Week 3 – MCM training

Week 3 – MCM training

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Monday – my Fun workout consisted of playing frisbee and jump rope for about 30 minutes.

Tuesday – easy 4 mikes with bestie in our neighborhood. It was hot and humid.

Wednesday – I was excited to get back to yoga but was disappointed when I learned our instructor was not present and someone else was subbing.

 thursday – this temp run proved to be challenging as I could not get to my tempo pace. 

 

Week 3 – MCM training

week 2 – MCM training

 

WARMED UP AND READY TO GO
WEEK 2 AT A GLANCE
WEEK 2 M TU WED TH FRI SAT SUN
  E: 3 miles 
(optional)

4 miles
optional:
middle 2 at race pace

(not optional)

Rest or XT 6 miles:
3 + 3 with negative split
E: 3-4 miles LR: 10 miles  optional:
5-10 minute strong finish

 

OFF

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was so lucky to be able to spend this week in Acadia National Park where I ran mostly on the Park Loop Road. I did run on Rt. 3 as well as the Carriage Roads, but less so. The challenge was balancing a family vacation with my training as well as my husband’s triathlon training. We made it work and had a great week.

 

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Monday – 3 miles – [5:43pm and sunny 61*] I went for an evening run after initially setting up camp. I set out to go do 3 easy miles on Park Loop Rd. My Garmin did not pick up signal until I was out of the campground, so I actually ran almost 1/2 mile extra. I went Right on the road and was immediately struck by the beauty. What a great way to start the week.

Tuesday – 4 miles – [9:24am and cloudy 64*] I went left on Park Loop rd. Once again, I encountered long gradual hills, a well paved road, and few cars. I focused on running miles 2 and 3 at race pace, but wasn’t too clear on what that should be. I saw a fox cross the road and stare at me at 3.4 miles. That freaked me out!

Wednesday – a rest day – not really since we did a lot of walking while we were out exploring the island and then in Bar Harbor in the evening. I didn’t track my miles, but I should have!

Thursday – 4 miles – [8:19am and sunny 63*] – I swapped Friday and Thursday’s training runs after starting out with Brenna on her bike on the carriage roads at Jordan Pond and only making it 1.3 miles before turning back. The hills were a lot more than what I remembered. I proceeded to get some mileage once Brenna was back at the car and I could keep an eye on her.

Friday – 6 miles – This morning [7:35am and sunny 63*]I set off down Rt. 3 towards Seal Harbor and again found many long hills. There were few cars, no runners and no bikers. I focused on keeping my pace slow for the first 3 miles since the workout had me doing the last 3 miles faster than the first 3 [negative split]. I knew this would be a challenge given the hills, but I did it!

Saturday – 10 miles – I woke up at 5:45 [sunny 55*] and was off and running at 6:17, because Brian had to do a crazy workout [3:50 bike and then run]. I had no breakfast, but took fruit snacks and Power Gels with me. I fueled at 35 min. and 65 min. and had no GI issues. Thank goodness I ran by Thunder Hole where they had much needed bathrooms.  It was a perfect morning. I had another animal encounter – this time a deer. I felt her eyes on my as I running by her and turned to my left and there she was about 10 feet from me. She startled me, but did not scare me like the fox did.

Sunday – Rest Day – We packed up and left Blackwoods Campground by 10:00 am and set off towards home. 

Week 3 – MCM training

week 1 – MCM training

WEEK 1 AT A GLANCE
WEEK 1 M TU WED TH FRI SAT SUN
 June 22 E: 3 miles +
2-4 strides
E: 4 miles Rest or XT 1-2 mile WU; Tempo: 1.5 miles; 1-2 mile CD
(not optional)
Rest or XT

 

LR: 8 miles

 

OFF
 

I am happy to report that week 1 is done. Besides some left hip pain at the beginning of the week (which resolved itself quickly), I have no complaints. I completed each of my workouts including cross-training (yoga) on Wednesday and Friday and felt great getting back to yoga. On Thursday, I had a run gait analysis done.  This is something I have wanted to do for a while and I was excited to have won a gift certificate to have this done. I went prepared to run and brought both pairs of sneakers. I ran on the treadmill and was videotaped from 2 different angles.  

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I was happy to hear that a lot of what I am doing is good. Some issues found were that I am collapsing on my left side and I am driving my right shoulder forward more than I should. She gave me some tips – pretend like I am holding a potato chip between my pointer and thumb and drive my elbows straight back. She also told me to remember my alignment and use my core to remain upright because as I tire I will lose my good form. She also had me run to a metronome although my natural cadence is already averaging around 173 and they say 180 is ideal – so she said I was pretty close already. No change in sneakers. She gave me some exercises for injury prevention (hip raises, single leg bridges, side steps with resistance band, planks).  This was a great experience and one I would recommend to anyone interested in seeing how they run.

My runs since the analysis have been great. I  feel like I can run at a steady pace without much effort, while focusing on my fingers and elbows. There were also a few times where I felt like I was sitting back and was able to correct this by paying attention to my core.

All in all, this week was a great one.