Many people do their speed sessions on Tuesdays, and while I really love being a part of a big group of friends who encourage each other through grueling sets of 800ms, it works best for me to do my speed workouts on Thursdays. I do my longer midweek runs on Tuesdays.

I love having a scheduled run on Thursdays evening. I usually run at night, and sometimes by Thursday evening after a long week, it was really easy for me to cut mileage off of my longer runs. After a tough speed session, I can lean into a recovery run on Friday, and then be ready for my long run on Saturday morning.

Here's what I did out on the track:

• Warm Up - 2 miles easy (I ran in a hill neighborhood and got lost)
• 3 x 1-mile Tempo Run with 4-minute recovery jog (my fastest mile was 30 seconds faster without me realizing it, my first mile was in said hilly neighborhood so it was a tad slower)
• 8 x 200 m run at Mile Race Pace with 200 m recovery jog (I was three seconds faster - no problem)

This was a great way to start off a new month. In early February, I finally felt good enough to run consecutively during the week. At first, I was frustrated; my legs were super tight and I found I required one more rest day than I have in the past. Then I took a step back and looked at my mileage.

This summer and fall I averaged about 205 to 180 miles a month. Then in November, I ran 117, December's total was 51 miles, and January added up to 81 miles. February's grand total was 153 miles. All of my long runs in January and February have been completed on the trail, which means lower mileage than road running, but more time on my feet. I will go through and figure out the time breakdown soon.

I forgot that you can't just jump right back in after three months of not doing much. I would think anyone who did was nuts and asking for an injury.

I actually listened to my body this time around, took a break when I needed it, and realized that easing into increased mileage is D U H .... necessary.

I was super proud of my Track Thursday this week. I felt great and recovered beautifully.

Healthy running is exhilarating. I forgot how fun it is!

I am currently training for Gnaw Bone 50K which is on May 13th. Fingers crossed I can stay healthy until then!!