Balanced Training

I'm finally settling into a nice, balanced training schedule. Not really a schedule, more like a challenging and reasonable weekly set of runs. No formal plan. Run some fast (with variety), run easy, and toss in a long run. Leave the ego for races. Training is meant to prepare you for races. At times that means I run rather slowly. And maybe not that far. All good. There are times for fast paced runs and times for long runs. Everything needs to be kept in perspective and balanced.

With 5 weeks left to the Illinois Half-marathon race, I'm feeling good about my fitness. I've managed to build a solid aerobic base, with a touch of speed, and I've thrown in a 5K trail race. I'll have a 10K race in 2 weeks. I'm backing off speed work for this week to rest and push the endurance side a bit more. More miles at a slower pace. Probably more hills too. Again, I'm balancing endurance, stamina, speed, and strength workouts. Balance is crucial to remain injury-free and improve race fitness.