The Road to 26.2: Week 7

Better late than never, I'm finally posting last week's training summary.  Rest assured, my training efforts for the week were much more on-target than my attempts to catalog them.  Without (even) further adieu:

Monday (1/19):  4 mile run.
The training plan stepped up to a new level this week, so 4 is the new 3.  I'm still trying to solidify a 4-mile neighborhood route that I like.
Tuesday (1/20):  Pilates core workout plus additional strength.
An innocuous seeming YouTube video, this turned out to be surprisingly tough.  I knew it was harder than expected while I was doing it, but the aftereffects really snuck up on me later in the day.  Yowza!
Wednesday (1/21):  7 mile run.
This may come as a surprise, but it is hard to squeeze in 7 miles before 6:00am.  I ran half at tempo pace so that I could get home in time to supervise the household morning routine.
Thursday (1/22):  yoga and strength work.
I focused on yoga positions for my neck, shoulders, and back.  I always remember to work out the tight spots in my lower body, but I often neglect my upper body when it comes to yoga.  Given that the upper body is working plenty hard to carry me through my miles, it was past time to give those muscles a little TLC.
Friday (1/23):  3 mile run.
My last easy 3-miler of this training plan.  From here on out, the short weekday runs move up to 4 or 5 miles...
Saturday (1/24):  14 mile run.
A.K.A. my longest run ever!!  The weather was pleasant (considering that it's January), I got to run in the daylight, and I ran negative splits on my out-and-back route.  It wasn't all rosy, however.  Miles 6-9 were tough.  Given how exhausted I felt in those middle miles, I could not fathom running the full 14.  After I hit 10, I felt like I'd been recharged.  My legs were certainly fatigued, but I had the mental and physical energy to finish the run.  I probably checked my watch 13 times in the final half mile because I was so ready to be done.  But the feeling of accomplishment when it clicked over to 14?  Un-freaking-believable.

Sunday (1/25):  REST!
A day so packed with activity that I barely noticed I hadn't worked out.

Neighborhood tree week 7: much the same as last week and all the previous ones.
Maybe this whole tree picture wasn't such a great idea...

This week featured some tough runs that pushed me out of my comfort zone.  7 miles on a weekday?  New distance PR?  Why not?  Both of those runs challenged me mentally and physically, but the feelings of badassness (that's a word, right?) that followed are without comparison.  I'd do it all again just to find those feelings again.  And lucky me, I get to do just that while I continue with this training cycle ;)