Mile Markers 11/23/15 – 11/29/15

Mile Markers: Gem Lake Hiking

Hi, everyone! How was your Thanksgiving and your weekend?

This weekend had fewer miles and more pumpkin pie than normal, but that’s part of the holiday—enjoy good food and relax with family! (I appreciated this article from Women’s Health Magazine that articulated exactly how I feel about holiday eating: don’t stress about it!)

Mile Markers: Gem Lake Hiking

Monday: 8 miles easy, 8:37/mile

We’ve had so much fog in the mornings, and now frost has started caking the ground (and our cars) each morning. I love it. 

Mile Markers: Woodinville Running

Tuesday: AM: 8 miles, 8:38/mile; PM: 25 minutes kettlebell strength training

A winter storm brought rain and cold temperatures to the area. It was cold and wet on my morning run! My run was almost identical to Monday’s run: same route, same distance, and nearly the same pace. In the evening, I did this kettlebell workout for a quick yet effective strength workout. 

Wednesday: 7 miles with last 10 minutes at a moderate pace, 8:25/mile

I based my Lake Sammamish Half Marathon training plan off of Brad Hudson’s adaptive training plans in Run Faster from the 5K to Marathon, and one of the workouts he emphasizes is progression runs. While there’s numerous definitions of progression runs, Hudson’s version features 10-20 minutes at a moderate to hard effort at the end of an easy run. After 5.8 miles at an easy pace (8:35-8:45), I increased my effort to a just shy of the equivalent of tempo effort, which was in the range of 7:25-7:30. 

Thursday: 3 miles easy with Ryan, 10:00/mile + planks

Ryan and I ran our own little turkey trot along the Sammamish River before we settled in for our favorite Thanksgiving tradition: watching the original Star Wars trilogy. Since our families live nearly 2000 miles away, we celebrated just the three of us (of course Charlie loves Thanksgiving, because there’s turkey) and cooked a simple, traditional meal. 

Mile Markers: Thanksgiving 2015

Friday: 7.5 mile snowy hike, ~2100 foot gain

We opted outside early in the morning and hiked to Gem Lake, which was roughly 2/3 of a mile past Snow Lake. What a fun hike! There was more snow and ice on the trail than last week, which definitely made this hike quite the workout. We left Charlie at home because of the cold (it was 20 degrees at the trailhead) and the ice, which helped us keep a quicker pace. We made it to Snow Lake in under 90 minutes and to Gem Lake right at the two hour mark. Our hike down was slower, due to ice and the crowds coming up, so we hiked for about 4 hours and 15 minutes total. Snowy hikes are seriously so much fun. 

Mile Markers: Gem Lake

Since we were puggle-free, we headed to a nearby brewpub for some beer and rest for our legs before returning home. 

Saturday: 3 miles on the treadmill, 8:15/mile + planks

3 miles totally balances out gluhwein and currywurst, right? Before heading to the Christkindlmarkt (German Christmas Market) in Leavenworth, I shook out my legs from the previous day’s hike with a short treadmill run. The Christmas market was smaller than we anticipated (but still fun!), so after walking around for a while we enjoyed German food and some gluhwein at one of the outdoor beer gardens. 

Mile Markers: Leavenworth Christmas Market

Sunday: Rest

After several days out of the house, it felt nice to be home and relax for a day. We enjoyed some homemade gluhwein to celebrate the start of Advent and finished watching the new Star Wars trilogy. Just over a couple more weeks to the new movie! 

Run: 29 miles | Hike: 7.5 miles | 1 supplemental workout

Goals for Next Week

  1. After weeks in the 29-33 miles per week range, it’s time to build up my weekly mileage for Lake Sammamish Half training soon! I want to peak at least 45 miles per week (hopefully with some weeks closer to 50) so next week I hope to run at least 35 miles. 
  2. Increase how much core work and strength training I’m doing. I’ve slacked the past couple weeks and would really prefer to add in some supplemental workout each weekday. 
  3. Drink more water, since hydration helps significantly when increasing workouts. 

[Tweet “Snowy hikes, weekly workouts, and Thanksgiving celebrations from @thisrunrecipes #fitfluential #holidaysweat”]

What are your goals for this week?
How was your Thanksgiving and your weekend?
How was your running this week? Did anyone race?
Do you like gluhwein? What’s your favorite holiday drink?

 

 

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16 Responses

  1. This was my first year in many not doing my own Thanksgiving run. I did get some time in on the bike, though. That lake is just stunning! So glad that you had a great week of training and a great Thanksgiving!

    1. Thank you! I’m glad you were able to get some time in on the bike – hopefully you’ll be able to get in a Christmas run since you could not get in a Thanksgiving run.

  2. Awesome week of workouts! I definitely took in the holiday and spent more time relaxing and less time running! I’m looking to start increasing milage again as I head into December to get a solid base back before marathon training begins at the end of next month.

  3. I’ve never heard of gluhwein… ?

    It looks like you had a good week of training. I did quite a few progression runs when training for my last half and I always like finishing a little faster on the last mile regardless. I think it helps. I’m glad you had a great Thanksgiving!

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