The second week after the half marathon
The second weeks cool down after the 5 week half marathon training and half marathon.
During week 7, I am still taking it a bit easier to strengthen my Achilles tendon. I started having issues when I tried my first half marathon and prior to that as well as in week 5 of my training. At the start of week 7, I could feel minor pain in the Achilles tendon. At the end of the week, I had no pain. I probably had pain at the start of the week as of Saturday prior week 7 I did a gym workout and trained my legs and calves as well. Running speed, water running, healing methods on week 6, and swimming, I believe, helped with getting the Achilles tendon pain to disappear. Now I was able to enjoy the runs again and gained some kilometers for week 7.
Runs of week 7
Monday: 9 kilometers ≈ 5.6 miles (speed: easy)
Tuesday: 10 kilometers ≈ 6 miles (speed: easy)
Wednesday: 5 kilometers (speed: easy)
Thursday: 1-hour swimming
Friday: Running on the water 30 min + swimming 30 min
Saturday: 8 kilometers ≈ 5 miles (speed: easy)
Sunday: 10 kilometers ≈ 6 miles (speed: easy)
- with easy speed I mean speed which I’m able to speak easily and heart rate is slower than 140 beats per minute.
Why did I do water running? I won’t bother to explain it myself as I found a great resource from the internet which explains my reasoning:
Aqua Jogging or water running is a form of low-impact exercise that has been used as a method of rehabilitation for runners with injuries because it allows the muscles to exercise without interference from gravity. However, aqua jogging is not just for rehabilitation. — Runsociety
Why is water running so great for you?
It has been found that water running provides a cardiovascular workout equal to that of actual running and can keep you in shape while you are undergoing rehabilitation. Aqua jogging is beneficial for injuries such plantar fasciitis, shin splits and tendinitis. The buoyancy during exercise gives you the ability to maintain your exercise regimen without the stress of gravity on your muscles and joints. — Runsociety
I believe water running helped with my Achilles tendon issues. I was running the whole week slowly to train my base level. My challenge is, I tend to run too fast all the time. The base-level is the foundation for long-distance running. Slow runs are not all there is in base-level training, but it’s part of it.
If you want to learn more about base-level training, I believe the following article is something to take a look into:
Is Your Concept of Base Training Wrong? Why the Base Training Phase is More Than Just Lots of Easy Running — RunnersConnect
