Runs:

Sunday, August 18

7.5 miles.  12:04 per mile.  Strides: 161 per min.  Heart rate: 158 bpm.  Temps: 80s-90s deg F, humid, sunny.

This was probably the hottest, most humid run of the year for me.  I kept speed in check because I was getting overheated.  I made the (probably for the better) decision to cut two miles off and head directly for home rather than refilling water around 6 miles, because at that point I was already feeling dehydrated and the sooner out of the heat the better.  (I was not dizzy yet, but not far from it).  The run was ok.

I ended up mowing the grass in 90+ degree heat shortly after I finished running, but seemed ok.  (Rehydrating with water and electrolytes is pretty effective for me).

Monday, August 19 – Hilly run

8 miles.  13:16 per mile.  Strides: 158 per min.  Heart rate: 134 bpm.  Temps: 80s-90s deg F, humid, sunny.

I intended to do a long run, but decided to skip it this week.

This run was very hot and humid, and I was dealing with bloating, cramps, and other monthly annoyances, and it was the 4^th day on my new thyroid meds, so I decided not to torture myself with a 3 hour run.

Despite the slow speed, this was a really good run, I worked in several hills, and even had a FedEx lady say that I was “inspiring” as I slowly jogged up a long, steep hill.  (A hill that I normally will walk parts of, but have lately been running the whole thing – It is a very intimidating hill).

Tuesday, August 20

6.5 miles.  12:50 per mile.  Strides 159 per min.  Heart rate: 137 bpm.  Temps: 80s-90s, humid.

The humidity was very high, so I just did a nice, easy, very sweaty run.

Wednesday, August 21

8 miles.  12:01 per mile.  Strides: 162 per min.  Heart rate: 133 bpm.  Temps: 70s-80s deg F humid.

Much better run than the previous day.  Pace was good.

Thursday, August 22 – Hilly run

8 miles.  12:18 per mile.  Strides: 162 per min.  Heart rate: 145 bpm.  Temps: 70s deg F.

This was similar to Monday’s hilly run, but temps were much cooler and (un)surprisingly I did this one a bit faster.  My seasonal allergies are again getting out of hand.  Breakthrough allergies (I take zyrtec everyday which keeps them to a minimum, but sometimes a zyrtec and some flonase is not enough).  Decreased lung function from allergies made the 446 ft of ascent much more difficult this time around, and more labored breathing than normal.

I’ve been feeling tired on my runs lately, but I’m guessing the heat, humidity, lower iron levels, new thyroid meds are all playing in to this.

Friday, August 23

8 miles.  12:01 per mile.  Strides: 163 per min.  Heart rate: 143 bpm.  Temps: 70s deg F.

Just another 8 mile run of the week.  I am still feeling tired, it is still hard to breathe.

Saturday, August 24 – Two runs 

1.25 miles.  10:26 per mile.  Strides: 165 per min.  Heart rate: 154 bpm Temps: 70s deg F.

+ 3.1 miles.  11:30 per mile.  Strides: 163 per min.  Heart rate: 151 bpm Temps: 70s deg F.

I had three nephews’ soccer games to watch this morning, so I had to modify my normal running plans.  I ended up squeezing in a 1 mile run around the soccer fields in between games around 11:30 am, and then was so tired in the afternoon, but part was probably from spending 4 hours in the sun.  Anyway, apparently when there are hundreds of people around (not watching me), I make myself run faster for some reason.

I wanted to get in 4 miles to finish out the week above 50 miles, but afternoon fatigue hit hard and I didn’t get out until 4:45pm to do the second run, and oh boy was I tired on that run. 

I used to do almost all my runs in the afternoons and evenings, and now I do them all in the morning, and when I try to run in the afternoon, I feel like I’ve been hit by a train.  Hypothyroidism makes these afternoon runs feel awful, and this one did.  I miss my afternoon and evening runs, and I hope one day it won’t be like this.

Running wrap-up.

1.)  I skipped a long run this week.  Maybe not the smartest decision 5 weeks from the marathon, but the 3 days after my 20 mile run last week I wasn’t feeling great, the humidity this week was supposed to be high, and my iron levels were plummeting as they tend to do.  One missed long run probably isn’t going to hurt me as much as overtraining will, so I think this was the right decision this week.

2.)  Total mileage was down, but weather and other issues made this a good week to keep mileage lower.

3.)  Weight is back up!  But there are reasons for this (bloating due to monthly cycling, bloating due to humidity), and I don’t think fat gain is one of those reasons.

Total miles this week (August 18 – August 24):  61.74 miles (down 9.2 from last week)

Total steps this week (August 18 – August 24):  127,110 steps (down 20,080 from last week)

Average steps per day (August 18 – August 24): 18,158 steps (down 2,869 from last week)

Total running miles this week (August 18 – August 24):  50.48 miles (down 7.09 from last week)

Average running speed this week (August 18 – August 24): 12:18 per mile (45 sec faster per mile than last week)

Average resting heart rate this week (August 18 – August 24): 62 bpm (up 4 bpm from last week)

Elevation gain this week (August 18 – August 24): 2,093 ft (up 551 ft from last week)

Total miles this year (2019):  2134.7 miles

Total steps this year (2019):  4,374,000 steps

Average steps per day (2019): 18,533 steps

Total running miles this year (2019): 1,699.89 miles

Average running speed this year (2019): 12:19 per mile

Average resting heart rate this year (2019): 59 bpm

Elevation gain this year (2019): 57,038 ft

Current thyroid medication: 150 mcg/day levothyroxine + 5 mcg x 2 times a day liothyronine. Started on Aug. 16, 2019. 1^st full week on new meds, still getting used to it.

Weight, weight fluctuate

Weight: 156.4 lb (up 0.6 lb from last week).

Weight January 1, 2019: 158.3 lb

Weight change since Jan 1, 2019: – 1.9 lb

Previous week: August 11 – August 17, 2019

Next week: August 25 – August 31, 2019