Another strong week in the books. This week, I decided to cut back on the mileage and get some high quality in before I ramp up for my last huge (for me) mileage week before Eugene. All in all, it shook out very well.

M: rest/abs

T: 8 easy (8:58) / abs

W: 8 recovery (9:30) / arms

R: 11 with 5 x 600 meters; 90 sec recoveries (2:22, 2:26, 2:32, 2:27, 2:27). These felt very strong and I incorporated some nice hills into the intervals. Fastest, strongest intervals I have run in a long time.

F: rest. Pressed for time, so I decided to rest up for my 10K

Sa: 10 miles with 10K (44:58). I was first female and had a strong race. I hit the 5K in just over 22, but was unable to keep the pace the second half. This was in part due to a strong head wind - it was wicked cold and windy out there.

Su: 15 miles (9:08)

Total: 52 and change

The boys also ran the race on Saturday. I wasn't sure what to expect since it was their first race since last Fall. It was a tiny race and they were the only kids out there, but they both threw down awesome races. James came in at 28:15 and Jake came in at 29:38. This was the first time Jake has broken 30 minutes. I have a feeling they are going to see a lot of improvement this summer. Best part was that they had a lot of fun. ....Just when I was worried that they wouldn't want to continue going to the races with me... :)

Next up: 10K for me and 5K for the boys on April 9.

Hitting the reset button

I don't know why, but when I approach that 70 mpw mark, my body reboots and kicks my fitness to a new level. I have only reached that sort of mileage during three training seasons, but each time, the results are fast and dramatic.

I ran 67 miles last week. Up from the 55 mpw range I had been hovering around. Monday I was sore and beat up. But today, my resting heart rate was nice and low even though I slept terrible last night. And my run? I hit the first mile in 20-25 mph winds at an 8:45 pace and my HR was in the 130s (normally I'd be in 150s or 160s). This bodes well for Eugene.

Oh, and I planned to run 5, but since I was feeling so good, I opted for 8. The winds were wicked and the rain pounded me in a rather painful way when I was running into it, but I have to admit I felt a little bad @ss being out there in it. Ha. Bring it!

This week I am going back down to about 55 mpw and running another 10K this weekend. Then I will try to bump up to 70 one more time. I hope things continue to go well. And I hope to drop a couple lbs during these last weeks.

On another note, I took my boys to work with me for a few hours today. I know, very lame thing to do during their spring break, Mom. But unfortunately, it was a necessity today. The good news was that they were very well behaved and had a good time. It was awesome!

Wow - I have been terrible at blogging this training season. Part of my excuse is that my e-mail address changed and now I frequently can't log into blogger. I tried to change my e-mail address, but it still only reconizes my old one. Sometimes it lets me log in. Sometimes it doesn't.

But, I have also been very busy and have admittedly had some ups and downs with my training. Overall, however, I think things are starting to shape up quite nicely. I ran my first tune-up race last weekend. The Shamrock Shuffle 10K is a bear with the hills, but it is a fun race and it was fun to get out there and race after several months of no racing at all. I was able to pull off a 46:04, which is slower than my course record, but frankly better than I had been expecting given that I had done very little speedwork in the weeks prior. I also felt very relaxed and good, so it made for a very enjoyable race. Unfortunately, I missed my AG award (30-39) by one spot. The good news is that I have another 10K coming up next weekend. It should be flatter and I can only hope my fitness is continuing to improve.

SIX weeks until Eugene. And I am cranking this game up a notch.

Despite a very busy week, I was able to log almost 67 miles this week. A nice bump from the 55 mpw range I have been sitting on for weeks. I will go easier this next week, but then hopefully will crank up to 70 the following week. Game on boys and girls.

Here is a recap of last week:

M: rest / arms

T: 8 easy (9:17) / abs

W: 9.5 miles with 5 x 1000m intervals with 2 min recoveries / abs

R: 8 recovery (9:36) / arms and abs

F: 10.5 progressive (8:57)

Sa: 10.4 easy (9:18)

Su: 20 (9:09)

Total: 66.4 miles

I haven't logged this volume since Fall of 2009 prior to the Chicago Marathon. Here's hoping I have as good a race in Eugene as I did in Chicago. That would definitely make me one happy runner.

Happy trails.