Well, this week was interesting and low on miles. Going in, I knew I wouldn’t have much time to run this week. And getting a long run in over the weekend would  be next to impossible. The lack of miles wasn’t for a bad reason, but for a wonderful one. Darren’s little sister got married and so instead of running the rolling hills all weekend, we were running all over to  make sure everything was perfect for her big day. I’m pretty sure I got a good workout in from dancing though, so that counts, right?

Anyway, the two days I did run were great. I ran Monday with Elayna at Mastick. Mastick has always been one of my favorite places to run, and with the heat, it was the perfect place to stay in the shade. Tuesday was an intended day off and Wednesday was supposed to be my tempo day, but with some many things to do before we left for the weekend, it turned into a second day off. This left me with the option of running Thursday morning or Thursday evening before driving 2 hours South. So Thursday evening I decided to challenge myself and run my tempo run on the hills, and what a challenge it was. Hills can be tough in general, but trying to keep the same pace, both uphill and downhill for 5 miles straight is hard. Add in the humidity and it made for one of my hardest workouts yet.

Monday: 4 Miles

Tuesday: Off

Wednesday: Off

Thursday: Tempo-5, 9:34, 9:51, 9:36, 9:18, 9:29

Friday: Off

Saturday: Off

Sunday: Off

Total Miles: 9 Miles

I’m really looking forward to this week, not only is it a 3 day week followed by a 4 day weekend, but it’s race week and long run week! The 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays, so naturally I will be rocking the ProCompression 4th of July socks on Thursday at an early morning 5k. I also have 4 days to get my long run in, which leaves me with plenty of time to enjoy the long weekend.

What I learned:

• Life happens. Sometimes things get in the way of running. I knew ahead of time this would be a low mileage week, so I planned ahead. You’re not always able to get in every run, but that’s life.
• Tempo runs are still hard, I’m doing better at pacing, but I should be hitting my splits closer together. This is something I still need to work out.
• Hills aren’t bad. A year ago, I despised hills, now I enjoy running them. Any time I can power up the hill and still feel good at the top I know I’m getting stronger. The more I do now, the easier they’ll be come race day.

Are you running a race on 4th of July? How do you celebrate the holiday?