My mission to get back in running condition continues! Today’s schedule called for a 35 minute tempo run. The tempo run is my favorite hard run format– I always feel like a badass afterward.
Yesterday afternoon I got my seasonal flu shot; I am a vaccination true believer and flu hater. However, the immune response to the vaccine is running its course, and I was sore and lethargic. But I got a good night of sleep and felt better this morning, if still sore.
I divided up the tempo run into 10 minutes warmup, 15 minutes work, 10 minutes cruise. Within the first few minutes it became painfully obvious that my calves were too tired and sore for my usual forefoot strike, so I switched to a more midfoot shuffle. It wasn’t pretty, but I got through the whole thing in a solid and respectable fashion, covering 3 miles flat in the 35 minutes on the treadmill.
I’m a little worried about the mileage ramp-up. I’ve run more miles in the past week than I did in the entire month of September, and the sudden switch to the 5 runs/week training format is going to do a number on my legs. But it’s a short burst, and hopefully if I pay attention, keep stretchy and get good recovery I’ll be okay. It’s not my first time on this bus. :)
Running While Fat 