A good time to reflect

I find Fridays a good time for me to reflect on the week that was and the week that is upcoming.

One week ago I was preparing for my third Ultra Marathon since the end of April. Even though my focus this year is squarely on the Scotiabank Marathon, I wanted to do a few Ultras so that I can maintain the great contact with the many friends that I have made since I started running in 2005. Well, mission accomplished.

I will be missing a few Ultra races that normally I would have run in (Niagara Falls next weekend and Creemore Springs Race in July) but I have to remember why I am training. I will also have to put my love for trails on the backburner as I concentrate on running on the roads more. Normally I would run in the trails at least once or twice per week but these days will now be spent doing speed work and hill training. I already have noticed a difference in my oxygen uptake and I am able to sustain a faster pace for longer than I have in the past so I know that the training is paying off.

My training calls for running 6 days per week with Fridays being my day of rest. I have swapped that for Mondays because I train two clients on Fridays (one on the roads and one in the trails).

Training for Ultra races required me to run ridiculously long weekly mileages, sometimes as much as 100 KM or more per week. Now I am doing about half that mileage but the intensity has increased substantially. My “long” run this week is 14 miles where normally that might be considered a normal run during the week. Every run used to be the same and I know that my body was simply getting used to the pattern I was doing so I wasn’t seeing much of a change. I realize more now than ever how important it is to have a varied program. One day I’m doing hill training, the next day I may do a tempo run and the following week I may be doing track work at the local high school.

Even though I consider myself an experienced runner, boy that sounds funny coming from me, I know the benefit of having someone else to be accountable to. For me that comes in the form of a training plan. It is the reason why I firmly believe in either journaling or having my clients follow a meal plan. If you are honest and not afraid to put down exactly what you are eating from day to day it can only help you to see your pattern more clearly. I haven’t done a meal plan for myself in quite a long time as I feel that I do have a handle of my eating pattern/habits but it’s something I am seriously thinking about doing for myself once I move at the end of the month.