51 Beats Per Minute

That's what my resting heart rate was measured at a couple weeks ago. I definitely can't remember taking my pulse at any time in my life where it was less than 60 bpm. And quite honestly, I think most of my adult life it's been typically around 70. My running over the past three years has dropped it down to 51... less than a beat per second. My heart has clearly gotten more efficient thanks to all this endurance training, though not to the ridiculous efficiency of the likes of Lance Armstrong. The cancer survivor and Tour de France phenom has a resting heart rate in the range of 32-34 beats per minute. Think about that. His ticker only ticks around once every two seconds. Beat-Pause-Beat. Amazing!

So this week, my mileage picked up. I ran 4 miles both Monday and Wednesday while incorporating a strength workout on both days. And on Tuesday I ran 7 miles. I felt good all three days, although my right Achilles tendon felt pretty sore after my Tuesday run. Thankfully, some extra stretching did the trick, and it felt great on Wednesday.

Annoyed with running in the same rhythm time and time again (at marathon pace or slower), I decided to open it up a bit on Wednesday. So after running the first 2.7 miles at a 9:15ish pace, I turned it up a notch for the final 1.3 miles kicking in a 8:00-8:15 pace. And it felt good. Comfortable. And I wasn't winded before, during, or afterwards, which was a big confidence booster.

Today, my hamstrings were a bit sore. Most likely from a mix of picking up the pace yesterday, the strength program, and the increased mileage. Still, as always, it was a GREAT day of rest (Thou shall not train on Thursdays). Still, I'll have to make sure to stretch well before my 7-miler in the morning tomorrow. And then it's ON for 14 on Saturday. Giddyup!