To quote Gwen Stefani, these past two weeks have been bananas, B-A-N-A-N-A-S. In Week 6, I found myself in Portland, CT, NYC, CT and NY again. In Week 7, it was more of the same geographic shuffling, going from NYC, to CT, to Minneapolis and back. Feeling a bit disconnected from my training plan lately, having only managed to get 4 training days inside this past 7-day window.

#SeaKatyWheeze – Week 7 Recap

Day 43 – Sunday 5/21/17

After the mega boost in confidence from the day prior’s 6-mile run, I felt amped to train some more. However, I already had plans in place and found myself back down in New York peeping at lighthouses, eating pizza, hating on traffic (it took us 4 hours to go 40 miles) and laughing at Ricky Gervais.

Day 44 – Monday 5/22/17

30min Treadmill Pyramid – 3mi total

Wake up in Manhattan, fall asleep in Minneapolis. Lunch was in Connecticut. Yup, Monday was a long day. Late Friday afternoon, a last-minute business trip came up. Therefore, instead of just scooting home from New York on Monday morning, I had to continue the scoot onto a Boeing 717 and halfway across the US.

I ended up running into an old CrossFit friend in the airport who was coincidentally flying to Minneapolis for work, so we ended up making dinner plans once we both made our way to our respective hotels.

Normally, I’d have said EFF THIS to a workout, but with the accountability of a coach I made sure I hustled down to the hotel gym. I got in a quick 30-minute jaunt on the hamster wheel, starting at 5.0mph and adding +0.1mph every minute for the first 15, and then dialing it back down by 0.1mph.

I was afraid of biting off more than I could chew after a long travel day, but once the workout was over I felt like I could have started at a higher speed and gone faster overall. Lesson learned for next time.

Day 45 – Tuesday 5/23/17

Rest Day

14 hour work day. No real time for running when you leave for work at 7a and don’t get back to your room until 10:30p.

Day 46 – Wednesday 5/24/17

CrossFit – Strength + Metcon
Strength
Deadlift (5 Reps at 75%) – 165lbs
Deadlift (3 Reps at 85%) – 190lbs
Deadlift (1+ Reps at 95%) – 3 @ 210lbs
*use 90% of your 1 Rep Max and add 10lbs. from the last 5/3/17

Metcon
4 Rounds For Time:
800 M Run
20 Front Rack Dumbbell Walking Lunges 50lbs/35lbs (10L/10R)
Rest :30 seconds
Result: 26:48

I should have listened to Joanna. I SHOULD HAVE LISTENED TO JOANNA! I had a 6x800m tempo workout programmed, but being away from the heavy things for so long I asked if it was ok if I did the lifting + 4x800m metcon in its place.

My first 800 was 3:50 and they just got HORRIBLE from there. Adding 70lbs to a lunge in between your 800’s really cramps one’s style. I felt the burn deep in my glutes, and the lunges were tough to get done while my feet were squishing around in my running shoes.

After 1.5 rounds Rx, I told the DBs to go F themselves and did the remainder of the WOD with bodyweight. At that point, the damage was done and my pacing on the 800s was ruined.

I wasn’t playing with a full deck, after having flown home from Minneapolis earlier in the day and not doing so well on nutrition in the days prior. ANOTHER lesson learned. Running takes precedence over CrossFit. Next time.

Day 47 – Thursday 5/25/17

CrossFit Strength + Metcon + 3mi HR <145
Strength
Shoulder Press (5 Reps at 75%) – 65lbs
Shoulder Press (3 Reps at 85%) – 75lbs
Shoulder Press (1+ Reps at 95%) – 1 @ 85lbs
*use 90% of your 1 Rep Max and add 5lbs from the last 5/3/17

Metcon (For Time)
“Rowing J.T.”
21 Cal Row
21 Hand Stand Push Ups
21 Ring Dips
21 Push-ups
15 Calorie Row
15 Hand Stand Push-ups
15 Ring Dips
15 Push Ups
9 Calorie Row
9 Hand Stand Push-ups
9 Ring Dips
9 Push-ups
Result: 16:30 (Row, 2-Abmat HSPU, banded dips, knee PU)

Note: Glutes… SORE from the day prior. None of this lifting or metconning was anything to write home about, so I am going to stop writing about it.

Afterwards, I hit the trail for a 3mi run with a max heart rate of 145 in mind. The weather was soggy all day. It was about 57 degrees and misting out, and I was fully prepared to pop by the gym at work for some treadmill action on the way home.

However, I ALSO stuck my trail running shoes in the car and thought that maybe I’d run outside if the rain stopped(ish).

After the WOD, I remembered my coach once said that I’d have to run in the rain on some days, because you can’t predict the weather on race day. On went the Gore-Tex shoes and off I went down the trail in soggy solitude. Mist? Okay.

1.2 miles in… the sky OPENED UP on me. At that point, I was about 200m from my car and could have princessed out. But I didn’t. The GAF meter bottomed out and I continued on into the rain. I was all wet, but my feet were dry. Hooray, Brooks Cascadia GTX!

You can tell there are 2 notable HR spikes in there. The first one is when it started raining. The second, I was finishing up my run on a portion of the trail where I’d be finishing a max effort mile run at CrossFit. I got a little excited about the idea, and also really confused as to how in the hell I was ever capable of a 7-minute mile, and if I’ll ever be able to do it again.

Day 48 – Friday 5/26/17

CrossFit Strength + Metcon
Strength
Back Squat (5 Reps at 75%) – 135lbs
Back Squat (3 Reps at 85%) – 155lbs
Back Squat (1+ Reps at 95%) – 1 @ 175lbs
*use 90% of your 1 Rep Max and add 10lbs from the last 5/3/17

Metcon
11 Minute AMRAP
15 Hang Squat Cleans 135/95
12 Hang Squat Cleans 165/115
9 Hang Squat Cleans 205/145
6 Hang Squat Cleans 225/155
3 Hang Squat Cleans 245/165
AMRAP Chest to Bar Pull Ups
Result: 28 reps Rx

Legs still sore from earlier in the week, I had nothing to give on the Back Squats. They’re not my jam to begin with, but I failed out on a second rep at 175. Not my best work.

Heading into the WOD, I optimistically hoped that *maybe* I’d be able to bag a 145lb clean or 9, but I realistically wasn’t sure if I’d be able to. Not having done a heavy squat clean in a very long time, I had no business expecting to move swiftly through the 9.

I did the 95’s no problem. The 115’s were a bit of a challenge, but I did them in sets of two. Then, the 30lb jump came. In my head, I said “self, remember this is THIRTY POUNDS heavier than the last bar, so you don’t just have to try a little bit harder, you have to make sure you try a lot harder.” So I did. And I got one. Just one. I made it under the 145 bar about 5 more times, failing to stand it up again within the time cap.

With little practice lately, I’m happy that I bagged at least one squat clean rep under fatigue just 10lbs shy of my PR.

Day 49 – Saturday 5/27/17

Rest Day… again. I am ashamed to type those words for a third time in a 7-day span. Today had an 8-mile long run with a fast finish programmed, but I’m not supposed to do heavy leg things the day before Tempo & Long runs, and yesterday I did heavy leg things.

Flip-flopping Saturday with Sunday, so with tomorrow’s 8 miles plus the 2 I intend to do during Murph on Monday, I will have run more in 36 hours than I will have all this past week.

Today marks 12 weeks until Seawheeze, which is the length of many traditional half marathon training plans. Leading up to today, I feel like all of that was now pre-training leading up to THE training. I definitely feel that I have made *some* progress, but still understand that I have a long, long, way to go.

One plus is that while in Minneapolis, I stayed at a Westin, which places a focus on wellness. Upon checking in, I noticed cards on a tabletop in the lobby that mapped out both 3-mile and 5-mile loops from downtown to a lakefront trail. I will be spending a considerable amount of time in Minneapolis in July, and was worried how/where I’d go running while in town. Now that I’ve got that little map handy, I feel considerably less anxious.

All in all, Week 7 was not my best work. However, I learned a few lessons on self-doubt and prioritizing workouts a bit more. Every week can’t be peaches & cream. Sometimes, sh*t is going to be bananas.

This Week’s Mileage: 8 miles // #SeaKatyWheeze Cumulative Total: 96.50 miles