Welcome to the Weekly Wrap.  I am 7 weeks away from my spring marathon (Milwaukee Marathon) and about 5 weeks away from my next 5k attempt.  February is just plugging along.  A month of no racing is refreshing. Linking up with Holly and Wendy for this Weekly Wrap.

Initially my coach wanted me to race another 5k this weekend.  I told her that I just want a month without a race.  This is a far cry from the 2016 Becca who wanted to RACE EVERYTHING.  Now, I just want focus on getting a regular month of training under my belt without having to flip my runs around to accommodate a race.  No racing until March!  I think it’ll be mentally better for me too.  I’ve attempted the 5k 3 times now (two with terrible weather) and I just want a break.  So here’s to a regular, boring routine February!

Monday 2/4

Run: Team Speed run.  Oh how I wish this went better.  Our workout called for progressively faster quarter repeats, starting with 5k pace and then picking up to 10 seconds faster and then 20 seconds faster.  It seemed like every other runner could pick up the pace except for me.  After the quarters, we had 2 half mile repeats back to 5k pace.  I was so disappointed in myself that I didn’t want to do them, but my coach encouraged me to try.

Halfway into the first one I stopped because I was in tears and couldn’t breathe, when my teammate AJ ran up and stopped with me.  She motivated me to run with her and together we completed the workout.  I needed that push and support.  Looking back at the workout a few days removed, even though I couldn’t go faster, I was able to maintain the goal 5k pace throughout.  That’s a big improvement from past workouts.  Sometimes I just need a little space to reflect and find the positives.

 

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Surround yourself with people who have the dreams, desires and ambition. They’ll help you push for, and realize your own • • • • I had a moment today during the team workout. We were running quarters: 3@ 5k, then 3@ 5k -10s, then 3@ 5k -20s. After that, we had 2 half mile intervals at 5k pace. I watched as my teammates were able to pick it up and run faster, while I struggled to maintain 5k pace. Each interval they seemed to get farther away. I entered a negative thought spiral, finishing the quarters feeling defeated, frustrated, lacking confidence and close to tears 😔😢 When @coach.robyn told me to go onto the halfs, I wanted to say no and felt the tears coming- I had botched the workout already, I was too slow, so why continue? “Exhale bullshit!” she said and off I went. I would like to say I was able to get out of my head, but I found myself so upset and disappointed with myself that I struggled to breathe – which doesn’t make 5k pace very pleasant- and I stopped mid rep 🙇🏻‍♀️ But luckily @ahinley was right behind me and talked sense into me, motivated me, and helped me finish that first rep. I didn’t want to do the second one, but AJ didn’t even make that an option. She helped me through that last one, running with me and pushing me until the very end. We hit pace TEAM 💚 . . . . 📸 @coach.robyn #runsquad #bettertogether #teammates #teamworkout #speedworkout #5ktraining #trackworkout #marathontraining #justdoit #windrunners #thisgirlcan #rungrateful #runningcoach #nuunlove #nikewomen #womenwhorun #poweredbyplants #veganrunner #irunthisbody #runaddict #edgefam #3run2 #np_chi #runchi #606trail #mychicagopix

A post shared by Becca Menke: MEd|Blogger|Coach (@rabbitfoodruns) on Feb 4, 2019 at 6:13am PST

Tuesday 2/5

Run: Easy run.  Another easy run coaching Sprint Tuesdays.

Other: Strength Class.  Another Tuesday at Athletic Performance.  We did ladder drills WITH resistance bands on this week.  My glutes were sore until Friday!

Wednesday 2/6

Run: Tempo.  After feeling down on myself from Monday, I wanted to good workout today.  It sort of happened.  My workout was 2x 2.5 miles at tempo pace.  However, when I geared up to do the second 2.5 mi push, I did the math wrong and only went 1.75 miles.  As I started my cool down I realized my mistake and tacked on an extra mile to make up for it.  The final total was 5.25 miles, so farther than I was meant to go, but I broke it up a lot.  So, sort of better than Monday, but still off.

Other:  Pizza night!  A while back, two friends and I went to a vegan pizza place for dinner.  In short, the pizza was awful.  Worse, it was my friend’s first exposure to vegan pizza.  I didn’t want him to think that all vegan pizza was that terrible, so I invited him and some friends over for a homemade pizza night.  I made an almond ricotta cheese, vegan pesto, homemade dough, and an assortment of toppings.  The pizza turned out great and I think I redeemed the restaurant’s vegan pizza.

Thursday 2/7

Run: Easy:  Slept in after a late night and completed my run over lunch.  It was foggy and rainy, and I felt like the tin man after my workouts this week.  As I ran, I didn’t look at my watch until it lapped the mile, and was surprised each time to see that I was running faster than I felt.  Progress!

Other: Team Workout.  In the evening, we went to On Your Mark for our team strength workout.  We started with dynamic ladder drills and sprints before finishing off with a powerlifting round.  We used a machine called the “Hammer Jammer” to do some explosive squat lifts and punches.  It reminded me of when I used to kickbox and I loved it.

Friday 2/8

Run: Total rest day.  Not even a core workout scheduled for today!  I was excited to be a sloth, and then proud of myself for embracing the total off day.  Becca of two years ago would have FREAKED.  Instead, I took advantage of an open schedule to do a biomechanical run assessment for one of my athletes. It was a lot of fun to videotape them and then nerd out as we analyzed the films.

Saturday 2/9

Run: Long run.  Took another trip out to Morton Arboretum, this time with Jeremy.  I just had to do an easy long run, with some surges at the end.  The main purpose of this week was to practice my fueling strategies.  Based on previous runs, I realized I was neither eating nor drinking enough.  Unfortunately, the nozzle of my water bottle froze with the cold, so I had to blow hot air on it as I ran.  Effective, but not great for my form.  I’ll have to figure something else out for next week – any tips?

Sunday 2/10

Run: Planned trail run.  Actual, city run.  I heard through the grapevine of EDGE ultra runners that the trails were sheets of ice.  I had been looking forward to the trails all week, but I didn’t want to risk anything.  Just an easy 6.5 miles to start my Sunday.  There was lot of blogging, coaching and baking to be done today, so it ended up for the better.  Next week I hope to make it out there!

Other:  Valentine’s Day Recipes.  Looking for some sweet treats to make this Thursday for Valentine’s Day?  Tomorrow I’ll be posting a roundup of some of my favorite dessert recipes from this past year.  In the meantime, check out last year’s vegan Valentine’s Day recipe roundup.

And that’s a wrap!  I totaled 51 miles for the week, WOO!  The most since pre-injury and longest run since Berlin! My speed runs were not great, but not terrible. My body feels very “gummy” though, like my muscles are glued together and can’t move right.  I need to schedule a massage ASAP.  I am looking forward to no racing this month.  Just a regular, routine, February training schedule.

How was your week?  How often do you like to race?  Let’s stay in touch!  Follow me on Instagram or Facebook for more food/fitness related posts.  

Happy running,

Becca