Final week of my work project; well, final week and then going live. I knew going into the week that it was going to be rough. All of the preparation was going to mean really long work days. In a way, running a project is just like training for a race. You plan things out, you try and be as consistent as possible with your plan, adjust when things come up, then you have your race. So, the great news is that the project deployed without any major issues and now it will just be the maintenance phase and finish items that got pushed out.

In regards to my training, thankfully this is a taper week. I know, taper is just as important as any other training week. However, I did my best to get in some workouts. I did not get in much running, but I still got in some good workouts and on days I had the energy, I made sure to push myself. I am hoping for my schedule to start getting back to normal over the next week or so.

Monday 2/22

To start off taper week I had a 5 mile endurance run. I didn’t get done work until almost 10pm, so I just hopped on the trainer for 30 minutes. I didn’t even go very hard. I was too exhausted and was happy to get something in.

Tuesday 2/23

Today was a 7 x 600 meter speed workout. Again, I didn’t get done work until almost 10pm, so I did another trainer ride. I was extremely stressed from my work day and decided I would go for an hour to help reduce my stress. It worked wonders! This is going to be a rough week, but I am happy it’s a taper week.

Wednesday 2/24

Even though it was a rest day, I had hoped to get in one of my missed runs from Monday or Tuesday. I was just too tired. I did a 43 minute trainer ride instead and wanted to pass out during the entire ride. Once I got done my ride I was achy and overall not feeling myself, mentally. I decided some yoga might do me some good. I did an Apple Fitness+ 20 minute yoga session, Yoga with Dustin. That is definitely what I needed. It was relaxing and got me in a good headspace to conclude my day.

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Thursday 2/25

Nike Run Club had a speed workout of 5 x 400 meters. As usual for this week, I did not do my run. However, I tried out an Apple Fitness+ HIIT workout, HIIT with Bakari, for 20 minutes. It progressed nicely and got my heart rate up at the end. I was still a bit sore from my day, and the HIIT had me even more sore, which I was not expecting. Therefore, I then did another Apple Fitness+ workout, Mindful Cooldown with Jessica for 10 minutes. This got in some good stretches to loosen me up a bit, and then some meditation to bring me all the way back down. It was magical! I have definitely found doing Yoga or Mindful Cooldown after my workouts has great results.

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Friday 2/26

Instead of the planned NTC workout, we did house cleaning and I got in some strength training. It was not much, but it felt good to get in my basic core routine. The whole routine took about 16 minutes. It includes, bar hang, push-ups, squats, Russian twists, lying arm and leg extensions, and some lunges.

Saturday 2/27

I was way too exhausted from my week, plus today was my work project’s Go Live day. Therefore I was on call all day, having to jump in and out of calls. There was no way to get in my planned 9.75 mile long run. I barely had time to get any workout, but I fit in a 23 minute trainer ride. I did a short ladder, increasing the resistance then dropping it back down, keeping the same pace the entire time. It definitely helped take my mind off of things for a bit.

Sunday 2/28

For my Sunday rest day, I tried for my long run from Saturday. However, with not really getting in my runs all week and being so drained from the project, I was not able to get anywhere near the 9.75 miles. I stopped around 6.5 miles. I honestly couldn’t go another step. I was so exhausted. However, mentally, I felt amazing! I was so proud of myself for getting that much in given the week I had. As always I started off with my NTC Wake-up Warm-up and did my 5 minute warm-up walk. I am hoping to finally start getting back to a more normal schedule this upcoming week..