Tuesday 17 July 2012

Re - jigging

I have re-jigged my training program . . . AGAIN!


My goals are still the same (see here), I'm not injured and I am getting amazing gains. Why change?

I am a big believer that how many "hard" sessions you can manage in your training is very individual. Age, injuries and fitness level etc all play a role. Since Little A arrived I have focused on the speed work to try and regain my fitness quickly. This has meant that I have had 4 hard sessions each week and 1 easy session with 2 rest days. For a "seasoned athlete" I'm sure this would be a breeze but I definitely don't fit in to that category. But even as a recreational runner I am very pleased with how my body has handled the higher intensity training load. All the speed work has seen me not only achieve pre-baby paces but far exceed them. But now I feel its time to back it off a smidge and for this reason I have decided to trade one of my "hard" sessions for an Easy Run.

How did I know it was time to back it off:

- Niggles are brewing. They are not injuries (yet) and they can easily be managed with stretching and foam rolling but I don't have copious amounts of time to spend on my recovery so I need to keep niggles at bay in the first instance.

- I was struggling to space an easy session or rest day before each "hard" session. There are so many other factors that dictate which run I can get in on which day and changing the ratio of hard and easy sessions will help me to go into my hard sessions adequately rested.


So what does an "average" week of training look like now:

Easy Run
Tempo Run
REST
Long Run
REST
Easy Run
Intervals

Of cousre I may have to change the order of these sessions around each week as need be to fit them in around the mummy and wife duties but I am just happy these days to complete my planned sessions (read all about that here).

So that said its time for a tempo run. . . here goes!

2 comments:

  1. always good to change it up when you feel the urge or nudge. I am just impressed you are able to get it all in!! I am just plain "running" the miles at this point- not much else to do in 100degree heat- ugh!

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  2. Oh heat!!! I'm a terrible runner in the heat. I'm dreading our summer :( Mind you, I suspect I'll be an expert at getting up at a ridiculous hour by then.

    Hope you get some relief from the heat soon!!!

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