Happy President’s Day weekend everyone! You know what’s better than a 3-day weekend? Not realizing it was a 3-day weekend until the Friday before. I’m excited to get an extra day to sleep in, relax, and take care of errands before the work week begins. How about y’all? Any big plans this weekend?
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Mon: Rest.
Tues: Tuesday was a hallmark day in 2 ways. First, it was the first time I’ve done 2 workouts in one day in a long time. Second, I did both of these activities with friends!
In the morning, I met up with Debbie, a Dailymile friend whom I’ve only met once in person previously. We both live near the Lake, and have been going on similar runs (in both length and pace) recently. Since we’d been talking about going for a run together for a really long time, we finally decided to make it happen. Despite it being only our 2nd meeting, we talked effortlessly as we ran together around the lake. In the last mile or so, we ran into my friend CR, who joined us for the remainder of our run. Then Debbie and CR ran another (much speedier) lap around the lake. It was a lot of fun and we both hope to make it a semi-regular thing.
At night, I met up with LF to go climbing again for the 2nd time in 3 days. It was more frustrating than the time before, but I was also trying more challenging routes. It was good though, because LF showed me some tricks of the trade. All I have to say is that I have a lot to learn, especially about how to position my body against the wall. Despite the learning curve, I want to stick with it because I think it will be great cross-training.
Stats: 5.2 miles @ 10:40/mile + rock climbing
Wed: 60 min PT exercises/rolling/stretching.
Thurs: Another Thursday, another speed workout. Being that the Gypsy Runner and I had plans for Valentine’s Day, I didn’t have time to go to the track after work. So, I ended up doing 800m intervals around the lake. And since I’m still a wuss getting acclimated when it comes to speedwork, I thought I’d start with 4 intervals and see how I felt. My target time for 0.5 miles: 4:00-4:15. My workout:
1 mile warmup
4 x 0.5 mi repeats with 0.25 mi rest intervals. Half mile times: 4:16, 4:17, 4:25 (boo), 4:21.
0.6 mile cool-down
It felt hard, but I’m glad I did it, even if I didn’t hit my target pace. Gotta keep working at it and continue to challenge my body.
Stats: 4.6 miles @ 10:03/mile + 15 min stretching/rolling
Celebrating Valentine’s Day at the California Academy of Science’s Nightlife. The Gypsy Runner has me in a headlock!
Fri: 75 min Ab ripper/PT exercises/stretching/rolling
Sat: Run #3 with Running for a Better Oakland (RBO)! Our assignment: 5 miles with a “special surprise” of running up and down the Cleveland Cascade steps (about 3 flights of stairs) about a mile into the run. It reminded me that I need to run these steps more often! It’s a great workout. Alejandro did well and finished strong. I also did my best to prepare him mentally for the challenge of running 10 miles next week!
Stats: 6.6 miles @ 11:08/mile + 30 min stretching/rolling
Hustling up the stairs! (Photo credit: RBO)
Sun: Since the RBO run was only 5 miles (plus 1.6 to the meeting spot and back), the Gypsy Runner and I planned to run around Lake Chabot today. I was excited to try out my new Nathan Trek Waistpack — a Christmas gift from my sister JS. It took a little adjusting to, but I think it will be perfect for trail runs like today’s. I’m already a big fan of the way the water bottle works. A more in-depth review will appear after a few more uses!
I wasn’t sure how this run would go, since I’m not usually one for back-to-back running days. However, it seemed to work pretty well a couple of weeks ago and I’m eager to test to see if my body can start handling more mileage. The Gypsy Runner and I started off together, but we were soon passed by a local running celebrity. The Gypsy Runner left me to go catch him and they eventually ran together for about 3 miles. I believe it was the highlight of the Gypsy Runner’s running life. 🙂
My run was fairly uneventful. The hills seemed more challenging than usual, though when I compare my pace to the last time I ran at Lake Chabot (January 27th), they are quite similar. The weather was gorgeous and I had a decent audiobook to keep me company. Even though the hills killed me, I felt unusually strong at the end. Most importantly, I happily realized that no body parts were hurting or achy – not my ankle, not my hips, and not my lower back, even with the waist pack and all. It was a sweet feeling. To make it even sweeter, I inhaled half of a super burrito with grilled chicken at La Pinata.
Get in my belly!! About to attack the super burrito…
After I uploaded my Garmin data, I found out that this was actually my fastest time around Lake Chabot (in non-race conditions). Only by 45 seconds, but still… not too shabby! And on the 2nd day of back-to-back running. Things are looking up.
Stats: 8.5 miles @ 11:38/mile + 30 min stretching/rolling (still to do)
WEEKLY TOTAL: 25 miles + 3.5+ hours cross training/stretching
How I felt about it: Great running week, but less than stellar cross training and stretching. B+
Howdy! My name is Jen and I live in the San Francisco Bay Area. I like to eat, run, and blog, but not usually at the same time.
Running Tangents 
Nice week! Do you have any races coming up?
Also, Mmmm… La Pinata.
Thanks! Yes, the Gypsy Runner and I are running a couples’ relay this Sunday (2/24) around Lake Merritt. You and your hubby should join us! Here’s the link: http://www.lmjs.org/Couples_Relay
Great week,you’re flying at the moment!!! I gulped at how the hills at Chabot killed you 😉
Thanks Cathryn. The hills are exponentially worse on tired legs… you’ll be fine, since I assume you’ll have rested before the race. And if you run the 10K, it’s mostly rollers. Nothing to worry about! 🙂
Glad to hear you’re feeling good physically as well! 🙂
Looks like a good week and I am glad to see that your old pains are making way for some new (less permanent) ones. That burrito is fricking huge.
The problem with putting such amazing looking burritos on your blog is it pretty much makes me forget about everything else I just read (especially during lunchtime). Awesome work this week! I HATE 800’s. But there is something so awesome about finishing that type of workout, even if you didn’t quite hit your times (I almost never do). Good luck with your relay this weekend!
Thanks Amy! The good thing about 800’s is that they’re useful psychologically for the last bit of a race… or at least that’s what I tell myself. 😉