It was a beautiful day, but I really wasn't feeling running quite yet, and my bike is still in the shop getting a tune up. It was a clear call for my favorite type of lazy day exercise - the elliptical. Not the the elliptical can't provide a good work, but it's an option, not a given. I did 50 minutes of hill intervals with Self magazine, got a bit sweaty, and learned how many calories snowboarding burns. Perfect.
It was also clearly my lucky day, and I got the last yoga ticket. I was able to do warrior 2.
 |
| A good teacher always provides visuals |
I don't know about you guys, but when I got to the beach, I plan on doing nothing but yoga poses all over the place.
Being back to normal, I went for a five mile run this morning. After a big race, I like to leave my Garmin at home on my first run. I know it's going to be slow, so no use getting depressed over the specific numbers, especially on a beautiful Friday morning. On my run, I realized maybe I wasn't back to normal. It was harder than it should have been. I never knew running could make my arms hurt, but they are still on fire. Could that be why GORUCK recommends actually training with the pack prior to the event?
My entire goal for this week was to recover from GORUCK, so any exercise prior to Sunday is a bonus. I'm less than three weeks out from the half ironman, so I'd be tapering at this point anyway. I think I'm as trained as I'm going to get. While this week may look (and feel, for me) pretty pathetic in terms of training, I'd rather fully recover than jump back in and feel tired at the HIM, which is my goal race.
It's amazing how much more I am looking forward to a weekend when it doesn't include a night of torture.
How long do you like to recover after races?
I usually don't take very long to recover, but I also don't run races where I have to haul around bricks and jump in the mud.
ReplyDeleteHopefully the whole week! With lots of my favorite food and coffee.
ReplyDeleteOne day of either easy or off per mile raced is the rule I was always taught. Of course once you get to ultra territory it just seems a little excessive, am I right? I'm old though so I feel like I take ages to get back to training form. Enjoy the Half Ironman taper!
ReplyDeleteI don't think I could do your race schedule. GORUCK followed by HIM sounds brutal. You are one tough cookie!
ReplyDeleteI don't know how you did this, but I actually really want to work out on the elliptical now. I used to love reading on that thing. I haven't done enough racing to know much about recovery. After my marathon I felt okay in a couple of days but had an ankle injury so I ended up resting far more than I think I really needed to.
ReplyDeleteI hear you don't need your arms for a half iron anyway, so you should be ok.
ReplyDeleteSmart to fully recover. Every time I read about your workouts, I feel like a slacker.
ReplyDeleteI miss having access to an elliptical. I've always thought about buying one for those lazy "I don't want to run" days, but then I'm a cheap bastard.
ReplyDeleteI think you're supposed to run with your legs, not your arms. You might want to rethink your technique. :)
Sad to hear that! Don't let that dampen your activities in any way, though. Aching arms and whatnot are localized problems and there are designated treatments for those. Hope you're doing fine now. All the best!
ReplyDeleteJacqueline Hodges @ Back and Neck Center of Brick