Oh week three, how rough you were. I felt like crap in a way only ladies know how to feel, the giant event my entire job revolves around inched ever so closer, and my left foot developed a dull ache in the arch. For much of the week, I battled with running. Running won that battle most days. But it lost on Friday. I took an extra rest day.

I’m so glad I did.

I’m becoming a believer in that my training plan is a guide. Nothing more. It doesn’t take in account work stress, physical pain or the weather. It can’t. Life happens and sometimes running, even though it’s on the schedule I spent hours researching and putting together, isn’t the best thing for me to be doing.

There is a difference between not running because you don’t want to and not running because your body is telling you it’s a bad idea. It’s subtle, but distinct. I’m starting to tell them apart.

With that in mind, here’s how week #3 went down:

 

Monday: Hot Hour @ Kula

This is where the week got shaky. Yup, right away. The yoga class I did on Sunday was more intense than I expected it to be. I should have switched gears and did a yin class on Monday. I didn’t. I enjoyed Jen Slade’s class, but it set a “you are going to work HARD!” tone for the rest of the week, and my body didn’t catch up.

 

Tuesday: 7.2km in 56 minutes

It was raining Tuesday night, so I bailed on the running-to-yoga plan I love. Doing yoga soaked is not my idea of fun. I ran in the rain instead. So much better. (Not.)

 

 

Wednesday: 5.8km in 40 minutes

This run was interesting, because I was exhausted. But I put on my running shoes and my body just did the work. Muscle memory is the best.

Thursday: rest

Despite the holy training plan, I’m finding Thursday rest days are better for me. I’m doing to keep it up. Except….

 

Friday: rest

I made Friday a rest day too! Oh no! This day was a low point for my body. Simply making it through work was a struggle. Instead, I bailed on all obligations, including running and a birthday party (sorry, Bronwyn!), and went to bed at 9:30. It worked because…

 

Saturday: 90 minutes Flow Yoga; 7.0km in 55 minutes

Saturday felt great! The yoga class was low on the intensity scale, the weather was lovely and I had the energy and enthusiasm to attack both workouts with zest and vigour. That’s right, zest and vigour. Be impressed. Extra rest days can be a good thing.

 

Sunday: 15.8km in 2:01

Sunday was another lovely winter day, so I decided to amp up the effort on the long run and tackle the Don Valley Trail, YakTrax style. The run was a solid, if slow, effort, and I’m feeling confident about conquering 30k at the end of March.

 

 

The week started low, but ended high. I’m looking forward to pushing past the 40k weekly mileage this week. I also hope to try out another new yoga class, a new soup recipe and finally tackle that hill work-out I’ve been avoiding.