Second Program: Week #9

Week 55: Second Program - week 9 out of 15

Week settings:

• Area of focus: Cardio-Strength
• Number of training days: 4
• Limitations: none
• Last week feedback: "Hard, but ok"

Training:

• Monday: Ares standard x2 (16:46* -First time)
• Tuesday: Kronos standard (48:39*)
• Wednesday-Sunday: sick days
• Monday: Atlas standard (22:12*) +Kentauros strength 4/6 (26:37* -First time)

Statistics:

• 3'209 points
• 114 minutes

Week 9 was mostly made-up of strength-focused workouts.

It started fairly lightly with a Ares x2. While x2 or x3 workouts usually represents a steep increase in difficulty compared to the single version, it's not the case for Ares. 

So far my best Ares standard time is 07:46*. Multiply it by 2, it gives you the theoretical time of 15:26*. My first attempt at the double version, was done in 16:46*. 
My actual time was 01:20 above the theoretical one. Which means that my pace wasn't completely off the mark during the second iteration. The first explanation is it's a short workout with short sets, so there is less of a stamina issue (Hades x2 is another story). But it's not the only factor (Metis is short workout, yet everyone will agree that the x2 or x3 versions are much harder). What makes a world of a difference is the 60s breaks every round. It provides enough time for the body to recover, making the double work load less relevant.


Tuesday, I started getting a bit of a sore throat but decided to train anyway. Again I had to perform Kronos. Again I was far for pre-Summer PB, but at least my time had improved by ~20s versus my last 2 attempts (49:07* & 49:08*).

I don't know if the effort from training made things worse, but my sore throat quickly evolved in a throat infection. The following 4 days I was completely unable to train. This completely ruined my training schedule. I was really eager to re-start training as fast as possible to catch-up with my program (especially since now the coach subscription only last 15 weeks, with no buffer for missed days). Sunday I started feeling better, but preferred to rest in-order to fully recover before restarting training. 


To offset the impact of these 5 lost days, I decided to complete my 2 remaining training days on the following Monday. And depending on my physical shape afterward to skip the rest period in-between weeks 9 & 10.

Completing Altas standard & Kentauros strength 4/6 back to back under a pouring rain was a rough session. I just told myself that this was as if I had organized my own little Hell Day. It's a once-in-a-while spike in effort. Just get over it, and you won't think about it once the regular routine comes back.
At the end of the day I was tired, but felt well enough to start directly week 10 on the following day.