Perfectly cooked?! Try not to feel. Saturday 10 am- Monday 6 am.

(shorts, tank, bra, shoes, socks)

This workout really excited me because I wasn’t too far off from my paces last year for this same workout, and I felt really, really good. My buildup this year has been much shorter than last year, so I think I might be going into St. George perfectly cooked:).

We started with a 4-mile warm-up up the canyon, used the restrooms, and got ready to start the workout.

A kind samaritan helped me in the parking lot. My only caffeine gel wouldn’t open, so she let me use her car key to open it. This cannot happen during the marathon!

Our first interval was 10 miles long (we were going to do 3 x 5 miles but then switched it to 10 & 5), and the first 4 miles were very downhill and then pretty flat and some slight downhill (perfect for St. George training). I had two friends that I chatted with for the first 6 miles, and then they went ahead for the last 4. I probably could have gone up with them, but I wanted to stay at ‘marathon effort’ and not race this workout. I averaged a 6:13 (6:08 last year) and felt good. The biggest problem with this portion was running through a campsite with many fires, and my asthma went crazy with that. Luckily, it was short-lived, but wow, that smoke set things off.

I was happy to run into a group of friends at 9.85 miles into the 10-mile tempo.

Jess saved me with her Apple Pay on her phone and bought me a Gatorade at the gas station; I needed electrolytes. Maurtens don’t have enough electrolytes, and this saved me.

We ran easy for a mile and then set out for the 5-mile tempo through town, and somehow, we only had to stop at one light for 3 seconds. I was happy to manage a 6:17 average for this portion and felt strong.

A 2-mile cool-down and home by 9:30 to switch places with Andrew for his mountain biking adventure.

Twenty-two miles @ 6:56 pace with 1,116 ft up and 1,622 ft down. I finished my 4th 70-mile week and am happy to be in the taper. I have 60 miles this week.

PS reminding myself to stop thinking about how I was feeling worked wonders. I paid attention to not going too fast (and maintaining marathon effort), BUT the second I started thinking about anything going wrong… I told myself to try not to feel. THIS WORKS.

Andrew had donuts for us when I got home. Remember when I would only eat apple fritters?! I feel like I am not always choosing maple bars.

Andrew was able to mountain bike at Sundance.

And then, when he got home, we went to Brooke’s soccer game.

A date night on Saturday.

My favorite was the beet salad on the left, and the fried cheese curds (sounds weird but so good) dipped into tomato sauce.

The rest of the weekend was as relaxing as possible. I try to forget I’m a runner from Saturday at 10 am to Monday at 6 am because my brain needs a break from the training just as much as my body does.

Have a great Monday!

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Tell me a highlight or two from your weekend?!

Do you prefer a 2-week or 3-week taper?

Best gatorade flavor?

-Blue… glacier freeze.

Do you feel like you need rest days more physically or mentally or equally?