Week 2 Recap

This week I ran a total of 16 miles.

A rather eventful week, including injuries that turned out to be no problem once treated, new shoes, discovering the excellence and importance of a headband for my success in running during hot days...

Overall, I felt terrific physically this week. My one speed run, which I didn't have to do but wanted to try, was fun and my time was encouraging. My 7 miler on Saturday, while hard at first due to my new shoes, ended with me feeling tired but more than able to continue. I bet I'll feel exactly the same during the marathon, only I hope that feeling comes around Mile 20 instead of Mile 7. :)

I've also resumed yoga. This Sunday, I decided to do some "power yoga" (i.e. more flowing and active than the average yoga) and discovered two things. One is that my hips are unbelievably tight from running, something yoga will help remedy. The other is that for the second time this week, yoga has helped alleviate an injury. My right index toe, which had been consistently hurting all week, got a ton of pressure on it on Sunday from yoga, and hasn't hurt since, just like my rolled ankle from Wednesday. Man, yoga is great!

So the second week of training has been great. Next week is a stepback week on Hal Higdon's program. Every three weeks, I will be reducing mileage a little bit to rest and gear up for the next two hard weeks. Next week, though, will be a little different than a normal stepback week, since I will not only be doing more yoga, but I've decided to resume consistent weight lifting to help my body get stronger for the marathon. This will be the first time I've lifted weights with any regularity in almost four months, so this should be fun. See ya next week!