6 weeks of base mileage complete!

Tuesday, January 29th: on the indoor track for my last week of base mileage. I felt great. I was running with ease. My body has adapted. Now that I am used to running between 7 to 8 miles during the weekday, things are about to change next week. So, until then, I will enjoy the easy miles. Later in the day, I completed my strength training at Crossfit Beyond. This was also my last week of strength training.

Wednesday, January 30th: I completed a variety of body weight exercises in my basement for 60 minutes.

Thursday, January 31st: Crossfit beyond for an intense workout and the last day of strength training. I crave that place. I will miss strength training, but it's time to concentrate on speed training.

On Friday, I went back to the indoor track for my last base mile workout. I felt great and ran 8.10 miles in 1hr and 15minutes. I'm so excited for what's ahead of me. The next six weeks will surely make me... because there is no way that I am going to let them break me. It's time to let the horse out of the stable. Getting faster and sustaining pace will be the name of the game.

Saturday, I woke up surprisingly energized. This past week was tough. Between training, work, life in general and preparing for my first fundraiser, I was surprised to have the energy to do anything. But, I was looking forward to doing a little Tapout XT Sprawl and Brawl. I gave it all I had. Sweat was pouring down my face. My heart was racing and I was loving every minute of it. In an instant, all the weeks stresses started to melt away. What a relief.

Super Bowl Sunday!!! Before I got ready for some football, I had to do my long run. It was chillier than last Sunday, and the sun was trying to show its face from behind the clouds. I set out to run for 2hrs and 30 minutes or 16 miles, which ever came first. Although I miss running with a group, I do enjoy the solitude of the run. It allows me to mentally become a stronger runner. I concentrated on my breathing, which has been a challenge for me in this cold weather. The neck warmer I have covers my nose and mouth. After ten minutes, I found that I needed more air, so I pulled it down until I felt I needed to warm up my breath again.

The long runs are a good time to practice fueling and electrolyte replacement. I changed it up a bit this time around. I brought along two ten-ounce bottles of water with Electrolyte Fueling System (EFS) mixed in the water, one ten-ounce bottle of EFS gel, and one ten-ounce  bottle of water. I also had a clif bar, which I divided into two servings and six salt stick caplets. I am still playing around with the timing of the consumption between the EFS gel and the salt stick caplets. On my next long run, I will adjust the timing some more until it is perfect. I ran comfortable for 2hrs and 30mins at a 9:07 min/mile, which turned out to be 16.44miles. I am a B.A.M.R.!!!