January Training Report

Posted on 14. Feb, 2012 by Joe in Training

Today, I introduce a new monthly feature at Daybreakrun.com.  My monthly training report.  Each month, I plan to share the details of my training and any lessons I have learned along the way.  I decided to do this for a few reasons:

• Accountability – One of the great things about having a blog is that it acts as a form of public accountability.  I blogged at length about my half marathon and marathon training.  One week, I even shared the details of everything I ate.  It is no coincidence that those periods of time were some of the stretches I saw some of my greatest gains in my running ability.  It is also not a coincidence , in my mind, that the times I have slacked off this blog I have seen some backsliding.
• Mapping my Progress – By updating my training each month, I hope to go through the exercise of evaluating my progress (or lack of).
• Inspiring Others – In the same vein of my last post, this is a way to set an example.  I am not any type of superhuman athlete.  Hopefully, I can show someone, anyone, how simple it can be to make a difference for yourself.

Granted, a little vacation time got in the way of me posting this earlier, but here we go:

Total mileage may not be the be all and end all of a training effort, but seeing I am targeting a strong push at one or two half marathons this year (and gunning for a 2:00 time), mileage needs to increase.  In January, my total mileage climbed to a shade under 77 miles.  This is in comparison to a December total of 65 miles.  Definitely not half marathon material, but I am content with progress.  Overall, it felt good to get back into a decent routine after the holiday onslaught.

I have mentioned often how I am quite dedicated at keeping track of my heart rate during my runs.  While I have stopped being so meticulous to continuously monitor it during workouts, I still check the average and maximum heart rates I recorded when I finish a run.  I do this for a couple reasons.  First, I want to prevent overtraining.  If I am doing an “easy” run, my heart rate best correspond to that “easy” effort.  Otherwise, I am doing more harm than good.  Second, if I am keeping a consistent pace over my workouts, I can gauge my level of fitness as time goes on.  If my workouts are doing what I want them to, I should see some lower heart rates if I am running the same pace.

Admittedly, it isn’t lock solid scientific.  But, it gives me a good signpost to follow.  Here’s how January looked, compared to December.

The jump in average heart rate for my easy runs stands out to me.  However, I did a good amount of really short runs in December (less than 3 miles) as I started building my base mileage up again.  So, I am not worried about it.  Regardless, an average rate of 144 sits right in the range I want to be in for easy runs.

Ugh.  I continue to struggle getting my feet under me in this area.  For now, I am using a group of apps I found to help me progress in pushups, squats, and pull ups.  I remain stalled in week 1 of each of these programs.  Definitely want to get rolling on this in February.

I really began to see the benefits of working in “quality” workouts such as a tempo run or intervals.  Once you get these in your workout sequence for a few weeks, you really can feel a difference.  It is also a mental boost to get out there and go all out once in awhile.

Another lesson learned is that I really need to find a good stretching routine.  There were a few days in the month where I was feeling stiff as I made my way through the day.  Never during a run, but usually later in the day.  I don’t know if that can be cured by doing some consistent stretching, maybe some yoga, or perhaps both.  It is definitely worth a try though.

All in all, a good way to start 2012.  Nothing crazy, but a good solid, get back in the saddle kind of month.  February will be a tough one to show similar progress, thanks to the vacation I mentioned earlier.  But, you never know.

Any suggestions you might have are welcome, as always.  Thanks for stopping by!

No related posts.