8/24-8/30 Consistency

 8/24 rest

8/25 11 around Gaston MS

8/26 11 around Gaston MS

8/27 11 around Gaston MS

8/28 11 around Gaston MS

8/29 20 miles around WRL to Baylor

8/30 20 miles around WRL to Baylor

Total 85 miles

Overall the week was good.  Felt good on the weekday runs and Saturday had a big heat wave.  The 20 miler yesterday was tough, ended up with a headache due to the heat.  But today it was completely different, rained for most of the run and it was nice and cool, even had a jacket on the whole time!  The miles seemed good and I was able to continue with getting the mileage I want.  The 85 was a good number for me as I did 90 the previous week.  In two weeks will do the virtual Boston Marathon, so with the mileage I'm feeling assured.

Consistency

One of the things I'm learning especially with the pandemic is the importance of routine.  I reflect back in the past and see that many times I would try and find certain workouts or certain things to implement in order to experiment with.  As I get older and gain more experience, I'm starting to see the importance of Occam's Razor, in my case keeping it simple works.  As you have probably notices if you have read some of the past weeks, all the mileage looks very similar with little modification.  I got asked this morning when I was doing tempo workouts and my answer was I wasn't.  My goal right not is to keep it simple and focus on the mileage.  Once I get closure to some of the races and it starts to get cooler I will likely start to add some of faster paces depending on the racing schedule I start to develop.  But as of right now I just want to keep a consistency.

I'm learning that regularity trumps any workout that I can implement, and the simpler I make it the more likely I am to get it done.  I'm looking at 2-3 year long term plan so some of the work that I'm doing now is for that longer vision plan.  This is turn has helped me not let down, due to factors that I cannot control.  For example, I cannot control which races get canceled or which races will be held; but one thing I can control is my training and my mileage and as long as I control that then when the races do start to be held in person I know I will be ready.

Looking Ahead

I'm excited as the cooler weather approaches and I go out to low 70s F.  Even if I do not race in the fall, I certainly plan to enjoy the fall and winter and hope to be ready for races when they return to in person.  My confidence is gaining as I continue to be consistence and I think psychologically this is helpful as it give me momentum to stay with the mileage.  Confidence and consistency go together and I'm starting to see the relationship.  Also I cannot thank my training partner enough for the back to back 20 miles on the weekend.  Knowing that I have someone that is as motivated as I am to get 40 miles on the weekend definitely helps with my motivation. We all have challenges and set backs, little injuries or challenges that we face, but keeping each other accountable has helped. I certainly miss the races such as the DRC club races, but realize that those are things that are not in my control.

Final Thoughts

I'm learning that consistency is important and the best training plans are those that get done.  I'm looking forward to cooler weather and feel confident as I continue to get the mileage.  I'm starting to look at potential races for the fall/winter, and I'm excited to see that there will be several options available at least for now.  In a normal year summer racing wasn't as common for me due to the weather so I think this has been a good time to train.

Don't remember the year of this picture put it was one of the DRC club races.