Posted by Lauren
My goal: run faster.
My speed bump: Week 4.
It’s no secret that last week was all over the place. I’ll write a (maybe cryptic) post on it soon. Basically I skipped Monday’s workout so I could make sure my mom was doing okay after her doctor appointment. Although I tried my best to hit all the other runs and strength workouts, I was so Exhausted that I honestly didn’t give any gym-related things my “all.” I felt very lethargic and distracted by the thoughts swirling in my head.
I have a lot more clarity now and I’m honestly re-energized for this week’s workouts. Without further ado, I give you a summary of Week 4. If you’d like to see my whole plan, you can download it here from Norton Zone. (Also: Week 1 I needed headphones, Week 2 was a solid week, Week 3 sparked the late run dilemma).
Bored? Skip to the GREEN phrases, and then to the end!
Monday Tuesday – chest/shoulders/triceps workout + treadmill hike
The strength workout included 3 sets of the following exercises: dumbbell bench press, flat bench flyes, dumbbell side laterals, tricep pushdown. Instead of finishing the workout with incline walking on the treadmill, I chose the stationary bicycle and spent 30 minutes doing easy intervals.
Tuesday Wednesday – easy recovery run
5.5 miles at 7.5 mph/8:13 pace. Felt nice to run that evening and just think.
Wednesday Thursday – 4×1600 speed intervals + back/biceps workout
In between 1600 meter sprints, I walked for about 2:30 to cool down. My interval pace was about 7:04 (8.5 mph on the TM) – a bit slower than other speed work intervals because 1600m is a lot longer than 400m! I finished with a back/biceps workout – 3 sets of the following exercises: bent over dumbbell row, pullups, back extensions, concentration curls, barbell curls. I feel SO awkward doing concentration curls!
[I think the photo is on my computer... I will update the post soon!]
Friday – HIIT + legs/glutes workout
I replicated the HIIT workout from two weeks ago. Love it for the short n’ sweet factor.
- 10 minute warmup at 6.8 mph/8:49 pace
- 15 minutes of: 1 minute at 9.0 mph/6:40 pace | 1 minute at 7.4 mph/8:06 pace
- 10 minute cool down at 7.0 mph/8:34 pace
I finished with a legs/glutes/abs workout – 3 sets of the following exercises: leg press, leg extension, seated leg curl, straight leg dumbbell deadlift, standing calf raise, calf press on leg press, crunches, lying leg raises. Deadlifts and calf presses burn!
Saturday:
As I mentioned above, I took my rest day on Monday instead of Saturday. I was then just one day off the schedule. On Friday I decided to stick to the scheduled HIIT/legs/glutes and push Thursday’s workout to Saturday. Priority #1: Just get it all done. Who cares what day!
So…
Thursday Saturday – 40 minute hills run
I set the TM to Random and made sure the incline remained between 2.0 and 5.5. I ran at a steady speed: 6.9 mph/8:41 pace. Hopefully this stimulated the rolling hills of California close enough? It was nice to take a break from the usual Thursday Tempo – every 4th week my plan has me do hill practice :)
And then my favorite part of the week….. long run!
Sunday – 90 minute long run (3/1 style)
Ah! Yes! Back on schedule! Every 3rd week is a 3/1 style long run. That means you run the first 75% at a comfortable pace and then run the last 25% at approximate race pace.
- 60 minutes at average 8:21 pace – OUTSIDE RUNNING IS THE BEST
- 8 minutes at 7.2 mph/8:20 pace (to finish up the 75% easy)
- 22 minutes at 7.9 mph/7:36 pace (the last 25% ~race pace)
I loved the first hour outside!!!!! The weather was fantastic, just a bit cool and overcast. When I brought it inside for the second piece, the quick pace really challenged me. All in all, a great way to finish up the week!
Total Mileage: 33 miles (I cut the bicycle miles in half)
Theme of the week: Perspective. During Sunday’s long run, when I was on the pedestrian bridge pictured above, I realized that this week’s workouts really helped put Life in perspective. I’m no artist, but the photo quite literally illustrates the concept, with the tunnel getting smaller in the distance. I had a silly “Aha!” moment, stopped, took a photo, and then kept running. Obstacles? Opportunities? Grief? Hope? Everything happens for a reason and you just need to keep going…
“Put one foot in front of the other… and soon you’ll be walking out the door-or-or” Name that tune!
No question today – Share your favorite workout, run, bike, swim, hike, dance, class, etc from last week!
-Lauren
3 comments on “Pedestrian Bridge Perspective”
Leave a Reply
@laurenolerich instagrams
@nicoleolerich instagrams
Send new posts to your Inbox!
I think I recognize the bridge, but I haven’t actually been on it :) It’s scary when life has to be put in perspective. Well, scary to me at least. ha.
Best workout of last week was a tie between my yoga studio day and my 10 miler.
Sonia the Mexigarian recently posted..WIAW- Going Where We Have Never Gone Before!
Nice, a 10 miler!! The bridge is in Mountain View right over the Caltrain tracks :)
Lo, this is a beautiful post. I love that you were able to run across that bridge in MTV and I love the shot you captured. I used to run that when I lived down here because it was my only change at hill running.
This quote I think compliments your last paragraph quite well: “Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.”
― Melody Beattie