I'm heading into my last week before the taper starts. I can't believe it's that time already. Last year I felt like I was ready for it and I physically felt like needed it. This year, though, I feel great. I think it definitely goes to show there is a way to train smart, balancing out the hard and easy workouts. Last year I know I did way more hard workouts because I thought I constantly had to run hard and fast. While I'll be cutting back on total mileage starting next week, my sharpening runs will continue. I gotta get that 8:20 pace nailed down!!

In other news, I made a little purchase today. My sister wasn't using her treadmill since she belongs to a gym so she sold it to me. This is the treadmill I used 2 weeks ago for my 20 miler and I was really happy with it. One nice thing was that it doesn't stop after 60 minutes like the ones at the gym and when you stop and restart your mileage is never lost. I've been strictly running outside since last April and plan to continue doing so. But this is a nice little back up for those early morning runs when I just don't want to head out into the pitch black. And it will definitely come in handy when the ice storms come this winter.

Here she is, begging for some attention. Our little gym in the basement isn't the most welcoming space, but at least I have a tv, dvd player and a radio. Oooh, I just heard Andy tell his Dad he might have to check it out...I'll make a runner out of him one of these days!




Here's my schedule for the week:
Mon - 5 mi
Tues - 8 mi, with middle 6 at 8:20
Wed - 5 mi
Thurs - 8 mi, with last mile at 8:20
Fri - 5 mi
Sat - 20 mi
Sun - off