Several Reasons Why This Was a Great Week

This week was a great week for so many reasons. Since I was on vacation from work, I was able to get more running in than usual! Sometimes I have visions of quitting my job so that I have more time to train but that's not going to happen anytime soon. So why was it a great week for me?

1. My training included several types of runs this week. This is how every week should be!

Monday-(Tempo Run) 8.53 Mile progressive tempo run which was done in the attempt to find my mojo. I don't think I have found it yet but I am trying my best to stay on top of my training.

Wednesday-(Strength Run) 11.25 Mile Hilly run with the girls. I thought I was going to be sore after this one but nope! I felt great the next day and wanted to go for a run but stopped myself.

Friday-(Easy/Base Run) 7.50 Miles at an comfortable/natural pace. It is hard to me to run at an comfortable pace because I am always short on time and in a hurry. Once I get home from work and finally make it to the gym, I am tired and just want my run to be done. When you have the time and energy, an easy paced run can be a beautiful thing. 

Sunday-(Long Run) 13.12 Miles in the form of the Camarillo Half Marathon. My race recap will be up shortly!

2.I ran a total of 40.46 miles which is a record month for me! This was only possible because I was on vacation from work. I usually run about 25-30 miles a week and I have just learned to accept that as a working mom it is really about the quality miles that I can put in. I don't believe in "junk miles" and just running to hit a certain weekly mileage if I can't make the miles count.

3. I survived my first race of 2014 and even though it was not a PR it was a true test of my strength as a runner. I struggled through it but am thankful that I was able to run it!

4. I have not ran on the treadmill since December 19, 2013! I have been on vacation from work since December 20, 2013 and I have been able to go on some "real" runs this whole time. I know that once I get back to work I will be back on the dreadmill but it was fun while it lasted. Maybe if I had the Boston Marathon Treadmill my whole opinion of the treadmill would change! Ha!

5. I got a new Fitbit Force for Christmas and I am having fun tracking my daily activity and sleep. My goal is to take 10,000 steps a day and I have been meeting or exceeding my goal almost every day.

6. I won a great giveaway from Christina over at The Athletarian! I can't wait to get all of this cute stuff! It has been a while since I have won something so maybe this is a sign that I am going to be lucky in 2014!

I feel like 2014 is off to a great start and I hope things stay this way. LA Marathon is just 9 weeks away and by no means am I feeling ready! I really need to get my tail in gear...

How was your first week of 2014? 

Anything exciting happen?