Mile Markers: Ringing in Spring

Spring arrived in full last week and with it, spring racing! I raced a 10K race over the weekend. Technically, this was my second race while pregnant. I ran the Frosty Forest Trail 6K before we found out. 

My recovery rate is slower now that I’m 16 weeks pregnant. I tapered for this race with about 50% of my average weekly mileage and did not complete my normal race week workout. I wanted to start the race feeling as refreshed as possible. 

Mile Markers: Ringing in Spring

Monday: 5 miles & strength training

I overheat so easily on runs right now. I know why (higher progesterone increases body temperature) but I’m still learning what is appropriate and what is not, especially in spring weather. Supposedly it was 28 degrees when I started my run, but it felt much warmer in the sunshine. I was so grateful for a headwind on the back portion of this run! 

Mile Markers: Ringing in Spring

For strength training, I did a quick circuit with the mini loop resistance band: monster walks, lateral walks, single leg bridges, clamshells, side plank dips, and deadbugs. 

Tuesday: 4 miles

This run felt good! I had to deliberately pull back a couple of times since my legs felt so snappy. Ollie and I ran four easy miles. He stopped and marked virtually everything he could during this entire run. 

Wednesday: 4 miles

My legs felt snappy again on this run. Maybe it’s the taper, spring weather, or the second trimester, but running feels even better now and my paces are slightly faster at the same effort. I’ve realized that I normalize winds now. We live just 12 miles south of Lake Michigan, so a north or northwest wind is standard on spring runs. 

Mile Markers: Ringing in Spring

Thursday: Rest day

I planned to run this day and rest the day before the race. Typically, I rest the day before a race. However, my body dictated otherwise. Lately, running my five days split over blocks of three days and two days has worked best for me. Four days of running in a row are possible but not optimal for recovery. Thursday’s weather was rainy, and the change in pressure took a toll on my sinuses yet again. I did a short Pilates stretching video, spent time foam rolling, and walked the dogs. 

Friday: 3 mile easy run

This run felt much better than if I had run on Thursday. I maintained a restrained effort throughout and finished feeling refreshed. 

Saturday: Ringing in Spring 10K

Spring weather arrived literally overnight and Saturday was a balmy 50-ish degrees by the start of the race. It’s amazing how warm that temperature feels after winter. Despite holding back due to fear of overheating, I ran a consistent pace throughout the 10K and finished in 48:37. That’s five minutes slower than my PR but for 16 weeks pregnant, I’m super happy with that time! I won second in my age group and placed 8th woman overall. Ryan ran the 10K also and placed fifth in his age group! I will share the full recap later this week. 

Mile Markers: Ringing in Spring

Sunday: Rest day

More beautiful weather meant some nice walks and relaxing on the patio. I had ordered some non-alcoholic beer online and surprisingly, it tasted like a good substitute for a beer. This brand is actually designed for athletes, since N/A beer is become a trendier recovery beverage. 

Mile Markers: Ringing in Spring

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16 Responses

  1. Congratulations!!! That is just brilliant my friend and I hope you are basking in your accomplishment today 🙂 I think it was a great weekend for racing because I had a great one on Sunday and I know Nat and Laura raced well too. wooohoooo!!! Looking forward to the recap!

  2. Congratulations on your 10K, that’s an awesome finish time! You really listened to your body and made adjustments as needed – I’m not surprised your race went so well! Congrats to your hubby too!

    The N/A beer looks interesting…I’ve never tried it but it looks like a good option!

    1. Thank you! The N/A is MUCH better than some I tried – most of the German ones tasted too cereal-y or almost skunky to me. It’s something to keep in mind for big training cycles even when not pregnant when trying to cutback on alcohol!

  3. That is a great week of workouts and running. Nice job on the 10K. Looks like running and pregnancy agree with you. I did not run while pregnant but I do remember the temperature fluctuations were crazy

  4. Firstly, congratulations on your pregnancy! And secondly, congratulations on that awesome race time while 16 weeks pregnant! Congrats to hubby! I think it’s safe to say Baby has inherited some pretty awesome running genes.

  5. your taper before the 10K week actually sounds perfect for ME and I’m not even pregnant! so glad the weather is better now too! CONGRATS on your AG place! that’s awesome!

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