MTD 7: Battle of Mobile Bay 5k

Length -- 5k (3.1 mi)
Race time -- 36:35
Pace -- 11:47

I'm super-excited about my time this week. It's only been one week since my last 5k, and I've shaved a full three minutes off my race time, and a whole minute off my pace from last time -- granted, the course was flat this time around, and I ate less before running than last time. Maybe that smoothie yesterday was a good idea!

I was expecting a frozen wasteland from what my mom told me about the race from last year, but the weather was quite pleasant for a race. I hope it's like that for Dublin.

The course did take a lot of unexpected twists and turns, kind of like the Mellow Milers route, and after I hit the first mile (time was 9:27) I took it easy. What made me worry halfway through was the lack of a second-mile mark. Once you slow down, you don't usually want to pick back up right away, and after spending what must have been 20 minutes with no second-mile sign, I began to worry I had fallen back in the ranks, so I struggled a bit to keep myself back in the race for the last 7 minutes.

Anyway, a very fun course. I highly recommend it for anyone wanting to get into 5k races.

I was supposed to jog/walk for 55-60 minutes today according to my marathon guide, but I'll pick that up on Monday. Tomorrow I rest, and Monday will be my first endurance hurdle. I'm excited! It's still only the first week of February, but I'm already improving my short-distance time!

MTD 6: Jog/walk for 25 minutes

Time: 25 minutes
Speed: Jog, some walking
Length: 2.25 miles

Pace -- 11:06.6

Today I headed over to the track at the Intramural Fields at USA -- one I'm fond of for its hills and simplicity. It was a nice, small challenge to go up the hills, without being too strenuous on your muscles. I know the course tomorrow is very flat, so it won't be as bad as last weekend's.

I'm questioning whether it was a good idea to push myself harder than usual today, since it's the day before the race. I drank a carb-rich smoothie afterwards (Celestial Cherry High - good stuff), just to hopefully speed the process and get some of that energy back. Hope it works!

MTD 5: Rest

Same thing, different day. I got plenty of rest today in order to prepare for tomorrow's run and Saturday's race, so let's hope for the best.

MTD 4: Jog for 20 minutes

Time: 20 minutes
Speed: Brisk jog (some walking, untimed)
Length: 2.00001 miles
Pace -- 9:59.9

The full instructions for this part of the program say to run for 20 minutes, and if you have to walk, do so without timing it. So, I didn't time myself when I walked. It only occured every so often.

I went to Cottage Hill Park again, but used the hillier "forest trail" because of the resistance inclines give on your muscles. This seemed like a bad idea at the time, and I'm probably gonna be kicking myself tomorrow, but the pain seems strangely worth it at this point.

The reason I put 2.00001 miles (besides just being a dork) is because, since my phone is too old to have a stopwatch, I had to kinda fudge the numbers in terms of distance over time -- which I think evened out pretty well. At the end I had approximately 10 seconds or so left after hitting the 2-mile mark, so I walked it off and counted that as the end of my workout. Would I like to get a real stopwatch and tell my real time? Well, sure, and I know I have one somewhere. But who cares; this is mainly for fun.

I'm making a better pace, and I hope to only improve it as time wears on. I guess the real test will be this weekend, when I compete in the Battle of Mobile Bay 5k at Dauphin Island.

MTD 3: Rest

Yep, it's no surprise that every day between runs is a rest day (except some weekends - we'll get to that later, of course). But, given the nature of the training regimen, it's best to rest whenever you can in order to fully heal.

My short-term goal is to be in better shape at the end of February. My runs are fine now, but I get winded easily. Aiming for the end of the month is reasonable, plus I'm hoping my running pace and strength will continue to pick up around March/April, when it begins to get warmer and have longer days. Then I can begin going to the Mellow Milers run every Tuesday (which I'll unfortunately be missing again tonight). It's a 5k run, which means it's good exercise and good training for anyone considering longer runs. Plus, 5k runs are short enough to allow more participation from the public (and act like "gateway races" to those who want to run longer distances).

March will see a lot of updates. I will go back to the Mellow Mushroom runs, I'm planning on running in a 5k with my brother in Baton Rouge, and the annual Azalea Trail Run will occur the weekend after that. It'll be nice to get things back up to proper speed.

MTD 2: Jog/walk for 20 minutes

Time: 20 minutes
Speed: Brisk jog, some walking
Length: 1.7 miles

Pace -- 11:45.6

It was a breezy day, and it rained for most of the morning, so I had to be very choosy when picking the time to get out there.

I chose Cottage Hill Park for this workout because it has a slight elevation in its course, which allows for better endurance on Mobile's hilly tracks. Sure, Dublin won't have them, but it's better to stress-test all of your muscle groups -- especially your core, which is essential for keeping your balance on those hills.

Still, for such a light workout, it wasn't  a bad way to start. I even beat my overall pace from Saturday's race (not surprising for such a short distance)! 

I'm beginning to think it will only do some good to do a core workout in the mornings -- my gut's slowing me down, surprise surprise. From now on, you'll get to read about that, too.

I remember in high school, when I had the stamina and endurance of a freakin' ox, I used to run six miles everyday on the treadmill and not think twice about the strain on my muscles it gave me. Which worked fine for me then. Now, I know that, given my lack of straight-thru training and day-to-day running, I've come to a point where my muscles are mere fractions as powerful as they once were, my heart included (maybe a BPM count would be helpful after these runs?). Hence, the day-long rest periods between days is a good idea. If you want your muscle fibers to fully heal after being torn apart (as any do when you strain them enough), it's important to rest for a day between workouts, and to eat foods rich in protein and some carbohydrates.

But given the nature of my core, and the fact that burning that off is one of my highest priorities, I will propose the idea to perform core exercises even on some off days -- not all, but some. Strengthening the core is essential at the early stage, but cross-training and maintaining that form is even harder and more important.

You can read all about it here. I'll probably post the results of my workout on a weekly basis instead of a daily one, as I can't imagine the outcome changing that much.

Marathon Training Day 1: Rest

Yep, according to my "99 Days Until Marathon" training guide, I am required to rest on the first day of training (does that technically make it the first day?). Which is totally fine -- I ran a 5k yesterday, so I needed the rest.

Actual updates of note will begin tomorrow!