Week 5 -6 (Half training)

Well I recovered from my cold in time for Halloween. I had to skip my scheduled speed work out at the track and picked up my training on the following Thursday.

Week 5
4-mile tempo run: 4 miles, 0:32 mins (8 mi/mile)
I followed that with a long run on Saturday. I woke up around 8am and had a bowl of oatmeal. It was a flavored instant packet and it tasted pretty bad. I think there was too much sugar in it. I waited about an hour and then headed up to San Vicente to start my run. When I got there I realized I had left my Nike+ thing at home and wouldnt' be able to determine my pace, not a huge deal but a little discouraging. About a mile into i'm not feeling good at all. 2 miles in I'm seriously thinking about calling it a wash and turning around. I take it mile-by-mile and just focus on getting through to the next. I eventually start to come around a little and end up finishing in a little slower than I would have liked, but it was good to push through a tough situation. I think it was a combination of being sick the previous week and my breakfast not sitting well.
Saturday Long Run: 10 miles - 1:32 (9:11 mi/mile)

Week 6
Speed workout: Pretty tough. After having a difficult preceding week I really hoped to feel better and home run the track workout. I ended up going out to fast and had to dig deep to finish on time. I'm not positive I made all my splits coz I was just so out of it after the first couple 800's that I wasn't paying close attention to my time. I know this is not good and I probably should wear a watch with a lap splits for the track. I plan on buying myself a heart rate monitor that will double as a watch. Maybe next week.
Stats: 4x800 @ 3:42 each w/ 2 mins rest in between.

Tempo: 8 miles
Another really challenging workout. I enjoyed my route quite a bit, but it's tough to get motivated when you get home and it's already dark and you have to resist the temptation of just plopping down on the couch and eat the dinner that's already cooked and ready when you get home.
But I managed to drag myself out. I got a good music playlist together and headed out. This was tough! 8 miles at 8:00 min/mile pace is no joke! This was the fastest i've gone at this distance. I really had to push the last couple miles. And at about 7.5 miles I got a serious stomach cramp that stopped me in my tracks. Not a regular cramp where you can run through it, it felt like I got kicked in the stomach. I managed to walk it off and then started up again and still made my pace + a few seconds/mile. I felt a little weird when I got home, like I probably pushed it a little harder than I should have, but after a lot of water and a warm meal I felt better.

Sunday Long Run: 8 miles
My legs were still feeling a little sore from Thursday! But I headed out very slow and enjoyed being out in the crisp cool air. I ran in a few neighborhoods i've never been to before so it kept it interesting. I ended up doing a very hilly route which was great. I had to really pace myself to get my heart rate back. The LA Half is a little bit hilly. The biggest hill is at 7 miles and there are a few rollers towards the end.