Week in Review

78 Miles
11.5 MLR
12 miles with down Ladder workout of 10-5-3-1-:30 on and 3-2-1-:30 min off at increasingly faster paces
1 Double
20 mile long run in 6:51 average
3 days in Greenville, NC

So it was Thanksgiving this week and I have a track record of running low mileage over holiday weeks because I get so consumed with the holiday spirit and lose all motivation.  This year was a bit different because I was able to get in a decent amount of miles in Durham before I headed to my in-laws' house in Greenville.  I had a lot of solo workouts and runs this week, which is definitely not ideal, but I still pulled my butt out of bed and out the door to get these runs in.  The workout on Wednesday was particularly difficult because it was like 40 degrees and raining and, to make matters worse, I didn't have any company to do this workout.  I managed to hit the target goals, but felt like crap the rest of the day because my body was still thawing out from the cold.

In Greenville, I spent my time hanging out with family, running and doing some last minute work for Duke MBA projects that are due in less than two weeks.  After enjoying some quality time with the new puppy, Greta, it was particularly hard to leave Greenville, but we ultimately did.  After all, we had a Wake Forest v. Duke football game that we could not miss!  For the first time ever, Garrett and I wore our Varsity Letterman jackets as well as our class rings that we received for being varsity athletes at Wake.  I'm actually quite sad that I had not busted out my Letterman jacket until now because, damn, that jacket is warm!

I topped the week off with a point-to-point 20 mile long run with 10 miles at steady state.  Billy joined me for the first six miles, then I ran solo for six miles and Garrett graciously biked alongside me for the last eight miles.  My stomach really ached this whole run, which made it pretty miserable and, afterwards, I was totally wrecked. I had high hopes of studying for my finals for several hours , but instead I was in bed for about 3 hours before finally mustering the strength to move.  My motivation to get out of bed was strictly driven by my insatiable hunger that I could suddenly no longer ignore.  Even though it may not have gone like my last 20 miler back in September, I was proud of myself for not quitting and for getting in the miles when every ounce of my body was telling me to stop.  If I do end up racing LA marathon, I'm beginning to lay the foundation that will help me be successful.  Up next, finals!