Lessons Learned from Summer Training

In the month of August, I ran 148.9 miles total. Yes, it did pain me not to run 1.1 more miles, but I also knew I was doing a long run on September 1, so didn’t feel like pushing past my training plan. Anyways, I’ve only run more miles in a month 6 times before- and only one of those was during a summer month. I’m just thankful that while I’ve had some really awful hot runs, much of August has not been as hot as the typical Virginia summer. Here are my lessons learned from this summer. Some of them are not new, but I always need a reminder…

1. Humidity WILL slow you down. How much depends on the humidity level, the temperature, and how much you personally are affected by it.  If I look up what a certain heat and humidity are going to affect my pace, I can pretty much add another 30 seconds to a minute to whatever they are saying.
2. Early morning running is a necessary evil. 8 miles done before 8:30am is kind of cool, but not cool enough to make me happy about it. 
3. Having a treadmill during the summer is just as important as having one during the winter. Or, if you are a cold weather runner like me, it’s even more important.
4. It is possible to sweat enough to have to wring out my skirt and have water dripping from my pony tail. In fact, I’ve had to tuck up my skirt because I couldn’t stand the feel of sopping wet material on my legs. 
5. Sometimes you have to run by “feel.” A lot to my workouts this summer had a designated pace. On the hot and humid days, if I’d actually run what I was supposed to, I would not have finished my run. I slowed down and focused on hitting the right level of effort. Judging by previous years, as the temp drops, I will find my pace dropping faster than just the weather change would indicate. I believe this is because while I may not have been hitting 9 minute paces, my body was working as if it was and suddenly come October, it will actually happen.

Bonus: Having someone to run with makes those runs that are 3 minutes PER MILE slower than expected a whole lot more bearable.

September is the big month of training for Marine Corps Marathon. I’ll continue with Hansons, which means longer mid-week runs. I’ve also signed up for two half marathons, Ragnar DC, and a local race the day after Ragnar. The best part of that is that this week is my last unsupported long run! Woo hoo!

I’m joining Running on Happy and Fairytales and Fitness  for the Friday Five 2.0 linkup!