Amazing workouts this weekend

The weekend started with a long run on Saturday morning. The 8.5 mile run was on the same loop I did last weekend on the desert trail.  

I am getting used to the new shoes I got maybe about a month ago.  Made an adjustment in them using my own footbeds inside. I write about these footbeds here shortly, but I have used them in the past and that's one of the reasons I have gone back to them. Sure I have tried and used others, but these are the best I have found out there. 

Back to the weekend of training. 

I worked on getting my heart rate in my Zone 4. I kept it there for the majority of the run. I got in a groove and just felt good out on the trail. Cooler weather was nice as I was able to get out about 15 minutes before the sun rise. Nutrition and hydration where both good. I was able to get in an extra half mile over my previous run out there in the same amount of time. 

I looked forward to a group cycling ride Sunday morning for my recovery. A slow, max speed of 16 MPH group ride. The 26 miles helped my legs recover well. A few hours after the ride, I joined members of my family for a "Leg Day" workout. Using dumbbells and other weights along with resistance bands. Doing wall sits, walking lunges, squats and lateral side steps. Last week's leg workout had me sore the next day. Today, I recovered from it pretty well. Not sore, but a little stiff. All good and felt great getting these workouts in. 

Working on resistance band workouts and looking forward to some shorter runs this week. 

Solid Weekend of Training

A great solid weekend of training.  I am getting more fit, getting my heart-rate in my Zone 3 for long periods of time and feeling more comfortable. It’s a little bit of a stretch to get it into my Zone 4 and keep it there, but I am working on it. 

My weekend workouts are my longer ones keeping my shorter cardio workouts and weight sessions during the week. 

Last weekend I was able to get a seven mile run in on Saturday. It was very hot and muggy early in the day, but got it done. Followed it up Sunday with a 34 mile road ride with some good climbing. A 3.5 mile hill climb to be in fact. Bouncing back from the workouts is getting easier. 

I worked this weekend on fueling a little better than last week. Hydration played a key roll in Sunday’s ride. 

To help me stay on top of my hydration game and keeping cool, I really relied on heavily the use of my Spruzza Mist system. The hill climb had me going around 8 MPH so a lot of the cooling air effect wasn't kicking in. The added misting I did, spraying both my chest, opening up my jersey in the front, and misting both sides of my head and ears really kept me from over heating. I knew early on in the ride, I was going to be using it a lot with the hot sun rising as fast as it was without cloud cover. 

It’s amazing what either a new pair of shoes can do or not running in “zero-drop” shoes.  I can’t tell because the shoes I have been running in the past year are really broken down, or the “zero-drop” shoes they were made my legs sore. After wearing and testing out a new set of kicks on Saturday’s seven mile run, I recovered very fast and didn’t feel it the next day. 

I should have done this a long time ago, but just kept putting it off. 

Training is going well and I am very happy where I am at this point in the game. 

More training focused and feeling good

Getting comfortable being uncomfortable, it's all good

If you monitor my social media at Twitter or Instagram (@timhakr), I guess it makes it official. I signed up for the 14 mile Xterra trail run at San Tan Regional park this November. 

I have been training for this over the past few months getting my lungs and legs in shape. Officially signing up for it makes me accountable for my training now. 

This past weekend I was able to get my longest (LSD- long steady distance) run in so far. It was a little cooler than normal due to the monsoon storm the night before. The storm also made it muggy.  I was able to get the 6.25 miles in.  

Standing water cutting off access to some trails, due to the monsoon storms 

This is normally a smoother incline, yet water has cut a big divot in it. 

I turned around the next day and did a cross training workout of mountain bike riding of 16.42 miles. The monsoon rains this year have really affected the trails out here. The mountain bike trail/hiking trails in Usery Regional park were either washed out or the rains and winds have changed them a lot. A few trails were not accessible due to standing water. 

This week started adding a little bit of strength training into the mix and other drills. 

I have a few mental goals I am aiming for and I will touch on those in future posts, so follow along.