Post-race medal photo!
My second week of training for Chicago was jam-packed with some really exciting things that I’m happy to share (with anyone who cares)!
My Bitty Heart
First, after doing a stress echocardiogram on Monday, my cardiologist cleared me for running. For the past two months I’ve been going through some tests at the hospital to figure out the cause of my chest pain during my April half marathon. After an abnormal EKG, my primary care physician referred me to a cardiologist for further testing. I had a normal echocardiogram done which showed I have an AV conduction delay. At first my cardiologist wasn’t sure why this was showing up, as it’s usually more common in elderly people, not athletic 24-year-old women, but with further testing and the stress echo, he concluded the conduction delay was actually a result of me having a healthy runner’s heart. After reviewing blood work, he told me, “I think you should just keep running.” Yay! I haven’t had any issues with chest pain since the half in April so I think it’s safe to say I can now fully dedicate myself to training hard for Chicago.
Firecracker 4-Miler
Another bit of good news from last week is that I won my first ever age group award at a local Firecracker 4-miler on the Fourth of July! It was quite a surprise, and I will probably write another post about it since I did everything wrong leading up to the race and somehow managed setting a 5-minute 4-mile PR and came in second in my age group. Adam came in second overall and I couldn’t have been more proud of him!
Hardest Run Ever
One other thing to share is not really good but I just wanted to put it out there- I ran the hardest 8-miler of my life on Saturday. We decided to go on an adventure run through the Trexler Nature Preserve. Adam ran this a few weeks ago and he said it was tough (his average pace slowed by two minutes which is saying a lot because he’s wicked fast) but man, it felt impossible to me! It was a humbling experience but worth it for the beautiful views of Pennsylvania hills and we got to run through a river!
That’s all the news I have for now! Here’s a recap of my workouts last week:
Monday, June 30 – Rest
I had my stress echo at the hospital at 2:00 p.m. so I had to miss the yoga class at work. However, the echo included about 20-minutes of walking/running on a steep inclined treadmill.
Tuesday, July 1- 4 miles, easy + Strength Training
It was a warm and humid run out there this morning, even at 5:30 a.m.! I was happy to run in the morning before work though because any other time would have been impossible. My pace was a little slower than I would’ve liked, especially the first mile, but I think that was due to the humidity and my legs still feeling a little sore/sluggish.
Plan: 4 miles, easy (10:00/mile)
Actual: 4 miles in 35:25 at 8:51/mile
Shoes: Saucony Mirage 4
Conditions: 70 degrees, 78% humidity
Wednesday, July 2- 5 miles, hill repeats
I had to do hills today so I decided to do 5x100m hill sprints. It was a humid morning though- at 5 a.m. it was already 75 degrees with a real feel of 81. I was soaked by the time my run was done!
Plan: 5 miles, hills
Actual: 4.91 miles with 5x100m hill sprints in 43:58 at 8:57/mile
Shoes: Saucony Mirage 4
Conditions: 75 degrees, 87% humidity
Thursday, July 3- Strength Training
Oiselle “Dozen” Ab Workout + Ankle strengthening exercises
Friday, July 4- Firecracker 4-miler (+ 0.5-mile warm-up for 4.5 miles total)
Well this was a huge surprise! Adam and I registered for this race the day of and I wasn’t planning on “racing” it at all- I just wanted an excuse to wear my 4th of July themed #RUNootd. I ended up setting a 5-minute 4-miler PR, won second in my age group, and ran my fastest mile yet.
Plan: 5 miles, easy (according to my training plan)
Actual: 4 miles in 30:55 at 7:43/mile average (plus 0.5-mile warm up)
Splits: 7:48, 7:43, 8:26, 6:55
Shoes: Nike LunarGlide 6
Saturday, July 5- 7.9 miles, trails
This was arguably the hardest run of my life. I ran through Trexler Nature Preserve on trails and it was difficult. The climbs on this run were crazy and I had to walk most of the hills. It was also incredibly hot!
Plan: 5 miles, easy (according to training plan)
Actual: 8 miles, trails
Shoes: Nike Zoom Kiger trail shoes
Sunday, July 6- 11 miles, easy
My legs were absolutely dead from the race Friday and the trail run Saturday so this was a long, slow slog. Once I actually started running I felt good but I was pretty unmotivated and tired so I didn’t get out the door until much later than I would have liked.
Plan: 12 miles, easy
Actual: 11 miles in 1:45:29 at 9:35/mile average
Shoes: Saucony Mirage 4
Weekly Mileage Total: 32 miles
