Gold Coast HM Training Weeks 1-2 {AKA the time I figured out how to insert GIFs on blogger}

Sooooo where were we? Oh, riiiight I was going to do weekly training posts.  Haha, lol. Did anyone really think that was going to happen?

Lolz even more. Gifs are my life sometimes.

Anyway, as for actual training, the last few weeks I have stayed in the high 40s in mileage. Nearly all my easy runs are in the 8:45-9:15 range, (though getting a tad faster as it gets a little cooler).

I've stuck with one long run per week, and added a tempo at HM pace. I decided (on the expert advice of Kristen) to start small on the tempo, and to only do one workout (tempo or speed) per week. With my injury history, I just really don't think it is wise to try much more.

So without further ado:

Week 1 (10 weeks out from GCHM) 26 April - 2 May:
Sunday: 14 miles easy
Monday: off
Tuesday: 8 miles easy
Wednesday: 8 miles with 2 x 1 miles at HM pace
Thursday: off
Friday: 9 miles easy
Saturday: 7 miles easy.
Total: 46 miles

As for the tempo miles, wowza.  The aim of that run wasn't really to do a workout, per se. It was (1) to test out how HM pace felt, to get an idea of how much fitness I needed to build before Gold Coast HM, and (2) to ease my body into hard running.  I noted in my fastrunningblog that it was this time last year that I jumped from 41 to 50 miles in one week, and added 6 x 1 mile repeats at HM/10K pace. I got a SFx three days later. Eeek! SO, I wanted to be cautious and ease into the harder work.

The 2 x 1 miles were 6:49 and 6:41 with 0.5 mile jog recovery.  Honestly, I had a hard time dialing into that HM pace that used to feel so intuitive. Those miles were faster than what that pace should feel like; they felt much closer to 10K pace! It meant that I needed to aim a bit slower for next time... aaaaand that this slow-poke has lost a little fitness over the year!

Week 2  (3 May - 9 May) saw about the same stuff.
Sunday: 14 miles easy
Monday: off
Tuesday: 8 miles easy
Wednesday 9 miles easy
Thursday: 7.5 miles with 2 x 1.5 miles at HM pace.
Friday: off
Saturday: 6.5 miles easy.
Total: 45 miles

(The 6.5 because I cannot cope with a 0.5 mile hanging over me for the week. Yaaaay OCD.)

The 2 x 1.5 were 6:51 and 6:55 respectively, which is around where I need to be on pace. And I definitely felt the difference in effort!

And I'll go into details next post (AREN'T YOU ALL SUPREMELY LUCKY) but this week I moved up to 48 miles and had an encouraging tempo run. I'll gradually add intervals/distance to these - and with any luck will be able to string a few miles together at that pace come race day!

Overall though, even if I don't, it is just amazing to be back running again healthily. Last year was so mired in injury. Even when I was back running, it was that cautious "bugger-Im-about-to-injury-something" running. It hit me on the treadmill today, that I finally wasn't running in fear. Ugh, that's a terrible feeling.

The one positive aspect of it is that I'm much more diligent about running slowly, stretching, rolling and eating properly than I have been in the past. Especially the latter. I have generally monitored my weight, but for the first time, I've been just focusing on eating enough and whether it makes me feel good running. And I gotta say, running is worlds easier when you have enough calories in your system.

And on that note, I'll leave you with a couple of photos I took from Rozelle/Blackwattle Bay that I frequently run around.

Anyone else find themselves running in fear after a sustained period of injury? Do you feel like you're more conscious of doing all the right recovery things because of it? Does it make you feel more inclined to use GIFs at any and every opportunity?