Towpath Half Marathon Training : Week 3

I'm kind of tired of saying this, but this was another not-so-good week for me.  I started out great with a solid run on Monday, then I had an unfortunate incident that had me missing work and my workouts for a few days.  The end of the week I got more on track, but I'm still upset for missing a few days!


Either way, the race is just around the corner so I have to keep pushing.  Here's to hoping next week is better!

Monday

4.5 miles / 43:18 / 9:37 pace
I had off for Labor Day and had a great early morning run at North Park.  It was pretty crowded, but there was low humidity and it was a cool day.  Couldn't ask for better weather!

In the afternoon, Dan and I were both doing some work on the house, and I hit my head pretty hard at one point.  It hurt, but I kept on painting our bedroom and thought I was fine.  Unfortunately, for a few days I had an awful headache, felt a little nauseous and dizzy (especially at work) and took a few rest days.  I'm find now, but I think I might have had a minor concussion.  


Tuesday

Rest day!
I was actually planning on going to a Stand Up Paddleboard Yoga class with Lynne, but since I wasn't feeling well I thought it would be best if I didn't go.  I'm so mad that I missed this class because it's a bucket list item for me and I was really looking forward to it!


Wednesday

Rest day!
Another day off.  Starting to feel better, but I figured it was best to take off another day rather than get back too early and end up hurting myself more.


Thursday

3 miles
I took it really easy and just ran around my neighborhood for some easy miles.  I did a one mile loop that went around my house just in case I started to feel sick at all, but I felt fine.  I think I was cooped up for too long and just getting out and getting fresh air helped a lot!


Friday

Rest day!
Yup..another one!


Saturday

3 miles

Easy run on a new route in my neighborhood.  I went early in the morning but it was already in the 80's and super humid.  Not very comfortable for running, but I was happy to get it over with.  Afterwards I went to my sister's house to watch the Penn State/Pitt game with my family (we lost in a very frustrating end of the game).


Sunday

9 miles / 1:23:24 / 9:16 pace
The weather was PERFECT today- just a little chill, tiny bit of wind, cloudy for the most part. My legs felt good today as well and I'm really happy with my pace! Even hit some sub 9:00 miles, which I haven't seen in ages! Didn't even feel like I was pushing it today..yay!

Comments

  1. Susie @ SuzlyfeSeptember 12, 2016 at 3:57 AM

    I"m glad that you are ok! That sounds pretty damn scary!

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownSeptember 12, 2016 at 10:10 AM

    I'm glad Dr. Suzy could help you last week, and I'm glad you're feeling better. Head owies are no joke!

    ReplyDelete
  3. SanSeptember 12, 2016 at 11:34 AM

    Oh damn, concussions are no joke. I am glad you took it easy. Don't beat yourself up over the lower mileage. You gotta be safe.

    My week was kinda meh too. I had a solid run Monday and Thursday, but missed a couple of workouts over the weekend (life priorities!).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gretchen BraunSeptember 16, 2016 at 4:20 AM

      Thanks Sandra! And yes..life/health should always take a priority!

      Delete
  4. Kristy Sayer-Jones @ Southern In LawSeptember 12, 2016 at 1:56 PM

    It sounds like the weather has been so much better for your runs lately!

    It sounds like you had the right idea to take a few rest days after hitting your head! You can never be too careful when it comes to concussions!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Jennifer @ Dashing in StyleSeptember 12, 2016 at 5:12 PM

    It doesn't sound like you lost any fitness with your rest days, and it's better to take time off for your health. Glad everything's okay! Yeah, I think everyone in the city was talking about/watching the Pitt-Penn State game!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Fairytales and FitnessSeptember 12, 2016 at 5:33 PM

    I was thinking of you when I heard that PSU lost!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Heather @ Polyglot JotSeptember 13, 2016 at 6:10 AM

    So sorry about your head! Hope you continue to feel better soon <3 Ive had a concussion once and I'll never forget the headaches and nausea!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gretchen BraunSeptember 16, 2016 at 4:22 AM

      Thanks Heather! It definitely wasn't fun, but it wasn't too severe luckily.

      Delete
  8. Jessie MSeptember 13, 2016 at 9:37 AM

    Things like this are exactly why I don't do housework. ;) JK, Saturday AM was definitely gross. Pro Bike + Run routed us through Oakland, so I got to see the masses heading out for the game. It was actually kind of crazy how many people were already up & tailgating.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gretchen BraunSeptember 16, 2016 at 4:23 AM

      Hah! I should use that excuse and see what Dan says..he'll probably tell me to quit being clumsy ;)

      Delete
  9. amanda -runtothefinishSeptember 15, 2016 at 6:21 AM

    how cute is that graphic of your training and where you train! Love finding ways to keep it interesting

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Relationship Rules I Broke (and WEDDING PHOTOS!)

Image
Happy Thursday everyone! Today I have a different type of post to share today.  I don't talk about relationships or my dating life much on the blog, but I'm switching it up today!  I got married last Friday, and I thought it would be fun to share some relationship rules that I broke while Dan and I dated. I'll also be sharing some wedding pictures!  We got married at the Butterfly Falls at the Hidden Valley Inn in Belize (more on the Inn in upcoming posts!), and the pictures turned out absolutely amazing.  Since we had a "just the two of us" ceremony, there's not much to talk about the actual wedding.  In lieu of a full post on that, I'll be sharing some background information on our relationship, along with wedding photos and some #ThrowbackThursday pictures.  I hope you enjoy (and I promise- back to running stuff next week!) Guys are immature, so date someone older I've always read in magazines (which, by the way, have the worst datin
Read more

Towpath Half Marathon Recap

Image
Hi everyone and Happy Tuesday!  Today I'll be recapping my race this weekend, the Towpath Half Marathon.  Overall, I had a great experience at the race and would definitely recommend it!  Before I dive into the mile-by-mile recap, I just wanted to give some overall thoughts and reviews of the race as a whole. The Towpath Marathon features three races- a full marathon, half marathon and 10k.  All three races are in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park, but all run different courses.  The half and 10k start at the Brandywine Ski Resort, while the full starts at the Boston Mills Ski Resort (where the expo is held). The course is mostly on a narrow crushed limestone trail that is relatively flat.  There are a few sections that were paved and a few small walking bridges that provided the only real inclines.  It's really hard to pass people (particularly near the turn where it's two-way traffic) since the trail is so narrow. There are a lot of water stations, and each o
Read more

Review- Group Power

Image
Happy Weekend everyone!  Today, I'll be doing a review of another group exercise I do at my gym called Group Power !  Let's get right into it. First off, the description in our program guide is "This 60-minute barbell program strengthens all your major muscles in an inspiring, motivating group environment with simple, athletic movements such as squats, lunges, presses and curls." I don't exactly look like this when I'm curling..but you get the idea! Let me tell you, this is one intense workout!  For the entire 60 minutes, we're constantly moving and lifting and by the end I'm a pool of sweat!  We work out all the major muscle groups - Legs, Chest, Triceps, Biceps, Glutes, Shoulders, and Core with light to moderate weights.  We also use a step to do exercises like chest presses and split squats. For each song, we focus on one muscle group, and do a variety of exercises with lots of repetitions, set to the beat of the music.  The tempo of the
Read more