The next week is over and it was already the fifth. So it's also slowly approaching the half. It was the second week after the break and I raised the distances quite a bit. Because I have to increase. And that was absolutely ok. I coped well with it.
However, I have changed the interval training a bit. So far, I have always orientated myself on the pulse, but it was always difficult to reach the appropriate heart rate. I always had the feeling I was giving everything, but my watch still said I was too slow. Since this week, I've been trying to orient myself to the pace. It is less strenuous and I'm not even getting close to the heart rate I had before. Now it's time to find out over the next few weeks whether the principle works. But I take it as a good signal that it is no longer so easy to reach the high heart rates, because that means my body has already adapted to the burden.
What was harder for me this week than usual was the second run in section 2. I did it outside sober and had been to donate blood the day before, where I was also told that my performance would go down over the next few days. Of course, you shouldn't actually train again so soon after. But I know my body and I know that it can cope. But the combination of all points (sober, zone 2, blood donation) pushed me to my limits more than I thought. Luckily it wasn't 30°C on top of that.
In general, I notice an improvement and increase in performance. I get better from week to week. And of course my body is also changing. My fitness watch tells me that my resting pulse rate has already dropped quite a bit. But when I was asked if I was an endurance athlete when my blood pressure was measured, I was confirmed once again. It's not just the values that tell me I'm getting better, but also my body. I feel good. I feel ready.
At the same time, I also know that I must not get a high now. That there can still be setbacks that can throw me, my training and my performance off track. The fact that things have gone so well so far is luck. Or my learning from last time. I'm also grateful to my body that it's coping so well with everything so far and I'll continue to take care of it.