Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Half marathon training: Check-in #5 and Help a Reader.

Welcome to check-in #4!

(More information on the Happy Runner Half Marathon Challenge can be found HERE)



Some weeks are just better than others. And, on the other hand, some are worse. Last week was, well, worse. Not terrible, just not as good as my weeks had been going.


I had a sore hamstring all week. NOT at all what I want at this point in my training. But, that's life and so I'm dealing with it. I had to cut my midweek 6 mile run short (by a lot) and I skipped my Friday run. I also iced like crazy and rolled out the sore muscle and stretched well. The upshot? My long run felt GREAT and I made up Friday's run on Sunday and that felt really good, too! 


Now, the hammie is mostly feeling OK but I'm going to keep on icing, rolling and stretching to keep it that way.


I also have to admit that my lack of sleep is really starting to catch up with me. I'm glad last week was a cut-back week because I wouldn't have been able to survive an increase in mileage. This week? Well, we'll see. I think that the extra rest I had last week will serve me well for the increases planned for the next few weeks. 


Anyway, here's what I had planned to run / what I ran

Mon: 4.5 easy / Close: 3.25 easy

Tues: rest / Done! 
Wed: 6 miles w/4 @ tempo / Nope:  I had to stop at 2.25 because my hammie was just too tight/sore.
Thurs: rest /yup
Fri: 4 miles easy / Nope: Took an extra rest day.
Sat: 6.5 mile long run / Done! Ran outside and felt terrific. My hamstring didn't bother me a bit!
Sun: rest / Nope: Ran 4 miles outside and, again, felt great.


Total mileage: 21 / 15.7



C'est la vie. I can't worry that my week didn't go entirely as planned. I still worked hard and, more important, I listened to my body and gave it what it needed. 


*     *     *


Now, some questions from a reader!! Can you help?


Darlene asks:


As a newbie half marathoner, I have a few questions:
1)How soon can I do another? I trained for the lst one for 12 wks. I'm thinking of doing a 2nd on Apr 23 which gives me a 2 wk break before 12 wk training.


2) How do I avoid injury? My friend ran a half in Oct and then trained for another Jan 16 & wound up running it with a hip stress fracture.


3) Is training for 2nd hm different from the first? I know I can now so I will probably want to do more than just finish.
 

Share your knowledge -- please :-)


How's your training going? Are you staying motivated during these wintry months?


I have to say that I am super glad that I am training for this half marathon because having a big goal is making me stick to my plan and get out and run when I am supposed to. Quite a feat with the weather we've been having in upstate New York!


Have a great week, everyone. Happy running!


~ Felice


PS: Stonyfield Farm & Physician's Formula giveaway HERE!

8 comments:

Denise said...

hope the hamstring is feeling ok. better to play it safe and take an extra rest day than to push it.

Marlene said...

Sometimes you have to roll with the punches! Glad you are feeling better after taking a couple of days off.

Party of Eleven said...

Hi Felice ~ I hope your leg feels better. It sounds like it was wise of you to stop because of tightness. I hope you get some good sleep this week! I am also a newb, so I'll let the more experienced runners have a go with Darlene's questions :) I had a good week last week ~ took an extra rest day Saturday because I ran a 5K on Sunday. I'm happy with my 7 miles so far this week :)

Liz said...

Glad the hammie is feeling better. I hope it continues that way!

Lisa said...

Sorry it's been a tough week for you. Hopefully the hamstring will continue to get better and you'll find some time to get a little sleep!

Heather's Fitness Spot said...

Glad you're feeling better! I'm sure between that and the cold, it's always a challenge to get out and run! But each day is a step closer to your half! Good luck! :-)

Marci said...

Good to take a few extra rest days now thent to run injured, glad its feeling better.

Quix said...

Missing a couple runs this early is no biggie - I missed almost 2 full weeks training due to back injuries and I was plenty ready. Lookin' good!

As for reader advice (scuze the long reply), I have never done two halfs that close, but I did do a sprint tri (500m swim, 12 mile bike, 5k run), then 6 weeks later did an olympic tri (1500m swim, 26 mile ride, 10k run), and then 6 weeks later ran a half an PR'd by 8 minutes. I AM NOT A COACH OR DOCTOR OR EVEN REALLY KNOW ANYTHING AT ALL... but... if I was in the situation, this is what I'd do...

I would take a week off, then continue to maintain the distance runs each week (keep your long run in the 8-12 mile range), but decrease the intensity for a while to give your legs a bit of a rest. With about 6 weeks to go, I'd start really pushing the speedwork, and make SURE to do a 2 week taper (you'll need the rest).

I knew I was going to be in the sitch I was in, so I trained up to 9 miles on my long runs before the tri - took one week off after the race, did 10,11, 12, 8, then race.

Caveat - I only train 3 days a week running. Max. The other 2 are speedwork/tempo so each session is a serious, quality session, I don't do throwaway ladeda miles (Some people swear by them, I'm sure our beloved Happy Runner feels differently, I just am not wired to run slow like that). If you're a 5-6 a week runner you may want to modify in other ways (read: less)

I've only done 3 halfs, but I LOVE dorking on training plans. ;)

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