Back On Track

After a small lull in training in 2010 (which consists of non-timed runs & no long runs) I've kicked things back into high gear. Due to high amounts of whey protein and heavy lifting regimens I've managed to put on some muscle mass and am floating around 205 right now. This is about 10 lbs more than my half-marathon race-day weight and 20 lbs heavier than my marathon weight.

My first run back on the clock I decided to run at around 90-95% and I managed to run 5 miles averaging 7:07 minute miles. This gave me confidence that I can break the 7 minute/mile barrier in the near future even if I continue my lifting regimen. This is close to as fast as I used to run my Monday/Wednesday runs and shows me that I am adapting well to my morphing frame (which now includes more leg lifts).

The one element now that I have to implement is the long runs (8+ mile runs) that I do on Saturdays. I did my first one this past Saturday - and I have to admit - IT FELT GOOD. Even though I did not run fast, it still gave me a great rush when I finished. The only thing about these long runs is that I have to sacrifice going out on Friday nights. Even just a few drinks will turn this run into pure hell. The other collateral damage: Saturday nights. If I wake up early to run those summer long runs then I will surely be floored by 11pm that night. At least in my first initial weeks doing this I will need to adapt to the schedule. I surely don't want to sacrifice my social life, but for a jump start on my summer fitness...it might be worth it (for now).