Rest week is over and it’s time to get to work…..

Monday is the first day of Week 5 and it’s time to get outside. After working on a new reporting system project for my OTHER job, I’ve got a little stress to get rid of so the plan is to run every little side road down the Hopkins Neck area of Royal Oak. I find that running is the BEST way to relieve stress from all of the jobs and the family. I wouldn’t trade any of it but if I don’t get the chance to physically clear my mind, it can be a bit much. With a recovery week last week, I haven’t been able to unwind in a bit so I know that this is going to be a longer run. So long, in fact, that I know how long I want to be out and I go ahead and put on a reflective vest because I know it’s going to get dark on me before the end.

No Ipod, No phone. Just me and my watch. And, of course, Bee Doo Dooooo. My heart rate monitor, set for 143 beats per minute (BPM). This number is my MAF, or Maximum Aerobic Fitness number as described by Dr Phil Maffetone. It is supposed to be the number that my body is working at peak aerobic fitness and burning fat, in lieu of carbs, as its fuel.
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Fortunately it is a beautiful night and nature is out. I see turkeys, deer, and all sorts of other animals (I’ve been waiting to spot an Eagle on this course but have yet to see one). At the end of one of the roads I even found a house with a few Alpacas. Strangely, the one by the end of the fence seemed to be shaking its head at me when I ran by…..hmm… maybe I SHOULD take in a few more carbs for now. Lol

Anyway, nice run and here is the breakdown:

Mile 1   9:12
Mile 2   9:26
Mile 3   9:47
Mile 4   10:05
Mile 5   10:23
Mile 6   10:24
Mile 7   10:45

75 min – 7.56 miles

THURSDAY
Holy cow! I know I have a big weekend coming up but 2 days off is a bit much. I realize I’m falling behind and it’s time to do some work. Of course, as soon as I’m done Job#2, it’s too dark to do anything so Thursday I’ve got to make some time for me and my treadmill. Most people have a love/hate relationship with their “mill” but I love mine. With an internet browser, 15 degrees incline and 3 degrees decline, it’s pretty awesome. I load up videos on the “WATCH LATER” tab in YouTube and just let them roll when I run. Nice, and I control EVERYTHING, from the speed to the pitch. I want hills? Boom, there they are. I want speed (I wish right now)? BOOM, there it is. Love it!!

Here is the breakdown for Thursdays run. I guess the 2 days of rest helped because I actually get under 9 minute miles on a few.

Mile 1  10:58   (little scared, but it’s a warmup mile)
Mile 2  8:54
Mile 3  8:59
Mile 4  9:08
Mile 5  9:38
Mile 6  9:37
Mile 7  9:44

70 minutes  – 7.31 miles

FRIDAY SWIM

You read that right. A swim! Now it’s SUPER hard to record your heart rate in the pool but I felt as though I just wanted to break up the training a bit (plus I have an indoor tri on Saturday) so a short day at the pool is in order. Now whenever I swim, it typically is the same warmup. It is a 4×200 SKPS. What the heck is that you ask? It means that you are doing 4, 200 yard sets. The SKPS breaks down as a 200 SWIM (using your arms and legs), and 200 KICK (with a kickboard), a 200 PULL (using a pull buoy so the arms are the only propulsion), and then a final 200 SWIM. Unfortunately I have found that my Garmin 910XT (AWESOME WATCH!!!!) does not record my time on the kick portion because it has to have arm movement to record. I am able to do another 400 yards beyond my warmup before it’s time to go. It feels good but, again, I’m not able to record heart rate to make sure I’m in my MAF range so I don’t want to push it too hard. And I know what’s in store tomorrow…..

Saturday Indoor Tri with Cambridge MultiSport
 Great group! Great time with all! An indoor tri consists of a 20 minute pool swim, a 45 minute spin bike ride, and a 25 minute run. You record your distances (0 on the spin bike, Lol) and that’s it. Pretty neat but one of the few times I get to see how my run fares after getting off a bike, where my heart rate is already  at my 143 bpm mark. I had a great time and was alright with the run after, but I was hoping for more. That’s the hardest part of doing this… knowing that the results are coming but waiting for them. Here is the breakdown:

Swim   20 minutes    1125 meters
Bike     45 minutes    0 miles but stayed at 143 bpm and felt comfortable
Run     25 minutes    2.19 miles  (10:14 pace)

Sunday run
I opted out of the Tim Kennard 10 mile run this year because I don’t want to push myself out of my MAF rate yet, and I know that competition will do that. Instead, I meet up with Donnie and Dan to run from the shop Sunday morning. The company is great but I fall victim to pushing at the end. The last two miles I’m so tired of Bee Doo Dooooo, that I tuck my arm hard against my side, so I can’t hear it anymore. It’s a moment of weakness and, near the end, Dan mentions that he hasn’t heard the beeping in a while so it must be working. I smile and pull my arm off from my side and, sure enough. Bee Doo DOOOO Bee Doo DOOOOO. Damn

I’m ok with it. I know why the number was high. Multiple days in a row without any real rest between will push you. I haven’t even wanted to look at my Heart Rate Variability because I know it will tell me not to train but I do anyway. I feel good after the run, and some new people travel to the shop to talk triathlon and discuss their future race plans. I love to hear about people pushing to the next level in their endurance training. Of course, I also hear negative comments later on Sunday from an old training friend. Always dwelling on the negative…. not looking at learning. I have found that I’ve tried to distance myself from negative people as of late. A negative person is normally insecure about something that they are doing and they are trying to make others feel insecure about their own actions. Do what is right for you. Don’t fall in to the trap of doing something different because someone speaks negatively. If you’re getting results, keep on going. We are all different, unique, and respond to different stimuli. If you find yourself around someone trying to bring you down, either discuss it with them, or drop them. There will be no winning an argument, so don’t make your discussion confrontational.

Anyway…… off my soapbox. Here is the report from the run

Mile 1  9:47
Mile 2  9:47
Mile 3  9:50
Mile 4  9:53
Mile 5  9:56
Mile 6  9:50*  HR 146
Mile 7  9:54*  HR 145
Mile 8  9:50*  HR 147

80 minutes – 8.2 miles
The * designation shows a higher heart rate than 143, and I’m not happy I did that.

Snow’s coming… Probably going to be a rest day tomorrow. I feel like I earned this one. We’ll see how the new chart plots out. Until next time…….