Fun Running Recovery

I had a pretty easy week following the Marine Corps Marathon.  I took 3 days off after the marathon before going out on an easy 4-mile jog.  I was surprised at how tired I felt.  My lungs felt winded, and my legs felt heavier than they have for a long time.  I figured that my body was still recovering from the 26-mile run a few days earlier, but it was still a bit discouraging.  I took another day off and, thankfully, had some great runs on Saturday and Sunday.  I think that I'll be running at 100% next week.

I mapped out my training plan through the 10K Bread Run on December 2, and I'm really excited to do some speed work.  It feels so rewarding to start training for a race after building such a good foundation leading up to MCM 2012.  I'm still planning on running 5 days per week with one tempo run, one interval run, and one long run, and I'll probably average ~30 miles per week.

While outfitting myself with some winter running essentials, to include a Brooks hat, another light mid-layer shirt, and some super thin REI gloves, I found out that my local Pacers running store has fun runs every Tuesday and Thursday evening at 7pm.  They said that the paces range from about 6:00/mi to 12:00/mi, so I should be able to find some ~7:30/mi pacers for my tempo runs.  I think that will be a great way to push myself on tempo days, and also meet some runners in the area.

This Sunday I managed to squeeze in a hike with my wife and son before my run.  We drove out to the Difficult Run Trail, a hike I did with my son in the backpack this summer while recovering from extensor tendonitis.  It was an absolutely gorgeous day, and we had a great time.  Coming from Washington (state, not DC) nothing here comes close to the scenic mountain hikes, but it's always great to get out of the city, even if you still have to walk by a mansion or two.  We did about 6 miles and Thumper (my son) soaked it up.  He would occasionally burst into laughter in the backpack while watching Bambi (the dog) bound down the trail.  He was entranced by all of the colors in the leaves and the peacefulness of the running stream.  Difficult Run Trail near Great Falls is an awesome reprieve from city life here in Arlington.  Here are some pics!

I assume all of the grass you see is laid down because it was underwater during Hurricane Sandy

A nice little beach along Difficult Run

A hawk (I think) looking for goodies

A view from the parking lot

Walking around along the shore

Looking up Difficult Run (the name of the stream)

Running Summary Last Week:

Monday:       Off
Tuesday:       Off
Wednesday:  Off
Thursday:      4.04 miles; 37:55; avg. pace 9:23/mi
Friday:          Off
Saturday:      4 miles; 36:25; avg. pace 9:06/mi
Sunday:        8.09 miles; 1:10:35; avg. pace 8:43/mi

Total Mileage:  16.13 miles
Total Time:       2:24:55
Average Pace:  8:59/mi

Happy Running!