Early mornings and double runs - Training Log (Sept 22-28, 2024)
This was a fun training week.
It involved early morning training sessions and some double runs. I felt pretty good and was able to combine higher running mileage with some short swims and weightlifting sessions. I slept a lot, which helped me recover and train harder for my moderate and faster-paced runs.
This summer, I reduced my running mileage from roughly 100-120KM/week down to 50-60KM/week.
Currently, I am slowly re-building my mileage. Last week, I completed roughly 85KM of running volume. My goal for this week was to increase my mileage slightly and run mostly in Zone 2 (70% of max heart rate). Additionally, I wanted to complete some threshold sessions and moderately paced runs.
Here is an overview of this week’s training week.
This week, I completed 90KM of running mileage and a bit over 3.5KM of swimming. I woke up around 4:30AM on most days so that I could train despite a pretty busy work week. The runs felt good. But I was pretty destroyed when it came time to swim. So, my swimming pace was slower than usual. But I was happy that I was able to fit in some swims.
My resting heart rate was where I like it to be: around 35-36 BPM.
And I was able to sleep 7.5 or so hours per night, which was nice. In my view, sleep is one of the most underrated factors that can improve training and facilitate recovery.
Here are some graphs that unpack my training week and include:
Running mileage
Average sleep
Average heart rate
Swimming volume
I finished this week’s training with a 5km second run of the day in 46 degree Celsius (115 degrees Fahrenheit). It was very hot. And I am very happy that tomorrow is a rest day.
My training overhaul (which you can read about in part 1 here and part 2 here) has produced some positive benefits. My pace per kilometre continues to improve. I feel much more comfortable running at a faster pace in Zone 2. I used to run at roughly 5:15/km at a 130BPM heart rate during my higher mileage phases. Now, I am closer to 4:50/km at a 130BPM heart rate. Weight training and threshold sessions helped a lot.
This week, my goal is to complete another 80-90km week. The following week will be a periodization week.
During periodization, I reduce my training volume by 50-70% for one week so that my body can adapt to higher training loads. I also periodize before I increase my mileage during the next 3-4 week training bloc. Periodization helps me avoid injuries, such as stress fractures or other overuse injuries. Also, I find that most of my training improvements occur during periodization.
For my next training bloc that will begin in a couple of weeks, my objective is to run roughly 100KM/week.
Hopefully, the afternoon temperature continues to drop.
All views expressed in this blog are my own and do not constitute any form of medical, nutritional, physiotherapy, or other type of advice.
They do not represent — and are not endorsed by — any academic institution.
