I haven’t done a workout recap in a few weeks and it’s time to get caught up. So, if you’ll excuse me to taking a break in the Walt Disney World Marathon Trip recaps, let’s get caught up.

Week 3 of 2014

Week 3 was a better week than week 2. While I was still light on number of workouts, I was back on the roads and got in two hard, but good runs. After all, the following week ended with my next race…the Surf City USA Half Marathon. So, I ran 6 miles on that Tuesday. It was 6 good miles as well. However, with my new schedule for the start of the year adding a bible study on Thursday evening, I should have run on Wednesday as well, but didn’t. I rebounded with a 10 mile run at the Rose Bowl on Saturday. That run took it out of me. I must have gotten off too fast. The goal for that day was to run 3 laps around the Rose Bowl loop and find an extra mile. The first 2 laps went very well. I did struggle with the beginning of the first mile. However, from the end of mile 1 through the end of mile 6, everything was clicking along like it should. I was enjoying being out among the runners, walkers, and cyclists. It all felt really good. I was running a good time. Then, mile 7 hit and for some reason, I really struggled. So much, that I decided to walk most of that mile. I was hoping that in walking, I would find the energy to finish the last 3. Well, mile 8 started off just as hard. I knew that mile 9 was all downhill and flat. So, I could make up time in that mile. However, I decided to fight as hard as I could through mile 8. Glad I did. My goal heading into this run was to finish the 10 miles in 2 hours or under. Going into the 9th mile, that all still looked possible. By the end, it was still looking good. However, I didn’t plan properly and winged it through the 10th mile. You see, I could have started a 4th loop. However, I struggled so much with the 7th mile (in the same spot), that I thought to just run back to where I parked and see how far that was. This idea seemed like a good idea at the time. However, my car was not far enough away and I was struggling. I did make all 10 miles. However, I finished in 2 hours 3 minutes. So, I was off. In addition to that, I was coughing a lot in the last mile. Not good.

On Sunday of week 3, I was back at LA Fitness for the first time in months. As I move on, I really want to get back to incorporating gym workouts into my week. The workout at LA Fitness went better than expected. I had no idea if my body could handle the weights, reps, ect. that I have previously been doing. This gym workout showed me that I was ready to continue on.

In total, week 3 included 3 workouts…2 runs and 1 gym workout! It was an improvement over week 2! However, I really want to finish 3 runs and 1 gym workout in the future.

Week 4 of 2014

If only it were that simple. Stop being sick and be awesome instead. Unfortunately, sometimes, when you’re sick, you just need to shut it down and get better. Not too long after Christmas, I came down with a little bit of a cold. The coughing lingered around. So, on the Monday of week 4, I took the day off from work to see if I could find out why this cough was lingering around. The mistake I made was going to urgent care instead of making an appointment with my regular doctor. It was a mistake because it meant spending 3 hours in a waiting room with lots of other sick people. There was lots of coughing and 2 vomiting kiddos. Not exactly fun times. After 3 hours of waiting, I finally got my turn in to see a doctor. The diagnosis was that I was dealing with the lingering effects of an upper respiratory infection. I got some chest x-rays, a steroid shot and a prescription for more steroids and an inhaler. The doctor told me that I needed to keep the lungs as warm as I could. Translation…no night time running for the week. In total, I was at the urgent care for nearly 5 hours. However, the craziness didn’t end there. I went to a nearby Target to get my prescription filled only to find that they didn’t get the prescription faxed to them like I had been told. So, I went back to urgent care, waited in line for about 15 minutes, got a written prescription and went back to Target. After about a half hour for them to fill the order, I was finally on my way home. It was a long day.

With the Surf City USA Half Marathon that Sunday, I decided to shut down training for the week. I knew that running outside at night was against the doctor’s orders. I also thought that I needed to give my body a rest. After all the marathon training and going to Disney World for a week probably prolonged the illness. Additionally, I’m sure that there were plenty of germs lingering around the gym if I were to go there. It was a risky move on my part with the half marathon at the end of the week. However, the doctor seemed to think that the meds would help me be better by that Sunday. Running a half marathon at the end of the week might not have been the best decision. However, I did end up with my second fastest half marathon yet! You can read more about my Surf City USA Half Marathon here.

In total, I ran once in Week 4…the Surf City USA Half Marathon. No other workouts.

Week 5 of 2014

So, after the Surf City USA Half Marathon, I wasn’t feeling 100 percent. To be honest, on Tuesday, I fully intended to get back outside and running. However, by the time I got home from work, I just felt burned out on running. Even though the meds and rest from the previous week had me coughing less and completely took away the really intense coughing my lungs out kind of cough, I felt like one more week of rest would do me some good.

On top of that, I was feeling completely lost as far as training goes. From the end of April last year through the middle of January of this year, I had a plan. It was a two-part plan that got me through my very first full marathon!

Once that race was finished, I was left without a plan of attack. So, I’ve been winging it. When you add the illness to a lack of a plan, it leaves you feeling lost. So, for the better part of the last two weeks, I’ve been working on goals for rest of this year. Some of those goals are more fluid than others. I’ve updated my “Races and Results” to include the races I want to run this year. If you check with that tab, you’ll notice that I have not registered for all of the races yet. However…

• I am registered for the Dumbo Double Dare challenge at Disneyland! So, running the Disneyland 10K and Disneyland Half Marathon will take care of one goal…getting my first runDisney Coast to Coast medal. This medal is for those that complete at least a half marathon at Walt Disney World and Disneyland in the same calendar year. The 2014 Walt Disney World Marathon was my race at Walt Disney World and I’ll be running the 2014 Disneyland Half Marathon as well to earn the Coast to Coast medal!
• With the completion of the Surf City USA Half Marathon, I have completed 1/3 of the races needed to finish the Beach Cities Challenge. So, in addition to getting the Coast to Coast medal from the runDisney races, I am also seeking to earn the Beach Cities Challenge medal this year. In order to do that, I’ll need to finish the Orange County Half Marathon and the Long Beach Half Marathon. If I do so, I’ll walk away from the Long Beach Half Marathon with an extra Beach Cities Challenge medal.The OC Half Marathon is the next race I’ll be signing up for.
• Over the weekend, I did sign up for my next race…the Angels Baseball Foundation 5K Family Fun Run (March 29th)! I’ve run in this 5K run the last two years. You can read about the 2013 Angels Baseball Foundation 5K Family Fun Run here. I know that this race is only a 5K. However, I’ve had a lot of fun running it in the past. Also, this year, they announced that they will have a finishers medal for the first time! Combine that with the rumors that the Disneyland Half Marathon race course might not run inside of Angels Stadium this year and I just had to run this race again this year.
• Also, over the weekend, I registered for my next half marathon…the Hollywood Half Marathon (April 5th). I’m really excited about this race! 2014 marks the 3rd year for this race. In each of the previous 2 years, there has been a scheduling conflict to keep me from running in one of the races they have (in addition to the half marathon, there is a 10K and a 5K race). However, this year, no scheduling conflicts. So, I’m in!
• Rounding out the races for the year, I’ll be for sure wanting to run in the Rock n Roll San Diego Half Marathon and the Rock n Roll Los Angeles Half Marathon this year to earn another extra medal for finishing 2 Rock n Roll half marathons. If finances will allow for it, I might add either the Rock n Roll Las Vegas Half Marathon or the Rock n Roll San Jose Half Marathon to the mix. The Rock n Roll races have a 3 race registration pack for $199! So, it’s like registering for 2 races and getting the third one for free. The only thing I’ve got to work out is whether I can afford to go out to Las Vegas or San Jose for a weekend.

Now that the race calendar is set with goal races and ones already registered for, I’m working out the training details. For this week, the goal is simple. I want to run 3 miles tomorrow (Tuesday), 4 miles on Thursday, 6 miles on Saturday and get back to LA Fitness on Sunday. I feel better than I have all year thus far. So, this is the week to get back at it. After all, I do have a goal of finishing a 2 hour, 30 minute half marathon. With any luck and some training, I’m hoping to get to that goal at either the Hollywood Half Marathon or the OC Half Marathon. That way, I can send that time off to Track Shack for improved placing at the Disneyland Half Marathon. Week 6 of 2014 is all about getting back to work.