Chicago Marathon training week seven is in the books! This week was similar mileage to last week and on the whole, my runs were better because the weather was a bit better. Each week during this training cycle, I will share how my training went and what the week looked like. I do this because: 1) I love reading about how other folks train and 2) it’s great for me to have a record of what I did each week. Also, honestly, it helps keep me accountable when I know I’ll be writing about it. I also post almost all of my runs on Instagram as well. On to the recap!
Monday: Four easy miles before work. The weather wasn’t awful and I was grateful for that – it was warm but not terrible.
Tuesday: This was an interesting run. I had 8x600s and in my head I thought I was supposed to run my 600s in 3:06. The first four came in around 3:10 and I was so upset. During my break (I break up this work out into two sets of 4x600s with a 5 minute rest in between sets), I looked up what my pace should be – and discovered I was supposed to be running about 3:10. The last four went much better, mentally. Physically, it was about the same – the humidity was high and I felt pretty slow but this was a solid workout all together.
Wednesday: Pure Barre after work.
Thursday: Tempo Thursday. The weather was MUCH better than last week and my run was much less laborious as a result. 7 miles total and even with my warm up and cool down, my overall pace was 9:35. This was a good run.
Friday: Four solo easy miles. I elected to sleep more than run with my Pure Barre friends and while I missed them, I needed sleep.
Saturday: 9.5 early morning miles with my run group. It was hot and I was drained for most of the day after that run – I laid around and tried to rest because there was a second run that evening! I ran the Pacers Crystal City Twilighter 5k that evening. The race started at 8:30pm and it was still 96 degrees. Woof. But we had a bunch of Oiselle team gals there and had a great time sweating it out (and having a beer) together!
Sunday: 3.5 easy Sunday miles with Caitlin and with that, I was done. My legs were pretty shot from running both morning and evening yesterday and I was happy it was a shorter run.
Total mileage for the week: 37.7 miles
Total mileage for the year: 709.15 miles
Total mileage for this training cycle: 168.66 miles
I just hit 100 miles for the month of July – I haven’t run 100 miles since Shamrock back in March, so it’s nice to be back up to higher mileage. The one thing I need to be better about is getting more sleep. I’m tired all the time and it’s starting to take a toll. I’m only sleeping 5-6 hours a night, and really I need 7 or 8 to be at my best. Any tips on how to manage that when you are waking up before the sun most days?
How was your week of training? Who else is running the Chicago marathon?
Wow, you are killing that tempo run pace, especially if that included your warm up and cool down. Cannot wait to see what you do in Chicago. Out of curiosity do you take rest days?
I don’t run on Wednesdays but I often go to Pure Barre then. So, yes I have one day of no running each week. But I do sometimes still workout on that day – just depends. Sometimes I can make it to Pure Barre on a running day but lately I’ve been unable to, so I go on my running rest day.
Okay I see so you always take Weds off running, that makes sense. I was just wondering because you are doing so hot and I thought – well maybe I am taking too many rest days.
No – I think you are being very smart!
Great week in the heat!!! It’s really so oppressive and hard to slog though but, keep thinking about how great you will feel in Chicago in November!!! Seriously – the saying about summer training leads to fall PRs is right on!! Keep up the good work woman 🙂
Allie recently posted…The Rundown – Transitions
Thanks Allie! I know that even if it’s hot in Chicago (like it was last year), the humidity won’t be nearly as bad as it is in DC currently. I keep reminding myself of that… 🙂
I wish I had a suggestion for getting more sleep. I’m in desperate need of more of it myself.
Kathryn @ Dancing to Running recently posted…Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon Training Log – Week 4
I know I need to go to bed earlier but I struggle with that because I often don’t get home until after 8…if I could take a midday nap each day, that would be great!
Great job getting it all done in the heat. Hitting 100 miles in JULY Is no joke!
This weather is awful. Fall can’t come soon enough!
Great job Courtney! I managed to run 50 miles in Week 6 which is the most I’ve run in a week. Oh man that sucks about sleep. Lately I’ve been sleeping in till 8 while going to bed at 10. But even after my run I feel like I need a nap. I hope my body gets used to this running routine when I go back to work next month.
I’ve been thinking of you down there in that crazy heat! Love that you aren’t letting the heat stop you at all! Funny that your body seemed to know exactly the pace you should be running on those 600s. Huge kudos for two runs on a scorcher like Saturday. It’s definitely hard to go to sleep earlier in the summer when the sun’s still up! I get dressed for bed early and then spend some time in bed reading instead of watching TV, and that helps me go to bed earlier. I’ve also been known to pull a George Costanza and take a nap under my desk at lunch!
You’re doing SO GREAT, Courtney! Well, except for that sleep part (rolls eyes); I know it’s tough. The only advice I can offer is to go to bed – ha! I mean, it’s not that simple, right? My alarm goes off (except for Thursday, which is a rest day) between 4-4:15, depending on how many miles I want to do, so I’m in bed by 9 pm most nights. It’s tough to get everything done, after I get home from work, and make that happen but I have learned that it has to be a priority so I do as much as I can ahead of time and hustle when I’m at home during the week,
Congrats on a great training week! I am running Chicago for the first time this year so it’s great to find someone on the same training schedule. Looking forward to following your journey!
Great job, Courtney!! I have been hiding from the track…it’s so intimidating to me! Love that picture with you and your fellow birds. I think my sleep patterns have been off since moving the new house, so if you get any good advice on that, let me know! 🙂
Janelle @ Run With No Regrets recently posted…Philly Marathon Pre-Training Week 7 Recap
I am definitely not the person to ask about getting enough sleep! I ran Saturday morning and it wasn’t nearly as bad as I feared, but today it was so gross when I was walking our dog I decided to do strength training,
Good job on two runs on Saturday. No wonder you were drained. It has been so hot here too. I struggle to get one short run in. I finally found a Pure Barre class in Va Beach. I will need to finally try it out.
Girl you are a rockstar for running and training in this heat!!! You should get a medal just for that!
Jen@bubblyrunner.com recently posted…South Beach Fun!
Cheers to another great week! My struggle has been going to bed early enough to justify getting up early enough to get a run in that’s longer than 4 ish miles. I’ve decided that for now I can handle a couple longer treadmill runs after work as long as the quality is good. You need your rest!
Alaina @ The Simple Peach recently posted…Chicago Marathon Training Update: Week 8
This heat and humidity has been awful the last week of so. Icky. You rock for doing the Crystal City Twilighter…that’s soooo steamy hot.