Half-Marathon Training Review: Week 11

I have no idea how it is Thursday already.  This week has been crazy! I've got a lot to squeeze in over the next few days as far as training is concerned, but also have some things to look forward to!  Do you know what I'm most excited about?  Easter Sunday!

Easter means I'll get to spend time with my family down at our lake house and that my time as a vegetarian is over!  I can't lie... I'm ready to eat meat again.  All those crab legs at the beach this past weekend were torture!  I did cheat twice... once because there were no other choices aside from french fries, once because my mom told me I had to sample the appetizers at our event Saturday night.  I don't think God minds though.  Plus, Catholics don't consider fish to be meat, right? :] I've enjoyed being a vegetarian and will continue making vegetarian meals pretty consistently, but I am looking forward to incorporating meat back into my diet.

On to the training recap!  Truth be told, training was not my top priority last week.  I slacked a bit, and I'm completely OK with it.  It has been my top priority for two and a half months now, so I think it was time for a small break.  Besides, there were other things going on that were much more important. :]

I did manage to squeeze in one run over the weekend.  It was a little mini run and I've got to be honest, it kicked my butt!  The humidity down in Florida is no joke.  It hasn't hit quite so bad here in GA yet, so it caught me by surprise this weekend.  Running in the marshes is tough.  I gave up after four measly miles.

I initially intended to get my long run done on the beach, but the sand was so soft it would have been nearly impossible.  I saw several Marines out there busting out some mileage, but I'm going to go out on a limb and say they are in much better shape than I.  :D Plus, who can concentrate on running when this is staring back at them?

Not me...

Instead of running on the soft sand, I chose to follow some of the trails that weave around the base.  My run this weekend was supposed to be 10 miles.  The lady at the front desk told me the trail to the left went for about three miles and the one to the right went for about two.  I thought I'd tackle the three miler first for a total of six miles out and back and then see how I felt.  If I felt up to it, I could finish up the last four miles on the trail to the right. 

I headed off to the left ready to go and after about thirty seconds was sweating like a beast.  It was only 8:30 in the morning and the heat was already brutal.  Combine that with the fact that the trails were mostly blocked from any breeze by brush and trees on both sides, and I knew I was in for a tough run.  So much for flat surfaces making the run easy!

I ran along the trail and took in some gorgeous sights.  At points it opened up to the gulf and some other little inland waters and it was really beautiful.  As I was running along, I passed the light house.  Eventually, the trail came to a dead end where a bridge was under construction (aka there was no bridge).

YOU SHALL NOT PASS!

After checking my phone for mileage, I realized I'd only gone slightly over 2miles.  I couldn't believe it!  I was getting pretty worn out at this point and I had been running for less than twenty minutes.  The humidity was killing me, and there was no choice but to head back the way I came.

On my way back, I stopped a few times to take photos of the beautiful views and was thankful for the break.  Especially when I reached the lighthouse!

 Across the way was this gorgeous walkway down to the beach.

Good thing I didn't have a bathing suit with me!  I would have given up right then and headed down to the ocean ;).

I finally made it back to where I started after another 25ish minutes (oh yeah, it took that long) and looked up at the lodge.  I had a choice: keep going and complete an eight mile run or leave it be at four.  I chose four.  I was simply ready to get on with my day.  And so, ten miles became four.  I'm not going to lie to you, that run was less than enjoyable, but was completely worth it for the sights I got to see.  I was also a little disappointed that I didn't complete a longer run, but like I said before, there were more important things going on over the weekend that I wanted to be part of.

All in all, my training for the week of March 26, 2012 - April 1, 2012 looked like this:

• Monday - Body Works class + 1m run on treadmill
• Tuesday - 3m run outside
• Wednesday - 5.29m run outside
• Thursday - 3.28m run outside with some walking
• Friday - rest
• Saturday - rest
• Sunday - 4.16m run outside with some walking

That is a total of about 4hrs of exercise and 16.73 miles run.  Not too shabby for an "off" week!

If you missed them and are interested, here are my recaps from weeks one, two, three,  four, five, six, seven, eight, nine and ten.

Has your week flown by like mine? 
Are there points in your training where you've given yourself a break?

PS- Want to see more pictures from the wedding?  Check out the photographer's blog post!