I recovered from last weeks Eastern States 20 Miler a lot better than I anticipated, which meant that last week was a really strong training week and a weekly mileage PR for me. I hit 64 miles, which is the most I've ever run in a week before. I'm feeling good too; my body seems to be adapting well to the increased training load. I'm remaining vigilant with the foam rolling and stretching every night and have been consistent with at least one cross training workout a week (would like to do more, but one is better than none). Here's what I did for recovery after Eastern States that I think made a difference in me feeling ready to continue my training last week as planned:

-Moved after the Race: I walked a 1/4mi to my car immediately after crossing the finish line to grab my bag of dry clothes and then a 1/4 mi back to the finish area. At first I almost didn't do this and was thinking of staying in my wet clothes to avoid the walk, but that walk really helped. It got me moving and I didn't lock up and get tight.

-Focused on Refueling: I drank a recovery drink (which I've never done before) immediately after the race and then really focused on getting high quality protein, fat, carbohydrate post race and throughout the day after the race. I also drank TONS of water and Nuun.

-Wore Compression: I wore my Pro-Compression socks and my CW-X tights that night and to bed. I think it helped with recovery.

Here's how last week's training breaks down:

Monday: Easy Shakeout/Recovery run after Eastern States. Still felt a little jacked-up from the race, because my pace on this one was way faster than recovery pace. But I just let my body go with it.

Tuesday: Easy/Recovery. My body was feeling much "slower." Took it easy and let the pace be relaxed. Could feel a bit of soreness in my quads.

Wednesday: Woke up at 5am to get in the run and just felt like my body didn't want to "go." Decided to take a rest day and be fresh and ready for Thursday. I opted to do a little core work, stretch foam roll and had a massage in the evening to work out some of the tightness and soreness from the race.

Thursday: Felt ready to run. Managed 13x400 on the road with 200 jog recovery. Paces on the 400's were on the high end of my goal paces or a few seconds slower than what I'd run at the track, but considering the race, the fact that I'm terrible at math-on-the-run (some of the intervals were long) and the incline on the road, it is too be expected that my paces would be a bit slower. I was pleased with the workout, finished feeling strong.

Friday: First real "spring" like day we have had. Ran 6 stroller miles with Jack and Sophia at a pace that surprised me and then 6 solo miles in the evening.

Saturday: 5 am wake up for a weekend long run isn't my favorite, but it gets the job done so we have the rest of the day to spend as a family. I took no fuel on this run as I do with most of my runs under 20 miles that start super early in the morning. I do this for a couple reasons: if I eat before an early morning run I'm almost guaranteed to be in the woods a few miles later and running without a constant supply of glucose (in the form of Gu) helps your body adapt to burning fat. Saturday's run turned into a slogg-fest. I felt tired and I was in the woods anyway thanks to Friday night's dinner (note to self: sweet potatoes and broccoli are not friends of running). I felt like I dragged myself home. Not every run can be stellar. This one was far from it. But every run counts. I ended up right in my long run pace range, although it felt slower and more difficult.

Sunday: Met up with an amazing runner and winner of the Eastern States, Larisa Dannis. Turns out we are practically neighbors and share a love of running hills. We met up for a hilly ~10 mile loop. The hills were challenging, but the miles seemed to fly by as we chatted. I'm not gonna lie, I was a bit intimidated to run with Larisa since she is so much faster (she ran Eastern States at 6:15 min/mi pace), but she was incredibly gracious and down to earth and reassured me that I could run with her. We had fun, the hills were no-joke but I felt strong. I'm eager to run with her again. The more I can run with other people (regardless of their speed) the more I can learn and the better I can become as a runner.