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Summer 2015 Training Plan: Early Quality

The Foundation and Injury Prevention Phase of my summer 2015 training just kind of flew by! the 5 runs a week looked really intimidating, especially since a lot of them would be for #5amRunClub. But, I got through most of it!

I’m pleasantly surprised by how strong I feel after this base re-building phase.

Up next is the Early Quality phase of the program which marked by the introduction of interval work. This period also has a modest increase in mileage. When I went through this phase last summer, I started well but didn’t get in all of the quality workouts. I feel like being committed and diligent about getting the quality runs in will help me significantly. 

My Early Quality Phase of training for summer 2015

I’ve decided to shift my “long” runs to Saturday morning. In Phase 1 I kept the weekends clear, but I don’t think I can get away with that anymore. I do have to train for a full marathon, and the long runs are absolutely obligatory.

And you can probably see there’s an awful lot of strength training. My personal trainer at Goodlife wants me to train 3 days a week. It’s a time crunch more than anything else. I’m 100% committed to coming Tuesdays and Thursdays, but Wednesdays double-up with the Running Room group runs. I have been going back-to-back on Wednesdays, but that seems to rob both of a bit of gusto.

There is one highlighted run in this phase, the Toronto Sprint Spartan Race on Saturday, July 18. I mentioned here how I won a free entry from Nicole. I’m looking at this race rather cautiously. I have studied race reports and obstacle descriptions, and think I can get through most without too much worry. However, something like a climbing wall or monkey bars could get me injured which is my only worry. 

As much as I love my Tai Chi Classes, I will be glad when they’re over because I’ll have some time to spare. The balance training, meditation, and working through my joints is great, but since I feel so buried in other things, it will be nice to have a free afternoon.

I’d like to to more stretching and foam rolling, but it’s tricky to find the time. I usually finish my morning runs with little time to spare because I have to get ready to dash off to work. And after evening workouts I’m rushing to get to bed. But, I do acknowledge how important recovery activities are, so I’ll need to squeeze them in somewhere.

It’s going to be a hell of a phase! I hope my discipline and motivation hold! I’m going to need tight motivation to be ready for the upcoming Transition Quality phase!