How 10 weeks of race training has gone by in a flash has me doing a double take. I mean, AUGUST… who invited you?! Who knows, I’ve had my head in the sand. Doing my best to shut up, show up and try and pretend I’m normal for brief spurts of time, amidst a hefty work/travel schedule. Bonus points for every day that goes by that I don’t panic or cry.

I’d done really well on that “don’t freak out” thing all summer long, until Saturday evening.

#SeaKatyWheeze: Week 10

Day 64 – Sunday 7/29

Run 12mi

When we last checked in with everyone’s favorite heroine, Mediocre Maeve, she was last seen doing ROMWOD and attempting to run past the mailbox. It didn’t work.

On Sunday morning she woke up and knew that this was her mulligan. No pushing it off another day. I sprawled out on my mat for some ROMWOD, did my usual pre long run rituals and headed out.

Is it possible to bonk multiple times in a single run? My first mile I went out excitedly hot, and settled into a pace for the next 4 miles. It seems to me odd that miles 6-9 were FLAT, and my pace fell flat too. Maybe I got bored of running 1-mile loops in the park, or I allowed my effort to dip because my brain thinks flat = less effort required.

It was a rough second half, but I got through. Gross crust of salt on my face at the end, per usual.

Day 65 – Monday 7/30

ROMWOD + Run 3mi HR <145

Monday morning, I got my ROMWOD on before work. Gives me a reason to wear cute yoga outfits for a half hour, but here I am in an old CRB and a random pair of shorts I got at the 2015 CrossFit Games. It was CFG week and after watching CrossFit documentaries on YouTube all weekend I was nerd-out excited for the Games to begin.

In the afternoon I got to run slow on purpose, and it was fantastic.

Day 66 – Tuesday 7/31

ROMWOD + Wave Tempo (6.25mi Total)

Well, I didn’t do so hot on the first try on this one out in Minneapolis, and back home wasn’t much different. It was hotter than a Miami nightclub outside, to the point where the IDGAF factor went off the charts and off came my shirt while running on the trail. In public.

*gasp shock awe*

I really want to blame the heat, but I know my (lack of) fitness is part to blame for the fact that I felt like I was blazing fast for my last mile and I could hardly crack 11:00/mi. Discouraged and dehydrated, I wimped out on the cooldown. The stop & walk WAS REAL.

Day 67 – Wednesday 8/1

CrossFit

Metcon (Time)
3 Rounds For Time:
100 Double Unders
10 Squat Snatches (65lbs)

Any time I see dubs in a workout, I’m there for it. I’m weird, I know. They’re a fantastic barometer for me to measure where I am with my cardio fitness. If I get winded around 40, I need to do some work. If it takes to 60-70 before I start feeling my heart race, I’m doing pretty well. I tripped on 97 this time. So. Close!

The Rx weight was 95lbs, but with how weight training has taken a backseat this year, I scaled down to 65. I assure you it that weight was plenty challenging… almost as challenging as gripping said bar with dripping sweaty palms. Humidity is fun.

Then I went home and watched the Marathon Row. The rower in me kind of sort of wants to try that one just for kicks.

Day 68 – Thursday 8/2

Long ROMWOD

I’ve been trying to get ROMWOD in at least 5x a week. Most routines are approximately 20min, but Thursdays feature a long routine that clocks in just under an hour. Let’s just say a four-minute Fragon pose is no joke.

The CrossFit Games athletes took a rest day, so I took a rest day from the hard stuff 🙂

Not really for that reason, but let’s go with it. My body needed a break after 4 days ON, and my hair needed a serious cut.  Swole & Flexy in the morning, Haircut & Happy Hour was how I spent my Thursday. Not mad about it.

Day 69 – Friday 8/3

ROMWOD + CrossFit

For Time:
400m Run
10 Deadlifts (95lbs)
400m Run
20 Deadlifts (125lbs)
400m Run
30 Deadlifts (155lbs)
400m Run

The ROMWOD must be working some magic, because for the warmup and first two 400s of this workout, I felt like a damn gazelle. My heels were coming up and kicking my butt, and I felt like my hamstrings had some spring. A welcome improvement from the short & tight feeling that had been plaguing me all summer long.

The Rx weights for DLs were 125-155-205, but I knocked them down to 95-125-155. No shame in the scaling game, I got a good workout in. I’m happy to report that even as I was tired in the last round on the heavier reps, I had no bogus reps in which I used my lower back. Hooray!

Day 70 – Saturday 8/4

Run 1mi

No, that’s not a typo. I had to work from 6:30a until 7:00p on Saturday. I didn’t think I’d be working *that* long of a day, and was incredibly worn out from work when I got home. I didn’t have the time or daylight to get my long run in, and it stressed me into a tizzy.

When I got home on Saturday evening, I did something that made me feel terrible, but was necessary: I cancelled on dinner plans with one of my coworkers. Since getting home from Minneapolis, things have been going full speed ahead (and then some) at work. Things were piling up at home, and I had to manage the laundry, my half-unpacked Minneapolis suitcases, dishes, etc that were taunting me every time I walked by them during the week.

I’ve had anxiety issues in the past, and for the most part that stays in the rearview mirror. Over the years I’ve come into a far better headspace, and have learned to recognize when I’m getting that antsy feeling again. If I feel it coming on, I know that trying to be a hero or brush it off won’t make things any better. The opposite will happen.

Cancelling plans on someone was the last thing I wanted to do. However, I knew that with a 16-hour work day on Sunday and straight back into the office on Monday, I needed to get my sh*t together or else the entire week was going to start off on a stressful note.

I’ve heard that if you don’t want to work out, just start. Getting yourself out the door is the most difficult part. If you still don’t want to after 10 minutes, stop. As I went down the street, attempting to get in a minimal 3 miles before I lost daylight, my mind and body shut down on me. I had nothing left to give.

I turned around, knowing that forcing the next 2 miles out of myself wouldn’t be beneficial to anyone. I physically, mentally and emotionally didn’t have it in me to do a casually-paced 5K. Losses were cut at the mile marker, and I headed home to do whatever I could around the house to make sure that Week 11 didn’t start as badly as Week 10 ended.

#SeaKatyWheeze Cumulative Stats

THIS WEEK

Miles Run: 23.25
WODs Done: 2
Calories Burned: 3069
Miles Traveled: 0
Nights on the Road: 0

OVERALL

Miles Run: 204
WODs Done: 13
Calories Burned: 27343
Miles Traveled: 16591
Nights on the Road: 31