Ups and Downs of Week 2 of Half Iron Training

Well, it was an interesting week that started out strong, but life happened and I didn’t get to run as much as I wanted.  I still did a little more than what my training plan called for.  But, of course, I am nervous about my half marathon at the end of February.  I am starting to feel like maybe I should skip it because it doesn’t really line up with my training.  However, at the same time, I think I need to race so I can remind myself why I love this so much!  I’m not going to lie, I’m in a bit of a funk this week.  I blame the weather.

Most of my runs in January have been inside on the treadmill.  It has been very icy out as a result of a thaw-freeze process due to warmer than seasonal temperatures and I am too cautious and worried that I will fall and injure myself.  I’m a klutz, so it’s really not that far-fetched.  Then, we got launched into a deep freezer this week with temperatures of -40!  I wish I was exaggerating.  But that made it very hard to stay motivated.  I also had a couple of very busy days at work resulting in a missed spin class and just feeling drained.

Then yesterday during my long run with the dog, I fell at the beginning of the run, dressed well for the weather but my stomach was FREEZING!  I dropped my dog off after 7 km and decided to pack it in myself because if I was already cold, it wouldn’t be so smart to keep on running.  I planned to head out later to run my last 10km but I had a snack and laid down for a quick nap and when I woke up, I felt awful.  I haven’t been feeling tip-top all week to be honest.  After my swim on Sunday, my sinuses were congested and painful and it has continued off and on all week.  I was sick in December and about 10 days later, developed laryngitis and it has kind of been lingering on.  One day I will speak normall and the next day, my voice is squeaky.  On Friday night, I had to stop talking entirely.  That was probably the most painful of this whole week!

Anyways, I’m fairly happy with the week except for the running.  I cut 3 runs short because I wasn’t feeling it.  I guess that is part of listening to your body, but I sure hope this week upcoming is better.  I didn’t feel great when I first woke up and thought today would be a write-off too, but after eating and drinking some fluids and using the neti-pot to flush out the sinuses, I decided I will try a long run later and see how it goes.  Could be anywhere between 3 and 17 km!

Here is a summary of my week:

Swim – 4250 m
Bike – 47 km (estimated as it was all on the trainer)
Run – 20 km (wish it was more but still more than my program is calling for at this point, so I guess I am happy)

Strength training – 1 hour
Stretching – 36 mins (should have been more)
No yoga 😦