5 weeks until Chicago Marathon
My feelings toward running this week in Hamburg were just as strong and exactly the opposite to how I felt about running in Jamaica. Not only was there a 30+ degree temperature swing from one week to the next, but Hamburg is one of my favorite places in the world to run.
Monday
- Plan: OFF
- Actual: OFF
I got up early to get some work done and finish packing before leaving for Hamburg around lunch time. I spent the rest of the day/night traveling.
Tuesday
- Plan: Tempo Run w/6M @ 7:05-7:20
- Actual: 10M @ 7:40 w/tempo: 7:21, 7:13, 7:16, 7:12, 7:10, 7:04
Doing a tempo run almost immediately after getting off of a trans-Atlantic flight is definitely not ideal. I considered changing this to an easy run, but last time I had the opportunity to attempt a 6-mile tempo, I opted to only do 5 because of the heat and humidity so I really wanted to see if I could do it. Since the temps were in the mid-50’s, I knew that would help tremendously. And surprisingly, from the very beginning, I felt pretty good. There were definitely times in the early tempo miles that I had doubts, but the further I got into it, the better and more confident I felt.
Wednesday
- Plan: 1:15 Reeeal Easy Run
- Actual: 9M @ 8:29
Coach wanted me to take this one really easy and I was glad because despite sleeping until past 8 a.m., I woke up feeling super sluggish. It took over 5 miles until my legs came around and started to feel better.
Thursday
- Plan: 45 min Cross Training + Strength Routine
- Actual: 45 min Easy Spin + Strength
I was out until 3 a.m. the night before with colleagues after our company party at the trade show. Thank goodness for a super easy workout and semi-late start to the day. It felt good to get myself moving and sweating a little before a busy work day.
Friday
- Plan: Speed work w/ 8×800 @ 3:15-20
- Actual: 9M @ 8:12 w/800’s: 3:15, 3:16, 3:16, 3:17, 3:15, 3:15, 3:14, 3:14
After sleeping in the last 2 days, it hurt a little when the 5 a.m. alarm clock went off. I took the train to the track at Stadtpark for my speedwork. It was foggy and really cool, which was a HUGE difference from the last time I did 800’s a few weeks ago. These felt really controlled and comfortable. It is exciting to see the progression on this workout from just a few months ago during Boston training, where the same effort equaled splits around 3:20.
This beautiful track sits in a park with miles of tree covered dirt running trails.
Saturday
- Plan: Strength Routine + 1:00 Easy Run
- Actual: Strength + 7.25M @ 8:21
One of the other reasons {besides running} that I love going to Hamburg is spending time with friends who live there. Since there were also coworkers/old friends still in town, we had a great group of 6 for a fun night with dinner, drinks and live music. We had a great time and stayed out until almost 3 am, which I knew was okay because I could sleep as late as I wanted Saturday. I woke up around 11 am, did my strength routine then finally ran around noon. The brilliance of running in Northern Europe…temps still in the low 60’s in the middle of the day! It was a bit crowded with people walking at the lake at the beginning and end of the run but the rest was fine. My legs took ~3 miles to get going but eventually felt decent…I guess it’s just that point in marathon training.
The Inner Alster. It sits right in the middle of downtown so it was pretty crowded when I started my run.
Sunday
- Plan: 1:45 Run
- Actual: 13M @ 8:13
Almost the same situation as last week. Early flight home meant 4 am wake up for a 4:30 start to get the miles in. It was dark but familiar and I felt pretty good for the whole run. Despite that, for some reason, (maybe the darkness or because my right glute/hip/hammy felt really tight) I just wanted this run to get over with. Luckily it went by pretty fast and I was on time for my flight. The lower back chaffing from my sports bra and (STILL SORE!) tail bone from cliff jumping in Jamaica were not pleasant for the 9 hour flight home.
Totals
- Run: 48.25 miles
- Cross training: 1 Easy Spin
- Strength: 2
- Yoga: 0
