, all energy seemed to drain instantly from my legs. It was suddenly an effort to lift them from the ground and my pace rapidly dropped. I had absolutely nothing in me, with another 8k still to go! Despite encouraging my friend to run ahead, she stayed with me, which I am really grateful of. Together we plodded the remainder of the route, which I can honestly say felt worse than the last section of the London Marathon this year! I was now running at my old marathon pace and it felt pedestrian! Any tiny stoppage, when we had to wait to cross roads, saw a pins and needles sensation begin to wash over my legs, which made restarting running again even harder. Needless to say this last 8k was a massive struggle, but I was determined I would not walk. And I didn't, but when my Garmin hit 16k I definitely stopped! Why was it such a bad run? I think it was a combination of factors; 1) overdoing things in the week; Body Attack clearly had a big impact on me, I added more intervals than suggested on my plan, and ran a Park Run 2) ignoring my plan; for today's run it said I should run 10k, not 16k, which must be suggested for a reason! 3) poor nutrition; as I touched on earlier, I have had a lot of things happening in my life outside of running (yes it exists!) the last couple of weeks, and when under stress or feeling upset, my eating generally goes to pot. Overall, I think I was therefore paying for a week of bad choices all round! I will put the run behind me, learn from it, and now happily head into week eight of training!