Training last week went really well. I ran my tempo faster than planned and it felt incredible. Also, on Monday I found out I was accepted into the 2014 Chicago Marathon through the lottery! I’m really excited to start training for another marathon. I think the break from marathon training was just what I needed to spark that 26.2-mile fire again. Training starts June 23rd!

Monday, April 7 – 45:00 of Vinyasa Flow Yoga

Tuesday, April 8 – 6 miles, easy

Well it was quite a windy one out there today! I felt pretty good but the wind was rough. At one point I nearly lost my hat and fell over. I ran solo today during the lunch run which was really what I needed.

Plan: 6 miles, easy (9:12/mile)
Actual: 6 miles in 51:12 at 8:32/mile

Shoes: Saucony Mirage 3
Conditions: 59 degrees, overcast and windy

Wednesday, April 9 – 6 mile, easy

I took it a little easier today and ran on the trails by work. It was really nice to mix up my terrain and I hadn’t been on the trails in a long time.

Plan: 6 miles, easy (9:12/mile)
Actual: 6 miles in 52:00 at 8:45/mile

Shoes: Saucony Mirage 3
Conditions: 58, sunny and windy

Thursday, April 10 – 6 miles with 3 miles at tempo

So I’m not the best at pacing temp runs. I was a little all over the place with this one but it felt AMAZING to run fast (much faster than tempo, too!).

Plan: 6 miles with 3 miles at tempo (7:45/mile)
Actual: 6 miles in 46:50 (7:48/mile avg)
1-mile warmup: 8:40
Tempo: (1) 7:16 (2) 7:33 (3) 7:32
1-mile cool down: 8:20

Shoes: Saucony Kinvara 4
Conditions: BEAUTIFUL

Friday, April 11 – 40:00 strength training

Arms- 3×10 
Rotating overhead press with 10lb dumbbells 
Rows with 15lb dumbbells 
Tricep pulls with 15lb dumbbells 
21’s with 8lb dumbbells 
Legs- 
3×10 
Kettlebell swings 
Kettlebell squats 
Clam shells 
Abs- 2x 
0:45 plank 
0:30 side plank 
0:45 supine plank 
0:45 bicycles 
10 Russian twists with kettlebell

Saturday, April 12 – 6 miles, easy

I ran twice today because I had a 5K fun run at night. My morning run was much speedier than “easy” but it felt easy so who cares, right?!

Sunday, April 13 – 12 miles, LSD

I ran earlier in the morning than I had planned but I’m so happy I did because it got pretty toasty during the day. The run went really well, it was actually the best I’ve felt in a long time.

Actual: 12.2 miles in 1:48:00 at 8:51/mile

Shoes: Asics Gel Flux
Conditions: 65 degrees, humid and sunny

Weekly Mileage Total: 36 miles

See all training recaps here.