After a week off work, it was back to it this week and it was tough! Then I had to think about training…

Monday

After my run the day before, I was aching and feeling a bit naff. Oh and I had to go back to work. After a week off there was a lot to catch up on!

I still made some time for yoga later that evening to help destress. I certainly appreciated shavasana!

Tuesday

Track Tuesday was back!

I was really looking forward to it, despite threats from the weatherman that snow was set to return.

As we got there and started the warm up, a heavy downpour of snow and hail came down. It was horrendous!

Fortunately as we started the actual session, the weather settled down.

The session was 4 laps to warm up (which was much needed!) then 4x 800m with 100m walking recoveries.

The session went well and the shorter recoveries really made me savour it. My last effort was the quickest, so that’s always a win!

Wednesday

I went into the office today which is in Manchester, so I kicked off my crosstraining day with a walk to the station.

There aren’t currently trains running between Huddersfield and Manchester so I had to get a rail replacement bus, which took ages!

Good thing my work treated us all to a pizza lunch… ey!

By the time I got home I didn’t really want to do a full intense workout. I compromised with 30 minutes of Les Mills Core which was fantastic, but so tough! Using resistance bands can create such an intense workout!

Thursday

What a day.

On the plan it said 50 minutes easy with 10x strides. Perfect, I thought. I could fit this into my lunch break.

Unfortunately work was non stop with back to back meetings and a meeting had overrun, when I should have been running!

I did eventually get out, but sitting at my desk all morning feeling a tad overwhelmed, made me feel really tense.

It was ‘only’ 50 minutes easy, but it didn’t feel easy. It felt horrendous.

It reminded me of a post that Running Explained shared on Instagram.

We all have our own stress threshold, whether we’re dealing with work, family, or just shitty life stress.

I often wonder why I find going to the office so exhausting these days, when I used to go every day. I’m no longer used to it, so an office day can add to my stress levels. This is normal!

Friday

What a difference a week makes! Last week Huddersfield was covered in snow.

Today was the opposite, it was warm! It was wonderful.

I ran to PT enjoying the sunshine, ready for a brutal session.

And it was, making up for the previous week. Today we increased weight to leg raises, chest press and she has found yet another way to torture my glutes.

The session ended with some quick HIIT core workouts. Which I normally love the challenge, but phew I was tired 😅

Saturday

Huddersfield parkrun was back after being cancelled the previous week.

It had rained a little beforehand, but it ended up being an absolute sweat fest. Well, compared to the weather we’ve had!

Unsurprisingly, I was sore and tired from yesterday’s PT session so I was considering taking it steady.

I set off sensibly, my legs reminding me how much they were aching. The powerful thing about running though is once your body realises, yep OK we’re running, you kind of settle into it and get into a rhythm.

Starting sensibly ensured I could finish strong, despite my triceps letting me know they were hurting too. Pushing through this can help me for those later miles of the marathon. I’m running to that finish line.

Sunday

Two hours easy on the plan today which is usually the most I’d run when training for a half marathon. We’re hitting the edge of what is familiar and heading into the unknown… Eek!

But the plan said easy. I just need to relax, find some nice things to look at (when possible!) and don’t get obsessed with what my watch was telling me.

I also put on a 2 hour guided run on the Nike run club app, which I absolutely loved. The guided runs basically provide company on the run with Coach Bennett, who gives advice, reminders of running form and provide some fun stories. I have done a few of the runs but not this one, so I admit I did laugh out loud at points.

Long runs often require us to be adaptable and I found one of the paths I’d plan to run on was closed. I couldn’t even sneak through which I admit I do try to do sometimes!

I managed to change my route slightly and couldn’t stop smiling, the sun was out and… The run felt easy.

When things feel easy, it’s so tempting to pick up the pace but I was strong and didn’t!

When I finished I was a tad disappointed with the distance, until I mentally slapped myself. I ran the long run perfectly, yes, I would have loved to have rounded it up to 11 miles but I was supposed to run relaxed and comfortable at around the pace I had run.

Overall Thoughts

There is going to be days where life stress will ruin a session, but it doesn’t define my whole week. I can still finish strong and do my best.

As the time increases for my long runs, I need to continue to keep my easy paces easy, to help with recovery and also that mental barrier.

I’m still loving Tailwind in my water, the Cliff Bloks and Torq gels for fuel, I feel confident about racing with these.

This week’s song is pure cheese. It’s what happens when the sun comes out!