Whoa… two months into this thing already? 7 days, 3 hero WODs and another business trip later, Week 8 is in the books.

#SeaKatyWheeze – Week 8 Recap

Day 50 – Sunday 5/28/17

8 miles FFLR (Fast Finish Long Run)

Welp, this one is officially logged in my training app as “The Run That Made Me Cry”. The point of a fast finish long run is to get the first 3 miles in at a slow, conversational pace and then for the last 5 miles, keep picking up the pace by approx 5-15 seconds per mile until I’m running the 8th mile at my goal pace (9:00min/mi).

I even went as far as scribbling my splits on my arm so I knew exactly what I should target each mile. Well, it was hot out. The first 3 miles went swimmingly, and when it came for my first faster mile, I came a little hot out the gate and eventually had a hill beat my pace back into submission. Half the run went well, but the wheels fell off on miles 5-8.

As the second (even faster) mile began, a gnarly hill only leveled off for a bit before gradually turning upward again. Upon the realization that I was overheating and supposed to go even FASTER for 3 more miles, I had to slow to a walk and catch my breath and let my pulse get back under control. I maxed out at 190bpm.

I tried to psych myself back into it and push ahead on the flat part I’d finally made it to, but my body wasn’t having it. After a whopping 100-yard sprint or so, I slowed again to a walk and found myself continuing down the street, with my hands up on my head as I was in tears.

Afterward, I told myself to forget pace and do my best to simply keep running. After that, I couldn’t help but wonder if Joanna was going to tell me to stop kidding myself and tell me that my sub-2:00 goal was too ambitious for my ability.

Day 51 – Monday 5/29/17

CrossFit – Memorial Day Murph
Run 1 mile
100 Pull-ups
200 Push-Ups
300 Air Squats
Run 1 mile
Result: 43:45 Scaled (Ring Rows, Knee Pushups)

Believe it or not, this year was the first Memorial Day Murph I’ve been able to participate in since starting CrossFit in 2012. The one year I wasn’t on the road for work, I was out of town for a wedding – so I was pretty excited to *finally* be able to participate in what’s become a holiday of its own in the CrossFit world.

I wasn’t planning on going bananas on either run, but as the clock started I hit GO on the Garmin and felt surprisingly light on my feet. Instead of holding back, I figured I’d strike while the iron was hot and see how quickly I could get that first mile in. At 0.93mi, my watch read 7:17, and I forgot to get the final number before moving into the next portion of the workout. Either way, I was stoked to get in under 8 minutes.

But, that’s not the best part of Monday. Hats off to my friends Nichole, Justin and Todd, all three who are in the military and completed Rx Murphs in uniform. Not only did they each complete the WOD in honor of fallen comrades and friends, all three headed out on the trail after they’d completed their work and made sure that not one person that day finished the workout alone. That’s what it’s all about.

Day 52 – Tuesday 5/30/17

Rest Day

Found myself in a NYC working a WNBA game. The community dance group that was performing during the game was one of the highlights of my day. If I can be out there shaking my stuff to Lloyd Banks on the floor of MSG at 60+ years old, then I did something right in life. They were having a blast.

Day 53 – Wednesday 5/31/17

Tempo Run – 2mi CP / 4mi HMP / 1mi Cooldown

With my third trip to New York in 2 weeks, I didn’t have much time to freak out about the fact that I’d earned myself another mile at tempo.

With how disastrous the pace control went on Sunday, I moved back inside to the treadmill to help set me straight and keep me on task. It thankfully worked.

The mental mantra of the week was to keep my form in mind and ‘stay efficient’. I did my best to stay relaxed and let my legs do all the work. For how manageable that run felt, I can’t believe I ever freaked out over TWO measly miles at tempo once upon a time.

Nevertheless, each time I do a treadmill tempo run, the last cooldown mile always feels like it takes 8 years longer than all the tempo miles combined.

Day 54 – Thursday 6/1/17

CrossFit – Tommy V

21 Thrusters (75lbs)
12 Rope Climbs
15 Thrusters
9 Rope Climbs
9 Thrusters
6 Rope Climbs
Result: 30min Time Cap (2 rope climbs remaining)

Our gym hasn’t programmed rope climbs in about 2 years, and suddenly they popped up once the week prior and again during hero week in the form of Tommy V. While some others finished in half the time I did, I went until failure and still got time capped at 30min. Hopping up onto the rope, trying to pull myself up and my muscles just wouldn’t respond. Unintentional standstill.

Needless to say, I felt like I got hit by the struggle bus when I woke up the next morning.

Day 55 – Friday 6/2/17

CrossFit – Whitten
5 Rounds for Time:
22 Kettlebell Swings (35lbs)
22 Box Jumps (20in)
400m Run
22 Burpees
22 Wall Balls
Result: 45:00 Time Cap Rx (4 Rounds + 44 Reps Completed)

Spent from the prior 2 days, I was still looking forward to this long chipper. My MO was ‘set it and forget it’ and I just kept working at a reasonable pace until time was up. I probably could have pushed a bit harder and completed the WOD in the 45min allotment, but I tend to have this fear of redlining by accident and fizzling out too soon.

I f*cking hate wall balls. All rounds I managed to get in as sets of 12+10, which sounds like peanuts but is an actual accomplishment for me. Giving up too soon on larger sets of wall balls has always been a weakness of mine.

Day 56 – Saturday 6/3/17

Run 3mi – HR <145

Not so fun fact: I ran out of recovery protein after Murph on Monday. Not having that magical Loco Mocha Progenex whimsy all week long didn’t help me come back from the Tempo+Hero+Hero triple whammy.

A 9-mile run was on the calendar for Saturday, but I knew my body wouldn’t be able to perform without a rest day first, so I opted to push it to Sunday. But then, the sun came out for the first time in ages, and I couldn’t help but get outside for a short jog.

My legs felt like sandbags, and it was nothing to write home about. So instead, let’s write about how Saturday morning I went and got a much-needed haircut. It’s SHORT(ish) now. Whee!

This Week’s Mileage: 21 miles // #SeaKatyWheeze Cumulative Total: 117.50 miles