Week in Review

83 Miles
20.5M Long Run with 11 miles at 605, 600, 602, 558, 604, 608, 605, 602, 606, 605, 555
15M with 3 x 3 miles w/ 800m jog rest via 552/556/556 (3:28), 552/559/549 (3:45), 554/557/552
8 Runs, 0 Days Off
3 Rock Climbing Days
1 Lift Session

What a great week! I kicked off the week with my last day spent with some of my favorite guys - Nick and Matt - which included a rock climbing session plus some yummy dinner in Palo Alto.  The rest of the week was spent catching up on sleep, running a lot, and working and climbing more.  Coach T-Bone's plan for the week was somewhat daunting, but I managed to hit all the pace and mileage goals without a hitch!  Peter is gone in China for this week and next, so I figured I would take advantage of the free time by knocking out some solid miles and also taking some time to reflect.

I am in such a good place right now.

My training is going really well and I finally have friends to share the miles with.  I've created a solid crew to run with in the mornings (which is surprisingly a much more difficult feat than it sounds since Californians loooove to sleep in and run in the afternoon).  I've gained back the divorce weight that I lost during the roughest weeks and I look healthy again!

The first half of this year was one of the toughest moments of my life, but so far the second half is shaping up to be pretty fan-freaking-tastic.  I'm so excited to toe the line at Chicago in just five weeks.  It's such a privilege to be able to toe the line with so many professional runners and then also so many of my great friends.

Week In Review

83 Miles
11M MLR
14M with 8M tempo via 556, 612, 559, 554, 604, 600, 551, 555
23.5M at 6:59 pace
8 Runs, 0 Days Off

The marathon training grind really kicked off this week.  When Terry had an 8 mile tempo on the schedule for marathon pace, I immediately synced with Heather to see if her workout was somewhat similar. Fortunately, she had 6 miles at MP, so I hopped on board with her to that we could both mutually benefit from running together.  I continue to be amazed at the support I've found out here, both from a running and personal perspective.  I had a bit of a cold this week, and Heather just chatted away during this workout, keeping my mind off the struggle I was facing.  I felt bad because I couldn't respond with much more than "yeah, it's great" for most of the run.

On Saturday, Tom and Jenna joined me for portions of a time on feet long run where I had strict instructions to drink very little to no water.  I got a couple of sips just twice during the run, and I was grateful that I did if more just for the mental sanity it provided me.

I can't believe that Chicago is in just 6 weeks!  It became more real because some Bank of America associates came out to meet me at Rancho San Antonio for a photo shoot for an article.  Typically BOA features about 12 athletes who have really cool, inspiring stories related to the marathon.  Most of the folks are real heros, battling cancer or running with a handicap or helping save lives in other countries.  My story obviously isn't along those lines, but they wanted to feature me since I do work for Bank of America.  Ironically, while I've been extremely open about my divorce to everyone in both my work and personal lives, I didn't want to make that the spotlight for the piece on me.  So instead it's mostly about the injury leading up to the Trials, which was really just a small blip on the map compared to all the other junk that happened in the first quarter of 2016.

But I digress.  I'm so honored and humbled to be included in the BOA Chicago Elite field.  After all, I was rejected at least twice before to this program.  Over the years, Bank of America has supported my endeavors to pursue training for the Olympic Trials and also to graduate from the Duke Fuqua School of Business while working full time.  Even during my separation, when I felt like I was putting my career on the line by requesting to work from Durham for an undetermined amount of time, my manager came through and let me do it, no questions asked.  It's moments like those that made me feel like I truly mattered, not only as an employee, but as a person.  I can thank all of my current and past managers for creating that culture.  My managers have been completely supportive of me during my 8-year stint at this company, so it's very meaningful for me to race as a way of saying thanks for all that they've done over the past couple of years.

Week in Review

71 Miles
11.5M MLR
20 Miles LR in 6:52 pace in Seattle
7 Runs, 1 Day Off
3 Days in Seattle
3 Days in DC

So this wasn't exactly the week that I was hoping for from a marathon training standpoint, but I chose not to let it get to me. I've been on a whirlwind of a travel tour every weekend in August, so I'm happy that I'm still prioritizing my long runs.  I ditched my workout target (8 miles at MP) and opted instead to do a long run with Josh, a guy that I had strava-stalked through some mutual friends.  Running with Josh was a perfect way to get a full tour of Seattle while also taking advantage of the much cooler weather on the West Coast before heading to DC for Katie's wedding.

As an aside - have I mentioned lately how FREAKING awesome Strava is? I swear that Strava is the technology version of myself -- always connecting runners.  Caleb used to always say he was so impressed by my ability to recruit at least one other person to join runs.  He always expected a surprise person to pop up on our runs because of my tendency to be inclusive.  Strava has allowed me -- through segments and CRs -- to find folks that run near my current location AND folks who can run the same pace as me.  It's seriously the best.  It really pulled through for me in Seattle, as I did 20 with Josh on Wednesday and then 10 with Roger on Thursday.

After my work trip to Seattle, I flew back to SFO, where I met Peter and together we flew to DC for Katie and Torin's wedding.  It was such a raw, real and uninhibited ceremony.  I was so content to witness Katie and Torin reveal why and when they fell in love and then to celebrate with them at the reception.  It was so great seeing familiar Fuqua faces including Kishor, Claire and Randi.  It was a really great week, filled with lots of good friends!

Week in Review

74 Miles
14M with 2 x 2miles @ 602/600 (2:00 jog), 559/5:59 (2:03 jog), 4 miles at 602/553/552/556
12M MLR
20M at 7:00 average
2 days in Pacific Palisades

I'm sooo far behind on my blog, but this was my first full week back to training after the SF half!  I shuffled my long run to be on Friday so that I wouldn't have to worry about knocking out a 20-miler when I was in LA with Peter.  It all worked out quite nicely because I helped out Max on his last long run before Santa Rosa while, at the same time, getting in a solid effort for myself.  I also found a new workout buddy - Jonah - who has proven to be in quite stellar shape!  He kept me company for the 8 mile workout at Marathon Pace and  I was so excited when he blasted past me on the final mile.  I FINALLY found a dude that I can run with and together we can help each other achieve our running goals! #WINNING

Got the Plan!

Taken by Andy Chen of Indigo Photography

In this picture above, I'm contemplating what my new training plan looks like!  With just under five months until the Trials, my coach Mark Hadley already has put a lot of thought into my plan leading up to January, 14 2011.  I received it today and I felt like a little kid on Christmas.  The focus for this training cycle will be to boost both my lactate and aerobic thresholds so that I can enter the race feeling strong and fit.

What does that mean exactly?

Well, one example is that I want to be able to run more repeats but with shorter rest than I had last year.  For instance, let's say that in 2010 before Twin Cities I ran 6x1000m at 3:25 with 2:30 rest.  This year I want to be able to run 8x1000m at 3:25 with 2:00 rest.

There were two new additions to my training plan this time around that added a lot of value.  Given my work schedule and travel to visit family and friends, Mark has prioritized my three workouts in order of importance.  That way if a workout needs to be tweaked or dropped because of a travel mishap or tired legs, I'll know which workout I should really focus on that week.

The other enhancement Mark made to my plan was to include a new type of work out.  It seems like the 3x3 mile workout is out and that the "wave" work out is in.  I'll be doing two types of wave work outs - a 5 mile and a 9-10 mile.  In the 5 mile wave, I'll alternate paces every 800 meters with a faster pace and a slower pace.  During the 9 mile wave, I'll alternate paces every mile between 615 and then 545.  These two workouts sound like they will really help me increase my focus throughout the entire workout instead of just a boring 9 mile tempo.

When it gets within 10 weeks of the Trials, I'll be doing lots of mile repeats, tempos, and long runs.  I'm excited to put in lots of miles with my friends over the next coming months as the training plan unfolds and the journey continues.

60 Min Tempo Flop

Goal: 60 min at 615-620 pace
Actual: 50 min at 610 pace

Mr. Stephen Spada is always reliable for a midweek tempo since it's part of his weekly training cycle so I reached out to him yesterday to organize a tempo together. The plan was for this to be my last big marathon workout before Twin Cities in just 12 days. I was surprised to find Jordan in the parking lot when I arrived because he just came back from a two week adventure from DC to California to Providence. Regardless, I was excited for the extra company. We would start from our respective McAlpine locations at 530 and run towards each other and then the tempo from Old Bell and circle through the flat trails of McAlpine and Margaret Wallace.

From the get-go, I never felt comfortable with the pace. My stomach was sloshing and I felt sluggish. It's ironic how much better I felt last week doing a 60 minute tempo AFTER ten miles of warmup! Anyways, what went wrong? It was completely dark in the woods, I had to pull off after five miles to make a pit stop in the woods, and after the pit stop I battled with my stomach cramps the rest of way. Since I've been running for about 14 years now, I know my body well enough to know that it is not worth it to push through an extra 10 minutes. As soon as my Garmin beeped for mile 8, I slowed to a jog and cheered Jordan and Steve on for their final leg.

Splits
1 - 6:12
2 - 6:13
3 - 6:10
4 - 6:08
5 - 6:15 (turnaround, bathroom break)
6 - 6:12
7 - 6:12
8 - 6:04

Steve, of course, dominated as usual! It will be exciting to see what he gets at NYC.

I am crossing my fingers that what happened today will not happen on race day. These things happen every so often and I'm glad it happened today because maybe it will get everything out of my system by the time the gun goes off in 12 days. I didn't eat the typical large salad the night before my workout, so this could be why I was experiencing stomach problems. In the end, I can just hope that everything falls into place.

Now begins the real taper time...65 miles this week with a 13 mile long run and a day off. Next week will feature one workout and then it's go time!

Solo 800m Fartlek at McAlpine

Goal: 8x800m with 200m jog rest at 240-245
Actual: 8x2:45 with 1:00 rest at 245-250

Well, this was my first solo workout in Charlotte in a long time. Usually if I'm working out by myself it means that I'm out of town, but this just shows what happens when all of your running buddies are either (1) running the Blue Ridge Relay, (2) running the Davidson half, (3) injured, (4) too fast for you. Again, I switched work out dates around to accommodate for my sore calf and for my newly busy social schedule which included dates with the boyfriend. Instead of working out Friday, I slept in and did this work out on Saturday morning at McAlpine. In an effort to keep my calf as a loose as possible and so as to not worsen its current condition, I vetoed the track and opted for the trails at McAlpine.

I warmed up five miles and then programmed my Garmin to beep at me every 2 minutes and 45 seconds for the interval and every 1 minute for the rest. In the end, the first 4 intervals were directly into the wind, and the last 4 interval were with the wind at my back. Since these were merely based on effort, it's hard to tell how fast they actually were, but I felt smooth and controlled. The garmin told me I was running 250 pace for the first 4 and then 245 for the last 4. This is slower than what I've done in the past at McAlpine, but I was working against both the wind and my own mind since I was solo. In the end, I'll take it because my calves are still in good shape and didn't knot up any more!

Once I finished the workout, I drove back home to do more things that a typical couple does, like learn how to use the TRX training system with my boyfriend and go on a double date with Jay and Lauren. Great times!

Adding the Tutor to the Mix

Goal: 3x2 mile at 610, 600, and 550 pace ave with 2 min rest
Actual: 3x2 mile at 610, 550, 542 pace ave with 3 min rest

While two of my regular training partners are out of commission (Meagan Nedlo has an injured foot and Thomas Eggar is getting trained in OKC), I've been scrambling to find workout buddies during the week. Of course in order to find people, I used every tool in the book to convince two guys to come work out with me. Okay...so that was a lie; I barely had to lift a finger. To get Lat out, all I had to do was email him and switch my workout day from Tuesday to Wednesday to accommodate his work travel schedule. To get the newcomer Eric Bilbrey out, all I had to do was ping him at work via MS Communicator. Eric also happens to be really smart and talented in tutoring schmucks like myself on the GMAT. I am so grateful to have found both a tutor and a new running buddy! It seems that as this training cycle progresses, I want to give back more and more to people for all the good things that they've done for me!

All in all, it worked out better for me because it gave me more time to nurse my calf back to its normal form. I was out the door at 6am to meet the guys outside of Rebecca Thomason's house so that we could run on the two-mile Dilworth Speed Loop. Since all three of us had run from our respective houses, we were all warmed up and ready to start the workout.

Splits:
1: 12:20 (613, 607 for 610 ave)
2: 11:40 (551, 549 for 550 ave)
3: 11:25 (542, 543 for 542 ave)

Overall, I was very pleased with this effort because of the consistency of pace throughout each set. I was able to run with both the guys on the first two sets. On the third set, I "gave Lat permission" to take off, and he waited until the second mile to do so. Eric, who had fallen off a couple of meters, pulled himself together in the final 400m to speed past me and try to catch Lat. While the boys had a negative split for the third repetition, I still maintained an even pace, which was exactly my intent. It was great to have company for each of these as it would have been much tougher mentally to do this on my own.

Life as a Minor League Player's Girlfriend

I've decided that the best thing I could have ever decided this spring was to run a marathon. Other than the obvious reason that I love running, the other main reason why I decided to start training for a marathon is that it would serve as a way to preoccupy myself while Garrett played baseball for the Astros. I knew that I needed something to keep me absorbed with my friends' lives, to take up time outside of my normal routine to to keep my mind from missing Garrett. After thinking that he was getting back to the Carolinas on September 1st, to then thinking he was getting back on September 10th (ish) to then thinking he was getting back on September 14th, a combination of great friends and marathon training is really what kept me sane.

In the end, it's the best for both of us. While I'm off running 22 miles at 530am, he's sleeping on a bus en route to Troy from Batavia, NY. He gets to experience being in a playoff Championship Series while I get to run more than 10 hours a week (excluding stretching, drills, driving etc). Running combined with a new job and studying for the GMAT, I'm a pretty busy girl. However, now that Garrett's official arrival date is September 15th, instead of arriving right in the middle of my marathon specific training, he's coming during my tapering stage, which means less time for running and more time for hanging out with G!

Here's what Garrett does:

Here's what I do:

To wrap up one of the final weeks of marathon training, I decided to go out with my longest run yet - 22 miles - featuring a 9.7 mile tempo in the end. Fortunately enough, it was quite easy for me to find some company for this as I met a large group of guys at the Huntersville Business Park - Steve, Jay, Paul, Mike, Bill, Adam, Nathan, and Derrick. I will note that I dearly miss my favorite female training partners - Meagan Nedlo and Megan Hovis - and that it would have been fabulous to have had them out there.

I woke up at 440am to get all prepared, and drove over to Jay's house so that we could carpool together. We arrived 4 minutes early and everyone was already there, ready to go before 530am! Nathan and Bill guided us around the Huntersville neighborhoods before the sun came up and we averaged about 7:45 pace for 10.5 miles. We made a pit stop back at our cars for some gel and water before we all started the various tempos that we had on tap. Bill was kind enough to have marked the course with pink spray paint that was extremely visible to people like me, who had never run out here before. The plan was for me to go on the 12 mile loop with Mike, Bill, Steve, and Adam starting at 630 pace and dropping down to 615. Since I only needed 60 minutes of effort, Mike was going to signal for me to turn at a spot that would cut off about 1.5 miles from the 12 mile loop. My goal was to stay as relaxed as possible and to really focus on my breathing to keep it controlled. In the end, I accomplished just that even though our pace dropped pretty quickly after mile 3.

Splits

1: 642

2: 645 (after this split, Mike took off for mile 3 and we all stayed with him)

3: 558 (panic moment)

4: 603

5: 612

6: 603 (Beigay gapped Steve and I here)

7: 607 (Steve and I working together)

8: 601 (from mile 7 and on, i was on my own because I turned a different way)

9: 600

.69: 406 (600 pace)

Average: 6:11 pace

Average for 7.7 miles: 6:02 pace

As you can see, we went out very relaxed for the first two miles and then dropped a hammer on the third mile. Admittedly, I did have a slight panic moment for about 2 seconds and then I focused on what I wanted to accomplished today - feeling almost effortless with controlled breathing. That must have helped me because I felt great the rest of the way. Steve, Mike and I settled into a nice grove together for the first 5 miles and then Mike began to gap Steve and I. From miles 6-7 Steve and I worked together on a big highway. Really, Steve just blocked the wind from me and I took advantage of my spot behind him. For the last 2.7 miles of the tempo, I was on my own since I went on a different route to shorten the course. I felt GREAT on this portion of the run. Once my watch hit the 60 minute mark, I slowed to a jog and ran enough miles to log 22 for the day.

Overall, I am extremely satisfied with this workout. I think that Mike is really going to shine at Twin Cities and it will be a fun trip to share with so many Charlotte people that have been an integral part to my marathon training this fall (Mike, Bill and Adam). A huge thanks to Nathan Stanford for taking pictures of us and for providing bananas and Gatorade.

Marathon Specific Phase at a Glance

With just one week left in my marathon specific phase, I was curious to see the breakdown of what I've done since July 26. In a nutshell, I've hit pretty much hit all my targeted paces on workouts and did all of my long run distances. One thing that I did skip out on was doing Marathon Pace tempos for a couple of miles in my long runs. Most of these decisions were based on how my body was feeling.

Mileage since 7/26 with long runs

7/26: 80 miles / 20 mile long run
8/2: 78 miles / 19 mile long run
8/7: 80 miles / 21 mile long run
8/14: 70 miles / 14 mile long run (down week with a 10k race)
8/21: 83.7 miles / 19 mile long run with a 15 mile Marathon Pace tempo
8/28: 80 miles / 18.5 mile long run
9/6: 83 miles / 22 mile long run with a 10 mile MP tempo

I'm really pleased with the consistency shown with the mileage and long runs above. This week will feature my third long run over 20 miles, so I will will have a solid base under my feet come race day in 24 days. I also hit my weekly mileage by doing only one double a week, so the majority of my runs were over an hour. I've been fortunate enough to have stayed healthy throughout this entire phase. Currently, I'm nursing some tight calves back to life, so I'll continue to monitor that to ensure I continue to stay healthy. It's all about making smart decisions now.

After this week, my mileage will dip back down into the 70's and then starting the week of 9/20 I will begin tapering for the big day. I'm excited to travel with Mike Beigay and Bill Shires. Although it saddens me very much that Megan Hovis and Meagan Nedlo will no longer be participating, I'll have a good time with the guys.

Simulation Run

Goal: 15 miles at Goal Marathon Pace (6:18) and learn how to eat Gel and Gatorade on the run
Actual: 15 miles at 6:11 average and choked down the Gel and Gatorade

Before I go into the details, it would be most appropriate to start this post by thanking everyone who came out to support me. Major kudos to Jordan Kinley, who ran with me the entire way, showed me how to pinch a cup of gatorade, explained the basics of eating Gel, and provided words of encouragement when my breathing was getting wacky. Not to mention four other huge workouts that he's helped me out with, I'm fairly certain I owe Jordan about 48 beers or so by now. A trip to Costco is in order. Shout outs also go to Billy Shue, Stephen Spada, and Justin Breland for jumping in with me for numerous parts of this workout. Finally, Mark Hadley and his son, Bryce, were the best water boys I could have ever asked for by jumping around to three different locations to ensure that we had gatorade or water every 3-4 miles.

I also cannot leave out the other Charlotte Running Club members that were out there for a run, who cheered my entourage on during difficult portions. It's so amazing how much the running community has transformed since Fall of 2008 compared to today. I feel like we are all part of a team, each of us happy to help the other succeed.

So now I need to start at the beginning. The night prior to this, I ate everything as though I would before my marathon in five weeks. I had a big spinach salad and then a nice bowl of whole wheat pasta with sesame tofu . Obviously in Minneapolis I won't have my own kitchen, but I plan on going to Whole Foods and eating something from the hot bar. If that fails, Olive Garden is always a nice alternative.

The next morning, I ate a bowl of oatmeal approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes before "start time" and drank tons of water. I hopped in my car to meet Jordan, Mark, and Stephen at McMullen. Steve and I ran around for about 9 minutes for an easy 1 mile warmup and I explained the course: to run to the Starbucks on Rea Road, and then run two loops around the big Church and back past the Starbucks until we looped back onto the course again. It would be a perfect 15 miles. The loops around the Church were hilly, located around miles 6-9 of our run. Soon, Jordan arrived and we started promptly at 7am.

Splits:
1 - 6:36
2 - 6:20
3 - 6:10
4 - 6:16 (taking a gu)
5 - 6:15
6 - 6:07
7 - 5:58 (uphill on Rea Road)
8 - 6:00 (downhill/flat near Starbucks)
9 - 6:02 (uphill on Rea Road)
10 - 6:02 (back onto the McMullen Trail
11 - 6:20 (taking a gu)
12 - 6:10
13 - 6:09 (1:21:40 half marathon split)
14 - 6:10
15 - 6:01

I don't want to bore you with an analysis of each mile, so I'll summarize the main themes.

1) Stay under control. We went out great for the first two miles - 636 then 620 - but then dropped to a 610. On race day, it is critical that I stay around 615-618 pace for those early miles so that I can run the 605-615 pace miles later and feel more relaxed. Also, even though today I felt great on the hilly portion of the run around miles 6-9 and dropped some 6 min miles, at Twin Cities, I'd rather not run 6 min miles until after the halfway point.

2) Eat gel slowly. I took the first Honey Stinger Gel too fast, but it didn't bother my stomach. I dreaded taking the second Honey Stinger and Jordan instructed me to take it slowly, even over the course of an entire mile, and I wanted to chuck that Gel onto the path and stomp all over it, but I didn't. I'm really going to have to will myself to take those things.

3) Stay relaxed. In miles 11-14 I started to tense, which affected my breathing. Given the fact that I will not have the luxury of Jordan coaching me how to relax, I will really need to focus on keeping my body relaxed so that my breathing will stay controlled during the final miles of Twin Cities.

4) Positive thinking. At one point, I really wanted to call it day at the 13.1 point of the workout. Come race day, I need to keep the end in sight and repeat the magical words that Jordan told me today: "Only 20 more minutes of running, only fifteen more minutes of running, etc".

5) Place gels in safe spots. Keep a Gel in my bra, but not on my hip. The one on my hip fell off after two miles and I was fidgeting with it from the get go.

In the end, I didn't have any bathroom issues (my stomach kind of hurt at the end, but it went away after I cooled down three miles), so that was a success. Obviously, I still need to run 11.2 more miles to get a marathon in, but this was a good indicator as to where my fitness stands and what my realistic goal can be going into the marathon on October 3.

Unfortunately, I am writing this 15 hours later, and I can't sleep because my stomach is growling so much that I had to get up to eat more food. Even though I feel like I consumed tons of food, apparently I miscalculated that one...Off to eat my toast and peanut butter with flax seed....

The day before the simulation run, I paced Meagan for a 5:30 third mile of the Greek Fest 5k

Three Miles Repeats - Take Two!

Goal: 3x3 miles at 605-610 pace with 4 min rest
Actual: 3x3 miles at 18:53 (640, 613, 600), 18:17 (611, 618, 548), 18:00 (607, 606, 547)

This morning Mike Beigay was kind enough to meet up a little bit earlier than usual (for me at least) at 530am at the Dowd YMCA. This meant that I needed to wake up before 5am so that I could be out of my house at 518am to run the 1.5 miles over to the Dowd and meet him. For the first time in a while, our workout group was just a pack of 2. Lat Purser joined in eventually, but I'll get to that later.

Mike and I headed down Morehead and onto Kings to conclude our warmup in front of the tennis courts. Since the Booty Loop is just shy of 3 miles at 2.88, we wanted to push our starting line back so that we didn't have to go through the stop light at East Blvd and Kings. Turns out we picked the perfect starting line because we ended just short of the traffic light.

Mike and I came out to the Booty Loop on the assumption that it would be as well lit as a modern city should be. Well, we were wrong. We took off on the first set and realized immediately that Queens Road has 1 street light every 400 meters. This made it for a tricky footing situation as we trekked up the Queens hill in the pitch black. To make matters worse, when cars approached, their headlamps blinded us so that all we could see was a beam of light. This explains the 640 first mile split. Hey - at least we went out relaxed! On the flat portion, we cruised to a 613 and then closed on the downhill mile with a 600. I could tell by Mike's breathing that he was relaxed and controlled.

After a swig of water, our 4 minute rest had already ended and we took off again, with just enough light so that we could see the divots in the sidewalk. Again, on this set I felt relaxed and controlled. I felt my glutes and quads in the second mile of this set, and both Mike and I were startled when someone came sprinting behind us. Lat Purser was our surprise accomplice who had chased us down from the start of this set. He conquered his first interval and we cruised to the finish. I still couldn't hear any labored breathing coming from Mike. He was on fire!

For the third set, we ran a negative split perfectly. Mike warned me before the 2 mile that he was going to take off for the third mile, so for the last mile I was by my lonesome, but it was fun watching Mike switch to a different gear and watching Lat react. I didn't feel nearly as spent after this workout as I did the last time, so I feel like that it a step in the right direction. I'm pleased with how the workout turned out and I don't feel nearly as exhausted as I expected I would.