This is week 7 of half marathon training for the Honor Run Half Marathon in Florence, KY. I’m using Hal Higdon’s Advanced program for this one. If you want to register for this race, use this link, and try using code “BIBRAVE15” for $15 off, courtesy of the fine people of and affiliated with BibRave (note that the link IS an affiliate link, the BibRave code is just one I’ve seen on Twitter and I get nothing if you use it… so you might as well use it!).
Monday: 4 x 0.5 mile @ 10k pace. Ran through Friendship park and back to and around the Bengal’s Practice field. This is an area I know well (if you’ve read this blog, you’d recognize this!). However, something seemed up with the watch this morning – usually 1 mile is at the turnaround, this time it was way after. Then my watch kept telling me paces that seemed very slow for how hard I was running. Well, I wasn’t crazy, it was off. The half mile splits were kinda all over the place – 3:40, 3:26, 3:47, 3:29. There was a lot of fog out and I had a lot of difficulty keeping my glasses clear enough to see through. In fact, interval #3 had a slow patch because I was running a road on the opposite side of normal where there’s no sidewalk, and I couldn’t see the edge (I thought I was going towards the middle 😲). Overall, 5.26 miles in 43:34 (8:17 min/mile pace).
Tuesday: Recovery Run – 3 miles + 7 strides. The humidity kicked up today, but ran the Purple People Bridge and back across the suspension bridge, finishing my 7 strides in Sawyer Point. 4 miles in 33:56 (8:29 min/mi).
Wednesday: Tempo Run – 45 min. Kept it along the river because it’s mostly flat. Humid weather again. The tempo portion was 5.65 miles at a 7:58 min/mile pace, overall was 7.15 in 58:11 (8:08 min/mile pace). Unfortunately during my shower, my wife contacted me because of a family emergency – her mother is in the hospital.
Thursday: 4 HM Pace. Despite my multiple checks, my wife sent me to work. Weather was humid and legs were a little tired after yesterday’s tempo run. The HM portion was 4 miles in 32 minutes, a pace of 8:01 minutes per mile (a few seconds slower than my goal range). Overall, 5.5 miles in 45:21 (8:15 min/mile pace).
Friday: 1:45 3/1. The weather laid off the humidity a little and the temperature was lower, which was nice, but at this point my legs were more than a little tired. The first 3/4 was out along Eastern Avenue and covered 8.87 miles in 1:18:45 (8:52 min/mile pace), and the last quarter – which was supposed to be at HM pace – was 3.17 miles in 26:15 (8:16 min/mile pace). Overall, 12.05 miles in 1:45:00 (8:43 min/mile pace).
Saturday: Recovery Run – 3 miles. Ran a few late loops in the neighborhood. The weather was a tad warm, but a little less humid than earlier in the week. It was tough, my quads are a little sore from the week. 3.07 miles in 26:14 (8:33 min/mile pace).
That’s the end of a tough week. 37 mostly tough miles to start October. Next week isn’t any easier, it’s similar to this one with speedwork, tempo, and an HM pace run. The only differences are the specific intervals and the long run isn’t a 3/1 run.