The countdown is on! With less than two weeks to go until Ragnar So Cal, I thought I’d share how my 3 Week Ragnar Training Plan is going! Here are the highlights of the first two weeks.
If you follow me on Instagram, you may know that the goal of my 3 week Ragnar training plan is simply to build as much strength and endurance as I can in such a short period of time. That means as much running as I can (without getting injured or over-training), and strength workouts, both in the gym and strength-building running workouts.
My 3 Week Ragnar Training Plan – Week 1
Actually, this will be more like week 1.5, so bear with the extra running talk, please. I’m starting back when I first learned I’d be joining the Ragnar Ultra team Skirts Go Commando, which was March 18.
I had expressed interest in joining the team over a month ago when the team captain was looking for someone to replace an injured runner. By the time I’d double checked with Alan to make sure we didn’t have anything planned someone had filled that space. I was disappointed but at the same time, a bit relieved. As a member of an Ultra team, I’d be running twice as far as if I were on a regular team. That’s close to 30 miles in around 30 hours. Yikes!
But, when the opportunity came up again, I jumped at the chance. Sadly, this time it was the captain who was injured, having broken her foot a week or so earlier. As the reality of what I’d need to do sunk in, I knew I needed to increase my mileage. Fortunately, I’d just run a marathon a month ago, so I had a pretty good base, even if I had been taking it pretty easy since then.
Ragnar Training Plan: Running
I generally run five days a week. I didn’t want to change that (this girl needs her recovery days!), so I’ve been increasing my daily mileage, running back-to-back longish runs to get used to running on tired legs, and increasing my long run distance. I also plan to get out for a short run after work a couple of days a week, just to get used to the idea of running in the afternoon.
How does this play out? Like this:
March 18-24
Monday: 5.11 miles
Tuesday: 6.11 miles
Wednesday: 5.02 miles
Thursday: 6.39 miles (Hill Repeats)
View this post on Instagram
Friday: Rest Day
Saturday: 12.01 miles
View this post on Instagram
Sunday: 4.35 miles
Total: 39 miles (and okay, that was six days, but, long story short, that’s just how it worked out).
I was feeling very good all week, though appropriately tired on the days after my hard workouts. My long run on Saturday was amazing. I kept a great pace without even trying and just felt good throughout.
March 25-31
Monday: Rest Day
Tuesday: 3.1 miles
Wednesday: 8.01 miles
View this post on Instagram
Thursday: 5 miles (hill repeats)
Friday: Rest Day
Saturday: 14.02 miles
View this post on Instagram
Sunday: 3.52 miles
Total: 33.7 miles
I’m still feeling good, though this week’s long run was a character builder. Still, I got it done. I would actually like to get in a few more miles during the week, but this girl must work and you know my feelings about running in the dark.
Ragnar Training Plan: Strength
In addition to my hill workouts, I’ve been doing two strength workouts a week, focusing on core, hip, and glutes, but also upper body and balance.
A Few Ragnar Relay So Cal Details
My team, Skirts Go Commando, will be starting at 7:15 am on Friday, April 12 in Huntington Beach. I’m runner #3. The team decided, before I joined, to do our legs back to back, so instead of a total of six relay legs, we’ll each be running three doubled up legs. For example, as runner #3, I’ll be starting with legs five and six (a total of about 10 miles). This is actually a good thing since it means packing only three running outfits (instead of six).
My toughest legs will be my last, 29 and 30, a total of 11.6 miles. They are actually the ones I’m looking forward to the most, though, since I’ll finally be running along the coast, in my old stomping grounds of Solana Beach, Del Mar, and Torrey Pines. If you’re interested, here are all the leg maps and elevations.
Next weekend I’ll be doing the Carlsbad 5000 All Day 20k! I’m looking forward to running this with Alan like we did last year. I think it will be pretty good Ragnar training too since running four 5ks in a row is HARD!
Coming Wednesday! I’m updating my Ragnar Essentials and Complete Packing List!
Will I see you at Carlsbad or Ragnar? Any tips you can add for my last week or so of training?
Weekly Linkups
My weekly linkups! Please stop by and check out all of the great recipes, workouts, and information that all these awesome bloggers share every week!
Meatless Monday with Sarah and Deborah
All About Running with Janell
The Running Coaches’ Corner with Marc and Me!
The Weekly Run Down with Deborah and Kim
I am tired just reading this. Seriously. You’re a running machine! Sounds like you’ve got this, though!