Before I dive into last week's training recap, I just wanted to thank you all for your awesome comments on yesterday's blog post. They were hands down some of the most interesting and insightful comments I've ever received. I loved the thought you put into all of them and I was so happy that we could have a pretty good debate while keeping it civil. You guys are the best.

This week I decided to change how I count the weeks on my training plan. Instead of measuring my week from Sunday to Saturday, my training weeks will start on Mondays and run through the following Sunday. It just makes it easier for me to track what I'm doing. Plus motivation to dive into a new week of training is always higher on Monday morning than it is on Sunday.

So with that note, here's how I did with training during week two:

Monday: 7 Hill repeats

I almost always do hill runs on the treadmill because it lets me control the incline and distance of the hill. I kept the speed around a 9:30 minute mile and jacked the incline up to 7 or 8 percent. This was a pretty killer workout. Forget to look at the treadmill to get a final distance covered though.

Tuesday: 3 miles easy

It's incredible dark at 4:30 a.m. so I always rock my sweet reflective vest so cars can see me.

Wednesday: 30 minute tempo run

I always struggle with getting the speed just right on tempo runs. I tend to do these workouts outside and I either start off too fast and burnout in the end or don't start fast enough and then don't push hard enough. Last week I started out way too fast and was sucking wind and walking some of the hills at the end. I need to get better at controlling my speed during tempo runs. I also had a bit of knee pain at the end of this run, but nothing a little Arctic Ease couldn't fix.



Thursday: 3 miles easy

Friday: 90 minute long run



This run went incredibly well. I woke up really early, ate an energy bar, and then did some work until the sun started to come up. Once it was light, I headed outside and got to enjoy the first truly cold morning of the year. It was in the low 40's when I started and boy was I freezing in my shorts and t-shirt. It warmed up nicely though and I was able to complete 9.8 miles in 91 minutes. That's slightly further than I went during last week's long run, so I'm happy to see that my speed increased a little bit. I also finished this workout on an incredible runner's high and spent my cool down time dancing around my dining room to Party Rock Anthem while checking my email. (Don't judge!)

Saturday: Rest (and tailgate!)



Sunday: 3 miles easy

My motivation was seriously lacking on Sunday, and I didn't leave for my run until almost 3 p.m. One of the perks of the cooler weather is that I can wait until later in the day to do my runs without suffering through brutal heat and humidity -- makes fitting my runs in so much easier.

Total Mileage: Probably around 25ish since I didn't really count the hills

Another awesome week of training in the books. I'm happy that I fit in all my runs even on the days motivation wasn't as high as it normally is. I did OK on the sleep front, but I'm still staying up too late and waking up kind of tired. I need to be more diligent about getting to bed earlier.

Goals for week 3:

• Get more sleep
• Figure out the ideal pacing for my tempo run
• Get my insane morning hunger under control