With all the fun of the past two weeks, I woke up on Monday feeling tired. Two races in two weeks, plus the training runs and the strength training is wearing on me I suppose. So I decided not to do strength training this week and just get some extra sleep those two mornings (instead of waking up at 5am, I could wake up at 7am). I decided I would listen to my body and just take it easy. Especially since October means time to add striders to my training runs each week.
I have been pleased so far this week with my recovery from the 10K race. My last 10K in August left my legs pretty sore (of course, it was a trail race and those work your legs and ankles a lot more) and it was a good 8 days and two massages before I felt like running again. But this time, my legs felt pretty good post-race. And while they were a little sore on Sunday, they didn't "hurt" and I was walking normally. I take that to indicate my training is working, my body is getting used to the distances, and the extra stretching and foam rolling are making a difference. Yay!
So Tuesday, I had to do my easy run in the club because it basically rained all day on Tuesday. No point in running in the rain if you don't have to (like I had to do last Saturday). My thighs were still a little sore so I just took it real easy on the treadmill -- 30 minute run at 12:00 pace for the most part. The last three minutes I increased my speed at each minute (5.5 mph, then 6 mph, then 6.5 mph) just to close out the session before my cooldown. It felt good and the legs were working fine.
Then I saw my trainer, Meghan, and we talked about the recent 10K race and what she wanted me to do for the 5K race this Saturday. I think she would rather me treat it as a 'fun run' and not shoot for a new PR. She cautioned me not to overdo things and risk injury. Good advice for sure. I told her I would play it by ear on Saturday, see how the body feels and do what it tells me.
I have been doing a lot of stretching and foam rolling since Saturday and it is working pretty well. I foam rolled the quads at Meghan's urging -- I hadn't bothered since they felt just fine -- but boy did they need the rolling! Ouch! I need to remember to roll them out as much as I do the hamstrings, IT band, and calf muscles!
October only has two races for me (both 5Ks that fit into my training plan's cutback runs) so it is really going to focus on training for the half and get me up to the 8-9 mile distance. This will prepare me for my November Hot Chocolate 15K race, which I am going to use to assess my 'race pacing and fueling plan' for the half marathon in January. Oh, and did I mention that my 1:06:38 time in the recent race qualifies me for Corral D in the Hot Chocolate race? I won't have to race with the "Open" group! Another first for me. :)
Tomorrow is an easy run day, only 30 minutes. Hopefully, I can run it outside, take a route through the neighborhood to Woods Creek Elementary school and around for a nice 5K loop. I am looking forward to it!