Week 2

Week two of the training plan has been completed. This one was largely the same as week one, with the only real difference being an additional mile on the weekend run (can’t call them ‘long runs’ yet).

Once again the first workout of this week was a soccer game on Tuesday which totaled 4 miles. Then two shortish runs on Wednesday and Thursday to get to the target total of 9 for the midweek stretch.

Rounded out the week with 7 miles on Saturday and another outdoor bike ride on Sunday (definitely better to have the cross training after the ‘long’ run).

The 7 miler seemed in jeopardy about a mile in – I’ve been dealing with some back issues and they were really bothering me Saturday and I thought I’d have to turn around and go home. Thankfully after stopping for some stretches and continuing on the pain faded over the rest of the run.

Overall my runs this week felt a bit sluggish and slow. Back issues probably didn’t help. But, at this point I’m not really focusing or worrying too much about pace. During my runs I’m primarily tracking to a target running power zone (that being zone 2-ish). I’m also reviewing heart rate metrics after the fact.

• Completed all workouts? Yes
• Met target mileage (16)? Yes

Looking ahead at week three – it should be relatively easy, with the weekend run taking a step back to 5 miles. This week does introduce the first increase to the Wednesday run (from 3 to 4 miles). The Wednesday runs are my biggest concern with the plan – they eventually max out at 10 miles. It will be difficult to make time for (and have energy for) that on a weekday.

One change I’m making this week is skipping soccer on Tuesday. My back issues have really flared up after both of my recent games, so I’m hoping to give it a little more time to recover. As I write this now on Monday night it’s starting to feel almost normal again (same as last week). I’ve been doing and will continue to do plenty of yoga and stretching and hopefully can get back to playing without more issues.