We’re three weeks into our training for Long Beach/AFC 1/2 and things are going great! The first few runs were pretty sluggish, since we had taken the prior month off … but things have really fallen into place these last two weeks. This is the part where training gets fun – the part when you start to see results.
We’ve been doing our weekly runs in and around Del Mar before work. The combination of hills and flat stretches make for some nice 3-5 mile runs. Some of our routes start on the beach, running from Torrey Pines up past Powerhouse Park, while others take us up through the hilly residential streets above the ocean. We’ve also been throwing in a nice, flat run up Pacific Coast Highway to Solana Beach and back. What a great way to build our base mileage back up!
I have also added a “finisher” after all of our runs, which C has learned to love (to hate!). Love ‘em or hate ‘em, they’re one piece of the pie that’s helping her pull down personal bests on runs. The finisher could be anything from core work to plyometrics to tabata-type drills. Oh, the fun!
Another essential (yet often overlooked) piece of training? Weights. I’m amazed at how many runners don’t weight train – but I’ll save that for another post. As for us, we’ve incorporated 1-2 days of it a week – and the benefits have been substantial, even after only a few short weeks.
All of this has helped C run a personal best on all THREE of her long runs so far!
6/23 – 8 miles: 1:21:19 – 10:08 min/mile
6/29 – 9 miles: 1:27:17 – 9:38 min/mile
7/6 – 10 miles: 1:35:52 – 9:26 min/mile
To me, this speaks volumes. It also makes me INCREDIBLY excited about getting into week four of training, which starts bright and early tomorrow morning.
Moving forward, I’ll plan to put together a more detailed “weekly training wrap up”, covering all the workouts of the week, while C will keep posting all those great recipes that keep us fueled-up for training!
Take care,
GnC
activeharmony 