July Summary

Runs - 23
Workouts - 5
Injured - 0

The Bad: Work got busy because of last minute changes yet again resulting in lost training. Could I have planned better for this? To an extent, yes, but 13 hour work days take their toll after only a few days.

The number of times I visited the gym was much less then I wanted it to be. Some of this has to do with sleeping in on intended workout days from the long prior work day. My focus has also been on running and if I only have time for one work out a day, it's going to be spent on my feet, not pushing weights.

The heat! Makes running in the afternoon extremely difficult. Makes sleeping at night (with no central air) down right miserable and easily explains the lack of consistent sleep I've gotten. Should follow the dogs lead and sleep in the spare bedroom in the basement.

The Good: My recovery from the SJS50 has gone really good which has made shifting into my current training cycle extremely smooth. With that said, I'm even more glad in hindsight that I did not sign up for the PPM. While completing the distance wouldn't be an issue, I just don't think I would have been sharp enough, mentally and physically, for the demands of that race.

For the first time all year, I also like each of my runs has a purpose or goal. Early in the year, my runs were simply a long run and a bunch of shorter runs. Pretty much a lack luster base build up. Now there's the long run with a focus on distance and pace and Shorter runs with a focus on speed, tempo or recovery. Even though the number of miles or runs I'm getting in per week hasn't change, the focus on specific workouts has been extremely refreshing. This always seems to be the case for me and hopefully bolds well in Steamboat.

Bottom Line: With 6 weeks left till Steamboat, I have a 3 more weeks of hard running followed by 3 weeks of taper. Which fits in perfectly as those 3 weeks of taper fall right in the heart of our forecasting period. A brief 2+ week period that will no doubt burn me out mentally. So as August begins, my main concern is not staying healthy or running my needed miles, but rather staying mentally sharp going into my last race of the year.