Mixing it up

Yesterday I just couldn't get out of bed at 5:10 am thanks to a small 3 year old who had a bad night.  I knew I'd regret it but I just couldn't do it so I went back to bed.  The rest of the day was very busy so I didn't manage to get my tempo run in at all.  

So this morning I doubled my 9 mile tempo run up with weights.  The run was 9 miles total with 5 miles at an 8:10 pace including a warm-up and cool-down.

Here's how it went down.  I ran a mile for warm-up then lifted weights for 30 minutes.  Then I ran another 1.5 at my normal pace.  Next up was 5 miles at 8:10 pace. A few miles into my tempo portion I was physically and mentally tired and still had 2 miles to go.  UGH!  So I decided to take it 1/2 mile at a time.  So with 1 1/2 miles left I put 2.0 incline on the treadmill for 1/2 mile, then back to flat for a 1/2 mile then decline for 1/2 mile and took my speed up to 7:30.  It was just mixed up enough to get me through.  Then I had another 1 1/2 miles to finish the full 9 mile run.  I walked for a 1/4 mile then ran my normal pace (6.7 on the treadmill). 

I saw this image on pinterest and it made me smile.  I wouldn't say it's true since I have a very specific workout to do when I'm at the gym on the treadmill and don't have time to race. Plus I'm usually next to the running girls so why race since we're doing the same workout.  But....if I'm not next to them I do like to know what those around me are doing.

 
Next run:  16 miles